The Kyrgyz-Russian relationships can be darkened by the recent April 20th incident in Kant, location of the Russian airbase.

A 24-year Russian citizen, Maksim Zotov, was seriously wounded by the Kyrgyz militia officials. Mr. Zotov serves as deputy chief of the Russian airbase financial department.

According to the facts, provided by Russian Embassy, the event developed as follows:

A car with three military personnel (two Russian citizens and one Kyrgyz) was returning to the Russian airbase in Kant at about 2 a.m. on April 20th.

A dark unmarked jeep blocked the car’s way at Dzerzhinksy Street in Kant. 4 men exited the jeep; three were dressed in police uniforms and had basic arms. Then, according to the Russian Embassy, the Russian military personnel were pulled out of the car and beaten. No documents or explanations were produced by the Kyrgyz side. None of the officers paid attention to announcements by the Russian military personnel that they were from the Russian airbase. During the beating, one of the attacking police officers fired some shots at the Russian citizens, as they laid on the ground. As a result, Maksim Zotov was seriously wounded. After this, the military personnel placed in the jeep and conveyed back to Bishkek. When the Kyrgyz police realized that Zotov was bleeding to death, they delivered him to the district hospital in Kant at approximately 3 a.m. and escaped. Maksim Zotov should have been brought to the National Surgical Hospital in Bishkek. Due to his injuries, his spleen and a rib were surgically removed. Kyrgyz physicians indicate that his injuries are not life-threatening and he is in stable condition. The two other passengers were not injured.

The Russian Embassy has sent a protest note to the Kyrgyz Ministry of Foreign affairs as a result of the incident.

The Kyrgyz Ministry of Internal Affairs has their own version of the incident. The ministry asserts that the actions of the Kyrgyz policemen towards the military personnel from the Russian airbase were valid.

Temirkan Subanov, the Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, told that Maksim Zotov was the driver of the car and violated traffic laws and failed to recognize or take direction from the Kyrgyz police when told to stop. After this, the Kyrgyz police began to follow the car, hoping to stop it. When the car was blocked, there was a scuffle. The driver and passengers of the care were drunk and attacked the Kyrgyz police. As a result, the Kyrgyz police fired 5 shots; 4 were made in the open air and one was made during a fight with Maksim Zotov. According to the information provided by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the driver and the passengers weren’t sober, were dressed in civilian clothes and didn’t produce any identification.

Meanwhile, the official conclusion of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kyrgyzstan has been made today about the appropriateness of the Kyrgyz police actions towards the military personnel from the Russian airbase.

Erkin Kangeldiev, Chief of the department of Ministry of Internal Affairs told that the conclusion indicates that the Kyrgyz militia acted correctly during this incident and used all possible special means to stop the car containing the Russian military personnel.

Case papers were transferred to the Chui region investigating agency to make a decision regarding prosecution of a criminal case.

A Kyrgyz political scientist and professor of the Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University in Kyrgyzstan, Aleksander Knjazev told in an interview to the information agency REGNUM that this incident was one of the links in a big chain of anti-Russian provocations.

“There was a hysterical campaign among the local Medias and NGOs about the murders of Kyrgyz migrant laborers in Russia about two months ago. At the same time there were deputy appeals regarding the withdrawal of the Russian airbase from Kyrgyzstan in parliament”, Knjazev reminded.

Knjazev told that “the local law machinery avoid to mention the ethnic hidden motives, when it is a question of the crimes which were made by the representative of the indigenous population against the local Russian or Russian-speaking citizen”.

Alexander Knjazev thinks there is a stereotype about Kyrgyzstan having a safe position in ethnic questions among Russian politicians.

“But it is just a stereotype. The local politicians have double-faced attitude towards Russia. Russia becomes the everlasting ally and strategic partner for Kyrgyzstan, when it is needed to get something from Russia. When rewards are provided by western sources, the anti-Russian processes begin. ‘Multi-vectorial principle’ politics is balancing on the verge of the relations and sometimes becomes blunt political prostitution. Such a situation is often used by geopolitical rivals of Russia, which are giving donations to most of the local NGO’s and some media and politicians”, Knjazev believes.

“Russia’s politics regarding Kyrgyzstan needs a serious correction. Any Russian participation in the ‘more dead than alive’ Kyrgyz economy must be adjusted for questions regarding the attitudes toward Russian property, Russian citizens and Russian compatriots in Kyrgyzstan”, Knjazev considered.

Tokon Mamytov, Secretary of the Security Council told in an interview to the information agency AKIpress, that Kyrgyz authorities would make all efforts to avoid fatal consequences to the warm Kyrgyz-Russian relations.

“Naturally, this uncommon incident has public resonance. Unfortunately, there are some attempts to emphasize this incident as political. Moreover, there appears to be some judgments and assessments with a definite underlying theme. The Kyrgyz side interprets this incident as a violation of the law made by a group of drunken people. We express our regrets regarding the injury to the health of the Russian officer”, Mamytov told.