The inaugural European Union — Central Asia summit will be held in Samarkand in April 2025, formalising the C5 + EU cooperation at the highest political level.
Preparations to the high-profile event were discussed during the recent talks between Assistant to the President of Uzbekistan Saida Mirziyoyeva and the EU Ambassador to Uzbekistan Toivo Klaar. The first-ever EU–Central Asia leaders' summit was initially planned for 2024.
“We believe that the upcoming EU-Central Asia summit will significantly strengthen our ties. The new EU leadership is truly committed to expanding relations with Uzbekistan and Central Asia. We are grateful to president Mirziyoyev for proposing Samarkand as the venue for the first-ever EU-Central Asia summit,” the EU ambassador told Gazeta.uz.
In 2019, the EU updated its strategy on Central Asia, to take account of new developments and opportunities for partnership and cooperation – both with the region as a whole and with its five individual countries (C5). The strategy aims to support sustainable development based on democracy, good governance and human rights and to boost trade and investment between the EU and Central Asia.
In 2022 and 2023, the Central Asian Heads of State and the President of the European Council held their first-ever high-level meetings, resulting in the preparation of a further joint roadmap for deepening ties between the EU and Central Asia.
“Intensification of high-level contacts reflects Central Asia's growing geostrategic importance in the light of global developments, including Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and the West's withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. The changes generated new challenges in the region have become, at the same time, opportunities for the Central Asian countries to emerge as regional political actors in their own right. They also provide further avenues for partnership and cooperation in areas such as energy, raw materials and connectivity, alongside a focus on human rights and democracy, where issues remain,” -said the European Parliament in its statement.
EU foreign ministers will convene in Brussels on 20th May. The upcoming Foreign Affairs Council will be chaired by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas.
Foreign Secretary heads to EU Foreign Ministers meeting to highlight the need for a new, ambitious security relationship. David Lammy will attend attends high-level Gymnich EU talks in Poland.
The European Commission has presented a roadmap to ensure the EU fully ends its dependency on Russian energy, while ensuring stable energy supplies and prices across the EU.
In a boost for the green transition in the Middle East and North Africa, a joint guarantee agreement worth €300 million to facilitate the green transformation of urban areas and support the development of green hydrogen market in the Middle East and North Africa has been signed.
The European Commission has announced the allocation of EUR 52 million in funding support through the EU Renewable Energy Financing Mechanism (RENEWFM) to nine renewable energy projects in Finland and Estonia.
U.S. President Donald Trump has announced that Russia and Ukraine will begin immediate negotiations for a ceasefire, following a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, the Kremlin has declined to set any deadlines, saying talks will take time and involve complex negotiations.
Microsoft announced on Monday that it will begin hosting AI models from Elon Musk's xAI, Meta Platforms, and European startups like Mistral and Black Forest Labs in its own data centers.
The U.S. Supreme Court recently allowed President Donald Trump's administration to move forward with ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for around 350,000 Venezuelans living in the U.S. Trump has also aimed to end TPS protections for Haitians, Afghans, and others.
The U.S. Supreme Court has granted a request from the Trump administration to lift protections under the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program for approximately 350,000 Venezuelans, potentially opening the door to future deportations while litigation continues.
Lithuania has taken legal action against Belarus at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing Minsk of organizing irregular migrant crossings and violating international obligations.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara on May 15, with discussions reportedly focusing on upcoming peace talks between Ukrainian and Russian delegates in Istanbul.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the war in Gaza will not stop until Hamas is destroyed, following the release of US-Israeli soldier Edan Alexander.
Qatar signed a landmark agreement with U.S. aerospace giant Boeing on Wednesday to acquire 160 aircraft for Qatar Airways, a deal valued at $200 billion. The signing took place in Doha during the visit of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Ukrainian and Russian delegations meet behind closed doors at Istanbul’s Dolmabahçe Palace at 10:00 local time today to explore security guarantees, territorial integrity and a possible ceasefire.
EU approves 17th Russia sanctions, blacklisting almost 200 shadow‑fleet ships, 30 evasion firms and 75 defence figures, banning missile chemicals and arming Brussels to strike Kremlin hybrid and operations.
Armenia has proposed elevating its cooperation with Cyprus to the level of a strategic partnership, a move positively received by Cypriot officials.
Iran hosted the Tehran Dialogue Forum on May 18–19 with 200 delegates from 53 countries, showcasing its soft power through diplomacy while also highlighting military strength—an approach echoing the "smart power" concept of balancing dialogue and deterrence.
Negotiations between Azerbaijan and Armenia could soon advance to a new level, with discussions possibly involving the heads of state, according to Armenian Parliament Speaker Alen Simonyan.
Azerbaijani presidential climate envoy Mukhtar Babayev is set to participate in the Astana International Forum 2025, focusing on global challenges and future cooperation.
Uzbekistan’s Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov met with UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy in London to discuss strengthening bilateral relations, covering trade, investment, culture, and global challenges. Both sides signed a Cooperation Program for 2025-2026 to deepen their partnership.
U.S. President Donald Trump has announced that Russia and Ukraine will begin immediate negotiations for a ceasefire, following a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, the Kremlin has declined to set any deadlines, saying talks will take time and involve complex negotiations.
Microsoft announced on Monday that it will begin hosting AI models from Elon Musk's xAI, Meta Platforms, and European startups like Mistral and Black Forest Labs in its own data centers.
The U.S. Supreme Court recently allowed President Donald Trump's administration to move forward with ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for around 350,000 Venezuelans living in the U.S. Trump has also aimed to end TPS protections for Haitians, Afghans, and others.
The U.S. Supreme Court has granted a request from the Trump administration to lift protections under the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program for approximately 350,000 Venezuelans, potentially opening the door to future deportations while litigation continues.
Lithuania has taken legal action against Belarus at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing Minsk of organizing irregular migrant crossings and violating international obligations.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment