Kyrgyzstan, formally known as the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked and mountainous country in north-east Middle Asia, bounded to the north by Kazakhstan; to the south-east and east by the People's Republic of China; to the south-west by Tajikistan; and to the west by Uzbekistan.

This land of incredible natural beauty and proud nomadic traditions was annexed by Russia in 1864 and achieved independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.