Ahead of Korea-Central Asia Summit, Cooperation Plans Proposed on Critical Minerals, Digital Sectors

The first summit between South Korea and five resource-rich Central Asian countries is set to be held in Seoul on September 16th and 17th, aiming to secure energy and critical mineral supply chains and diversify trade. Amidst logistical and security barriers dominated by China and Russia, establishing stable supply chains that combine Central Asia's abundant critical minerals with South Korea's materials, components, and equipment has been presented as a key cooperative task.

However, routes connecting landlocked Central Asia, which lacks ports, inevitably pass through China. Central Asia primarily utilizes the Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR) and the China Railway (TCR). Following the Russia-Ukraine war, South Korean companies can no longer use the TSR and are entirely dependent on the TCR. Pyeon Jong-beom, head of Ekovis, pointed out that neighboring China exerts absolute influence, and South Korean firms face disadvantages such as customs clearance delays when using Chinese railways. Consequently, in the logistics sector, measures to strengthen connectivity through the digitalization of customs clearance and the establishment of integrated logistics systems were discussed, with the operation of local production bases proposed as an alternative.

At a policy forum hosted by the non-profit organization Eurasia 21 on the 27th, it was analyzed that the five Central Asian countries operate under a state of 'leaning on Russia for security and relying on China for economy.' Ambassadors from Central Asian countries in Korea have continued to demonstrate their solidarity with Russia even after the war in Ukraine. These nations historically shifted from a pro-Western stance to a return to Russia after the 2005 Andijan events in Uzbekistan. Pyeon Jong-beom diagnosed the situation as a competitive relationship between South Korea and China for this market.

Cooperation in areas such as AI data centers, digital government, cloud computing, and talent development was also proposed. However, Lee Baek-hee, CEO of Data24, assessed that digital AI cooperation with developing Central Asian countries is premature. He noted that data center construction is hampered by a lack of power supply and insufficient usable data, stating, "Garbage in, garbage out." He further predicted that with China already dominating 90% of the relevant market, South Korea's cooperative areas would be limited, such as small-scale hydropower AI.

There are also strong calls for the government to establish a response system. Cho Young-kwon, a senior researcher at the Export-Import Bank of Korea, pointed to the physical limitations of a small number of personnel in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs handling all matters related to Russia and Central Asia, advocating for the establishment of a separate dedicated agency. In connection with the dissolution of the former government's Presidential Committee for Northern Economic Cooperation, Central Asian ambassadors in Korea also identified the absence of effective cooperation channels as a problem.