President Vladimir Putin has urged the leaders of five Central Asian countries to increase their trade with Russia, Reuters reports.
Moscow is seeking to restore its influence in the region, which is also the subject of interest from China.
Russia's total trade turnover last year with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan was more than $45 billion - a "good result" but well below the level of its bilateral trade with Belarus, Putin said.
At a summit in Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan, he said there was therefore good potential for growth.
The five Central Asian countries were ruled by Moscow until 1991 as part of the Soviet Union, and Russia still views the region as part of its sphere of influence.
However, with the Kremlin distracted by its war in Ukraine and China's growing push for trade and investment, Russia's position in the region has waned.
Millions of Central Asian migrants work in Russia, filling labor shortages there and sending remittances home that help support their economies.
But Russia has tightened controls on migrant labor after an Islamist attack near Moscow last year that killed more than 140 people, with the suspects mostly from Tajikistan.
A joint communiqué from the summit said the Central Asian states "noted the importance of further strengthening their strategic partnership with Russia."
It also noted that the leaders agreed to work on creating a new transport and logistics corridors, cooperate in the fight against terrorism, illegal migration and drugs, and improve trade payment and settlement systems.