BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 3. Hakan Fidan,
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Türkiye, and his Kazakh counterpart
Yermek Kosherbayev have agreed to deepen cooperation on the Middle
Corridor development during the 8th meeting of the Joint Strategic
Planning Group (JSPG) on February 2, 2026, in Ankara, Trend reports via the
Turkish Foreign Ministry.
At the meeting, the sides exchanged views on ways for further
strengthening Türkiye-Kazakhstan relations in a wide range of
areas, including trade and investments, culture and education,
energy security, regional connectivity, health, environment,
counterterrorism, defense, and the defense industry.
"Celebrating the 34th anniversary of the establishment of
diplomatic relations between Türkiye and Kazakhstan, and
highlighting the common history, language, and culture as the basis
of their brotherly cooperation, the Foreign Ministers reiterated
their commitment to further deepen the multifaceted Turkish-Kazakh
cooperation in accordance with the Enhanced Strategic Partnership
of the two countries.
The sides expressed their satisfaction with the frequency of
high-level visits, which serve as a testament to the strong
bilateral ties and mutual trust between Türkiye and Kazakhstan.
They emphasized that such visits further deepen cooperation across
various fields and reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining this
dynamic momentum," the ministry said.
According to the ministry, the sides discussed priority areas
for economic relations, including facilitating and diversifying
trade and investment, encouraging technology transfer and joint
investments in agriculture, enhancing cooperation in the field of
environment, deepening cooperation in the health sector, and
strengthening collaboration in the fields of science and
technology, particularly cybersecurity, artificial intelligence,
digitalization, and space.
The meeting also emphasized the importance of cooperating in the
energy sector through energy trade and joint projects, including
oil and natural gas infrastructure across the value chain, clean
energy generation, electricity transmission, and joint exploration,
development, and processing initiatives in the mining field,
particularly focusing on critical minerals and rare earth
elements.
"Recognizing the importance of the Trans-Caspian East-West
Middle Corridor as a sustainable and reliable transport and energy
route in connecting Central Asian countries to foreign markets
through Türkiye, the Foreign Ministers reaffirmed their commitment
to deepen cooperation in strengthening regional connectivity
through cooperation and the trilateral mechanism of the Ministers
of Foreign Affairs and Ministers in Charge of Transport of Türkiye,
Kazakhstan, and Azerbaijan, as well as regional and international
platforms, most particularly the Organization of Turkic States
(OTS), the core multilateral platform of the Turkic World.
Emphasizing that Kazakhstan remains the largest trade partner of
Türkiye in Central Asia, the foreign ministers noted with
appreciation the progress made on the implementation of the Action
Plan of the 13th meeting of the Joint Economic Commission, held on
25 April 2024 in Ankara.
The sides have decided to take coordinated action to address
emerging threats to peace and security, including terrorism in all
its forms and manifestations and other transnational organized
crime and threats," the ministry explained.
The ministry noted that the Sides expressed their appreciation
for the close collaboration on defense matters, the
military-technical cooperation, and the ongoing Military Dialogue
Meetings between the relevant authorities of the two countries. In
this context, they also reaffirmed the importance of the
modernization projects for Kazakhstan’s defense industry
infrastructure through joint ventures.
"The ministers recognized people-to-people relations between the
two countries as one of the solid pillars of the bilateral
relationship. Akhmet Yassawi International Kazakh-Turkish
University in Turkestan, Yunus Emre Turkish Cultural Center in
Astana, and the Türkiye Scholarships program for Kazakh students
are illustrative of this connection.
The ministers welcomed the progress regarding the establishment
of Maarif Schools in Astana and Almaty in the upcoming period and
agreed to continue supporting educational and cultural partnerships
between the two brotherly nations.
The sides encouraged cooperation between the two countries in
the field of education and science, especially between higher and
secondary professional educational institutions, including the
intensification of the exchange of researchers and specialists.
In collaboration with TIKA and KazAID, the sides encouraged the
promotion of sustainable development in Central Asia and
cooperation on development assistance towards third countries," the
ministry said.
The ministry stressed that Fidan expressed appreciation for the
solidarity shown by brotherly Kazakhstan in the face of the
devastating earthquakes of 6 February 2023 and for the school
construction in Nurdağı (Gaziantep) as a token of a brotherly
gesture by Kazakh people.
"The Sides welcomed the close and constructive cooperation
established in the field of health and expressed their intention to
deepen this cooperation through enhanced institutional engagement,
capacity-building efforts, and exchange of expertise.
The ministers commended the work of the Congress of Leaders of
World and Traditional Religions in strengthening global stability
and tolerance," the ministry pointed out.
According to the ministry, as founding members of the OTS,
Türkiye and Kazakhstan reaffirmed the joint resolve to expand their
collaboration with a view to further empower the OTS and other
Turkic Cooperation Organizations.
"The sides also reaffirmed to further intensify their joint
efforts to implement the 'Turkic World Vision—2040.'
As founding members of the Conference on Interaction and
Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA), the sides supported
CICA’s transformation into a fully fledged international
organization while preserving its Asian identity," the ministry
added.
Besides, the ministry underscored that the sides noted the
importance of deepening cooperation within international platforms
such as the UN, OSCE, OIC, and ECO.
Fidan and Kosherbayev elaborated on current regional and
international developments, including those in Afghanistan, Gaza,
Ukraine, and Syria.
The ministers welcomed, in this regard, the launch of the second
phase of the Comprehensive Peace Plan to end the war in Gaza. They
underlined that the establishment of the Board of Peace, endorsed
by United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803 and of which
both countries are members, has created new momentum toward a
permanent ceasefire and the reconstruction of Gaza, as well as for
peace, stability, and prosperity in the region and the realization
of the two-state solution.
The ministers emphasized the need to reach a negotiated,
mutually acceptable, and viable settlement of the Cyprus issue and
acknowledged the aspirations of the Turkish Cypriot people, being
an integral part of the Turkic world, to realize their equal
inherent rights," the ministry mentioned.
The ministry highlighted that the JSPG meeting provided a timely
opportunity to discuss the calendar and preparation of the 6th
meeting of the High-Level Strategic Council under the
co-chairmanship of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President of the Republic
of Türkiye, and Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of the Republic of
Kazakhstan, to be held in Astana, as well as the organization of
the upcoming Summits of the Heads of State of the OTS to be held in
Kazakhstan (Turkistan) and Türkiye in 2026.
The Middle Corridor, also known as the Trans-Caspian
International Transport Route (TITR), is a transport and trade
route connecting Asia with Europe and serving as an alternative to
the traditional Northern and Southern corridors. The route begins
in China, passes through Central Asian countries such as
Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan, crosses the Caspian Sea
via Azerbaijan, and continues through Georgia and Türkiye before
reaching Europe. This overland route allows cargo to bypass longer
maritime routes and provides a direct connection between East Asia,
including China, and Europe.
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