Kyrgyz law enforcement agency launches investigation against companies allegedly involved in illicit supply of drones to Russia

Kyrgyzstani officials highlighted that the country «strictly adheres to international norms and regulations» / Photo: Shutterstock

The State Committee for National Security of Kyrgyzstan (SCNS) has launched an investigation against several Kyrgyz companies allegedly involved in the illegal supply of drones to Russia.

What happened? The SCNS commented on media reports that the U.S. may want to impose sanctions on Kyrgyzstan «for helping Russia.»

«We can officially confirm that neither the state of Kyrgyzstan nor any state agencies and companies are involved in the violation of anti-Russian sanctions imposed by the United States and other Western countries. However, the SCNS allows that some private businesses and firms might be involved in the breaching of international sanctions. It is also possible that they might have not been aware of the end user of the goods they supplied,» the SCNS said in a statement.

The law enforcement agency has launched an investigation into the case to identify perpetrators and stop illegal activities.

At the same time, Kyrgyz officials highlighted that the country’s government and state agencies strictly adhere to international norms and regulations.

The context. As The Washington Post reported, citing U.S. officials, the U.S. considers imposing sanctions on Kyrgyzstan because of an attempt to illegally supply drones to Russia. According to the outlet, the turnover between Russia and Kyrgyzstan sharply increased in 2022. Some goods like scope sights had never been shipped from Kyrgyzstan to Russia before.

The reaction of Russia. Dmitry Peskov, Russian President Putin’s official spokesperson, said, «Kyrgyzstan is a close ally of the Russian Federation and the two countries enjoy a close partnership, which Moscow is eager to develop further.»

The role of Kazakhstan. In May 2023, several media outlets reported that Kazakhstani officials at the Kazakh-Kyrgyz border seized 14 Chinese drones worth $14,000 each. Later the Customs Service of Kazakhstan explained that a Kyrgyz supplier of drones failed to prove that the supply was authorized.