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H.E. Yermek Kosherbayev, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan and H.E. Hakan Fidan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Türkiye presided over the 8th meeting of the Joint Strategic Planning Group (JSPG) on 2 February 2026 in Ankara, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan
reports.
At the meeting, the two Sides exchanged views on ways for further strengthening Kazakhstan-Türkiye relations on a wide range of areas, including trade and investments, culture and education, energy security, regional connectivity, health, environment, counterterrorism, defense and defense industry.
Celebrating the 34th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Kazakhstan and Türkiye, and highlighting the common history, language and culture as the basis of their brotherly cooperation, the Foreign Ministers reiterated their commitment to further deepen the multifaceted Kazakh-Turkish cooperation in accordance with the Enhanced Strategic Partnership of the two countries.
The Sides expressed their satisfaction with the frequency of high-level visits, which serve as a testament to the strong bilateral ties and mutual trust between Kazakhstan and Türkiye. They emphasized that such visits further deepen cooperation across various fields and reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining this dynamic momentum.
The Sides discussed priority areas for economic relations, including facilitating and diversifying trade and investment, encouraging technology transfer and joint investments in agriculture, enhancing cooperation in the field of environment, deepening cooperation in the health sector, strengthening collaboration in the fields of science and technology, particularly cyber security, artificial intelligence, digitalization and space, cooperating in the energy sector through energy trade and joint projects, including oil and natural gas infrastructure across the value chain, clean energy generation, electricity transmission, and joint exploration, development, and processing initiatives in the mining field, particularly focusing on critical minerals and rare earth elements.
Recognizing the importance of the Trans-Caspian East-West Middle Corridor as a sustainable and reliable transport and energy route in connecting Central Asian countries to foreign markets through Türkiye, the Foreign Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to deepen cooperation in strengthening regional connectivity through bilateral cooperation and the trilateral mechanism of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Ministers in Charge of Transport of Kazakhstan, Türkiye and Azerbaijan as well as regional and international platforms, most particularly the Organization of Turkic States (OTS), the core multilateral platform of the Turkic World.
Emphasizing that Kazakhstan remains the largest trade partner of Türkiye in Central Asia, the Foreign Ministers noted with appreciation the progress made on the implementation of the Action Plan of the 13th Meeting of the Joint Economic Commission, held on 25 April 2024 in Ankara.
The Sides have decided to take coordinated action to address emerging threats to peace and security, including terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and other transnational organized crime and threats.
The Sides expressed their appreciation for the close collaboration on defense matters, the military-technical cooperation and the ongoing Military Dialogue Meetings between the relevant authorities of the two countries. In this context, they also reaffirmed the importance of the modernization projects for Kazakhstan’s defense industry infrastructure through joint ventures.
The Foreign Ministers of Kazakhstan and Türkiye recognized people-to-people relations between the two countries as one of the solid pillars of the bilateral relationship. Akhmet Yassawi International Kazakh-Turkish University in Turkestan, Yunus Emre Turkish Cultural Center in Astana and Türkiye Scholarships program for Kazakh students are illustrative of this connection.
Foreign Ministers Kosherbayev and Fidan welcomed the progress regarding the establishment of Maarif Schools in Astana and Almaty in the upcoming period and agreed to continue supporting educational and cultural partnerships between the two brotherly nations.
The Sides encouraged cooperation between the two countries in the field of education and science, especially between higher and secondary professional educational institutions, including the intensification of exchange of researchers and specialists.
In collaboration with KazAID and TIKA, the Sides encouraged the promotion of sustainable development in Central Asia and cooperation on development assistance towards third countries.
Foreign Minister Fidan expressed appreciation for the solidarity shown by brotherly Kazakhstan in the face of the devastating earthquakes of 6 February 2023 and for the school construction in Nurdağı (Gaziantep) as a token of brotherly gesture by Kazakh people.
The Sides welcomed with appreciation the close and constructive cooperation established in the field of health in recent years and expressed their shared intention to further deepen and advance this cooperation in the forthcoming period through enhanced institutional engagement, capacity-building efforts and exchange of expertise.
The Foreign Ministers commended the work of the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions in strengthening global stability and tolerance.
Foreign Ministers Kosherbayev and Fidan reaffirmed the joint resolve of Kazakhstan and Türkiye, as founding members of the OTS, to expand their collaboration with a view to further empower the OTS and other Turkic Cooperation Organizations; which constitute the core institutions for strengthening solidarity and deepening integration of the Turkic World.
In this vein, the Sides also reaffirmed to further intensify their joint efforts to implement the "Turkic World Vision - 2040", which plays an important role in strengthening cooperation within the Organization of Turkic States.
As founding members of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) the Sides supported CICA’s transformation into a fully-fledged international organization while preserving its Asian identity.
The Sides noted the importance of deepening cooperation within international platforms such as the UN, OSCE, OIC and ECO. The Sides agreed to maintain their understanding for mutually supporting each other’s candidacies to various international organizations and posts, wherever possible.
Foreign Ministers Kosherbayev and Fidan elaborated on current regional and international developments, including in Afghanistan, Gaza, Ukraine and Syria.
The Foreign Ministers welcomed in this regard, the launch of the second phase of the Comprehensive Peace Plan to end the war in Gaza. They underlined that the establishment of the Board of Peace, endorsed by United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803 and of which both countries are members, has created new momentum toward a permanent ceasefire and the reconstruction of Gaza, as well as for peace, stability, and prosperity in the region and the realization of the two-state solution.
The Foreign Ministers emphasized the need to reach a negotiated, mutually acceptable and viable settlement of the Cyprus issue and acknowledged the aspirations of the Turkish Cypriot people being an integral part of the Turkic World to realize their equal inherent rights.
The JSPG meeting provided a timely opportunity to discuss the calendar and preparation of the 6th Meeting of the High-Level Strategic Council under the Co-Chairmanship of H.E. Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan and H.E. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President of the Republic of Türkiye to be held in Astana, as well as the organization of the upcoming Summits of the Heads of State of the OTS to be held in Kazakhstan (Turkistan) and Türkiye in 2026.
