Turkmenbashi, October 8, AZERTAC

On October 8, the 8th Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Central Asia was held in Turkmenbashi, Turkmenistan.

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev arrived at the Awaza Complex to attend the Consultative Meeting.

President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov welcomed President Ilham Aliyev.

The heads of state participating in the event then posed together for a family photo.

Declaring the meeting open, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov said:

“Distinguished heads of state, I now give the floor with great respect to His Excellency, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Heydar oglu Aliyev.

Ilham Heydar oglu, please, the floor is yours.”

The President of Azerbaijan addressed the event.

Speech by President Ilham Aliyev

- Esteemed Serdar Gurbangulyevich,

Distinguished heads of state,

Dear friends,

First of all, I express my gratitude to the President of Turkmenistan for the invitation and traditional hospitality.

I am glad to be back in brotherly Turkmenistan, in beautiful Awaza.

In November last year, Azerbaijan became a full-fledged participant in the Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia. Once again, I express my gratitude to all my esteemed colleagues for their unanimous support for this historic decision. In this regard, I would like to particularly acknowledge the role of Turkmenistan and, personally, that of the esteemed Gurbanguly Myalikgulyevich Berdimuhamedov. It was here in Awaza, in August last year, that he put forward the initiative for Azerbaijan’s full participation in this format.

Relations between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan have been developing dynamically in recent years. Since last year, five high-level visits have taken place. This attests to the intensity of our political dialogue and our shared commitment to further strengthening bilateral ties.

I would particularly like to highlight the construction of a mosque in the city of Fuzuli, undertaken at the initiative of the esteemed Gurbanguly Myalikgulyevich Berdimuhamedov. Last year, we jointly attended the foundation-laying ceremony. This gift from brotherly Turkmenistan to our country is yet another testament to the friendship and spiritual affinity between our peoples.

The brotherly support extended to us in the reconstruction of Azerbaijan’s liberated territories holds special significance for us. In Fuzuli, Uzbekistan has built a school named after Mirzo Ulugbek, while Kazakhstan has built the Kurmangazy Children’s Creativity Center. In Aghdam, Kyrgyzstan has built a school named after Manas. We highly appreciate this assistance.

Azerbaijan's cooperation with the countries of Central Asia has expanded significantly in recent years. Political ties are at a high level, and high-level visits have become a regular feature of our relations. Trade and economic cooperation continue to strengthen, mutual investments are increasing, and joint projects are being implemented. Last year, Azerbaijan's trade with Central Asian countries increased by more than 50 percent. Today, over 400 companies with capital from Central Asian countries are actively operating in our country.

In recent years, Azerbaijan has established joint investment funds with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan. Each of these funds has capital amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars. I believe their potential should be harnessed more actively, primarily to implement joint projects, establish new manufacturing facilities, and expand industrial cooperation. We must not limit ourselves to increasing mutual trade; we must also invest together, produce together, and enter foreign markets together.

Transport is one of the key areas of our cooperation. The Caspian Sea plays an increasingly important role in ensuring transport connectivity between our countries. Transport infrastructure on both shores of the Caspian Sea is crucial to connecting Central Asia with Azerbaijan and, beyond Azerbaijan, with international markets. In recent years, we have consistently expanded our transport capacity. We have made substantial investments in transport infrastructure, developing seaports, airports, railways, and highways. Today, we are witnessing a significant increase in cargo transit volumes across the Caspian Sea. Our shared objective is to make these routes more efficient and competitive.

At the same time, the Digital Silk Way project is being implemented, and work is underway to lay fiber-optic cables across the seabed of the Caspian Sea. The Middle Corridor is gaining ever greater importance. Last year, the volume of transit cargo transported along this route increased by more than 10 percent, followed by a further increase of almost 20 percent in the first eight months of this year.

The energy sector holds a special place in our cooperation. Azerbaijan plays an important role in transporting energy resources from Central Asia to international markets. Oil from Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan is transported through our territory, and the volume of these shipments continues to grow. Our cooperation in renewable energy is steadily expanding. We are working together with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to establish a green energy corridor.

Dear colleagues,

The geopolitical significance of our cooperation format extends beyond joint projects in the energy and transport sectors. Peace, security, and political and economic stability in our countries underpin all our achievements and provide a solid foundation for the continued successful development of the Central Asian states and Azerbaijan, as well as for the further strengthening of our cooperation.

Thank you for your attention.

x x x

President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov said:

“Dear Ilham Heydar oglu, I express my gratitude to you for your insightful and constructive speech. The kind words, assessments, and proposals you expressed regarding Turkmenistan are of great importance for the future development of our bilateral relations and the expansion of regional and international cooperation. Turkmenistan attaches great importance to brotherly relations with the Republic of Azerbaijan and stands ready to consistently strengthen these ties. I am confident that our multilateral cooperation will contribute to further strengthening good-neighborly relations, cooperation, and mutual understanding between the Central Asian countries and Azerbaijan. Once again, I thank you for your insightful speech.”

