Chairman of the Committee for Foreign Political Issues of the Senate of Uzbekistan Sadyk Safayev identified three conclusions from the uneasy autumn experienced by the nation after passing away of the first President Islam Karimov. The senator, who previously worked as a foreign minister, ambassador to Germany, United States and other countries, state advisor to the President and on other posts, was speaking at the first session of the Elections 2016 Press Club, which opened in Tashkent on Wednesday.
“The people [of Uzbekistan] have decently overcome this difficult test; they calmly, without panic and confusion saw off their first President. The transition of the presidential power was legitimate and transparent,” Sadyk Safayev said. He stressed that the Uzbek statehood had demonstrated its viability, democratic institutions their efficiency and the legislation its maturity.
“The first conclusion and message that I would like to share with our foreign partners is: you don’t have to worry about the future of Uzbekistan. The country will confidently continue its path. There will be no shocks or chaos. Uzbekistan will remain a reliable political and economic partner to its foreign colleagues. There are no reasons to doubt this,” the senator underlined.
The second conclusion noted by Sadyk Safayev: the future of Uzbekistan and its stable development is linked with building a secular democracy and socially-oriented market economy. “This is not a slogan, not a decoration to attract somebody. This is a deliberate choice,” the diplomat said. “For stable development and inclusion in the world community, this is the only way, and there are no alternatives.”
The path towards political modernization of the country will remain, the senator continued. “The current election campaign once again demonstrates that Uzbekistan has irreversibly stepped on the way of democratic reforms and building civil society,” Sadyk Safayev noted.
“The main fundamental principles of Uzbekistan’s foreign policy, which have for 25 years proven their consistency and ensured solution of the main issues related to promotion and protection of national interests of Uzbekistan abroad, will remain the same,” stated Sadyk Safayev his third conclusion. There are no grounds to reconsider these principles, he stressed.
