Apr 2010
US Congress Hearing on Kyrgyzstan
23.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
After the Subcommttee Hearing at the US Congress, the journalist Steve LeVine interviewed some of the experts who gave a testimony.
New York-based lawyer Scott Horton, asserts that, if the precise same fuels contract had involved a U.S. commercial entity, it would be subject to investigation by the U.S. Justice Department.
Alexander Cooley, a Columbia University professor who has studied the Manas base as part of a look at numerous U.S. bases around the world, called the fuel scandal a problem both of local Kyrgyz politics and U.S. national security. He said that Kyrgyz politicians are certain to seize on the military base as an issue in October presidential elections. If the fuel scandal isn't resolved by then -- meaning if the U.S. hasn't fessed up -- Cooley suggested that the base could be in trouble.
Sam Patten, who watches Eurasia for Freedom House, a New York-based NGO, also raised the issue of the Embassy failing to engage with the opposition, but went further and argued that the State Department had ultimately failed to observe U.S. law obligating it to encourage democracy. Patten asserted that the State Department needs to watch more closely, because uprisings are bound to spread regionally. "The question in Uzbekistan isn't if revolution will happen, but when it will happen," Patten told the committee.
Oil and Glory
New York-based lawyer Scott Horton, asserts that, if the precise same fuels contract had involved a U.S. commercial entity, it would be subject to investigation by the U.S. Justice Department.
Alexander Cooley, a Columbia University professor who has studied the Manas base as part of a look at numerous U.S. bases around the world, called the fuel scandal a problem both of local Kyrgyz politics and U.S. national security. He said that Kyrgyz politicians are certain to seize on the military base as an issue in October presidential elections. If the fuel scandal isn't resolved by then -- meaning if the U.S. hasn't fessed up -- Cooley suggested that the base could be in trouble.
Sam Patten, who watches Eurasia for Freedom House, a New York-based NGO, also raised the issue of the Embassy failing to engage with the opposition, but went further and argued that the State Department had ultimately failed to observe U.S. law obligating it to encourage democracy. Patten asserted that the State Department needs to watch more closely, because uprisings are bound to spread regionally. "The question in Uzbekistan isn't if revolution will happen, but when it will happen," Patten told the committee.
Oil and Glory
Ousted leader leaves Kyrgyzstan
15.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
Deposed Kyrgyzstan President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has left the country on a plane for Kazakhstan.
His departure comes in the wake of a 7 April uprising that killed scores of people and forced him to flee the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek.
He had been living in his home region of Jalalabad in the south of the country, trying to muster support.
Shots were fired earlier in the day at a rally in the south, where Mr Bakiyev had been addressing supporters.
Mr Bakiyev was said to have left the country for talks with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, according to Russian news agencies.
His motorcade was seen arriving at the airport in Jalalabad, before a plane departed on Thursday, AP news agency said.
BBC
His departure comes in the wake of a 7 April uprising that killed scores of people and forced him to flee the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek.
He had been living in his home region of Jalalabad in the south of the country, trying to muster support.
Shots were fired earlier in the day at a rally in the south, where Mr Bakiyev had been addressing supporters.
Mr Bakiyev was said to have left the country for talks with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, according to Russian news agencies.
His motorcade was seen arriving at the airport in Jalalabad, before a plane departed on Thursday, AP news agency said.
BBC
Gunfire breaks up rally for deposed Kyrgyzstan president
15.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
Gunfire broke out today at a rally where the deposed president of Kyrgyzstan was speaking to supporters. Kurmanbek Bakiyev was quickly hustled into a car and driven away, and there were no apparent injuries in the crowd.
The deposed Kyrgyzstan president, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, greets supporters before his intended address in Osh. Photograph: Denis Sinyakov/ReutersMore ...
The deposed Kyrgyzstan president, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, greets supporters before his intended address in Osh. Photograph: Denis Sinyakov/ReutersMore ...
US backs interim Kyrgyz government
14.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
The United States said on Wednesday it was prepared to help Kyrgyzstan’s new rulers, adding pressure on ousted President Kurmanbek Bakiyev who hinted he may go into exile.
The uncertainty over Bakiyev’s position has disrupted flights out of the Kyrgyz air base which the United States rents to support the war in Afghanistan and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev warned the impoverished Central Asian country may be on the brink of civil war.More ...
