President Appoints New Deputy Prime Minister
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 13: President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov signed a decree on appointing a new deputy prime minister in charge of construction, industry, communal services and transport sectors. According to the decree, Ravshan Fayzullaev will take on the post of the deputy prime minister and head of the complex on construction, industry, construction materials, communal services and transport. Earlier Qozim Tulaganov served at this post. Recently Tulyaganov was appointed as governor of Tashkent region.
Turkmenistan: People Cleared To Smarten Up Capital
Institute for War & Peace Reporting
Ashgabat., February 13: As Ashgabat is reinvented into a modern city, some of its residents are paying the price as their homes disappear. Walking through a sleepy district of downtown Ashgabat, the Turkmen capital, we suddenly found ourselves in an area that had been completely devastated. If we`d come here a few days before, we would have found streets lined with modest, one-story houses with children laughing in flower-gardens. We were too late - all that was left was ruins, here and there a wall still standing, and everywhere the roar of excavators and other heavy machinery. In the chaos, we ran into a handful of residents trying to dismantle what was left of their outbuildings to save the bricks and wooden plank. They - and many more like them - had just been summarily evicted to fulfil the grand plans of President Saparmurat Niazov to build a Disneyland-style amusement park. The park development is just the latest project in the Turkmen capital`s ongoing facelift. New buildings in marble and plate glass are being thrown up all the time, lending the city a superficially modern aspect.
Turkmenistan To Publicize Achievements With New TV Channel - President
Interfax
Ashgabat, February 13: Turkmenistan is planning to launch a new TV channel to publicize its economic achievements. `Enough of keeping silent! We must explain what we are doing,` Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov announced on national television on Thursday. `The world does not know what is happening in Turkmenistan. We are constructing enormous buildings, we are building the Turkmen lake in the Karakum desert for future generations. We are building a man-made lake in Tejen and building highways, factories and plants. And in spite of this we are not letting living standards decline. They do not know about this abroad,` Niyazov said. `Nobody will know anything about us if we do not tell them about our own country,` he said. The new channel will have broadcasts in European languages, including Russian, and in Asian languages. Students of the Turkmen institute of world languages will act as trainee editors and news anchors to simultaneously improve their language skills, he said. The Foreign Ministry and the office of the deputy prime minister in charge of culture and information will oversee the choice and content of information to be released on the channel.
New Georgian Defence, Education Ministers Named
Radio Free Europe
Tbilisi, February 12: Deputy Defense Minister Gela Bezhuashvili told journalists in Tbilisi on 12 February he has accepted an offer from Minister of State Zurab Zhvania to head the Defense Ministry, Georgian media reported. Bezhuashvili has abandoned a one-year course of study at Harvard to take up his new post. Also on 12 February, Zhvania named Kakha Lomaya to head the Education Ministry, Caucasus Press reported. Some parliament deputies objected to that proposal on the grounds that Lomaya previously headed the Soros Fund Office in Tbilisi for several years, according to ITAR-TASS on 12 February.
Kyrgyz Parliament To Adopt Bill On State Language
Kabar Agency
Bishkek, February 12: The Legislative Assembly of the KR adopted the Bill on `state language of the Kyrgyz Republic` presented by Askar Akaev. `Kyrgyzstan is bilingual country, the official language of the Constitution is Russian language. The adopted bill meets the bilingual state policy `- has noted State Secretary of the KR Osmonakun Ibraimov. The 10th clause of the project caused discussions among deputies according to which officials must know state language in order to implement duties properly. List of the officials obliged to learn state language will be determined by the Government KR. The adopted bill caused many opponents among deputies and became compulsory tool. Such approach will divide the power instead of development of the language, considers deputy speaker of lawmakers Kubatbek Baibolov. In the opinion of the bill supporters, the bill does not touch the rights of citizens who do not know state language.
Tajikistan: Islamic Party Slams Banned Rival
Institute for War & Peace Reporting
Dushanbe, February 11: Central Asia`s only legal Islamic party polishes its image by attacking clandestine group. The Islamic opposition party in Tajikistan has spoken out against the radical Hizb-ut-Tahrir group, in a bid to stake out a position as the only legitimate voice for Muslim political aspirations ahead of next year`s general election. The Islamic Rebirth Party, IRP, is the only legal Islamic party in Central Asia, but in the past year it has come under increasing pressure from the authorities. The IRP holds just two seats in parliament, and will need to work hard to broaden its appeal among voters if it is to do better in the 2005 election. But there are fears that younger Islamists may desert it in favour of Hizb-ut-Tahrir, a banned group which appears to be gaining grassroots support despite continuing arrests of its members. In an interview with IWPR, the party`s deputy chairman Muhiddin Kabiri dismissed speculation that Hizb ut-Tahrir might develop into a feasible political alternative, `There is no need for another Islamic political party in Tajikistan.` IRP leader Sayyed Abdullo Nuri had earlier made similar comments in an interview published in the party`s Najot newspaper. Kabiri drew a clear line between the IRP`s views and those of the underground movement. While his own party supports democratic principles, he said, Hizb-ut-Tahrir is foreign-funded, operates illegally and is hostile to the current constitutional set-up in Tajikistan. The party official stamped on the idea that the two groups could somehow be equated as options for political Islam, saying that even the most cursory comparison shows how drastically their aims differ, `Unlike Hizb ut-Tahrir, the IRP is not a trans-national party, its activities are confined to Tajikistan and it operates within the framework of the country`s constitution.` `The IRP believes that the democratic freedoms accepted by the international community are compatible with the ideas and norms of Islam,` he said, contrasting this with the Hizb ut-Tahrir axiom that the modern secular state is a western import and should be replaced by a `caliphate`.
`Velvet Discrimination` In Kyrgyzstan
Institute for War & Peace Reporting
Bishkek, February 11: As Kyrgyzstan`s parliament discusses a controversial language law, members of the substantial Russian minority say they increasingly feel excluded from positions of power. Community representatives told IWPR that while Russians do not face overt hostility or discrimination, they sense that there is no future for them in the Central Asian republic. The proposed law would boost the use of Kyrgyz in public life, making it a requirement that top government officials have a good knowledge of the language and that it is the main language used in official communications. Russian is currently used for many official purposes. There are also provisions to set media outlets a `quota` for the percentage of airtime or column space in Kyrgyz rather than Russian, and encourage greater use of the language in the education system. The law is clearly designed to address a situation where, after a period in the early Nineties when Kyrgyz was actively promoted as a vehicle for national identity, Russian has quietly re-established itself as the main language of administration. But the substantial Russian minority, left behind after the fall of the Soviet Union, watches government policy closely for any sign that its status and rights are being diminished. Many already feel beleaguered, not by racism but by the petty obstructions they say are laid in their way because they are not ethnically Kyrgyz.
Saakashvili Says Shevardnadze Will Write Memoirs
Itar-Tass
Moscow, February 11: Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said there was no political future for his predecessor Eduard Shevardnadze. He told a press conference at Itar-Tass on Wednesday that Shevardnadze should `remain a pensioner and write memoirs`. `We will hope that these memoirs will be interesting,` he said. But `It is unlikely that he will become an active politician again,` he added.
Armenian Officials Deny Split With Ruling Coalition
Radio Free Europe
Yerevan, February 10: Defense Minister Serzh Sarkisian denied on 10 February that criticisms of the three-party-coalition government by members of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutiun (HHD), one of the two coalition junior partners, reflect a serious rift within the coalition, according to Mediamax, as cited by Groong. Addressing a HHD congress on 6 February, Hrant Markarian criticized President Robert Kocharian for his alleged toleration of corruption and failure to rein in powerful oligarchs. He also implied that Prime Minister Andranik Markarian`s Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) falsified the outcome of last year`s presidential and parliamentary elections. Also on 10 February, a spokesman for Kocharian admitted that `the political forces making up the coalition government might have different approaches to different issues,` but at the same time he expressed confidence that the government will continue to function effectively.
Kyrgyz President Hails 2003 As `not Bad`
Kabar Agency
Bishkek, February 10: Kyrgyz President Askar Akayev has hailed the year 2003 as `not a bad year` in terms of economic indices and `the results achieved in terms of poverty reduction`. Speaking at an expanded government session, he said that Kyrgyzstan `entered a period of stable growth and that the most difficult reforms are now over`. He also urged the government and governors `to rid its ranks of corrupt people`.
Parliament To Vote On Zurab Zhvania`s Nomination As Georgian PM
The Moscow Times
Tibilsi, February 9: Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili told reporters on Monday that he had asked parliament to confirm his nomination of Zurab Zhvania as prime minister. Saakashvili also said he named Zurab Adeishvili state security minister. Adeishvili is currently justice minister. `The incumbent minister of state security, Valeri Khaburdzania, is a serious [member of government], and he will definitely remain at one of the posts in the government apparatus,` Saakashvili said
Kyrgyz President Continues Top Personnel Changes
Radio Free Europe
Bishkek, February 9: Kyrgyz President Askar Akaev continued on 9 February the turnover in top government personnel he announced on 7 February as part of a thoroughgoing restructuring of the Kyrgyz government, akipress.org reported. Azamat Kangeldiev, formerly head of the national Accounting Office, had been appointed governor of Chui Oblast, replacing Toichubek Kasymov, who has been named to head the presidential administration. So far the restructuring process has consisted of moving top officials from one job to another, causing some Kyrgyz political observers to note that the structure might be new, but the faces are the same.
President Of Kyrgyzstan Askar Akaev Announced A New Structure Of The Government Of Kyrgyzstan
Kabar Agency
Bishkek, February 9: According to announced new structure of the government of Kyrgyzstan, Prime Minister Nikolai Tanaev will govern the Cabinet of Ministers. Kubanychbek Jumaliev is appointed instead of K. Osmonov as the First Deputy Prime Minister. He is also the Minister of Transport and Communication. Former Director of the State Agency on Energy Ularbek Mateev is appointed as the Vice-Premier for Social Affairs. No change concerning to another Deputy Prime Minister Joomart Otorbaev. He remains as the Special Representatives of the Kyrgyz President on Attracting Investments and to lead the Secretariat of Special Representative. The personal staff of the whole government will be considered at a session of the People`s Representative Assembly of the Kyrgyz Parliament in March 2004. Ishengul Boljurova is appointed as the Acting Minister of Education, Ravshan Jeenbekov is appointed as the Acting Chairman of the State Committee on Managing State Properties. The both of them headed their department before changes in the government`s structure. Emil Uzakbaev is appointed a new Head of the State Agency on Energy. Before, he headed the abolished Antimonopoly Committee. Ex-Prime-Minister Amangeldi Muraliev, who before headed the Kyrgyz Stock Exchange, is appointed as the Minister of Economic Development, Industry and Trade. President A. Akaev has also announced changes in his administration. According to his decree, Governor of Chui Oblast is appointed the Head of his administration. Bolot Januzakov is appointed the first deputy head of the administration. The former Ambassador of Kyrgyzsan to Austria Alikbek Jekshenkulov is appointed the head of the foreign policy department. Besides, the Law on government`s structure came into effect. It was proposed by President of Kyrgyzstan Askar Akaev and approved by the People`s Representative Assembly of the Kyrgyz Parliament. According to the Law, the new structure of the government includes: Ministry of Interior Affairs; Healthcare; Foreign Affairs; Education; Agriculture, Water Resources and Processing Industry; Transport and Communication; Labor and Social Protection; Finance; Ecology and Extreme Situations; Economic Development, Industry and Commerce; Justice. Besides, State Committee on Tourism, Sport and Youth Policy; State Committee on Managing State Properties.
Uzbek Leader Calls To Develop Own Programmer`s School
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 8: We have chosen the right model of transition from the planned economy to socially-oriented market economy, President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov said at the session of the Cabinet of Ministers dedicated to 2003 results. The policy of liberalisation of economy, following the main principles of free economy and entrepreneurship is giving its results, he said. The head of the state said the development of the economy based on using raw materials was wrong. He noted that natural resources were limited and such a policy would lead to lop-sided development and weak economy. The economy built on structural reforms and modernisation of capacities, development of competitive sectors will ensure prosperity of the people and economic growth, Islam Karimov said. The President said that reforms in politics, state construction and legal system should be carried out simultaneously with economic reforms.
Georgia Creates PM Post
The Advertiser
Tbilisi, February 8: GEORGIA`S parliament yesterday adopted constitutional changes proposed by its new president that reintroduce a prime minister`s post in the former Soviet republic. Mikhail Saakashvili, the 36-year-old US-educated lawyer who swept to power after peacefully ousting veteran leader Eduard Shevardnadze last year, had presented the plan as a more even distribution of powers in a country in urgent need of reforms. But opponents had denounced it as an attempt to strengthen the power of a Saakashvili ally who had joined forces with the firebrand during Shevardnadze`s ouster, known here as the `rose revolution`. Georgia briefly had a prime minister following its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, but the constitution adopted in 1995 after Shevardnadze ascended to the presidency abolished the post. Saakashvili announced plans to reestablish the position immediately after November`s `rose revolution` and to appoint to it Zurab Zhvaniya, who joined forces with him in Shevardnadze`s ouster and is currently state minister.
