The meeting took place on the sidelines of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council meeting.
Excerpts from the transcript:
Mikhail Mishustin: Greetings, Mr Zhaparov and all members of the Kyrgyz delegation. I would like to take this opportunity to ask you to convey my best wishes, as well as those from President of Russia Vladimir Putin, to President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov.
We value our friendly and fraternal relations with Kyrgyzstan and are keen to expand our trade and economic cooperation. In January-July, our mutual trade increased by 13 percent. The governments of Russia and Kyrgyzstan are working to implement all decisions. First and foremost, this includes long-term strategic economic objectives as set forth by our leaders. We propose to expedite the launch of new joint projects in transport, logistics, industrial and agricultural cooperation, and the digital economy. In this connection, it is important to strike a balance between investment and business operations so that more Russian companies can enter the Kyrgyz market on a reciprocal basis.
I would like to acknowledge the valuable activities of the Russian-Kyrgyz Development Fund. Over 3,500 projects have received funding, and we are currently reviewing new proposals. It is important to provide a renewed impetus to the work of this fund, which would primarily yield a positive effect for Kyrgyzstan’s economic development.
Akylbek Zhaparov: Colleagues, friends, I am delighted to meet with you once again.
Mr Mishustin, I would like to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt gratitude to you and to the President of Russia Vladimir Putin for bestowing upon me the Order of Friendship, a prestigious award of the Russian Federation. I view this as a manifestation of great respect for the multi-ethnic nation of Kyrgyzstan and as recognition of the well-established strategic partnership and alliance between our countries.
The Russian Federation is our closest ally and a reliable strategic partner. The awarding of the Order of Friendship is not merely a reward but a symbol of the profound and strong ties between our countries.
Recently, on 12 September 2024, the 6th Kyrgyz-Russian Economic Forum took place on the shores of Lake Issyk-Kul, with Alexei Overchuk among its participants. This event also yielded fruitful results for both our governments.
President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov is expected to take part in a regular meeting of the CIS Heads of State Council in Moscow on 7 and 8 October and in the BRICS Summit in Kazan on 23 and 24 October.
We would like to thank you for approving our two requests concerning the allocation of grants, support for the budget and the increase in the capitalisation of the Kyrgyz-Russian Development Fund.
In this regard, we are also grateful to the Russian side for providing technical assistance. On 30 August 2024, the Service for Combating Illicit Drug Trafficking of the Kyrgyz Interior Ministry received equipment during an official ceremony. On 2 September, Eurasia autonomous non-profit organisation delivered 100 school buses for our remote regions.
I would like to emphasise once again that Kyrgyz-Russian relations are at the highest level in history, as befits our strategic partnership.