AKIPRESS.COM - Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyzstan Erlan Abdyldayev took part in the C5+1 ministerial level meeting on September 22 in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had a meeting with the Foreign Ministers of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and the Permanent Representative of Turkmenistan.

The six countries recommitted to further deepening cooperation through engagement in the C5+1 format, and discussed ways to promote Afghanistan’s economic development within a regional framework.

C5+1 is a format for dialogue and a platform for joint efforts to address common challenges faced by the United States and the five Central Asian states. It complements bilateral relationships in the region, particularly in issue areas where regional approaches may provide a comparative advantage. At the first C5+1 ministerial, held in Samarkand in November 2015, the six foreign ministers agreed to focus on three sectors of common interest – security, with a focus on terrorist threats; economics, with a focus on improving regional trade flows and prospects for U.S. trade and investment; and environmental challenges. They also agreed to form working groups for each sector and to focus on achieving practical results. At the second C5+1 ministerial, held in Washington in August 2016, the six ministers agreed to launch five projects across these three sectors, funded by a $15 million appropriation from the U.S. Congress.