The 10th summit of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) took place in Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana, November 3.

Kazakh media reports say the summit participants included the leaders of Azerbaijan, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkiye, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.  

The summit reportedly started with a meeting of the group’s Council of Foreign Ministers where Kazakhstan’s top diplomat Murat Nurtleu expressed concern over the situation in the Gaza Strip and urged the opening of humanitarian corridors.  The foreign minister urged both sides focus on peace talks.

The leaders of the Organization of Turkic States member states met later.  

Kazakh president’s press service says Kazakhstan’s President  Kassym-Jomart Tokayev noted in his welcoming speech that the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States, created on the initiative of Kazakhstan, today has become a full-fledged international organization, the document entitled “Turkic World Vision – 2040” has been endorsed.

“The most important thing is that we strengthened the unity of fraternal countries.  We have demonstrated to the world our commitment to our shared values.  We fulfill the will of our ancestors and strengthen cooperation between Turkic peoples.  Now the goal is to keep our unity, based on mutual on mutual trust and brotherhood, and pass it on to future generation,” Kazakh president said. 

The summit participants reportedly discussed pressing geopolitical and integration issues. 

Azerbaijani news agency Trend says the meeting resulted in signing of a number of documents:

• The Astana Act as the Declaration of the 10th Summit of the Organization of Turkic States;
• The decision of the heads of state on awarding the President of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, with the "Highest Order of the Turkic World";
• The decision of the heads of state to award the status of financial centers in the Turkic world;
• The decision to adopt the new flags of Turkish cooperation organizations;
• The decision of the heads of state on appointments;
• The decision to grant the observer status of the Organization for Economic Cooperation in the Organization of Turkic States;
• The decision to approve the day of February 6 as the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Disaster and Solidarity of the Organization of Turkic States;
• The decision on the rules of budget management of the Secretariat of the Organization of Turkic States;
• The decision on the development of the "Regulations on Permanent Representatives of the Organization of Turkic States";
• The heads of state also signed a protocol on cooperation between the relevant institutions of the OTS member countries in the field of metrology.

In addition, a joint OTS Action Plan (Roadmap) for the implementation of the Transport Communication Program for 2023–2027 was signed.

At the end of the summit, Kazakhstan passed on the group’s chairmanship to Uzbekistan.

The Organization of Turkic States (OTS), formerly called the Turkic Council or the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States, is an international organization comprising prominent independent Turkic countries: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey and Uzbekistan.  It is an intergovernmental organization whose overarching aim is promoting comprehensive cooperation among Turkic-speaking states.  First proposed by the then Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev in 2006, it was founded on October 3, 2009, in Nakhchivan.  The General Secretariat is in Istanbul.

Hungary and Turkmenistan are the observer states. Hungary received the observer status in 2018, while Turkmenistan received the observer status in 2021.

During the 8th summit, which was held in November 12, 2021, the council reformed into an organization, with the name Turkic Council being changed to Organization of Turkic States.