TAPI Progress in Herat: Taliban officials say the Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India gas pipeline’s Herat section is 52% complete, with 80 km of pipe laid, 36.3 km already buried, 126 km of corridor prepared, and 72.3 km of materials delivered—Turkmenistan-backed plans target finishing the 130-km Herat segment by end-2026. Energy Diplomacy for Afghanistan: Turkmenistan used a UN Security Council briefing to argue that Afghanistan’s stability needs economic recovery and infrastructure, highlighting TAPI, TAP power transmission, and expanded rail/transport links as drivers of jobs and transit revenues. China Leads Investment Push: The Eurasian Development Bank reports China has overtaken Russia as Central Asia’s top foreign investor, with major capital flowing into Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan—pointing to a $9.4bn Turkmenistan oil field run by CNPC. Textile Tech Partnership: Korea and Turkmenistan are deepening textile ties via a technical seminar focused on bringing Korean machinery and know-how to Turkmen cotton and boosting industrial integration. Logistics and Transit Options: Kazakhstan and Russia plan a Caspian ferry route for trucks to reroute cargo flows toward the Kuryk–Makhachkala line, adding a new transit alternative that complements the Middle Corridor. Critical Minerals Talks: The U.S. launched another C5+1 critical minerals dialogue round in Astana, covering exploration, mining processing, and supply chains with participation including Turkmenistan. Water-Land Cooperation: A GEF-backed Central Asia Water and Land Nexus program moved into implementation, uniting five countries (including Turkmenistan) to tackle shrinking rivers and land degradation affecting about 60 million people.