Japarov: Anti-China sentiments fueled by opposition to projects, but cooperation benefits Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov believes that negative sentiments towards China within Kyrgyzstan are being deliberately amplified by both foreign and local forces. He linked this opposition particularly to resistance against infrastructure projects, such as the proposed China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway.

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Not only Chinese citizens, there are people from other countries as well. Kyrgyzstanis are also working. Kyrgyz citizens who are willing to do hard work are working too.

During an interview, Japarov responded to questions about the growing presence of Chinese nationals in Kyrgyzstan. He noted a substantial increase in the foreign labor quota, from 13,000 a decade ago (with 80% Chinese) to 100,000 this year. The president asserted that citizens from various countries, alongside Kyrgyz nationals, are employed, and that those willing to work hard are finding opportunities.

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What harm have we seen from China? Take the waste-to-energy plant in Bishkek, for example. For a hundred years, if I’m not mistaken, haven’t we been living with smoke since the city was founded? Now we are getting rid of this smoke, getting rid of waste, and also generating energy.

Japarov defended Kyrgyzstan's cooperation with China, highlighting the waste-to-energy plant in Bishkek as a prime example of successful collaboration. He argued that Kyrgyzstan lacked the capacity to build such a facility independently, emphasizing that Chinese specialists constructed the plant and that local citizens are being trained to operate it. The president urged his country to embrace opportunities for Chinese investment and technology, noting that many nations seek such partnerships, and that Kyrgyzstan, as China's neighbor, should not miss out.

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Could we have built it ourselves? Could you install even a single pipe?, We cannot; we don’t even know how its system works.