Continuano i nostri aggiornamenti sugli eventi in atto in Kirghizistan. La situazione non è ancora stabilizzata in quanto le principali parti in causa stanno rilasciando dichiarazioni in netto contrasto fra di loro.

Cominciamo con un articolo apparso su sito del quotidiano americano The New York Times. Questo per gentile concessione di Internazionale.

- Kyrgyzstan President Says He Will Not Step Down (The New York Times - Usa)

By CLIFFORD J. LEVY / Published: April 8, 2010

MOSCOW — A transitional government in Kyrgyzstan declared that it was in charge on Thursday, a day after deadly protests forced the president to flee the capital. But the president himself insisted that he would not step down, issuing veiled threats from an unknown location that suggested the country, the site of a vital American military base, could face renewed instability.

The day’s events were dominated by two compelling and contrary figures in Kyrgyz politics: the interim leader, Roza Otunbayeva, a bespectacled former diplomat who once taught Marxist-Leninist theory before embracing Western mores; and Kurmanbek Bakiyev, the streetwise president, who has long been steeped in the country’s clan rivalries and boasted in an interview last year that he feared “absolutely nothing.”

Ms. Otunbayeva, 59, took the stage first, calling a news conference with her opposition colleagues to issue a series of directives that she said would calm the country after Wednesday’s violence, which left 68 people dead and more than 400 wounded. The streets of the capital, Bishkek, were relatively quiet on Thursday, but the damage, including widespread looting, was apparent.

“You can call this a revolution. You can call this a people’s revolt,” she said. “Either way, it is our way of saying that we want justice and democracy.”

Like her colleagues at the news conference, Ms. Otunbayeva — who once backed Mr. Bakiyev before breaking with him early in his tenure — urged the president to acknowledge that he was through and to resign.

But a few hours later, Mr. Bakiyev, 60, emerged to make clear that he had no intention of doing so.

Mr. Bakiyev left the capital on Wednesday after thousands of opposition protesters, infuriated by rising utility costs and a government they saw as repressive and corrupt, seized control of important government buildings, including the television stations.

On Thursday, he issued a statement saying that the opposition was solely responsible for the violence the day before. Then he gave an interview to a radio station in Moscow in which he maintained that he had widespread support among the Kyrgyz people, though he conceded that he no longer commanded the government.

“In a few days it will become evident that those who imagined themselves as leaders — they are unable to lead,” he said. “They have pushed the country into such an abyss, into such a mess, that they will have to answer for it.”

All the while, Mr. Bakiyev offered no hint as to his whereabouts. Opposition leaders speculated that he had retreated to the south of Kyrgyzstan, where he has longstanding family ties. They said they were worried that he would try to gather supporters and try to retake the capital, though that seemed unlikely for now — the armed forces, the security services and the police appear to have pledged loyalty to the interim government.

Mr. Bakiyev’s proclamations seemed to fall on deaf ears in Bishkek, where Ms. Otunbayeva announced that the interim government would administer the affairs of state for six months before the presidential election.

Ms. Otunbayeva said the status of the American military base in Bishkek, which plays an important role in supplying the war effort in Afghanistan, would not immediately change, though she warned that the issue was still being debated in the interim government.

In interviews on Thursday, opposition politicians said that Ms. Otunbayeva, a former foreign minister and ambassador to the United States and Britain, was chosen as interim leader because she is considered to be a compromiser who is not politically ambitious and does not have a strong base of domestic support, having spent so many years abroad. The politicians, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the situation was in such flux, said they believed that she would be unable to amass power, leaving the field open for the presidential election.

Aleksandr Knyazev, a prominent political expert in Bishkek and a former student of Ms. Otunbayeva’s, said he thought of her as highly conscientious and honest. He said that she seemed more European than Central Asian, and that she spoke better Russian and English than Kyrgyz.

“She does not understand the Kyrgyz mentality and lacks clan support,” Mr. Knyazev said. “I doubt that she will run for president. Judging by her skills, she would make a good Parliament speaker.”

