July 03, 2026
Times of Central Asia - Kyrgyz Court Convicts Former Security Chief Tashiyev, Parliamentary Speaker, and Six Others
The trial of high-ranking Kyrgyz officials accused of plotting to overthrow the government concluded on July 2. All eight defendants, including the former chief of Kyrgyzstan’s security service and the former speaker of parliament, were found guilty and sentenced to four years in prison.
However, none will actually serve any prison time as the court ordered them all placed on probation for the next three years.
The Letter of 75
It all started on February 9, 2026, when a group of 75 people, including former state officials, released an open letter calling on President Sadyr Japarov and Speaker of Parliament Nurlanbek Turgunbek uulu to call an early presidential election.
Japarov became acting president in the wake of the October 2020 protests that ousted President Sooronbai Jeenbekov. One of his first moves as acting president was to appoint his long-time friend Kamchybek Tashiyev to be the head of the State National Security Service (GKNB).
The presidential election of January 2021 resulted in victory for Japarov, with a concurrent vote approving a change from a parliamentary to a presidential form of government.
Read the full article on The Times of Central Asia.
Bruce Pannier is a Senior Fellow at the Turan Research Center.