Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, Ahmet Gurbanov, met in Ashgabat on Monday with Sun Weidong, the newly appointed Secretary-General of the “Central Asia–China” Secretariat. The meeting focused on preparations for the second Central Asia–China Heads of State Summit, scheduled to take place in 2025 in Astana, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.

The participants of the meeting positively assessed the current multilateral dialogue mechanism between the Central Asian countries and China, emphasizing its constructive nature.

Key areas of interregional cooperation were discussed, including trade and economic ties, energy, transportation and communications projects, and cultural and humanitarian exchanges.

The sides paid special attention to the Turkmen-Chinese partnership, with both parties underscoring its strategic and long-term nature. According to the participants of the meeting, the high level of trust and friendly relations between the leaders of Turkmenistan and China continues to drive the deepening of bilateral cooperation.

The first China–Central Asia Summit was held on May 18–19, 2023, in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, northwest China.