Kyrgyzstan International Affairs - The Times Of Central Asia

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New Bonded Zone to Boost Kyrgyz Exports to China

The Ministry of Digital Development of the Kyrgyz Republic has announced the opening of a new bonded zone to boost the development of e-commerce and exportation of Kyrgyz goods to the Chinese market. The zone covers an area of 7,500 square meters on the Kyrgyzstan border between Kyrgyz Pochtasy (Kyrgyz Post) OJSC, Naryn’s free economic zone (FEZ), and Kashgar FEZ in China’s western Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The opening of the new national pavilion ‘Made in Kyrgyzstan,’ a facility where Kyrgyz products are exhibited, stored, sold, and shipped both in e-commerce and offline modes, was attended by Akylbek Japarov, Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan, on a visit to the zone early in March. The project provides 48 and 72-hour direct warehouse-to-warehouse services for cross-border trading logistics between China and Kyrgyzstan.

Central Asia Kyrgyzstan Life & Culture Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan International Affairs

United States Doubles Length of Visas for Kyrgyz Citizens

From 4 March 2024 the U.S. embassy in Bishkek will issue tourist and business visas to Kyrgyz citizens for a period of 10 years, doubling the previously issued terms of five years. Citizens of Kyrgyzstan will also no longer have to pay a $20 application fee, according to the embassy's website. The U.S. diplomatic mission has commented that the lengthening of visa terms is one way to demonstrate the importance the U.S. places on facilitating travel, as well as deepening ties between the American and Kyrgyz peoples. In his video message, U.S. ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic Lesslie Viguerie expressed his hope that thousands of Kyrgyz travelers will benefit from these changes. "These changes are all about improving services for the Kyrgyz people, making travel between our countries easier, and strengthening our ties," he emphasized. The updated terms do not apply to previously issued visas . According to the U.S. diplomatic mission, most applications from Kyrgyz citizens are for tourist and work visas, followed by applications for immigration and student visas. The refusal rate for people from Kyrgyzstan, according to public data for 2023, stood at 41.5%.

Central Asia Kyrgyzstan International Affairs Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan Local Politics Kyrgyzstan Business & Economy

Chinese Company to Build an Automobile Plant in Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan’s President Sadyr Japarov attended a ceremony on February 28th to launch the construction of an automotive assembly plant in the country’s northern Chui region. The plant which will have the capacity to produce over 80,000 vehicles -electric, domestic, and commercial – is due to open in August this year. A joint venture between the Kyrgyz government, local enterprises, and the China Hubei Zhuoyue Group, the first stage of the project has attracted investment of $115 million. In his speech, President Japarov expressed the government’s confidence that the project will provide significant impetus to the development of the automotive industry in Kyrgyzstan and in turn, the creation of new jobs. The Chinese Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan Du Dewen attributed the instigation of the project to a strategic partnership between the two countries. Thanking the Kyrgyz president for his personal attention and support, she expressed her hope that this project will exemplify a deepening interaction between Kyrgyzstan and China.

Central Asia Kyrgyzstan International Affairs Kyrgyzstan

Ninety-Nine Kyrgyz Citizens Brought Home From Syria

The Kyrgyz Foreign Ministry has reported that 99 citizens of Kyrgyzstan – 28 of women and 71 children – have been brought home from Syria. The mission to return them from special camps in the north-east of the country was organized with the support of the U.S. government. The ministry said: "The Kyrgyz side expresses its special gratitude to the American side and international partners for their full assistance in the special operation and logistical support for the successful implementation of the fifth major campaign for the repatriation of citizens left in a difficult situation." This is the fifth mission to repatriate Kyrgyz citizens from the combat zone in Syria. The first stage of repatriation was carried out a year ago. In total, about 130 women and 300 children have returned home on special airplanes. According to authorities, all Kyrgyz arriving from Syria are being accommodated in a rehabilitation center to receive appropriate services to help them adapt to life in a peaceful environment. According to the latest public data from Kyrgyzstan's State Committee for National Security, more than 850 Kyrgyz have traveled to the combat zone in Syria -- 150 of whom have died in fighting. Active recruitment of Kyrgyz citizens began at the beginning of the war in Syria, mainly in the south of the country, where the influence of extremist Islamic movements was strong. Both men and women were recruited. After arriving in Syria, Kyrgyz women married jihadists and lived there, while Kyrgyz men joined militant groups. At the same time, some men returned from the ATS and recruited members for terrorist groups on the instructions of the Syrian jihadists. On many occasions Kyrgyz intelligence officers have found large quantities of banned extremist literature and propaganda materials in the possession of men who came home to recruit. Today the Kyrgyz special services are still searching for those Kyrgyz who fought in Syria and haven't returned home. Investigations focusing on those people are ongoing, and if it's proven that they took part in extremist activities abroad, criminal cases will be brought against them.

