Turkey opens consulate in Uzbekistan’s Samarkand

Turkey on March 7 opened a consulate general in the historical Samarkand city of Uzbekistan.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu inaugurated the Turkish Consulate General in Samarkand.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Çavuşoğlu said the consulate will be the new symbol of permanent fraternity with Turkey's fatherland Uzbekistan.

The opening of the consulate general was announced together by Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Uzbek counterpart Shavkat Mirziyoyev last year, he added.

"Turkey was the first country to recognize Uzbekistan's independence and it also became the first country to open an embassy," Çavuşoğlu noted.

He also said that although Turkey was the first to announce the decision of opening a consulate in Samarkand, adding that Kazakhstan opened its consulate in the city a short while ago.

"Of course, each mission is important in Uzbekistan, but the opening of this mission in the ancient city of our civilization, Samarkand, is of great significance," he added.

Noting that Samarkand was the center of the historical Silk Road and the meeting pointing of the tribes, Çavuşoğlu underlined that the city started to become one of the attraction centers under the leadership of President Mirziyoyev.

He also stressed that Turkey closely monitors the work of Governor Erkincan Turdimov to make Samarkand a brand city, adding that Uzbekistan is also the homeland of scientists and Islamic scholars.

Çavuşoğlu said he will meet with his Uzbek counterpart Kamilov on Monday in the capital Tashkent to exchange views on furthering the relations and prepare for the Second High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council Meeting.

Earlier in the day, Çavuşoğlu visited historical sites...