South Korea's President Lee to Host First Central Asia Summit in Seoul

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung will host the first South Korea-Central Asia summit next week as Seoul seeks to strengthen economic and strategic ties with the resource-rich region.

The summit will bring together the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, with discussions expected to focus on trade, investment, energy and critical minerals.

Highlights:

• South Korean President Lee Jae Myung will host the five Central Asian leaders in Seoul for the first leader-level multilateral summit between the two sides.
• The talks will focus on expanding cooperation in trade, investment, energy, critical minerals and supply chains as Seoul deepens ties with Central Asia.

South Korea Deepens Central Asia Engagement

Lee is scheduled to hold separate bilateral meetings with the leaders of the five Central Asian countries from September 14 to September 16, before hosting the joint summit on Wednesday afternoon.

The summit is expected to establish a new leader-level framework for cooperation between South Korea and Central Asia. Seoul sees the meeting as an opportunity to expand economic partnerships with countries that hold significant energy and critical mineral resources.

Lee said the summit would consolidate relations with Central Asia into a multilateral cooperation framework and give fresh momentum to Seoul's regional engagement. 

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Energy, Minerals and Supply Chains in Focus

The discussions will focus on trade, investment, energy, critical minerals and supply chains, reflecting South Korea's growing interest in securing strategic resources and strengthening economic partnerships.

The summit also builds on the New Northern Policy, launched under former President Moon Jae-in to deepen South Korea's economic, energy and infrastructure ties with Central Asia and other Eurasian partners.

By bringing the five Central Asian leaders together in Seoul, the meeting could provide a broader platform for cooperation across strategic industries while strengthening South Korea's presence in the resource-rich region.