In early April, the first high-level summit between European Union representatives and the leaders of Central Asia's five states was held in Samarkand: Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. A meeting already described as historic, as it marks the beginning of a new strategic partnership between the two regions, with the five Central Asian republics carving out an increasingly significant role in the global balance of power — not only for the trade routes that cross them, but also because they hold vast deposits of hydrocarbons and essential raw materials, as well as great potential for reshaping a more sustainable energy future.

What the strategic partnership entails

The summit was attended by European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who announced an investment package worth €12 billion to strengthen cooperation in key sectors such as energy, trade, transport, digital connectivity, strategic minerals extraction and water resource management. The investment plan is to be backed by the Global Gateway, the European Union project launched in 2021 to build new infrastructure in developing countries — widely regarded as a response to China's Belt and Road Initiative — and would also give impetus to the Trans-Caspian Middle Corridor, a 6,500-kilometre trade route that connects China to Europe via Central Asia and the Caucasus, bypassing Russian territory. A strategic project for Brussels, especially since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

"This partnership will strengthen ties between our two regions and open new opportunities for cooperation: in the fields of energy and security, in digital and in tourism. And it will foster exchanges between the people of our regions. In a world like today's, having reliable partners has never been more important."

Ursula von der Leyen.

A symbolic yet significant step in building this new partnership was the signing of an agreement to open a regional office of the European Investment Bank in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan — a move that signals the EU's intention for a long-term commitment to the region.

Ursula von der Leyen ✓ @vonderleyen

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📍We are in Samarkand for the first ever EU-Central Asia Summit.

Tomorrow we will launch a new Strategic Partnership with Central Asia.

It means we can rely on each other.

And in today's world, this matters more than ever.

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How Central Asia's weight is shifting

For decades, Central Asia was seen as a backwater. But today, the redistribution of global power, its strategic position for trade and the abundance of natural resources, combined with a greater — if still fragile — internal stability, are earning this remote region, sandwiched between Russia, China, Afghanistan and Iran, growing visibility and relevance.

In recent years, intra-regional trade has increased 4.5-fold, and the volume of trade with the European Union has quadrupled over the past seven years, reaching €54 billion.

According to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the area's GDP is expected to grow by six per cent in 2025, well above the global average.

EU Council @EUCouncil

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The first summit between the leaders of EU and Central Asia takes place tomorrow in Samarkand.

The summit is an opportunity for the EU and Central Asia to demonstrate their geopolitical interest in enhancing cooperation.

More ➡️ europa.eu/!kRf77J

#EUCentralAsia

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Efforts towards the green transition

Among the five Central Asian republics, Uzbekistan is one of those making the greatest efforts to attract foreign investment, including in the green transition. To date, 14 solar plants are already operational in the country, and the government plans to achieve a 54 per cent share of renewables in the energy mix by 2030. A further 50 renewable energy projects are in the pipeline, with a combined capacity of 24,000 megawatts.

The new partnership with the EU aims to harness solar potential in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan and wind potential in Kazakhstan. Plans also include the creation of a regional carbon market, the expansion of the Erasmus+ programme for Central Asian students, and the alignment of the digital agenda with Europe's, including in strategic sectors such as artificial intelligence and big data.

The role of Russia and China

Despite the good intentions, some analysts remain sceptical. "Central Asia wants a greater EU presence, but local leaders have no great expectations because Europe has not put enough resources on the table to truly compete with China and Russia," declared Temur Umarov of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center in Berlin.

For historical and geographical reasons, Russia and China have always been Central Asia's main trading partners, with Beijing not only having funded numerous infrastructure projects but also having overtaken Moscow in 2024 in terms of trade volume in the region, thereby strengthening its presence.

The fracture in the Turkic world

In this shifting balance of power, the rapprochement that the Central Asian republics have recently made towards Cyprus is significant, as it marks a change in their strategic orientation and their position on the thorny Cyprus question, considered one of Europe's longest-running "frozen" conflicts, involving Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots. In recent months, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan have appointed their own diplomatic representatives to the Republic of Cyprus, thereby distancing themselves from Turkey and creating a fracture within the Turkic world, with which most Central Asian countries share common linguistic and cultural roots.

According to the newspaper The Times of Central Asia, these moves took place precisely in the lead-up to the first historic EU–Central Asia summit in Samarkand, which concluded with a joint declaration reaffirming support for UN Security Council resolutions 541 and 550, which recognise the Republic of Cyprus as the sole legitimate authority on the Mediterranean island, and not the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, recognised only by Turkey. A choice by the Central Asian republics that could create friction with Ankara and new tensions among Turkic-speaking countries.