-
The world's largest landlocked country, Kazakhstan is also the largest global producer of uranium ore.
-
Kyrgyzstan is the country farthest from any ocean in the world and the world's third most mountainous country.
-
A vital source of water for Central Asia, mountainous Tajikistan gets over 80% of its electricity from hydropower.
-
With the fourth-largest natural gas reserves globally, Turkmenistan also operates one of the longest irrigation canals in the world.
-
One of the world's only two double-landlocked countries, Uzbekistan is home to world's fourth largest gold producer.
-
Armenia's capital Yerevan is one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities, dating back to 8th century BC.
-
Azerbaijan has remained one of the major oil producers for over a century, with Baku oil fields among the earliest to be developed.
-
The birthplace of winemaking, Georgia connects continental plains with the Black Sea maritime route to the Mediterranean.
-
Sometimes called the "Lung of Europe" because of its forests, Belarus is also one of the world's top exporters of potash fertilizer.
-
Moldova is the world's leader in vineyards area per capita and home to the world's largest underground wine cellar.
-
A world-leading exporter of food products, Ukraine possesses about 25% of the world’s most fertile black soil.
-
Having the world's lowest population density of 2 people per sq. km., Mongolia holds one of the world's largest copper-gold deposits.
-
The heart of empires for many centuries, Turkey remains the region's predominant economic and cultural powerhouse.