President Criticises Farmers Association, Governors
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 7: President Islam Karimov criticised the Farmers Association for not assisting farmers in solving their problems. The association is only working formally, he said at the Cabinet session on Saturday. The farmers do not receive fuel, fertilisers, machinery and other necessary tools in time, and sometimes local authorities even create barriers in their work. The President noted it was unclear whose rights the association was protecting. Development of farmers` movement determines Uzbekistan`s tomorrow, the President said. He underlines that supporting farmers was one of the priorities of the state policy. Islam Karimov blamed the governors for hiding problems and reporting wrong information. He said some governors were blaming third parties for failure to deliver fuel, fertilisers, seeds or to issue credits in time.
Armenian Peacekeeping Detachment Leaves For Kosovo
Radio Free Europe
Yerevan, February 12: A detachment of 33 Armenian servicemen on 12 February flew to Kosova, where they will serve in the NATO-led multinational peacekeeping force as part of a Greek peacekeeping battalion, Noyan Tapan and RFE/RL`s Yerevan bureau reported. It is the first time that Armenian servicemen have participated in such a mission abroad. The Greek government has provided the Armenian servicemen with military equipment, including flak jackets and night-vision binoculars, and will pay them a daily allowance of 12 euros ($15) during their six-month tour of duty.
Georgian Peacekeepers Departure For Iraq Delayed
Radio Free Europe
Tbilisi, February 12: A group of 217 Georgian peacekeeping troops who were originally scheduled to leave for Iraq on 2 February to augment the Georgian military experts already serving there has still not left Tbilisi, Georgian media reported. Their departure was first postponed until 9 February because no U.S. transport aircraft are available, according to Caucasus Press on 5 February. It has since been again delayed until 20 February for the same reason, Caucasus Press reported on 13 February.
Russo-Georgian Protocol On Border Cooperation
Itar-Tass
Moscow, February 12: The protocol on exchanges of information, which the chiefs of the Georgian and Russian border guard services, Vladimir Pronichev and Valery Chkheidze, had signed in Moscow `is a logical continuation of the process of cooperation between the two countries in this domain,` Deputy Head of the Russian Border Guard Service Lieutenant-General Alexander Manilov told Itar-Tass on Thursday. The document, which was initialled during Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili`s visit to Russia, lays down the procedure of exchanging information on the situation along the border at the levels of border post commanders and chiefs of the border guard services of the two countries. `The protocol that was initialled in Moscow originated back in 1998, when cooperation along the border between the two countries was raised to government level and began to develop dynamically. This cooperation is designed to guarantee security on the borders of the two countries,` the lieutenant-general stated. According to Chkheidze, Vladimir Pronichev is to pay a visit to Tbilisi in March or April. `In accordance with the Georgian and Russian presidents` instruction, officials of the border guards services of the two countries are to work out instruments for exercising joint control over the state borders of the two countries and for jointly patrolling them,` Chkheidze stated. The Russo-Georgian border is almost 900 kilometres long, including the most difficult 81-kilometre Chechen sector.
No Foreign Troops In Georgia After Russia Leaves - President
Interfax
Moscow, February 12: Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili does not believe it is possible to place the military bases of other countries on the territory of Georgia after the Russian military bases have been withdrawn. As to when the Russian based will be withdrawn, the president believes this issue is governed by the Istanbul OSCE agreements. `Like one well-known book character said, bargaining is absolutely unacceptable here,` he told a news conference in Moscow on Wednesday. At the same time, Saakashvili said: `The issue of Russian military bases in Georgia cannot be the main one in our relations.` `This issue is important, it is important to Georgia, but we cannot allow it to darken our relations,` he said. Saakashvili said the Russian bases have no military importance in Georgia. He also expressed hopes that Georgia`s new defense minister will work more closely with his Russian colleagues.
Russia Has No Plans To Build Up Military Presence In Abkhazia
Itar-Tass
Moscow, February 11: Russia cannot stay indifferent to what has been going on in Abkhazia, in particular, in the sphere of security, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said after a meeting with Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili. `However, we are not going to build up military presence in Abkhazia. Our mandate there has very strict limits,` Ivanov said. `Over the years the peacekeeping contingent has been present in Abkhazia 90 Russians were killed there. The situation remains unsettled to this day,` he said.
US Gives More Vehicles, Equipment To Uzbek Customs And Border Services
Radio Free Europe
Tashkent, February 11: The U.S. government presented vehicles and equipment worth $1.19 million to Uzbekistan`s Customs and Border services at a ceremony in Tashkent on 11 February, RIA-Novosti and Interfax reported. The assistance is part of the Export Control and Border Security Program, under which Uzbekistan has received more than $5 million worth of equipment and training since 2000. The program is financed by the U.S. State Department. Further substantial gifts to Uzbekistan are planned for this year and next, including two patrol boats for use on the Amu Darya River.
Russia Plans To Set Up Military Base In Tajikistan
Itar-Tass
Dushanbe, February 11: Working groups of the Russian and Tajik defence ministries are examining the main aspects of bilateral military cooperation at talks in Dushanbe, Tass learnt on Wednesday from press center chief of the Tajik Defence Ministry Zarubiddin Sirodzhev. The sides concentrate on `questions of establishing a Russian military base in Tajikistan`. According to the spokesman, `military experts should agree the entire package of questions on the base and submit them for the consideration of the Russian-Tajik intergovernmental commission`. The press center chief noted that reporters would receive additional information on the results of talks between the working groups. The Tajik working group at talks is led by head of the Chief Staff of the Armed Forces Ramil Nadyrov and the Russian - representative of the Russian Defence Ministry Albert Druzhinin. The treaty on `the status and conditions of the stay of the Russian military base in the territory of the Republic of Tajikistan` was signed on April 16, 1999 by President Emomali Rakhmonov during his official visit to Russia. The Tajik parliament ratified the Treaty in November of the same year, while the Russian State Duma - in February 2001. The sides are to prepare a package of agreements in addition to the basic document. They will lay down under what conditions the Russian military contingent will stay in the republic. The talks on draft agreements continue for slightly less than a year. Despite the present differences, the Tajik side in the person of the leaders of the Foreign Ministry and the Defence Ministry repeatedly stated that there are no principled obstacles to creating a Russian military base in the Tajik territory.
Iran Supports Demilitarization Of Caspian
Interfax
Baku, February 9: Iran supports the proposal of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to demilitarize the Caspian Sea, Iranian ambassador to Baku Ahad Gazai told a Monday news conference. `We also favor the transformation of the Caspian into a sea of peace. We are convinced that an arms buildup there does not meet the interests of a single country in the region,` he said. Gazai said demilitarizing the Caspian would promote the more effective use of the sea`s natural and biological resources by littoral countries and promote trade and economic ties, in particular the development of the North-South transport corridor. `We are not interfering in the affairs of other states. At the same time, we believe that the longer the Caspian remains a sea of peace and cooperation, the more the littoral countries will gain,` the ambassador said.
Kazakh Official Travel To Guantanamo To Protect Citizens` Rights
Radio Free Europe
Astana, February 12: A group of Kazakh government officials has set out for Guantanamo Bay to `protect the rights of Kazakh citizens,` Foreign Ministry Consular Department Director Valikhan Konurbaev told a news conference in Astana on 12 February, gazeta.kz reported. Four Kazakh citizens have been incarcerated at Guantanamo since their capture by U.S. troops during military operations in Afghanistan in 2001. The Kazakh Foreign Ministry has repeatedly attempted to raise the issue of the Kazakh prisoners, but Kazakhstan and the U.S. military disagree on the status of the detainees.
Georgian Guerrilla Formation Disbands
Radio Free Europe
Tbilisi, February 11: David Shengelia announced on 11 February the self-liquidation of the Forest Brothers guerrilla formation of which he was commander, Georgian media and ITAR-TASS reported. He handed over to police a large quantity of armaments, including two grenade launchers, 17 antitank missiles, one antiaircraft system, and several hundred automatic rifles, together with a large amount of ammunition. Shengelia said the new Georgian leadership does not need the guerrillas, and that he will move to Tbilisi for his personal safety as he `made too many enemies` in western Georgia. Georgian police announced last month the arrest of several men allegedly sent from Abkhazia to murder Shengelia (see `RFE/RL Newsline,` 20 January 2004). It is unclear whether the other guerrilla formation, the White Legion, similarly intends to disband.
Tbilisi: Russia Was Warned Of Attack
The Moscow Times
Moscow, February 9: A man showed up at the Russian Embassy in Tbilisi a day before the metro blast and warned that Chechen rebels planned to carry out a `huge` terrorist attack in Moscow on Friday, Georgia`s state security minister said Monday. The announcement came as investigators said Friday`s explosion bore the trademarks of a train suicide bombing in Stavropol last year and Moscow observed a day of mourning. The blast in the metro tunnel near the Avtozavodskaya station killed at least 39 people. President Vladimir Putin has blamed Chechen rebels. Georgian Security Minister Valery Khaburdzania said the man was recruited by authorities in the breakaway region of Abkhazia who knew of the bombing in advance and plotted to place the blame for the attack on Georgia, Interfax reported. He said the man, Nazir Aidabolov, a Russian citizen from the republic of Kabardino-Balkaria, was told to go to Georgia`s Pankisi Gorge and collect the names of several Chechens there that he could later give to Federal Security Service officials at the Russian Embassy.
Uzbek Foreign Minister Condemns Moscow Blast
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 7: Foreign Minister of Uzbekistan Sadyk Safaev expressed his sympathy to the government of Russia in connection with the terrorist act in Moscow. `The news on terrorist act in Moscow underground caused deep indignation. The explosion in the capital of the Russian Federation early Friday morning showed to the whole world the real nature of terrorism and why it shall be fought everywhere where it exists. `Fight terrorism should become a new global challenge in the 21st century. I share your sorrow and express condolences to the relatives of the victims. `I think fast and determined actions against terrorism are required for lives of innocent people depend on this. Terrorism breaks cannons of all religions, norms of honour and moral,` the minister said.
Kazakhstan Posts Gov`t Budget Deficit Of 1% Of GDP In 2003
Interfax
Almaty, February 13: In 2003, Kazakhstan had a government budget deficit of 46.9 billion tenge, or 1.05% of GDP, the National Statistical Agency told Interfax. In Kazakhstan, the national budget comprises both the government budget and local budgets. Government budget revenues stood at 722 billion tenge, up 27.7% against 2002, and spending together with issued loans at 768.9 billion tenge, up 42%. Taxes, subsidies from the national budget, and returns on state property constituted 89.9% of revenues. The share of social spending in total expenses was 35.2%, and spending on general government services reached 21.5%. National budget revenues rose 24.5% year-on-year to 1.022 trillion tenge.
Kazakhstan`s Economy Grows 9.2% In 2003
Interfax
Almaty, February 13: Kazakhstan`s GDP grew tentatively 9.2% in real terms to 4.449 trillion tenge (139.17 tenge/$1) in 2003, the national statistical agency told Interfax. The agency said industrial output grew 8.8%, farm output grew 1.4% and construction industry output increased 12.4%. The agency also reported growth of 7.8% in transport, 24.8% in communications and 10% in trade. Forecast GDP is 4.877 trillion tenge in 2003, 7%-7.5% more than in 2003.
Fixed Capital Investment In Turkmenistan Rises 21%
Interfax
Ashgabat, February 12: Fixed capital investment in Turkmenistan grew 21% in 2003 to 15.06 trillion manat, the National Statistics and Information Institute told Interfax. The share of investment from government funds rose to 30% from 25% and totaled 4.5 trillion manat, and investment from centralized and local budgets rose to 5% from 4% and was 750 billion manat. The share of investment from company funds dropped to 40% from 45% and was 6.1 trillion manat, investment from the population dropped to 6% from 8% and was 904 billion manat, and foreign loans slid to 1% from 2% and totaled 143 billion manat. Foreign investment remained at around 5% and totaled 710 billion manat.
World Bank Funds Water Project In Aral Sea Region
IRIN News
Ankara, February 12: The Government of Uzbekistan and the World Bank signed a Drainage, Irrigation and Wetlands Improvement Project, worth US $74.55 million which is `the first meaningful intervention in the Aral Sea Basin to break a vicious cycle of high water applications, water logging and secondary soil salinisation`, according to Masood Ahmad, head of the World Band team designing the project. The agreement hopes to increase the productivity of irrigated agriculture, employment and incomes, improve the water quality of the Amu Darya River by safe disposal of drainage effluent and enhancing the quality of wetlands in the Amu Darya delta, an accompanying statement said. Ahmad added the project would begin to address the problem by substantially improving drainage conditions and significantly improving water use efficiency in the irrigation sector. The Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources will implement the programme, which will also develop institutions for maintenance of irrigation and drainage systems, and for promoting sustainable irrigated agriculture through participatory irrigation management. The Uzbek Government will invest US $14.55.
