The US has sent a high-level delegation to Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kazakhstan to strengthen its relations with the Central Asian countries as Eurasia becomes a hotspot of strategic alliances amid growing geopolitical uncertainty spanning from Afghanistan to Ukraine.
The US delegation, led by Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu, began its tour of Central Asian countries on Monday in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, and conducted discussions in Uzbekistan on Tuesday.
Eric Green, Senior Director for Russia and Central Asia at the National Security Council, and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Central Asia Rebecca Zimmerman, Anjali Kaur, Deputy Assistant Administrator of the Bureau for Asia at the US Agency for International Development, and Naz El-Khatib, Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy at the US International Development Finance Corporation.
The delegation's visit is intended to boost US connections with the region and "advance joint efforts" to create a more integrated, affluent, and secure Central Asia, according to the US Department of State.
Donald Lu met with Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Jeenbek Kulubaev in his first meeting of the visit to discuss current challenges in Kyrgyz-American relations, as well as regional and global issues.
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