Uzbek President Islam Karimov received Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Toshimitsu Motegi last week as part of an ongoing dialogue between the two countries on developing a strategic relationship with economic ties.

Karimov visited Japan in February 2011 to discuss the establishment of bilateral trade and investment as well as political cooperation. In 2013, trade between the two nations amounted to more than $215 million. Japan has also provided Uzbekistan with more than $2 million in financial and technical assistance, UzA reports.

Japanese companies have implemented several major investment projects in Uzbekistan, including the construction of a compressor station at the Kokdumalak Field and the Bukhara Oil Refinery, as well as the modernization of the Ferghana Oil Refinery and airports in Samarkand, Bukhara and Urgench.

Motegi said Japan would like to further consolidate mutually advantageous economic relations, according to UzA.