More than 50 US companies gathered in Bishkek on 4 February for the second B5+1 Business Forum, the private-sector counterpart to the C5+1 diplomatic format linking the United States with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, in what US Special Envoy Sergio Gor described as the largest and most comprehensive American commercial delegation ever to visit Central Asia.
The forum, co-organised by the Kyrgyz government and the Center for International Private Enterprise, is designed to bring companies and policymakers together to identify investment barriers and propose cross-border regulatory changes. The Bishkek agenda centred on reviewing progress against the 21 private-sector recommendations produced at the inaugural B5+1 forum in Almaty in March 2024, and setting priorities for the next phase of work.
Gor framed the forum as a deliberate shift in Washington’s approach to Central Asian engagement. “The private sector, not intergovernmental agreements, will become the key instrument of interaction,” he said, identifying electronic commerce, artificial intelligence, critical minerals, agriculture and transport infrastructure as priority areas. He also referenced the TRIPP transport corridor as a vehicle for connecting Central Asia through the South Caucasus to global markets — “a historic opportunity to strengthen economic integration and long-term prosperity across the region.”
Kazakhstan’s Industry and Construction Minister Yersaiyn Nagassayev used the event to make the case for treating Central Asia as a single investment market rather than a collection of bilateral relationships. He noted that more than 600 US companies currently operate in Kazakhstan and said foreign investors increasingly assess the region as a unified commercial space with aligned regulations and investment conditions.
Kyrgyzstan used the forum to highlight its domestic economic performance within that regional context. First Deputy Chairman Daniyar Amangeldiyev said Kyrgyzstan’s economy grew 11.1% in 2025, which he described as one of the highest growth rates in the region. Gor also met separately with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov to discuss economic cooperation, trade expansion and investment attraction.
The B5+1 is being positioned as a standing mechanism with an ongoing cycle of working groups, private-sector proposals and annual meetings, rather than a one-off event. Any updated recommendations from the Bishkek forum are expected to be published following additional consultations rather than issued as immediate communiqués at the event itself.
