Asked by: Alex Easton (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with her Kyrgyz counterpart on the (a) imprisonment and (b) torture of (i) Pastor Pavel Shreider and (ii) members of the True and Free Reform Adventist Church; and what diplomatic steps she is taking to help ensure their release.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK regularly engages with Kyrgyzstan both bilaterally and in multilateral settings on a range of issues, including human rights matters. I raised Human rights concerns during our Strategic Dialogue in February this year. In Kyrgyzstan's most recent UN Universal Periodic Review in April this year, the UK raised concerns about restrictions on freedom of expression and recommended amending legislation regarding "Incitement of racial, ethnic, national, religious interregional hatred". Our Embassy in Kyrgyzstan monitors the human rights in the country and works closely with civil society organisations and multilateral partners.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference with the policy paper entitled UK targets sanctions circumvention and crypto networks exploited by Russia, published on 20 August 2025, what steps she has taken to limit the exchange of cryptocurrency token A7A5.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains committed to increasing economic pressure on Russia including its financial and energy sectors. This includes carefully targeted sanctions against Russia's attempts to circumvent sanctions and create alternative payment systems, including through its use of cryptocurrencies such as A7A5. The 20 August 2025 package of sanctions targeted crypto networks and financial systems in Kyrgyzstan being exploited by Russia, building on over 2700 existing UK sanctions against Russia. UK sanctions complemented action taken by the United States who announced similar measures targeting the cryptocurrency. Sanctions are a critical instrument of the UK's foreign, national and security policy and are deployed selectively and proportionately to complement other tools as part of a wider strategy to deter Russia from continuing its illegal invasion of Ukraine. We continue to monitor the impact of our sanctions closely and engage with third countries on Russian circumvention and where Russia is attempting to exploit financial networks.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her Department's press notice entitled UK targets sanctions circumvention and crypto networks exploited by Russia, published on 20 August 2025, what estimate she has made of the value of material the Russian military have purchased through the Kyrgyzstan-based OJSC Capital Bank of Central Asia.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains committed to increasing economic pressure on Russia including its financial and energy sectors. This includes carefully targeted sanctions against Russia's attempts to circumvent sanctions and create alternative payment systems, including through its use of cryptocurrencies such as A7A5. The 20 August 2025 package of sanctions targeted crypto networks and financial systems in Kyrgyzstan being exploited by Russia, building on over 2700 existing UK sanctions against Russia. UK sanctions complemented action taken by the United States who announced similar measures targeting the cryptocurrency. Sanctions are a critical instrument of the UK's foreign, national and security policy and are deployed selectively and proportionately to complement other tools as part of a wider strategy to deter Russia from continuing its illegal invasion of Ukraine. We continue to monitor the impact of our sanctions closely and engage with third countries on Russian circumvention and where Russia is attempting to exploit financial networks.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her Department's press release entitled UK targets sanctions circumvention and crypto networks exploited by Russia, published on 20 August 2025. what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of sanctions on Russia’s exploitation of (a) Kyrgyz financial systems and (b) crypto networks.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains committed to increasing economic pressure on Russia including its financial and energy sectors. This includes carefully targeted sanctions against Russia's attempts to circumvent sanctions and create alternative payment systems, including through its use of cryptocurrencies such as A7A5. The 20 August 2025 package of sanctions targeted crypto networks and financial systems in Kyrgyzstan being exploited by Russia, building on over 2700 existing UK sanctions against Russia. UK sanctions complemented action taken by the United States who announced similar measures targeting the cryptocurrency. Sanctions are a critical instrument of the UK's foreign, national and security policy and are deployed selectively and proportionately to complement other tools as part of a wider strategy to deter Russia from continuing its illegal invasion of Ukraine. We continue to monitor the impact of our sanctions closely and engage with third countries on Russian circumvention and where Russia is attempting to exploit financial networks.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her Department's press notice entitled UK targets sanctions circumvention and crypto networks exploited by Russia, published on 20 August 2025, which financial networks used by Russia have been targeted in order to restrict Russian exploitation.