The head of the Sanctions Directorate of the UK Department of Foreign Affairs and International Development, David Reid, after meetings with Kyrgyz officials in Bishkek, expressed his Government's desire for a sharp increase in the re-export of military goods by Kyrgyzstan.
He stated that the only wish is to work together with the United Kingdom and other G7 countries to reduce the amount of those goods that Russia can use in building up weapons that it will send against Ukraine, reports 24.kg.
At the same time, David Reed noted that the Kingdom is sympathetic to the cultural, humanitarian, economic ties between Kyrgyzstan and Russia and does not call on Kyrgyzstan to isolate itself from Russia.
He stressed that the UK is not asking Kyrgyzstan to apply sanctions against Russia, but world leaders, in particular London, are concerned about jumps in the volume of goods exported from the United Kingdom to the Kyrgyz Republic.
"We had to understand what was going on and how the [Kyrgyzstan] government is monitoring the movement of these goods. What can we do together to prevent attempts to circumvent the sanctions," said a British Foreign Office spokesman.
He added that Central Asia, and Kyrgyzstan in particular, should not become a hub for the re-export of military goods to Russia.
David Reed believes that the assistance of the countries of the region to Russia may have a negative impact on their image and investment attractiveness.
Reed summarized that it was possible to reach an understanding with the government of Kyrgyzstan on key issues.
CentralasianLIGHT.org
April 27, 2023