While Kyrgyz politicians struggled for control, the United States and Russia on Thursday also seemed to be maneuvering for advantage in Kyrgyzstan, which is the only country in the world that has both American and Russian military bases. The Kremlin has long been bothered by the presence of the Americans in a region it calls part of its zone of influence.

Mr. Bakiyev had repeatedly sought to pit the United States and Russia against each other in order to extract more financial aid from both. Last year he upset the Kremlin when he agreed to evict the American base, then changed his mind after the Obama administration agreed to a steep increase in the rent and other favors.

In recent months, Mr. Bakiyev’s relations with Russia collapsed, and the Russian government increased the cost of energy that it provided to Kyrgyzstan. Russia’s state-controlled news media, which is widely followed in Kyrgyzstan, had also been conducting an intense campaign against Mr. Bakiyev, portraying him as a corrupt dictator.

On Thursday, Russia reached out to the opposition, effectively recognizing it as the government. Prime Minister Vladimir V. Putin spoke with Ms. Otunbayeva, and a senior Russian lawmaker, Sergei M. Mironov, called another prominent Kyrgyz opposition leader, Omurbek Tekebayev.

It did not appear that the United States took similar steps, though the State Department said that diplomats from the American Embassy in Bishkek were meeting with opposition leaders.

At her news conference, Ms. Otunbayeva said the interim government was examining the agreements governing the American base.

“We still have some questions about it,” she said. “Give us time and we will listen to all the sides and solve everything.”

Mr. Tekebayev said in a telephone interview that any decisions on the base would be made collectively by the opposition. He said he had a positive attitude toward the United States, but he acknowledged that the opposition had lingering resentments over what he said was the willingness of American diplomats to overlook Mr. Bakiyev’s human rights record in order to protect the base.

“The U.S. government does not and did not criticize Bakiyev, or express any negative opinions about him,” Mr. Tekebayev said. “The embassy here was warned several days ago that this would happen. They knew it, and they didn’t do anything about it.”

Reporting was contributed by Peter Baker from Prague, Nikolai Khalip from Moscow, Alan Cowell from Paris, and Elisabeth Bumiller from Washington.

> Link diretto all’articolo

- Lanci forniti dall’Agenzia Central Asian News (Kirghizistan):

* analysis & comments

19:34 Bakiev punished for unfulfilled promises - expert on CA

16:32 Interim government may become legitimate, in case President Bakiev is impeached by Parliament

15:35 Human rights activist says Bakiev and Usenov were in Government House during its storm

13:32 The Times: Post-Soviet Tragedy

* politics

17:46 Civil society organizations in Kyrgyzstan produce recommendations for interim government

17:32 Bishkek acting mayor was appointed temporarily for stabilization of situation

17:15 AFP: Kurmanbek Bakiev denies US, Russia’s involvement into recent violent events in Kyrgyzstan

17:09 Interim government appoints acting prosecutor general

16:55 Bishkek acting mayor claims southerners are instigated for clashes

16:44 Governors, mayors will be elected in future – acting mayor

14:39 UN Secretary-General addresses OSCE, appeals for restraint in Kyrgyzstan

14:28 U.S. Embassy in active discussions with all parties to encourage peaceful orderly behavior

14:24 Almazbek Atambaev leaves for Moscow

13:45 Kazakhstan turns police into a stronger version of service due to events in Kyrgyzstan

13:37 Kazakhstan will provide Kyrgyzstan with humanitarian aid – Masimov

13:13 Vice Speaker Isabekov: Some lawmakers still staying in St. Petersburg are afraid of coming back to Bishkek

13:12 OSCE special meeting on the situation in Kyrgyzstan held in Vienna

13:04 Emil Kaptagaev named as chief of executive office of interim government

12:12 CSTO to prepare special report about situation in Kyrgyzstan

12:05 Roza Otunbaeva to meet with ambassadors accredited in Kyrgyzstan today

12:02 OSCE Envoy Janybek Karibjanov arrived in Kyrgyzstan

11:39 Obama and Medvedev discuss situation in Kyrgyzstan

10:04 U.S. President condemns violence, calls for restoration of peace and order in Kyrgyzstan

