Uzbekistan Airlines on Saturday flew its inaugural Pakistani route from Islamabad to Tashkent, marking a key moment in connectivity between the two nations, a statement from the Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) said.

Uzbekistan announced earlier this year that air routes between Karachi, Samarkand and Bukhara would be launched, describing it as a significant step to foster closer ties between the two nations.

According to a PAA statement, the flight took off at 1:09pm with 126 passengers on board, with Zone 1 of Islamabad International Airport specially adorned with colourful balloons for the milestone.

“The event was graced by the esteemed ambassadors of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan,” the statement read, adding that the Chief Operating Officer of Islamabad Airport, the managing director of Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation and the Country Manager of Uzbekistan Airlines also attended.

“Guests warmly welcomed passengers at Stand 3 and a formal cake-cutting ceremony was held in the upper lounge area (A5) to commemorate the launch,” the statement added. “The entire event was seamlessly organised with the dedicated support and coordination of airport teams under the Pakistan Airports Authority.”

In February this year, Pakistan and Uzbekistan agreed to expand bilateral trade to $2 billion as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met with Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in Tashkent.

Addressing a joint press conference with PM Shehbaz, President Mirziyoyev said: “We came to the conclusions on different spheres and mutual trade turnover had exceeded $400 million, and we have plans to increase that to $2bn.”

He termed the negotiations between them “very fruitful”, adding that there was a “new direction” for future goals.