On the sidelines of the inaugural leaders-level Summit of the “Central Asia plus Japan” Dialogue, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Turkmenistan President Serdar Berdimuhamedov held a bilateral summit meeting in Tokyo, reaffirming their commitment to expand multifaceted cooperation across economic, political, cultural, and humanitarian spheres.
Here is a Joint Press Release on the outcomes of the Summit Meeting between
Prime Minister of Japan Sanae Takaichi and President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov, issued by the Japanese Prime Minister’s office:
December 20, 2025
On the occasion of the first Summit of the “Central Asia plus Japan” Dialogue on December 20, 2025, Prime Minister of Japan TAKAICHI Sanae and President of Turkmenistan Serdar BERDIMUHAMEDOV held a Japan-Turkmenistan Summit Meeting in Tokyo.
Based on the bilateral cooperation and initiatives exemplified in the “Fact Sheet for Further Development of Relations between Japan and Turkmenistan to Co-create Mutually Beneficial Cooperation” published on April 15, 2025 during the visit of President of Turkmenistan to Japan on the occasion of the EXPO 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, both sides welcomed the signing of substantial package of documents during this official visit of President of Turkmenistan to Japan this year, and concurred on the further development of their cooperation in economic, political and other areas as below.
Economic field
Both sides concurred on the further development of cooperation in energy transition based on the revision of a Memorandum of Cooperation on Energy Transitions between the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan in April 2025. Both sides committed to public-private cooperation toward energy transition envisaged in the revised MOC on Energy Transitions signed in April 2025.
Recognizing the importance of simultaneously achieving economic growth, energy security and decarbonization, both sides concurred on the achievement of the common goal of carbon neutrality/net-zero following various pathways. Both sides welcomed the convening of the second Economic and Energy Dialogue in September 2025 and the Roadmap to Carbon Neutrality presented in the Dialogue.
Both sides welcomed significant progress of concrete projects including construction and maintenance of plants in such areas as gasoline and ammonia. Both sides concurred on further engagement to enhance public-private partnership to accelerate formulation of cooperation projects.
Both sides emphasized the importance of reliable implementation of contracts concluded with Japanese companies in the chemical industry of Turkmenistan:
A contract for the engineering, procurement and construction on a “turn -key” basis of the Ammonia Urea Plant in the Kiyanly village, Balkan province, Turkmenistan, signed on September 29, 2025.
A contract for the implementation of the first stage of work to reliably launch production at the Kiyanly Polymer Plant through a major overhaul of its production facilities, signed on July 23, 2025.
Both sides welcomed the intention to cooperate in implementing the project to build a second plant for producing gasoline from natural gas in the Ahal welayat of Turkmenistan in accordance with the legislation of Turkmenistan.
Both sides welcomed the entry into force of the Convention between Japan and Turkmenistan for the Elimination of Double Taxation with respect to Taxes on Income and the Prevention of Tax Evasion and Avoidance on November 27, 2025, which will contribute to promoting further mutual investments and economic exchanges between the two countries.
Both sides concurred on facilitating negotiations for an early conclusion of the bilateral investment treaty between Japan and Turkmenistan.
Both sides concurred on promoting and expanding cooperation regarding “TransCaspian International Transport Route” to enhance the connectivity within the region, and between Central Asia including Turkmenistan and the world. As part of the cooperation, both sides welcomed the implementation of training for customs officials in collaboration with the World Customs Organization (WCO).
Both sides concurred on pushing forward the activity for the launch of direct flights between Japan and Turkmenistan. Both sides expect that cross-border travel becomes more active and economic exchanges between the two countries are stimulated after the launch of the service.
Both sides concurred on working together to develop and support governance and ecosystem for safe, secure, and trustworthy Artificial Intelligence (AI), aimed at harnessing its potential to achieve sustainable economic growth and to address social challenges, including through newly launched Japan-Central Asia Partnership for AI Cooperation. They also highlighted the importance of facilitating free, secure and trusted cross-border data flows as a critical driver of the digital economy.
Both sides welcomed the cooperation on climate change using the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT) series for preparing more accurate and transparent report of greenhouse gas emission to be submitted within the framework of the Paris Agreement.
Both sides also concurred on promoting cooperation in the field of information and communication technology (ICT) with a view to fostering sustainable economic development, encouraging innovation, and advancing industrial capabilities.
Political field
Both sides shared the recognition on the growing geopolitical importance of the Central Asian region and stressed the importance of mutual cooperation as partners in maintaining and strengthening the free and open international order based on the rule of law. Both sides reaffirmed the importance of upholding the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, including respect for independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of all countries, prohibition of the threat or use of force, and protection and strengthening human dignity.
Based on the cooperation that has been achieved so far, both sides concurred on promoting concrete initiatives to strengthen the interconnection between Central Asia and the global community with the active involvement of Japan for co-creation of mutually beneficial cooperation.
Both sides concurred on further enhancing their cooperation in the framework of the “Central Asia plus Japan” Dialogue.
The Japanese side congratulated Turkmenistan on the 30th Anniversary of the recognition of the status of Permanent Neutrality and highly valued the successful holding of the International Forum dedicated to the International Year of Peace and Trust and the International Day of Neutrality in Ashgabat in December 2025.
Both sides confirmed the progress in high-level exchanges and cooperation between the two countries. Both sides concurred on further development of inter-parliamentary exchanges and the mutual visit by the Parliamentary Friendship League of the two countries.
The Japanese side welcomed Turkmenistan’s confirmation of its participation in the GREENxEXPO 2027, which will be held in Yokohama, Japan. Both sides concurred on working together for its successful holding.
Both sides welcomed the significant outcomes of the Third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDC 3) in realizing the potential of these countries for a more equitable and prosperous future, held in National Tourist Zone Avaza, Turkmenistan on August 5-8, 2025.
Both sides concurred on continuation of cooperation in the fight against transnational organized crimes, terrorism, and violent extremism through strengthening border control and law enforcement capacity, intelligence and analysis capabilities, and inter- organizational network collaboration and welcomed holding of the workshop on the rule of law in Japan to support counterterrorism measures in Central Asian countries, including Turkmenistan in February 2025.
Both sides concurred on the importance of promoting cooperation for the future peaceful development of Afghanistan. In this regard, both sides concurred on holding bilateral consultations on Afghanistan at various levels of Foreign Ministries of the two countries.
Other fields
Both sides concurred on further development of human resources through various scholarship, study-abroad and training program.
Both sides reaffirmed the importance of Japanese language education through the Japan Foundation to strengthen bilateral relations.
Both sides welcomed the cooperation in the area of culture to preserve and protect World Heritage sites in Turkmenistan such as extending capacity building and helping inscription through UNESCO projects funded by Japan and reaffirmed the importance of continuing to strengthen the cooperation.
Both sides concurred on working together toward women’s empowerment, taking into account the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda.
In this context, the Japanese side noted the relevance of the outcomes of the International Conference “The Role of Women in Modern Society: Developing International Cooperation for Sustainable Development”, held in National Tourist Zone Avaza, Turkmenistan on December 10, 2025.
Both sides expressed their hope for the exchange of views on regional affairs and for bilateral cooperation in collaboration with international organizations in such areas as disaster risk reduction.
Both sides concurred on intensifying cooperation in the field of science and innovative technologies.
Both sides welcomed research cooperation between the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the University of Tsukuba in the fields of environmental protection.