Serbia moves to become Uzbekistan’s first free-trade partner in Europe
Serbia may become the first European country to enter into a free-trade agreement with Uzbekistan, as President Shavkat Mirziyoyev visits Belgrade to establish a strategic partnership and advance industrial and transport projects.
The two-day trip is Mirziyoyev’s first official visit to Serbia, and it reciprocates his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic‘s visit to Uzbekistan in October 2025. Back then, Belgrade and Tashkent exchanged 12 bilateral documents covering investment, agriculture, technology and culture.
Mirziyoyev and Vucic were also due to sign a joint declaration establishing a strategic partnership on 8 September, according to the Serbian president’s press service.
Rail, technology and free trade
Three transport-related documents had been prepared for signing during the presidential visit, the Serbian government confirmed, without expanding on the issue.
Streamlined labour migration and social protection were also on the agenda, as were partnerships between Tashkent and Belgrade, Samarkand and Novi Sad, and Uzbekistan’s Samarkand region and Serbia’s Vojvodina province.
Read more: «I made big mistake by not visiting earlier»: Vucic invites Serbians to discover Uzbekistan
The visit is expected to yield one noteworthy economic outcome before the presidential talks begin. The first intergovernmental commission for economic cooperation, which met in Belgrade on 7 September, produced a declaration on setting up a working group that would handle preliminary free-trade discussions.
Officials have also come up with a joint industrial partnership roadmap for 2026–2028 that covers pharmaceuticals, textile production, seed production, horticulture and dairy processing. The technology agenda included critical minerals, digital geology, artificial intelligence, 5G connectivity, and export-orientated IT projects.
Read more: Uzbekistan sets $300bn GDP goal and $450bn investment target
Trade ties between Serbia and Uzbekistan remain limited, and official estimates differ substantially. An Uzbek government-backed review put 2025 turnover at about $12m, comprising $900,000 of Uzbek exports and $11.1m of imports. Serbia’s foreign ministry reported a turnover of €37.7m, without explaining the difference in methodology.
