United States President Donald Trump will host the heads of five Central Asian countries – Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan – in an annual summit in Washington, DC, on Thursday. The group, founded in 2015, is known as C5+1, which refers to the five Central Asian countries and the US.According to the US Department of State, the forum aims to increase cooperation between Washington and the Central Asian countries to “advance regional solutions to global challenges” through “fair and reciprocal economic partnerships, increased energy security, and promoting peace through strength”.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list“C5+1 working groups support three pillars of engagement: economy, energy, and security,” it added.But Thursday’s meeting with the heads of former Soviet republics comes as both Russia and China look to secure their own trade deals in the region.Shairbek Dzhuraev, president of Crossroads Central Asia, an independent research institute, told Al Jazeera that he expects trade agreements to be discussed on Thursday, especially those involving “critical mineral resources”.Here’s what we know about the summit:What is the C5+1?The forum was established in 2015 at its first meeting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, when the foreign ministers of the six countries pledged to deepen cooperation over trade, transport, energy and communications.Talks were also used to discuss security concerns relating to the war in Afghanistan before the US pulled out in 2021.In 2023, then-US President Joe Biden held a meeting with Central Asian leaders on the sidelines of the United Nations General A …
