Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s deputy chief minister for economic affairs, called on Uzbekistan to help facilitate Afghanistan’s exports to Central Asia and Russia during a meeting with President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on Thursday.
In a statement, Taliban said the meeting, held on the sidelines of a regional economic conference in the Azerbaijani city of Konkandi, focused on strengthening bilateral ties in trade, transit, energy and infrastructure.
“Currently, trade between Afghanistan and Uzbekistan has surpassed $1 billion, marking a 60 percent increase compared with previous years,” Baradar said, according to the Taliban’s statement. “We hope to increase this figure to $2 billion in the near future.”
Baradar emphasized the importance of regional cooperation, calling on the two neighboring countries to work jointly on economic stability, infrastructure development and major investment projects in mining, transportation and services.
According to the statement, Mirziyoyev expressed Uzbekistan’s willingness to invest in several sectors, including textile manufacturing, cement production, oil refining and salt mining. He also reaffirmed support for completing the planned Mazar-i-Sharif–Herat–Kandahar railway and expanding e-governance initiatives.
Mirziyoyev said Uzbekistan was prepared to expedite the extension of a 500-kilovolt power transmission line to increase electricity exports to Afghanistan.
According to the Taliban statement, the Uzbek leader pledged to instruct relevant government bodies to ease the export of Afghan goods, particularly agricultural products, to Central Asia and Russia. He also committed to improving banking channels, facilitating visa issuance for Afghan nationals and expanding the Termez International Trade Center to support Afghan businesses.
The two sides agreed to establish dedicated channels to implement their agreements and formed a joint working group to monitor progress, co-led by Baradar and Uzbekistan’s prime minister. The group will convene quarterly to assess the performance of technical committees.
Despite its lack of formal recognition, the Taliban administration continues to pursue regional economic engagement. The international community has urged the Taliban to uphold human rights and respect the fundamental rights of women and girls. Nonetheless, Uzbekistan remains one of the few countries maintaining contact with the Taliban while stopping short of granting official recognition.
Baradar, who remains under United Nations sanctions, traveled to Azerbaijan to attend the regional economic forum.
