A new independent television station with ties to Russia is set to be launched in Kyrgyzstan, fueling fears the media outlet could become a tool for spreading Moscow's propaganda in Central Asia.
Nomad TV's editorial leadership includes Anna Abakumova, a Russian journalist who previously worked for the state-funded network RT and is a close associate of Margarita Simonyan, one of the Kremlin's chief propagandists.
The launch of Nomad TV on November 27 is seen as an attempt by Moscow to boost its influence in Central Asia, a region where Russia's clout has taken a hit since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The new TV station will go on air just days before Kyrgyzstan's snap parliamentary elections on November 30. Experts say President Sadyr Japarov, who has rolled back political and media freedoms in the impoverished country, is attempting to use the vote to consolidate power.
Simonyan's Associate At The Helm
Nomad TV will operate 24 hours, seven days a week, out of the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek. Its employees include journalists who worked for state-run Russian media, including Abakumova, who is described as a producer at Nomad TV but is believed to wield considerable influence.
Before she joined the new station, Abakumova was a senior producer for RT, formerly known as Russia Today. After Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, she produced frontline reports from Russian-occupied regions and received several awards from Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin for her work.
During a fundraising event in March 2024, Simonyan, RT's editor-in-chief for 20 years and a Kremlin propagandist, introduced Abakumova as RT's chief producer, highlighting her seniority in the state-run network.
Political analyst Ruslan Akmatbek told RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service that Simonyan is the "most hardened of Russia's propagandists."
The analyst described Abakumova as Simonyan's "assistant" and said her role at Nomad TV suggests the Kremlin is attempting to use the station as a tool for spreading propaganda in Kyrgyzstan and the wider Central Asian region.
Simonyan is also on the Board of Trustees of Russia-based nonprofit group Evrazia, which opened a Bishkek office in 2024 and has been training journalists and facilitating trips to Russia.
Evrazia was founded by Ilan Shor, a fugitive Moldovan oligarch convicted of stealing $1 billion through bank fraud who escaped to Russia in 2019 and obtained Russian citizenship.
Recruiting Kyrgyz Journalists
Nomad TV has aggressively recruited dozens of experienced journalists from state and private stations in Kyrgyzstan with offers of high salaries.
Several reporters from the state broadcaster NTRK have moved to Nomad TV, including well-known presenter Mirbek Moldakunov.
Ilyazbek Baltashev, director of Channel 7 and chairman of the Union of Journalists of Kyrgyzstan, said the salaries offered by the new station were too enticing for local journalists to turn down.
"They call journalists and ask, 'How much do you make?' If someone says, 'I get 50,000 soms,' they immediately say, 'I'll give you 100,000 soms,' and pull them away," he said.
Dozens of Russian television channels already broadcast in Kyrgyzstan. Russian state news agency Sputnik has operated in the country since 2014.
In 2022, YouTube closed channels run by Russian state media on the video-sharing platform, a move that has hit their influence in Central Asia.
Akmatbek said the Kremlin is worried about "losing its sphere of influence" in Central Asia.
"Leaders in Central Asian countries are speaking English, building relations with the West. Turkey is taking action on one side, China on the other. And there's the war with Ukraine," he said. "This is an attempt [by Russia] to keep us in their grip for the long-term."
