Roli Asthana, UN Resident Coordinator in Uzbekistan, told VOA that the UN takes seriously every initiative that brings countries together. “As President Mirziyoyev reiterated in his speech, international cooperation is absolutely critical to solving the global challenges of today.” When asked for the UN’s take on the SCO summit, Asthana said: “Whether it is climate, connectivity, recovering from the pandemic, preparing for future pandemics, or people-to-people links, global challenges require international cooperation. And it was heartening to hear leaders today commit to cooperation on important issues like trade, connectivity, food security and sustainable development.”