Journalism of Courage
US President Donald Trump hosted the leaders of five Central Asian nations at the White House on Thursday, calling critical minerals a “key priority” and pledging to strengthen America’s economic and strategic partnership with the resource-rich region, Reuters reported. The meeting with the presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan marked a renewed US push to expand its influence in Central Asia: an area long seen as within Moscow’s sphere and now increasingly courted by Beijing.
Trump described Central Asia as “an extremely wealthy region,” saying his administration was committed to deepening cooperation in energy, minerals, and trade. “One of the key items on our agenda is critical minerals,” Trump said at the start of the talks. “In recent weeks, my administration has strengthened American economic security by forging agreements with allies and friends across the world to broaden our critical mineral supply chains.”
The meeting was followed by a formal dinner with the visiting leaders.
The discussions, under the C5+1 diplomatic framework launched in 2015, were centred on securing critical minerals, expanding overland trade routes that bypass Russia and China, and exploring clean energy partnerships. US officials have been pushing for alternative supply chains amid intensifying global competition for resources like uranium, copper, gold, and rare earths.
Trump said the initiative was part of his broader strategy to reduce US dependence on unreliable supply chains and strengthen domestic manufacturing. The talks also included agreements aimed at enhancing energy security and boosting trade between the US and Central Asia.
Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev hailed the meeting as “the beginning of a new era of interaction between the United States and Central Asia,” reported Reuters. Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev praised Trump as “the president of the world,” and proposed establishing a permanent C5+1 secretariat in the region to maintain regular dialogue with Washington.
According to a joint statement cited by Reuters, the US and the five nations were expected to sign memoranda of understanding on cooperation in critical minerals and infrastructure. Several business deals were also announced on the sidelines of the talks.
Boeing will sell up to 37 airplanes to airlines in Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, while US-based Cove Capital will develop a tungsten mining project in Kazakhstan with support from government-backed financing.
Central Asia’s five nations, home to about 84 million people, possess vast reserves of uranium, copper, gold, rare earth elements, and other strategic minerals essential to global energy transitions. Kazakhstan, the largest economy in the region, is the world’s leading uranium supplier, accounting for nearly 40 per cent of global output in 2024. Uzbekistan also ranks among the top five uranium producers.
Together, the two countries produce over half of the world’s uranium, a resource crucial for the US nuclear energy sector, which provides a significant portion of the nation’s electricity. The US currently imports about 20 per cent of its uranium from Russia, according to Reuters.
Despite their growing engagement with the US, the Central Asian nations remain economically linked to Russia through trade, remittances, and infrastructure, while China has deepened its regional presence through the Belt and Road Initiative and large-scale mining investments.
(With inputs from agencies)
