Putin says won’t object to Kyrgyzstan’s Akayev coming to Russia
Prime-Tass, Russia
March 25 2005
YEREVAN, Mar 25 (Prime-Tass) — Russian President Vladimir Putin said
Friday that he would not object to Askar Akayev, the ousted president
of Kyrgyzstan, coming to Russia.
“As far as Askar Akayev’s coming to Russia is concerned, if he would
like to do so, we will not object,” said Putin during his official
visit to Armenia, ITAR-TASS reported.
During violent riots in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek Thursday,
protestors seized the presidential residence, as well as the main
television center, demanding Akayev’s resignation.
There were numerous media reports that Akayev was at a Russian military
base in Kant, seeking political asylum, or that he had even fled
to Russia. He was also reported to have fled to Almaty, the former
capital of nearby Kazakhstan, about 250 kilometers from Bishkek.
“It is a pity that once again in one of the post-Soviet countries,
they are solving problems by non-legal means, accompanied by pogroms
and human casualties,” Putin said Friday.
He said he believes that “the situation in Kyrgyzstan is the result
of weak power and accumulated social and economic problems.”
But he also noted that the opposition leaders that are struggling
to establish control in the country were well known among Russian
politicians. He recalled that they had previously worked for the
Kyrgyz government.
“We hope that the opposition leaders in Kyrgyzstan can take control of
the situation as soon as possible and straighten it out,” Putin said.
The Russian president also said that Russia would do whatever was
necessary to maintain its good relationship with Kyrgyzstan.
Mass riots in Kyrgyzstan started several days ago following
parliamentary elections that were described as “flawed” by the
opposition and observers from the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
In power since 1991, Akayev is prohibited from seeking another term,
but the opposition accused him of manipulating the parliamentary
elections to gain a compliant legislature that would amend the
constitution to allow him to stay in office beyond a presidential
election scheduled for October. Akayev denied the accusations.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress