News Digest

Kazakhstan Development Bank raised $950 ml in loans this year
13 June
The Development Bank of Kazakhstan (DBK) has raised $950 ml in loans over five months of the year, the bank said in a press release. Over the period the bank has also signed $700 ml worth agreements for credit facilities. The bank is currently wrapping up work on raising $400 ml more in Q3. “A significant increase in borrowed funds comes in line with DBK strategic development plan for 2008-2011. This year the bank plans to increase lending at beneficial terms to infrastructure and industrial sectors," according to the press release. "The borrowed funds will create a foundation for investment activities in 2008 and 2009," bank CEO Mukan Sagindykov was quoted as saying in the press release. DBK also plans to resume the flotation of the 5th tranche of Eurobonds if a so-called "investment window" opens. DBK was founded in 2001 with 100% of state-s participation within implementation of the strategy of industrial-innovative development of the republic scheduled until 2015. The bank extends loans for mid- and long-term investment projects in production and non-resource industries. (Interfax-Kazakhstan)

Tbilisi demands Moscow withdraw troops from Abkhazia – FM Eka Tkeshelashvili
2 June
Tbilisi will demand Moscow withdraw units of Russian railway troops from Abkhazia, Georgian Foreign Minister Eka Tkeshelashvili said. Upon completion of the session of the Georgian Security Council on Monday that was convened by Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili due to the situation in the Abkhazian region, Tkeshelashvili said Georgia “intends to demand Moscow withdraw units of Russian railway troops from Abkhazia”.

Russia says catches Georgian spy: Interfax
16 May
Russia's FSB security service says it has intercepted a spy working for Georgia and prevented him from helping rebels in southern Russia, Interfax news agency reported on Friday. A row over the status of Georgia's breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia has pushed relations between Russia and Georgia to a low. Each side has accused the other of spying. Interfax quoted the FSB as saying the spy was a Chechen with Russian citizenship. "In particular, he had to organize contact between Georgian special forces and illegal armed groups in Russia," the FSB said, according to Interfax. Russian forces have fought two wars against Chechen rebels since 1994. The Kremlin is eager to present the area as peaceful but violence still flares in Chechnya and its neighboring republics of Ingushetia and Dagestan. The report did not give details of when and where he was caught. (Reuters)

KYRGYZSTAN HOSTS REGIONAL SUMMIT ON ENERGY, WATER COOPERATION

5 May

Kyrgyz Deputy Minister of Industry, Energy and Fuel Resources Akylbek Tumenbaev opened a meeting in Bishkek on May 2 of officials from Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan to discuss plans to improve regional cooperation in the management and use of water and energy resources. The officials, primarily deputy ministers from each country's energy ministry, focused on the water and energy resources of Kyrgyzstan's Naryn-Syr Daria river basin. At the end of the meeting, which is set to reconvene on May 14-15, participants adopted specific measures governing the use of the water and energy resources at the Kyrgyz Toktogul reservoir, which provides 40 percent of Kyrgyzstan's hydroelectric energy. The Kyrgyz government recently decided to introduce a new electricity-rationing regime, lasting for at least six months, that entails cutting electricity supplies for seven hours every night. The rationing program is intended to offset a dramatic decrease in the water level at the Toktogul reservoir. (AKIpress.org)

Kazakhstan planning to introduce export duty on metals

18 April
The Kazakh government will determine the size of an export duty that is to be introduced on mining and metals products before the end of April, Kazakh Deputy Finance Minister Daulet Yergozhin said in Astana on Friday. "An   export   duty   on metal commodities is  currently  being calculated," he said, noting that the Kazakh Industry and Trade Ministry is handling the calculations. Yergozhin did not specify what types of metals products would be subject to the new export duty. The introduction of an export duty on metals will be considered in conjunction with other taxes, in particular, the corporate income tax, whose rate could be lowered once a new Tax Code is approved. Yergozhin  said the export duty on metals commodities would be less than the oil export duty that is to come in effect on May 17. Nikolai  Radostovets,  executive  director  of  Kazakhstan's Mining Metal Companies Association, said the companies view the introduction of the export  duty  as  "a  hindrance  to  the  competitiveness  of  their products." "This is a barrier that will hinder the development of the Customs Union and could  even  contradict  it,"  he  said.  A resolution on the customs duty on metals could be adopted at the President's Council of Economic Policy in a few days, he said. "We are ready to give more to the country, but within the framework of a civilized taxation system," Radostovets said. Industry   and  Trade  Minister  Vladimir  Shkolnik  called  for  a diversified  approach  to  calculating  the  customs duty for each metal product. "There should be  a balanced approach to each product. Obviously, there won't be a fixed 10% or 5% duty for all. We will discuss this issue further," he told journalists later today in Astana. (Interfax)

