The Opening Ceremony of the 61st Annual Meeting of the PIAC took place on Monday, August 27, at the splendid setting of the State Residence of the Kyrgyz Republic, No. 1, under the most benevolent blue sky.

The President of Kyrgyz Republic, Jeenbekov Sooronbay, gave the welcome speech on behalf of the Kyrgyz Republic, followed by Darkhan Kydyraly, President of the International Turkic Academy (Kazakhstan), and the Secretary General of the Permanent International Altaistic Conference, Prof. Dr. Barbara Kellner-Heinkele.

Besides the long-standing family of PIAC members, this meeting gathered a large number of regional scholars, and with approx. 180 participants, this year’s meeting is certainly one of the biggest in the history of the PIAC.

Altaic studies in general and the PIAC in particular enjoy a high reputation in Kyrgyzstan; not only the opening of the conference, but also the following academical activities were extensively covered by national and international media, e.g. the BBC’s Kyrgyz service.

Oliver Corff, August 29th, 2018, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.