OREANDA-NEWS. August 12, 2011. Uzbekistan National News Agency correspondent talked to Abdul Aziz bin Harun, Ambassador of Malaysia to Uzbekistan, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the independence of Uzbekistan.

– Your Excellency, we are meeting on the eve of the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of independence of Uzbekistan. What can you say about the achievements of Uzbekistan during these 20 years?

– First of all, allow me to take this opportunity on behalf of the Embassy of Malaysia, its staff and my personal behalf to convey my heartfelt congratulations and sincere felicitation to the government and the people of Uzbekistan on this joyful occasion of the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of the independence of Uzbekistan, which will be celebrated on 1 September.

I can feel how joyful and proud are the people of Uzbekistan in celebrating this significant and joyful occasion. Although 20 years of independence is considered to be very short, Uzbekistan, thanks to its visionary President Islam Abduganievich Karimov and the hardworking people, has been able to utilize these 20 years of independence to score great achievements in the development of Uzbekistan’s economy and society and at the same time to gain recognition and achieve success in conducting its foreign policy in the international arena.

All of the political stability and rapid economic progress which Uzbekistan has been enjoying throughout its 20 years of independence could be considered as marvelous achievements. If one compares Uzbekistan with some other developing countries of the world, for example with some countries in Asia or Africa, one can clearly see that Uzbekistan has been able to make tremendous strides in economic and social development, which can be envied even by other developing countries who gained their independence far earlier than Uzbekistan.

The beauty of Uzbekistan’s development is that the government and the leadership of the country make sure that all the fields of society develop simultaneously, therefore in Uzbekistan we can see not only economic progress but also great achievements in the fields of social administration, sport, culture, architecture and in many other walks of life.

The recent tremendous achievement of Uzbekistan’s U-17 national football team in the U-17 World Cup in Mexico by reaching quarterfinals was quite a feat. Moreover, Uzbek athletes and sportsmen regularly perform well on all kinds of games including Olympic Games, Asian Games and others, all of which boost national pride and spirit of unity among the Uzbek people.

– The bilateral cooperation between Uzbekistan and Malaysia has been developing very fruitfully in various areas. What can you say about the future of our relations and can you name joint cooperation projects that are currently being implemented?

– As a developing country, Malaysia is very keen to share our experience in developing our economy with our brothers in Uzbekistan. Malaysia gained her independence in 1957 and the success of our economy is based on institutionalizing free market economy based on the principles of laissez-faire and free competition.

We are happy that some joint ventures have been established between Malaysian national oil and gas corporation PETRONAS and Uzbekneftegaz, and we sincerely hope that other Malaysian companies will join PETRONAS in venturing into Uzbek economy and contributing to its development.

I believe that the Navoi Free Economic and Industrial Zone created in the Navoi province of Uzbekistan which offers favourable investment climate and could be a good avenue for other Malaysian companies to enter Uzbek market and contribute to its economic development.

– Can you share with us your thoughts about the bilateral cooperation in the area of tourism?

– Malaysia and Uzbekistan have many similarities in terms of geographic size, population, culture, religion, traditions and way of life.

Uzbekistan has a great advantage in terms of its ancient civilization and unique historical and architectural heritage which has been well preserved thanks to the wise policy of Uzbekistan’s leadership. As such the historic cities of Uzbekistan such as Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva, Kokand and others, which are rich in Islamic traditions and legacy, are very attractive to Malaysian tourists.

It makes not only Uzbek people, but also many more Muslims in the world proud that the government of Uzbekistan is putting great efforts in preserving the ancient Islamic historical and architectural legacy of Uzbekistan for all of us to marvel.

On our side, Malaysia can share its experiences with Uzbekistan in building a modern tourist infrastructure here, which will compliment the rich historical and architectural legacy that Uzbekistan already has. Last year alone Malaysia received more than 24 million foreign tourists, which generated income of about USD 12 billion, as such Malaysia has a very successful experience in developing the tourism sector and would be happy to share our experience with our Uzbek brothers.

Last year alone, more than 3,000 Malaysian tourists visited Uzbekistan and about 5,000 Uzbek tourists visited Malaysia. We also appreciate Uzbek government’s decision to establish direct air-link between our two friendly counties since 1993, which have been serving as a bridge between our two countries and peoples.

Let me share with you one more good news: one of the Malaysian hospitality industry colleges is currently seriously considering establishing its branch campus in Uzbekistan in order to train tourism sector specialists for the development of Uzbekistan’s tourism sector in the future.

