Summery

Azerbaijan

Political Front

• European Court Finds Azerbaijan Guilty Of Election Fraud

Azerbaijan has been criticized by the international community for its poor voting record

BAKU -- The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has issued its first ruling on a complaint about election fraud in Azerbaijan and found the government guilty, RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service reports.

Geo strategic Front

• Azerbaijani Ambassador to Russia to become CIS Interstate Fund for Humanitarian Cooperation chairman

 Azerbaijani extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassador to Russia Polad Bulbuloglu, a member of the CIS Council for Humanitarian Cooperation (CHC) and board member of the CIS Interstate Humanitarian Cooperation Foundation (IHCF) Polad Bulbuloglu will become the chairman of the IHCF Board May 2.

• Azerbaijani FM: Turkey confirms invariability of its position on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

 Turkey has confirmed the invariability of its position on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Elmar Mammadyarov briefed the media on April 9, answering a question about today's meeting with Firudin Sinirlioglu, Turkish Foreign Ministry's adviser and special envoy of the Turkish Prime Minister.

• Azerbaijan, EU discuss bilateral cooperation

 Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Elmar Mammadyarov met European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy Stefan Fule to discuss bilateral relations, Eastern Partnership program and energy cooperation on April 9.

Economic/Energy Front

• Romanian President: Memorandum on Azerbaijan gas supplies to Romania is important for EU

 The Memorandum of Understanding signed between Romania, Azerbaijan and Georgia to implement the project AGRI (Azerbaijan Georgia Romania Interconnect), is an important and essential step both for the three countries, and for the entire European Union, Financiarul reported citing Romanian President Traian Basescu.

• Azerbaijan ensures high economic growth during global recession

 The Sixth Caspian International Banking and Finance Conference and Exhibition 2010 will be a good testing ground for discussing topical issues in light of the global financial crisis, Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) Chairman Elman Rustamov said at the opening of the conference.

• Azerbaijan, Romania and Georgia sign memorandum on gas supplies – UPDATE

Azerbaijan, Georgia and Romania will sign a memorandum on cooperation in gas sphere in Bucharest today. Today Azerbaijan, Georgia and Romania signed a memorandum on cooperation in gas sphere in Bucharest, SOCAR Representation in Romania said.

• Turkish Ambassador to Azerbaijan commented on the gas negotiations between Baku and Ankara

 Another round of talks between Turkey and Azerbaijan on gas prices will likely be sometime next month. Turkish Ambassador to Azerbaijan Hulusi Kilich, told ANS TV that he does not exclude a possible agreement.

Social Front

• Azerbaijani Police Disperse Rally, Detain Activists

Azerbaijani police have broken up an opposition rally against restrictions on freedom of assembly in the capital city and briefly detained demonstrators, RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service reports.

• Jailed Azerbaijani Bloggers Transferred Outside Baku 

BAKU -- Two Azerbaijani bloggers jailed on hooliganism charges have been transferred from a pretrial detention center in Baku to separate prisons, RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service reports.

• Jailed Azerbaijani Journalist Expects Another Prison Term 

BAKU -- The trial of journalist Eynulla Fatullayev on charges of illegal possession of drugs while in prison has begun in a Baku court, RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service reports.

Fatullayev told the judge on April 9 at the start of his trial that he although he is innocent, he is certain he will be found guilty of the charges and sentenced to a fourth prison term.

    Kazakhstan

Political Front

• Kazakh Opposition Activists Send Petition To Obama

ALMATY -- Opposition activists and independent journalists gave a petition to the U.S. Consulate in Almaty today urging President Barack Obama to reject Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev's invitation to attend an Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) summit in Astana, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports.

Geo strategic Front

• Kazakhstan To Provide Aid To Kyrgyzstan

ASTANA -- Kazakh Prime Minister Karim Masimov has said his country will provide the victims of the violent clashes between antigovernment protesters and Kyrgyz security forces with humanitarian aid, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports.

• KAZAKHSTAN: OBAMA-NAZARBAYEV MEETING DOES NOT YIELD OSCE SUMMIT PLEDGE

Kazakhstan’s president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, granted the United States new over-flight rights for the resupply of US and NATO troops in Afghanistan, but his April 11 meeting with US President Barack Obama did not yield a clear commitment from Washington concerning the convening of an OSCE summit.

