Join the Central Asia Program at the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies at George Washington University for an online talk along with the Embassy of Kazakhstan marking the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Kazakhstan.

On December 16, 2021, Kazakhstan will celebrate 30 years of independence. Back in the 1990s, the country voluntarily renounced the fourth-largest nuclear arsenal in the world and closed the Semipalatinsk nuclear testing site. Over the years, Kazakhstan's partnership with the United States has created solid foundations for the development of trade and economic relations as well as for cooperation in the political and security spheres. The Central Asia Program (CAP) and the Embassy of Kazakhstan to the United States have invited speakers who have been personally involved in strengthening U.S.-Kazakhstan ties to share their memories of the not-so-distant past and to draw out lessons from their experiences for the next generation of diplomats, experts and students.

The discussion will be moderated by Ambassador John Herbst, Director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center. Speakers include the Honorable Andrew “Andy” Weber, President Obama's Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical and Biological Defense Programs; Ambassador Bolat Nurgaliyev, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to the United States between 1996 and 2000; and Ambassador John Ordway, U.S. Ambassador to Kazakhstan between 2004 and 2008.

Registration is required; information can be found at this link.

Speakers:

Melinda Haring, deputy director, Eurasia Center, Atlantic Council

John Herbst, former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine and Uzbekistan

Erzhan Kazykhanov, Kazakh ambassador to the U.S.

John Ordway, former U.S. ambassador to Kazakhstan

Bolat Nurgaliyev, former Kazakh ambassador to the U.S.; deputy chairman, Board of the Institute for Foreign Policy Studies