Project Update
Regional co-operation and stability at the heart of OSCE’s engagement at Regional Ecological Summit and Central Asia Climate Change Conference in Astana
- Issued on:
- Issued by:
- Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities
Minister of Environmental Protection of Turkmenistan Ovezgeldi Goshjanov (l), Minister of Natural Resources, Ecology and Technical Supervision of the Kyrgyz Republic Akyl Toktobayev, Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Kazakhstan Yerlan Nyssanbayev, OSCE Secretary General Feridun H. Sinirlioğlu (centre), Chairman of the Committee for Environmental Protection under the Government of Tajikistan Bahodur Sheralizoda, Advisor to the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan on Environment and Chairman of the National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change Aziz Abdukhakimov (r)
Advancing discussions on climate resilience and environmental co-operation across Central Asia, the OSCE contributed to the Regional Ecological Summit (RES) and the Central Asia Climate Change Conference (CACCC) 2026. Both conferences were organized in parallel from 22 to 24 April in Astana.
During the RES, a high-level meeting took place between the OSCE Secretary General and Ministers and Heads of Environmental State Institutions from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Building on previous high-level exchanges in recent years, the discussion focused on strengthening co-operation to address climate-related challenges, in line with the 2021 OSCE Ministerial Council Decision on Strengthening co-operation to address the challenges caused by climate change. During this exchange, OCEEA presented elements of a new regional framework aimed at strengthening co-operation on critical infrastructure protection. The initiative received positive feedback from the representatives from Central Asia and will serve as a basis for further dialogue and joint action, including during the upcoming COP31 in Antalya.
Furthermore, the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) contributed to numerous side events and panel discussions, underlining the potential impacts of climate change on security and stability in Central Asia and beyond. Events included a roundtable on the role of parliamentarians in shaping climate policies and international co-operation, organized by the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and the Senate of Kazakhstan. Other thematic areas of engagement included discussions on water management, human mobility and urbanization, sustainable mountain development, and energy security. These areas showcased OCEEA’s active implementation of a broad range of activities in close co-operation with regional and international partners such as the Regional Environmental Center for Central Asia, GIZ, different UN entities, and OSCE field operations.
The OSCE’s engagement at the RES and CACCC 2026 underscored its continued commitment to advancing climate resilience as a cornerstone of regional security, while fostering dialogue and co-operation in Central Asia and beyond.
These events were supported through the OSCE extrabudgetary project, “Strengthening Responses to Security Risks from Climate Change in South-Eastern Europe, Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus, and Central Asia”, which is implemented in partnership with adelphi and funded by Andorra, Austria, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States.