Ex-Speaker Made Ambassador to Iran
Ex-Speaker Made Ambassador to Iran
In contrast to the relatively low-key Atakhanov, Sherimkulov is a prominent politician. He was a Communist party activist during the Soviet era, and speaker of the first parliament after Kyrgyzstan gained independence in 1991. Sherimkulov ran against Askar Akaev for the presidency in 1995 and went on to serve as ambassador to Turkey from 1998 to 2002.