The Institute for Advanced International Studies hosted a meeting on 18 November with Dr Yang Cheng, Professor of International Relations and Executive President of the Shanghai Academy of Global Governance and Area Studies at Shanghai International Studies University (SISU). He was welcomed by Director Dr Akram Umarov, Deputy Director Odil Gafarov, Head of the Center for Asia-Pacific Studies Dr Abbos Bobokhonov, and Leading Research Fellow Madinakhon Alimova. The discussion focused on prospects for institutionalised cooperation in comparative and regional studies, as well as on building a long-term research partnership between the two institutions.

At the outset, Dr Yang Cheng presented the activities of the Shanghai Academy, established in 2018 as one of China’s new national research centres. He outlined its structure, key research directions, funding model and its role as a coordinating platform for comprehensive regional studies bringing together more than fifty specialised centres in Shanghai. The Academy’s priority areas include Russian and Eurasian studies, European studies, and research on the Middle East and Arab countries, alongside master’s and doctoral programmes, international research initiatives and opportunities for academic mobility.

The parties exchanged views on concrete areas for cooperation, highlighting student and expert exchanges, the organisation of joint conferences and seminars, preparation of analytical and academic publications, and the implementation of joint projects in comparative and regional studies. Particular attention was paid to the prospects for field research in Uzbekistan for Chinese postgraduate students and the creation of a stable research base to support sustained bilateral engagement. The Chinese side expressed interest in systemic cooperation with IAIS, including the signing of a memorandum, the development of a cooperation roadmap, the launch of joint research projects, academic exchanges and the holding of regular events.

In this context, Dr Yang Cheng underscored that, in advancing the concept of a “community of shared future”, China is keen to ensure that its relations with Central Asian states are filled with practical substance, and that research centres should offer high-quality analytical solutions rather than limit themselves to formal events.

Dr Akram Umarov, in turn, confirmed the Institute’s interest in a long-term, structured and results-oriented partnership. He stressed that IAIS aims to develop both fundamental research and applied analytical products, including forecasts, scenario planning and policy recommendations, and attached special importance to joint publications, monographs, collected volumes and regular academic events with solid research output. The sides agreed on the need for regular consultations, advance coordination of an annual list of research topics and the organisation of key bilateral events.

The meeting concluded with a formal signing ceremony of a Memorandum of Understanding, marking an important step in the institutionalisation of the partnership between IAIS and the Shanghai Academy of Global Governance and Area Studies. The two institutions expressed their intention to begin, in the near future, the coordination of joint plans for the coming year and to prepare concrete bilateral research initiatives that will deepen academic interaction between Uzbekistan and China in the field of international and regional studies.