In Dushanbe, Experts Are Setting the Agenda for the First Central Asia-Korea Summit
ORIENT | June 24, Dushanbe. The 3rd Central Asia-Korea Think Tank Forum is taking place in the capital of Tajikistan today. The key feature of this year's meeting is its strategic timing. Organized in advance of the first-ever Central Asia-Korea Summit of Heads of State, scheduled for this fall in Seoul, the forum has become an important intellectual platform for consensus-building and shaping the future intergovernmental agenda.
This forum brings together leading strategic research institutes directly reporting to the presidents and governments of the region's countries. Turkmenistan is represented at this large-scale event by a delegation of experts from the Center for Strategic Studies of the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Higher Diplomatic School of Turkmenistan.
The first session of the forum was devoted to tectonic shifts in global geopolitics and the architecture of partnership. Gaigysyz Dovletov, Vice-Rector of the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, actively participated in the discussion. The experts focused on the untapped potential of scientific and analytical cooperation and the search for effective frameworks for multilateral dialogue in the context of changing international dynamics.
The second session focused on building mutually beneficial economic partnerships. Shiri Shiriev, Director of the Scientific Center for Strategic Studies at the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, delivered a detailed report.
In his presentation, the Turkmen analyst provided a comprehensive assessment of South Korea's role as one of the largest investors in Central Asia, where tech giants such as Samsung, LG, Hyundai, and POSCO are already firmly established. However, the expert inverted the conventional perspective, shifting the focus to mutual strategic challenges.
Shiri Shiriev noted that South Korea's key need in the 21st century remains resource and energy security due to its high dependence on imported hydrocarbons, uranium, rare earth elements, and non-ferrous metals. In this context, Central Asia is of paramount importance to Seoul.
Among the key motivating factors, the speaker highlighted the region's wealth of critical minerals and natural gas, the developed North-South and East-West transport corridors, and the sustainable economic growth of the region's countries, including Turkmenistan. Separately, the head of the Center for Strategic Studies emphasized the importance of political stability, mutual understanding among the leaders of Central Asian states, and the consolidation of the region as an independent, strong player on the global stage.
Assessing the diplomatic architecture, the expert recalled that the "5+1" format, launched in 2007 at the level of foreign ministers, has consistently evolved: in 2023, it reached the interparliamentary level, and just recently, on June 16, at a meeting of deputy foreign ministers in Tashkent, the outlines of the upcoming historic summit in Seoul were agreed upon, including the large-scale strategic initiative "K-Silk Road."
Shiri Shiriev expressed the opinion that, in addition to the obvious trade and economic drivers (incidentally, Korea's trade turnover with Central Asia reached $8.5 billion in 2025, and the growth of Turkmen-Korean trade between 2024 and 2025 was 7.1%), the parties are united by a desire for geopolitical diversification. The countries of Central Asia traditionally maintain a balanced position between multipolar centers of power, while South Korea seeks to strengthen its position in the region outside the rigid orbit of major global players, which opens up excellent prospects for independent economic maneuvering.
As recommendations for the future intergovernmental agenda, the head of the Turkmen think tank outlined the need to strengthen transport, communications, and water and environmental cooperation, including the joint promotion of a green economy and modern digital education methods.
Following the discussions in Dushanbe, the experts will adopt a joint political recommendation. This document will be officially submitted to the governments of the five Central Asian countries and the Republic of Korea for practical implementation during the autumn summit of state leaders.
