Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan sign treaty on some border areas, agreement on management of Kempir-Abad reservoir
BISHKEK. Nov 3 (Interfax) - Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Jeenbek Kulubayev and Uzbek Foreign Minister Vladimir Norov have signed a treaty with regard to some areas of the border and an agreement on joint management of the Kempir-Abad reservoir.
"Uzbek Foreign Minister Vladimir Norov has paid an official visit to Kyrgyzstan. At the negotiations, the parties signed a treaty regarding some areas of the Kyrgyz-Uzbek state border, and an agreement on joint management of the water resources of the Kempir-Abad reservoir," the Kyrgyz Foreign Ministry press service said on Thursday.
The ministers discussed key issues relating to the development of Kyrgyz-Uzbek relations, the prospects of their further expansion and deepening in the political, trade-economic, investment, cultural-humanitarian and other spheres, and also exchanged opinions on vital regional and international issues, it said.
"A great deal of attention was given to issues relating to preparations for the upcoming state visit by Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Kyrgyzstan. The ministers agreed to intensify the work on the content part of the visit with an emphasis on promoting trade-economic cooperation and the implementation of large investment projects," the Foreign Ministry said in its report.
On October 10, the Kyrgyz parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defense, Security and Migration supported a draft agreement on delimitation and demarcation of the border with Uzbekistan. The committee members approved a draft agreement under which 4,485 hectares of land under the Kempir-Abad reservoir would be transferred to Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan would receive 19,699 hectares.
Kyrgyz State National Security Committee Chairman Kamchybek Tashiyev said that Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan would jointly manage the Kempir-Abad reservoir.
On October 9, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov told the Khabar news agency that the issue of disputed areas with Uzbekistan is 99% resolved in favor of Kyrgyzstan.
Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan signed an agreement in 2017 on the delimitation of 85% of their 1,378-kilometer long border. The remaining 15% of in-dispute border sections have occasionally become zones of conflict between residents of those areas.
A meeting of Uzbek and Kyrgyz governmental delegations on border delimitation and demarcation took place in Tashkent on March 25, 2021. Upon its conclusion, the parties signed a protocol that all issues related to disputed border sections had been resolved, including through an exchange of territories.