Crossroads Asia | Diplomacy | Central Asia

South Korea Embraces the Silk Road Spirit With Central Asian Leaders

In the first Central Asia-South Korea leaders summit, energy and critical minerals were top of the agenda. 

Amid their first leader-level summit, South Korea and the five Central Asian states set a course for deeper relations centered on critical minerals, energy, and emerging technology, with a focus on seeking out mutual benefits and climbing the value chain together. 

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung called for the forging of a “new Silk Road.”

“If we walk together, I am certain that the road of 1,500 years ago will reopen as a new and beautiful Silk Road,” Lee said. “If the five countries gathered here today and we in the Republic of Korea pool our wisdom and join hands, there is nothing we cannot achieve together.”

On September 16 in Seoul, Lee met with the presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan together for the first time, taking advantage of the C5 1 format that has become an increasingly popular vehicle for external powers to engage with the Central Asian region. 

Since 2007, Central Asian and South Korean officials have met at the vice-ministerial level, upgrading to the ministerial level in 2019 and now the presidential level. 

South Korea has long been an important partner for the region, though it flies under the geopolitical radar homed in on Russia, China, and the United States. Although the Central Asian states are marginal trade partners for South Korea, whose GDP of approximately $1.93 trillion makes it the 15th largest globally, Seoul is a top-10 trade partner for Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. That trade, however, is often heavily weighted in South Korea’s favor, as in the case of Tajikistan – according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), in July 2026 South Korea exported $31.6 million in goods to Tajikistan (mostly cars and other vehicles) and imported $0. 

For Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the balance is better and the trade volumes bigger. In July 2026, OEC data stated, South Korea exported $158 million in goods (mostly cars and other vehicles but also beauty products) to Kazakhstan and imported imported $142 million (mostly crude petroleum, coal, and ferroalloys). In regard to Uzbekistan, South Korea exported $182 million in goods (mostly cars and other vehicles, as well as vehicles parts, but also – and I confess I don’t understand – $21.1 million in the “brochures” category); Uzbekistan meanwhile sent $7.06 million in goods (refined petroleum, perfume plants and medical instruments) to South Korea. 

In his remarks, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev highlighted Kazakhstan’s leading place in Central Asia-South Korea trade – representing half of it – and the prevalence of well-known Korean companies in Kazakhstan.

“More than 1,000 joint ventures with Korean capital operate in Kazakhstan,” he said. “Leading companies such as Kia, Hyundai, Doosan, Posco, Samsung, Lotte, and Hanwha have been successfully operating in the Kazakhstani market for many years.”

“There is significant potential in the industrial sector that requires further deepening economic cooperation,” Tokayev added. He made the case for further Korean investment in Central Asia, taking advantage of expanding trade and transit corridor across the Eurasian landmass.

Tokayev proposed launching a Central Asia-Korea industrial and technological development partnership. “Within this framework, our governments........

© The Diplomat