Kazakhstan and Türkiye: What to expect from the upcoming high-level Council Meeting in Ankara

Tokayev is also expected to take part in the fifth meeting of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council between the two countries. Kazinform News Agency correspondent has reviewed the current state of bilateral relations and identified key priorities for the future.

Political cooperation

Kazakhstan and Türkiye share long-standing fraternal ties rooted in history. Türkiye was one of the first countries to support Kazakhstan during its early days of independence. On December 16, 1991, it became the first state in the world to recognize Kazakhstan’s independence. Diplomatic relations were officially established on March 2, 1992, and by October of the same year, Kazakhstan had opened its embassy in Türkiye.

Today, Kazakhstan operates consulates general in Istanbul and Antalya, along with honorary consulates in Denizli, Alanya, Bursa, Bitlis, Hatay, Konya, and Mersin. Türkiye, in turn, has opened consulates general in Almaty, Aktau, and Turkistan, as well as an honorary consulate in Shymkent.

Since gaining independence, Kazakhstani presidents have made more than twenty state, official, and working visits to Türkiye. Since 2019, President Tokayev has held 14 bilateral meetings with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at various levels. Their most recent meeting took place this year in Budapest, during an informal summit of the Organization of Turkic States.

Kazakhstan’s delegation maintains regular contact with the leadership of Türkiye’s parliament, discussing a wide range of issues including trade, cultural and humanitarian ties, and military and technical cooperation. The Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic States (TURKPA) plays an active and effective role in these efforts.

The legal framework underpinning cooperation between Kazakhstan and Türkiye is extensive and continues to evolve. In 2009, the two countries signed an agreement on strategic partnership. This was followed by the creation of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council in 2012, and in 2022, the two sides signed an agreement on enhanced strategic partnership.

A key role in strengthening ties between the two nations is played by the Organization of Turkic States, established at the initiative of Astana. According to Aliya Musabekova, a chief expert at the Asian Studies Department of the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of Kazakhstan, cooperation within this organization has given a major boost to interstate relations between Kazakhstan and Türkiye.

“Türkiye is one of Kazakhstan’s key foreign policy partners. We share a common cultural and historical heritage, as well as strategic interests. Both countries play a leading role in the Organization of Turkic States and actively promote multilateral cooperation among Turkic nations. This has helped them position themselves on the global stage as countries that carry forward the legacy of the Turkic world,” said the expert.

Kazakhstan and Türkiye also maintain steady and consistent cooperation within international platforms such as the United Nations, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the OSCE, the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, and the Economic Cooperation Organization.

Trade momentum

Türkiye is among the largest investors in Kazakhstan’s economy. The two countries have set an ambitious goal to increase bilateral trade to 10 billion US dollars. While recent geopolitical developments have delayed reaching this target, trade statistics over the past few years show steady growth. Last year, the volume of mutual trade approached $5 billion dollars.

Current figures also inspire confidence. According to Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Trade and Integration, from January to May 2025, trade between the two countries reached $1.9 billion dollars. Kazakhstan’s exports are largely made up of raw materials, including:

· Copper and cathodes – $622.5 million dollars

· Crude oil – $469.3 million dollars

· Petroleum products – $78.4 million dollars

· Polypropylene polymers – $34.5 million dollars

· Dried vegetables – $21.2 million dollars

· Coal – $19.7 million dollars

· Unprocessed aluminum – $9.9 million dollars

Imports from Türkiye to Kazakhstan include a wide range of goods, such as pharmaceutical products for retail sale, clothing, carpets and flooring, construction materials, and household appliances.

To boost trade volumes, Kazakhstan and Türkiye have begun exploring alternative logistics solutions. Türkiye plans to invest $100 million dollars in the construction of a network of logistics terminals across Kazakhstan.

In the event of further escalation in the Middle East and potential disruption to the Strait of Hormuz, both countries are prepared to fully leverage the Middle Corridor, also known as the Trans-Caspian route.

Türkiye is widely recognized as one of the world’s leading industrial economies. It ranks among the top exporters of agricultural goods such as nuts, cherries, apricots, and legumes. The country is the third-largest producer of plastics in Europe and ranks sixth in paint and coatings production.

