South Korean President Lee Jae Myung held phone talks with the presidents of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan this week. The talks signal Seoul’s intent to deepen strategic partnerships with Central Asia.

Lee and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev discussed boosting strategic partnership, growing trade, joint ventures, and over $8 billion in Korean investment, while emphasizing continued high-level cooperation, the Uzbek embassy in Seoul told The Korea Herald on Friday.

According to the embassy, focus was placed on organizing upcoming strategic dialogue and intergovernmental commission meetings and addressing a regional cooperation framework between Central Asia and Korea.

Sharing a press statement with the Herald, the Kazakhstan Embassy in Seoul said that the Kazakh and Korean presidents had reaffirmed their commitment to multifaceted cooperation through trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian ties; and to effectively implementing projects in industry, energy, automotive, education and medicine.

According to the embassy, Lee invited President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev for an official visit, which Tokayev accepted while also confirming his attendance at the C5+K summit in Seoul next year.