00:00First of all, and I want to thank the head of the presidential administration for joining us here.
00:03She's fantastic.
00:05She's an incredible leader and also an incredible spokesperson for the country.
00:09We had a chance to interact now numerous times, and thank you both.
00:11I told you I would come, and here I am, both in this beautiful spot, historic.
00:16You know, this is, for centuries, a crossroads of trade and commerce, global trade and commerce, came right through here.
00:22And this is why we're here now, because American companies, many of them are joining us here today,
00:26not just to visit here, but also as part of the C5 Plus One Forum that we think is so
00:31important.
00:32The United States wants to be a strong partner in Central Asia, obviously rooted in this country,
00:37but also all the neighboring countries who want to do more business and trade with us.
00:41We have an incredible delegation, almost 300 American businesses that are here with us,
00:45and the opportunity to sign over, when it's all said and done, billions of dollars of agreements
00:50that will both enrich the countries and the region, but also benefit the United States economically.
00:56So it's an honor to be here and an honor to be a part of it.
00:58Thank you for welcoming us.
00:59Thank you very much.
01:00We're so happy to be with you.
01:01Thank you for choosing Uzbekistan.
01:03Of course.
01:04Thank you for welcoming us and allowing us to see this incredible place.
01:08Yes, thank you very much for being with us here.
01:11It's an honor.
01:12It's important for us.
01:13Secretary, I was going to ask you about your impressions here that you just gave them.
01:17So it's an extraordinary place, I have to say.
01:19So straight to substance, China is making big inroads in Central Asia, including Uzbekistan.
01:28What does the U.S. have to offer specifically to the countries of the C-5?
01:32I mean, look, it's competition, right?
01:34We have products.
01:34We have companies.
01:35They make things.
01:37And we just want fair competition and an opportunity.
01:40There's no part of the world in which we feel like America and American business should not have a fair
01:45shot to compete.
01:46And that's what we seek to do.
01:48This is not about coming here to say, stop talking to somebody else or stop working with some other country.
01:53That's not about that.
01:54This is about ensuring that in every part of the world that is opening its doors to American business and
01:59American commerce,
02:00that we're available, that we're showing up and that we're there.
02:02And that's what this is all about.
02:04I mean, if you look at for a long time, people have understood the importance of Central Asia, all five
02:08countries, Uzbekistan in particular.
02:10You see it.
02:10You guys have gone through this.
02:11This is a beautiful country.
02:12It's incredible what they've achieved in just the last decade in terms of economic growth and prosperity.
02:17And we just want to identify opportunities on things we can work together on.
02:20And we're here to do that.
02:21And that's what we want to do.
02:23And that's not a negative action against any other country.
02:26That's just, I mean, countries want to have as many relationships as possible.
02:30Uzbekistan's been clear.
02:30They want to be friends to everybody.
02:32They want to have a relationship with everybody.
02:34They want to have economic relations with everybody.
02:36And we are saying that we are interested.
02:38And that's why we've come here with almost 300 American businesses joining us who are looking forward to seeing what
02:44opportunities exist.
02:45And, in fact, some of whom have already done agreements that we'll be announcing a little later.
02:49Yeah.
02:50On that line, the decades of Cold War era.
02:53The what?
02:54The decades of Cold War era.
02:55Yeah.
02:56Yes.
02:58Why is it not repealed?
02:59Well, you'll have to ask Congress.
03:00We are in favor of repealing it.
03:02There are a number of strong voices in Congress that are in favor of repealing it.
03:05I was actually asked that during my confirmation hearing in the Senate.
03:08And I said, you know, I was in favor of repealing it.
03:11And the administration has asked for that to be done.
03:13Congress just hasn't gotten around to it.
03:15But we hope that they will.
03:16Secretary, in terms of geopolitics and the part of the world that we're in, President Vladimir Putin reportedly has proposed
03:25a meeting with President Trump.
03:27Sorry, did you leave?
03:28She left.
03:29She's got to go work.
03:29I understand.
03:30Okay.
03:31Sorry.
03:31President Putin of Russia has reportedly, according to the Wall Street Journal, proposed a meeting with President Trump and with
03:38Xi Jinping next month to discuss ending the war in Ukraine.
03:41Is that something you can comment on at all?
03:42Is that accurate?
03:43Well, I don't know.
03:44I mean, I think there's been talks of a meeting.
03:45I don't know if anything's been finalized.
03:47But the President's been clear.
03:48He'd like the war in Ukraine and Russia to end.
03:50He wants that war to end.
03:52He has said that when he was a candidate.
03:54He said it never would have happened had he been President at the time.
03:57But it did happen.
