BISHKEK, August 16. /TASS/. Kyrgyzstan considers any manifestations of aggression on ethnic grounds unacceptable, Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Ruslan Kazakbayev said during a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, on Monday.
"Kazakbayev focused Lavrov’s attention on the fact that the Kyrgyz side condemns manifestations of aggression on ethnic grounds. He noted that such actions, either in Kyrgyzstan or in Russia, whomever they might be committed by, must be condemned and necessary measures must be taken to avoid negative consequences in bilateral relations," the Kyrgyz foreign ministry said.
Lavrov and Kazakbayev discussed the August 2 incident that occurred in a shopping and entertainment center in Bishkek when a client tossed a calculator in the face of a salesgirl who had addressed him in Russian. A spokesman for the Supreme Court told TASS the man had been detained on hooliganism charges and placed in a detention facility until September 12.
"The Kyrgyz foreign minister expressed regret that several members of the Russian State Duma (lower parliament house — TASS) insist on denying entry to Russia for such actions as a response measure. Kazakbayev noted that such statements voiced by some Russian politicians should not impact exchanges between the two countries," the ministry said.
The Kyrgyz top diplomat drew attention to the fact that such incidents happen in Russia too. "Sporadic cases of everyday nationalism should not be pictured by the Russian authorities as systemic violations of the rights and interests of ethnic Russians in Kyrgyzstan and should not be considered as harassment on ethnic or religious grounds," it noted.
"There is no Russophobia or other forms of aggressive nationalism, no facts of rewriting history, no war on monuments and the Russian language" in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakbayev stressed, adding that Russia is an official language under the country’s constitution, which is "represented in all spheres of life: in the mass media, in the systems of education, public health and culture." "in this context, [Kazakbayev] pledged that Kyrgyzstan will continue the policy of protecting the Russian language’s status so that Kyrgyzstan’s Russian-speaking population could fully satisfy their spiritual and socials needs," the ministry added.