Olaf Scholz Visits Central Asia Seeking Energy Deal

Тhe Druzhba pipeline, through which more Kazakh oil will be transported to Germany in exchange for the creation of an institute for science and technology (Wikimedia Commons).

German Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz finished his three-day visit to Central Asia by meeting with the leaders of all five countries in the region on September 17. Otherwise known as the C5, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan often meet with foreign powers as a group. Germany is seeking access to Central Asian natural gas and oil to replace previous imports from Russia, per Eurasianet. In exchange, the Central Asian states hope to gain access to German technology in manufacturing and other areas.

During his stop in Uzbekistan, the most populous Central Asian country, Scholz signed an agreement allowing the deportation of Afghan migrants who cannot safely return to Afghanistan in exchange for taking in skilled Uzbek workers, according to Reuters. In Kazakhstan, Central Asia’s largest economy with the most trade with Germany, Scholz agreed to the creation of an institute for science and technology in exchange for a small increase in the amount of oil supplied to Germany through the Druzhba pipeline. On the final day of his trip, Scholz met with all five Central Asian leaders, but the conference generated no real progress toward a larger agreement for economic cooperation.

German companies are also looking to expand their economic footprint within Central Asia. According to Süddeutsche Zeitung, the German mining company HMS Bergbau seeks to open a lithium mine in Kazakhstan. ** PRINT BREAK** Copper supplier Aurubis wants to buy Uzbek copper concentrates. Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan are also investing in green energy that they hope to sell to the EU, capitalizing on the energy shortage resulting from the war in Ukraine, per Eurasianet.

Scholz was less successful in the foreign policy arena. None of the Central Asian states have taken a stance on the war in Ukraine due to their close economic security cooperation with Russia. In fact, according to Barron’s, Kazakh president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev pronounced that “it is a fact that Russia is militarily invincible,” and urged a focus on peace talks to find a territorial compromise. Tokayev has also said that he would only join EU sanctions on Russia if it would be in Kazakhstan’s best interest, per Bloomberg. Surprisingly, according to The Diplomat, part of the German-Uzbek agreement did mention cooperating through NATO’s Partnership for Peace, though there were no specifics. Despite limited strategic progress, Scholz was optimistic, saying, “Exchanges between our societies have never been so close, and they are constantly growing as well, politically, economically and culturally.”

This is not the first time that Germany has sought to strengthen economic ties with Central Asia. For instance, in September 2023, Scholz held a summit with all five Central Asian presidents in Berlin, per Euractiv. Germany has also cooperated with Central Asian countries on the environment and climate, signing the Green Central Asia agreement in 2020. Among other things, this agreement included German investments in water management and renewable energy.