President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is scheduled to meet Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on Thursday ahead of the 13th Organization of Turkic States (OTS) summit in Ankara.

Mirziyoyev arrived at Ankara Airport alongside his wife, Ziroat Mirziyoyeva, where they were welcomed by Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz.

The Uzbek leader's visit comes as Türkiye and Uzbekistan seek to deepen economic cooperation, with both countries aiming to increase bilateral trade to $5 billion.

Trade between the two countries reached $3.1 billion in 2025, while Ankara and Tashkent are working to expand joint investments, industrial production and access to third-country markets.

The $5 billion trade target, set by Erdoğan and Mirziyoyev, reflects efforts to strengthen economic ties and explore new opportunities for bilateral cooperation.

The 13th OTS summit, hosted by Erdoğan on Oct. 29-30, is expected to bring together leaders from the organization's five member states and senior representatives from three observer countries.

Alongside Erdoğan and Mirziyoyev, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov are expected to attend the summit.

The Ankara summit will also offer member states an opportunity to review progress on connectivity, investment and digital transformation while identifying priorities for future cooperation.

For OTS countries, deeper economic integration will increasingly depend not only on expanding trade volumes but also on connecting businesses, strengthening industrial partnerships and improving regional supply chains.

Uzbekistan's total foreign trade reached $81.2 billion in 2025, comprising $33.8 billion in exports and $47.4 billion in imports.

Kazakhstan and Türkiye remained among Uzbekistan's major trading partners, with bilateral trade reaching $5 billion and $3 billion, respectively. Together, the two countries accounted for nearly 10% of Uzbekistan's total foreign trade.