Aliya Musabekova, a chief expert at the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies, believes Kazakhstan should seize the opportunity to access larger markets.

“Türkiye is one of our key trading partners. In fact, it ranks among the top five countries consuming Kazakh goods. Last year, bilateral trade reached $5 billion dollars, including $3.3 billion in exports from Kazakhstan and $1.7 billion in imports from Türkiye. This means we achieved a trade surplus and stable demand for our products,” she noted.

Musabekova added that Kazakhstan’s exports to Türkiye primarily include coal, oil, petroleum products, metals such as lead, copper, and zinc, as well as agricultural products.

“If we truly aim to raise trade volumes to $10 billion dollars, we need to diversify our export portfolio. For instance, we believe Turkish partners would be interested in industrial equipment,” she said.

Major efforts are already underway. In the first four months of 2025 alone, Kazakhstan invested $610 million dollars in the Turkish economy, a record-breaking figure that exceeds investment volumes from any other country. For comparison, direct investments in 2023 amounted to $8 million dollars, and in 2022 just $24 million.

From 2005 to 2024, Türkiye invested a total of $5.2 billion dollars in Kazakhstan’s economy. There are currently 3,538 Turkish-capital enterprises operating in Kazakhstan across trade, construction, and services. So far, 78 joint projects worth over $3 billion dollars have been completed, with another 39 projects in the pipeline.

Tourism and education

According to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Türkiye, more than 863,000 tourists from Kazakhstan visited the country last year, marking a 4.5 percent increase compared to 2023.

At the same time, the number of Turkish tourists coming to Kazakhstan is also rising. As reported by TravelPress.kz, 130,000 Turkish citizens visited Kazakhstan last year. This placed Türkiye third among countries with the highest number of incoming tourists to Kazakhstan.

To further boost tourism between the two countries, the Kazakh government is working to extend the visa-free stay for Turkish citizens to 90 days.

Education is another area of strong interest for Kazakh citizens. More than 12,000 students from Kazakhstan are currently enrolled in universities across Türkiye. Most of them are studying through government and international scholarship programs such as Bolashak and Türkiye Bursları. For the 2024–2025 academic year, 300 Kazakh students were awarded Türkiye Bursları scholarships.

What will be discussed at the Strategic Council meeting? 

As part of President Tokayev’s upcoming visit to Türkiye, the fifth meeting of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council between the two countries will take place. Initially established as a platform for international agreements, the Council was granted strategic status in 2012. Since then, each meeting has resulted in concrete decisions and in-depth discussions on key areas of cooperation.

This year, the agenda includes the development of the Middle Corridor, also known as the Trans-Caspian route, modernization of the defense industry, support for media initiatives, and promotion of cultural projects.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan touched on these priorities during his recent meeting with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in Baku:

“I am confident that at the fifth meeting of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council, scheduled to take place next year in Ankara, we will sign important agreements in agriculture, defense, energy, transport and logistics, as well as in cultural and humanitarian cooperation. We will continue working toward raising bilateral trade to $15 billion dollars,” the Turkish leader said at the time.

Defense cooperation in focus 

Security and defense issues are expected to feature prominently on the agenda of the upcoming Council meeting. Discussions may include military training, defense education programs, development of the defense industry, and the implementation of joint projects in this area. These priorities reflect both the current international climate and the growing need to ensure national security in both countries.

Several joint defense ventures are already operating, and this area of cooperation is showing steady progress.

“Military and political cooperation holds significant potential. This year alone, the two sides have carried out joint activities in combat training, knowledge exchange, medical education, peacekeeping, and participation in military exercises. A military cooperation plan has been signed and approved, which includes the production of defense equipment such as unmanned aerial vehicles. In addition, ties in cybersecurity and counterterrorism are being strengthened. The upcoming Council meeting will undoubtedly be a turning point for advancing these efforts,” said Aliya Musabekova, an expert at the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies.

Earlier, Kazinform News Agency reported on the first academic conference of Turkic States held in Budapest.