In addition Turkey sided with Kyrgyzstan in its hard times. The first official visit from Kyrgyzstan to Turkey was held on Dec. 23 1991. During this visit, a number of cooperation agreements were signed. Kyrgyzstan is relatively small, as is its population. Kyrgyzstan has no industry and it has a mountainous terrain. However, Kyrgyzstan has been able to organize and train its work force. More importantly, it has been able to use diplomacy and soft power quite successfully for many centuries. Thanks to this, Kyrgyzstan has successfully transitioned to a multiparty, parliamentary democracy. It has held general elections as well as presidential elections in a peaceful and democratic environment. The Kyrgyz nation has successfully passed through the turbulence of democratization with which some other Central Asian countries are currently struggling.
The new president of Kyrgyzstan, Almazbek Atambayev, who was elected on Oct. 30 and sworn in on Dec. 1, will hold his first official foreign visit in Turkey on Jan 12. Atambayev will be joined by three ministers from his cabinet (Foreign, Defense and Culture Ministers), four deputies and other bureaucrats during the visit. Atambayev will be in Ankara on Jan. 12 and 13 and he will be in Istanbul on Jan. 14 and 15, where he will meet with Prime Minister Erdoğan. Atambayev will also meet with President Gül in Ankara. He is scheduled to meet with Kyrgyz people and students living in Turkey. It is expected that during the visit, a renewal of the friendship agreement that was previously signed by the parties and the High Level Strategic Cooperation Council Action Plan will be discussed.
Turkey and Kyrgyzstan previously agreed to increase the visa-free stay from 30 days to 90 at the first stage of travel reforms. This agreement was endorsed by the Kyrgyz party but remains unapproved by the Turkish side. But a 90-day stay is not enough. Turkey and Kyrgyzstan wish to eventually remove visas altogether. In fact, the current state of bilateral relations is well-suited for passport-free travel; in such a set-up, showing an basic ID card will be sufficient. Greeks and Georgians have been allowed to enter Turkey without presenting a passport since December 2011. This privilege should also be extended to Kyrgyz citizens.
Atambayev knows Turkey well. Kyrgyzstan has had commercial ties with Turkey since the late years of the Soviet Union. He speaks Turkish well. In addition, Atambayev enjoys great support from his wife, Lady Raya, who altruistically quit her career in medicine for her children and husband. Lady Raya will also join Atambayev during his visit to Turkey. It has always been a source of disappointment that Turkish politicians did not bring their wives with them during their visits to Central Asian countries.
Turkey supports Kyrgyzstan in every field. Sadly, however, the Turkish bureaucracy fails to keep up with the performance and vision of Gül, Erdoğan, Davutoğlu and the Foreign Ministry. In 2010 Turkey awarded a $10 million grant to Kyrgyzstan and also forgave $51 million in debt. However, this decision still requires approval by Parliament. Additionally, the amount of development aid sent from the Turkish Cooperation and Development Agency (TİKA) reserved for the oil and gas-rich countries in 2010 was greater than the amount of aid sent to Kyrgyzstan; this shows that Ankara should think strategically.
In conclusion, these two friendly countries and nations should focus on a new model for cooperation after Atambayev’s visit.
