The opening ceremony of the 20th Conference of the Parties was held in Samarkand.

The official opening ceremony took place on November 24. CITES COP20 was the first large-scale meeting of the Convention held in Central Asia in its entire history. The Forum brought together more than 3,000 delegates from 184 countries and the European Union, including representatives of government agencies, international organizations, the scientific community and the non-governmental sector. The conference focuses on strengthening global biodiversity conservation measures, improving regulatory mechanisms for international trade in endangered species, and developing international cooperation.

The opening ceremony was attended by Inger Andersen, Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (video message), Aziz Abdukhakimov, Adviser to the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan on Environmental Issues, Chairman of the National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change, and Yvonne Higuero, Secretary General of CITES. Svetlana Radionova, Head of the Federal Service for Supervision of Natural Resources Management, also spoke at the event.

"In order to ensure the true inclusivity of the Convention, which is a universal environmental international instrument, it is important to use all six official languages of the United Nations on equal terms. Speaking as a representative of the Russian-speaking Side, we consider it necessary to give Russian the status of an official language in CITES, which will be consistent with the goals and spirit of the Convention and the principles of the United Nations," said the Head of Rosprirodnadzor.

In addition, she said that every year several hundred animals of various species are confiscated in the country, which need decent living conditions and veterinary care. "We already have relevant national legislation that provides for the procedure for making decisions on confiscated types of CITES," Svetlana Radionova said.

The official opening of CITES COP20 launched an extensive 12-day program, including plenary sessions, discussions on amendments to the Convention's annexes, thematic events and high-level meetings aimed at strengthening international efforts to protect wildlife.