Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan are stepping up cooperation in the strategic sector of critical minerals, with new joint projects now under development.

Speaking on the sidelines of the 59th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank in Samarkand, Uzbekistan’s Deputy Minister of Mining Industry and Geology Ural Yusupov described Azerbaijan as a key strategic partner in the field, The Caspian Post reports via local media.

He revealed that the Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan Investment Fund will finance projects covering extraction, processing, and geological exploration of critical minerals. Work is currently underway to finalize a list of initiatives for submission to the fund, paving the way for practical implementation.

The fund, established under an agreement signed in early 2023, has an authorized capital of $500 million-highlighting the scale of ambition behind the partnership.