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains committed to increasing economic pressure on Russia including its financial and energy sectors. This includes carefully targeted sanctions against Russia's attempts to circumvent sanctions and create alternative payment systems, including through its use of cryptocurrencies such as A7A5. The 20 August 2025 package of sanctions targeted crypto networks and financial systems in Kyrgyzstan being exploited by Russia, building on over 2700 existing UK sanctions against Russia. UK sanctions complemented action taken by the United States who announced similar measures targeting the cryptocurrency. Sanctions are a critical instrument of the UK's foreign, national and security policy and are deployed selectively and proportionately to complement other tools as part of a wider strategy to deter Russia from continuing its illegal invasion of Ukraine. We continue to monitor the impact of our sanctions closely and engage with third countries on Russian circumvention and where Russia is attempting to exploit financial networks.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of use of the cryptocurrency token A7A5.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains committed to increasing economic pressure on Russia including its financial and energy sectors. This includes carefully targeted sanctions against Russia's attempts to circumvent sanctions and create alternative payment systems, including through its use of cryptocurrencies such as A7A5. The 20 August 2025 package of sanctions targeted crypto networks and financial systems in Kyrgyzstan being exploited by Russia, building on over 2700 existing UK sanctions against Russia. UK sanctions complemented action taken by the United States who announced similar measures targeting the cryptocurrency. Sanctions are a critical instrument of the UK's foreign, national and security policy and are deployed selectively and proportionately to complement other tools as part of a wider strategy to deter Russia from continuing its illegal invasion of Ukraine. We continue to monitor the impact of our sanctions closely and engage with third countries on Russian circumvention and where Russia is attempting to exploit financial networks.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether human rights issues in Kyrgyzstan have been examined within the framework of the Developing Countries Trade Scheme.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government reserves the right to suspend preferences on particular goods, or to suspend a country from the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) if it finds that they have seriously and systemically breached international conventions in relation to human rights.
When considering suspensions, the UK may assess, among other things, the impact on the beneficiary country's economic and development prospects, the impact on the country's most vulnerable people and the effectiveness of a suspension in bringing about change.
The UK continues to encourage all states to uphold their international human rights obligations, and hold all those who violate or abuse human rights to account. Our Embassy in Bishkek actively monitors the human rights situation in Kyrgyzstan and ministers have raised concerns regarding human rights and media freedom with the Kyrgyz Government.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether human rights issues in Kyrgyzstan were discussed at the first meeting of the Kyrgyz-British Strategic Dialogue in February 2025.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I raised human rights issues with my Kyrgyz counterpart during the inaugural UK-Kyrgyz Strategic Dialogue in February 2025. We regularly raise human rights at ministerial level with Kyrgyzstan.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made representations to his Kyrgyz counterpart on human rights in Kyrgyzstan.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs raised his concerns regarding the conviction of several Kyrgyz journalists during a phone call with his Kyrgyz counterpart in October 2024.
Our Embassy in Bishkek closely monitors media freedom and civic space in Kyrgyzstan and raises issues of concern with the Kyrgyz Government. I raised human rights with my Kyrgyz counterparts in February and April 2025, and Lord Collins, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State also raised it in February 2025. The UK made a number of recommendations on human rights during Kyrgyzstan's Universal Periodic Review in the UN Human Rights Council in April.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made representations to his counterparts in Kyrgyzstan on legislation aimed at controlling so-called foreign representatives.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs has not made direct representations to his counterparts in Kyrgyzstan regarding the 'Law on Non-Commercial Organisations'.
Our Embassy in Bishkek has however raised concerns about the impact of this law with the relevant authorities. The UK also made recommendations about this law during Kyrgyzstan's Universal Period Review in the UN Human Rights Council in April. The UK regularly encourages Kyrgyzstan to continue to allow civil society organisations to operate with independence and without harassment. I underlined the importance of respect for rights and freedoms with my Kyrgyz counterparts in April 2025 and raised human rights more broadly with the Kyrgyz during the inaugural UK-Kyrgyz Strategic Dialogue in February 2025.