• STATE MEDIA CREATES DISTORTED PICTURE OF OBAMA-NAZARBAYEV MEETING

State-controlled media outlets in Kazakhstan have been competing to outdo each other with flattering portrayals of President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s one-on-one meeting with Barack Obama on April 11. Kazakhstani news outlets also indicate that Astana is planning to host an Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe summit in November, apparently with or without a US endorsement.

Economic/Energy Front

• India, Kazakhstan to conclude talks for civil nuclear deal

WASHINGTON: India and Kazakhstan will soon wrap-up inter-governmental negotiations on civil nuclear cooperation, a move that came after meeting of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Kazakh President Noorsultan Nazarbayev.

• Eni’s investment in Kashagan totals $4.5 billion as of 2009

 (SRI) - Eni SpA, the Italian oil major, reportedly invested $4.5 billion into the Kashagan oil field as of the end of 2009, according to the company’s annual report.

• Ukraine: Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan Welcome to Join Gas Consortium

Ukraine may eventually consider the idea of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan joining the gas consortium Kyiv hopes to set up to manage its gas pipelines, First Deputy Ukrainian Prime Minister Andrey Klyuyev said during a briefing today, Kazakhstan Today reported, citing UNIAN.

Social Front

• Nazarbaev University To Open In Summer

ASTANA -- A new university in Astana named after Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev will open this summer, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports. Kazakh Prime Minister Karim Masimov told journalists today that 500 scholarships have been allocated for Nazarbaev University students. The opening ceremony is scheduled for July.

• Web browser that bypasses big brother a Kazakh hit

ALMATY (Reuters Life!) - A browser that bypasses censors has become the most popular way to access the Internet in Kazakhstan, a Central Asian state where sites critical of the government are often blocked, a Web statistics firm said.

    Kyrgyzstan

Political Front

• Kyrgyz Clan Leaders To Urge Bakiev To Resign

BISHKEK -- An organization of Kyrgyz clans says it will send the representatives of 40 clans to meet with ousted President Kurmanbek Bakiev to try to persuade him to officially resign, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports.

• Kyrgyz Court Fully Exonerates Former Defense Minister

BISHKEK -- A Kyrgyz military court has fully exonerated former Defense Minister Ismail Isakov, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports.

• Bakiev Reportedly Leaves For Kazakhstan

Bodyguards cleared the way for ousted President Kurmanbek Bakiev as he left the scene after the shots were fired in central Osh on April 15.

 (RFE/RL) -- Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiev has reportedly flown out of the country to neighboring Kazakhstan. The reports said Bakiev had left to have consultation talks with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev.

• New Kyrgyz Security Leadership Assures Public

BISHKEK -- Kyrgyzstan's National Security Service (SNB) has issued an address to the country calling on citizens to help the interim government reestablish order and stability, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports.

• Kyrgyz Interim Government Receives Offers Of Help, As Situation Still Tense

A supporter of President Kurmanbek Bakiev (left) argues with interim government followers attempting to hold a rally at the central square in Jalal-Abad on April 14.

• Kyrgyz President Sets Conditions For Resignation

BISHKEK/JALAL-ABAD, Kyrgyzstan -- Kyrgyzstan's embattled president, Kurmanbek Bakiev, has said in the face of a threat of attack that he is willing to resign if his security is guaranteed. The head of the interim government, Roza Otunbaeva, told the Associated Press in an interview her team was offering security guarantees to Bakiev and his family if he stepped down and left the country.

• Criminal Cases Begun Against Kyrgyz President's Sons, Brother 

BISHKEK -- Kyrgyzstan's acting prosecutor-general says criminal cases against President Kurmanbek Bakiev's two sons, Marat and Maksim, and his brother, Janysh, have been launched by the interim government, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports.

Baitemir Ibraev told RFE/RL that the three face charges of premeditated murder and attempted murder.

• Reporter's Notebook: The Mountain Roza Otunbaeva Has To Climb

BISHKEK -- Roza Otunbaeva may be the head of Kyrgyzstan’s interim government, but she’s the country’s chief mourner as well.

• Acting Kyrgyz Leader Mulls Bakiev Arrest

BISHKEK -- Kyrgyzstan's interim leader says the provisional government is considering arresting the country's president to put him on trial for the deaths of dozens of people in bloody clashes between antigovernment protesters and security forces earlier this week.

