During the years of independence Uzbekistan has established and is developing scientific and technical cooperation with the USA, the European Union, Japan, China, Republic of Korea, India and others. As their basis they have over 60 international agreements in the field of scientific-engineering cooperation and the protection of intellectual property. Partnership relations are established with the scientific and engineering associations of the European Union INTAS and INCO-Copernicus, NATO's scientific committee, the American Civil Research and Development Fund (CRDF), and the Ukrainian Scientific-Research Center. In 1999 about US$4 million was allocated for Uzbek scientists as international grants to implement the scientific and engineering projects. The decree by the Cabinet of Ministers of the republic stipulates a number of financial privileges, including exemption from state payments and taxes for the international scientific-engineering programs implemented in Uzbekistan. Lately a number of joint scientific-engineering projects with the USA, Germany, India, and the CIS countries is carried out along the priority trends on a bilateral basis. The republic regularly hosts international scientific-engineering seminars and conferences in various fields of natural, humanitarian sciences, medicine, agriculture, applied research, the innovation issues, the commercialization of science, the development and the transfer of technologies.