09:56 United States meets with Kyrgyz interim government chair

09:36 Uzbek Foreign Ministry: Events in Uzbekistan are internal affair of the country

09:33 Shanghai Cooperation Organization expresses concerns over recent violent events in Kyrgyzstan

* society

17:37 Bishkek citizens call upon Roza Otunbaeva to reinstate Nariman Tuleev in Bishkek mayor’s office

17:36 Those guilty of shooting into protesters will be brought to justice, says Bishkek acting mayor

17:25 Protest victims will be buried at memorial cemetery tomorrow, families of those who died during rallies will be paid 1 million som compensations

17:19 Charges dropped against Petrovka riots case defendants

16:42 Corporate raids of private firms, government agencies reported in Bishkek last night – acting mayor

14:46 New governor named in Naryn, oblast administration starts working 14:30 Kyrgyz citizens donate around 200 liters of blood for rally victims in Bishkek

14:22 All Kyrgyz post offices work normally

13:07 1,520 people affected by civil disturbances in Kyrgyzstan

12:37 Around 15 thousand volunteer citizens patrolled Bishkek streets last night to prevent looting, disorders

12:22 EU-UNDP hold national training in drug profiling issues in Bishkek

11:14 Interim government chairman to visit unrest victims in hospitals

10:17 Moldomusa Kongantiev is in Kazakhstan - Russian television channel

09:45 Situation in Bishkek is stable and is under control, says Kyrgyz Interior Ministry

09:43 Interim defense minister: Military help police forces to bring order in capital city, situation is calm on the whole

09:28 Bishkek sets up headquarters to ensure public order

09:19 Manas International Airport operates normally

* incidents

16:51 General Prosecutor’s Office on fire in Bishkek

16:07 General Prosecutor’s Office on fire in Bishkek

15:44 3 mines found in Bishkek (updated)

13:22 27 buses ruined, 87 buses seriously affected in Bishkek during civil unrest

12:13 Explosive device found in downtown Bishkek was antitank mine

12:07 Azimbek Beknazarov: President’s brother put on wanted list

11:57 Explosive device found in downtown Bishkek

* business

12:23 Commercial banks reopen in Kyrgyzstan

11:01 Food markets resume functioning in Bishkek

> Per maggiori informazioni: Central Asian News

- Notizie fornite dall’Agenzia Interfax (Russia):

* New Kyrgyz leaders unlikely to shut down U.S. Manas base soon - analyst

MOSCOW. April 9 (Interfax) - Kyrgyzstan’s new leaders will most likely give priority to promoting relations with Moscow, but, at the same time, they will refrain from making any hasty decisions regarding the possible closure of the U.S. Manas base in Kyrgyz territory, Andrei Grozin, head of the CIS Institute’s Central Asia department, told Interfax on Friday. "It is possible to say that the new leadership of Kyrgyzstan has effectively been recognized by Moscow," Grozin said. He explained this by assessments of the situation in Kyrgyzstan offered by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. "On the whole, bearing in mind the strongly-worded assessments of the former leadership given at the level of both the prime minister and president of the Russian Federation, it was immediately clear that the former Kyrgyz authorities triggered this uncontrollable power that overthrew them through pursuing such incompetent policies, to put it mildly," the political analyst said. The authorities in Moscow have made their attitude towards Bakiyev absolutely clear, he said. "In my opinion, it would not be very wise to support the person who pushed the people towards this uprising with his own hands," Grozin said. Kyrgyzstan’s new leaders will most likely continue the country’s multi-vector foreign policy, he said. Kyrgyz interim government head "Roza Otunbayeva announced yesterday that the new leadership was not going to revise the foreign policy priorities or any earlier signed treaties," the analyst said. "It looks like that they are not planning any foreign policy ’zigzags’ today - either towards Russia, the U.S. or China," Grozin said. However, relations with Russia will evidently play a priority role in Kyrgyzstan’s foreign policy, he said. As for the presence of the U.S. base at Manas Airport, no changes will take place in this area in the near future, he added.

