Daines Applauds Trump Administration for Advancing Relationships with Central Asia

• September 11, 2025

Also Calls for Repeal of Outdated Jackson-Vanik Trade Restrictions

U.S. SENATE - U.S. Senator Steve Daines today spoke with Sergio Gor, nominee to be Ambassador to India and special envoy to South and Central Asia and Herschel Walker, nominee to be Ambassador of The Bahamas. Daines stressed the importance of United States diplomatic engagement in Central Asia and the need to overturn outdated Jackson-Vanik trade restrictions. Daines also emphasized the need to reduce the flow of narcotics into the United States through the Bahamas.

Watch the full exchange HERE.

Daines emphasized the need to increase investment and cooperation in Central Asia:

Daines: Mr. Gor, it's good to see you here today. Congratulations on your nomination. There's a lot of talk about India, certainly, as you will be, if confirmed, the next ambassador. I'm confident you will be the next ambassador in India. But you also carry another very important role, and that's the Special Envoy to the President, to both Central Asia and South Asia. I just want to bring Central Asia back into the forefront here in this Foreign Relations Committee. I don't think it gets enough attention and talk. And while we have this moment, I want to jump into Central Asia, some of the questions there. We spoke the other day about how U.S. adversaries are really undermining the increased US engagement we're seeing today in Central Asia. And clearly, that breakthrough peace agreement that President Trump led between Azerbaijan and Armenia is one of these moments. It's been under-reported, in my opinion, under-appreciated, but significant geopolitically in the ramifications it will have for Central Asia. Question for you, Mr. Gor, how important is it to show our allies in Central Asia that the United States is turning the page from the last administration and is now looking towards real investments and stronger cooperation in the region?

Gor: Senator, thank you for your question. It is vitally important.

Daines: Thank you, Mr. Gor. And having visited all five of the Central Asian countries in the last 18 months, met with the Presidents of each in their respective capitals, there was one common thread. There were several common threads, but one was their great respect and appreciation of President Trump. They truly want to engage. They think so highly of the president. It's a great opportunity for us. And I'm grateful to see both the President and yourself engaging more now in Central Asia.

Gor: I appreciate that, Senator….we're fully committed to that relationship.

Daines on repealing the outdated Jackson-Vanik policy:

Daines: And one of the specific issues that always gets brought up is certainly the outdated policies of Jackson-Vanik. That was a Soviet-era type policy that really serves no purpose today as we move forward. Senator Chris Murphy and I have been working on this in Congress in a bipartisan way to repeal it. And I look forward to working with you in your special envoy capacity of Central Asia to see if we can get Jackson-Vanik repealed and we're working with the Chairman as well. That's going to be one of the top topics. It shows a lot of respect I think for Central Asia and the fact they've moved on from the Soviet area of the past.

Gor: You're 100 percent right.

Daines on curbing the flow of narcotics into the U.S.:

Daines: Mr. Walker it's good to see you here today. Thank you for your willingness to serve as Ambassador to the Bahamas. I'll cut right to the chase. As you know as Ambassador, you're going to be working to strengthen this relationship with the Bahamas and with our government. Can you work to build an even stronger law enforcement and counter-narcotic relationship between the United States and the Bahamas and work to stem the tide of this poison that's entering our country?

Walker: Thank you for your question Senator…I can commit to that.

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Contact: Matt Lloyd, Gabby Wiggins