Embassies and Dignitaries Come Together for International Nowruz Event in Washington DC
On March 19, the Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs and Meridian International Center, gathered with the embassies of Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to celebrate the Nowruz holiday. Nowruz, meaning new day, is a celebration of the vernal equinox, the start of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere. This three thousand year old festival is celebrated in the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East and other regions.
The event featured congratulatory remarks from Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, Lt. Gen. Marc H. Sasseville, Vice Chief of the National Guard Bureau, Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Gregory W. Meeks and representatives from the diplomatic community, government, non-profit, business communities from the United States, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The celebration concluded with a cultural program, with music and dancing from the seven nations, including a song by Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Culture Ozodbek Nazarbekov.
This online event involving representatives of eight nations is testament to the strengthening ties between the countries of Central Asia, the Caucasus and the United States of America.
You can watch a recording of the event here.
