Latest Articles about Kyrgyzstan
BISHKEK REASSURES BEIJING AFTER TULIP REVOLUTION
China invested considerable economic, political, and military resources in Kyrgyzstan, so it is no surprise that Beijing has been disconcerted by the rapid fall of the Akayev regime and the still-uncertain political evolution of the new regime. Not only did China provide considerable military and... MORE
RUSSIA PLAYS PEACE ADVOCATE IN KYRGYZ “REGIME CHANGE”
Russia's military presence in Central Asia has come into focus again through its participation in the Rubezh 2005 military exercises involving participants from the Commonwealth of Independent States. Although in itself there is nothing unusual about this exercise, the involvement of Russian air force units... MORE
AKAYEV OFFICIALLY RESIGNS WHILE KULOV DECLARES CANDIDACY FOR PRESIDENT
Although the mass lootings in Bishkek have ended, Kyrgyzstan's political crisis is not over. The legacy of Askar Akayev's regime is patently apparent as the new government begins to revise the ownership status of the country's major businesses. At the same time, more and more... MORE
TULIPS BLOOM IN KYRGYZSTAN BRINGING HOPES FOR DEMOCRATIC DEVELOPMENT
March 24, 2005, has become an important date in the history of Kyrgyzstan. On that day, in less than an hour, a crowd of demonstrators seized the Kyrgyz White House in Bishkek, opposition leader Felix Kulov was freed from jail, and President Askar Akayev reportedly... MORE
MOSCOW CRITICIZES EU AND OSCE OVER KYRGYZ ELECTION
Russian diplomacy is pointing a finger at the European Union and the OSCE, attempting to suggest that their goal of upholding democratic election standards in Kyrgyzstan is partly responsible for the outbreak of post-election unrest. Moscow wants international organizations to lower their evaluation criteria, ostensibly... MORE
MOSCOW PUNDITS PONDER TURMOIL IN KYRGYZSTAN
As Askar Akayev's regime collapsed across Kyrgyzstan, Russian policymakers and analysts considered whether the upheaval in the Central Asian republic falls into the same category as the Rose Revolution in Georgia and Orange Revolution in Ukraine. Most Russian commentators note some important parallels between events... MORE
CROWD SEIZES GOVERNMENT OFFICES IN BISHKEK
This morning, 15,000 to 20,000 people gathered in Bishkek's central square demanding President Askar Akayev's resignation. The protesters then stormed the government headquarters. There are reports of severe fights between the protesters and hooligans allegedly hired by the government to stir up tensions in the... MORE
SAAKASHVILI OFFERS TO GO TO KYRGYZSTAN AS MEDIATOR
On March 22, as post-election violence and anarchy engulfed large parts of Kyrgyzstan, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili wrote an informal, personal letter to his Kyrgyz counterpart, Askar Akayev, offering to mediate between the Kyrgyz authorities and the opposition. "Based on my own personal experience, I... MORE
Kyrgyz Crisis Reaches Bishkek — Rumors Suggest Akayev has Fled Country
One week after runoff elections for parliament, the government of Kyrgyzstan lost administrative control over all large cities in the southern part of the country to opposition protesters. On March 20, for the first time since the bloody events in Aksy in 2001, the Kyrgyz... MORE
MASS PROTESTS, LITTLE CHANGE AFTER KYRGYZ PARLIAMENTARY RUNOFF
Voters in Kyrgyzstan returned to the polls on March 13 for a second round of voting for a new parliament. The results confirmed majority representation for pro-presidential forces in the next single-chamber parliament. With six months to go before the presidential election, the mass protests... MORE