1. Strengthening the image of the Kyrgyz Republic in the international arena

In 2018, a number of important international events were held in the Kyrgyz Republic, strengthening the image and position of our country.

As part of the celebration of the 90th birthday of the great writer Ch.Aitmatov, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and agencies of the Kyrgyz Republic in the country and abroad held a number of commemorative events (Aitmat Readings, conferences, photo exhibitions, film screenings based on the writer's works, etc. ) On September 24, President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov attended the opening ceremony of the photo exhibition of Ch.Aitmatov at the UN Hammarschild Library in New York. From October 4 to 7, the III International Issyk-Kul Forum of Intellectuals “Chingiz Aitmatov and the Challenges of the Present” was held with the participation of the head of state and more than 100 public and cultural figures from 21 countries and 7 international organizations. On December 7, with the participation of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov, the monument to Ch. Aitmatov was unveiled in the park of the same name in Moscow, and a street in Yekaterinburg was also named after him. On August 16, the opening of Ch.Aitmatov Street in Astana was held with the participation of the Prime Ministers of the Kyrgyz Republic and the Republic of Kazakhstan. A park named after Ch.Aitmatov in Minsk was opened. December 12, a bas-relief was installed on the street of the same name in Tashkent.

From September 2 to 8, the III World Nomad Games were successfully held in Cholpon-Ata. The opening ceremony of the III VIC was organized at a high level, for the first time with the participation of the Presidents of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Turkey, the Republic of Tatarstan, the Prime Minister of Hungary and other high-ranking foreign guests. The games included three areas: ethnosport, ethnoculture, and science. The III VIC was attended by sports teams and cultural delegations from 74 countries in the amount of about 1900 participants, over 40 high-level delegations, more than 620 media representatives from 56 countries. Thanks to the World Nomad Games, the Kyrgyz Republic has become more recognizable in the international arena, their holding serves as a multiplier effect to increase the number of foreign tourists in the country.

On October 3-6, a meeting of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly was held in the Kyrgyz Republic, which is important for the development of parliamentary democracy in the country. The meeting became the largest international parliamentary event in Central Asia.

On October 23-26, the Kyrgyz Republic organized the IV World Mountain Forum, the main purpose of which is to identify possible development paths to a prosperous future for mountain regions. The Forum is relevant in the light of climate change, which has an increasing impact on glaciers, water resources and contributes to the growth of natural disasters in the mountainous regions of the country.

On November 15-16, in Bishkek, under the patronage of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov, the II International Conference “Islam in a Modern Secular State” was held, in which representatives of 20 countries, international experts and theologians took part.

On December 20, in New York, at the 62nd plenary meeting of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly, the Kyrgyz Republic unanimously adopted the draft updated resolution “The Role of the International Community in the Prevention of the Radiation Threat in Central Asia”, co-sponsored by 40 states .

2. Strengthening political dialogue and developing multifaceted cooperation with Central Asian countries

The development of regional cooperation is characterized by positive dynamics. High-level and high-level meetings of Central Asian countries became traditional, during which the current state and prospects of intra-regional cooperation were discussed.

On February 1-2, the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov paid an official visit to the Republic of Tajikistan, as a result of which 9 bilateral documents were signed.

On August 23-24, the state visit of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov to Turkmenistan took place, within the framework of which a package of agreements was signed, which form the basis of modern Kyrgyz-Turkmen relations, including the Kyrgyz-Turkmen Declaration on strategic partnership, strengthening friendship and trust.

An important impetus for regional cooperation was the first meeting of the heads of state of Central Asia held in Astana on March 15 in Astana, during which priority issues of the regional agenda were considered. As part of the implementation of the agreements of the heads of state, on the initiative of the Kyrgyz side on July 20-22, in Cholpon-Ata, a full-format meeting of Central Asian foreign ministers was held for the first time, during which practical issues were discussed to further strengthen relations in all areas of regional cooperation.