– How do you evaluate the anti-crisis measures undertaken by the government of Uzbekistan to mitigate the negative effect of the international economic and financial crisis on the Uzbek economy?

– I think the anti-crisis measures undertaken by the government of Uzbekistan have been successful in avoiding the negative effects for Uzbekistan of the 2008 international economic and financial crisis that rocked the world economy. The Uzbek government’s anti-crisis program for 2008-2012 has been successful in mitigating the crisis and minimizing the exposure of Uzbek economy to the negative effects of the international economic and financial crisis. Despite the international economic and financial crisis, Uzbek economy has been achieving over 8% GDP growth for the last four years, at the same time the government of Uzbekistan has also managed to curb inflation and keep it below 8%. The government of Uzbekistan has also been successful in creating around 1 million new jobs in Uzbekistan every year, which has positively contributed to the rapid development of Uzbekistan’s economy by taking advantage of its young population.
I believe Uzbekistan’s success in navigating its economy successfully at a time of international economic and financial crisis could be a very good case-study example for other developing countries to learn from.

– Can you share with us your opinion on the initiatives and measures taken by the government of Uzbekistan aimed at preserving peace and stability not only in Uzbekistan but also in the whole of Central Asia?

– Peace and stability of the region could be considered as the paramount objective not only for Uzbekistan but also for all other countries in the Central Asian region, and every country in the region has its own role in preserving the peace and stability in the whole region. Therefore, each country has to make sure that its internal stability is solid before addressing the regional challenges to peace and security.

The international community must compliment the government of Uzbekistan which made its first priority in preserving and strengthening its domestic stability before preaching others. Continuous peace and stability in Uzbekistan have been cornerstone for economic and social progress not only to the country but also to the region.

If every country in the region adopts the same policy, I think the region as a whole will become stable and prosperous in the future. In this regards, I believe the Central Asian countries should not only work individually but also collectively in preserving the peace and stability in the region and in tackling the various challenges such as illegal drug-trafficking, terrorism, organized crime and others.

The Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) experience in the South-East Asian region has shown that working together and in the spirit of espirit de corps in promoting close political, economic and social cooperation brings more results for all its members.

In the final analysis, all of the countries in Central Asia must work together as a group or team, of course, in the early stages this might create some uneasiness since the spirit of cooperation requires give-and-take which is not always easy to implement, but the example of the ASEAN could be a good case study for Central Asian countries in promoting peace among its 10 member countries with a total population of 550 million, who have managed to keep aside their various differences for the sake of greater benefits for all its members in terms of political, economic and social cooperation which have been recognized by the international community.

– How do you evaluate the efforts made in Uzbekistan in preserving the cultural and historical-architectural heritage of the country?

– The great efforts by the government of Uzbekistan, especially President Islam Karimov, to preserve the historical and cultural heritage of Uzbekistan has already been recognized and commended by the international community, including UNESCO. If the rich cultural and historical heritage of Uzbekistan were not taken care of, it would be a great loss not only for Uzbekistan but also for the international community, especially the Islamic Ummah.

I think the harsh Soviet colonization resulted in the loss of some of the cultural and architectural legacies of Uzbekistan, however, the great efforts undertaken by President Islam Karimov during the years of the independence in reviving the history of Uzbekistan and its own culture has boosted the national self-esteem and the awareness among the Uzbek people of their great and ancient civilization.

The Islamic scholars, ulema and scientists in the middle ages such as Imam Al-Bukhariy, Al-Beruniy, Imam At-Termiziy, Ibn Sino, Al-Khorazmiy, Mirzo Ulugbek and many others made great contributions to the development of Islamic civilization and various sciences, such as public administration, physics, chemistry, geography, mathematics, astronomy, medicine, Islamic law and tradition and others which has been useful to the whole mankind not only during that era but also their knowledge has contributed positively until today to the development of human civilization all over the world.

By reviving the study of the great history and civilization that existed in the territory of Uzbekistan in the past, the government of Uzbekistan has also been able to revive the spirit of intellectuality and progressiveness among its peoples. I have no doubt that if these efforts are continued in the future, by developing education and research, Uzbekistan can once again become the brightest star in Asia in the future.

I wish warmest felicitations on the 20th anniversary of the Independence of Uzbekistan and long live the close friendship between our two brotherly countries.