Reaffirming United States-Uzbekistan relations.

reaffirms the enduring commitment of the United States to the independence, territorial integrity, and sovereignty of Uzbekistan;

recognizes the progress that Uzbekistan has made in recent years on important political, economic, democratic, and social reforms;

recognizes the election of Uzbekistan to the United Nations Human Rights Council for the period of 2021 through 2023, the first time in the country’s history, and encourages the Government of Uzbekistan to use this position to actively promote human rights and hold accountable those who do not respect them;

welcomes the elevation in December 2020 of the United States-Uzbekistan Annual Bilateral Consultations to a Strategic Partnership Dialogue;

recognizes the efforts of the Government of Uzbekistan to strengthen regional dialogue and cooperation, opening new possibilities for intraregional commerce and cooperative approaches to challenges in Central Asia, including by means of the Food and Agricultural Organization Regional Conference for Europe, held virtually on November 2, 2020, and the “Uzbekistan in the Context of Regional Security and Global Changes” conference held in Tashkent on November 7, 2019;

welcomes the ambitious reform program of the Government of Uzbekistan aimed at improving the human rights situation in Uzbekistan, advancing anticorruption measures and increasing transparency in the judicial system, strengthening the accountability of public servants, promoting freedom of expression and freedom of the media, eliminating trafficking in persons including forced and child labor in the cotton harvest, and ensuring religious freedom;

calls for deeper economic cooperation between the United States and Uzbekistan that will increase trade and create new business opportunities in the fields of agriculture, energy, financial services, tourism, health, and digital innovation;

supports the establishment of Webster University Tashkent, the first American university in Uzbekistan, as well as the accreditation of the American Councils for International Education in Uzbekistan, and encourages the further development of educational cooperation between the two countries, including through fostering academic and research partnerships between United States and Uzbekistan universities and through expanding English language training and STEM programs in public education in Uzbekistan;

underscores the importance of cooperation between the United States and Uzbekistan in multilateral formats in Central Asia, including the C5+1 regional format;

underlines the emerging role of Uzbekistan as an economic leader in Central Asia as demonstrated by its hosting of the Central Asia Trade Forum and the United States-Central Asia Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA);

appreciates the efforts of the Government of Uzbekistan to support the peace process and social and economic development in Afghanistan including through the Afghan-led peace and reconciliation process, supporting railway and electricity infrastructure development in Afghanistan, educating Afghan youth, and partnering with the United States to address illicit drug trafficking and weapon smuggling; and

looks forward to the continued development of strong bilateral relations between the United States and Uzbekistan, as well as to further democratic, political, economic, and social reforms in Uzbekistan.