BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, January 23. Kyrgyzstan is concerned about the inclusion of Keremet Bank, Gazprom Neft Asia, and Munai Myrza companies in the US sanctions list, Trend reports via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyzstan.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Meder Abakirov, raised the issue during a meeting with US Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan Lesslie Viguerie. Abakirov emphasized that Kyrgyzstan’s relevant state authorities regularly engage in consultations with their counterparts from the US on matters related to bilateral cooperation. He also formally requested the removal of these companies from the sanctions list.
Ambassador Viguerie expressed the US's willingness to jointly search for mutually acceptable solutions to resolve the issue of removing the Kyrgyz companies from the sanctions list.
On January 15, the US Department of the Treasury, through the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), imposed sanctions on Keremet Bank, a Kyrgyzstan-based financial institution. The sanctions were due to the bank’s involvement in facilitating cross-border transfers for Promsvyazbank, a Russian bank under US sanctions since 2022.