The key facts

  • At the meeting in Astana on November 6, Mirziyoyev proposed opening a regional office of the UN Counter-Terrorism Directorate in Uzbekistan
  • The office is expected to help Central Asian countries with alerts about terrorist content, identifying terrorism financing and training specialists
  • Also proposed were the initiative 'Digital Development in the Interests of People' and the program 'Enlightenment Against Ignorance in the Digital Age' based at the Center of Islamic Civilization in Tashkent

Proposal for a UN regional office

On November 6, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev took part in Astana in a meeting of the heads of Central Asian states on security issues in the field of artificial intelligence, held within the Aqaba Process. This was reported by the president's press service. Besides Mirziyoyev, the event was attended by President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov, King of Jordan Abdullah II, as well as high-ranking representatives of Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan.

What was discussed at the meeting

The participants considered issues of international and regional security, countering terrorism and extremism, as well as new challenges related to the development of digital technologies. Particular attention was paid to expanding practical cooperation, sharing experience and improving mechanisms for preventing radicalization, primarily among young people. Mirziyoyev highly praised the significance of the Aqaba Process amid growing threats to security and stability. For reference: the Aqaba Process is an informal platform for international cooperation in the fight against terrorism and extremism, launched by King Abdullah II of Jordan in 2015; it is not an official organization with a permanent headquarters or charter, but serves as a venue for regular summits and expert meetings.

Three initiatives of Uzbekistan

In his speech, the president put forward the initiative 'Digital Development in the Interests of People', the goal of which is to direct the potential of artificial intelligence toward spreading knowledge, strengthening mutual trust and creating opportunities for personal development. Uzbekistan also expressed support for the UN Global Dialogue on the Governance of Artificial Intelligence. The key practical proposal was the readiness to open in the country a regional office of the UN Counter-Terrorism Directorate. The idea is that the office will help Central Asian countries launch and operate channels for alerting about terrorist content, identify cases of terrorism financing, improve the qualifications of specialists and use AI in these tasks.

A program based at the Center of Islamic Civilization

In addition, it was proposed to launch, on the basis of the Center of Islamic Civilization in Tashkent an international program 'Enlightenment Against Ignorance in the Digital Age'. Its tasks include creating multilingual information resources, training religious figures to work in the information environment, and supporting young researchers who popularize the humanistic values of Islam. Concluding his speech, Mirziyoyev emphasized that the future of artificial intelligence depends not only on technological progress but also on the purposes of its use, and called for turning new technologies into an instrument of peace, security and human development rather than a source of threats. It should be noted that for now we are talking about proposals put forward and declared readiness: no publications about a decision made or agreements reached on opening the office have been found in the sources.