UNIPATH STAFF
Sadyr Japarov, President of Kyrgyzstan since 2020, attended the first ever Central Asia and USA summit held in New York on September 19, 2023. He was one of the presidents of the five Central Asian countries – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan – that attended the summit.
In a speech, President Japarov noted that cooperation with the U.S., including the C5+1 cooperative framework, was central to his country’s foreign policy. C5+1 is a diplomatic platform to facilitate cooperation and dialogue between the U.S. and the five Central Asian countries, known as the “C5.”
“I believe that this format should be focused on strengthening mutual understanding and trust, ensuring security and stability, and creating favorable conditions for more trade and economic cooperation,” President Japarov said.
He expressed Kyrgyzstan’s intention to expand bilateral trade and economic relations with the U.S., the potential of which is far from being fully realized. He also mentioned his desire to entice U.S. investors to his country’s hydropower sector, green economy, and information technologies.
At the time of the summit, the U.S. and Kyrgyzstan had yet to sign a new bilateral cooperation agreement in the works the past several years. The Kyrgyz-U.S. cooperation agreement signed in 1993 ended in 2015.
Touching on regional security matters, President Japarov stressed the importance of maintaining peace and stability in Afghanistan to prevent instability in that country from spilling across borders to the detriment of its neighbors.
Sources: Vesti.kg, NewsCentralAsia.net