U.S. Secretary of State to visit Central Asia

An upcoming ministerial meeting in the C5+1 format will take place in Astana.

Photo: Internet

The Kazakh portal vlast.kz, citing the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, reports that on February 28, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will make an official visit to Kazakhstan.

“During his stay in Astana, the Secretary of State will be received by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and will hold talks with Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan Mukhtar Tleuberdi,” the statement notes.

On the same day, an annual ministerial meeting of the heads of foreign policy agencies of Central Asian countries and the U.S. in the C5+1 format will take place in Astana, with the participation of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

It is reported that the agenda for this meeting includes issues related to the further development of regional cooperation and partnership with the U.S.

So far, the authorities of Tajikistan have not officially announced whether a representative from the country will participate in this meeting.

After the visit to Kazakhstan, Antony Blinken will visit Uzbekistan and India.

The annual ministerial meeting of the heads of foreign policy agencies of Central Asian countries and the U.S. in the C5+1 format has been held since 2015. At these meetings, the foreign ministers of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan meet with the U.S. Secretary of State to discuss issues related to the economy, ecology, and security in the region.