South Korea and the five Central Asian countries have agreed to expand business cooperation in trade and investment, critical minerals, energy, infrastructure and logistics. The agreements were reached at the first Korea–Central Asia Business Summit, held in Seoul on 16 September 2026.
According to the Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, the summit was the first multilateral economic event of this scale since South Korea established diplomatic relations with the five Central Asian countries.
The business summit was attended by the Presidents of South Korea, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, as well as around 520 representatives of business and government.
South Korea was represented by executives from leading companies, including Samsung Electronics Co, POSCO, LS Group, Daewoo Engineering & Construction, Shinhan Financial Group and Hyundai Motor.
The first session of the summit, devoted to “Future Korea–Central Asia Cooperation for Growth and Innovation,” featured panel discussions on specific areas of cooperation and opportunities for companies to enter regional markets.
The discussions focused on three main areas:
- expanding trade and investment;
- strengthening cooperation in critical minerals, energy and supply chains;
- developing projects in industrial facilities, infrastructure and logistics.
In trade and investment, participants proposed diversifying the structure of trade, which is currently largely focused on raw materials, and expanding investment cooperation, including in manufacturing.
In critical minerals, energy and supply chains, participants discussed ways to combine Central Asia’s abundant mineral and energy resources with the technological capabilities of Korean companies.
In industrial infrastructure and logistics, the participants explored opportunities to increase the involvement of Korean companies in energy and industrial construction projects, as well as transport infrastructure projects, including airports and railways.
Following the discussions, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and leading economic organizations from the five Central Asian countries adopted a Joint Declaration of the Business Summit, expressing their commitment to developing mutually beneficial cooperation between companies.
Speaking at the special session of the summit, President Lee Jae Myung stressed the need for shared prosperity between South Korea and Central Asia and reaffirmed the government’s readiness to support business cooperation.
19 Business MoUs Signed
A total of 19 business cooperation Memorandums of Understanding were signed during the summit. They cover critical minerals and energy, infrastructure, industrial construction, trade and investment.