Wednesday, July 25, 2012 -
Abolishing visas for visiting citizens of developed countries will only improve Kyrgyzstan’s investment climate, Deputy Prime Minister for the Economy Djoomart Otorbaev said on Wednesday.
“The reform is aimed at maintaining the image of Kyrgyzstan as an open state,” the KyrTAG news agency reported Otorbaev as saying at a press conference in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek.
“We adhere to the principles of competitiveness in the economy and in politics, and we believe that the visa-free regime will further contribute to improving the investment climate and development of our country.”
On Tuesday, Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev signed into law the order to remove visa restrictions for citizens from 44 states, including EU member states, the U.S., Canada, Australia, and Singapore.
The Kyrgyz parliament had passed the legislation earlier this year.
Otorbaev said the removal of visa restrictions for 44 countries “will help improve the economy of our country.”
Kyrgyzstan is also trying to resuscitate its tourism industry, which has yet to recover after the violent ethnic riots in 2010. However, most tourists to Kyrgyzstan come from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).