KYRGYZ PRESIDENT REJECTS PLANS TO SWITCH TO LATIN-BASED SCRIPT

3 April

At a meeting with Kyrgyz Education and Science Minister Ishengul Boljurova in Bishkek, President Kurmanbek Bakiev said on April 3 that he has decided to reject plans to switch from the Cyrillic script to a new Latin-based one.

Third anniversary of Tulip Revolution in Kyrgyzstan

24 March

The third anniversary of the “Tulip Revolution” will be marked in Kyrgyzstan on Monday. The republic’s parliament recently decided to turn March 24 into a People’s Revolution Day Holiday. A festive meeting will be held on the occasion at the Bishkek Philharmonic Society and a salute will be fired in the central square of the capital on Monday evening. Prior to this, March 24 was marked in Kyrgyzstan only in compliance with a presidential decree, which lacks the power of a law. However, not all the population of Kyrgyzstan are pleased with the decision to turn March 24 into a nation-wide holiday. The public opinion polls, carried out by the local mass media among the citizens of Bishkek, show that only fifty per cent of the capital’s population acclaim this novelty. Three years ago, a crowd of several thousand people stormed and seized the Government House here. Soldiers and policemen had not put up any notable resistance to the opposition. They simply gave up their weapons and went home. President Askar Akayev was forced to leave the country. Seizure of Government house was preceded by several arsons and by a successful attack of opposition supporters on some administrative buildings and also on offices of prosecutors and of home affairs in the regional centre of Jalal-Abad. (Itar-Tass)

TURKMENISTAN AND AZERBAIJAN INK DEAL ON GAS DEBT REPAYMENT

6 March

Azerbaijani Deputy Prime Minister Yagub Eyyubov and Deputy Chairman of Turkmenistan`s Cabinet of Ministers Khydir Saparliyev have struck a deal on Azerbaijan`s repayment of the debt for gas supplies delivered from Turkmenistan in the early 1990s. Eyyubov noted Leaders of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan tasked the governments of both countries to prepare for signing the agreement. The deal was signed thanks to the compromises from both sides. First Deputy Prime Minister thanked the Turkmen Cabinet of Ministers and expert group for the work done. Saparliyev expressed hope that both countries will step up cooperation in the economic and humanitarian fields. (Azertag)

Foreign ministers of breakaway territories to meet in Moscow
22 February
The Foreign ministers of Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Transdniestria are set to meet in Moscow on Friday. "The Abkhaz, South Ossetian and Trandniestrian foreign ministers plan to discuss issues related to preparations for a meeting of the presidents of our breakaway republics," Abkhaz Foreign Minister Sergei Shamba told Interfax on Friday. "We will also discuss the situation after the recognition of Kosovo's independence by a number of countries," he said. The three leaders will meet in Moscow, South Ossetian President Eduard Kokoity told Interfax. "We are planning to meet in Moscow, and I think that the meeting will take place within two weeks," he said. (Interfax)

