Officials from the United States and the Republic of Uzbekistan met in Tashkent on March 26 to discuss ways to further strengthen cooperation to counter nuclear smuggling. These discussions are a continuation of the ongoing bilateral cooperation between the Republic of Uzbekistan and the United States since the two countries signed a Joint Action Plan in April 2012. This plan aims to strengthen our joint capabilities to prevent, detect, and respond to nuclear and radiological material smuggling incidents.
During the meeting in Tashkent, the sides reviewed progress in implementing the steps of the U.S.-Uzbekistan Joint Action Plan on Combating Illicit Trafficking of Nuclear and Radioactive Materials and reaffirmed the need to cooperate closely to prevent terrorists and other criminals from acquiring black market nuclear material and to enable successful prosecutions of smugglers. The two delegations also highlighted the importance of strengthening counter nuclear smuggling capabilities in a comprehensive manner, including by focusing on information collection and analysis, law enforcement, and coordination between the investigative and technical communities. This is the first implementation review since the Joint Action Plan was signed in 2012.
“We had an extremely productive meeting with counter nuclear smuggling experts from the Government of Uzbekistan, and we value our continuing partnership to address this threat,” commented the American delegation head.
