Astana-Ashgabat: A shared history, a view to the future

Strategic partnership

Over three decades, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan have moved from declarations to a stable format of strategic partnership. Today, the two countries maintain one of the most extensive treaty and legal frameworks in Central Asia, with about 70 agreements, including the Treaty of Friendship and the Treaty on Strategic Partnership.

Active cooperation continues on international platforms such as the UN, OSCE, CIS, and OIC, contributing to the alignment of positions on current issues of global and regional agendas.

In 2024 to 2025, political dialogue reached a new level of intensity. Over the past year, the heads of state met more than six times at summits of the SCO, Central Asia-Russia, Central Asia-Germany, Caspian summits, and during working visits. The meetings addressed agreements on the joint implementation of projects in energy, transit, and regional security.

A separate significance was held by the informal meeting between President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and the Chairman of the Halk Maslakhaty of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, in Turkistan in April 2025. It was there that the shift from political declarations to systematic practical work was consolidated, with a focus on deepening energy cooperation, developing joint logistics infrastructure, including digitalization of ports and transit hubs.

Against this backdrop, a strong foundation has been formed for further expansion of cooperation, from transport integration to energy interaction.

Trade turnover dynamics

Trade and economic cooperation between Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan remains a key factor in strengthening bilateral relations and shaping regional policy in Central Asia. Regular meetings of the Kazakh Turkmen Intergovernmental Commission on Economic, Scientific Technical, and Cultural Cooperation (IPC) take place.

On May 15, 2023, the twelfth session of the IPC was held in Astana, where prospects for expanding cooperation in trade, finance, agriculture, tourism, science, education, and culture were discussed. The thirteenth session of the commission took place on October 2, 2024, in Ashgabat, where both sides reaffirmed their intention to intensify joint work and implement new projects in priority areas.

According to official statistics, trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan amounted to $555.7 million dollars in 2024. In the first nine months of 2025, it reached $363.6 million dollars, showing an increase of 5.4 compared to the same period last year.

Kazakhstan’s exports grew to $221.7 million dollars, and imports from Turkmenistan amounted to $141.9 million dollars. Despite the overall positive trend, the structure of trade remains imbalanced: Kazakhstan mainly supplies high value added products, while imports consist of gas, agricultural goods, and basic chemical materials.

Kazakhstan’s key export items include telephone devices, flour, sunflower oil, and metal products. Turkmenistan, in turn, actively supplies natural gas, vegetables, primarily tomatoes, chemical reagents, and textiles.

Political scientist and expert on international communications Azamat Baigaliyev notes that the growth of trade turnover is a natural result of the current political dynamics, although the figures still remain below potential.

“We are strategic partners in almost all cooperative economic processes of the region, yet trade turnover remains relatively low. The goal of doubling it is not an ambition but a realistic task considering the enormous potential of this direction,” the expert emphasized.

Energy: the point where the interests of the two countries converge

Turkmenistan possesses large gas reserves, while Kazakhstan views the neighboring country as an important point for diversifying supplies. Since 2024, QazaqGaz and Turkmengaz have been building systematic technological cooperation, including experience exchange, process standardization, and joint planning of gas transport infrastructure operations.

Astana and Ashgabat are discussing routes for supplying Turkmen gas through Kazakhstan, considering delivery options to China, Iran, and South Asian countries. Expanding participation in processing, storage, and cross border management of energy flows can become a pillar for creating a common regional energy space, especially amid the global transformation of energy markets.

Experts note that in the energy sector, the main vector of cooperation is focused on gas extraction, processing, and transportation.

“The Galkynysh field will be extremely important in the long term. Turkmenistan’s reserves are enormous, and Kazakhstan will need stable commercial gas in the future, which is profitable to purchase from neighbors. This will positively affect our economy and at the same time benefit Turkmenistan,” says Aibar Olzhayev.

Technological cooperation is already developing between QazaqGaz and Turkmengaz, including process standardization and preparation of joint projects. Negotiations may lead to the creation of a roadmap for the Galkynysh field, which would become one of the largest energy agreements in recent years.

