Author: Jaime Corey Floyd

Luxembourg hosted a meeting between Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyzstan Jeenbek Kulubaev and Denmark Lars Rasmussen, Kabar reports. The sides met within the framework of the meeting of foreign ministers in the format “European Union – Central Asia”, the press service of the Kyrgyz MFA said. The two ministers considered issues of bilateral political, trade and economic cooperation, as well as cooperation within the international organizations and the European Union. Kulubaev and Rasmussen exchanged views on deepening cooperation in digitalization, renewable energy, hydropower and green economy. In addition, in order to intensify bilateral cooperation, an agreement was reached to…

Kyrgyzstan has introduced a visa-free regime for some citizens of China and India, the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday. It said that the decision was made by the cabinet of ministers of Kyrgyzstan in order to further liberalize the visa regime. Thus, a visa-free regime is introduced for up to 7 days for citizens of China and India, in observing certain conditions for entry into Kyrgyzstan. In particular, citizens of China and India — holders of long-term multiple-entry visas from countries such as the United States, Britain and the Schengen zone, are provided with a visa-free regime for…

Operators and shippers who send advance cargo information to Kyrgyz customs via TIR-EPD can now benefit from dedicated processing booths at the Dostuk border, saving time and money. During the Samarkand Summit of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) in November 2022, the presidents of OTS member states supported efforts to digitalise transport and transit procedures and commended the progress made by Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan to digitalise TIR and establish Green Lanes at their border crossings. The TIR-EPD booths at Kyrgyzstan’s Dostuk border is another key step towards facilitating TIR procedures with additional security provided by digitalisation. Such a risk-based prioritisation…

The independent Kloop website has been blocked in Kyrgyzstan amid ongoing pressure on the website’s owner, the Kloop Media Public Foundation, further raising fears that officials are curbing rights to free speech and an independent media. Kloop said on September 13 that several providers in the Central Asian nation had blocked its website just two weeks after the Bishkek city Prosecutor’s Office initiated legal proceedings against the Kloop Media Public Foundation to suspend its work in Kyrgyzstan because of the critical coverage of the government by its media outlet. The Culture Ministry also had demanded Kloop remove an article about the alleged torture…

Kyrgyzstan and Japan intend to implement joint projects in the field of ecology and climate, Azernews reports, citing Kabar. This became known during a meeting between Minister of Natural Resources, Ecology and Technical Supervision Melis Turgunbaev with Ambassador of Japan to the Kyrgyz Republic, Mr. Goda Hideki and Deputy Director of the Office for Cooperation with Russia, Central Asia and the Caucasus, the Bureau of Trade Policy, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry Japan by Koike Shinya. The meeting was held on September 4, 2023 at the initiative of the Japanese Embassy. The parties discussed issues of further cooperation…

The Swiss company Nestle is exploring the possibility of launching production in Kyrgyzstan, Deputy Director of the National Investment Agency Nuradil Bayasov told, Azernews reports, citing Kabar. He said that he met with representatives of this company in Bishkek and presented them with a list of more than 200 domestic exporters that could participate in the Nestle production chain. Nestlé S.A. (full name Nestlé Société Anonyme) is the world’s largest food manufacturer. The company’s headquarters is located in the Swiss city of Vevey. Its products are in great demand all over the world and are sold under the brands KitKat,…

Iran’s non-oil exports to Kyrgyzstan increased by 37 percent in value and 4.47 percent in volume during the first four months of the current Iranian year (March 21 through July 22, 2023), compared to the same period last year, trend reports.According to the report of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA), Iran exported nearly 16,000 tons of non-oil products worth $17.6 million to Kyrgyzstan in four months. Meanwhile, in the same period last Iranian year, Iran’s non-oil exports to Kyrgyzstan stood at 15,300 tons, worth approximately $12.9 million. Over the course of four months, Iran mainly exported petrochemical…

Kyrgyzstan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Zhanybek Kulubaev, and Germany’s Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs, Annalena Baerbock, will discuss ways to enhance bilateral economic collaboration, Trend reports. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyzstan, these discussions will occur during Kyrgyzstan’s Foreign Minister’s visit to Germany on August 24-25. The visit’s purpose is to discuss the expansion of Kyrgyz-German political, economic, and cultural-humanitarian cooperation. Minister Kulubaev will also hold bilateral meetings with authorities from Germany’s Federal President’s and Chancellor’s Offices, a Bundestag member, and other officials. Additionally, he will meet with the leadership of the German Committee on Eastern European…

Kyrgyzstan’s imports of oil products from Belgium from January through June 2023 amounted to 1,354 tons, which is a 7.2 times increase compared to the same period in 2022 (187 tons), Trend reports. According to the State Statistical Committee of the country, the import value totaled $4.705 million, increasing 6.2 times compared to the first half of the previous year ($755,200). Belgium has become the fourth-largest supplier of oil to Kyrgyzstan from January through June 2023. The largest supplier of oil products to Kyrgyzstan in the reporting period was Russia, from which Kyrgyzstan imported 189,809 tons of oil products worth…

Kyrgyzstan has become the first country among the 53 countries in the WHO European Region to conduct the second round of the Joint External Evaluation (JEE) Mission. The JEE mission, which took place from 3–7 July 2023, brought together 15 international technical experts from multiple countries, technical institutions and United Nations agencies to assess Kyrgyzstan’s capacity to prevent, detect and rapidly respond to public health threats. The JEE mission examined 19 technical areas, including immunization, laboratories and more, through a peer-to-peer, collaborative process involving international and national experts. Over the course of a week, the experts engaged in collaborative discussions…