The C5+1 diplomatic format was launched to formalize dialogue between the United States and the five Central Asian nations: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Its early focus centered on security, counterterrorism, and regional connectivity.
Working groups were created on trade, energy, and the environment. Regular foreign-minister meetings helped standardize cooperation, but participation remained largely bureaucratic, with limited public visibility.
Pandemic disruptions halted in-person meetings, but virtual sessions continued. Health security and supply chain resilience entered the agenda, setting the stage for later discussions on logistics and diversification.
The U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan reshaped priorities. The C5+1 mechanism gained renewed attention as a stabilizing framework, focusing on border security, migration, and energy connectivity through Central Asia.
Leaders of all six nations met in New York alongside the UN General Assembly. This was the first time the dialogue rose to the heads-of-state level. Commitments were made to expand economic ties, improve digital infrastructure, and begin cooperation on critical minerals.
The inaugural C5+1 Critical Minerals Dialogue brought together senior officials to identify priority resources, investment needs, and joint processing opportunities.
It marked the platform’s evolution from political dialogue to industrial coordination.
Meetings among trade and transport ministers built momentum toward a shared Middle Corridor logistics framework through the Caspian region, linking Central Asia to Europe while bypassing Russia.
Ministers reaffirmed their intent to focus on economic security and energy diversification. Preparations began for the next leaders’ summit, with emphasis on implementation rather than new pledges.
Throughout 2025, the U.S. and Central Asian states intensified working-level coordination.
• Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan signed new cooperation frameworks on rare earth and lithium exploration.
• The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation and other agencies discussed investment in midstream processing facilities.
• Regional think tanks, including those in Tashkent and Astana, hosted preparatory forums on supply-chain resilience, governance, and energy transition.
The second leaders’ summit, and the first hosted in the United States, is expected to focus on deliverables - funding mechanisms, infrastructure development, and the creation of regional centers for mineral processing and research. It represents both a test and an opportunity: whether the C5+1 can mature into a lasting economic and strategic framework rather than a symbolic diplomatic platform.
