BRUSSELS: Uzbekistan yesterday rebuffed the European Union’s call for it to do more to protect human rights, telling Brussels to improve its own rights record.

The EU is hoping to build better ties with the gas-producing Central Asian state as it looks for alternatives to Russian energy supplies, and the former Soviet republic has shown signs of wanting stronger relations with Europe.

But a year after the EU said Uzbekistan had made progress on human rights and eased sanctions imposed over a crackdown on demonstrators in the town of Andijan in 2005, the 27-nation bloc called for a further improvement at talks in Brussels.

“The EU called upon the Uzbek authorities to take further steps in improving the situation concerning human rights and fundamental freedoms,” the EU said in a written statement. “It looked forward to further progress on this in the near future.”

The statement also called for greater efforts to tackle corruption, carry out political and economic reforms, and ensure a scheduled parliamentary election in December is fair. Uzbek Foreign Minister Vladimir Norov said his country wanted stronger ties with the EU.

But, in comments which signalled big differences remain on some issues and progress to better ties may not be smooth, he said relations must be based on equality and mutual respect.

Defending Uzbekistan’s rights record, he said of the 27-nation EU, “You’ve got to serve as an example before expecting things of others.”