Senior Officials Meeting of Central Asia + Japan Dialogue held in Astana

16th Senior Officials Meeting of the «Central Asia + Japan» Dialogue took place under the chairmanship of Nazira Nurbaeva, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The meeting was attended by the heads of the foreign ministries of Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and the Ambassador of Turkmenistan to Kazakhstan, Kazinform News Agency cites the Kazakh Foreign Ministry.

Participants discussed preparations for the upcoming Summit of the «Central Asia + Japan» Dialogue to be held in Astana this summer. The meeting included a thorough review of the Summit agenda and outcomes. It also discussed the current status and future prospects for enhancing regional cooperation in the trade, economic, transport and humanitarian fields.

As stated there in recent years the cooperation of Central Asian countries with Japan has reached a new level.

Thus far, key areas of focus for new partnership endeavors have been identified in the realms of environmental sustainability, enhancing connectivity among countries, and developing human resources.

At the end of the meeting the parties agreed to maintain working contacts on all topical issues.

The «Central Asia + Japan» Dialogue was launched in 2004 at the initiative of Japan. From 2005 to 2022, 15 meetings of the Dialogue have been held at the level of deputy foreign ministers. Kazakhstan will chair the Dialogue in 2024.