Uzbekistan Gas Production Down 0.3% In 2003
Interfax
Tashkent, February 12: Gas production by Uzbek national holding company Uzbekneftegaz fell 0.3% year-on-year to 57.481 bcm in 2003, a source in the Uzbek State Statistics Department told Interfax. According to the statistics, production of oil and gas condensate last year fell 0.9% to 7.134 million tonnes, including 4.387 million tonnes of oil - up 8.1%, and 2.747 million tonnes of condensate - down 12.5%. Uzbekneftegaz refined 5.807 million tonnes of oil in 2003, down 5.5% from the previous year. Gasoline production fell 10.3% to 1.424 million tonnes, including automobile gasoline - down 10.4% to 1.412 million tonnes. Diesel production fell 11% to 1.512 million tonnes, with kerosene production down 9.5% to 387,500 tonnes, furnace oil - up 150% to 148,100 tonnes, heating oil - down 6% to 1.532 million tonnes, and oil bitumen - down 12% to 324,000 tonnes.
Kazakhstan Considers Exempting Individuals From Property Tax
BBC
Astana, February 12: Within the framework of a campaign for the legalization of property, intended to allow legal deals on so-called `shadow` (unregistered) property, Kazakhstan can exempt citizens from the real-estate tax for a period of 3-5 years. The press service of the Kazakhstani Finance Ministry pointed out with reference to a report by Finance Minister Yerbolat Dosayev at a meeting of the Finance Ministry Board that in order to facilitate the economic development of rural areas and the legalization of property by individuals, it was planned to consider the possibility of introducing a zero tax rate for individual property for a period of three to five years. The Finance Ministry believes that budget losses caused by the suspension of this tax, which are estimated at about $10.7m, can be covered through an improvement of the tax administration and audit for other kinds of taxes, the minister underlined.
Kazakhstan, IDB Agree To Cooperate
Interfax
Almaty, February 11: The Kazakhstan Development Bank and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) concluded a memorandum on long-term cooperation in joint investment projects and export operations as part of Kazakhstan`s industrial-innovation development strategy. The Kazakhstan Development Bank`s press service said the sides agreed on having the Islamic Development Bank assist the Kazakh bank in drawing foreign investment from IDB`s member-states to implement projects of major siginificance to the Kazakh economy, including to help develop the power sector, transportation infrastructure and agricultural machine-building. Kazakhstan became an IDB member in 1995.
Uzbekistan Prepares Its Legislation For WTO Accession
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 11: Uzbekistan recently adopted the Law `On protective measures, antidumping and compensational duties`, which, according to experts, shows the country`s seriousness in joining the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The law corresponds to the WTO`s Agreement on protective measures. The latter was adopted after the Uruguay round of negotiations of WTO member states. The agreement, which has 14 articles, provides wide flexibility to WTO member countries in use of protection measures. All protection measures stipulated by this agreement are included in the new law. This means Uzbekistan, which is currently not a WTO member, has virtually undertaken obligation on implementation of the given agreement, as well as the WTO Agreement on antidumping and compensational duties, with its trade partners, for example, the European Union.
Kyrgyztelecom Shares May Be Sold To Rostelecom
Interfax
Bishkek, February 11: The tender commission for the privatization of Kyrgyztelecom will soon enter into negotiations with Rostelecom on selling a 51% stake in the Kyrgyz national telecom operator, acting chairman of the Kyrgyz State Property Management Committee Ravshan Zheyenbekov said at a government session on Wednesday. `After negotiations with the winner in the first stage of the tender on the Kyrgyztelecom sale, the Swedtel company, no consensus was reached. The tender commission will send an official denial to Swedtel in the near future and will start negotiations with the Russian company Rostelecom, which was the runner-up in the tender,` he said. Six companies bid in the tender on selling a stake in Kyrgyztelecom, which took place in June 2003. Swedtel, bidding in a consortium with American Equipment and offering the highest price, $15.68 million, was recognized as the winner.
Russia`s Trade Turnover With CIS Countries Up 29% In 2003 - Central Bank
Kabar Agency
Bishkek, February 11: Russia`s trade turnover with the CIS countries went up 29% in 2003, reaching $36.82 billion, and the trade surplus went up 43%, reaching $6.05 billion, the Central Bank of Russia said. Russia`s trade turnover with the CIS countries has reached the level it was at before the 1998 financial crisis. After the 1998 financial crisis, which was accompanied by a dramatic drop in the ruble, Russia`s trade turnover with the CIS countries decreased to $30.09 billion in 1998 and then to $22.4 billion in 1999.
Turkmenistan Ups Gas Production, Exports
Interfax
Ashgabat, February 11: Turkmenistan raised gas production 6.4% year-on-year to 6.6 billion cubic meters (bcm) in January. Natural gas exports rose 8% to 4.69 bcm, the National Institute of Statistics and Information said. Turkmenistan produced 777,000 tonnes of oil, up 3.4% year-on-year, and refined 486,300 tonnes, up 5.4%. Production rose 9% to 145,800 tonnes of gasoline, 5% to 141,200 tonnes of diesel, 25% to 8,810 tonnes of polypropylene and 28% to 3,080 tonnes of lubricants. Turkmenistan raised gas production 11% to 59.09 bcm and oil production also 11% to 10.004 million tonnes in 2003.
Export And Import Prices Rose In Kazakhstan In 2003
Kabar Agency
Astana, February 11: Prices for exports rose 11.8 percent in Kazakhstan last year, and import prices increased 26.1 percent, the Kazakh Statistical Agency reported. Among exports, prices for semi-finished products rose 18.6 percent, prices for finished products increased 16.1 percent, and prices for raw materials went up 8.3 percent. Prices for agricultural products climbed 63.9 percent. Meanwhile, prices for imported equipment jumped 42.2 percent, and prices for imported textile products rose 59.6 percent.
Uzbekistan`s Trade Surplus Increased By 175% In 2003
Interfax
Tashkent, February 11: Uzbekistan`s foreign trade surplus widened 175% to $760 million in 2003 - its biggest for years, Uzbekistan`s Foreign Economic Relations Agency told Interfax. Foreign trade grew 17.3% compared to 2002 to $6.69 billion. Export grew by 24.6%, up to $3.72 billion, import grew by 9.3%, to a value of $2.963 billion. The agency said Uzbekistan is exporting more in the way of value- added goods: last year the share of services, automobiles, chemical products, plastics, cotton fabric and yarns in exports increased, while cotton fiber decreased to 19.5%, from 22.5% in 2002. Import is dominated by machinery and equipment with a share of about 50%. Over 50% of the international trade is conducted with non-CIS countries. In 2002 Uzbekistan`s foreign trade dropped by 9.6% compared to 2001 and was $5.7 billion. Export decreased by 5.7% to $2.99 billion, and import by 13.5% to $2.712 billion.
Kazakhstan Accuses ChevronTexaco-led Group Of Breaking Law
Interfax
Astana, February 11: Kazakhstan accused the ChevronTexaco-led Tengizchevroil (TCO) consortium, which, official sources say, supplies more than 80% of the propane for the Kazakh home market, of breaking Kazakhstan`s law on monopolies by raising its prices on liquefied gas. `This enterprise, which holds a dominant position in the liquefied gas market and is included in the republic`s section of the register [of monopolies] is pursuing a policy aimed at raising the price of its products,` Bakhytszhan Sagintayev, deputy chairman of the Agency for Natural Monopoly Regulation and Competition Protection, told a meeting at the agency on Tuesday.
ADB Helps Uzbekistan Remove Blocks To Foreign Investment
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 10: The Asian Development Bank is helping Uzbekistan to remove the obstacles to increased foreign investment, through a technical assistance (TA) grant approved for US$300,000. The TA will help establish a policy and legal framework that gives greater protection to foreign investors and strengthen government agencies. Uzbekistan has yet to successfully attract much foreign direct investment (FDI) compared to other former Soviet republics, in spite of the country´s abundant natural resources, which include oil and gas, gold, and cotton and agricultural products. FDI flows to Uzbekistan have been declining, with estimated disbursements reaching only US$65 million in 2002, down by about 10% year-on-year, according to IMF. This figure is one of the lowest ratios of FDI to gross domestic product in the former Soviet republics and FDI per ahead is only US$6.
Georgia Notches 8 Per Cent GDP Growth
Radio Free Europe
Tbilisi, February 10: Georgia`s GDP grew by 8.6 percent in 2003 to reach 8.4 billion laris ($4.1 billion), Caucasus Press reported on 10 February. Industrial production increased by 10.6 percent and agricultural output by 7 percent. Agricultural production accounted for some 20 percent of total GDP. Foreign trade turnover grew by 39.2 percent. Inflation was 7 percent.
CIS Population Approaching 279 millionKabar Agency
Bishkek, February 10: The population of the CIS amounted to 279m people at the beginning of 2004, the CIS statistics committee reported. The population density is from 5 to 10 people per square kilometer of area in Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan and up to about 95 to 126 in Azerbaijan, Armenia and Moldova. Over 50 percent of the people in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Kazakhstan live in urban areas, while in Armenia, Belarus, Russia and Ukraine their share is over 60 percent. The share of people living in rural areas is almost 60 percent in Moldova and Turkmenistan, while in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan it is about 63 to 70 percent. The number of employable people was 3.8m in Azerbaijan, 1.2m in Armenia, 4.5m in Belarus, 7.6m in Kazakhstan, 2m in Kyrgyzstan, 1.5m in Moldova, 71.4m in Russia, 1.9m in Tajikistan and 23.5m in Ukraine last year.
Kyrgyzstan`s GDP Expands 3.9% In Jan
Interfax
Bishkek, February 10: Kyrgyzstan`s GDP grew 3.9% year-on- year in January, according to the early numbers, the country`s National Statistics Committee has told Interfax. January inflation was 1%. Investment in fixed capital from all financial sources decreased 10.6% year to 140.9 million som in January. Committee figures indicate a Kyrgyz trade deficit of $134.8 million for all of 2003.
Kyrgyzstan And Canadian Company `Cameko` Sets Up New Company To Develop Gold-fields
Kabar Agency
Bishkek, February 10: The government of Kyrgyzstan appealed to the Canadian Company several times to reconsider the terms of general agreement on `Kumtor` gold-field, Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan Nikolai Tanaev said at a press conference in the Government House. In September 2002, the Canadian Company, taking into consideration of repeated suggestions of Kyrgyzstan on increasing its revenues from the project, has proposed to restructure project of `Kumtorzoloto`. The `Cameko` suggested to make an exchange of part of the simple shares belonging to joint-stock company `Kyrgyzaltyn` on privileged JV `Kumtor Gold Company`, according to which it was supposed to receive 8 million US dollars till 2008, i.e. before ending the general agreement.
Turkmenistani Trade Surplus Up 52% In 2003
Interfax
Ashgabat, February 10: The trade surplus in Turkmenistan increased 52% from $736 million in 2002 to $1.12 billion in 2003, a source in the National Institute for State Statistics and Information told Interfax. Turkmenistani foreign trade last year increased 23.5% to $6.144 billion. Exports amounted to $3.632 billion, with imports of $2.512 billion. Trade with the CIS increased 29% to $2.9 billion in 2003. The surplus in trade with the CIS amounted to $324 million. Trade with countries outside the CIS increased 19% to $3.2 billion, with a surplus of $686 million. Turkmenistan traded with 85 countries around the world in 2003. The statistics show that share of countries outside the CIS in the republic`s exports increased from 48% in 2002 to 54% in 2003 and the share of the CIS in imports increased from 36% to 49%.
Azerbaijan`s Foreign Debt Grows 16% In 2003
Interfax
Baku, February 10: Azerbaijan saw its foreign debt expand 16.1% last year to stand at $1.575 billion on the first of this year, the county`s Finance Ministry reports. Azerbaijan put $153.6 million to servicing foreign debt against $117.4 million the year before, a ministry source reported to Interfax. Spending on servicing foreign debt principle came to $134.9 million (up 38.8% from 2002) and to $18.7 million for interest payments (down 7.4%). Of principle debt payments, $73.6 million went to the International Monetary Fund. The country`s foreign debts expanded last year due to a number of loans received.
Uzbek GDP Up 4.4% In 2003 - President
Interfax
Tashkent, February 9: Uzbek President Islam Karimov is satisfied with the economic results for 2003. The country reached macroeconomic stability and steady growth rates, Karimov told a Saturday Cabinet meeting reviewing social and economic reforms in 2003 and key directions for economic liberalization in 2004. GDP went up 4.4% and industrial production increased by 6.2%, while investments in fixed capital grew 4.5%, he said. `Virtually all items of spending on the national and local budgets were executed. The 2003 state budget was executed with a deficit of 0.4% of GDP,` he said.
ECHO To Slowly Phase Down Operations
IRIN News
Dushanbe, February 9: The Humanitarian Aid Office of the European Commission (ECHO) will slowly reduce its operations in Tajikistan, following a gradual improvement in humanitarian conditions inside the mountainous state. `Our plan over the next three years is to phase out if the situation remains as it is,` Cecile Pichon, ECHO correspondent for Central Asia told IRIN in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe. `Things are gradually stabilising in Tajikistan. Nonetheless, we will continue to monitor the situation should further needs arise.` The move reflects what many donors see as a greater need for long-term development assistance to the impoverished Central Asian nation - and less on humanitarian aid - in what could be described as a transitional phase for the country. And though ECHO, one of the largest humanitarian donors in the country, would ultimately leave, Pichon emphasised the process would be gradual to avoid any gaps in assistance coming through, should humanitarian activities be abruptly cut. `There are still many people who need humanitarian assistance, but ECHO now sees less emphasis on humanitarian needs and more on development,` she explained, noting the transition should be done smoothly.
