Organization of Turkic States Ankara summit: Uzbekistan pushes strategic priorities

A summit of heads of state of the Organization of Turkic States opened in Ankara on 29 October. The two-day event marks five years since the organization was transformed into a full-fledged international organization.

Since joining the organization, Uzbekistan has put forward more than 85 initiatives aimed at developing practical cooperation. Tashkent explains this activity by its economic interests, the geographic interconnection of member states, and the compatibility of the principles of the Organization of Turkic States with the republic's multi-vector foreign policy. According to 2025 year-end data, the combined nominal gross domestic product of member states reached about $2.3 trillion, and total foreign trade turnover exceeded $1.2 trillion.

Uzbekistan's total trade turnover with member states in 2025 amounted to $9.607 billion, equal to about 12 percent of the republic's total foreign trade. An automobile plant planned in Hojigabul with Azerbaijan is scheduled to be commissioned in mid-2027. Uzbekistan has also become one of the main founders of the Turkic Investment Fund, whose authorized capital is $500 million. Cargo transport along the Middle Corridor has doubled over the past five years.