Photo from the president's press service
In a comment to the Kabar agency, the president reacted sharply to the speculations, emphasizing that Shirshov acts only as a source of information useful for protecting Kyrgyzstan's interests and recovering assets.
According to Japarov, back in 2021, Shirshov himself reached out through intermediaries with an offer to assist in uncovering the foreign assets of the son of former president Kurmanbek Bakiev, Maxim.
According to the head of state, Alexey Shirshov is not wanted, which allowed him to return to give testimony and consultations.
“We immediately indicated that the old schemes no longer work. You cannot steal from state structures. If you help recover assets — that’s good, and if not — just stay out of it,” Japarov noted.
The president also reported that thanks to the information provided by Shirshov, Kyrgyzstan was able to recover cottages and apartments in the "Aurora Plus" complex, as well as restore ties with the company "Elkat," which is now fully owned by the state. The preliminary estimate of the recovered assets is about 6 billion soms.
Separately, Japarov touched upon Shirshov's participation in consultations regarding debts to "RusHydro" in the context of the Upper Naryn Cascade of Hydropower Plants.
He noted that Shirshov had previously worked with this company and possesses important information, which makes him useful for the country.
“The main thing is that he will not head the ministry. If his knowledge is beneficial, we will use it. If not — let him take care of his own business. There’s no need to pay attention to manipulations,” the president added.
Japarov also reminded that the energy sector has closed an accumulated debt of 137 billion soms for the first time in 30 years and should start generating profit from next year. He emphasized that any cases of corruption will be punished strictly, “without exceptions and mercy.”
