Mirziyoyev calls for faster ID-card border crossings with Tajikistan
On 19 October President Shavkat Mirziyoyev urged speeding up a system that would let citizens cross the Uzbekistan–Tajikistan border with an internal ID card, citing growing trade, freight and close family ties.
On 19 October 2026 Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev received Tajikistan's Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Muhriddin and stressed the need to accelerate the introduction of a system for crossing the Uzbekistan–Tajikistan border using an internal ID card. Muhriddin had come to Uzbekistan to take part in the C5+1 foreign ministers' meeting held in Samarkand.
What was discussed
The talks covered the main directions for further developing friendship, good-neighbourliness and the alliance between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. Both sides noted that mutual trade and freight volumes are growing and that joint projects in energy, industry, agriculture and water management have gained momentum. They also underscored the importance of stepping up exchanges in the cultural-humanitarian, educational and tourism spheres.
'Hardly a single family is not connected'
The president recalled that the borders between the two countries had once been closed and that the current level of trade and close ties had not existed. 'There is hardly a single family in Uzbekistan or Tajikistan that is not connected to the other side through kinship ties. We must also accelerate the introduction of a system for crossing the border using ID cards. As the volume of freight transport is increasing, there is a real need to resolve this matter,' Mirziyoyev said. In turn, Muhriddin said President Emomali Rahmon considers the comprehensive development of relations with Uzbekistan one of the priority directions of Tajikistan's foreign policy.
Trade and freight in figures
Mutual trade between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan reached $718.3 million at the end of 2025, up 22.5% on 2024. In January–April 2026 bilateral trade was $284.3 million, roughly 50.7% higher than a year earlier. The two countries aim to nearly triple trade to $2 billion by 2030.
The Kyrgyz precedent and the regional trend
Uzbekistan has already set up such an arrangement with Kyrgyzstan: since 1 September 2023, citizens of both countries can cross the border using only an internal ID card. On 20 November 2024, at a session of the Legislative Chamber, Mirziyoyev announced plans to let Uzbeks travel to and from Kazakhstan and Tajikistan with an ID card as well. The move reflects how borders across Central Asia are gradually opening up.
Why it matters for Uzbeks
ID-card crossing would cut the time, cost and paperwork for ordinary people who cross the border to visit relatives, trade or work — especially residents of the Fergana Valley and Surxondaryo near the frontier. Growing freight volumes also feed into prices and supply, and ultimately the household budget.
