WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump has clinched more than $12 billion in trade deals with Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan amid a White House push to deepen economic ties with the strategic Central Asian region.
Uzbekistan agreed to buy up to 22 aircraft from US-based Boeing, the company said. State-owned Uzbekistan Airlines will purchase 14 planes with the option to buy another eight, Boeing said in a September 22 statement. In a post on TruthSocial, Trump put the value for all 22 aircraft at more than $8 billion.
"We will continue to work together on many more items!" Trump said in the post.
Meanwhile, Kazakhstan signed an agreement to buy 300 US locomotives as well as other rail equipment from US-based Wabtec Corporation for $4.2 billion. The US Commerce Department described it as the largest rail deal in US history.
"This landmark deal advances US manufacturing jobs and accelerates growth, opportunity, and connectivity in America and Central Asia," Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said during a signing ceremony in New York with Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev.
US President Donald Trump earlier in the day spoke by phone with Toqaev, who is in New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly. Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoev is also in New York and took part in the signing ceremony with Boeing.
Seeking Rare Earth Minerals
Trump is seeking to strengthen trade and investment ties with resource-rich Central Asia as he focuses on securing supplies of critical minerals, including rare earths essential for high technology, including weapons. China dominates the rare earth supply chain.
During his visit to the UN, Toqaev will meet with the chief executive officers of leading US companies. The meeting is being organized by the Chamber of Commerce, which earlier this month led executives from 25 US companies on a trade mission to Kazakhstan, its largest-ever business delegation to the Central Asian country.
Next month, the chamber will host its first ever business mission to neighboring Uzbekistan, the largest country in Central Asia by population. Trump earlier this month spoke with Mirziyoev to discuss investment. In late August he sent Special Envoy for Global Partnerships Paolo Zampolli to Tashkent to meet with Mirziyoev.
"It's clear that Uzbekistan is a valued US partner -- not just in Central Asia! -- and the Trump administration is prioritizing engagement on political, economic, and security issues at the highest levels," Brianne Todd, who served as director of Central Asian Affairs at the National Security Council from 2023-25, said in a social media post following Trump's call with Mirziyoev.
Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are rich in oil, gas, uranium, and rare earths, among other natural resources. US oil giants ExxonMobil and Chevron have made major investments in Kazakhstan's oil and gas sector but other US companies have shied away from the region during their more than three decades of independence.
Now, with growing US demand for uranium and rare earths, and a push by the White House for stronger economic ties with Central Asia, new deals may be on the horizon.
Trump's interest in the region comes as China accelerates investments in Central Asia's mining industry. Experts say that Central Asian nations are seeking US investment to counterbalance Chinese and Russian influence.
The Trump administration has shown a determination to use economic tools like Export-Import Bank, the US government’s foreign trade lending arm, and the Development and Financial Corp (DFC), the US foreign investment arm, to back US business deals.
Export-Import Bank supported Wabtec’s Kazakh rail deal with a $400 million loan.
