2008 Embassy News
UNITED STATE TRADE REPRESENTATIVE NEWS
Washington, D.C. 20508, www.ustr.gov
USTR Delegation meets with Central Asia Delegation to discuss Framework for Trade and Investment
WASHINGTON, DC –Delegations from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and the United States attended the fourth annual meeting of the Council of the U.S. - Central Asia Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA); they were joined by an observer delegation from Afghanistan. Participants at the meeting, held on June 17 and 18 in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, reviewed the state of economic cooperation on investment and trade within the Central Asian Region and between the region and the United States.
“The physical distances which separate us are, in some cases, large,” said Mark Mowrey, acting Assistant U.S. Trade Representative (AUSTR) for Europe and the Middle East. “We can’t change geography, but we can shorten the economic distances among our countries to enhance trade and investment ties and boost economic development in Central Asia.”
The delegations noted a number of positive developments in the investment climates in Central Asia that have occurred since the 2007 Council meeting, though they acknowledged that challenges remain. They also identified practical barriers to trade at the borders, and discussed steps to reduce or eliminate such barriers to help expand regional trade.
Tajikistan’s Minister for Trade and Economic Development Gulomjon Bobozoda hosted the Council. His counterparts included Kazakhstan’s Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry Almaz Kosunov; Turkmenistan’s Minister for Economics and Development Gurbanmyrat Gurbanmyradov; Uzbekistan’s First Deputy Minister of Foreign Economic Relations and Investments and Trade Nasriddin Nadzhimov; and Acting Assistant U.S.Trade Representative Mark Mowrey. The Kyrgyz Republic was represented by its Ambassador to Tajikistan Turatbek Junushaliev. Afghanistan’s President of International Trade at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry Mohammed Azim Wardak attended as an observer.
The delegations also participated in a forum discussion with regional business representatives that focused on the transportation and energy infrastructure needed to underpin economic growth. The business representatives highlighted the adjustments in Central Asia they believed would increase their ability to create greater economic activity and employment.
The United States supports increased trade with, and economic cooperation among the Central Asian nations, as well as with Afghanistan and other South Asian neighbors. The United States also supports the expansion of private sector activity and investment in Central Asia, especially from American companies.
During the meeting, the Council approved the basis for an action plan to measure progress on such issues as simplifying import and export procedures through creation of a “single window” for the submission of import/export regulatory documents and making administrative requirements and procedures more transparent, including through expanded use of Web sites. The Council’s action plan also identifies concrete steps to improve the investment climate in the Central Asian countries.
The group plans to meet again in the Summer of 2009.