ADB Allocates $34.6 Mln To Kazakhstan
Interfax
Astana, February 9: The Asian Development Bank has allocated a $34.6 million loan to Kazakhstan for the improvement of rural water supply and sewer systems. Finance Minister Yerbolat Dosaev and Country Director for the ADB office in Kazakhstan Kazuhiko Higuchi signed the loan agreement on Monday in Astana. The loan is offered for 25 years, with a five-year grace period, at Libor plus 0.6%, Dosaev told the press. Kazakhstan`s rural development program for 2004-2010 envisages a project to improve water supply and sewerage that is estimated to cost $65 million. The central and local budgets will provide $20.9 million and the Islamic Development Bank will loan $9.5 million. The project also envisages technical aid from the Japanese government costing $350,000.
Kyrgyzstan Posts Highest Industrial Output Growth In CIS
Interfax
Moscow, February 9: Kyrgyzstan posted the highest industrial output growth in the CIS in 2003 at 17%, the CIS Interstate Statistics Committee said Monday. Production grew 15.8% in Ukraine, 14.9% in Armenia, 13.6% in Moldova, 10.6% in Georgia, 10.2% in Tajikistan, 8.8% in Kazakhstan, 7% in Russia, 6.8% in Belarus, and 6.1% in Azerbaijan, The statistics committee does not have figures for Turkmenistan or Uzbekistan.
Kazakhstan Signs For ADB Loan To Provide Rural Drinking Water
Radio Free Europe
Astana, February 9: The Kazakh government signed an agreement with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Astana on 9 February, under which the ADB will loan Kazakhstan $34.6 million over 25 years for a rural drinking-water project, khabar.kz, KazInform, and other Kazakh media reported. The project, which is being financed by Kazakhstan (about $21 million) and the Islamic Development Bank ($9.5 million) as well as by the ADB, is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2009. More than 400 villages in Aqmola, North Kazakhstan, Karaganda, and South Kazakhstan oblasts will obtain new water and sewage systems. The government of Japan is providing an additional $350,000 to the project to train Kazakh specialists in maintaining and managing the new systems.
Armenia Ups Industrial Output 15%
Interfax
Yerevan, February 9: Armenia increased its industrial output 14.9% in 2003 to 423 billion dram in current prices, Trade and Economic Development Minister Karen Chshmaritian said at a government briefing. Without the power sector, industrial production grew 18.2%, he said. Output increased in all industries, with the exception of the chemicals sector, where it fell 17.5% to 7.3 billion dram. Production grew 31.3% to 12.1 billion dram in the light industry, 31.3% to 138.3 billion dram in the jewelry industry, and 18.3% to 46.6 billion dram in the mining sector. P
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline Does Not Hinder Others` Interests - Aliyev
Interfax
Moscow, February 9: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev expressed an opinion that the construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline does not hinder anyone`s interests and Russian oil may eventually be pumped through it. `I do not think the pipeline can harm anyone. It is a purely economic project without political motives,` Aliyev said at a press conference wrapping up his visit to Russia. `At present, there are two pipelines delivering oil from Azerbaijan to international markets. One of them passes via Russia and functions well. The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline is aimed at transporting large amounts of oil from the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea via an alternative route,` he said. `The launch of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline will not make any negative impact on our neighbors. On the opposite, oil extracted in Russia may be shipped via the pipeline in the future,` he said. He also said the Baku-Novorossiisk pipeline might be used in the future to carry oil from Russia to Azerbaijan.
Islam Karimov Hails ICT Development In The Country
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 8: Uzbekistan has achieved significant results in introduction of information and communication technologies over the recent years, the session of the Cabinet of Ministers, held on Saturday to sum up the last year`s results, noted. It was said that in the country was introducing fast and reliable multifunctional telecommunication networks in all regions. To date, coverage with digital telecommunication networks has reached 86%. The number of Internet users in Uzbekistan increased twofold to almost 500,000, the session said. The number of Internet cafes also doubled.
Uzbekistan Records 4.4% GDP In 2003 - President
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 7: Uzbekistan`s GDP in 2003 made up 4.4%, President Islam Karimov said at the session of the Cabinet of Ministers dedicated to the year`s results. He added that for the last several years the GDP had not decreased below 4 percentage points. The session, held on 7 February, was attended by governors of the regions, Karakalpakstan and Tashkent city, as well as heads of ministries and departments. Speaking at the session, Islam Karimov said the country`s industrial production rose by 6.2% and consumer production by 8.4%. The state budget was implemented with a 0.4% deficit. The level of fiscal reserves decreased from 33.2% in 2002 to 32.5%. Inflation made up 3.8%. Uzbekistan also achieved a positive foreign trade balance. According to the President, it comprised US$760 million. 2 trillion soums, or 4.5% more compared to 2002, were invested in the country`s economy, the head of the state said.
Kazakh Reserves Up
The Moscow Times
Astana, February 7: The gold and foreign exchange reserves of Kazakhstan`s National Bank rose 58 percent on the year in 2003 to almost $5 billion, the bank`s chairman Anvar Saidenov said Thursday, Itar-Tass reported. In January, the bank`s reserves increased 9.5 percent to $5.4 billion, he said adding that this marked the highest level ever. As of Dec. 31, Kazakhstan`s cumulative inflation rate stood at 6.8 percent, against 6.4 percent in 2002, Saidenov said.
Uzbek Envoy To India Awarded For Promotion Of Uzbekistan
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 13: 31st World Marketing Congress was held in Delhi, organised by the Institute of Marketing and Management at support of the government and Foreign Ministry of India. Representatives of 30 countries participated in the event, titled `CIS-Eastern Europe and India: economic cooperation`, Jahon reported. Within the framework of the congress, several participants were awarded with prizes in various nominations, initiated by the Institute of Marketing and Management. Uzbek Ambassador to India Ibragim Mavlonov was awarded with `High Diplomatic Award` on the results of 2003. Foreign Minister of India Sahib Singh presented the award to the Uzbek diplomat. Executive director of the Institute of Marketing and Management Jagjit Singh said the envoy had been awarded for his work in distribution of information on political and economic reforms in Uzbekistan among state and economic institutions of India, as well his work with Indian business circles. Presentation of Uzbekistan was also held within the framework of the congress.
Former Tajik Interior Minister To Be Extradited From Russia
ITAR-TASS
Dushanbe, February 13: A group of officers from the Tajik law-enforcement agencies has flown to Moscow to seek the extradition of a former interior minister of this Central Asian republic [Tajikistan], Yoqub Salimov. Russian special services detained him at the request of Tajikistan on 30 June 2003, a source at the Tajik Prosecutor-General`s Office told an ITAR-TASS news agency correspondent today. The Russian Prosecutor-General`s Office has notified Tajik colleagues in written form that it has agreed to extradite Salimov, the source added. Salimov, who held the posts of interior minister 1992-97, Tajikistan`s ambassador to Turkey and chief of the Customs Committee, is being charged with committing a number of grave crimes in Tajikistan, including an attempted coup in the summer of 1997, murders and hostage-taking.
Russia, Azeri Presidents Discuss Trade Cooperation Over Phone
RIA Novosti
Moscow, February 13: Russian and Azeri Presidents Vladimir Putin and Ilkham Aliyev have discussed practical issues of bilateral trade and economic cooperation, in particular, in the fuel and energy sphere, over the telephone on Friday, the Kremlin press service said. The two leaders recently held top-level talks in Moscow.
Kazakhstan, China Complete Border Delimitation
Interfax
Almaty, February 13: Kazakhstan and China have completed the delimitation of their 1,782 kilometer-long border, chief of the eastern section of the Kazakh border service Abdyrzak Ilyasov has announced. `Border signs have been put up along the entire border,` he told a round-table meeting with Russia on joint resistance to organized crime, drug trafficking and illegal immigration in Almaty on Friday. He said the delimitation was completed in November 2003 but had not been reported. There are no territorial disputes between Kazakhstan and China, Ilyasov said. He said the number of people who crossed the Kazakh-Chinese border in 2003 increased by 8% compared to 2002 and the number of vehicles by 18%.
Azeri President To Pay Official Visit To Uzbekistan On 23-24 March
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 12: President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliev will pay an official visit to Uzbekistan on 23-24 March 2004, Uzbek Ambassador to Azerbaijan Abdugafur Abdurakhmonov told the press. According to Abdurakhmanov, Ilham Aliev will participate in the opening ceremony of the new Azeri embassy building in Tashkent and the new Uzbek-Azeri friendship centre. Besides, the Azeri leader will participate in the opening of the monument to Heydar Aliev in front of the friendship centre. It is also planned that one of Tashkent streets will be named after Heydar Aliev. The Uzbek ambassador said the monument to a well-known Azeri poet Nizami would be opened near the Tashkent Pedagogical University named after Nizami.
Kazakh Visas Simpler
The Moscow Times
Moscow, February 12: Kazakhstan is introducing simplified visa procedures for citizens of 27 developed nations, officials said Thursday. Effective Sunday, citizens of the 27 countries will no longer be required to have invitations from organizations or people in Kazakhstan to obtain an entry visa, said Valikhan Konurbayev, head of the Foreign Ministry`s consular department. He said Kazakhstan`s embassies and consulates will grant one-month visas for private, tourist and business trips to Kazakhstan in a move aimed at attracting investment and tourists. The new regulations will apply to citizens of Australia, Austria, Belgium, Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States.
Kazakh, Uzbek Officials Review Water Protocol
Radio Free Europe
Tashkent, February 12: After the four-country meeting in Bishkek on 11 February that discussed water-use issues pertaining to the lower Syrdarya River (see `RFE/RL Newsline,` 12 February 2004), Kazakh Agriculture Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Akhmetzhan Yesimov traveled to Tashkent on 12 February to discuss on a bilateral basis the outcome of the Bishkek talks, KazInform and khabar.kz reported. After meeting with Uzbek Prime Minister Shavkat Mirzayoev, Yesimov told journalists that he sought to enlist the help of the Uzbek government in ensuring the agreements reached in Bishkek will be implemented. Yesimov said the two sides did not reach a full understanding, although Uzbekistan promised to meet its obligations included in the Bishkek protocol, so Kazakhstan is giving serious consideration to constructing an additional reservoir on the lower Syrdarya to absorb excess water.
Britain`s Man In Tashkent Wades Back Into Controversy
The Independent
Tashkent, February 12: Britain`s ambassador to Uzbekistan, Craig Murray, has renewed his criticism of the former Soviet republic`s human rights record. Mr Murray condemned a sentence imposed on the mother of a Muslim dissident killed in an Uzbek prison as another example of the government`s disregard for human rights. The ambassador returned to Uzbekistan last month after he was called back to the UK by the Foreign Office amid allegations about his behaviour in post at the capital, Tashkent. He had accused the Uzbek regime of jailing and torturing tens of thousands of religious and political prisoners, sometimes using boiling water. His comments offended his hosts as well as Washington because the US has a military base in the republic, which it sees it as a key ally in Central Asia. His supporters in Tashkent claimed the charges against him, which included allegations of drinking and womanising, were the result of Washington pressurising Downing Street to restrain his criticisms. If so, the tactic does not appear to have worked because yesterday Mr Murray criticised the Uzbek government and American support for the regime. Speaking to BBC World Service, Mr Murray said the six-year sentence imposed on 62-year-old Fatima Mukadyrova was `simply appalling`.
Iran, Turkmenistan Ties Expanding
IRIB News
Ashgabat, February 12: The Islamic Republic of Iran`s Ambassador to Turkmenistan Seyed Ebrahim Derazgisou here Wednesday said that his country would like to promote mutual cooperation. In an interview with a Turkmen newspaper on the occasion of 25th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution`s victory in Iran, Derazgisou reiterated, `At present, relations between the two countries are at a good level and some 150 documents which have been signed between the two countries proves this.` The Iranian ambassador added that a ten-year agreement, which was signed between Iran and Turkmenistan during President Khatami`s visit to Ashkhabat last year, is a clear evidence of close relations between the two countries in all fields.
Saakashvili Promises Privileges For Oil Transit To Russia
Interfax
Moscow, February 12: Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili has voiced his country`s readiness to offer advantageous terms for Russian oil transit across Georgian territory if Russia builds a new oil pipeline. `Georgia is ready to offer the most advantageous terms for Russian oil and not create additional inconveniences,` he told a Wednesday news conference in Moscow. `Turkey is gradually closing the straits [from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean]. The Russian oil now shipped in tankers will soon be unable to pass the Bosporus and the Dardanelles,` Saakashvili said. `The only way out for Russia is to build a parallel oil pipeline, and that stems from economic reasons,` he said.
