Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is scheduled to participate in the informal summit of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) to be held in Turkistan, Kazakhstan. According to the Operative Information Center-OMM, citing the Akorda, this was announced during a meeting between Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz.
During the meeting, President Tokayev welcomed Vice President Yilmaz on his first visit to Kazakhstan, emphasizing that Turkey remains a key strategic partner for the country. In response, Yilmaz expressed gratitude for the hospitality and conveyed President Erdogan's warm regards to the Kazakh leader. He noted that the Turkish President attaches special importance to his upcoming visit to Kazakhstan on May 14 and his participation in the informal OTS summit scheduled for May 15 in Turkistan.
The visit coincides with the 14th meeting of the intergovernmental commission on trade and economic cooperation between Turkey and Kazakhstan. Kazakh Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov and Vice President Yilmaz discussed the current state and future prospects of bilateral cooperation. "Our trade, economic, and investment ties are developing dynamically. Turkey is one of Kazakhstan's top five trading partners. Last year, trade turnover increased by 9%, with Kazakh exports rising by over 17.7% to reach $3.9 billion," Bektenov stated, adding that the Kazakh government is interested in diversifying trade with a focus on high-value-added products.
The Organization of Turkic States, formerly known as the Turkic Council, serves as an intergovernmental organization comprising Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, and Uzbekistan, with Hungary, Turkmenistan, and Northern Cyprus as observers. The upcoming informal summit in Turkistan is expected to further strengthen the "Turkic World 2040" vision, focusing on regional integration, transport corridors, and economic synergy among member states. Turkistan, often referred to as the spiritual capital of the Turkic world, provides a symbolic backdrop for these high-level discussions on regional stability and cultural unity.
