Japan and five Central Asian countries announce new initiatives on critical minerals

Japan and five Central Asian nations have unveiled a range of initiatives aimed at strengthening critical minerals supply chains and fostering broader regional cooperation, following their first summit in Tokyo on Saturday.

The Central Asia plus Japan Dialogue brought together Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and the presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan: Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Sadyr Zhaparov, Emomali Rahmon, Serdar Berdimuhamedov, and Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

The leaders agreed on three key areas of cooperation: Green and Resilience, Connectivity, and Human Resource Development. Green and Resilience will focus on energy transition, disaster risk reduction, climate change measures, and securing critical minerals supply chains. Connectivity projects include the further development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route and the establishment of a Japan-Central Asia AI Cooperation Partnership.

In addition, the nations will collaborate on health and medical initiatives and set a target of 3 trillion yen (around $19 billion) in joint business projects over the next five years.

Prime Minister Takaichi underlined the strategic importance of Central Asia, citing its location between Europe and Asia, its abundant energy and mineral resources, and its potential for strong economic growth and population expansion.

The summit also saw the signing of more than 150 agreements by public and private sector representatives, alongside one-on-one meetings between Takaichi and the Central Asian leaders.

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