OREANDA-NEWS. March 10, 2011. Uzbek-Indian business forum and cooperation exchange was held in Tashkent within the visit to Uzbekistan of a delegation of the Federation of Indian Commerce and Industry Chambers led by Director of the Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India Dinesh Awasthi.

Participants of the session got acquainted with the prospects of bilateral cooperation in various sectors of economy, investment potential of Uzbekistan and the opportunities of collaboration, including within the Navoi free industrial economic zone.

It should be noted that Uzbekistan pays great attention to the strengthening of multilateral partnership relations with the Republic of India. The diplomatic relations between Uzbekistan and India were established in March 1992.

The legal base of bilateral relations consists of 42 signed interstate, intergovernmental and interdepartmental documents and agreements, including the Joint Declaration on Principles of Cooperation, Agreement on Interstate Relations and Cooperation, Agreement on Mutual Encouragement and Protection of Investments, Agreement on Avoidance of Double Taxation and Tax Evasion, Treaty on Mutual Legal Aid in Criminal Cases, Treaty on Extradition, Agreement on Establishing of Joint Working Group on Combating International Terrorism as well as cooperation agreements in the spheres of culture, tourism and air communication.

According to the intergovernmental agreement on trading and economic cooperation between Uzbekistan and India beneficial agreement in trade was signed. In 2002 the trade turnover between the two countries accounted for USD 40.5 million. On results of 2010 the bilateral commodity turnover reached USD 151 million, growing by 21.1% in comparison with 2009.

Representative offices of 18 Indian companies and organizations, carrying out their activity in the sphere of production and sale of pharmaceutical products, have been accredited by the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations, Investments and Trade of Uzbekistan. Overall, 62 enterprises with Indian capital, including 11 companies with 100% foreign capital, are operating in Uzbekistan today.

Uzbekistan imports medicines, pharmaceutics, jewelers and carpet products, machines and tools, cosmetics, glass ceramics, chemical preparations, electronics, tea, etc. India imports cotton and its waste products, metal products and nonferrous metals, production of inorganic chemistry, silk, wool from Uzbekistan, etc.