Ministry of Trade Industry and Resources

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources (MOTIR, Minister JK Kim) announced a series of economic diplomacy outcomes with five Central Asian countries—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan—across industry, trade and supply chains during the First Korea-Central Asia Summit 2026, held in Seoul from September 14 to 16, 2026.

In conjunction with the summit, MOTIR also held a series of events: the inaugural C5+1 Industry Ministers’ Meeting on September 14; the Korea–Kazakhstan Business Roundtable, the Korea–Uzbekistan Business Forum and the Korea–Turkmenistan Business Forum on September 15; and the First Korea-Central Asia Business Summit 2026 on September 16, attended by the leaders of all six countries.

Although Korea has maintained bilateral consultation channels with each of the five Central Asian countries, this marked the first time in 34 years of diplomatic relations that the five Central Asian countries came together with Korea to discuss cooperation on industry and supply chains, including critical minerals. By combining Central Asia’s abundant strategic minerals, including lithium, uranium and rare earths, with Korea’s advanced manufacturing and processing technologies, the two sides laid the groundwork for a mutually beneficial value chain that moves beyond a simple raw-material import model to link local refining and smelting with high-value-added processing and finished-product manufacturing.

Intergovernmental Cooperation: New Multilateral Industry and Supply Chain Consultation Channel Established; Nine Bilateral and Multilateral Cooperation Documents Signed

At the inaugural C5+1 Industry Ministers’ Meeting on September 14, the industry ministries of Korea and the five Central Asian countries signed an MOU on industry and supply chain cooperation and established a multilateral ministerial consultation channel to respond to supply chain disruptions and promote industrial diversification.

MOTIR also signed eight bilateral cooperation documents on the occasion of bilateral summits and other meetings, setting out practical cooperation tailored to each country’s industrial conditions and economic needs.

With Kazakhstan, Korea signed a framework agreement on crude oil cooperation to strengthen cooperation across the crude oil value chain, including oil field development and petrochemicals. The two countries also signed an MOU on nuclear energy cooperation to establish a basis for cooperation across the nuclear power life cycle.

With Kyrgyzstan, the two sides revised their existing MOU on trade and investment cooperation, substantially expanding its scope to include critical minerals, halal industries and digital transformation. They also agreed to launch a regular director-general-level consultation channel.

With Tajikistan, Korea signed an MOU on industrial cooperation for the first time since the two countries established diplomatic relations, laying the groundwork for broad industrial cooperation in mining and critical minerals, AI and emerging technologies, textiles and chemicals.

With Turkmenistan, Korea signed an MOU on cooperation in the chemical industry and industrial plant projects, establishing a framework spanning policy, technology and workforce development and providing a basis for Korean plant engineering companies to expand into the Turkmen market.

With Uzbekistan, Korea signed an MOU on a full-cycle critical minerals cooperation platform to advance processing and exploration cooperation through the Korea–Uzbekistan Rare Metals Center. They also signed an MOU on cooperation in AI transformation in manufacturing to pursue AI-driven manufacturing innovation in connection with official development assistance (ODA) projects, as well as an MOU on export capacity building to share trade policy experience and work to expand bilateral trade.

Private-Sector Business Cooperation: 116 Business MOUs Signed

At the private-sector level, 116 business cooperation MOUs were signed at business forums and the Business Summit on September 15 and 16, with the agreements setting out more specific plans for Korean companies to participate in projects and enter local markets.

A total of 97 MOUs were signed at bilateral business events held on September 15 in the presence of the respective Central Asian leaders and Prime Minister Han Seong-sook. At the Korea–Kazakhstan Business Roundtable, 78 MOUs were signed in areas including the construction of a gas processing plant, expansion of a petrochemical plant, development of Alatau Smart City, mobility and AI cooperation. The Korea–Uzbekistan Business Forum produced five MOUs covering critical mineral exploration and development and cooperation in AI and digital technologies, while 14 MOUs were signed at the Korea–Turkmenistan Business Forum, including on the modernization of the Karakum Canal.

On September 16, the First Korea-Central Asia Business Summit 2026 brought together around 520 participants, including the leaders of Korea and the five Central Asian countries and business representatives. Business organizations from the six countries adopted a joint declaration setting out a shared vision for future cooperation. A total of 19 business MOUs were also exchanged, including cooperation involving Hyundai Motor Company on the Alatau Smart City project, rare metals technology cooperation by the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH), and SAC’s export of equipment for a ferroalloy plant.

Next Steps: Regular Implementation Reviews to Support Early Results

MOTIR plans to take all necessary follow-up measures so that the intergovernmental cooperation documents and business MOUs resulting from the summit-level economic diplomacy can translate into actual contracts and investment.

The ministry plans to make the newly established C5+1 Industry Ministers’ Meeting a regular forum and periodically review progress on key projects through working-level consultative bodies. It will also work with Korean diplomatic missions and offices of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) in Central Asia to address difficulties faced by Korean companies on the ground.