Honorable Professor Akmal Saidov, Chargé d'affaires Bakyt Asangul,

Your Excellencies,

Dear guests,

Allow me to greet all the participants of the conference dedicated to the great writer, statesman and diplomat, Chinghiz Aitmatov.

I would like to express my gratitude to esteemed Chargé d'affaires Bakyt Asangul and the team at the Embassy of Kyrgyzstan for their assistance in inviting Kyrgyz participants. We are delighted to welcome today Dinaara Jumaeva, Vice-President of the Issyk-Kul Forum named after Chinghiz Aitmatov.

Special thanks go to the ambassadors and diplomats, as well as to the writers and experts in literary works and ideological legacy of the great writer and statesman.

I would also like to express my special appreciation to the academician, ambassador, and deputy of the Oliy Majlis, professor Akmal Saidov, and the professor and ambassador Alisher Fayzullayev. They had the privilege of meeting Chinghiz Aitmatov on several occasions, including during their diplomatic missions in Paris and Brussels, and they are here today to share their memories of him as the "People's Author of Central Asia."

Dear participants,

The outgoing year has been marked by several important events in Uzbek-Kyrgyz relations, the most significant of which was the state visit of His Excellency President Sadyr Japarov of Kyrgyzstan to Uzbekistan in July.

In preparation for the visit, we held a roundtable discussion in Bishkek with the National Institute for Strategic Initiatives of the Kyrgyz Republic on issues of bilateral cooperation. The Institute kindly organized for us a tour of the Chinghiz Aitmatov Museum, which left a deep impression on us. It was heartwarming to see many photographs related to Uzbekistan among the exhibits and to listen to a talk by Asan Akhmatov, the nephew of Chinghiz Aitmatov.

It was at that moment that we decided to organize a conference dedicated to the great writer at the International Institute for Central Asia, to not only discuss his literary masterpieces, translated into over 170 languages, but also his state and diplomatic activities and his close ties with our country, his meetings with writers, diplomats, and leaders of Uzbekistan.

Highly valuing Chinghiz Aitmatov's contribution to world literature and the establishment of statehood in Central Asian countries, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, during the Fifth Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia in September 2023, proposed the establishment of regional scientific and educational grants and scholarships for talented youth in honor of the great thinkers, scientists, and philosophers of the region, including Chinghiz Aitmatov.

"Chingiz Aitmatov did much to ensure that we have a foundation of friendship, and we must continue this. The words that Uzbekistan influenced the culture of Central Asia in a way comparable to the influence of Byzantium on Rus, could only have been written by a friend," noted Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

I must also mention that Chinghiz Aitmatov's works have made our region a part of modern world literature, and his diplomatic activity has made an immense contribution to strengthening the friendship between the peoples of Central Asia.

As we pay tribute to him today, we are struck by his foresight and the relevance of his political views and ideas to modern trends in the development of Central Asia.

For example, in 1995, speaking in the capital of our country at the first congress of the "Assembly of Cultures of the Peoples of Central Asia," Chinghiz Aitmatov stated:

"We have gathered here in Tashkent with high intentions, driven by anxieties and concerns, with problems that require collective discussion and frank exchange, to discuss these issues in the presence of those who carry the cultural mission, with you, engaged in creativity and science in the Central Asian region."

In 1997, at the "Issyk-Kul Forum - 97," Chinghiz Aitmatov stated, "The Central Asian region is at a crucial historical juncture in its development, taking on the 'pacifist' role destined by its geopolitical fate."

At the same time, in that same speech at the "Issyk-Kul Forum," he noted that "Central Asia, occupying a uniquely special place, has always been at the crossroads of centers of power, experiencing the destructive effects of conflicts of various scales."

Nevertheless, his belief in the great future of the region never left him, and citing Arnold J. Toynbee, he predicted that the center of one of the future civilizations would be located in Central Asia.

Dear participants,

To make our forum truly creative, we have included in the program a short scene from the performance of the Uzbek National Academic Theater "Mother's Field." Rahmatulla Jabborov, Chairman of the Kyrgyz National Cultural Center of Uzbekistan, will perform a poem by Chinghiz Aitmatov in Kyrgyz language.

In conclusion, I would like to wish you bright impressions and interesting performances, as well as proposals to strengthen humanitarian ties between the peoples of our two countries and the region.

Thank you for your attention.