Roza Otunbaeva told Reuters that the arrest warrant for President Kurmanbek Bakiev's "relatives and accomplices" has already been issued."

• Kyrgyz Interim Government Piles Pressure On Ousted President

 (RFE/RL) -- Kyrgyzstan's interim leader says the provisional government is considering arresting the country's president to put him on trial for the deaths of dozens of people in bloody clashes between antigovernment protesters and security forces earlier this week.

• Defiant Kyrgyz Leader Addresses Supporters

Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiev has made his first public appearance since he was toppled last week, accusing his opponents of seizing power "by force" and refusing to step down. Bakiev was addressing a crowd of supporters in his home town of Teyit, in the south of Kyrgyzstan.

Geo strategic Front

• U.S. Official To Meet With Kyrgyz Interim Government

A senior U.S. official is due in Kyrgyzstan today to meet with the interim government.  Assistant Secretary of State Robert Blake will meet with interim leader Roza Otunbayeva and others.  

• U.S. Air Base In Kyrgyzstan Resumes Full Operations

The U.S. air base in Kyrgyzstan vital to military operations in Afghanistan has resumed full operations, after unrest in the country caused suspension of troop transport flights.

The U.S. embassy said today in a statement that Manas air base has resumed normal activities.

• U.S. Says Kyrgyzstan To Honor Base Agreements

BISHKEK (Reuters) -- The interim leader of Kyrgyzstan has agreed to abide by previous agreements on Manas Airport, a key supply base for U.S. war efforts in Afghanistan, the U.S. State Department said.

• Russian President Warns Of Kyrgyz Civil War, Urges START Ratification

WASHINGTON (RFE/RL) -- Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned that Kyrgyzstan may be plunged into a civil war if the standoff between embattled President Kurmanbek Bakiev and the self-declared interim government is not resolved soon.

• Regional States React To Kyrgyz Violence

(RFE/RL) -- Most regional states are watching events in Kyrgyzstan. But few are saying much. Neighboring Uzbekistan has yet to make any official statement on the unrest in Kyrgyzstan, where an opposition coalition has claimed to have taken power following unrest that left at least 75 people dead.

• U.S. Base In Kyrgyzstan Diverts Passenger Flights

The United States says some 50,000 troops passed through the Manas air base on their way to or from Afghanistan in March. BISHKEK (Reuters) -- The U.S. military has reversed a decision to resume normal operations at its base in Kyrgyzstan and decided to divert all military passenger flights elsewhere and restrict cargo flights, officials said.

Economic/Energy Front

Social Front

• Kyrgyz City Residents Urged To Return Weapons

TALAS, Kyrgyzstan -- Supporters of the interim government in Kyrgyzstan's northwestern city of Talas are campaigning for the return of weapons and ammunition taken by local residents from police and security forces during last week's uprising, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports.

• Case Launched Against Kyrgyz 'Computer Smasher' 

BISHKEK -- Bishkek police say they have charged a former presidential candidate with vandalizing the office of an independent newspaper, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports.  Police investigator Bekjan Isakov told RFE/RL that Nurlan Motuev is charged with damaging private property on March 25, when he forced his way into the Bishkek offices of the independent "Uchur" newspaper and destroyed some of its computers.

    Tajikistan

Political Front

• Tajik Prosecutor General Sacks Public Prosecutors

DUSHANBE -- Tajikistan's new prosecutor-general has fired 13 public prosecutors in what he says is an effort to reform the prosecutor's office, RFE/RL's Tajik Service reports. Sherkhon Salimzoda, who was chairman of Tajikistan's Anticorruption Agency before being named prosecutor-general in mid-February, said at a press conference in Dushanbe on April 12 that the sackings were necessary because "there were many deficiencies in the prosecutors' activities."

Geo strategic Front

Economic/Energy Front

• Tajik delegation attends ADB-sponsored high-level forum on climate change in the Philippines

DUSHANBE, April 9, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- Senior government officials and climate change experts from around the world gathered for the Climate Investment Funds (CIF) Partnership Forum in the Philippines in March to discuss financial measures to help developing countries mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to climate change, Hosted by ADB, the meetings were an opportunity to review the impact of CIF, and to strengthen developing country participation in CIF climate action schemes.

