BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 3. Uzbekistan has
discussed preparations for the 14th meeting of the World Trade
Organization (WTO) Working Party on its accession at a meeting on
November 2.


According to Uzbekistan's Committee for Food Safety, the issues
were addressed during a meeting between Azizbek Urunov, the Uzbek
president’s special representative for WTO affairs and chairman of
the Committee for Food Safety, Sung-yo Choi, chair of the Working
Party on Uzbekistan’s accession to the WTO, and Malika Oshikawa,
director of the WTO Secretariat’s Accessions Division.


According to the Uzbek side, the discussions covered progress in
the accession process, ongoing domestic reforms and the next stages
of multilateral and bilateral negotiations.


Particular attention was paid to preparations for the 14th
meeting of the Working Party. The priorities include completing
outstanding bilateral negotiations with WTO members, reaching
mutually acceptable agreements on the wording of Uzbekistan’s final
commitments, agreeing on relevant sections of the Working Party
report and preparing the necessary final documents.


Moreover, the parties discussed resolving outstanding issues in
the multilateral negotiations and completing the remaining
accession procedures within the established time frame.







Uzbekistan held the 13th meeting of the Working Party in July
2026. The country has also made progress in bilateral negotiations
with WTO members on market access conditions.


Uzbekistan's WTO accession remains a key priority of its foreign
economic policy. The process involves aligning national legislation
with international trade rules, improving trade procedures and
expanding access for domestic businesses to international
markets.


An important part of the process involves bringing regulations
on sanitary and phytosanitary measures, food safety, veterinary
services and plant quarantine into line with international
standards. Uzbekistan is also working to strengthen the
institutional capacity of its Committee for Food Safety, improve
product quality and expand the country's export potential.


Following the meeting, both sides emphasized the importance of
accelerating the accession process, resolving outstanding issues
through constructive dialogue and ensuring thorough preparation for
the next stage of negotiations.