South Korea and Central Asia establish permanent leaders' summit framework

South Korea hosted the first heads-of-state summit with five Central Asian republics in Seoul on Wednesday, bringing together the presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The participants adopted the Seoul Declaration, a 30-year framework for cooperation on critical minerals, energy, supply chains and emerging technologies. The agreement establishes a leaders' summit to convene every two years, alongside a new mechanism bringing together industry ministers from all six countries. This development builds on a dialogue launched at vice-ministerial level in 2007 and subsequently elevated to ministerial level.

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung opened the summit with a reference to historical trade routes: "The 'Silk Road spirit' of Central Asia that connected people, technologies and cultures of the East and West as one is needed more than ever." The agreement reflects convergent interests among the parties. South Korea seeks to diversify its supplies of critical materials for semiconductor, battery and electric vehicle manufacturing. Meanwhile, Central Asian governments are pursuing greater investment, technology transfer and expanded domestic involvement in processing and manufacturing products derived from their raw materials. Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev emphasised this ambition, stating that "Central Asia is no longer merely a supplier of raw materials," signalling the region's determination to advance along the value chain.