Cybercast News Service, VA
Moscow Lashes Out at West Over Kyrgyzstan Protests
By Sergei Blagov
CNSNews.com Correspondent
March 24, 2005
Moscow (CNSNews.com) – Accusing the West of meddling in yet another
former Soviet state, Russia has voiced concerns about the ongoing
violent protests in Kyrgyzstan, where authorities are warning they
may use force against protestors contesting election results.
Both Russia and the United States have military bases in the Central
Asian country.
In a telephone conversation with European Union foreign policy chief
Xavier Solana, Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov criticized what
he called Solana’s “counterproductive public statements that can be
used by Kyrgyz opposition to increase tensions.”
He was referring to a statement by Solana on Monday to the effect
that in some parts of Kyrgyzstan, recent parliamentary elections did
not meet international standards.
Criticism also came from the Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe (OSCE), which called the elections seriously flawed, and
from U.S. Senator John McCain, who said the balloting was riddled
with irregularities.
Solana reassured Lavrov that the E.U. favored a “political settlement”
to end the standoff.
Russia suspects Western influence played a role in protest-driven
transitions to democracy in Ukraine last year and in Georgia in 2003.
Protests began after a first round of parliamentary elections on 27
February and grew after a 13 March run-off.
The opposition charges that President Askar Akayev’s administration
helped to fix the vote, to pack the 75-seat chamber with supporters
ahead of presidential elections in October.
Kyrgyz police on Wednesday dispersed hundreds of opposition supporters
trying to enter government buildings in the capital, Bishkek. Earlier
this week, protesters took control of regional administrations in
two southern cities, Osh and Jalal-Abad.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov accused the Kyrgyz opposition of
inciting lawlessness and urged protesters to seek political dialogue.
Ivanov also emphasized that the two countries have a collective
security agreement.
Kyrgyzstan is one of five ex-Soviet Republics which in 1992 joined
Russia in a body called the Collective Security Treaty Organization
(CSTO). The others are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan.
In late 2001, the U.S. opened an air base near Bishkek as part of
the post-9/11 war against Islamist terror. Two years later, Russia
also established an air base in the country.
A Russian task force is there to provide air power for a contingent
of ground troops known as a rapid-reaction force. This group could
eventually total more than 5,000 troops from Russia, as well as from
other CSTO allies.
Earlier this week, Russian officials said the situation around the
airbase remained calm.
Akayev said on national television Wednesday the problems had to be
resolved through negotiation.
He rejected calls for his resignation and condemned the protests,
but said there could be a review of voting results in some regions.
The 60-year-old president has promised to leave office at the end of
his third term, in October. He has ruled the country of five million
people since independence in 1991.
Meanwhile, senior officials have threatened a clampdown. Speaking
shortly after police broke up protests in Bishkek, Keneshbek
Dyushebayev, the newly-appointed Interior Minister whose predecessor
was fired, said police may use live ammunition if necessary.
“Such methods will never be used against peaceful law-abiding citizens,
those who do not storm buildings and seize power,” he said.
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan called for restraint, and the State
Department said it endorsed an OSCE call for immediate talks between
the government and the opposition.
Kyrgyzstan borders China, which has teamed up with Russia in the
Shanghai Cooperation Organization, an attempt to draw Central Asian
states into a regional security grouping.
China’s response to the crisis in Kyrgyzstan has been restricted to
calls for “peace, stability and development in Central Asia.”