South Korea and five Central Asian countries have agreed to deepen cooperation around critical minerals, supply chains and industrial development as part of a broader framework established at their first leaders-level summit in Seoul. The Korea Central Asia Critical Minerals agenda forms part of the Seoul Declaration, which identifies Central Asia’s mineral resources as potentially important for supply-chain diversification and economic security.
The declaration brings Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan into a new regional framework with South Korea. The leaders agreed to institutionalise the partnership through biennial summits and regular ministerial-level consultations, creating a mechanism for practical cooperation in areas including industry, supply chains and critical minerals.
Korea Central Asia Critical Minerals Cooperation Takes Shape
Critical minerals feature prominently in the economic cooperation agenda outlined in the Seoul Declaration. The leaders said Central Asia’s resources could contribute to supply-chain diversification and economic security, while calling for closer links between the region’s mineral resources and South Korea’s advanced technologies.
The declaration also calls for the development of joint value-added production chains. This expands the Korea Central Asia Critical Minerals focus beyond the supply of raw materials to cooperation linked to processing and downstream industrial activity.
Alongside the declaration, the six countries launched an industrial ministers’ consultative mechanism and signed a memorandum of understanding covering industrial and supply-chain cooperation. The framework is intended to strengthen coordination in areas where the countries can combine their industrial capabilities, technological expertise and natural resources.
For the mining sector, the focus on critical minerals places mineral supply chains within a wider industrial strategy involving technology, manufacturing and economic security. However, the agreement does not announce a specific mine, processing facility, investment amount or production target.
Supply Chain Development Shapes the Regional Mining Agenda
The Korea Central Asia Critical Minerals framework forms part of a wider effort to strengthen economic connections between South Korea and Central Asia. The summit also highlighted cooperation in innovation, energy, connectivity and technology, with supply-chain resilience identified as an area for future engagement.
South Korea has sought to strengthen regional cooperation through the Korea-Central Asia Cooperation Forum, established in 2007 and later elevated to the foreign ministerial level. The latest summit moves that framework to the leaders’ level, with Kazakhstan due to host the next summit in Astana in 2028.
The declaration provides a long-term structure for cooperation, while implementation will depend on subsequent consultations and individual projects. For Korea Central Asia Critical Minerals cooperation, the stated objective is to connect Central Asia’s resource base with Korean technology and develop value-added chains that can support broader industrial development.
The current framework therefore establishes a basis for future cooperation rather than confirming specific mining developments, processing projects or investment commitments. The Korea Central Asia Critical Minerals agenda will depend on how the participating countries translate the agreed framework into individual initiatives and projects.