First President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov and incumbent President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev have been included in the list of 40 key figures in the international life of 2016 released by Barcelona Center for International Affairs (CIDOB), Uzbekistan’s Jahon news agency reports.

The annual list includes the most distinguished political and public figures of the world and non-governmental organizations.

CIDOB said that Islam Karimov was the founding father of the new independent state and he played a huge role in the establishment of Uzbekistan after the collapse of the USSR, according to Jahon agency.

`CIDOB experts noted that Shavkat Mirziyoyev has won a landslide victory in the last presidential elections with more than 88% of the vote.

CIDOB reportedly expects new trends in the foreign policy of Uzbekistan under President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

The Barcelona Center for International Affairs is a Spanish center based in Barcelona, Catalonia Spain, which is dedicated to research and divulge contents of the different areas of international relations and development studies.  The center defines itself as an organization that is «an independent, non-partisan center that contributes to ongoing international debates from the perspective of a major Mediterranean metropolis.  Legally speaking, CIDOB is a public foundation with a Board of Trustees that includes among its members the main political institutions and universities of Catalonia and Barcelona, in addition to a number of ministries of the Spanish Government. CIDOB is currently the oldest think-tank in Spain, and one of the most influential in its field, so they claim.