Central Asian countries in focus as Washington pursues outreach serving to blunt Chinese influence in strategically valuable region
3-MIN READ3-MIN ListenOrange WangPublished: 9:00pm, 2 Sep 2026As China and Russia rallied dozens of countries in Bishkek to shape a multipolar world order, Washington’s envoys were splitting the spotlight by meeting several Central Asian presidents in the Kyrgyz capital this week.
The manoeuvring showed that the US was likely to continue its outreach to the region and seek to blunt Beijing’s influence, but it would be “unrealistic” for Washington to force Central Asian countries to choose sides, according to a leading Chinese analyst.
US Senator Steve Daines and Sergio Gor, America’s special envoy for South and Central Asia, met Kyrgyzstan’s Sadyr Japarov, Tajikistan’s Emomali Rahmon and Uzbekistan’s Shavkat Mirziyoyev separately in Bishkek on Monday.
07:23Xi Jinping urges SCO summit members’ cooperation and the setting up of a development bankThe summit brought together the three Central Asian presidents alongside other notable leaders, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