President Aliyev Of Azerbaijan To Visit Turkey In April
Turkish Press
Baku, February 12: President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan will pay an official visit to Turkey in April 2004. Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Vilayet Guliyev received Turkish Ambassador to Azerbaijan Unal Cevikoz. Speaking at the meeting, Guliyev expressed his belief that President Aliyev`s visit to Turkey would make a significant contribution to further improvement of bilateral relations between the two countries. Meanwhile, Turkish Ambassador to Azerbaijan Cevikoz said that several agreements including a long-term economic agreement would be signed during President Aliyev`s visit to Turkey. Cevikoz said, `the long-term economic agreement is regarded with Turkish businessmen`s investments in Azerbaijan in some certain fields.`
Saakashvili Add New Possibilities To Russia-U.S. Cooperation - Ambassador
Interfax
Moscow, February 12: Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili`s recent visit to Russia has shown new possibilities for Russia-U.S. cooperation in Georgia, U.S. Ambassador to Russia Alexander Vershbow said at the International University on Thursday. Washington and Moscow have similar interests in Georgia, Vershbow said. Both the United States and Russia are interested in a stable Georgia, which will develop economically and fight corruption, he said. The United States and Russia should search together for ways to ease tension in the Russian-Georgian relations, the ambassador said. The withdrawal of Russian bases from Georgia is one way to do this, he said. Georgia`s new government is giving new chances to solve the problem, Vershbow added. He said it is also necessary to find a solution to the mothballed conflict in Abkhazia.
Uzbek Parliamentary Delegation Visits India To Discuss Ties
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 11: The delegation headed by the Uzbek parliament`s human rights representative (ombudsman) Sayyora Rashidova has visited India. The delegation met deputy spokesman of the Upper Chamber of Indian parliament Najma Heptulla. The sides discussed reforms in Uzbekistan, the activity of the parliament, human rights and other issues. Heptulla noted India`s interest in developing bilateral relations, including inter-parliamentary ties, with friendly Uzbekistan. At the meeting with Indian Communication and Information Technologies Shri Tirunavukaras, the sides discussed cooperation in IT sector, Jahon reported. The delegation also met Deputy Foreign Minister of India R.Abyankar, Delhi Prime Minister Sh.Dikshit, President of Children`s Health Council A.Damadoran, chairman of the Council on Humanitarian Science Research Shri V. Panchmukhi, Prime Minister of Rajastan state V.R. Sindia and Prime Minister of Karnatak state S.M. Krishna to discuss Uzbek-Indian relations.
Tajik Foreign Ministry Reacts To Killing Of Tajik Girl In St. Petersburg
Radio Free Europe
Dushanbe, February 11: Igor Sattorov, head of the information section of the Tajik Foreign Ministry, gave a briefing on 10 February to convey the official Tajik reaction to the killing of a 9-year-old Tajik girl in St. Petersburg on the evening of 9 February, centrasia.ru reported on 11 February. The family of Yusuf Sultanov was brutally attacked by what some Russian media have described as a drunken gang of neofascist youths (see Russia item, above). Khursheda Sultanova, who was stabbed 11 times, died before medical help arrived. Sultanov and an 11-year-old cousin of Sultanova were seriously injured in the attack. The Foreign Ministry said Tajikistan is deeply concerned about attacks by Russian neofascist and nationalist gangs on Tajik citizens in the Russian Federation.
JICA-Uzbekistan Cooperation Grows
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 11: Relations between the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Uzbekistan in various directions are growing stronger year after year. One of such directions is reforming the Uzbek legislation. It includes study of Japanese colleagues on improvement of the activity of bodies of the Public Prosecutor`s Office, justice, supreme and economic courts, as well as staff training in Japanese higher educational institutions. Recently, within the framework of the joint programme a group of representatives of law-enforcement bodies of Uzbekistan has visited Japan. The Uzbek specialists got acquainted with the work of Japanese law-enforcement bodies and passed advanced training on special courses. The results of this trip as well as issues of introduction of received knowledge in practice were discussed at a seminar held on 9 February in Tashkent.
US Offers Support For Economic, Political Reform
IRIN News
Ankara, February 11: Washington is ready to provide support for Tajikistan`s political and economic reforms, such as amending the election code, increasing media openness, strengthening competition in the political sphere and liberalising trade. `Throughout the region - and Tajikistan is no exception - our assistance strongly supports political and economic reform,` US Ambassador to Tajikistan, Richard Hoagland, told IRIN from the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, on Wednesday. `We believe that such reforms, if conscientiously implemented, will promote regional stability and eventually eliminate most of the conditions that tend to breed extremism.` His comments follow the visit earlier this month of US Ambassador Carlos Pascual, the coordinator for US assistance to Europe and Eurasia, who was in Dushanbe as part of a visit to Central Asia to assess Washington`s assistance programmes. The assessment comes in the light of a new US law that requires significant progress on human rights and democratisation as a condition for aid. During Pascual`s visit, discussions were held with the President of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmonov on the country`s efforts to integrate itself with the international economy, and to become a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
Tajikistan, Afghanistan Sign Bridge Agreement
Radio Free Europe
Dushanbe, February 11: Senior Tajik and Afghan officials signed an intergovernmental agreement in Dushanbe on 10 February on the construction and use of a bridge linking the two countries across the Panj River, Asia Plus-Blitz reported on 11 February. Tajik Transport Minister Abdujalol Salimov signed on behalf of Tajikistan, while Afghan Ambassador to Tajikistan Muhammad Dovud Panjsheri signed for Afghanistan. The United States, which signed an agreement to that effect with Tajikistan on 31 December, is funding the $30 million-$40 million bridge project. U.S. engineers and seismologists have already selected a site for the bridge, which is intended to promote the economic integration in the region. Construction is to begin in spring.
Officials Of 16 States Meeting In Almaty On Asian Interaction
Kazakhstan News
Almaty, February 11: Representatives of 16 states, including India, Kazakhstan, China, Russia and Pakistan, on Wednesday are continuing the work on the main documents of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA). The meeting is underway in the Kazakh city of Almaty. The press service of the Kazakh foreign ministry told Itar-Tass the meeting participants will consider amendments and addenda to the draft Catalogue of confidence-building measures that will set the framework of the states` interaction in the military-political, economic, cultural and ecological spheres. Besides, the sides will discuss the CICA Secretariat law and the rules of CICA procedure. The Catalogue of confidence-building measures will be approved by the 16 foreign ministers in October 2004. The rest of the documents will be signed at the second summit of the organization member-states in Almaty in 2006. The official opening of the CICA Secretariat is expected to be held at the summit.
New Georgia Ambassador Shows Importance Of Relations With RFItar-Tass
Moscow, February 11: The appointment of the new Georgian ambassador in Moscow demonstrates the importance of relations with Russia, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said. He told a press conference at Itar-Tass on Wednesday that the ambassador had been selected by two criteria: a candidate has to be close to the president, and Konstantin Kemulari is. `I trust him as I trust myself,` Saakalshvili said. Second, he has to love Russia. `Kote adores Russia and loves Moscow,` the president said.
Azerbaijan, Armenia - Key Partners Of Georgia
Itar-Tass
Moscow, February 11: Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said he was confident that Azerbaijan and Armenia were key partners of his country. Saakashvili said he had established a very good relationship with Azerbaijani President Ilkham Aliyev. `This is a new-generation president. It is easier to work with him` just as it is `with the present Russian leadership`. `I and Ilkham Aliyev have the same education and experience. It is easier for us to understand each because of our age. Besides, we headed delegations to the Council of Europe,` he told a press conference at Itar-Tass on Wednesday. `Azerbaijan is an important partner for Georgia, just as Armenia is,` the president said.
Iran The Biggest Loser On BTC Project
Turkish Daily News
Ankara, February 11: `This is a big victory for Turkey and a bigger defeat for Iranian diplomacy, which, because of its irrational opposition to the United States, lost all opportunities for the pipeline passing through Iran,` says international economist Khavand. The Islamic Republic of Iran was confirmed as the biggest loser after a syndicate of international lenders on Wednesday signed an important undertaking for securing $2.6 billion in loans for the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline, removing the last major obstacle in the completion of the controversial project, Fereydoon Khavand, an international economist based in Paris, told the Iran Press Service. A syndicate of 15 commercial banks, led by ABN AMRO, Citibank and BNP Paribas, agreed this month to lend the project a total of $936 million. The remainder of the funding is coming from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and from national export credit guarantee agencies. Four BTC shareholders -- BP, Statoil, Total and ConocoPhillips -- are to provide the balance of the funds themselves. BP, which is also the largest shareholder in the BTC consortium, is putting up the lion`s share, with a contribution of $560 million. Azerbaijan`s president, Ilham Aliyev, Turkish Energy Minister Mehmet Hilmi Guler, the chairman of Georgia International Oil Company, Georgi Chanturia, and representatives of BTC shareholders and creditors attended the agreement`s signing ceremony. Representatives from the three countries and a group of creditors signed the final agreement for the project, expected to reduce U.S. and European dependence on oil from the Persian Gulf, mostly from Saudi Arabia, the world`s largest oil exporter and greatest known energy source ahead of Iraq and Iran.
Niyazov Declines Offer To Join CIS Energy System
Itar-Tass
Ashgabat, February 11: President Saparmurat Niyazov of Turkmenistan has declined for the time being an offer from the leadership of the Unified Energy Systems of Russia electricity giant that Turkmenistan join the CIS energy system. In a letter to the head of the CIS Energy Council, Anatoly Chubais, published in Ashgabat newspapers on Wednesday, the president said the offer has been postponed for the future. In January this year, Chubais came out with an offer to Niyazov `on a parallel work of the energy system of Turkmenistan with the unified energy system of CIS states`. However, `insolvency of traditional consumers in CIS states, imperfection of control over electricity consumption, lack of strict rules and partner commitments in the exchange of energy and transit, low safety of the system`s emergency equipment have prompted Turkmenistan to refuse to join the single energy system,` Niyazov said in his letter. `Turkmenistan has found more profitable sales markets,` he stressed, saying that the country `makes regular electricity supplies to Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey on equal and mutually-advantageous conditions`.
Saakashvili Says Travel Visas Poisoning Russo-Georgian RelationsItar-Tass
Moscow, February 11: Existence of travel visas poisons relations between Russia and Georgia, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili told a news conference at Itar-Tass headquarters Wednesday. It was because of the bad effects of the visa regulations that Russian President Vladimir Putin and he had agreed to modify the visa regime, Saakashvili said. He also said that simpler visa rules existing between Georgia and Turkey could be a model for travel regulations between Russia and Georgia. Saakashvili said at the same time the visas could be abolished only in parallel with the solution of border problems.
Putin Says Moscow Ready To Compromise With Tbilisi
Interfax
Moscow, February 11: Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Moscow is ready to come to a compromise with Georgia on all disputed issues. `We are always willing to meet Georgia halfway on virtually all issues,` Putin said opening negotiations with his Georgian counterpart, Mikhail Saakashvili, in Moscow on Wednesday. This concerns, in particular, `the restructuring of Georgia`s debt to Russia and energy supplies,` he said. P
Deputy Prime Ministers Of Central Asia To Discuss Problems Of Repletion Of Naryn-Syrdarya Storage Pool
Kabar Agency
Bishkek, February 11: Deputy Prime Ministers of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are discussing in Bishkek the problems of repletion of Naryn-Syrdarya storage pool. Deputy Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan Bazarbai Mambetov said at the meeting that protocol on measures to eliminate extreme situation, especially in connection with repletion of Shardarya water basin in Kazakhstan, is signed at the first meeting in Chymkent. Now it is implementing and it is succeeded in stabilizing the situation. But, the threat of break of water basin is not eliminated completely`, - said B. Mambetov. So, it is necessary to take additional measures up to the end of the first quarter. Besides, it demands its decision and problems of reception and pass through water basins of spring floods.
Georgia, Russia May Sign Cooperation Agreement In Fall 2004
Interfax
Moscow, February 11: Georgia and Russia may sign a framework agreement on friendship and cooperation in fall 204, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said after meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov on Wednesday. `There are no unresolved issues that could hinder the signing of this framework agreement,` Saakashvili said. Saakashvili said he invited his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to come to Georgia to attend `the signing of the framework agreement.` Ivanov said a number of agreements aimed at improving Russian- Georgian relations were reached during Saakashvili`s visit to Moscow.
Saakashvili Calls For Peaceful Solution To Abkhazia Issue
Interfax
Moscow, February 11: Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said he does not believe it is possible to solve the Abkhazia issue by military means, but stressed that Tbilisi will never reconcile with the loss of Abkhazia. `A war is the worst alternative to a peaceful solution to a problem,` Saakashvili told Ekho Moskvy radio. The Abkhazia issue cannot be resolved without Russia`s active participation and its good will, Saakashvili said. He expressed hope that Russian President Vladimir Putin `will be able to find the right solution to the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict.` Saakashvili said he wants to resolve problems regarding the deadlines for the withdrawal of Russian military bases from Georgia with the Russian president only and not with `Russian generals and colonels.` He also reiterated Georgia`s stance that the bases should be withdrawn as soon as possible.
Georgian, Russian Presidents Meet
Associated Press
Moscow, February 11: Russia and Georgia have agreed to renew discussions on Abkhazia, a Georgian separatist region bordering Russia, Georgia`s president said Wednesday after talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Abkhazia broke away from Georgia in a war in the 1990s and has been de-facto independent since then under pro-Russian leadership. Ethnic Georgians fled the fighting en masse and the region`s status is among the biggest problems confronting Georgia, which is wracked by poverty and corruption. Advertisement President Mikhail Saakashvili told a news conference the two countries will set up working groups to discuss refugee return, renewal of rail connections that run through Abkhazia and other issues of the conflict. `I think this will be an energetic year` in working toward a resolution of the Abkhazia tensions, Saakashvili said. Sergei Prikhodko, a Putin aide, said Russia regards Saakashvili as a leader with whom Russia can have `objective conversations` and Saakashvili said he and Putin were able `to find a common language.` Saakashvili, on a two-day visit to improve often-tense relations between his small, struggling country and its giant neighbor, told Putin that Georgia respects Russia`s interests.
