US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced around $12 billion in deals during a visit to Uzbekistan, part of a broader push to expand American influence in resource-rich Central Asia. Rubio arrived in Samarkand on Sunday evening, where he was greeted by Saida Mirziyoyeva, the Uzbek president's daughter and head of his administration. He met business leaders and officials from Central Asia and Azerbaijan in a so-called Central Asia plus one format.
The visit produced a package of 54 trade, investment and technology cooperation agreements that could be worth as much as $12 billion when implemented, a State Department spokesperson said. The deals ranged broadly. In transport, GE Aerospace agreed to supply engines for Uzbekistan Airways. In financial services, Franklin Templeton, Oppenheimer & Co., Citigroup and Blackrock agreed to provide Uzbek companies with access to international capital markets. In mining, there were announcements involving Re Element Technologies and Trafigura.
Rubio said the competition with Russia and China is not about telling countries to stop working with others. "This is about ensuring that in every part of the world that is opening its doors to American business and American commerce," he told reporters. The White House has intensified efforts to reduce US dependence on Beijing for minerals critical to defense, technology and manufacturing, while the administration has sought to broaden the US economic presence in Central Asia and the Caucasus, where China and Russia have long held sway.
Blackrock was among the key investors in the Uzbekistan National Investment Fund offering, which raised $674 million in a debut initial public offering in London and Tashkent this year. Rubio was also scheduled to attend a session of the US-Uzbekistan Business and Investment Council before traveling onward to India. Trump hosted the five Central Asian presidents at the White House last year and invited the leaders of Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan to the Group of 20 summit in Miami in December.
Source: Bloomberg Markets · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing