Counter questions: how Vladimir Putin's visit to Kyrgyzstan began

Kyrgyz taigans, national yurts and Kalinka-Malinka on the string comuz: Bishkek greeted Vladimir Putin, who arrived in the republic on a state visit on November 25. The head of state will stay in Kyrgyzstan for three days. Two of them will be entirely devoted to discussing relations between Moscow and Bishkek. The Russian leader has already spoken with his counterpart Sadyr Japarov and laid a wreath at the Eternal Flame on Victory Square. There will be extensive negotiations ahead, where the leaders will discuss not only economic and partnership issues, but also more "sensitive" topics such as migration and energy.

How Bishkek met the delegation from Russia

On November 25, Russian Leader Vladimir Putin arrived in Kyrgyzstan on a two-day state visit. He plans to stay here for the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit until November 27.

Bishkek surprised the Russian delegation with the scale with which it prepared for the visit. At the same time, it cannot be said that any special preparations were expected from the Kyrgyz side - often the receiving side is limited exclusively to banners on the central highway and several state symbols on squares. This was the case, for example, during Vladimir Putin's recent state visit to a neighboring country, Tajikistan. But the reception of guests from Russia in Kyrgyzstan will clearly be one of the most vivid and memorable in recent years.

Closer to 18:00, a flight with a delegation and journalists landed first at Manas airport, and preparations were already underway: the red carpet was spread out, the orchestra was tuning instruments, and, unexpectedly for the press, golden eagles, taigyn (Kyrgyz greyhound) and horses were being trained. There were also Kyrgyz yurts here.

It was then that it became clear that the host country had prepared seriously for the arrival of the Russian delegation. Vladimir Putin was personally met at the ramp by the head of the republic Sadyr Japarov. Moreover, he greeted him not in a protocol way, but in a friendly way, hugging his guest a couple of times and firmly holding his hand.

In addition to flags and a guard of honor along the entire path, the president was first greeted by golden eagles, which imitated the national Kyrgyz hunt with greyhounds. Then, girls in national costumes danced for the head of state. Following the Kyrgyz beauties is a line of equestrian stuntmen with spears. And the acquaintance with the local flavor did not end there. At the end of the welcoming ceremony, the Kyrgyz orchestra played the Russian folk "Kalinka-Malinka" for Vladimir Putin, but on its national instruments — komuz and kyyak.

But that's not all: electronic welcome posters all over the city, signs at public transport stops, large banners on shopping malls, not to mention the flags that were literally on every corner. And at major intersections along the four edges, they even put up large installations on several tiers of the flags of Russia and Kyrgyzstan. That's how "Kyrgyzstan welcomes His Excellency Mr. President and dear Russian friends," followed from the welcoming signs that filled the entire city that evening.

It cannot be said that the local population is traditionally pleased with such large-scale events. After all, "what is important for history and international politics turns into traffic jams and job identifications for us," people complained to me on the streets. However, people are hoping for advantages.

— I went to work in the morning, there was nothing like that. Now I'm on my way back from work, I'm waiting for the bus, and I have a Russian flag for the entire stop. We don't prepare for the New Year like we do for your arrival," Aliya, a local resident, told me.

— Yes, we don't even have a single New Year's decoration yet, everything is in Putin. She'll be in Putin for another week, but God forbid, maybe I'll have cheaper gasoline now," her husband added.

Vladimir Putin's Bishkek program

The Russian leader's program during state visits is traditionally extensive. On November 25, upon arrival, he had already had a one-on-one conversation with Sadyr Japarov. Together they laid wreaths at the Eternal Flame on Victory Square in Bishkek.

Yesterday, Vladimir Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov told other details of the visit: an official welcoming ceremony will be held at the Unity Palace, followed by Russian-Kyrgyz talks. Next, the parties will sign a joint statement and a series of documents. After that, the presidents will make statements to the press, followed by a state reception. Also these days, during his visit to Bishkek, Vladimir Putin will talk with President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko and take part in a meeting of the CSTO Collective Security Council.

The agenda of the visit includes discussions on economic cooperation, energy, migration, security and coordination in integration structures. However, experts emphasize that other issues may be raised.

— Migration policy remains sensitive areas, given that a huge number of Kyrgyz citizens work in Russia, and the energy sector, where Bishkek needs investments and modernization, and Moscow needs the predictability of long—term solutions. These areas periodically become a source of tension, but they do not change the general logic of partnerships," Daria Saprynskaya, a researcher at the Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Izvestia.

Otherwise, everything is stable in relations between the Russian Federation and Kyrgyzstan: trade, economic and investment cooperation is developing successfully and has good potential. Russia is one of Kyrgyzstan's most important trading partners and ranks second (after China) in terms of foreign trade — 22.3%. The success of the partnership is also evidenced by the frequency of contacts. For example, Sadyr Japarov visited Russia five times last year alone. The leaders have already met four times in the same building. And the last one was quite recently. On October 9-10, the Presidents met in Dushanbe.

In total, Vladimir Putin visited Kyrgyzstan fifteen times. This intensity is explained not only by the historical proximity of the countries, but also by the formally established level of alliance.: Russia and Kyrgyzstan are bound by an Agreement on allied cooperation. In addition, there is a "tight coupling" within the framework of the CSTO, the EAEU and the CIS, where Moscow and Bishkek participate in joint mechanisms for security, economic integration and political coordination.