Korea-Central Asia Summit: South Korea’s President Lee Jae-myung will host the first leader-level Korea–Central Asia Summit in Seoul on Sept. 16, aiming to deepen trade, investment, energy and critical-minerals cooperation and link Central Asia’s resources with Korean processing know-how, with a “Seoul Declaration” expected to guide supply-chain and connectivity projects. Tajik–Pakistan Trade Push: Pakistan’s Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Rana Tanveer Hussain met Tajik Ambassador Yusuf Sharifzoda to revive bilateral trade and expand agriculture and food-sector cooperation, including food processing, livestock and value addition, with an ECO meeting invitation also discussed. Regional Water Diplomacy: Turkmenistan hosted a second consultative meeting on creating an implementation mechanism for the UN Special Program for the Aral Sea Basin, with Tajikistan among participating states, supported by UNDP/GEF and Blue Peace Central Asia. CIS Economic Agenda: The CIS Economic Council met in Ashgabat and approved programmes to strengthen practical economic cooperation, including transport and digitalization themes. IMF Debt Snapshot: IMF data shows Tajikistan holds the region’s largest outstanding IMF loans (111.36m SDR), while Uzbekistan is second (73.64m SDR), underscoring ongoing financing needs across Central Asia. Cross-Border Tourism: CAREC’s Tourism Working Group discussed regional tourism integration, including upgrading the “Visit Silk Road” portal, AI travel tools and GSTC standards, with Tajikistan participating.