Switzerland and Uzbekistan

Bilateral relations
The good relations between Switzerland and Uzbekistan are largely based on cooperation in international financial institutions and on the SDC/SECO regional strategy for the 2017–20 period.   Switzerland also maintains regular political dialogue with Uzbekistan, which is an important partner in water diplomacy.

Key aspects of diplomatic relations
Uzbekistan is a member of the Swiss voting constituencies at the World Bank and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), since April 2017 at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and since October 2018 at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

As part of its development cooperation, Switzerland supports projects in Uzbekistan improving water supply and vocational education/training and promotes local cultural development.

Economic cooperation
Some 40 Swiss companies are active in Uzbekistan. The two biggest Swiss investors are Rieter and Nestlé.  The volume of trade between Switzerland and Uzbekistan is modest, primarily consisting of gold exports from Uzbekistan to Switzerland, the only importer of Uzbek gold. The volume of the bilateral gold trade amounted to CHF 2,64 billion in 2019.  Switzerland primarily exports chemicals, machines, pharmaceutical products and watches to Uzbekistan.

Development cooperation and humanitarian aid
The Swiss Cooperation Strategy Central Asia 2017–2020 groups together projects run by the SDC and SECO. Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan are priority countries. Switzerland provides assistance to all Central Asian states in the area of water supply.