Boris Alexandrovich Yugai (; ; 15 November 1957 - 12 March 2010) was a Kyrgyz

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

and military leader who served as the Chief of the Armed Forces General Staff from March 2007 to June 2008 under President

Kurmanbek Bakiyev Kurmanbek Saliyevich Bakiyev (, ''Kurmanbek Saliyevich (Sali Uulu) Bakiyev''; born 1 August 1949) is a Kyrgyz politician who served as the second President of Kyrgyzstan, from 2005 to 2010. Large opposition protests in April 2010 led to the tak ...

. Yugai was generally regarded as an important figure in the military, often enjoying strong support among military personnel.

Early life and career

He was born on 15 November 1957 in Georgievka in the Dzhambul Region of the

Kazakh SSR ; kk, Қазақ Советтік Социалистік Республикасы) *1991: Republic of Kazakhstan (russian: Республика Казахстан; kk, Қазақстан Республикасы) , linking_name = the ...

(now Korday,

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

). Yugai was

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

by ethnicity and was fluent in the

Korean language Korean ( South Korean: , ''hangugeo''; North Korean: , ''chosŏnmal'') is the native language for about 80 million people, mostly of Korean descent. It is the official and national language of both North Korea and South Korea (geographic ...

outside of

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

and Kyrgyz. In 1979, he graduated from the Leningrad Higher Artillery Command School, majoring in mathematics. He took part in the

Soviet–Afghan War The Soviet–Afghan War was a protracted armed conflict fought in the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan from 1979 to 1989. It saw extensive fighting between the Soviet Union and the Afghan mujahideen (alongside smaller groups of anti-Soviet ...

as part of a

Soviet Army uk, Радянська армія , image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army , start_date ...

contingent from 1980 to 1982. Throughout his time in the army, he was mostly based in

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked cou ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...

. After the creation of the

Armed Forces of the Kyrgyz Republic The Armed Forces of the Kyrgyz Republic (; Kyrǵyz Respublikasynyn Kuralduu Küctörü) is the national military of Kyrgyzstan. It was originally formed from the former Soviet forces of the Turkestan Military District stationed in newly independe ...

, he immediately took a commission in the

Kyrgyz Army The Kyrgyz Ground Forces, also commonly known as the Kyrgyz Army is the infantry branch of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan. History In April 1992, Kyrgyzstan formed a State Committee for Defense Affairs, and in June the republic ...

as a platoon commander. As an officer, he took part in the elimination of the militants of the

Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU; uz, Ўзбекистон исломий ҳаракати/Oʻzbekiston islomiy harakati; russian: Исламское движение Узбекистана ) was a militant Islamist group formed in 1998 ...

in southern Kyrgyzstan during the

Batken Conflict The Batken Conflict (, ) was a period of armed clashes between militants of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) and the Armed Forces of Kyrgyzstan, with support to the latter being provided by the Uzbek Ground Forces. It was caused by incursi ...

. From December 2000-October 2002, Yugai, served as the Head of the Main Organization and Mobilization Directorate of the General Staff. During this period, he graduated from academic courses at 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 (russian: Военная академия Генерального штаба Вооруженных Сил Российской Федерации) is the s ...

in 2001. He was appointed Deputy Minister of National Defense on October 2002 and

Chief of the General Staff The Chief of the General Staff (CGS) is a post in many armed forces (militaries), the head of the military staff. List * Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff ( United States) * Chief of the General Staff (Abkhazia) * Chief of General Staff (Af ...

/First Deputy Minister of Defense of Kyrgyzstan on 14 March 2007. From October 2007, he was also concurrently the Chief of the Joint Staff of the

Collective Security Treaty Organization The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) is an intergovernmental military alliance in Eurasia consisting of six post-Soviet states The post-Soviet states, also known as the former Soviet Union (FSU), the former Soviet Republics ...

. He served until 24 June 2008 and was replaced by

Abibilla Kudayberdiev Abibilla Kudayberdiev (Kyrgyz and Russian: Абибилла Кудайбердиев born June 1, 1962) is the former Minister of Defense of Kyrgyzstan. Biography He was born on June 1, 1962 in the Nookat District, in the city of Osh. In 1983 ...

. n 2008-2009, he was interrogated in connection with the criminal case of former Defense Minister

Ismail Isakov Ismail Isakovich Isakov ( ky, Исмаил Исакович (Исак уулу) Исаков, born 11 June 1950) is a Kyrgyz politician and a Lieutenant General in the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan. Early life and education Ismail ...

and was accused of abuse of power. In October 2009, the case was dropped.

Death

He died in

Bishkek Bishkek ( ky, Бишкек), ), formerly Pishpek and Frunze, is the capital and largest city of Kyrgyzstan. Bishkek is also the administrative centre of the Chüy Region. The region surrounds the city, although the city itself is not part of ...

in March 2010 as a result of a heart attack. Kyrgyz media mostly avoided reporting Yugai’s death despite his regard in the army.

Personal life

The youngest of three boys, his eldest brother is the dean of a university, and his second brother is a university professor. He also has a younger sister, who is a cardiologist. His wife, Natasha, was also of Korean descent.

Awards

Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" The Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" (russian: Орден «За службу Родине в Вооружённых Силах СССР»), also known as the Order "For Service to the Motherland in the Armed For ...

1st and 2nd Degree *Medal "To the Soldier-Internationalist from the Grateful Afghan People" *

Order of Friendship The Order of Friendship (russian: Орден Дружбы, ') is a state decoration of the Russian Federation established by Boris Yeltsin by presidential decree 442 of 2 March 1994 to reward Russian and foreign nationals whose work, deeds a ...

Medal "For Impeccable Service" The Medal "For Impeccable Service" (russian: Медаль «За безупречную службу») was a Soviet military award for long service awarded to deserving members of the military personnel of the armed forces of the USSR, of the Int ...

1st Degree () *Medal "10 years of the Armed Forces of the Kyrgyz Republic"

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yugai, Boris 1957 births 2010 deaths People from Jambyl Region Kyrgyzstani generals Chiefs of the General Staff (Kyrgyzstan) Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia alumni Soviet military personnel of the Soviet–Afghan War Kyrgyzstani people of Korean descent Soviet people of Korean descent Koryo-saram Soviet Army officers