The 2005 "Tulip revolution" in Kyrgyzstan raised big hopes for democratic change in Central Asia, but bloodshed and violence shook the former Soviet republic when opposition leaders led by former Foreign Minister Roza Otunbayeva seized power in the country beginning of April. The Member of the European Parliament and Chairman of Parliament's delegation for relations with Central Asia, has followed the situation in Kyrgyzstan closely.
“The situation in Kyrgyzstan is still very unstable. It is not up to us to judge Kyrgyzstan's internal affairs and decide on the rights or wrongs of the political players. In my opinion, it is evident that many of the hopes born during the Tulip Revolution have been let down, and the evolution of the situation in Kyrgyzstan wasn't what many political forces wished for,” MEP Paolo Bartolozzi states. He underlines that the EU has emphasised the urgent need to restore constitutional legality and put an end to all the violence and bloodshed. “Kyrgyz political forces have to find a solution to the crisis preserving democracy, national unity and in particular parliamentary institutions.

But there are contradictions in Kyrgyz society, some of them based on territory, others on economic development, and others on a religious or ethnic grounds. But I don't think that it is appropriate to identify one main contradiction now. As far as we are concerned, the main worry is that there are people who believe in an open society, based on parliamentary democracy, and others who don't,” Paolo Bartolozzi says.

The EU has a strong interest in Central Asian stability, in its political and economic development and in the evolution of regional cooperation. “Central Asia isn't strategically important just because it is close to Afghanistan, but also as a prospective economic and commercial partner for energy supplies."The EU is reassessing its strategy for Central Asia, and in forthcoming years we will try to boost aid, for example through EIB (the European Investment Bank).
As it is known, those interventions are intended to cover a wide range of fields, not only in order to promote the development in the economic sector, but also
in order to reduce poverty, by boosting the action of the Institutions and Organisations already operating, such as, for example, the European Training Foundation," MEP Bartolozzi states.


The EU has expressed condolences to the families of victims of the bloodshed and said it is ready to provide urgent humanitarian assistance.

Find out more
MEP Paolo Bartolozzi
ETF activities in Kyrgyzstan