Tehran – November 28, 2025
The ECO Council of Ministers (COM) successfully convened online today, with participation of Foreign Ministers and Deputy Foreign Ministers from the ECO countries. ECO specialized agencies and subsidiary bodies, as well as ECO observers and partner international organizations, including the Turkish Cypriot State, Organization of Turkic States, and CICA also attended the event.
Chaired by H.E. Mr. Yermek Kosherbayev, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the meeting focused on ECO’s achievements during the year, while also guiding the Organization’s future endeavors under the new vision “Strategic Objectives of Economic Cooperation – 2035.” Deliberations included critical regional priorities, particularly trade, energy, transportation and environmental sustainability, with a shared commitment to strengthening regional cooperation. The meeting also reviewed progress on key initiatives and projects, emphasizing the importance of collective action to address shared challenges and opportunities.
In his remarks the Secretary General of ECO, Dr. Asad M. Khan, noted that in 2025, the ECO has witnessed a remarkable revival of its ministerial and high-level engagement processes, marked by strong participation of all Member States. He also noted that the 17th ECO Summit held in Khankendi under the theme “New ECO Vision for a Sustainable and Climate-Resilient Future,” was a major milestone in ECO’s history, introducing the first-ever ECO Week, which brought together a range of stakeholders, including women, youth and business communities to deliberate on the Organization’s future priorities. He then briefed the Council on major achievements in the priority sectors of regional cooperation; trade, transport, law enforcement and crime prevention, energy, environment, tourism, agriculture, industry, human resources and sustainable development.
The Council also commended ECO’s expanding global engagement to strengthen partnerships with international and regional organizations, including enhanced collaboration with United Nations agencies and international financial institutions. These relationships were recognized as pivotal to advancing ECO’s objectives and increasing its international visibility.
The Council then discussed important agenda items on strategic and administrative matters of the Organization and welcomed the chairmanship of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in 2026.