Logistics: what already exists and what needs strengthening

The transport logistics link remains a key element of any serious integration. Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan are important components of the North South international corridor and participants of the Ashgabat Agreement on multimodal routes. Several major routes are already functioning. The Uzen Bereket Etrek Gorgan railway provides Kazakhstan with a land route to Iranian ports through Turkmenistan. Road corridors are actively used. The concept of building transshipment hubs based on the Turkmenbashi port is developing. However, infrastructure development increasingly depends not on routes themselves but on the last mile, throughput of terminals, speed of customs processing, and the digital compatibility of logistics systems.

Synchronization of navigation and logistics protocols, creation of transshipment terminals in Turkmenbashi, and their integration with Kazakhstan’s maritime platforms could form a full fledged green corridor at the border of the two countries for accelerated transit cargo processing. This format would reduce logistics costs, increase competitiveness of Kazakh exporters, and strengthen Turkmenistan’s role as a reliable southern link in the regional transit network.

Experts note that the launch of the Southern Transit Corridor could reduce logistics expenses for delivering Kazakh goods to Middle Eastern and South Asian markets by 15 to 20%.

According to economist Aibar Olzhayev, further development of cooperation directly depends on the efficiency of logistics procedures.

“We already have functioning rail and road connections. There is no need to lay new routes where infrastructure already exists. It is important to increase the speed of border crossing, simplify permitting procedures, and introduce green corridors for transit. If a full format green corridor is implemented, we will see rapid growth in transit and trade volumes,” the expert notes.

Investment: legal framework and project implementation

With the combination of accelerated logistics and green corridors, along with guarantees for investors, investment flows could grow manifold. In 2024, the two countries signed an agreement on mutual investment protection, which ensures legal safeguards, national favorable treatment, tax benefits, and a simplified visa regime for investment project implementation.

For Kazakh investors, not only legal protection matters but also the ability to quickly access partner structures, availability of platforms for dialogue, and direct support of the investment process.

At present, bilateral investment flows remain relatively small. The signing of the mutual investment protection agreement created a legal basis, but real investment requires banking tools, insurance solutions, and convenient mechanisms for profit repatriation.

For business, cooperation in this direction will have practical benefits. For Kazakhstan’s agricultural sector, it provides an open opportunity to increase exports of grain and oil crops to Turkmenistan, provided stable logistics schemes and long term quotas are ensured. For machinery and food processing industries, it offers a chance to localize supply chains and reduce dependency on transit risks. For Turkmenistan, it means growing demand for Kazakh agricultural components and processed products, as well as medical and digital solutions.

“Turkmenistan has become more active in joint projects and more open to the world, which is a positive signal for the entire macro region. The higher the competitiveness of each Central Asian state, the faster we will be able to jointly achieve tangible results on the international stage,” says Azamat Baigaliyev.

Regional policy

Bulаt Auelbayev, chief expert of the Asian Studies Department at the KazISS under the President of Kazakhstan, highlights the political dimension of cooperation.

“With Turkmenistan, we maintain the status of strategic partnership. Now it is important to conduct a dialogue on the regionalization of Central Asia, from security issues to the water energy agenda,” he notes.

The bilateral agenda includes several pressing topics related to shared water resources, environmental risks, and climate change. One of the important issues for functioning transit routes is the shallowing of the Caspian Sea. For Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, this directly affects the mobility of export routes and maritime logistics.

Along with improving infrastructure, it is important to synchronize hydrological monitoring and implement joint programs to protect coastal areas. A similar problem exists in the Aral basin: degradation of the region affects the climate, land resources, and public health in adjacent territories.

The issue of water resources and environmental security remains common for Kazakhstan and neighboring countries and requires joint efforts and investment. It is necessary to invest in land reclamation and soil purification projects, coordinate water use, and develop renewable sources of water supply for agriculture.

Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan are creating a model of regional interaction that can become an example for other Central Asian states. Today our countries are at a stage where political will and technical capabilities intersect with real economic interests: transit, food security, energy, and investment.

If this political will is complemented by swift implementation of logistical solutions, transparent investment guarantees, and proper attention to environmental risks, the goal of trade turnover reaching $1 billion will become not just an optimistic slogan but a realistically achievable strategic objective.

This process will require detailed on the ground work, but it is already clear that the cooperation model is changing, shifting from partnership of declarations to partnership of projects. In this transformation, Kazakhstan may become the leader of integration in Central Asia, and Turkmenistan a reliable southern link of a new Eurasian logistics hub.

Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov will pay a state visit to Kazakhstan on November 24 to 25 at the invitation of President Kassym-Jomart Toka