The United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken during his visit to Kazakhstan’s capital Astana on February 28 will participate in a C5+1 Ministerial with senior government officials of the five Central Asian states, the US Department of State said in its press release issued on Thursday.
The C5+1 Ministerial will focus on enhancing economic, energy and environmental, and security cooperation among the US, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
During the meeting, Blinken will reaffirm the United States’ commitment to the independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of Central Asian countries, and to collaborate with the region on solutions to shared global challenges, according to the statement.
On the margins of the C5+1 ministerial, the US State Secretary will also meet separately with senior government officials from the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan to discuss opportunities for bilateral and multilateral cooperation.
He will then travel to Uzbekistan’s capital Tashkent to meet with Uzbekistani government officials.
The C5+1 format serves as a multilateral mechanism of interaction between the five Central Asian countries and the U.S. The dialogue focuses on economic development, regional cooperation and security issues.
