MOSCOW, October 23. /TASS/. Russia maintains that Kyrgyzstan has pulled through the critical juncture of its domestic political crisis, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told reporters at a news conference following talks with his Kyrgyz counterpart Ruslan Kazakbaev.
"Russia has kept a close eye on the developments of our friend, Kyrgyzstan, following the announcement of the outcome of the parliamentary elections," Lavrov said. "Today we stressed that, according to our estimates, the domestic political situation is returning to the legal framework and the critical juncture has by and large been overcome."
Following Kyrgyzstan’s parliamentary elections on October 4, supporters of those political parties, which had failed to gain seats in the legislature, staged mass riots in the capital of Bishkek. The Central Election Commission declared the election results invalid. Kanat Isaev was elected the speaker of parliament and Sadyr Japarov, who was freed from jail as a result of pressure from demonstrators, took the prime minister’s seat. On October 15, President Sooronbay Jeenbekov stepped down, and Japarov took over the reins as Kyrgyzstan’s head of state. On October 22, the parliament decided to put off the new parliamentary and presidential elections until next spring.
Flights to Kyrgyzstan
Russia is looking at operating more flights to Kyrgyzstan but the decision will depend on the epidemiological situation, Sergey Lavrov said. "Yes, such a possibility is being looked at. It will depend on the epidemiological situation," he said.
"This matter is being addressed by Rosaviatsiya [Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency - TASS] and our corresponding structure which are monitoring the epidemic situation and are responsible for combating the coronavirus infection," Lavrov added.
Russia suspended passenger air service with foreign countries in the spring in a bid to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus infection. Since the summer, flights have partially been resumed to a number of countries, including Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, South Korea, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Tanzania and the Maldives. The number of flights has however been restricted. Russia’s anti-coronavirus crisis center said last week citing Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin’s resolution that flights would be resumed to Serbia, Cuba and Japan. The Azur Air company said earlier it planned to begin flights to Cuba from November 4.