• Tajikistan's economy weathers bleak 2009, better times ahead, says ADB

DUSHANBE, April 13, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- A sharp reduction in workers' remittances mainly due to economic difficulties in Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation and weak demand for Tajikistan's main export commodities of aluminum and cotton were the main factors in slowing Tajikistan's GDP growth by more than half in 2009, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) says in a major new report.

• World Bank supports to rehabilitate water supply system in Kulob

DUSHANBE, April 14, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- The World Bank has provided 13.5 million U.S. dollars for rehabilitation of the water supply system in the city of Kulob, Asia-Plus has learned at the State Committee for Investments and State-owned Property Management (GosKomInvest).

Social Front

• 20 schools in GBAO to be connected to Internet by new school year

KHOROG, April 14, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- 20 schools are expected to have been connected to Internet by the new school year, the GABO education directorate head Gahribsho Gharibshoyev said.

    Turkmenistan

Political Front

Geo strategic Front

• Turkmen president invited to Bahrain

On April 12, Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov received Sheikh Faisal bin Rashid bin Isa Al Khalifa, member of the royal family of the State of Bahrain, son of the elder brother of the King of Bahrain. According to the press service of the President of Turkmenistan, the meeting was held in the seaside town of Turkmenbashi as part of the grand opening of new facilities in the resort place of Avaza.

Economic/Energy Front

The U.S. third largest oil company ConocoPhillips is in talks with the UAE company Mubadala to submit a joint application for extracting oil and gas from the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea, ITAR-TASS reports referring to the business circles of the London Oil Exchange.

• President of Turkmenistan receives EU Commissioner for Energy

Turkmenistan, having enormous hydrocarbon reserves confirmed by independent experts, is willing to consider any proposals to diversify export routes for Turkmen energy resources to world markets.

• Turkmenistan and United States to hold political and business consultations

In the near future Turkmenistan and the U.S. will hold political consultations, as well as the Turkmen-American business forum with participation of members of the U.S. Business Council.

• Turkmenistan, Armenia to develop basis for economic cooperation

The 2nd meeting of the intergovernmental Turkmen-Armenian commission on economic cooperation was held in Yerevan. The meeting was chaired by Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan Hydyr Saparlyev and Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Armenia Armen Movsisyan.

• Turkmenistan and Armenia to exchange trade missions

In the course of the Turkmen-Armenian business forum Armenian Minister of Economy Nerses Yeritsyan announced the intention of the two countries to open trade offices in Ashgabat and Yerevan.

• Belarus ratifies agreement on motor transportation with Turkmenistan

Belarus has ratified an intergovernmental agreement with Turkmenistan on international motor transportation of passengers and cargos, ITAR-TASS reports. The document regulates international road haulage between states, transit through their territories, motor transportation to third countries and from them, as well as private travels by car from one country to another.

Social Front

• Turkmen Health Sector Criticized In Report

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has published a report criticizing Turkmenistan's public health system, RFE/RL's Turkmen Service reports.

The report said that Turkmen health authorities underestimate the threat of infectious diseases, manipulate medical data, and consistently fail to meet international standards in medical care.

• New international airport to be inaugurated in Turkmenbashi

A modern international airport capable of accommodating all types of aircraft is ready for commissioning in the city of Turkmenbashi in Balkan province of Turkmenistan. In the course of the Cabinet meeting on April 9, Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov set a task for Deputy Prime Minister Nazarguly Shagulyev, who is in charge of the transport industry, and for the head of the State National Service "Turkmenistan", Batyr

    Uzbekistan

Political Front

Geo strategic Front

• Russia-Uzbekistan: Moscow to meet Islam Karimov with the demonstration of political emigrants

The building of Uzbek embassy in Moscow

Ferghana.Ru already reported that Islam Karimov is going to give his first official visit to Russia under the presidency of Dmitry Medvedev. Last time the Uzbek leader visited Moscow on February 5-6, 2008.

Economic/Energy Front

Social Front

• Uzbekistan's threatened cultural legacy

A clampdown on Uzbek intelligentsia and civil society is compromising the socio-cultural evolution of the country

One of the most totalitarian and repressive countries in the world is trying to form its own definition of cultural progress. Recently, the authorities in Uzbekistan have been arresting not only human rights activists, but also religious minorities, artists and health practitioners on the grounds of "disrespecting Uzbek culture and people".