BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, Oct. 24 (UPI) -- Whoever wins Sunday's presidential election in Kyrgyzstan has a myriad of geopolitical challenges to address that could affect the region, analysis finds.
Kyrgyz voters head to the polls next weekend to pick their next president. The election is the first since an April 2010 coup forced former President Kurmanbek Bakiyev to flee to Belarus. Following the coup, at least 470 people were killed in ethnic conflicts near Osh and Jalal Abad.
Private intelligence company Strafor said that because of the mountainous terrain, the country is more or less divided along ethnic lines. The government in the past, Stratfor adds, is known to exploit the regional terrorism threat to earn favors from the United States and Russia.
Kyrgyzstan is the only country that hosts military bases from both of the Cold War rivals.
Meanwhile, Stratfor notes, protests have occurred on a regular basis since the 2010 uprising. As recently as Tuesday, roughly 200 protesters blocked a highway in the south of the country to call for the release of four policemen accused of playing a role in the death of an Uzbek national.
Rights groups monitoring the situation in Kyrgyzstan note the country has a long way to go to repair ethnic wounds.
There are 24 candidates competing in the Sunday election. Kyrgyz President Roza Otunbayeva is ineligible for a second term. Her term expires Dec. 31.
