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MOSCOW: An attack on Israel by Iran means one thing: There is likely to be a world War where countries globally will take sides 1, said Russian President Vladimir Putin in his televised address.

He further said If you side with the west (United States, France, NATO, Ukraine, UK, Australia) you are likely to find yourself supporting Israel 2.

 If you BRICS (China, Brazil, India, Russia, and South Africa) you will likely find yourself supporting Iran World War III will likely threaten human existence, he added.

Tehran, APR 14: Iran launched an unprecedented drone and missile attack on Israel late on Saturday, the Israeli army announced, in a major escalation of the long-running covert war between the regional foes.

Blasts were heard in the skies above Jerusalem early on Sunday, AFP journalists said.

Iran had repeatedly threatened to strike Israel in retaliation for a deadly April 1 air strike on its Damascus consular annexe and Washington had warned repeatedly in recent days that the reprisals were imminent.

“Iran launched UAVs from its territory towards the territory of the state of Israel,” military spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a televised statement.

“We are working in close cooperation with the United States and our partners in the region in order to act against the launches and intercept them,” Rear Admiral Hagari said.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards confirmed a retaliatory drone and missile attack was under way against Israel in retaliation for the Damascus strike which killed seven Guards, two of them generals. The Guards said its ballistic missiles were fired almost an hour after the slower-moving drones.

An Israeli army official said Iran had launched more than 100 attack drones at Israel and said he expected more to follow.

“We expect the drones to be here in the following hours and we might see some more waves of drones as time progresses,” the official said.

Iran’s allies in the region joined the attack with Yemen’s Houthi rebels also launching drones at Israel, according to security agency Ambrey, and Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement announcing rocket fire at Israeli positions in the annexed Golan Heights.

‘Unfolding’ attack
The White House said it expected the attack — which comes against the backdrop of the six-month Israel-Hamas fighting in Gaza — to “unfold over a number of hours”. It said Washington would “stand with the people of Israel”.

The Iranian mission to the United Nations warned Washington to keep out of Iran’s conflict with Israel. “It is a conflict between Iran and the rogue Israeli regime, from which the US MUST STAY AWAY!” it said.

President Joe Biden cut short a weekend trip to his home state of Delaware for urgent consultations, the White House said.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz postponed a planned visit to Hungary and Austria while the prime minister convened his war cabinet in Tel Aviv.

An adviser to Iran’s supreme leader said that Israel was in “complete panic” over Tehran’s looming response. “They don’t know what Iran wants to do, so they and their supporters are terrified,” senior adviser Yahya Rahim said.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak condemned Iran’s “reckless” action and pledged that his government would “continue to stand up for Israel’s security”.

France echoed its commitment to Israel’s security. “In deciding to take this unprecedented action, Iran has reached a new level of destabilisation,” Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne said.

Airspace closing
Shortly before the launches, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was prepared for a “direct attack from Iran”.

“Our defence systems are deployed, we are prepared for any scenario, both in defence and attack,” the Israeli premier said in a televised statement, adding Israel had the backing of the United States and “many” other countries.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards had already seized an Israeli-linked container vessel in the Gulf earlier on Saturday, putting the whole region on alert. Israel said it was closing schools nationwide while Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon announced they were temporarily closing their airspace.

Israel said it was closing its own airspace from 9:30pm GMT. The Israeli military warned Iran it would suffer the “consequences for choosing to escalate the situation any further”.

The April 1 strike in Damascus, which killed 16 people, including two Iranian generals, had been widely blamed on Israel. Iran had repeatedly vowed to hit back, but had not specified how.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards seized a container ship “related” to Israel in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, which was now heading towards Iranian waters, Iranian state media reported.

The ship’s operator, the Italian-Swiss group MSC, said it was working with the relevant authorities to ensure the wellbeing of the 25 crew onboard.

Both Israel and the United States denounced the seizure as piracy, with Israel also demanding that the Guards be declared a “terrorist organisation” by the European Union.

In Washington, National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson called on Iran “to release the vessel and its international crew immediately”. “Seizing a civilian vessel without provocation is a blatant violation of international law, and an act of piracy”, she said.

Gaza truce stalemate
The Gaza crisis began with the unprecedented October 7 attack by Hamas against Israel which resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 33,686 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the territory’s health ministry. Israel’s military said on Saturday it had struck more than 30 Hamas targets across Gaza.

In the main central city of Deir al-Balah, fire burned in the rubble of a destroyed mosque. Israel’s military “demanded that the whole area be evacuated” before it was “wiped out in minutes”, said Abdullah Baraka, a witness.

In nearby Nuseirat refugee camp, Abd Thabet said residents had been warned to evacuate on Friday evening ahead of a large explosion that caused “massive destruction”.

“All of the houses were demolished, including my home,” the 35-year-old told AFP.

Palestinians injured during Israeli bombardment arrive at al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah, Gaza on April 13. — AFP
Hamas said it had submitted its response to a Gaza truce plan presented by US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators at talks in Cairo this week.

The Palestinian group said it was sticking to its previous demands, insisting on “a permanent ceasefire” and the “withdrawal of the occupation army from the entire Gaza Strip”.

During the October attack, Hamas seized about 250 hostages, 129 of whom Israel says remain in Gaza, including 34 the army says are dead.

