Within the program of the Business – Forum of the European Reconstruction and Development Bank held in Tashkent, the Minister of Finance of Japan, Masajuro Shiokawa, the Special Adviser of the Cabinet of the land of the rising sun, Keko Nakayama (the former ambassador of Japan in Uzbekistan), members of the Japanese delegation and the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan in the Republic of Uzbekistan, Akio Kavato visited the Caravan-serai of Culture. This international center was established with support of the outstanding Japanese public figure and artist, the rector of the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music, Ikuo Hirayama. Lately this institution has been getting actually international character, becoming a basis for cultural and scientific contacts, seminars, lectures, concerts and further development of friendly dialogue among scientists of different countries.
Much attention is given to historical roots of these mutual relations. So, the Japanese visitors are especially interested in the antique art when Buddhism was wide spread in the territory of Uzbekistan. Visitors of the Caravan – serai can familiarize with exhibits, which present real masterpieces of ancient and medieval ceramics from the excavations of Kampirtepa and Dalverzintepa performed by the International Tokharistan and Bactrian expedition of the Institute of Fine Arts of the Academy of Arts of Uzbekistan.
The public of capital highly estimated activity of I.Hirayama on development of friendly relations between our peoples. In December of the last year he was awarded the title “Honourable Citizen of Tashkent”, a little earlier he was elected the first foreign Honorary member of the Academy of Arts of Uzbekistan and awarded the Gold medal of the Academy of Arts. 
Inhabitants of the capital had the opportunity to get acquainted with painting works of Hirayama at his personal exhibition, which was held in the last December in the Central Exhibition Hall of the Academy of Arts. The pictures reflected impressions of the artist about travel on the Great Silk Road and conquered visitors by depth of his philosophical vision of realty.
In Moscow, in the park at Dobrynin square, between streets of B.Serpuhovskaya and Lyusinovskaya, in November, 2002 was presented the monument to the outstanding Uzbek poet, thinker and statesman of the 15th century, Alisher Navoy. The sculpture was granted by the government of Uzbekistan. The five – meter bronze figure, cast in Tashkent under the sketch of the Honoured Figure of Arts of Uzbekistan, Ravshan Mirtadjiev towers on a three-meter granite pedestal. The Moscow co-authors of the monument are the Honoured Architects of Russia, A.Kuzmin and I.Voznesensky.
Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan, H. Karamatov who headed the delegation of the country, the Mayor of Moscow Y.Luzhkov, representatives of art intelligence and the public of Russia and Uzbekistan took part in the opening ceremony. This event became the sign in development of relations between two countries and exposed deep respect for culture of the Uzbek people as well as became another evidence for friendly nature of the Russian – Uzbek contacts.