Russia has announced that it will develop its military installations in Kyrgyzstan, a country in Central Asia. The two countries’ leaders met in Moscow and emphasized the importance of strengthening the Kyrgyz Republic’s armed forces and developing Russian military facilities on its territory. Kyrgyzstan hosts a Russian military base consisting of an airfield, a naval installation on Lake Issyk-Kul, and several other sites. The country is linked to Russia through the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO), a Moscow-led military alliance.
The leaders also agreed to deepen military and technical cooperation and improve their economic and cultural relations in order to reach a new level of integration. This move comes as the West is considering new sanctions against Moscow while Russia’s offensive in Ukraine continues into its second year. President Sadyr Japarov met Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Monday, on the eve of Victory Day, a Soviet war anniversary to be marked by an army parade through Red Square. Japarov will be one of several foreign leaders to attend the parade this year.