The 8th Consultative Meeting of the Heads of Central Asian Countries and Azerbaijan was held in Turkmenistan

China News Service, Astana, October 8th Comprehensive news: On the 8th local time, the 8th Consultative Meeting of the Heads of Central Asian Countries and Azerbaijan was held in the "Avaza" national tourist area in Turkmenistan.

The five heads of state of Central Asia and President Aliyev of Azerbaijan attended the meeting. All parties participating in the meeting held focused discussions on deepening cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, transportation, energy and other fields, and exchanged views on issues such as regional security, water resources utilization and people-to-people exchanges.

Kazakhstan President Tokayev suggested that governments of all countries formulate a joint action plan to increase the intra-regional trade volume of the five Central Asian countries and Azerbaijan to US$20 billion. He also pointed out that since 2018, all parties have proposed more than 200 initiatives, but only a few have been implemented. He suggested that the diplomatic departments of various countries sort out existing initiatives and pay more attention to the effectiveness of cooperation.

Uzbek President Mirziyoyev said that cooperation between Central Asian countries and Azerbaijan should not be limited to trade exchanges, but should also strengthen joint production. He suggested holding a business forum in Khiva, Uzbekistan in 2027 and setting up a special platform to provide financial and technical support for joint investment projects and accelerate the implementation of large-scale projects.

Aliyev said that in recent years, Azerbaijan has continued to improve infrastructure such as ports, railways and roads, and the freight volume of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Corridor has continued to grow. All parties should further strengthen transportation connectivity and improve transportation efficiency and competitiveness. He also said that in addition to traditional energy transportation cooperation, Afghanistan is working with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to promote the construction of green energy corridors and expand cooperation in the field of renewable energy.

Based on the results of the meeting, all parties participating in the meeting signed a joint statement.

In November 2025, the Seventh Central Asian Heads of State Consultative Conference decided to admit Azerbaijan to join the cooperation mechanism as a full member.