* Russia, Kazakhstan urge Kyrgyzstan to end bloodshed - Kremlin

MOSCOW. April 8 (Interfax) - Russia and Kazakhstan on Thursday called for "the earliest possible end to bloodshed" in Kyrgyzstan, where a wave of riots that broke out on Tuesday have swept away the government and claimed scores of lives, the Kremlin said in reference to a phone conversation between the Russian and Kazakh presidents. Dmitry Medvedev and Nursultan Nazarbayev, "as presidents of the two largest states in the region" and states that preside in various international bodies, "stressed the impelling need for the earliest possible end to bloodshed and all forms of violence, and called for the normalization of the situation on the entire territory of Kyrgyzstan," the Kremlin said. The release was referring to Kazakhstan’s current chairmanship in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and to Russia’s current presidency in the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Collective Security Treaty Organization. "Both sides expressed deep concern over the fact that the intense domestic political confrontation in the country has already led to numerous fatalities and has sharply destabilized all spheres of state and public life," the Kremlin said in reference to the Medvedev- Nazarbayev call. Nazarbayev also congratulated Medvedev on the signature on Thursday of a new pact on strategic nuclear weapons with the United States while Medvedev credited Kazakhstan, Belarus and Ukraine with contributions to the enforcement of the previous strategic arms reduction treaty and to strategic stability as a whole.

* CSTO officials plan to meet with new Kyrgyz leaders in Bishkek

MOSCOW. April 9 (Interfax-AVN) - A delegation of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) has arrived in Bishkek for negotiations with Kyrgyzstan’s new leaders, as well as leading local politicians, a spokesman for the CSTO secretariat told Interfax-AVN. "However, it is still too early to speak about the prospects of a meeting with [Incumbent Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek] Bakiyev," the spokesman said. CSTO officials are expected to meet with leaders of Kyrgyz political parties, security ministers, as well as heads of public organizations, he said. The organization’s delegation plans to analyze the current situation in Kyrgyzstan and to formulate suggestions on how to bring stability back to the republic. The delegation’s normalization proposals will be studied by the current CSTO chair country - Russia, the spokesman said.

* Delegation of Kyrgyz interim govt to discuss petroleum product export duties in Moscow

MOSCOW. April 9 (Interfax) - A delegation of Kyrgyzstan’s interim government is due to arrive in Moscow on Friday to discuss, among other issues, export duties on Russian petroleum products, said Anton Belyakov, an MP from the Fair Russia faction and a member of the State Duma’s group for contacts with the Kyrgyz Parliament. "I have spoken to representatives of the [Kyrgyz] opposition. They have told me that they are greatly worried about the issue of growing export duties on Russian petroleum products," Belyakov told Interfax on Friday. The members of the delegation, which will be headed by the Kyrgyz interim government’s Deputy Economy Minister Almazbek Atambayev, will discuss this issue among other priority topics, he said. It would be right to arrange a meeting between the Kyrgyz delegation and high-ranking Russian officials in Moscow, the MP said. "I believe that it should take place at the level of the head of the Russian government because it is very important for us to forge close contacts with representatives of the new government of Kyrgyzstan, as well as to safeguard our geopolitical interests in this Central Asian region," he said. If the Kyrgyz delegation is not received in Moscow at an appropriate level, "it is not ruled out that they will fly to America tomorrow," he added.

* U.S. explains impossibility of continuing planned dialogue with Kyrgyzstan

WASHINGTON. April 9 (Interfax) - Representatives of the U.S. State Department met Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Kadyrbek Sarbayev in Washington on Thursday, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Philipp Crowley has announced The main purpose of the meeting was to explain to the minister that it is impossible to continue the dialogue planned earlier, Crowley said at Thursday briefing at the State Department. He said the U.S. embassy in Bishkek is in contact with the head of the provisional government of Kyrgyzstan Roza Otunbayeva who is known in the United States as the former Kyrgyz ambassador to the United Nations. The U.S. charge d’affairs in Kyrgyzstan had a meeting with Otunbayeva, Crowley said. The son of the Kyrgyz president, Maxim Bakiyev is also staying in Washington, however, the U.S. government does not maintain any contacts with him, Crowley said. He said that he did not know the whereabouts of Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev. The U.S. official said that the Manas transit center continues operations on a reduced scale.

