The First Annual Kyrgyz American Convention continued on Wednesday, November 20, at the Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill. Wednesday’s program opened with a Luncheon at noon that saw over 200 guests.
Lamija Silajdžić of the Turkic American Alliance served as emcee for the event. Before lunch was served, guests directed their attention to a video about Kyrgyzstan that showcased the republic’s natural beauties and wonders, history, geography, people and traditions.
The keynote speech was made by the Honorable Dana Rohrabacher, a distinguished Congressman from California who serves as Chair of the Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia and Emerging Threats. Congressman Rohrabacher described the development of Central Asia as not only critical for the region, but also for the world. The fall of the Soviet Union has enabled the Central Asian Republics to establish free and open markets that have the potential to contribute enormously to the global market. That being said, however, Eurasian markets are still in their nascent stages and, as such, are at a critical juncture of development in which future outcomes of success or failure will be determined.
The emcee next introduced several prominent speakers to address the audience with brief remarks.
The first speaker was Süleyman Turhanoğulları, President of the Turkic American Federation of Midwest (TAFM), a co-organizer of the convention. Mr. Turhanoğulları discussed the achievements of past Turkic American conventions in facilitating economic, business and trade dialogue among the United States and the Turkic Republics. Mr. Turhanoğulları expressed his confidence that the Kyrgyz American Convention will produce equally successful results for U.S.-Kyrgyz relations.
The Honorable Ravshan Jeenbekov, Member of the Jogorku Kenesh (Kyrgyz Parliament), next took to the stage. MP Jeenbekov described the two decades of stability enjoyed by the Kyrgyz government and its political system, as well as its robust economic and democratic growth, as strong indications of desirable conditions sought after by foreign investors.
The Honorable Ulukbek Kochkorov, Deputy Head of the Economic and Fiscal Policy Committee and Member of the Jogorku Kenesh, followed his colleague by addressing the future of U.S.-Kyrgyz relations. Next year will be a critical one for the United States and the Kyrgyz Republic because the U.S. will be closing the transit center at Manas and will continue to drawdown its military presence in Afghanistan. Nevertheless, MP Kochkorov is optimistic that U.S.-Kyrgyz relations will continue and will endure due to strong ties established throughout the war in Afghanistan. MP Kochkorov foresees a future in which the United States and the Kyrgyz Republic will continue to expand upon this existing partnership.
His Excellency Muktar Djumaliev, Ambassador of the Kyrgyz Republic to the United States and Canada, closed the luncheon by thanking the convention organizers and guests for making history through the First Annual Kyrgyz American Convention.