On March 29 in Ferghana and on December 18 in Osh, I and II meetings of the heads of the border regions of the Kyrgyz Republic and the Republic of Uzbekistan were held under the leadership of the prime ministers of the two countries. The holding of meetings secured a mutual readiness to promote mutually beneficial cooperation between the border regions of the two countries, which is of crucial importance for the further development of Kyrgyz-Uzbek relations.

3. Further development of allied relations and strategic partnership with the Russian Federation

Allied relations and strategic partnership between the Kyrgyz Republic and the Russian Federation had a positive development dynamics and met the national interests of the country. A significant event in 2018 was the holding on May 14 of a working visit of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov to Sochi to a meeting of the EAEU and the bilateral meeting with President of Russia V. Putin. Also, negotiations between the two heads of state took place on June 15 and September 28, during which topical issues of Kyrgyz-Russian cooperation in the trade, economic, investment and fuel and energy sectors and a number of other issues were discussed.

In the framework of the development of inter-parliamentary cooperation, November 27, the official visit of the Toraga of the Jogorku Kenesh of the Kyrgyz Republic D. Dzhumabekov to the Russian Federation took place.

An intensive dialogue was also carried out through the foreign affairs agencies of the parties. The first working visit of the newly appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic, Ch. Aidarbekov, took place in the Russian Federation on October 26. Also, Kyrgyz-Russian negotiations at the level of foreign ministers were held on December 6 in Milan as part of the Ministerial Council of the OSCE member states.

Particular importance is given to the protection of the rights and interests of citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic abroad, assistance in resolving existing topical issues in the field of migration. In accordance with the agreements reached between the Presidents of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov and the President of the Russian Federation V. Putin, the Russian side applied a migration amnesty for citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic who violated the migration laws of the Russian Federation.

4. Bringing Kyrgyz-Chinese relations to the level of comprehensive strategic partnership

2018 is characterized by a high level of political dialogue between the Kyrgyz Republic and the People's Republic of China. On June 6-7, the state visit of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov to China took place, the main result of which was the conclusion of bilateral relations to the level of comprehensive strategic partnership. During the visit, the heads of the two states signed the Joint Declaration of the Kyrgyz Republic and the People’s Republic of China on establishing a comprehensive strategic partnership, as well as bilateral agreements in the field of energy, agriculture, transport, export of domestic agricultural products to China, health care, emergency situations and others.

5. Promotion of political dialogue and full cooperation with the European Union

On April 11-12, the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov paid a visit to the institutions of the European Union, during which personal contacts were established at the highest level. The leaders of the EU institutions praised the ongoing reforms in the country aimed at strengthening the rule of law, combating corruption and protecting human rights.

On November 23, in Brussels, a meeting of EU-Central Asian foreign ministers was held. On December 10, led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic, Ch. Aidarbekov, the Kyrgyz delegation took part in the 16th meeting of the Council on Cooperation of the Kyrgyz Republic-EU.

Negotiations are in progress with the EU on the conclusion of a new Agreement on in-depth partnership and cooperation aimed at further development of the entire spectrum of relations.

6. A new impetus in the development of Kyrgyz-Turkish cooperation

Important events in Kyrgyz-Turkish relations were the official visit of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov to the Republic of Turkey on April 9-10 and the working visit of the head of state on July 9 to participate in the inauguration of the President of the Republic of Turkey R. Erdogan.

On September 1-2, in the city of Cholpon-Ata, the President of the Republic of Turkey R. Erdogan made an official visit to the Kyrgyz Republic, within the framework of which a package of documents was signed (6 agreements) and a Kyrgyz-Turkish business forum was held. Also on September 1-2, in Bishkek, the IV meeting of the Supreme Council for Strategic Cooperation between the Kyrgyz Republic and the Turkish Republic took place.

7. Dynamic development of relations between the Kyrgyz Republic and Arab countries

Of particular importance is the strengthening of cooperation between the Kyrgyz Republic and the Arab countries in order to bring relations to a new qualitative level, promote trade and economic ties and investment projects.