* Unrest in Bishkek was provoked by Bakiyev’s supporters – special service chief

BISHKEK. April 9 (Interfax) - Law and order has been restored in Bishkek and there will be no more looting, Keneshbek Dyushebayev, the new chief of the Kyrgyz National Security Service, told Interfax on Friday. "The city has been taken under control," he said. Kyrgyz law enforcement bodies are functioning, law and order is being restored and there will be no more looting in Bishkek, he assured. He said that the rioting in the capital city had been organized by supporters of Kurmanbek Bakiyev. Traffic police officers were ordered to work in the streets of Bishkek on Friday to regulate the traffic and help with clearing the streets. Some stores have reopened and urban transport is operational. Entrances to the Government House have been blocked and no large crowds are visible in the center of Bishkek. "The situation in the capital city was under control by 1 a.m. on April 9 and streets were cleared of crowds of young rioters," Interfax was told on Friday at the press service of the Kyrgyz Interior Ministry. Last night was relatively calm thanks to the concerted actions of the police, Interior Troops and militia, a press officer said. Over 50 patrol teams accompanied by the traffic police operated in Bishkek. Law enforcers used firearms and special equipment to disperse the crowds, the official said.

> Per maggiori informazioni: Interfax

- Nuovo comunicato stampa emesso oggi dall’Osce (Austria):

OSCE Special Envoy meets provisional administration in Kyrgyzstan, discusses ways to urgently restore stability

BISHKEK, 9 April 2010 - The Special Envoy of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Zhanybek Karibzhanov met with interim Kyrgyz Deputy Foreign Minister Nurlan Aytmurzaev today to discuss the situation in the country and the co-ordination of activities to restore stability.

Karibzhanov said at the meeting: "I came to Bishkek the same day I was appointed OSCE Special Envoy. I plan to discuss with my interlocutors the situation on the ground, how public safety, stability and respect for citizens’ rights can be urgently restored and ensured, and how we in the OSCE can contribute to the process."

He expressed support for measures that have already been taken to restore stability and stressed the importance of continuing on this path.

"The OSCE stands ready to support every effort in this direction, as necessary and required. Maintaining the co-operation that has been achieved between Kyrgyzstan and the OSCE is an important priority," he said.

Karibzhanov is Deputy Speaker of the Majilis (lower house of Parliament) of Kazakhstan, Chairman of the Kazakh-Kyrgyz interparliamentary group and has the rank of Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary. He was appointed Special Envoy by the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Kazakhstan’s Secretary of State and Minister of Foreign Affairs Kanat Saudabayev, on 8 April. Kazakhstan holds the 2010 OSCE Chairmanship.

Ambassador Herbert Salber, the Director of the OSCE Conflict Prevention Centre in Vienna, is supporting him on the trip to Kyrgyzstan.

> Leggi qui l’originale del comunicato stampa

- Nuovo comunicato stampa emesso oggi dall’Unione Europea (Belgio):

EUROPEAN UNION Brussels, 9 April 2010 / A 55/10

Statement by the spokesperson of HR Catherine Ashton, on Kyrgyzstan

High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice President of the European Commission Catherine Ashton has today asked her Special Representative for Central Asia, Pierre Morel, to travel tomorrow to Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.

The purpose of the visit is to assess the situation after the latest unrest and identify ways in which the EU, in cooperation with its international partners, can facilitate a peaceful, negotiated resolution to the crisis.

Pierre Morel will coordinate closely with the local EU Presidency and Member States represented in the country, as well as with Special Representatives of the United Nations and the OSCE, who are also travelling to Bishkek.

> Leggi qui l’originale del comunicato stampa

- Per maggiori approfondimenti vi consigliamo di consultare i seguenti siti:

* Eurasianet.org (Usa e Asia Centrale)

Consulta qui il sito;

* The Times of Central Asia (Kirghizistan)

Consulta qui il sito.

Buona lettura.

Speciale redatto a cura del

Dr. Emanuele Gentile

(emanuele.gentile@girodivite.it)