US State Secretary John Kerry met Saturday with the foreign ministers of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, initiating “a new format for regional discussions,” State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement, Sputnik reported.

„The Secretary and the C5 foreign ministers discussed how the United States and countries of the region can work together to address common challenges to security and economic development,“ the statement reads.