UzLand.Uz
November 7

South Korea and Uzbekistan agreed to help Afghanistan rebuild from the devastation of U.S. bombing and years of harsh Taliban rule, government sources said today.

South Korea's Commerce, Industry and Energy Minister Shin Kook-hwan signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with his Uzbekistan counterpart Sadik Safaev on Wednesday for the reconstruction. The ministry expects many Korean construction companies to participate in restoring roads, bridges, schools and hospitals, broken telecommunications and energy networks over the next five years.

The Uzbekistan government is to invest more than US $10 billion in the projects.

"Uzbekistan constructed 80 per cent of the country's infrastructure. Its cumulative know how and Korea's advanced technologies can facilitate the rebuilding job," said an MOCIE official.

Minister Shin is visiting three central Asian countries - Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgystan - and Germany to drum up support for Korea's bid to host the 2010 World Expo and to attract investments.

He is expected to return from his nine-day trip November 13.

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