Integrated approach: Kyrgyzstan received the S-300 air defense system from Russia
Kyrgyzstan has received the S-300 air defense system from Russia, Secretary of the republic's Security Council Marat Imankulov told Izvestia. These missiles are elements of a unified air defense system, the agreement on the creation of which entered into force in 2023. Kyrgyzstan is ready to improve cooperation with the Russian Federation in the military sphere through the CSTO. Moscow is now strengthening it not only with Bishkek, but also with Central Asia as a whole. Why the issue of security is relevant for the region and how the CSTO copes with it is described in the Izvestia article.
Military cooperation between Russia and Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan has received the S-300 system from Russia, Secretary of the republic's Security Council Marat Imankulov told Izvestia.
— We have a unified air defense system. We have now received the elements of this joint system, the S-300. Already on the territory of Kyrgyzstan," he said.
The Secretary of the Security Council expressed hope that the complex could be seen in Bishkek at the parade dedicated to the 80th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War on May 8. Earlier, a number of media outlets reported that the S-300PS and Tor-M2KM anti-aircraft missile systems, as well as the upgraded S-125-2BM air defense systems received from Belarus, were spotted at the rehearsal of the parade in Kyrgyzstan.
An agreement on the supply of S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems to Kyrgyzstan was reached in 2021 during the visit of the President of the republic Sadyr Japarov to the Russian Federation. In November 2023, the agreement on the creation of a unified regional air defense system entered into force. According to the document, Russia coordinates the actions of the troops of the joint regional air defense system in the collective security zone, and Kyrgyzstan manages these actions.
For the deployment of troops and equipment, the republic has allocated a 5-hectare site next to the Russian military base Kant, 20 km from Bishkek. In 2023, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the agreement on a unified air defense system a great achievement.
It was also reported that under the agreement, the countries will conduct exercises, train personnel, and modernize air defense systems. Russia takes care of all financial and logistical costs. Ruslan Mukambetov, the former chief of the General Staff of the Kyrgyz Ministry of Defense, confirmed in 2024 that his country should receive the S-300 system from the Russian Federation.
Russia and Kyrgyzstan are working on the creation of a joint air defense system within the framework of the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Collective Security Treaty Organization. Moscow has similar agreements with other CIS countries, including Kazakhstan, Belarus and Tajikistan. For example, in 2023, Russia supplied eight S-300 installations to Tajikistan.
Russia and Kyrgyzstan continue to cooperate on a planned basis, says Marat Imankulov.
"We have a Russian military base in Kant, the aviation component of the CSTO, this work is continuously underway, and we will improve it," he emphasizes.
Strengthening Russian military cooperation in the region
At the same time, Kyrgyzstan cooperates with NATO. For example, in 2023, exercises were held in the United States in Montana with the participation of military personnel from the republic, as well as from Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
CSTO command and Staff exercises
But now Kyrgyzstan is interested in improving military cooperation with Russia within the framework of the CSTO, says Marat Imankulov.
— We are pursuing a multi-vector policy. We also practice cooperation with the United States. — Ed.), and sometimes part of their armed forces participates in the training of our military personnel. There are no problems. But the main share of ensuring stability and security in our countries belongs to the CSTO, and we will strengthen this organization in every possible way. This is our national security, in the region and in the CSTO space," stressed Marat Imankulov.
The main security threats to Central Asian countries are international terrorist organizations, the crisis in neighboring Afghanistan, and drug trafficking. Cooperation in the CSTO, the CIS and the SCO makes it possible to deal with problems in the region. However, Russia plays an important role in addressing security threats.
Against this background, Moscow is strengthening military cooperation with other actors in the region. For example, in January, the Russian Federation and Uzbekistan adopted a plan of cooperation between the departments for 2025 and a program of strategic partnership in the military sphere for 2026-2030.
For the first time, the two countries adopted a strategic partnership program in the military sphere in 2021. After that, military personnel from the Russian Federation and Uzbekistan, together with military personnel from Tajikistan, conducted exercises at a training ground 20 km from the border with Afghanistan.
Moscow has also approved a program of strategic partnership in the military and military-technical fields for 2026-2030 with Dushanbe. The parties agreed to strengthen cooperation not only in the defense, but also in the anti-terrorist and anti-drug spheres. The 201st Russian military base is located in Tajikistan. In 2023, the Agency for Drug Control under the President of Tajikistan signed a cooperation agreement with the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for 2023-2025. Then Moscow allocated 250 million rubles to Tajikistan. Earlier, the Russian Federation allocated more than $3.5 million to Tajikistan to combat the drug threat for the period from 2019 to 2021.
For Russia and Central Asia, strengthening military cooperation is part of the formation of a unified regional security architecture through the CSTO. It is quite expected that all parties are interested in strengthening cooperation, Daria Saprynskaya, a researcher at the ISAA of Lomonosov Moscow State University, tells Izvestia.
"Against the background of a rethinking of approaches to the Taliban movement (which is under UN sanctions for terrorist activities) and a change in the configuration of threats on the southern borders, the need for joint adaptation of response mechanisms is increasing," she says.
Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan have long borders with a number of unstable areas, so joint cooperation plays an important role in stabilizing the situation in the region, the expert believes. Cooperation through the CSTO includes the unification of response protocols, joint exercises, intelligence sharing, and coordination of actions in crisis situations.
Recently, there has been a tendency in Central Asian countries to strengthen regional military cooperation. For example, on the eve of the sixth summit of Central Asian countries in 2024, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev suggested that the countries of the region strengthen cooperation in the field of security. "Against the background of the continuing difficult military and political situation along the perimeter of Central Asia, there is a need for cooperation in the field of defense policy and security," he said. Moreover, the former ambassador of Kyrgyzstan to Azerbaijan, Kairat Osmonaliev, proposed the creation of a Turkic Collective Security Treaty Organization or NATO. However, this idea has not received an official response from partner countries.
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