A working breakfast was held at the Egmont Palace in Brussels between Maxime Prévost, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Belgium, and the ambassadors of Central Asian states and Mongolia. The meeting was organized at the initiative of Sapar Palvanov, Ambassador of Turkmenistan to Belgium, and coordinated by the Turkmen Embassy and the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The event discussed prospects for cooperation between Belgium and countries in the region in the areas of economics, transport, energy, critical raw materials, logistics, innovation, and sustainable development.
Maxime Prévost noted that Belgium views the countries of Central Asia and Mongolia as important and promising partners, emphasizing the region's high economic growth and demographic potential. The minister paid special attention to the critical raw materials needed by Europe for its green transition, energy security, and technological development.
In his speech, Turkmen Ambassador Sapar Palvanov presented the region as a dynamic connecting space between East and West. According to him, the combined GDP of Central Asian countries has exceeded 500 billion USD, intraregional trade has nearly doubled over the past five years and will reach 12,3 billion USD in 2025, and the population of six countries—the five Central Asian countries and Mongolia—is approximately 86 million, more than half of whom are under 30.
In the transport context, the ambassador pointed to the growth of the Trans-Caspian international transport route and the potential of the Turkmenbashy International Seaport, noting the port of Antwerp-Bruges as a natural Western partner of the Trans-Caspian axis.
The ambassadors of the remaining Central Asian states and Mongolia also presented their national priorities and proposals for cooperation with Belgium and the European Union. Following the meeting, the parties confirmed their interest in developing dialogue at both the regional and bilateral levels.