Tag Archives: Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan mend relations

BISHKEK, OCT. 1 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan reopened previously closed border crossings and pledged to improve relations after a friendly meeting in the Uzbek city of Andijan in the Ferghana Valley.

The sudden improvement in Uzbekistan-Kyrgyzstan relations comes just a month after the death of Islam Karimov, Uzbek president since independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. He was regarded as a belligerent leader who preferred to keep relations with his neighbours cool.

By contrast acting President and PM Shavkat Mirziyoyev has appeared eager to improve Uzbekistan’s relations and one of his first acts, at least according to many analysts, was to mend relations with Kyrgyzstan.

This year, both countries have strengthened their forces in a stand- off that has threatened to escalate into conflict. In August, Uzbekistan suspended rail links with Kyrgyzstan.

Relations between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan have been tense for years due to border disputes, rows over gas

prices and interethnic violence in Kyrgyzstan after a revolution in 2010. The Uzbek-Kyrgyz meeting on Oct. 1 culminated in a photo-op at the Uzbek-Kyrgyz border where Uzbek deputy PM, Adkham Ikramov, and his Kyrgyz counterpart, Mukhammetkalyi Abulgaziyev, exchanged kind words.

“Today, we understand just how much Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan need such meetings,” Mr Ikramov said.

The unprompted thawing of relations caught many by surprise.

Ruziali, an Uzbek student living in Bishkek, said that economic gains were behind the move.

“If acting President Shavkat Mirziyoyev wins the election, relations with Russia could improve and it is quite possible that we will enter the Eurasian Economic Union, of which Kyrgyzstan is already a member,” he said.

Uzbekistan holds a presidential election in December which is expected to confirm Mr Mirziyoyev as president.

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(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Uzbekistan asks for a new loan from World Bank

OCT. 4 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – During a visit to Uzbekistan by the World Bank’s new regional director for Central Asia, Lilia Burunciuc, the Uzbek ministry of economy asked for a $100m loan to improve the country’s job market. The ministry said it wanted to create around 500,000 new, sustainable jobs over the next five years. In June, the World Bank committed to a new partnership with Uzbekistan, earmarking around $3b for a vast range of projects.

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(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Link with GM Uzbekistan threatens to dent Clinton’s presidential campaign

OCT. 4 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – US media sympathetic to the Republican party has hinted that a gift by car manufacturer GM to the Clinton Foundation in 2010 may have triggered a visit by Hillary Clinton to a factory GM part-owns in Uzbekistan in 2011 when she was Secretary of State.

This is not the first time that Ms Clinton has had to fight off allegations of poor judgement linked to her charitable foundation that she co- founded with her husband, former US President Bill Clinton, but it is the first time that Uzbekistan has fea- tured in the US presidential debate.

Fox News, which favours the Republican party, referenced a corruption scandal which has hit GM Uzbekistan this year over alleged bogus car sales to Russia.

“Clinton isn’t tied to any of the allegations,” it reported. “But it’s another example of how Clinton Foundation donations and subsequent State Department actions have put the Democratic presidential nominee in an awkward position.”

In 2010, GM gave the Clinton Foundation cars worth $685,000. A year later, Ms Clinton visited the GM Uzbekistan factory, a joint venture with the Uzbek government, in east

Uzbekistan, giving it a major publicity boost.

Business deals, and subsequent allegations of bribe paying, with Uzbekistan have proved damaging to Western companies before. Ms Clinton may also be tarnished by association.

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(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

GM Uzbekistan switches to Belarus

OCT. 4 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – GM Uzbekistan said it has discontinued sales of its Ravon Matiz car model in Russia and shifted exports to Belarus. The company did not give a reason for the marketing decision. Uzbekistan and Belarus have improved trade ties. GM Uzbekistan, a joint venture between US-based GM (25%) and state-owned Uzavtoprom (75%), has had to grapple with a corruption scandal involving car sales to Russia in the past few months.

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(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Uzbek President bans unscheduled police raids

OCT. 6 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Uzbekistan’s acting President and PM Shavkat Mirziyoyev banned unscheduled police raids on businesses, in a move to improve, at least on paper, Uzbekistan’s business climate.

According to the decree, from January 2017 only pre-approved checks, linked to criminal activity or financial misconduct, can be ordered. This should end police raids, which have been linked to corruption.

This move fits Mr Mirziyoyev’s drive to build a presidential look for himself.

For the past few weeks, he has toured all regions in Uzbekistan, meeting foreign leaders and appearing more approachable than his predecessor Islam Karimov who died at the beginning of September

Mr Mirziyoyev is expected to win a presidential election in December.

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(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Uzbek President urges modernisation of power station

SEPT. 28 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – During a visit to the Karakalpakstan region in west Uzbekistan, acting President and PM Shavkat Mirziyoyev urged the local administration to speed up the modernisation of the region’s biggest thermal power station, Takhiatash. The upgrade scheme is being part funded by a $300m loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and will boost overall production to 930MW from the current 730MW.

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(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Uzbek media reports reappearance of Gulnara on Twitter

OCT. 4 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Uzbek local media reported the reappearance of Gulnara Karimova, eldest daughter of the late Uzbek President Islam Karimov, on Twitter. Ms Karimova, whose account is not confirmed, has been under house arrest since 2014. Through the new account, Zabitaya1972, which roughly translates into ‘beaten’ followed by her year of birth, Ms Karimova allegedly published a letter denouncing acting President and PM Shavkat Mirziyoyev of excluding her from her father’s funeral in September.

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(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Uzbekistan plans to create new e-library

OCT. 4 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – LG CNS, the IT provider owned by Korea’s LG, signed a $12.1m contract with Uzbekistan’s ministry of IT and communications to build a national online electronic library system. The project will be started at the Navoi national library and will then be expanded to education institutions, government agencies and airports.

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(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Uzbek court jails drug-traffickers

OCT. 4 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – A court in Uzbekistan sentenced five residents of the Tashkent region to between three and eight years in prison for drug trafficking. The court said that the group, which worked seasonally in Kyrgyzstan, repeatedly smuggled drugs into Uzbekistan. Police found around 10 kilos of opiates in their apartments.

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(News report from Issue No. 299, published on Oct. 7 2016)

Uzbek FM pays visit to Tajik capital

SEPT. 29 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Abdulaziz Kamilov, Uzbekistan’s foreign minister, paid an official visit to Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon in Dushanbe in an effort to boost cooperation. Mr Kamilov and Mr Rakhmon held talks on joint efforts to combat terrorism and on water and energy issues that still divide the two countries. Uzbekistan has maintained strong opposition against Tajikistan’s decision to build a major dam and hydropower plant because it would affect downstream water supply.

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(News report from Issue No. 298, published on Sept. 30 2016)