South Korean President Lee Jae Myung will host the first multilateral summit between South Korea and the five Central Asian republics in Seoul next week, his office announced on Friday.
The meeting will bring together the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. It marks a new leader-level format for relations between Seoul and the resource-rich region.
Discussions are expected to focus on trade, investment, energy, critical minerals and resilient supply chains. Central Asia’s strategic location and natural resources have attracted increasing attention from major Asian and European economies.
Lee is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with each visiting leader between 14 and 16 September, ahead of the joint summit on Wednesday. Those talks will allow the governments to address country-specific projects alongside the regional agenda.
For South Korea, closer partnerships could support access to minerals and energy resources needed by its advanced manufacturing industries. Central Asian states, meanwhile, are seeking investment, technology and additional export routes.
The summit also builds on Seoul’s efforts to expand diplomacy across Eurasia. South Korean officials view diversified partnerships as increasingly important amid geopolitical competition and disruptions to international supply chains.
Attention will now turn to whether the leaders announce concrete agreements on infrastructure, industrial cooperation or resource development. The success of the new format will depend on sustained implementation after the inaugural meeting.
Source: Reuters, citing the South Korean presidency.
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