Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on a two-day visit to Uzbekistan today at the invitation of Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, with talks expected to focus on further strengthening the strategic partnership between the two countries.
This will be Prime Minister Modi’s fourth visit to Uzbekistan. According to the Prime Minister’s Office, Modi will hold delegation-level discussions with President Mirziyoyev in Tashkent covering the entire range of bilateral issues of mutual interest.
The visit comes amid growing economic and strategic engagement between India and Uzbekistan, with both sides seeking to expand cooperation across trade, defence, healthcare, mining and other emerging areas.
India is among Uzbekistan’s top 10 trading partners, with bilateral trade reaching around one billion dollars, driven by a significant expansion in commercial exchanges in recent years. The two countries are also exploring greater opportunities for cooperation in sectors including medical services, mining and defence.
Defence co-operation remains a key pillar:
Defence is expected to remain an important component of the strategic discussions between the two leaders. India and Uzbekistan have maintained longstanding and wide-ranging defence cooperation, including institutional mechanisms for regular engagement.
A Joint Working Group on Defence was established in 2019 to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation and facilitate discussions on issues of mutual interest.
Military-to-military engagement has also expanded through regular joint exercises. India and Uzbekistan participate in the DUSTLIK series of joint military exercises, aimed at enhancing interoperability, operational coordination and the exchange of military experience between the two armed forces.
The seventh edition of DUSTLIK was conducted in Uzbekistan in April 2026, providing another opportunity for the two sides to strengthen their defence partnership and enhance cooperation between their armed forces.
Strategic partnership in focus:
Against this backdrop, Prime Minister Modi’s visit assumes added significance. The talks in Tashkent are expected to provide fresh momentum to bilateral relations, with both sides likely to explore avenues for expanding strategic, economic and defence cooperation.
The visit is also expected to strengthen high-level political engagement between India and Uzbekistan and provide a platform for identifying new areas of partnership.
With bilateral trade expanding and defence cooperation gaining greater institutional depth, the two-day visit is expected to lay the groundwork for further consolidating India-Uzbekistan strategic and economic ties.
The engagement also underlines India’s growing focus on strengthening partnerships in Central Asia through sustained political dialogue, economic cooperation and defence engagement.
