“One billion dollars. This speaks to the scale of the state's devastation. In 30 years — only 100 million, but in 5 years — a whole billion. They mined the gold themselves, recorded it, and every month loaded it onto helicopters for export. Our officials were only informed about the volumes produced, and they recorded this data. This allowed them to participate in the plundering of our wealth at Issyk-Kul, receiving their share from these operations,” Tashiev explained.
He also emphasized that when Sadyr Japarov came to power, he set the task: “Our main goal is to return Kumtor.”
“We managed to return Kumtor in one year, despite skepticism and criticism from many. They said it was impossible, that we were violating investors' rights. Nevertheless, over five years under our management, the profit amounted to more than $1 billion, while in three decades it was only $100 million. Currently, taxes are being paid, and the deposit is fully operating for the benefit of the state,” Tashiev added.
