Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that next year he plans to visit all five Central Asian countries — Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. He made the statement at a reception at the State Department attended by the foreign ministers of the respective countries.
According to Rubio, the trip will last a week or more.
The Secretary of State noted that U.S. businesses are interested in expanding access to the markets of these countries. He also emphasized that over the past decade, the U.S. has not given sufficient attention to the region, assuring that the administration of President Donald Trump is committed to close cooperation both bilaterally and regionally.
The U.S. President is scheduled to meet with the leaders of Central Asian countries on November 6 in Washington as part of the “C5+1” summit.
During the upcoming summit, investment and trade issues will be discussed, which, according to Rubio, will help create jobs in the U.S. while strengthening the regional economy.
Rubio stressed that U.S. and Central Asian interests align in the development of natural resources and expressed Washington’s intention to increase engagement with regions that have long been on the periphery of U.S. foreign policy.
