CIS governments meeting in Ashgabat have endorsed a regional transport integration plan and advanced proposals to modernise heavy industry, highlighting a growing focus on overland trade routes and economic resilience.
Transport emerged as the clearest priority at the meeting of the Commonwealth of Independent States’ Council of Heads of Government, where officials signed a Concept for Integrating Major Transport Arteries across member states. Developed by Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Transport, the plan aims to create faster, safer and more cost-effective freight routes across the region.
The timing of the agreement is significant. As security concerns and geopolitical tensions continue to reshape global supply chains, governments across Eurasia are placing greater emphasis on land-based logistics corridors linking Asian and European markets. For the CIS, improving transport connectivity is increasingly viewed as both an economic necessity and a strategic opportunity.
Ashgabat was seen as a fitting venue for the discussions. Turkmenistan sits at the intersection of the East–West route and the eastern branch of the International North–South Transport Corridor, placing the country at one of Eurasia’s key transit crossroads. Officials expect stronger transport coordination to improve the region’s appeal to freight operators and investors.
Logistics was only part of the discussions. Leaders also reviewed proposals for the digital transformation of the mining and metallurgical sectors, industries that remain central to many CIS economies.
The talks, attended by prime ministers from Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, as well as representatives from Armenia and Turkmenistan and the CIS Secretary-General, covered 12 agenda items in both restricted and expanded formats. Alongside transport and industrial policy, participants discussed tariff regulation, trade barriers, and cooperation in geodesy, cartography and spatial data.
Several decisions reflected broader efforts to deepen regional coordination. Kazakhstan’s Karaganda and the Belarusian capital Minsk were selected as CIS Youth Capitals for 2027 and 2028 respectively, while economic data presented during the meeting pointed to stronger intra-regional trade.
Kazakhstan’s trade turnover with CIS countries reached $38.4 billion in 2025, with trade rising by 17.1% in the first quarter of 2026. Turkmenistan reported a 30% increase in trade with CIS member states to $1.8 billion over the same period, according to Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Khojamyrat Geldimyradov.
The next CIS Council of Heads of Government meeting is scheduled to take place in Moscow in December 2026.
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