Emphasizing that the Consultative Meeting is taking place in a year marking the 35th anniversary of the countries’ independence, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev noted its special significance, stating:

“I extend a special greeting to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the full-fledged participant in the Consultative Meeting, esteemed Ilham Heydar oglu Aliyev. It is also important to highlight the symbolic significance of our meeting today, as it takes place in a year when the 35th anniversary of our countries’ independence is being celebrated. Over these years, we have traversed a long, complex, indeed turbulent, yet productive path. This journey encompasses an entire era. We have consolidated our sovereignty, shaped our development models, and taken our rightful place in the international community. Today, Central Asia and Azerbaijan are rightfully considered centers of development and geopolitical interaction in Eurasia. Most importantly, however, thanks to the wisdom and unity of our brotherly peoples, we live in peace and solidarity.”

During the meeting, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev proposed preparing a Declaration on the Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence by the Central Asian states and Azerbaijan. The President of Kazakhstan also stated that all proposed measures should serve to build a solid humanitarian platform for regional interaction.

“We propose the creation of a unified calendar of large-scale cultural, sports, tourism, scientific, and other similar events to be held in Central Asia and Azerbaijan. This will stimulate reciprocal visits and enable the attraction of foreign tourists through combined tours,” the President of Kazakhstan emphasized.

Drawing attention to his country’s trade turnover with the Central Asian countries and Azerbaijan, President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sadyr Zhaparov stated:

“Over the past four years, Kyrgyzstan’s trade turnover with the Central Asian countries and Azerbaijan has nearly doubled, reaching $3.5 billion by the end of 2025. In 2025, the volume of investments in our country from the five states exceeded $140 million.”

Proposing the creation of a unified e-commerce platform for Central Asia and Azerbaijan, Sadyr Zhaparov said:

“In doing so, we would provide consumers and businesses with broader access to products manufactured in the countries of the region. Taking into account the distinct national products of each country, this platform could bring a wide range of regional goods together in a single space and create new opportunities for their promotion.”

The President of Kyrgyzstan emphasized that the countries possess immense and mutually complementary tourism potential.

“Historical cities, mountain and Caspian routes, and a rich cultural heritage allow us to unite our promotional efforts to make Central Asia and Azerbaijan attractive travel destinations. We propose developing cooperation based on the ‘One Trip – Multiple Countries’ principle and interconnecting our sights through joint tourism routes,” President Sadyr Zhaparov noted.

Conveying his congratulations to Azerbaijan on its upcoming first chairmanship of the Consultative Meeting in 2027, the President of Kyrgyzstan said:

“Allow me to sincerely congratulate esteemed Ilham Heydar oglu on the Republic of Azerbaijan’s first-ever chairmanship of the Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Central Asia in 2027. I am confident that Azerbaijan’s chairmanship will impart fresh momentum to our joint activities and the development of our mutually beneficial cooperation. The Kyrgyz Republic stands ready to extend all necessary support and assist in the successful implementation of the priorities of Azerbaijan’s chairmanship.”

Highlighting the significance of the meeting and the joint efforts to be undertaken, President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon said:

“Central Asia and Azerbaijan possess significant potential for transitioning to closer economic, transport, and energy cooperation. In this regard, I would like to outline a number of topical areas that deserve special attention. First and foremost, I would like to emphasize the strengthening of industrial cooperation. Our countries possess substantial resource potential. This opens up broad opportunities for establishing joint ventures and industrial complexes, as well as for processing natural resources.”

Proposing the holding of the “Central Asia – Azerbaijan” Business Forum in the city of Khiva next year, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev stated:

“Our meeting today is of special significance. This is the first time our meeting is being held together with brotherly Azerbaijan. I welcome Ilham Heydar oglu to this meeting.

The ‘Six Economies – One Product’ formula effectively captures the goal we ought to set for ourselves. When enterprises from several countries participate in a single production chain and a product is created jointly, entirely different linkages form among our economies. These ties prove to be far stronger and more sustainable than ordinary commodity exchange. In order to advance efforts in this direction, we propose holding the ‘Central Asia – Azerbaijan’ Business Forum in the ancient city of Khiva in 2027.”

Congratulating Azerbaijan on assuming the chairmanship, Shavkat Mirziyoyev noted:

“Taking this opportunity, I congratulate Azerbaijan on assuming the chairmanship within the framework of the Consultative Meetings. I am confident that under the leadership of the Azerbaijani side, additional impetus will be imparted to the work undertaken within our format, while our brotherly cooperation will serve to strengthen unity, trust, and solidarity.”