The Israeli prime minister’s office accused Hamas of torpedoing efforts for an exchange of hostages for prisoners. “Hamas to this day has refused any deal and any compromise proposal,” it said.

In the first quarter of 2024, the growth of the economy of Kyrgyzstan made 8.8%. Compared to the indicators of the first quarter of 2023, the growth rate increased by 3 times. Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Akylbek Zhaparov said that these are not just numbers, but the result of hard work of the president’s team over the last three years. In this regard, Kabar Agency asked President Sadyr Zhaparov about the reasons for the growth of economic indicators.

– Sadyr Nurgozhoevich, Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers, stated that according to the results of the first quarter, our economy grew by 8.8%. Excluding the Kumtor gold mine, this figure was 9.8%. Is this true? Which sectors of our economy contributed to such growth?

Indeed, these figures are accurate. These are official numbers monitored and calculated by the National Statistics Committee. Additionally, the Ministry of Economy and Commerce oversees the process. All sectors contribute to the growth of our economy.

Of course, at the expense of taxpayers:

1. Kumtor

2. Alliance Altyn (Zherui)

3. Altynken

4. Nur Telecom

5. Sky Mobile (Bitel)

6. Alfa Telecom (MegaCom)

7. Red Petroleum (Alfa Oil)

8. Partner Neft

9. Gazpromneft

10. Top Noch

11. Ayil Bank

12. Optima

These companies take leading places.

And I would like to note the significant contribution of the National Bank to economic growth and curbing inflation.

– You said that the National Bank has a great contribution to the growth of our economy. How much reserves we have if it’s not a secret? What about our gold reserves?

– There is no secret. All these are public information. To-date, our total international reserves have reached 3 billion 491 million dollars. From our independence to 2020, our international reserves were only 2 billion 424 million dollars in 30 years.

Today, the team of our National Bank added 1 billion 67 million dollars in 3 years.

As for gold reserves, until 2020, only 16 tons of gold had been collected in 30 years. Today, the National Bank has 51 tons of gold. 35 tons of gold was added in 3 years. You see the difference: 16 tons in 30 years, 35 tons in 3 years.

In addition, the National Bank lowered the inflation rate to 5.2 percent to-date. Compared to other countries, today inflation is lower in our country. This is the result of the correct policy of the National Bank.

— Are there currently problems in the state budget in paying foreign debts, making payments on protected items? There are critics, who state that our external debt has increased…

In simple terms, let’s forget about discussing external debt from now on. We won’t entertain these questions any longer. Some of our citizens may persist in claiming that our external debt has increased, but we won’t pay any attention to them anymore.

Up until 2020, our external debt was around 5 billion dollars, accumulated over 30 years. Apart from recent projects like Datka-Kemin, the North-South highway construction, and the modernization of thermal power plants, not much significant work had been undertaken.

However, these three projects have become essential for Kyrgyzstan’s development, akin to air and water. It’s worth noting that these projects won’t justify their costs even over 40 years, as their expenses have increased by 2-3 times. Comparatively, similar construction and work in European countries are done 2-3 times cheaper than here.

For instance, even a fifth-year student in this field can calculate the required funds for building a thermal power plant

The North-South highway and the Datka-Kemin project are also overpriced. This is not the fault of the Chinese side, which issued the loan, but our authorities and officials are to blame. The money was stolen.

By 2035, we will repay our foreign debts in the amount of 5 billion dollars, which have accumulated to date. The timing of the payment coincided with the period of work of my team. God bless. It is within our power to do this. Our economy has improved. As long as there is peace and stability in the country, we will easily pay.

Remember: we will pay off previous debts at the expense of the people, from the national budget. Because before this there was not a single self-sustaining project. All the money received disappeared like water into sand.

We will direct the debts that we take on now, every dollar taken, to specific projects. We will take on self-sustaining projects. I’ll give one example. About 5-6 billion dollars will be spent for the construction of the Kambar-Ata 1 hydro power plant.

This project will pay off in 13-15 years from completion and commissioning. When the time comes to repay the debt for this project, the republican budget and the people will not pay. The Kambar-Ata 1 hydro power plant will pay for itself before the debt is due. How?

For example, the World Bank provides a loan of 500 million dollars for 50 years with a 10-year grace period without interest. Kyrgyzstan received a loan on such terms for the first time in the history of the country.

Now I’ll tell you about the Kambar-Ata 1 project. Construction period is 8-10 years. The 5-6 billion dollars spent for construction will be fully recouped within 13-15 years from the date of completion of construction and start of operation. It turns out that the longest time for the cost of Kambar-Ata 1 to be fully recouped, including the construction period, is 25 years.

Therefore, even if our external debt reaches 10-15 billion dollars, we don’t have to worry about anything. The most important thing is that by 2035 we will fully repay previously incurred debts. In the future, no matter how much we borrow, every project will pay for itself.

There will be no burden on the republican budget and people’s pockets. Of course, not taking into account the debts incurred for road construction.

I mentioned only large projects. There are projects of small and medium-sized hydro power plants that will pay for themselves in 7-8 years. We must invest in them too. We now asked the Global Climate Fund to help. If they help, we will completely switch to green energy.

We have many projects in other areas. I won’t go into all the little details. We are implementing them with private investors and, to the extent possible, at the expense of the budget.

– Thank you for answering our questions.

– I wish you good luck in your work!

Interviewed by Mederbek Shermetaliev, Director of Kabar News Agency