Esen Tolenovich Topoev () is a Kyrgyz general and the former Minister of Defense of Kyrgyzstan.

Career

Soviet Army service

He was born on 28 February 1952 in the city of Kyzyl-Kiya. He joined the

Soviet Army The Soviet Ground Forces () was the land warfare service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces from 1946 to 1992. It was preceded by the Red Army. After the Soviet Union ceased to exist in December 1991, the Ground Forces remained under th ...

in 1969 and studied at the Tashkent Higher All-Arms Command School before graduating in 1973. He was immediately sent to the

Hungarian People's Republic The Hungarian People's Republic (HPR) was a landlocked country in Central Europe from its formation on 20 August 1949 until the establishment of the current Hungary, Republic of Hungary on 23 October 1989. It was a professed Communist_state# ...

where he commander a motorized rifle platoon in the

Southern Group of Forces The Southern Group of Forces (YUGV) was a Soviet Armed Forces formation formed twice following the Second World War, most notably around the time of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. First Formation On June 15, 1945, the 26th and 37th Armies (fr ...

. He was recalled three years later to serve in the

North Caucasus Military District The North Caucasus Military District was a military district of the Russian Armed Forces from 1992-2010. Before 1992 it had been part of the Soviet Armed Forces since 1918. In 2010 it became the Southern Military District and lately also included t ...

in southern

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

as a regimental commander. He graduated from the

Frunze Military Academy The M. V. Frunze Military Academy (), or in full the Military Order of Lenin and the October Revolution, Red Banner, Order of Suvorov Academy in the name of M. V. Frunze (), was a military academy of the Soviet and later the Russian Armed Forces ...

(now the

Combined Arms Academy of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation The Combined Arms Academy of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation is a military academy in Moscow which provides graduate education for officers of the Russian Armed Forces. The full name reads: ''The Combined Academies Order of Lenin Order ...

) in 1985. From then on until the

fall of the Soviet Union The Soviet Union was formally dissolved as a sovereign state and subject of international law on 26 December 1991 by Declaration No. 142-N of the Soviet of Nationalities, Soviet of the Republics of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. :s: ...

, he served in various units in eastern Russia including a rifle unit in

Blagoveshchensk Blagoveshchensk ( rus, Благовещенск, p=bləɡɐˈvʲeɕːɪnsk, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Amur Oblast, Russia. It is located at the confluence of the Amur River, Amur and the ...

Studies and service in Russia

In the early and mid 1990s, he was an officer in the

Russian Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, commonly referred to as the Russian Armed Forces, are the military of Russia. They are organized into three service branches—the Russian Ground Forces, Ground Forces, Russian Navy, Navy, and Russi ...

during which he also continued his studies. From 1992-93, he was the Deputy Commander of the 8th Motor Rifle Division in the

Far Eastern Military District The Far Eastern Military District () was a military district of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. In 2010 it was merged with the Pacific Fleet and part of the Siberian Military District to form the new Eastern Military District. Histo ...

. He graduated from the

Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia The Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation () is the senior staff college of the Russian Armed Forces. The academy is located in Moscow, on 14 Kholzunova Lane. It was founded in 1936 as a Soviet inst ...

Return to Kyrgyzstan

He returned in 1995 and immediately became the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Kyrgyz Republic, a position he would stay in until 1999. The year he was dismissed was also the year in which he briefly served as the Head of the State Security Service and concurrently as the Secretary of the Security Council of Kyrgyzstan. Soon after the start of the Batken Conflict, he was deployed into the war zone. On 29 August 1999, Topoev, a Major General at the time, was appointed Minister of Defense to replace General Myrzakan Subanov after what the government called a failure to "stabilize the situation" by Subanov."Kyrgyz Troops Kill 10 Gunmen in Hostage Crisis"
(25 August 1999).

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

, ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

''. Retrieved 1 January 2012. As a result of his appointment, he led all of the military operations in the subsequent stages of the operation. He presided over the opening of the

Kant Air Base in October 2003. During a meeting with a visiting an American delegation, Topoev criticized at the US's role in the War on Terror by quipping, "Tell your President in America that he should be careful who he sells arms to. This happened to you because America gave weapons to Afghanistan and Pakistan to fight the Soviets." Having become one of the closest officials to President

Askar Akayev Askar Akayevich Akayev (, ; born 10 November 1944) is a Kyrgyz former politician who served as President of Kyrgyzstan from 1990 until being overthrown in the March 2005 Tulip Revolution. Education and early career Akayev was born in Kyzyl-B ...

, Topoev rapidly rose in military ranks, becoming a

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

two months after his appointment before becoming a

Colonel General Colonel general is a military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically General officer#Old European system, general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, ...

in 2002 and a

General of the Army Army general or General of the army is the highest ranked general officer in many countries that use the French Revolutionary System. Army general is normally the highest rank used in peacetime. In countries that adopt the general officer fou ...

in August 2004 (the only such person with this military rank in independent Kyrgyzstan). During the 2005

Tulip Revolution The Tulip Revolution, also known as the First Kyrgyz Revolution, led to Kyrgyzstan's then-President of Kyrgyzstan, President Askar Akayev's fall from power. The revolution began after Kyrgyz parliamentary elections, 2005, parliamentary elections ...

, he tendered his

letter of resignation Resignation is the formal act of relinquishing or vacating one's office or position. A resignation can occur when a person holding a position gained by election or appointment steps down, but leaving a position upon the expiration of a term, or ...

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Bakiyev and immediately left the country. According to media reports, Topoev currently lives in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

where he is in exile as an adviser to general director of "Rosoboronexport".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Topoev, Esen 1952 births Living people Kyrgyzstani military personnel Ministers of defence of Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstani generals Chiefs of the General Staff (Kyrgyzstan) Tashkent Higher All-Arms Command School alumni