July 30, 2015 Kyrgyzstan has renounced its bilateral agreement with the United State of America, an agreement which allowed U.S. aid material to Kyrgyzstan to be brought in and out of the country without taxes, customs duties or any other payment.
Kyrgyzstan’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Emil Kaykiyev who issued an official statement for the government said:
“In the framework of this treaty, the Kyrgyz side facilitated the realization of the USA aid programmes through tax and duties relief, and relief of other taxes for the goods, supplies and services. A lot of help to the Kyrgyz Republic within this treaty was carried out through USAID. So the cancellation of this treaty will affect USAID projects as well as the other projects based on the denounced treaty“
The diplomatic tension between both countries started when Azimjon Askarov, a journalist and activist currently serving a life sentence, was awarded a U.S. State Department human rights prize.
The deputy foreign minister stated that the award went against Kyrgyzstan’s national interests, hence the decision to severe ties.
“When some actions are taken against the strengthening of ethnic peace and harmony in our country, and when the resulting situation does not coincide with the national interests of the country, any help from another state loses its value,”
Kyrgyz Prime Minister Temir Sariyev ordered his cabinet to renounce the 1993 Bilateral Agreement and has issued a statement saying the agreement will no longer be valid effective August 20th.
In response, the United States has warned that such actions would greatly undermine the wide range of aid programmes between both countries ranging from security to humanitarian issues and democracy.