Foreign Minister Michael Linhart will depart for Central Asia on 4 November 2021, accompanied by a large trade delegation. The Foreign Minister’s third business trip since taking office will take him to the four Central Asian states of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.
The meetings with high-ranking government representatives will focus on the situation in Afghanistan as well as expanding bilateral trade relations.
As Afghanistan’s immediate neighbours, the Central Asian states play a key role in responding to the crisis. My trip to these Central Asian nations is thus an expression of solidarity and an offer to work together to combat international terrorism, organised crime, and human trafficking. I also want to make it clear that we will not turn our backs on the people in Afghanistan nor on our Central Asian partners,
Foreign Minister Linhart explained before the trip.
In addition to the situation in Afghanistan, expanding bilateral trade relations between the four Central Asian states and Austria will be the other focus. Accompanied by the trade delegation, Foreign Minister Linhart will not only take part in events for the ReFocus Austria initiative to strengthen foreign trade, but will also participate in the first EU-Central Asia Economic Forum, held in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek.
Foreign Minister Linhart:
There is currently a great deal of unused potential in Central Asia, particularly in the areas of digitization, hydropower, the hospital sector, and the water and waste industry – so I am pleased that a large trade delegation is accompanying me on this trip. We will all work together to stimulate Austria’s economic engine.
Kyrgyzstan is the first country Foreign Minister Linhart will be visiting, where he will meet with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Shaparov and Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Ruslan Kazakbaev on Friday. Alongside the economic forum, there will also be an opportunity to exchange ideas with the special advisor to Kazakh President Erzhan Kazykhan about the situation in Afghanistan. On Saturday, the journey continues to Tajikistan, where Foreign Minister Linhart will hold talks with First Deputy Prime Minister Davlatali Said and Foreign Minister Sirodjiddin Muhriddin. The Foreign Minister will then spend Sunday and Monday in Uzbekistan, where he will meet with Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov and, during a visit to Samarkand, with the local Governor Erkinjon Turdimov. The trip will conclude with a visit to Turkmenistan. Foreign Minister Michael Linhart will meet with Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov as well as with Vice President and Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov.
In addition to these official meetings, informal talks with representatives of international organisations and NGOs in order to view the crisis in Afghanistan from a broader perspective are on the agenda too.
