MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin and Uzbek leader Shavkat Mirziyoyev on Monday held talks and signed a number of agreements aimed at deepening bilateral ties, including an agreement for Moscow to build a small nuclear power plant in Central Asia country.
Mirziyoyev called the project “vital” in a statement passed through his press service after the talks, noting that Uzbekistan has “its own large uranium deposits.” Putin, in turn, promised to “do everything to work effectively in Uzbekistan’s (nuclear energy) market.”
If the deal is implemented, the plant will become the first in Central Asia, further increasing Russian influence in the region.
Putin also promised to increase gas supplies to Uzbekistan.
The talks between Putin and Mirziyoyev took place in the Uzbek capital Tashkent, where the Russian leader traveled on Sunday on his third foreign trip since he was inaugurated for a fifth presidential term earlier this month.
He went first to China, where he expressed his appreciation for Chinese proposals for talks to end the conflict in Ukraine, and later to Belarus, where Russia has deployed tactical nuclear weapons.
The trips reflect the Kremlin’s ongoing efforts to shore up support amid ongoing tensions with the West over the conflict in Ukraine.
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