How Aitmatov Gathered the Elite of the USSR and the USA on the Shores of the Lake During the Cold War
In October 1986, outstanding writers, scientists, and thinkers from countries in a state of ideological confrontation gathered on the picturesque shores of Issyk-Kul in Kyrgyzstan. This event became a unique cultural experiment during the Cold War aimed at discussing the future of humanity.
The international situation at that time was highly tense. The arms race between the USA and the Soviet Union continued, and the nuclear arsenals of both sides were only increasing. During this time, Ronald Reagan's presidency in the USA contributed to the intensification of strategic competition, while in the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev began perestroika, which gave hope for a reduction in tensions and the formation of new trusting relationships.
The statement published on January 15, 1986, in all Soviet newspapers became an important signal: it proposed the complete elimination of nuclear weapons by the year 2000. In such an atmosphere, the idea arose to gather intellectuals and cultural figures for a joint discussion of global challenges.
The initiator of this landmark forum was Chingiz Aitmatov, a Kyrgyz writer and a significant figure in Eurasian culture. As an advisor to Gorbachev and later the ambassador of Kyrgyzstan to UNESCO, he believed that culture could serve as an important tool for dialogue between civilizations.
Critic Grigory Gachev noted: “Russian literature of Russia, which emerged from the Soviet Union, is foreign to him, he is a stranger... What remains is — the world. And indeed, he — accepts!”
The first Issyk-Kul forum brought together outstanding representatives of world culture, including well-known figures such as Peter Ustinov, Alvin and Heidi Toffler, Arthur Miller, and James Baldwin, as well as Nobel laureate Claude Simon and Alexander King.
Mikhail Gorbachev paid great attention to this meeting, describing it in his memoirs "Life and Reforms." He emphasized that the discussions at the forum helped shape a "new political thinking" based on universal human values, which is especially important in the context of the nuclear threat.
The forum was conceived as a platform for informal discussions of global problems, aiming to prepare humanity for a new millennium filled with peace and humanism. The motto of the meeting became the expression: “Survival through creativity.”
Federico Mayor, who headed UNESCO from 1987 to 1999, later recalled the importance of the forum as a seed of new thinking. He noted that it was a unique experience of freedom of speech for the participants, which was extremely rare under the conditions of the Soviet Union.
By the end of the 1980s, against the backdrop of these events, it seemed that a historical renewal was possible. The fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the USSR occurred without direct confrontation between superpowers. Mayor referred to Gorbachev as an "unusual president," and reconciliation processes were observed in various regions of the world.
However, this "new beginning" was not fully realized. The European Union became more of an economic than a political union, and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of 2000 was largely forgotten. In the USA, ambitions continued to dominate, and the influence of oligarchic groups on the UN system became increasingly noticeable.
Production capacities were relocated to other regions, while some structures continued to benefit, ignoring the democratic principles proclaimed in the UN Charter.
The Issyk-Kul forum continued in subsequent years, taking place in different countries, including Switzerland, Spain, and the USA. Gradually, it acquired the format of an international conference, shifting the focus to "the culture of peace," a concept actively promoted by UNESCO in the 1990s.
After Aitmatov's death in 2008, new meetings were held in 2013 and 2018, which again raised relevant topics of intercultural dialogue and the crisis of humanitarian values.
The forum also became a platform to honor the memory of Chingiz Aitmatov. Recently, the president of Kyrgyzstan signed a decree to prepare for the 40th International Issyk-Kul Forum, scheduled for June 2026, with the aim of renewing international dialogue on pressing global challenges.
Aitmatov's warning that "if humanity does not learn to live in peace, it will perish" remains relevant today.
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