On April 24-26, the 1st meeting of the Kyrgyz-Kuwaiti Intergovernmental Commission on Economic and Technical Cooperation was held in Kuwait City. On July 27-29, the first in the history of Kyrgyz-Palestinian relations official visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Palestine Riyadh Al-Maliki to the Kyrgyz Republic took place. On December 17-19, the official visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic Ch. Aidarbekov to the United Arab Emirates took place.

In 2018, there has been a positive trend in the development of inter-MFA cooperation. The first consultations were held between the foreign affairs agencies of the Kyrgyz Republic and Qatar, the UAE and Palestine, as a result of which the parties identified new priority areas for cooperation.

8. Participation of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov in the General debate of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly

On September 24-25, the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov, for the first time after taking office, took part in the General Debate of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly in New York. The head of state spoke at the General Debate of the General Assembly. During the meeting with the UN Secretary General A. Guterres, further cooperation between the Kyrgyz Republic and the UN was discussed in terms of developing democratic institutions, improving the electoral system, environmental issues, as well as the problems of uranium tailings.

In general, for the Kyrgyz Republic this visit became an important political event at the international level, during which the world community was informed about the important changes that took place in the country's socio-political and economic life, foreign policy priorities and the positions of the Kyrgyz Republic on key issues on the international agenda.

9. The Chairmanship of the Kyrgyz Republic in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Cooperation Council of Turkic-speaking States and the Collective Security Treaty Organization

On June 10, in Qingdao, the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov took part in a meeting of the SCO Council of Heads of State. An important outcome of the Summit was the transfer of the chairmanship of the SCO SCG from the People's Republic of the Kyrgyz Republic to the period from June 2018 to June 2019. During the chairmanship, our country pays special attention to the most important issues of political, economic, transport, agricultural and humanitarian cooperation within the SCO.

On September 3, in VI Cholpon-Ata, under the chairmanship of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov, the VI Summit of the CCTS was held. Along with all the heads of states participating in the CCTS, the Summit was attended for the first time by the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan S. Mirziyoyev and the Prime Minister of Hungary V. Orban as honored guests. Following the Summit, 4 documents were signed and 2 joint statements by the heads of state “on the 90th anniversary of Ch.Aitmatov” and “on the development of cooperation in the field of national sports and youth”, initiated by the Kyrgyz side, were adopted. At the Summit, the chairmanship passed to the Kyrgyz Republic, for the period of which attention was focused on the development of economic, investment and customs cooperation, cooperation in the field of transport, energy and tourism, as well as the protection and preservation of the common rich historical heritage, culture and sports of the Turkic peoples.

On November 8, in Astana, President of the Kyrgyz Republic S. Jeenbekov attended the regular session of the Collective Security Council of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, at which the Republic of Kazakhstan assumed the chairmanship of the Kyrgyz Republic for the next intersessional period. The efforts of the Kyrgyz Republic during the chairmanship are aimed at improving and enhancing the potential of the CSTO, expanding cooperation in the field of foreign policy interaction and developing military-economic (technical) cooperation.

10. Improving the system of consular services (the introduction of automated information systems and the implementation of the project "Electronic Visa")

In order to reduce the time for consideration of documenting applications (issuing passports, registry office documents, assigning a personal identification number) to citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic abroad and improving the quality of consular services rendered, all foreign agencies of the Kyrgyz Republic are connected to the Passport and Registry Office automated information systems (AIS) . Work continues on the implementation of the AIS “Consular Accounting” and “Citizenship”.

A sub-component of the Unified System of External Migration Accounting “Electronic Visa” has been developed - a system that allows citizens of foreign states to obtain visas of the Kyrgyz Republic via the Internet, without the need to contact foreign agencies of the Kyrgyz Republic. To apply for visas by foreign citizens, the E-visa website (evisa.e-gov.kg) has been launched. Consular fees for this service are also paid by credit / debit card. The launch of the Electronic Visa system has greatly simplified the visit of foreign tourists and businessmen to the Kyrgyz Republic. During the operation of the electronic system, about 30 thousand visas of various categories have been issued.