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Despite the ICC
arrest warrant, Russia's Putin made an unusual visit to Kyrgyzstan.
The Russian
leader is expected to visit China next week after a two-day visit to Bishkek.
Russian
President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Kyrgyzstan on his first foreign visit
since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for
alleged war crimes.
Putin's two-day
visit to Bishkek will conclude with his participation in a summit of the
Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), an intergovernmental organization
made up of former Soviet republics, amid claims of waning Russian influence in
the region.
Vladimir Putin, who has
rarely left Russia after the country has sent its troops into Ukraine in early 2022, is also
expected to travel to China next week for the third Belt and Road Forum in
Beijing.
During a
meeting with Kyrgyz President Sudir Japarov on Thursday, Putin reiterated
Russia's importance as a trading partner and Kyrgyzstan's largest investor and
said the two sides would further develop cooperation.
"I would like to
thank the President for the invitation. We have good reasons (to be here), but
even without a reason, the visit is long overdue," Putin said.
The Russian
leader also highlighted double-digit growth in Russian-Kyrgyz trade, which some
analysts in the West suspect is due to Russian businesses lifting sanctions.
Last week,
Kyrgyzstan's central bank urged local banks to tighten controls to improve
compliance with Western sanctions against Moscow.
In July, the US
imposed sanctions on four Kyrgyz companies for re-exporting electronic
components and other technology to Russia.
In Kyrgyzstan,
Putin is also expected to attend events marking the 20th anniversary of the
opening of Russia's airbase near the town of Kant, allowing Moscow to project
power in the region.
The ICC issued
warrants in March for Putin and Russia's rights commissioner, Maria Leva
Belova, for allegedly deporting thousands of Ukrainian children to Russia.
Russia, which
does not recognize the ICC's authority, has rejected the warrant as
"illegal".
Kyrgyzstan and
China are also not members of the ICC and therefore not subject to its
jurisdiction.
Still, Russia
has been cautious on foreign trips in the past, sending Foreign Minister Sergei
Lavrov to Putin's place at the BRICS summit in August.
(Source: Al-Jazeera)
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