Germany Shows Interest in Uzbekistan’s Resources

The upcoming visit of the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Uzbekistan may involve discussions on the potential export of Uzbek minerals to Germany, as highlighted by Devdiscourse.

The German Chancellor is scheduled to visit Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan from September 15-17, accompanied by a business delegation.

Media reports suggest that Chancellor Scholz’s forthcoming visit to Central Asia is driven by mutual interests in exploring opportunities for the supply of gas, oil and other minerals, particularly in the wake of sanctions imposed against Russian companies.

This underlines the European Union’s pursuit of new trade partnerships, including in the Central Asian region.

During the inaugural Central Asia-Germany summit in the fall of 2023, both parties agreed to establish a strategic partnership and deliberated on joint projects in logistics, mineral processing and the development of alternative energy sources.

As of January-June 2023, the trade turnover between Germany and Uzbekistan amounted to $500 million. Uzbekistan’s exports to Germany include textiles, fertilisers, metals, fruits and vegetables.

German companies have shown interest in investing in joint production facilities in Uzbekistan, primarily focusing on the production of machine building and construction materials.

Kursiv Uzbekistan also reported that a German supermarket chain had expressed interest in importing products from Uzbekistan.