08 December 2025 , 19:14
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Kyrgyzstan’s President Sadyr Japarov has been using a private business jet linked to the fugitive Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor.
This was reported by the Moldovan news agency IPN. Earlier, two Kyrgyz banks were subjected to restrictions over accusations of helping bypass anti-Russian sanctions — and Shor appeared in both cases.
According to IPN, Shor acquired a Gulfstream G450 aircraft for $17.9 million through a chain of intermediaries.
Internal documents from the “Shor group” obtained by the outlet indicate that the deal was arranged as a lease-to-purchase agreement in December 2024, and the aircraft arrived in Bishkek in March the following year. Japarov reportedly uses it regularly for official visits and private trips.
IPN also identified another aircraft bought by Shor via intermediaries — a Gulfstream G650 worth $21.8 million. This time, the counterparty was Shor’s trusted associate Viktor Gutsulyak.
Who uses that aircraft remains unknown, but flight-tracking service Flightradar shows that it was in Bishkek on September 4.
The presidential administration has not yet commented on the information.
The scheme, as described by IPN, worked as follows: on December 19, 2024, an unknown Moldovan citizen, Radion Munteanu, signed a multimillion-dollar contract with Turkish businessman Zafer Khalidi. Under the agreement, Munteanu provided Khalidi with a $17.9 million loan to purchase the Gulfstream G450 business jet.
Formally, it is a loan. However, the documents clearly state that the aircraft must be purchased, maintained, and transferred to the company indicated by Munteanu.
By March 2025, the Gulfstream had already appeared in Bishkek, flying into Central Asia with the Mangrove Jet Solutions logo. The domain of this company is registered to the Dubai-based Aquila Sky Aviation Trading Brokerage, which is linked to the Russian airline North-West — known for servicing aircraft of high-profile clients.
Later, the aircraft was transferred under the management of Zafer Air, owned by Zafer Khalidi. In practice, however, the jet ended up at the disposal of Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov.
Shor’s interests in Kyrgyzstan
Shor holds part of his crypto-assets in Kyrgyzstan. Previously, several local companies and a crypto exchange were sanctioned. Two Kyrgyz banks — Keremet Bank and Kapital Bank — were also sanctioned for assisting Russia. In both cases, Shor was mentioned.
According to the U.S. Treasury, Shor was involved in discussions regarding “the role of Keremet Bank in a sanctions evasion scheme.” The UK, for its part, stated that Russia used Kapital Bank to pay for military goods.
Sadyr Japarov has repeatedly denied the accusations. Recently, he reiterated this at the UN, stating that sanctions imposed on Kyrgyz companies and banks are “based on false information.”
“Unfounded sanctions are regarded as interference in the internal affairs of the country and as pressure that hinders the development of an economy that is only taking shape,” the president said.
Japarov is not the only Kyrgyz president whom Ilan Shor has helped travel. In 2015, then-president Almazbek Atambayev used a Shor-owned airline aircraft to fly to Moscow for an official meeting with Vladimir Putin.
Deputy Editor