The uncertainty over Bakiyev’s position has disrupted flights out of the Kyrgyz air base which the United States rents to support the war in Afghanistan and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev warned the impoverished Central Asian country may be on the brink of civil war.More ...
Kyrgyztan's ousted leader Bakiyev 'must stand trial'
14.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
The interim leader of Kyrgyzstan has said ousted President Kurmanbek Bakiyev should stand trial over the recent deadly political unrest.
Roza Otunbayeva said Mr Bakiyev had "blood on his hands" and had missed his chance to leave the country.
Mr Bakiyev, currently in the south of the country, had said he was willing to resign if his safety was guaranteed.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned Kyrgyzstan is "on the brink of civil war".
More ...
Roza Otunbayeva said Mr Bakiyev had "blood on his hands" and had missed his chance to leave the country.
Mr Bakiyev, currently in the south of the country, had said he was willing to resign if his safety was guaranteed.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned Kyrgyzstan is "on the brink of civil war".
More ...
Top US envoy in Kyrgyzstan for talks after revolt
14.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
A top U.S diplomat arrived for talks with Kyrgyzstan's interim leaders on Wednesday about defusing a crisis in the Central Asian country, where Washington rents an air base to back its war effort in Afghanistan.More ...
Kyrgyzstan coup: Bakiyev inching closer to leaving the country
14.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, pushed from power in the Kyrgyzstan coup last week, is nearing a deal to allow him and his family to leave the country, cooling concerns of further violence in the Central Asian nation, according to media reports from the capital Bishkek.
Sergei Grits/AP
More ...
Sergei Grits/AP
More ...
US Air Base contracts face scrutiny
14.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
The upheaval gripping Kyrgyzstan is disrupting the flow of troops and materials bound for Afghanistan. A Defense Department announcement stated that the American-operated Manas Transit Center, located outside the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek, will remain closed to US military and contractor air traffic from April 8-12.More ...
Kulov returns to political stage
14.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
With Kyrgyzstan’s political situation still in flux, one of the lions of Kyrgyz politics in the post-Soviet era, Felix Kulov, is reemerging from the shadows. In an exclusive interview with EurasiaNet.org, Kulov counseled pragmatism as the provisional government wrestles with the present and starts pondering how to account for the past.More ...
Kyrgyzstan’s Bakiyev offers to step down
13.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
Kurmanbek Bakiyev, Kyrgyzstan’s fugitive president, said he was ready to step down on Tuesday but only if the new interim government would guarantee his and his family’s personal safety, as tension mounted in this strategically-important Central Asian country.More ...
U.S. voices concern as protests plunge Kyrgyzstan into chaos
08.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
Opposition demonstrators appeared Wednesday to have seized power in Kyrgyzstan, which is host to an important U.S. military base, after a day of bloody clashes that left dozens dead and forced the Central Asian country's president to flee the capital.
Leaders of the opposition said they had taken over key installations in Bishkek and were forming a new government. President Kurmanbek Bakiyev flew to Osh, a regional city where he enjoys support, according to news reports. His plans were uncertain, as was his ability to command the country's security forces and reassert his authority.
The death toll of about 40 was likely to rise, health officials in Bishkek said, noting that hundreds of protesters were injured in the violence.More ...
Leaders of the opposition said they had taken over key installations in Bishkek and were forming a new government. President Kurmanbek Bakiyev flew to Osh, a regional city where he enjoys support, according to news reports. His plans were uncertain, as was his ability to command the country's security forces and reassert his authority.
The death toll of about 40 was likely to rise, health officials in Bishkek said, noting that hundreds of protesters were injured in the violence.More ...
Kyrgyzstan opposition seizes power after day of protests
08.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
Opposition leaders in Kyrgyzstan today declared that they had seized power and had taken control of security headquarters, state television and various government buildings.
The declaration came a day after riot police shot dead at least 60 people and protesters attempted to storm the main government building in the capital, Bishkek.
The opposition leader, Roza Otunbayeva, called for President Kurmanbek Bakiyev to resign and said she planned to run an interim government for six months to draft a new constitution for the central Asian state.More ...
The declaration came a day after riot police shot dead at least 60 people and protesters attempted to storm the main government building in the capital, Bishkek.
The opposition leader, Roza Otunbayeva, called for President Kurmanbek Bakiyev to resign and said she planned to run an interim government for six months to draft a new constitution for the central Asian state.More ...