03:58And now we've done everything we can and we'll continue to do everything we can to help facilitate the end
04:03of that war.
04:04No one's winning that war.
04:05People are dying every day.
04:06Things are being blown up every day.
04:08Things are being destroyed every day.
04:09And he's talked about it.
04:11He's talked about the death toll.
04:12If you've listened to the President, he repeatedly cites the 25,000 people a month dying in these wars.
04:18The amount of destruction that's occurred.
04:20The amount of economic damage that's occurring.
04:22So as you've seen, we have engaged repeatedly over the last almost two years now to try to bring about
04:28or facilitate an end to this war.
04:29And I think the President is open to anything that he can do to help bring a war to an
04:33end if it's possible.
04:34And we'll continue to look for opportunities to do that.
04:37So far, obviously, we haven't made the kind of progress we would like to have made.
04:40But it's not for lack of trying.
04:41And the President remains very committed to it.
04:43You saw his post overnight or overnight our time at some point on the East Coast in the United States
04:49where he once again reiterated why it is that he's done the things he's done with suspending the sanctions for
04:5560 days.
04:56It's because he wants to see if there's an opportunity for the talks that are going on right now with
05:00both Ukraine and Russia to lead to something positive and avoid another disastrous year of war and conflict.
05:07What evidence do you actually have that President Putin is open to peace talks to come in to negotiating with
05:13you?
05:13What evidence?
05:14Well, this is, I mean, I don't know.
05:15This is not a criminal case.
05:16I mean, what this is is about diplomacy.
05:18And in diplomacy, you continue to try.
05:21And sometimes, unfortunately, when these conflicts are the kinds that we're talking about now, these are complicated, they're entrenched, in
05:27some cases a deadlock, sort of a stagnated conflict in which neither side is making clear victories, but both sides
05:34are inflicting tremendous damage.
05:35We're just going to keep trying to the extent we can to see if we can facilitate an end to
05:40it.
05:40We'll keep testing every opportunity that presents itself.
05:44In the end, the evidence will be whether a deal gets done or not, whether both sides are willing to
05:48give in order to end this war.
05:51You just have to keep trying to do it.
05:53Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.
05:54But that's the nature of diplomacy.
06:06Well, I can't.
06:07I don't know.
06:08I mean, if it happened last night, I don't know exactly.
06:10I know a few nights ago there was a software problem involving their early warning system that I know CENTCOM.
06:17I'm sorry.
06:17I know that UCOM had been involved in looking at it.
06:20And that's a report they gave us back.
06:21I can't comment on what happened last night.
06:22But as a nation's talking about, Mr. Secretary, are you concerned that American diplomats, Americans in Kyiv also are at
06:28least?
06:29That what?
06:30Americans are at least?
06:30Well, we're concerned about Americans at risk anywhere in the world.
06:33You know, we have a diplomatic presence there.
06:34And we do meetings on a weekly basis in all of our posts, especially those that are in conflict zones,
06:40to determine whether or not we can continue to maintain people there.
06:45As of now, we've not changed our posture or our footprint in Kyiv.
06:48We have our presence there.
06:50But of course we're concerned.
06:51And we're always concerned about the safety and security of our diplomats and our facilities.
06:54Mr. Secretary, I wish people...
06:56No, no, go ahead.
06:57Please.
06:58No, I'm sorry.
06:59Welcome to Uzbekistan, first of all.
07:01How do you assess Uzbekistan's role in the current developments of Central Asia?
07:04Well, I think it's the key, the cornerstone.
07:06I mean, it's the most populous country.
07:08You see the...
07:09I mean, we've seen...
07:09I've never been here before.
07:10I've just arrived.
07:11But just the incredible reading up on the incredible economic development.
07:16A growth rate now, the GDP of almost 8% a year is phenomenal.
07:20And we want the courage for that trend to continue.
07:22So I think you have tremendous opportunity here.
07:25If you can have another decade like you had in the last decade, I think you'll be in an incredible
07:29place.
07:29You already are.
07:30And I was stunned by the number of tourists that come.
07:33Stunned meaning surprised that the numbers were that high.
07:36I know I inquired about direct flights from the United States.
07:39There's actually talks underway, potentially, for a direct flight from Miami.
07:43I know that there's one already from different other places.
07:45So we're always encouraged by coming to places like that and seeing a country that emerged, like all of its
07:51neighbors,
07:52from the Soviet area to where they are today in such a short period of time,
07:55and the incredible opportunities they have to really build on that and transform the country in an incredibly positive way.
08:01And that's why we're here.
08:02We just want to be a positive part of it.
08:05And that's why we brought all these businesses with us as well, because they want to be a part of
08:08it.
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