In his first trip abroad since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued a warrant for his arrest in March, Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks on Thursday in Kyrgyzstan, a Central Asian country with close ties to Moscow, Reuters reported. and News.ro.

Vladimir Putin attended a ceremony to mark the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Russian Kant military airbase near Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, a strategically important facility that allows Moscow to project its power in the region.

“This military outpost significantly contributes to increasing the defense capability of Kyrgyzstan and ensuring security and stability in the entire Central Asian region,” said Putin, who expressed expectations from Moscow to expand military and defense ties with Kyrgyzstan.

His visit coincided with Russian-led security exercises in Kyrgyzstan.

The Kremlin chief has rarely traveled abroad since sending troops to Ukraine in early 2022, and has not left Russia since the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for him, accusing him of organizing the illegal deportation of children from Ukraine. Russia does not recognize the jurisdiction of the ICC and rejects its accusations.

Next week, the Russian leader is also scheduled to travel to China for the third forum of the One Belt, One Road project in Beijing.

Neither Kyrgyzstan nor China are members of the ICC, the international court created to prosecute war criminals.

Why Kyrgyzstan is important to Putin

Putin’s two-day visit to Kyrgyzstan will conclude with his participation in a summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), a grouping of former Soviet republics, in Bishkek on Friday, amid signs that Russia’s influence in parts of the former USSR Unions such as Armenia are under pressure Moscow’s ties with other countries in the region, which it traditionally considered its sphere of influence, have been shaken by their application of Western sanctions imposed on Russia after its invasion of Ukraine.

At a meeting with the President of Kyrgyzstan, Sadyr Japarov, Putin emphasized the importance of Russia as the largest investor in the economy of the former Soviet republic and said that the parties will continue to develop cooperation. “Our country is the main supplier of petroleum products to Kyrgyzstan, we fully provide Kyrgyz consumers with gasoline (petrol) and diesel,” Putin boasted during a press briefing.

“We highly value the Kyrgyz-Russian strategic partnership and our relations as allies,” Dzaparov replied.

Putin cited rapid growth in Russian-Kyrgyz trade, which some in the West believe is partly due to Kyrgyz intermediaries facilitating sanctions violations by Russian companies.

“Russia is one of Kyrgyzstan’s main trading partners. Last year, our turnover increased by 37% to a record level of almost 3.5 billion dollars. In the first half of this year, it increased by another 17.9%,” Putin said.

In July, the US imposed sanctions against four Kyrgyz companies for re-exporting electronic components and other technologies to Russia. Last week, Kyrgyzstan’s central bank asked local banks to step up checks on compliance with Western sanctions against Moscow.

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