On 1 October 2025, Dr. Shairbek Dzhuraev, President of Crossroads Central Asia, spoke at the Inaugural U.S.–Central Asia Think Tank Forum held at the International Institute for Central Asia in Tashkent. The event gathered policymakers, experts, and researchers from across the region and the United States to discuss cooperation in areas ranging from security and trade to critical minerals and clean energy.
Speaking in the session on “Critical Minerals and Clean Energy: Securing Resources for a Sustainable Future,” Dr. Dzhuraev highlighted that Central Asia’s significance lies not only in its mineral wealth but in how these resources are developed, governed, and connected to the region’s long-term future. He emphasized five key points:
- the need for investment beyond extraction into processing and technology transfer;
- the importance of governance, transparency, and ESG standards;
- the value of partnerships that expand the region’s choices rather than reinforce great-power rivalries;
- the role of regional cooperation in harmonising standards and infrastructure; and
- the necessity of investing in local knowledge and expertise to ensure Central Asia shapes, rather than merely supplies, the global clean energy transition.
Dr. Dzhuraev concluded that critical minerals can either reinforce a new “resource curse” or become the foundation of a sustainable future — a choice that depends on the quality of governance and cooperation across and beyond the region.