With the sixth meeting of the Turkiye-Kazakhstan High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council, held in Astana on May 14, relations between the two countries are increasingly moving onto a more strategic footing. During the visit, 13 agreements were signed covering trade, investment, transportation, defense industry, and culture. The fact that the visit took place ahead of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) summit in Turkistan also gave these contacts a broader regional significance.
Energy emerged as the central theme of the meetings in Astana. Kazakh oil and its connection to the Middle Corridor are placing the Turkiye-Kazakhstan relationship in a more critical position within Eurasian energy geopolitics.
Although Kazakhstan is one of the world’s leading crude oil producers, the routes through which its oil reaches global markets remain a strategic issue for Astana. The growing uncertainty around northern routes following the Russia-Ukraine War has made Kazakhstan’s need to turn to alternative export channels more visible. Disruptions along traditional trade routes and the broader climate of geopolitical uncertainty have increased interest in Trans-Caspian routes, while also making the goal of transporting Kazakh oil to world markets via Turkiye more meaningful.