Central Asia Kyrgyzstan International Affairs Kyrgyzstan Features

Why Are You Allowed and We Are Not? Japarov Responds to U.S. on Foreign Agents Law

The Kyrgyz presidential administration published a letter of response from Sadyr Japarov to U.S. Secretary of State, Antony Blinken. It follows a letter to the Kyrgyz leader in which the top U.S. diplomat expressed concern about the draft law titled "On Non-Profit organizations," which tightens control over their activities in Kyrgyzstan. In his response letter to Blinken, Japarov thanked the American official for his appreciation of the work of the 78th UN General Assembly last September, where the Kyrgyz President urged the international community to support Kyrgyzstan's environmental and green projects. But, he also noted with regret that U.S. authorities are interfering in Kyrgyzstan's internal affairs, emphasizing that the desire for justice and freedom is a distinctive feature of his home nation. "Regarding your concerns about the draft law on foreign agents... there are tens of thousands of non-governmental (NGOs)/non-profit organizations (NPOs) that are successfully working throughout Kyrgyzstan, addressing many problems on which the state previously had neither the will nor the desire to do something. At the same time, it should be recognized that some NGOs/[NPOs] receive funding from abroad, and not only from the U.S. and EU countries," the president wrote. According to Japarov, the Kyrgyz state, by legal definition, intends to control such organizations - namely, where their money comes from and for what purposes it is used. The president emphasized that the draft law - which MPs initiated and adopted in its first reading - is very similar to the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) adopted in 1938 in the United States. According to the president, the analogous American law assigns the status of a foreign agent and controls not only the mass media but also any individuals and legal entities financed from abroad. At the same time, violations of this law or delays in registering an organization in the United States are fraught with not only administrative but also criminal penalties. "In this connection, the question cannot [help] but arise: why are you allowed and we are not allowed?" the Kyrgyz President asked rhetorically. In his letter, Japarov said that in accordance with the Constitution of Kyrgyzstan, human and civil rights and freedoms - including the right to freedom of speech and the right to association - may be restricted by law to protect national security, public order, health and public morals, as well as to protect the rights and freedoms of others. In this right, Kyrgyzstan is no different from other countries. Japarov noted that it seems to him that when Blinken addressed him, he relied on unreliable information from NGOs who had earlier criticized the draft law. Japarov said that this information didn't allow the U.S. foreign policy chief to draw an objective picture of the situation with human rights and freedoms in Kyrgyzstan. "Only a small number, but a [quite] vociferous group, of these structures financed by foreign states... is a source of inaccurate information for their grantors. In addition, these nongovernmental structures often spread false, inaccurate information among the people, which...

Central Asia International Affairs Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan International Affairs Features

U.S. State Department Asks Kyrgyzstan To Reconsider Foreign Agents Law

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov to reconsider Kyrgyzstan's draft law on foreign agents, which is currently under consideration in the parliament and has already been passed by the country's Supreme Council in a second reading. In his letter, Secretary Blinken says that this bill in its current form "jeopardizes the access of Kyrgyz citizens to vital services." According to the U.S. official, after the law is passed, Kyrgyz citizens may have problems with access to health care, education and more services provided through programs run by non-governmental organizations with the support of Washington and other foreign partners. "Your vibrant civil society has long been the strongest in the region and a key part of Kyrgyzstan's democracy. I am therefore writing to you to express my concern about the Kyrgyz parliament's draft law on foreign representatives, which, if passed, would impose onerous civil and criminal penalties on non-governmental organizations (NGOs). It jeopardizes one of your country's greatest assets," the U.S. Secretary of State wrote. According to Blinken, many Kyrgyz NGOs and foreign-funded NGOs are already thinking about stopping their activities in Kyrgyzstan. The U.S. Secretary of State urged the Kyrgyz president to weigh these concerns and discuss them with members of parliament (MPs). According to the bill being discussed by MPs, the concept of "foreign representative" will be introduced into law, and will place special responsibility under the law on non-profit (NPO) and non-governmental organizations. In particular, Western representatives aren't satisfied with the fact that the bill proposes introducing an article in the Kyrgyz Criminal Code on "creation of a non-profit organization that infringes on the personality and rights of citizens." Active participation in such organizations will be punishable by imprisonment for up to 10 years or a fine of 100,000-200,000 soms ($1,100-$2,200). Moreover, the draft law introduces additional reporting obligations for foreign-funded non-profit organizations that engage in political activity in Kyrgyzstan. Other international organizations such as the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, as well as representatives of EU, UK and other countries stated that they are not satisfied with the draft law. They also called on parliament and the president to reconsider the bill. "The introduction of onerous reporting requirements in the draft law is likely to prove crippling for small and medium-sized media organizations and create significant risks for media freedom and open debate on issues of public interest in the [Kyrgyz Republic]. It is particularly worrying that the amendments under consideration would impose almost complete state control over the right to free expression of civil society and media representatives," said Teresa Ribeiro, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media. The discussion about draft laws on NGOs and foreign agents has been going on in Kyrgyzstan for several years. Amendments and additions have been made to the draft law. Now the bill is close to final adoption and signing by the president. Speaking at the People's Kurultai last December, President Japarov said that more than...