The Kyrgyz, a Muslim Turkic people, constitute more than half the population. The history of the Kyrgyz in what is now Kyrgyzstan dates at least to the 17th century. Kyrgyzstan, known under Russian and Soviet rule as Kirgiziya, was conquered by tsarist Russian forces in the 19th century. Formerly a constituent (union) republic of the U.S.S.R., Kyrgyzstan declared its independence on August 31, 1991. The capital is Bishkek (known from 1862 to 1926 as Pishpek and from 1926 to 1991 as Frunze).1
It has some oil and gas and a developing gold mining sector, but relies on imports for most of its energy needs. Resentment at widespread poverty and ethnic divisions between north and south have spilled over into violence, and the country’s first two post-Soviet presidents were swept from power by popular discontent. Settled by Kyrgyz tribes from southern Siberia in the 17th century, the area was ruled by various regional powers before coming under Russian, and then Soviet, rule. Most of its six million people are Turkic-speaking Muslims. In 2014 Kyrgyzstan shut a US military base which had supplied US troops in Afghanistan with personnel and cargo since 2001. Russia retains a military airbase in the country.2
