The plans were announced on 14 September by Kubanychbek Omuraliev, Secretary General of the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS). He said preparatory work was already under way and the matter was being considered within the organisation. No specific launch date for the common system has been set.
👉🏻The project is called Turkic ID and is viewed as part of the Turkic states' digital and transport integration.
Some bilateral arrangements already exist. Azerbaijani and Turkish citizens can travel between their countries using ID cards, and Kyrgyzstan has a similar reciprocal arrangement with Uzbekistan. Kazakhstan also has agreements allowing certain borders to be crossed with an identity card.
If a five-country mechanism is agreed, it would create a common space for simpler travel within the OTS, rather than a collection of separate agreements.
Simpler border procedures affect tourism, business travel, labour mobility, education and passenger transport. OTS countries are also developing digital tools, tourism projects and further simplification of visa procedures.
If implemented, the project could make an international passport optional in some cases for travel between the five countries.