U.S. AMBASSADOR CRITICIZES KYRGYZ CONSTITUTION AS 'STEP BACKWARD'8 February
In a statement in Bishkek, U.S. Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan Marie Yovanovitch onFebruary 8 criticized the Kyrgyz Constitution as "a step backwards" in contributing to a "policy of decentralization of power." Speaking during a conference on local self-government, Yovanovitch explained that "the new Kyrgyz Constitution is a step backwards in this area," adding that "instead of directly electing" local leaders, the new constitution will allow the president to freely appoint and dismiss district-level officials, which "undermines the notion of local governance itself." She went on to add that "experience shows that without an effective control on the part of the public, the vertical chain of power increases the likelihood of making bad decisions." Instead, the ambassador affirmed that the United States hopes that draft laws on self-government, and administrative and territorial arrangements will address this problem and "clearly divide the functions of the local and central authorities." (www.24.kg) ARMENIAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE COMPLAINS TO CONSTITUTIONAL COURT8 FebruaryFormer President and opposition presidential candidate Levon Ter-Petrossian wrote on February 7 to Armenia's Constitutional Court complaining of "insurmountable obstacles" created by the authorities to his campaign for the February 19 presidential ballot,  RFE/RL's Armenian Service reported on February 8. He mentioned specifically the negative coverage he has received over the past three months from Armenian State Television. Ter-Petrossian formally asked the court to remove those obstacles. The election law stipulates that the existence of such obstacles necessitates postponement of the ballot by two weeks. If after that time the obstacles have still not been removed, new elections must be scheduled after a 40-day interval. (RFE/RL) LONG LINES REPORTED IN TURKMENISTAN IN PREPARATION FOR GASOLINE PRICE HIKE9 FebruaryFor the first time in a decade, drivers in Turkmenistan on February 9 waited in long lines at gas stations in an attempt to stock up on gasoline prior to a planned price increase set to be introduced on February 11. According to the terms of a presidential decree introduced on February 8, gasoline prices are to increase by some eight times, from the current level of about 400 manats ($.02) per liter to 3,100 manats ($.15), although drivers will also be provided with a monthly coupon-based allowance of 120 free liters of gas. The monthly ration system also provides 200 liters of free gas to drivers of trucks and buses, and 40 liters for motorcycle owners. (Itar-Tass) TAJIK PRESIDENT CONCLUDES STATE VISIT TO IRAN10 FebruaryAfter meeting with Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,President Emomali Rahmon on February 10 concluded a two-day state visit to Iran. Speaking to reporters at a press conference in Tehran following his meeting with the senior leadership, Rahmon said that Ahmadinejad proposed to construct a new hydroelectric power station in southern Tajikistan. He added that his talks with the Iranians focused on expanding bilateral cooperation in the areas of "transport, energy, joint investment, and culture." The Tajik delegation also reportedly reiterated the need for the "speeding up" of the Iranian construction of the Sangtuda-2 hydroelectric power station, warning of a recent energy crisis involving a serious decline in the availability of electricity in Tajikistan. (Asia-Plus) AZERBAIJAN TO RAISE PRICE FOR NATURAL GAS11 FebruaryAzerbaijan has no choice but to raise the price it charges for natural gas to bring it into line with world prices, Industry and Energy Minister Natiq Aliyev told journalists in Baku on February 11. Aliyev noted that Azerbaijan currently charges $120 per 1,000 cubic meters of gas, but plans to raise the price to between $180-$200. He said the price Georgia will be charged for gas supplies in 2008 is currently under discussion; Georgia receives approximately 1.3 million cubic meters of gas per day from the offshore Shah Deniz field. Similar talks will also be started with Turkey. Russia's Gazprom last month registered an interest in buying gas from Shah Deniz, but those purchases would begin only when the second stage of exploitation gets under way, which is unlikely before 2012. (day.az) ARMENIAN CONSTITUTIONAL COURT CALLS FOR ACTION ON ELECTION OBSTACLES12 FebruaryArmenia's nine Constitutional Court judges convened on February 11 to discuss the formal complaint lodged four days earlier by former President and opposition presidential candidate Levon Ter-Petrossian, RFE/RL's Armenian Service reported. Ter-Petrossian alleged insurmountable obstacles to normal election campaigning, specifically the overwhelmingly negative coverage of his political activities by state-controlled Armenian Public Television. In the event that such obstacles are not removed, election legislation requires the postponement of the election by two weeks. The court ruled after four hours of discussions that while Ter-Petrossian's complaints were "legitimate" and require action by the regulatory National Commission on Television and Radio and by the Central Election Commission, the actions he cited do not constitute an insurmountable obstacle to his campaign, and there are therefore no grounds to postpone the election, which is scheduled for February 19. (RFE/RL) Russia police say four killed in clash with rebels