ASTANA – The leaders of Central Asia and Azerbaijan gathered in Cholpon-Ata on July 31 for an informal summit aimed at translating years of improving political ties into practical regional integration, as Azerbaijan expands the grouping’s reach across the Caspian and Kazakhstan pushes for an action plan for a landmark cooperation treaty.
The consultative format brings together Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to discuss trade, energy, transport corridors, tourism, humanitarian cooperation and regional security. Since its launch in 2018, the five Central Asian states have met annually in an informal format without outside powers, demonstrating their growing readiness and political willingness to address shared challenges on their own terms.
“Over the past eight years, the format has clearly evolved. In 2018, the main priority was to rebuild trust among the countries of the region and restore regular high-level dialogue. That was particularly important after a prolonged period in which many regional issues were addressed primarily through bilateral channels,” said Bauyrzhan Auken, lead expert of the Department of Asian Studies at the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies, in a comment to The Astana Times.
The meeting in Tashkent in 2025 marked a turning point, as it formally admitted Azerbaijan as a full participant and opened the way for a more ambitious phase of regional cooperation.
At the meeting, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev called for a concrete action plan to implement a regional friendship treaty, formally known as the Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighborliness and Cooperation for the Development of Central Asia in the 21st century.
The document was signed in 2022 by the presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan following the fourth consultative meeting. Tajikistan joined the treaty in August 2025, followed by Turkmenistan in June 2026.
Describing the document as historic, Tokayev stressed it “marks a new stage in strategic partnership” and “establishes a political framework for regional cooperation.”
“I believe the next step should be the practical implementation of the document’s provisions. In this regard, I propose developing and subsequently adopting an action plan with clear benchmarks for our long-term cooperation, aimed at further strengthening friendship and good-neighborly relations, as well as expanding trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian cooperation,” Tokayev said.
“It can be said with confidence that, thanks to growing mutual trust and the consistent development of regional cooperation, Central Asia is now experiencing the most successful period in its modern history,” he added.
The consultative format may be entering a more demanding phase, focused less on declarations and more on delivery.
“Today, the consultative meetings are no longer limited to an exchange of views among leaders. A working system has gradually developed around them, with summit rules, road maps, a Council of National Coordinators and closer cooperation among relevant ministries,” Auken said.
“The main question now is how to give the regional treaty practical substance,” he added.
According to him, Tokayev’s proposal to develop a separate action plan directly addresses that challenge. The aim is to define specific priorities, deadlines and responsible agencies. The consultative meetings can therefore now be viewed as a mechanism for setting a common agenda in trade, transport, energy, and investment, among other areas.
Growing trade
This push for closer regional cooperation is increasingly supported by trade. According to Yernar Serik, a foreign trade analyst and founder of the Trade Report Telegram channel, Kazakhstan’s trade with its Central Asian neighbors rose 28.9% year on year to a record $4.2 billion in January-May 2026, with exports reaching $3.2 billion.
Uzbekistan alone accounted for more than half of its regional trade. Bilateral trade rose 37.2% to $2.3 billion in January-May.
The region has also become a particularly important market for Kazakh manufacturers, absorbing 40% of the country’s finished-goods exports, excluding re-exports.
Why coordination matters now
“Coordination among the Central Asian countries has become a necessity,” Auken said, noting that disruptions to transport routes and supply chains, energy and price volatility and conflicts beyond the region can quickly produce consequences across Central Asia.
“At the same time, Central Asian countries face shared challenges involving water resources, climate change, food and energy security, and the need to adapt their economies to global technological shifts. Addressing these issues solely at the national level is becoming increasingly difficult. The countries, therefore, need to align their interests, exchange information and jointly plan their next steps,” he explained.
Transport and logistics are also taking on a greater importance in discussions.
“Geopolitical instability has increased the need to diversify routes between Asia and Europe. Developing alternative corridors allows the countries of the region to strengthen the resilience of supply chains and reduce their dependence on individual routes,” he said.
Informal format
According to Auken, the format’s flexibility is its strength. It does not require governments to transfer authority to a supranational body, build a large permanent bureaucracy or surrender elements of national sovereignty.
“It allows leaders to discuss sensitive issues openly, coordinate their positions and advance joint initiatives without excessive bureaucracy,” the expert said.
Auken cautioned that closer coordination does not mean the countries were seeking to build a closed regional bloc or distance themselves from outside partners. Instead, the objective was to align their positions more effectively and defend shared regional interests amid intensifying competition among major powers.
“At the same time, the format’s flexibility does not relieve the countries of the need to implement the agreements they reach. Decisions made at the leaders’ level must be followed through by executive agencies,” he said.
Azerbaijan expands the format across the Caspian
Azerbaijan’s inclusion as a full participant marks a significant expansion of the consultative format beyond Central Asia’s five states. Its participation strengthens the trans-Caspian dimension and creates new opportunities for cooperation in transport, energy, trade and investment. With Azerbaijan serving as a key link to the South Caucasus, Türkiye and European markets, the enlarged format could help advance a more integrated regional transport and logistics network, including the Middle Corridor.
According to Tokayev, Azerbaijan’s inclusion marked a new stage in the format’s evolution.
“Through our joint efforts, we are creating conditions for deeper political dialogue, expanded cooperation in investment, energy and industry, and the development of an integrated transport and logistics system,” he said.
Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reinforced that broader vision, saying Azerbaijan’s accession had elevated the consultative format to a “qualitatively new, macro-regional level.” His remarks pointed to an emerging geopolitical concept that links Central Asia with the South Caucasus and Afghanistan through transport, trade and development ties.
According to Auken, Azerbaijan’s participation does not transform the grouping into a broader political bloc and does not alter the Central Asian character of the format.
“Rather, it gives the grouping greater substance and strengthens its practical dimension. It enables the countries to advance projects whose significance extends across the wider trans-Caspian region,” he said, noting that it creates additional opportunities for Central Asian countries to pursue joint projects in transport, energy and digital infrastructure.
“This is most visible in transport,” he said, stressing that Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan are key actors in the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, which links China and Europe through Central Asia, the Caspian Sea and the South Caucasus.
“For the countries of the region, developing the corridor offers a way to diversify routes, reduce dependence on individual transit channels and strengthen their position in Eurasian logistics,” Auken said.
He also highlighted opportunities in energy, industry, investment and digital infrastructure.
“One example is the planned fiber-optic cable across the Caspian Sea between Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, which is expected to improve regional digital connectivity and create an additional data-transmission route,” said the expert.
Stronger voice of Central Asia
Addressing the meeting, Tokayev said Central Asia’s role in global affairs is steadily growing and that the region’s voice is becoming increasingly prominent on the international stage.
“Kazakhstan remains committed to the agreements reached and will continue advancing constructive initiatives aimed at strengthening friendship, good-neighborly relations and strategic partnership among our countries. I am confident that, through our joint efforts, we will achieve even greater progress,” Tokayev said.
The expanded format does not amount to a closed regional bloc. Instead, it reflects an effort by Central Asian states to coordinate more effectively, reduce their vulnerability to external shocks and approach larger powers with a clearer sense of shared interests.
