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23 Apr 2024
Central Asia, Home, Tajikistan International Affairs, International Affairs, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan International Affairs, Business & Economy, Tajikistan Features, Features, Kyrgyzstan Features

Britain’s Cameron to Central Asia: Work with Us

Britain’s foreign secretary is in Central Asia this week, seeking deeper ties with a part of the world seen as increasingly vital to international security, energy flows and efforts to combat climate change. The trip, which David Cameron described as overdue, followed criticism that Britain had neglected what the envoy’s own office describes as a “pivotal region of the world.”

Cameron´s visit comes months after a British parliamentary committee report said there was a perceived “lack of seriousness” in Britain’s engagement with Central Asia. The committee said Russia and China were courting the region, while Britain was “a leading enabler for corrupt Central Asian elites and a key node for capital flight out of the region.”

Cameron spent the first day of his trip in Tajikistan, meeting President Emomali Rahmon in Dushanbe and visiting the Nurek hydropower project, which supplies about 70% of the country’s electricity. He will also visit Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Mongolia.

“These countries aren’t often talked about in the U.K., so you might ask why,” Cameron said on Monday. “Well, these countries are sandwiched between China, Russia, Afghanistan and Iran. They’re making a choice of who to work with, and in a more competitive and contested world, if you want to protect and promote British interests, you need to get out there and compete.”

Britain intends to provide investment funds for small businesses as well as “green” projects that can mitigate the effects of climate change, Cameron said. Without providing specifics, he told Tajik television that he and Rahmon discussed security and “all the difficulties and conflicts in the region.”

The Islamic State group, which is said in some quarters to have increasingly recruited Central Asians into its ranks, claimed responsibility for the killing of more than 140 people by gunmen who attacked the Crocus City Hall in Moscow on March 22. Several Tajik migrants are among the detained suspects.

Cameron will “advance discussions on sanctions circumvention, human rights and reform,” his office said.

Britain is a staunch supporter of Ukraine in its war against Russia, which has had success in dodging Western sanctions, partly by trading with Europe via Central Asia. For example, British firms´ exports to Kyrgyzstan have soared by over 1,100%, Sky News reported.

“Major European economies are quietly continuing their economic cooperation with Moscow by circumventing sanctions to take advantage of the vacated market,” says a commentary in the Center for European Policy Analysis, which is based in Washington. “And they’re doing it by finding partners in the South Caucasus and Central Asia.”

Cameron praised the Nurek Dam as an example of the kind of “great schemes” that can help reduce the use of coal-fired power plants and drive down carbon emissions by providing clean energy from Central Asia to South Asia under the CASA-1000 project.

On the second leg of his tour, Cameron arrived in Kyrgyzstan later on April 22, where he met with President Sadyr Japarov. They exchanged views on the prospects for Kyrgyz-British cooperation in the political, trade, economic, investment, energy, and transport areas, the Kyrgyz president’s press service reported. They also discussed expanding interaction between the two countries on issues of education and seasonal labor migration.

Cameron also held netiations with Foreign Minister, Jeenbek Kulubaev, who informed his British counterpart about potential areas of cooperation, including the joint development of rare earth elements, and the transition to green energy.

According to a report from Kyrgyzstan’s Foreign Ministry, Cameron announced the UK’s interest in expanding partnerships with the countries of Central Asia and Kyrgyzstan, in particular. The British Foreign Secretary also announced his country’s readiness to help support small and medium-sized businesses in the Central Asian region by creating a special fund with an authorized capital of 19 million pounds.

In an interview, Cameron commented about concerns over the deteriorating state of press freedom and the shrinking civic space in Kyrgyzstan, saying that he raised these issues in his meeting with President Japarov. “We talked about the importance of voluntary bodies, charities, nongovernmental organizations, civil society organizations,” he stated.

Cameron is the first British foreign secretary to visit Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan and the first to Uzbekistan since 1997, according to his office. Other Western leaders are also paying more attention to Central Asia. French President Emmanuel Macron visited the region in November, and U.S. President Joe Biden met the presidents of the Central Asian countries in New York in September.

Britain isn’t the only Western government engaging with Central Asia this week. After hosting Cameron, Tajikistan’s Rahmon left for Rome ahead of a meeting on Tuesday with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy.

 

Times of Central Asia

Times of Central Asia

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23 Apr 2024
Central Asia, Uzbekistan Environment, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Turkmenistan Local Politics, International Affairs, Uzbekistan Local Politics

Turkmen Dissidents Mark Anniversary of Deadly Storm With Government Protest

On April 27 activists from the Warsaw Post-Soviet Dissident Alliance will hold a protest in Warsaw, Poland, against the Turkmen government. The event is being organized in memory of the dozens of victims of the 2020 windstorm in the city of Turkmenabat. 

The protest will mark the fourth anniversary of the April 27 storm that brought hurricane-force winds to Turkmenabat. The storm claimed dozens of lives, but authorities in Ashgabat have never mentioned it — nor have they offered any support to the victims’ families. Rather, criminal cases were opened against the volunteers who tried to help people in the city on their own, the Warsaw Alliance have claimed in a statement.

