The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a hearing on July 27 to consider the White House’s nomination of Lesslie Viguerie to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan.
Lesslie Viguerie serves as the U.S. Department of State’s Deputy Assistant Secretary for Central Asian and Pakistan Affairs within the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs. Previously, he was a Deputy U.S. Ambassador to Uzbekistan, worked for diplomatic missions in Delhi and Moscow.
Lesslie Viguerie speaks Hindi, Russian and Portuguese languages.
In his presentation speech at the committee meeting, Lesslie Viguerie noted that the Kyrgyz Republic has a unique record in the Central Asian region.
«We are proud of our longstanding support for the Kyrgyz Republic’s energetic civil society and its efforts to build accountable, democratic institutions and strengthen the rule of law. It is critical that Kyrgyz leadership safeguards the gains made over the last 30 years and upholds media freedom, elevates the role of civil society, protects the human rights of all its people, including members of all minority groups, and strengthens judicial independence,» he said.
Lesslie Viguerie noted that if confirmed, he would advocate for Kyrgyz civil society and speak out against «erosion of democratic governance, corruption, and threats to freedom of speech and association», in accordance with the values the U.S. shares with the Kyrgyz people.
«For 30 years the United States has stressed our support for the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of the Kyrgyz Republic,» he added.
According to the U.S. Constitution, he will not be confirmed as ambassador until the full U.S. Senate has approved his nomination.
