ISLAMABAD, May 3: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said here on Wednesday that Pakistan provided the shortest land route to Uzbekistan and other central Asian countries to warm waters of Arabian Sea and was ideally located to promote cooperation between South Asia and Central Asia which could transform the landscape of the entire region.

Talking to Uzbekistan’s President Islam Karimov during a meeting, at the Prime Minister’s House, he said Pakistan valued its relations with Uzbekistan and was keen to enhance cooperation over a broad spectrum. The two leaders held hour-long one-to-one talks.

Mr Karimov said he was in full agreement with the prime minister and hoped that his visit to Pakistan would go a long way in enhancing cooperation between the two countries.

Later, the two leaders were joined by their respective delegations and discussed various ways of expanding cooperation.

The two sides reiterated their commitment to the fight against terrorism. They also agreed to enhance cooperation in the field of energy and transportation to promote trade which would contribute to peace and stability in the region.

Mr Aziz said cooperation between South Asia and Central Asia had the potential to change the landscape of the region.

President Karimov praised Pakistan’s economic and foreign policies and said that by following sovereign and independent policies Pakistan had been able to raise its profile in the world.

He said: “We are democratising our society and by spending 10.5 per cent of our budget on education, we have achieved 100 per cent literacy.”

Mr Aziz also gave an account of Pakistan’s foreign policy imperatives, including its relations with India and talks on various issues including Kashmir.

He said Pakistan would continue to support President Karzai’s government in Afghanistan because a strong and stable Afghanistan could promote peace as well as trade in the region.

The meeting was attended by Minister of Agriculture Sikandar Hayat Bosan, Minister for Law Mohammad Wasi Zafar, Minister of State for Economic Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar.