13 March, 1997 - Nato Secretary General Javier Solana had talks with Uzbek Defence Minister Rustam Akhmedov and Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Komilov in Tashkent on March 13. It quoted Komilov as telling Solana that Uzbekistan, in accordance with its foreign policy regulations, would not join any military or military-political blocs. "Nevertheless, Uzbekistan intends to cooperate actively with all security agencies, including NATO," Komilov added.

Solana's talks with Akhmedov focused on the forthcoming exercises of the Central Asian peacekeeping battalion, formed by Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakstan under the aegis of the United Nations. Solana told Akhmedov that NATO was planning to create a comprehensive foundation for our cooperation," he said. The sides agreed that security should be viewed not only from the military angle, but also from the point of view of the environment. To that end, they agreed to cooperate in dealing with emergency situations, research and the implementation of environmental protection programs.