The Growth Highway: Eurasia’s East–West Investment Opportunity

This event explores the vital role Central Asia has to play in deepening connectivity with Europe while providing a stabilizing force within the Greater Middle East as economic resource distributions shift. Building on the report , the Middle East Policy Council (MEPC) is convening a high-level in-person discussion to unpack the possibilities and realities of an East-West trade corridor. Offering a strategic alternative to China’s BRI and Russian supply, this route will shift critical economic resources, boosting growth and stability in Central Asia and the Greater Middle East, while also supplying Western markets.

Light lunch and refreshments will be served.

12:30 PM – Lunch

1:15–1:20 PM – Welcome

1:20–1:35 PM – Keynote Address
H.E. Ambassador Magzhan Ilyassov
Ambassador of Kazakhstan to the United States

1:35–2:10 PM – Panel I: Navigating Strategic Shifts in the Trans-Caspian Region

• Dr. Kamran Bokhari
  Senior Resident Fellow - Middle East Policy Council

• Dr. Ariel Cohen
  Managing Director - International Tax and Investment Center

• Dr. Roger Kangas
  Academic Dean and Professor - Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies

2:10–2:20 PM –Q&A

2:20–2:35 PM – Coffee break

2:35–2:50 PM – Keynote Address
Ambassador Carla Sands Chair - Foreign Policy Initiative / Distinguished Senior Fellow -
America First Policy Institute

2:50–3:25 PM – Panel II: The Geoeconomics of the East–West Corridor

• Dr. Ariel Cohen
  Managing Director - International Tax and Investment Center

• Dr. Wesley Alexander Hill
  Assistant Director and Lead Analyst - International Tax and Investment Center

• Dr. Sebastien Peyrouse
  Director of the Central Asia Program - George Washington University

3:25–3:35 PM –Q&A

3:35–3:40 PM – Closing remarks

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

National Press Club, 529 14th Street Northwest, Washington, United States

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