Nazarbayev, Rushailo Discuss Anti Terrorist Cooperation
RIA Novosti
Astana, February 10: On Tuesday after a meeting with the Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Vladimir Rushailo, President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan said he still considers Russia Kazakhstan`s main strategic partner in all spheres. Mr. Rushailo is on a visit in Kazakhstan. `It is no coincidence that Russian President Vladimir Putin`s first foreign visit this year was to Kazakhstan, the Year of Russia in Kazakhstan is this year and in late February or early March Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov is also going to visit the country,` Mr. Rushailo said. According to Mr. Rushailo, Mr. Nazarbayev also `attaches special importance to cooperation between Russia and Kazakhstan within the CIS, the CST [the Collective Security Treaty that comprises Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan] and the EurAsEC [the Eurasian Economic Community that comprises Belarus, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, with Armenia, Moldova and Ukraine as observers].` Mr. Rushailo said the problem of `counteracting terrorism at all levels` was among the most important issues discussed at the meetings with the Kazakh leader and with the country`s Security Council Secretary Bulat Utemuratov. Russian and Kazakh leadership believe, `now terrorism poses the major threat to national securities of both states,` said Mr. Rushailo.
Kazakh, Russian Security Council Chiefs Sign Annual Cooperation Plan
Radio Free Europe
Astana, February 10: Russian Security Council Secretary Vladimir Rushailo, at the start of a visit to Kazakhstan that began on 9 February, and his Kazakh counterpart, Bulat Utemiratov, signed a joint declaration and a joint action plan for 2004 in Astana on 10 February, Interfax-Kazakhstan and khabar.kz reported. After a meeting with President Nursultan Nazarbaev, Rushailo said that due to recent terrorist incidents -- he cited specifically the 6 February explosion in the Moscow subway that left at least 39 people dead -- this year`s action plan differs from previous ones in addressing the common struggle against terrorism, crime, and external threats. Rushailo also met with Kazakh Interior Minister Zautbek Turisbekov to discuss joint efforts against drug trafficking and illegal migration.
Uzbekistan Agrees To Allow Water To Arnasay From Shardaryn
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 10: Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have agreed to let the water from Shardarya reservoir to overflow into Arnasay cavity within 10 days. Such an agreement was reached during negotiations between representatives of Kazakh Agriculture Ministry and Uzbek Agriculture and Water Management Ministry, chairman of Kazakh Water Resources Committee under the Agriculture Ministry Anatoliy Ryabtsov said at press briefing in Almaty on Monday. `Our colleagues are completing the by-wash in 10 days. Water discharge through Arnasay will make up 1,000 cubic metres per second. Thus, we will discharge 1,000-1,200 cubic metres of water per second,` he said.
Iran Holds Caspian Talks With Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan
Interfax
Almaty, February 10: Iran is holding bilateral talks with Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan on the division of the Caspian Sea, Iranian Ambassador to Kazakhstan Murtazo Saffori said at a press conference in Almaty on Tuesday. `We are holding talks with our neighbors to reach consensus and mutual understanding as soon as possible, just like Kazakhstan, Russia and Azerbaijan have achieved certain successes,` he said. The ambassador said that a final decision on the legal status of the Caspian Sea may be reached only taking into consideration the opinion of all five Caspian states, and he said that he hopes that talks involving all of the states will have `good results.` Speaking about the Iranian position on the division of the Caspian, Saffori said that `in accordance with existing geographical conditions, Iran is laying claim to about a 20% share of the sea.` The diplomat said that Iran has never insisted on the equal division of the sea between all five states, which would give each state a 20% share. Regarding the construction of export pipelines from the Caspian region, and particularly the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, he said that `the transportation of fuel from one area to another should take the economics into consideration and should not be under the influence of political interests.` He said that the Iranian route is the most profitable and economically beneficial and said that experts that have studied routes for transporting oil and gas in the Caspian region agree with this.
Moscow Wants To Restore Friendship With Georgia
Interfax
Moscow, February 10: The Russian government is in favor of restoring friendly relations with Georgia, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Yakovenko. Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili arrived in Moscow on Monday for a working visit. `The reception of Saakashvili in Moscow shows the serious intent of the Russian authorities to restore traditional friendly relations with Georgia,` Yakovenko said in an interview on Channel One television. `We expect that during the Georgian president`s visit to Moscow, the Georgian side will confirm their repeatedly declared intent to normalize relations with Russia and make some concrete steps in that direction,` he said.
Georgia Leader In Key Moscow Talks
BBC
Moscow, February 10: Russian military bases and the Chechnya conflict are set to top the agenda of talks between Russia`s leaders and the new president of Georgia. Georgian leader Mikhail Saakashvili arrived in Moscow for the talks just a fortnight after he was inaugurated. But Russia is likely to be cautious toward the man who led Georgia`s bloodless revolution last November. Mr Saakashvili says he wants his country to become a beacon for change among former Soviet states. He has foregone use of his presidential jet for the trip, and caught a scheduled flight to save his country money. It is exactly the sort of gesture that makes Russia wary of him. He`s a young, populist leader who says he wants to bring radical change to the former Soviet Republic that sits on Russia`s southern border. When Mr Saakashvili led Georgia`s revolution Russia`s leaders looked on unnerved. New assertiveness His trip to Moscow is an attempt to tackle Georgia`s thorniest relationship head on. Ties between the two have been strained since the break-up of the Soviet Union. Russia has aided separatist movements, leaving Georgia divided and weakened. Mr Saakashvili wants that to stop and he wants Russia to pull out of two military bases it holds on to on his territory. Moscow wants guarantees that rebels from Chechnya won`t be allowed to move through Georgia, and it`s concerned about an ongoing programme under which the United States is training Georgian troops.
Hungarian State Secretary Visits Tajikistan
Radio Free Europe
Dushanbe, February 9: Tajik President Imomali Rakhmonov, meeting with visiting Hungarian Foreign Ministry State Secretary Andras Barsony on 9 February, complained that relations between the two countries are less than satisfactory, RIA-Novosti reported. The talks focused particularly on the fight against terrorism and drug trafficking, and the normalization process in Afghanistan. Both sides noted that there are no significant differences of views between them, so it should be possible to develop closer political contacts. Barsony arrived in Dushanbe on 8 February for a two-day visit that included meetings with Prime Minister Oqil Oqilov and Foreign Minister Talbak Nazarov, as well as with Rakhmonov.
Repatriation Of Armenians Awaits Further Funding
IRIN News
Ashgabat, February 9: Further efforts to repatriate Armenians living in Turkmenistan will require additional donor assistance to proceed, an official from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Friday. `At this point, IOM Ashgabat has no more funding available for this return assistance project, [but] will continue approaching various potential donors that might be willing to support it,` Zoran Milovic, head of the IOM told IRIN from the Turkmen capital, Ashgabad. His comments came less than a week after IOM successfully facilitated the return of 92 irregular Armenian immigrants back to their homeland, 32 of them under the age of 18. The group boarded a chartered plane on Sunday for the Armenian capital, Yerevan. Most cases returned to the Yerevan region, while a considerable number went to the Sisian and Goris regions of the impoverished nation, with a large number of individual cases to destinations across Armenia. As part of the repatriation package, adult returnees were provided with a monetary integration grant of US $100 and US $50 per child, as well as travel assistance. Sunday`s repatriation was the second caseload of returnees to the southern Caucasus state after IOM assisted over 100 Armenians to return to their homeland in late 2002 and early 2003, following a US $57,000 donation by the Norwegian government. According to the IOM, there are between 35,000 and 40,000 Armenians in Turkmenistan today, the vast majority of them Turkmen citizens.
Khalifa Leaves For Turkmenistan
Khaleej Times Online
Abu Dhabi, February 9: Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, left on a private visit for Turkmenistan. He was seen off at the airport by a number of Shaikhs, ministers and senior UAE officials.
Georgian President To Take Commercial Flight To Moscow
Interfax
Moscow, February 9: Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili plans to leave for a two-day official visit to Moscow on February 10. He will travel on a regular commercial flight by Georgia`s Airzena company, the presidential press service told Interfax. The Georgian leader decided to take a regular flight in order to economize on state finances. A single flight on the presidential aircraft costs the treasury approximately $10,000, the press service said. On Tuesday, Saakashvili plans to meet with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov.
USAID Delivers Humanitarian Aid To Uzbekistan
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 8: The US Agency for International Development (USAID) delivered a humanitarian aid to Uzbekistan within the Project HOPE `Healthy Family`. The aid, worth US$2.29 million, includes anti-flu vaccines, medicines and equipment. The project covers Surkhandarya and Kashkadarya region of Uzbekistan, as well as Hatlon region of Tajikistan. In particular, the aid will be delivered to the regional maternity hospital and three districts of Surkhandarya region, which will also get computers.
Azerbaijan To Continue Oil Exports Via Russia
Radio Free Europe
Baku, February 8: On his return on 8 February to Baku after a three-day official visit to Moscow, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev told journalists that the declaration on bilateral relations he signed together with Russian President Vladimir Putin affirms Baku`s intent to continue exporting oil via the Baku-Novorossiisk pipeline, Interfax reported. Aliyev reportedly said the longer that pipeline remains in use, the better, and that Baku might increase the amount of oil it exports by that route as production expands. Azerbaijan`s state oil company SOCAR exports crude both via Novorossiisk and Georgia. Interfax on 6 February quoted Russian Energy Minister Igor Yusufov as saying talks are in progress on a 15-year agreement on Azerbaijani oil exports via Russia, and that Moscow is ready to compromise and reduce transport tariffs.
New Russian-Uzbek Environmental Explanatory Dictionary Published
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 8: The State Committee for Nature Protection of Uzbekistan published a new Russian-Uzbek environmental explanatory dictionary. According to Nature.uz website, the `Russian-Uzbek methodical dictionary of words and terms on rational use of natural resources and environment` was prepared and published taking into account the necessity of translation of environmental terms and concepts into Uzbek language. In the near future English-Russian-Uzbek version of the dictionary will be published with the help of ATROF-MUHIT Programme of the Uzbek government supported by the UNDP. The dictionary was published by environmental publishing house Chinor and includes in the accessible form interpretation of 1,200 most used terms and concepts both in Russian and Uzbek languages. The book covers the basic directions of development of scientific disciplines about interaction of living organisms with the environment.
OSCE High Commissioner Visits Uzbek Parliament
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 7: The High Commissioner for National Minorities of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Rolf Ekeus met speaker of Oliy Majlis (Uzbek parliament) Erkin Khalilov. The sides considered the work carried out in Uzbekistan according to legislation on national minorities and developments in this sphere. They noted fruitful cooperation on this issue. Rolf Ekeus also visited the Institute of Strategic and International Researches under the President of Uzbekistan to discuss the state policy on the rights of national minorities and cooperation in regional issues. Rolf Ekeus also got acquainted with the activity of the National Human Rights Centre of Uzbekistan.
Azerbaijan Reassures Russia On Pipeline
Associated Press
Moscow, February 7: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev on Saturday sought to reassure Russia that the oil pipeline being built from his country to Turkey won`t undermine Russia`s economy. The $3.6 billion pipeline from Baku to the Turkish port of Ceyhan bypasses Russia, which fears it could be cut out of the lucrative Caspian oil trade. `We think bringing the pipeline on line won`t have any negative consequences for our neighbors. On the contrary, it could even carry Russian oil,` Aliev said at a news conference during an official visit. He also suggested that the pipeline running between the Azerbaijani capital Baku and the southern Russian port of Novorossiisk could carry Russian oil south rather than bringing Azerbaijani petroleum north. Russia has been urging Azerbaijan to increase its Caspian oil shipments through the Novorossiisk pipeline.
