Bishkek, June 17, 2026 /Kabar/. Participants and guests of the 40th International Issyk-Kul Forum to arrive in Bishkek. Over the course of two days, June 16 and 17, Manas International Airport will host delegations from more than 15 countries.
Founded in 1986 at the initiative of the world-renowned writer and humanist Chyngyz Aitmatov, the forum returns to its historical homeland in the year of its 40th anniversary.
The event is held under the patronage of the President Sadyr Zhaparov, and aims to revive the platform for dialogue among intellectuals, politicians, scientists, and cultural and artistic figures.
The main goal of the 2026 anniversary forum is to update Aitmatov's humanitarian legacy and adapt his profound ideas and works to the realities of digitalization. Through the prism of intellectual and cultural diplomacy, the forum seeks to build a bridge between generations, offering a new generation of leaders and thinkers the opportunity to overcome the crisis of humanity, the ethical challenges of artificial intelligence, and global disunity.
This morning, a Chinese delegation arrived, led by Mo Yan, Chairman of the Chinese Writers' Union and Nobel Prize laureate. By midday on June 17, Ukrainian writer and translator Mykola Vaskiv, Chairman of the Tatarstan Writers' Union Rkail Zaidulin, former Secretary of the TURKSKAYA Dusanbay Kaseinov, Professor at Moscow State University Marklen Konurbayev, Advisor to the President of Kazakhstan Bauyrzhan Omarov, and President of the Turkic Academy Shahin Mustafayev had arrived.
"The Issyk-Kul Forum has always been a place where we discussed not opportunistic policies or economic gains, but the fundamental future of humanity, its moral guidelines, and the role of culture in an era of global upheaval. Today, 40 years later, Aitmatov's voice must resonate with renewed vigor. We are pleased to welcome the world's intellectual elite, ready for honest and open dialogue, to Kyrgyz soil," the Forum Organizing Committee noted.
The official opening ceremony of the forum and a plenary session with the participation of the country's leadership will take place on June 18 in the Issyk-Kul region.