The European Union is represented in Central Asia as a “reliable”, in a turbulent geopolitical context, in search of more access to the main raw materials of the region and the pure energy of the region, as well as more alignment in the Russian war in Ukraine.
On Friday, the EU and the Countries of Central Asia – Kazakhstan, Kvyrgistan, Tajikistan, Bikementan and Uzbekistan – agreed to turn their cooperation into strategic partnership, and the EU also announced a new package of 12 billion euros into the region due to his initiative Global Gateway.
The first central summit of UE-Summary, held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, occurred only two days after US President Donald Trump put a fee to dozens of countries, including the EU and the United Kingdom, which led to condemning world leaders and world markets.
“New global barriers arise, investments are redirected or reduced. World powers create new spheres of influence, ”said the Chairman of the European Commission von Der Leyen, the chairman of the European Commission von der Lein in the filming of leaders in a veiled link to the USA, Russia and China.
“Reliable partners have never been so important. Our strategic partnership is an obligation to attend each other, ”he added.
The new package will finance projects in the field of transport (3 billion euros), the main raw material (2.5 billion euros), water, energy and climate (6.4 billion euros), as well as digital compound – some of which have already been approved and attributed to the European Bank for reconstruction and development (BERD).
Access to pure energy and rare lands is crucial for the EU, which seeks to achieve climate neutrality by 2050 and increase its autonomy in strategic sectors.
Nevertheless, a significant part of the universal mining, transformation and processing of some critical raw materials, such as lithium, indispensable for the development of renewable energy sources, daily use and defense systems, is controlled by China, from which the EU intends to “turn off” from its commercial and aggressive foreign policy.
Central Asia He has big deposits, Including 38.6% of global manganese ore, 30.07% chrome, 20% lead, 12.6% zinc and 8.7% of titanium.
“This raw material is the vital power of the future world economy. However, they are also a meeting point for world actors. Some are only interested in studying and extracting, ”said von der Lane of Central Asia leaders.
“The proposal of Europe is different. We also want to be your partners in the development of your local industries. The additional cost should be local. Our story speaks for itself, ”he added.
Multilateity and Ukraine
However, the protection of the “multilateral order based on the rules” was the central theme of the discourse of Antonio Costa.
“We must work together not only to protect versatility, but also to reform it, to make it more effective, inclusive and adapted to the current realities,” he said.
The President of the European Council emphasized that “threats to security are currently transnational in nature” and turned to more bilateral, regional and multilateral cooperation, including in relation to Russia, which, according to him, violated the United Nations and international invasion of Ukraine.
Five countries of Central Asia refrained from the votes of the UN associated with Russia’s aggression, in relation to their neighbor, deciding to remain neutral, but to some extent won the authorized western products from the re -export of Russian.
The EU, which imposed 16 packages of sanctions against Russia for its uninvited militancy, appointed a special messenger for sanctions equipment, which has moved to the region many times over the past three years.
EU staff, who talked about anonymity, said that before the summit, that the countries of Central Asia showed “the desire to cooperate”, but Blok would like to “see more”, especially given the current conversations between the United States and Russia, from which Europe was widely left, causing fears that its interests were not protected.
Nevertheless, the same source said that the implementation of additional efforts on this issue is an “important element for promoting our relations”, but not a previous condition.
Costa made a slightly veiled link to evasion of sanctions, saying that Europe “will continue to increase pressure on Russia if necessary” and that “the cooperation of Central Asia is invaluable.”
“We are counting on your constant efforts in this regard,” he said.
President Shavkat Mirziyoyev said that his country, Uzbekistan, “shares his commitment to the European Party principles and norms of international law” and “fully supports and supports the negotiations for a peaceful solution to the situation in Ukraine.”
At the summit, the leaders also agreed to hold the investors forum at the end of the year to provide more investments, namely for the Trans -Caspian transport corridor, which will sharply reduce the time necessary for the export of goods between the two regions surrounding Russia – and create the local Berd office in Uzbekistan.
They also supported the idea of performing similar summits every two years.