Soviet Legacy Lingers In New Russia
The Washington Times
Moscow, February 7: The Soviet Union may be dead, but it is not forgotten in Vladimir Putin`s Russia. Clashes along Russia`s vast borders and the December parliamentary elections, in which strongly nationalist parties were among the big winners, have raised new concerns that Russia under Mr. Putin has embraced a sharp-elbowed new approach to the country`s `near abroad.` From Central Asia to the Caucasus to Ukraine and Belarus in Eastern Europe, assertive military and economic moves by Russia in recent months have drawn concern in the West. `Great-power ideology is the absolutely dominant ideology in today`s Russia,` political analyst Vitaly Tretyakov wrote in the Rossiiskaya Gazeta after the State Duma elections in December. Secretary of State Colin L. Powell made U.S. concerns about recent Russian policy moves explicit in a widely noted Jan. 26 opinion piece in the Russian newspaper Izvestia, published as he began high-level talks at the Kremlin. `We recognize Russia`s territorial integrity and its natural interest in lands that abut it,` Mr. Powell wrote. `But we recognize no less the sovereign integrity of Russia`s neighbors and their rights to peaceful and respectful relations across their borders, as well.` The State Department and the Russian Foreign Ministry traded charges of interference in the political crisis that ousted longtime Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze in November. The Kremlin vowed to respect Georgia`s sovereignty, but then invited leaders of three Georgia separatist movements to Moscow for high-level talks, and eased visa restrictions for residents of the breakaway regions. Across the Black Sea, Ukraine and Russia exchanged harsh words in October after Russian workmen were found building an unauthorized causeway across the Kerch Strait linking the Black and Azov seas. Kiev accused Moscow of a blatant territorial grab on the navigable parts of the strategic passage, which belong to Ukraine. `The pressure the Ukrainians feel these days from Moscow is very real,` said a senior State Department official in a recent background briefing on developments in the former Soviet republic. Romanian Foreign Minister Mircea Geoana said during a Washington visit last week that Moscow increasingly sees its relations with restive countries on its borders as a `zero-sum game` in competition with the United States. In the past year, the Kremlin has used festering insurgencies in countries such as Moldova, Georgia and Azerbaijan as opportunities to exert its influence, Mr. Geoana said. `It`s a very recognizable, 19th-century game that is being played,` he added. In word and deed, Russian officials have shown an increasing penchant to use the country`s leverage - military, political, economic and cultural - in pursuit of their interests in the countries formed in the breakup of the Soviet Union. Mr. Putin himself has been careful in his public comments on Russia`s foreign-policy assertiveness. `We cannot apply this principle [of territorial integrity] to ourselves and deny it to our neighbors,` he said during a Dec. 18 telephone call-in show. But he also has insisted that Russia will keep control of critical oil and gas pipelines that run through former Soviet territories, and his aides have much more openly asserted an expansive definition of Russia`s rights over its borders.
Armenian Archbishop Felicitates Supreme Leader
IRNA
Moscow, February 7: The Head of the Armenian Apostolic Church Archbishop Catholicos Garegin II felicitated the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on the anniversary of the victory of the Islamic revolution in Iran in 1979. In his message to the Supreme Leader, he pointed to the role of Armenian religious circles in establishing and maintaining good relations between the two countries and hoped peace and tranquility for the Iranian nation. Armenian Archbishop of Tehran Sebu Serkissian, too, sent a similar message to Ayatollah Khamenei on the occasion.
Head Of Kazakh Human Rights Commission Says Many Citizens` Complaints Groundless
Radio Free Europe
Astana, February 12: The Human Rights Commission on 12 February celebrated its 10th anniversary with its chairman, veteran politician Zhabaikhan Abdildin, telling a press conference in Astana that many citizens` complaints received by the commission are groundless, Interfax-Kazakhstan and khabar.kz reported. Abdildin admitted that of the approximately 700 complaints received by the commission each year, only about 15 percent are resolved in favor of the complainant. He said about one-third of the complaints are against court judgments, while many others concern violations of social and labor rights and inappropriate actions by law enforcement officials.
Tashkent Hosts Seminar On Liberalisation Of Punishment System
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 12: Presentation of a cycle of regional seminars on `Liberalisation of punishment system in Uzbekistan` was held in Tashkent. It was organised by the German Konrad Adenauer Foundation, the Uzbek parliament`s human rights representative (ombudsman) and the Institute for Strategic and Interregional Studies under the President of Uzbekistan. `An important task of today it is to liberalise all spheres of life and to complete the legal reforms,` Akmal Saidov, director of the National Human Rights Centre, said.
Uzbek Mother Jailed For Six Years
BBC
Tashkent, February 12: A court in Uzbekistan has jailed an elderly woman at the centre of what is being seen as a key human rights case. Fatima Mukhadirova, 63, is the mother of a man who died in prison, allegedly after he was immersed in boiling water and otherwise tortured. She was arrested after she drew attention to her son`s death and charged with trying to undermine the constitution of Uzbekistan. The judge handed down a maximum sentence of six years in a hard prison. Mrs Mukhadirova was taken away in an armoured van, looking pale and drawn, according to the BBC`s Monica Whitlock in Uzbekistan. Her surviving children called out their goodbyes and handed the police food to take to jail. Most were crying. Looking for justice Mrs Mukhadirova was accused of distributing extremist literature - that is, pamphlets propagating an Islamic state. There had been a hope that she would be acquitted because her lawyer was strong and independent. That would have made history here, but it was a tiny hope, our correspondent says. Acquitting Mrs Mukhadirova would have raised questions about the reliability of police evidence and the death of her son Muzafar. He was convicted of belonging to an illegal religious group and died in prison last year. Human rights groups have said that he was immersed in boiling water, but the government maintains that he had heart disease and died after a fight with cell mates who threw scalding tea at him.
Kyrgyz Police Face Abuse Charges
Radio Free Europe
Bishkek, February 11: Kyrgyzstan`s Prosecutor-General`s Office told Deutsche Welle on 11 February that for the first time police officers working in a pretrial-detention facility in Chui Oblast are being charged with torturing detainees. Complaints of widespread use of torture in such facilities have resulted the addition of an article on torture by law enforcement officers to the Criminal Code. Conviction carries a sentence of up to 10 years` imprisonment. Interior Ministry press secretary General Djoldoshbek Buzurmankulov told Deutsche Welle that only drug addicts, thieves, alcoholics, hooligans, and murderers complain of being beaten by police. He insisted there has never been torture in Kyrgyzstan, and that human rights activists who drew up reports on the issue did so to earn money.
Government Wants UN Mission On Torture To Return
IRIN News
Ankara, February 11: The Uzbek government is eager to accept a new United Nations assessment mission on torture and plans to launch a special programme on fighting such human rights abuses, a government official has said. Ilkhom Zakirov, the Uzbek foreign minister`s spokesman told IRIN from the capital, Tashkent on Tuesday that Uzbek authorities would welcome a new UN mission on torture in the view of recent changes. `We would like Theo van Boven [UN Special Rapporteur on Torture] to come back again and see the changes [regarding torture issues] in the country,` he said. A report by Theo van Boven, following a mission to the country in 2002, found that torture in Uzbek jails had been systematic and routinely used against opponents to obtain confessions which sometimes resulted in courts giving the death penalty. But after years of denial, Tashkent recently accepted there was a problem. `There are indeed some cases [of torture] and we admit that they have taken place and more than that, some law-enforcement officers have been recently convicted of using torture,` Zakirov said. According to the Uzbek foreign ministry, for the first time, the Uzbek civil code had a special article which recognised torture as a crime and fifteen people from the interior ministry were convicted and brought to justice for committing violations of prisoners` human rights. However, the authorities maintain such incidents are exceptional and by no means the rule.
Kazakh Parliament Calls For End To Abuse Of Convicts
Radio Free Europe
Ankara, February 11: A debate on 11 February in the Kazakh parliament`s lower house on television footage showing the beating of convicts in the Arkalyk Prison began with demands that Justice Minister Onalsyn Zhumabekov resign, but ended with just a call for an end to the abuse of prisoners, khabar.kz reported. The softening of the parliamentarians` reaction was apparently caused by uncertainty over whether the beatings shown on national television (see `RFE/RL Newsline,` 11 February 2004) were part of a systematic pattern of abuse. Zhumabekov insisted that the beatings were arranged by a prison official who has since been arrested, along with the warders who actually beat the inmates. In addition to recommending that the Justice Ministry put an end to the physical abuse of inmates, the parliamentarians ordered the Prosecutor-General`s Office to investigate thoroughly the Arkalyk incident.
Turkmen President Rewards Police Officer For Role In Thwarting Purported Assassination Attemtp
Radio Free Europe
Ashgabat, February 10: Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov has rewarded a traffic police officer for standing in the path of a truck during the purported assassination attempt against Niyazov on 25 November 2002, turkmenistan.ru reported on 10 February. According to official accounts of the incident, the truck was attempting to infiltrate Niyazov`s motorcade in order to separate the president from his bodyguards. The reward to Amanmyrat Khojamberdiev, a senior inspector in the Defense Ministry`s traffic and fire-protection section, consists of an apartment in one of the high-rise apartment blocks that Niyazov has been requiring ministries and other government agencies to build in recent years, but in which few government employees can afford to live. Khojamberdiev received a medal in 2003 for his exploit against the truck.
Kazakh TV Channel Shows Abuse Of Prison Inmates, Sparks Probe
Radio Free Europe
Astana, February 10: The Kazakh KTK television channel has launched a nationwide discussion of torture in the country`s penal facilities by broadcasting during the week of 2-6 February footage of the savage beating of inmates at the Arkalyk Prison No. 1, Deutsche Welle reported on 10 February. The Justice Ministry has set up a commission headed by Deputy Justice Minister Sabyrzhan Bekbosynov to look into the incidents shown on television. The commission has reportedly confirmed the KTK report, and four employees of the Arkalyk Prison are being prosecuted for exceeding their authority. The head of the prison and of the Kostanai Oblast penal system have reportedly been fired. The new acting head of the Kostanai penal system, Amangeldy Rakhmetov, told a press conference in Kostanai that the film of the beatings was faked in order to weaken the prison system.
Lawyer`s Firm On Human Rights Opens In Tashkent
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 9: Lawyer`s firm on human rights opened in the Uzbek capital under the Tashkent State Law Institute´s Juridical Clinic. The firm was initiated by the American Bar Association (ABA) and supported by the US State Department. `We, Uzbekistan and the USA, are cooperating in many directions, including human rights, and opening of the legal firm is a proof that both sides understand the importance of such collaboration,` US Ambassador to Uzbekistan John Robert Purnell said. `I believe the present event signifies formation of a new professional direction in protection of human rights in Uzbekistan,` Richard Raton, ABA regional director, said.
Kyrgyzstan`s Top Jailer Says Country Needs More And Better Prisons
Radio Free Europe
Bishkek, February 9: Vladimir Nosov, head of the Kyrgyz Justice Ministry`s Penal Board, told a news conference in Bishkek on 9 February that Kyrgyzstan needs more penal facilities, kabar.kg reported. Nosov said that new facilities housing no more than 200-250 inmates each would make it possible to provide better conditions for prisoners, and would make it possible to incarcerate recidivists separately from other inmates. He gave a figure of 17,000 for Kyrgyzstan`s current prison population, with one guard responsible for eight inmates, a figure Nosov said is high in comparison with other countries.
Uzbekistan Loyal To Continuing Work On Human Rights
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 8: The government of Uzbekistan is loyal to continuing work on human rights, Carlos Pascual, US State Department`s coordinator for assistance to Europe and Eurasia countries, and Kent Hill, USAID administrator`s assistant, told the press in Tashkent on Friday. Carlos Pascual noted that the aim of the visit was to familiarise with the projects financed by the US government and discuss issues related to regional cooperation. `We visited four Central Asian states. This gave us the opportunity to learn what kind of additional assistance the government should provide to US-financed projects,` he said. `In Uzbekistan we saw a serious loyalty of the government to continue work on human rights; we met both officials and representatives of the NGOs, discussed issues of regional cooperation and human rights. We are ready to continue our work with NGOs,` Pascual said.
Euro-MPs Criticise Kazakhstan Amid Fears Of Media Crackdown
AFP
Brussels, February 7: European parliament deputies in a letter released on Friday protested Kazakhstan`s plans for a new media law that threatens to further reduce independent reporting in the former Soviet republic. `Regrettably the draft media law represents a step backwards for Kazakhstan in terms both of respect for its international legal obligations and of its democratic ... credentials,` read the letter from Jas Gawronski and Charles Tannock, deputies on the European parliament`s foreign affairs committee, to Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev. Western countries fearful of future instability in ex-Soviet Central Asia see Kazakhstan as setting a crucial example in a region where many newspapers do little more than reprint government decrees. The main body promoting democracy in the region, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), has called on Kazakhstan`s government to drop the draft media law currently being considered in parliament pending a thorough rethink.
Azerbaijani Leader`s Russian Tour Enhances Cooperation
Xinhua
Moscow, February 7: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev wound up his three-day visit to Russia on Feb. 7, which paves way for further development of bilateral cooperation and may help to secure Russia`s influence in the Caucasus region. During his first official trip to Russia after taking office last October in the former Soviet republic, Aliyev and the Russian authority confirmed their joint commitment in a wide range of issues, including maintaining security in the Caucasus region, promoting energy and military cooperation, and fighting against terrorism. In the joint declaration signed by Aliyev and Russian President Vladimir Putin after their Friday meeting in the Kremlin, both sides expressed the desire to settle lingering disputes in all of the former Soviet territories, particularly in the volatile Caucasus region. Putin said Russia is prepared to help mediate Azerbaijan`s ongoing conflict with Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave. He urged the two neighbors to find a solution first and Russia would be able to act as a guarantor.
Rahmanov Satisfied Over Iran Ties
IRIB News
Dushanbe, February 7: Tajik President Imamali Rahmanov here Friday expressed satisfaction over growing economic ties with Iran during the past year and called for Iran`s further contribution to infrastructural projects in his country. He made the remark in a meeting with Iranian ambassador to Tajikistan Nasser Sarmadi Parsa. The Tajik president also welcomed contribution of Iranian investors to major economic plans in his country. Sarmadi briefed the president on Iran`s economic and cultural projects in Tajikistan and voiced Tehran`s readiness to expand ties with Dushanbe in various areas, economic and trade fields in particular. The ambassador noted that President Mohammad Khatami is scheduled to visit Tajikistan in September upon the official invitation of his Tajik counterpart.
