In its attempts to bolster the relations with Russia, Kyrgyzstan will join the Russia-Belarus-Kazakhstan Customs Union by the end of 2014. According to RIA Novosti, President Almazbek Atambayev made an official statement during the talks with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin in Sochi.
Almazbek Atambayev highlighted that Kyrgyzstan is ready to develop firmly and consistently the relations with Russia, its long-standing strategic partner. In response, Vladimir Putin assured his counterpart that the issue of Kyrgyzstan entry into the Customs Union had been discussed more than once and the favorable resolution would be passed in the near future.
Importantly, Russia is a strong economic and trade partner of Kyrgyzstan. In 2013, the bilateral sales revenue surged 17% to $2.14 billion as compared to 2012. Russian sales account for over 27% in the foreign trade of Kyrgyzstan. In the course of the talks in Sochi, the presidents of both states discussed several joint projects in the energy and other sectors. Nowadays, the top priority project between Russia and Kyrgyzstan is to tackle gas and electricity shortages in the Central Asian Republic by building Kambaratinsky hydro-electric power plant as well as the complex of power plants on the Naryn river. The projects are being implemented by such Russian companies as Inter RAO ES and Rushydro.