Kazakhstan To Sustain Uranium Production Growth In 2004
Interfax
Almaty, February 13: Kazakhstan`s national nuclear corporation Kazatomprom plans to mine 3,420 tonnes of uranium in 2004, compared with tentatively 2,840 tonnes in 2003 and 2,665 tonnes in 2002, the company told Interfax. Kazatomprom said it is targeting sales of $97.6 million. Sales were tentatively $74.5 million in 2003, compared with $63.8 million in 2002. Kazatomprom said it hoped to unveil its final 2003 results in March. Kazatomprom is one of the world`s four biggest uranium producers, with 8% of global mine production.
Kazakhstan Adopts Uranium Program To 2015
Interfax
Almaty, February 12: Kazakhstan`s government adopted a uranium industry development program for 2004-2015 which aims to consolidate national uranium corporation Kazatomprom`s position as one of the world`s leading uranium companies. Kazatomprom, already one of the world`s top four uranium producers with 8% of global mine production at the start of 2003, will increase uranium production and its range uranium-related products and services. It will also increase its presence on the world market for tantalum, niobium and beryllium, partly by upgrading existing production capacity. Kazakhstan will open representative offices or joint ventures in the main uranium-consuming countries as part of its bid to strengthen its position on the world uranium market.
Kyrgyz Poor Ignore Radiation Dangers
Institute for War & Peace Reporting
Mayluu-Suu, February 11: Efforts are underway to warn Mayluu-Su residents of the dangers of venturing near a long-abandoned uranium mine.Residents of the southern Kyrgyz town of Mayluu-Suu are risking their lives daily because they are unaware of the extent of radioactivity seeping from its abandoned uranium mills. Locals are taking little or no precautions to protect their families - prompting moves to educate people in the area about the danger on their doorsteps. The publication of a booklet titled Live Safely in Mayluu-Suu is a joint initiative run by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, OSCE, in Bishkek, the Scientific Engineering Centre GeoPribor and the Kyrgyzstan National Academy of Science. It is designed to minimise disease rates and birth defects already common among residents, who are either unaware of the risks of entering the former mine area - or disregard them in order to make money. Around four million tons of radioactive waste is contained in 23 dumps in the area - the legacy of mining operations carried out during the Soviet era from 1946 to 1967. When the operation finally closed down in 1973, little effort was made to clear away the contaminated materials, and the area remains dangerous. Japar Kojoakmatov, who grazes his cattle on radioactive ground, told IWPR, `Frankly speaking, I have no idea what [the consequences might be], but I really don`t care. I have to feed my family and this place is convenient for me.
Kazakhstan Appeals For More Aid For Semipalatinsk
Radio Free Europe
Astana, February 10: Kazakh First Deputy Foreign Minister Kayrat Abuseitov appealed to international donors at a conference in Almaty on 10 February for more international assistance to the Semipalatinsk region to mitigate the effects of 40 years of Soviet nuclear-weapons testing there, Interfax-Kazakhstan reported. Abuseitov added that the problems of Semipalatinsk can be resolved only through the joint efforts of Kazakhstan and the international community. UN Permanent Representative in Kazakhstan Fikret Akcura told the conference that at present only Japan is involved in implementing UN Development Program initiatives in Semipalatinsk.
IAEA, Kazakhstan Sign Additional CSA Protocol
Interfax
Astana, February 9: Kazakh representative in Vienna for international organizations Rakhat Aliyev and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Mohamed ElBaradei signed an additional protocol to the Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday. International Safeguard Agreements and their additional protocols are aimed at `assuring that nuclear materials that have been declared for peaceful purposes are not being used for military purposes instead,` the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said. `Kazakhstan`s signing of this important international document once again shows the leadership`s support for nuclear non-proliferation and the prevention of a further escalation of nuclear arms,` the Foreign Ministry`s statement says.
Kazak Drug Testing Fears
Institute for War & Peace Reporting
Astana., February 13: A programme to identify groups vulnerable to drug addiction could be abused, activists warn.Government plans to introduce compulsory drug testing at schools and universities have been greeted with dismay and suspicion by students and health care professionals alike. The authorities believe that the programme, which would include an annual test, will reduce the number of addicts in the republic and also help to bring down Kazakstan`s rising rates of HIV infection. They argue that these steps will help to identify the real extent of the country`s drugs problems, but human rights activists argue that such heavy-handed tactics will merely exacerbate things, and lead to further discrimination against addicts. Yevgeni Zhovtis, director of the Bureau of Human Rights and Rule of Law in Almaty, told IWPR, `This a clear violation of human rights as these procedures [drugs testing] have to be conducted on a strictly voluntary basis. `Those who want to be tested should have the possibility to do so, but it should not be compulsory.` Deputy Education Minister Kulyash Shamshidinova sought to allay these fears, saying that the testing will be used to identify `at risk` groups and to provide programmes designed to tackle drug addiction. The authorities are also developing plans for dedicated medical units to work with addicts.
Uzbek Police Detains 37 Kg Of Heroin
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 12: Uzbek police and National Security Service have detained people with a large volume of drugs at Chak-chak check post at the Termiz-Tashkent highway. 37 kg of heroin was seized during the check of a car of two brothers, citizens of Sariasiya district of Surkhandarya region. The drug was hidden under back seat and car doors. A criminal case has been opened, UzA reported.
Syrdarya River Flooding Over 340 Homes, 2,000 Evacuated
Itar-Tass
Almaty, February 12: Over 340 houses have been flooded in southern Kazakhstan due to the overflowing of the Syrdarya River. More than 2,000 people have been evacuated, the emergency situations department of the republic told Itar-Tass on Friday. According to recent information, about 600 square kilometres of land have been inundated in the Kzyl-Orda region. Water has come to the Zhalagash district`s Aksu settlement with the population of 1,700. The Dauenbai village also faces the threat of flooding. A sharp water rise has also been registered in the Sarkand region. Rescue-emergencies services and civil population are engaged in the operation to restore and strengthen protective dams.
Uzbekistan Creates Forest Belt At Dried Aral Sea Bottom
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 11: About 200,000 hectares of forest belts have been created at the dried bottom of the Aral Sea in the last 10 years. The works on prevention of wind erosion and improvement of environmental conditions in the Aral Sea area are carried out by the Nukus branch of the International Aral Rescue Fund. According to UzA, in the beginning of 2004 the fund announced a tender on sowing plants to the dried bottom of the Aral Sea. Karauzak region`s forestry won the tender. It will now sow saxaul, circassian and sugar cane here. This is expected to help prevent wind erosion and reduce the dust content in the air. Over 560 million soums will be issued for this project.
Uzbekistan Works On Prevention Of Avian Flu
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 10: Uzbekistan has undertaken measures to prevent expansion of avian flu in the country. The corresponding decision was accepted by the Republican Extraordinary Anti-Epidemic Commission on 5 February 2004. According to UzA, no cases of avian flu were registered in Uzbekistan so far. Uzbekistan does not import any poultry production from countries where avian flu cases were registered. But the danger of avian flu from South-Eastern Asia remains. The special Anti-Epidemic Staff is working 24 hours at the Health Ministry, which is monitoring the epidemic situation in the country, including SARS. Hospitals and laboratories in Uzbekistan were provided with necessary equipment and medicines.
Kazakhstan: Risk Of Further Flooding In The South
IRIN News
Ankara, February 9: Water levels at the Chardara reservoir in southern Kazakhstan remain too high with over 1,300 people being evacuated to date. `The water is still coming as it was and there is still a risk of the Chardara bursting. The issue has yet to be resolved,` Kairzhan Turezhanov, the Kazakh emergency situations agency spokesman told IRIN from the Kazakh commercial capital, Almaty on Monday. Water discharge from the Chardara was still 700 cu m per second, one of the primary causes of flooding, as there had been no decrease in water levels flowing into the reservoir, he explained, adding that there had yet to be results in reducing water discharge from Kyrgyzstan`s hydroelectric power station reservoirs upstream to the agreed levels. Indeed, according to `Yugvodhoz`, a regional organisation responsible for water management in the area, water in the Chardara had increased to more than 40 million cu m over the past week reaching a dangerously high level of 4.9 billion, while the total capacity of the Soviet-built reservoir stands 5.2 billion. Meanwhile, parts of the Syrdarya river, in the Kazalinski district of the southern Kzyl-Orda province remained partially frozen, blocking the river`s flow and resulting in substantial flooding of low lying areas, said the emergency agency.
State Property Committee Withdraws License Of Hamyon
Uzbek Report
Tashkent, February 10: Department of licensing and assessment of exchange activity of the Uzbek State Property Committee withdrew the license of the Universal Exchange Hamyon. According to the department´s official statement, the license was withdrawn due to violations of legislation starting from 2 February 2004.
Special Focus
Azerbaijan`s Geopolitical Intentions Subject Of Increasing Speculation
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev`s recent visit to Moscow was marked by speculation surrounding Baku`s geopolitical intentions. For the time being, Ilham Aliyev appears intent on maintaining the so-called `balanced` foreign policy approach instituted by his father, Heidar. Many political analysts believe, however, that Azerbaijan will sooner or later be forced to choose between Russia and the West.
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav021004a.shtmlOpposition In Azerbaijan Renews Political Attacks Against President
Opposition activists in Azerbaijan are intensifying political attacks on President Ilham Aliyev, saying his first 100 days in power have been marked by a significant rise in government repression and corruption. One Aliyev critic described the government as presiding over a `stagnation period.`
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav020904a.shtmlUS Policy In Azerbaijan: A Backward Strategy From Freedom
There is a stark contrast in the Bush administration`s rhetoric on the need to promote democratic values around the globe, and its actions. In a speech late last year, President George W. Bush unveiled a `forward strategy for freedom.`
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav021104.shtmlGovernment Shake-up In Tajikistan Court Conflict
With parliamentary elections scheduled for Tajikistan in 2005, President Immomali Rahmonov appears intent on bolstering his authority. A recent government reshuffle aimed to diminish the power of Rahmonov`s rivals within government structures, observers in Dushanbe believe.
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav021104a.shtmlHIV, STI`s And Drugs In Xinjiang And Central Asia
Regional trade and national security were the focus of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization`s January summit in Beijing. However, HIV/AIDS and associated drug trafficking problems in Xinjiang and Central Asia are growing at an alarming rate and pose a real crisis for all countries involved.
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.cacianalyst.org/view_article.php?articleid=2110Georgia`s Constitutional Amendments: A Setback For Democratisation?Less than two weeks after being inaugurated into office, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili presented a series of amendments to the Constitution to change the structure of central government to Parliament on 5-6 February. The post of Prime Minister was created; more significantly the President was provided with new powers to dissolve Parliament.
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.cacianalyst.org/view_article.php?articleid=2111Indo-Pakistani Negotiations: What`s In Them For Central Asia?
The Indo-Pakistani announcement of a composite dialogue on all outstanding issues between them offers hope of an amelioration of the problems that have bedeviled these two states, if not hope for a more general process leading to peace between them.
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.cacianalyst.org/view_article.php?articleid=2112No Closer Prospects For The Settlement Of The Karabakh Conflict
Prior to the 2003 presidential elections in Azerbaijan and Armenia this year, many hoped that the negotiating process between the two countries would revitalize and produce visible results in the post-election period. In 2003, talks were frozen since no serious compromises were realistic before the presidential elections in both countries, more so in the light of Azerbaijan`s former President Heydar Aliyev`s protracted illness.
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.cacianalyst.org/view_article.php?articleid=2113Saakashvili Makes Friends With Putin During Georgia Leader`s Moscow Visit
Georgian-Russian relations have been marked by mutual antagonism for much of the post-Soviet era, as the two countries have bickered over a wide variety of issues. The divisive issues include; a political settlement to the Abkhazia conflict, and Moscow`s decision to grant Russian citizenship to large numbers of Abkhaz; Russian continuing military presence in Georgia; and Tbilisi`s inability to control its frontier along Russia`s renegade province of Chechnya.
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav021204.shtmlArmenia Struggles To Stamp Out Corruption
Striving to enhance its business environment, Armenia has unveiled a high-profile government strategy to stamp out corruption. Though ambitious in scope, some civil society advocates in Armenia caution that vague implementation mechanisms could cause the anti-corruption drive to stall.
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav021204a.shtmlMoscow Summit Raises Hope For Progress In The Abkhazia Peace Process
Recent talks in Moscow between Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili and Russian leaders appeared to provide fresh momentum to the often troubled search for lasting peace in the Georgian territory of Abkhazia.
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/culture/articles/eav021304.shtmlArmenia`s Ruling Coalition Beset By Renewed Infighting
Armenia faces a potential governmental crisis after the leader of one of the three parties in the governing coalition attacked his partners and President Robert Kocharian, accusing them of undermining the state`s best interests.
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav021304.shtmlRussia Ready To Take On The Oil World
Russian oilers have pledged to overtake Saudi Arabia and position Russia as the world`s leading oil producer within five years. By 2009, Russian crude output could reach 11 million barrels per day (bpd), thus surpassing Saudi Arabia, Yukos chief executive officer Simon Kukes announced this week.
To read more, click on the link:
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/FB14Ag01.html
Report Dated 13 February 2004