The Alliance is demanding that Turkmen authorities acknowledge the storm as a historical fact, disclose the number of dead and injured, pay compensation to the injured citizens and their families, and declare April 27 as a day of mourning.

On 27 April 2020 there was a severe windstorm in Turkmenistan. The gales damaged a number of settlements in the Turkmenabat region, leaving hundreds of people homeless. Electricity, gas and drinking water were cut off for several days in places like Lebap, Turkmanabat (partially), Kerki and Farob (completely). Turkmen state television made no mention of the storm.

The windstorm also crossed into Uzbekistan, where one death and 41 injuries of various degrees were reported. In contrast to the response of the Turkmen government, Uzbekistan’s president Shavkat Mirziyoyev immediately flew to the city of Bukhara, where there was the most damage, to meet with residents.

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23 Apr 2024
Lead Story, Kazakhstan Lead Story, Central Asia, Home, International Affairs, Kazakhstan International Affairs, Kazakhstan

Disinformation Targets Kazakhstan’s Ties with China, Russia, and the U.S.

Over an eight-day period in April 2024, a barrage of news stories featuring rumors about Kazakhstan’s foreign policy permeated Chinese media. These dubious reports alleged that the U.S. had hyped an unverified leak from a Russian Duma official claiming Kazakhstan was engaged in covert negotiations to join NATO and suggested that Kazakhstan was seeking China’s support to deter a potential Russian invasion.

The series of articles highlights the “fog of war” that pervades not only the battlefields of Ukraine but also the media landscape, representing a new front where Kazakhstan risks becoming collateral damage. Kazakhstan’s president has not deviated from the country’s neutrality and has maintained a difficult yet strategic multi-vector foreign policy that seeks to diversify economic and security arrangements rather than aligning exclusively with one partner. The evident information war underscores the diplomatic sensitivities which Kazakhstan faces, and the sinister tactics employed by outside actors to disrupt domestic and regional balances.

 

Misleading narrative #1: The U.S. is hyping an alleged voice recording of an official claiming that Kazakhstan is Russia’s next target

On April 6, an alleged audio recording, attributed to Russian State Duma deputy and General Andrei Gurulov, hinted that Kazakhstan was set to become Russia’s next target. The leak surfaced on X (Twitter) and was reported by the New Voice of Ukraine just hours later. In the following two days, the story propagated across at least five Chinese platforms, with numerous reposts claiming that “the Western media has vigorously hyped…the recording scandal”.

The above post is machine translated from Chinese into English

 

A search on Google News on 21 April 2024 for “Andrei Gurulov” yielded no results, while a wider search revealed a single defense blog reporting on the alleged leak.

 

Misleading narrative #2: Kazakhstan is in covert discussions to join NATO

Between April 10 and April 11, an array of articles and blogs appeared on at least six Chinese language media platforms (and were reposted across numerous other outlets) about Kazakhstan’s intent to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The so-called “news” was based on an unverified and unconfirmed rumor.

The above post is machine translated from Chinese into English

 

The above post is machine translated from Chinese into English

 

Kazakhstan has not expressed an intention to join NATO as a full member. Instead, it has engaged with NATO through partnership programs and dialogue, focusing on security cooperation, counter-terrorism, and military training within frameworks like the Partnership for Peace (PfP) program, which Kazakhstan joined in 1995.

The above post is machine translated from Chinese into English

 

This is not the first case of gaslighting by the media on Kazakhstan-NATO issues. Images taken from the 2023 opening of a conference hall at the Peacekeeping Operations Center of the Ministry of Defense of Kazakhstan, which was attended by the U.S. Ambassador to Kazakhstan, resulted in similarly bizarre misrepresentations.

 

Misleading narrative #3: Kazakhstan seeks China’s security to counterbalance the Russian threat

On April 14 and April 15, the latest barrage of messaging set China as Kazakhstan’s preferred guarantor to protect it from the threat of Russian aggression. This story presents the Russian threat to Kazakhstan through references to the Gurulov audio recording and the “defense blog” mentioned above, as well as to the former Kazakhstan President Nazarbayev’s relationship with Russian President Putin. Although the article downplayed the Russian threat, it went to great lengths to depict a strained relationship between Kazakhstan and its northern neighbor.

The postings spotlight Kazakhstan’s collaboration with the U.S. over counter-terrorism efforts and its pursuit of the trans-Caspian Middle Corridor project connecting to the China-led Belt and Road Initiative, which circumvents Russia.

 

The above post is machine translated from Chinese into English

 

Making the case for deepened Chinese security cooperation, these posts highlight a long-scheduled Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) meeting Astana that convened in April 2024, where Kazakhstan’s Secretary to the Security Council discussed and signed a protocol agreeing to enhance regional stability and safety with China. Given that eight other SCO member countries also discussed and signed said protocol, deducting from this occasion the conclusion Kazakhstan is approaching China for security guarantees would be a gross overreach.

Nonetheless, the story appeared multiple times on at least four Chinese platforms.

 

The apparent aim of the campaign

It is not clear if the above-listed misleading story lines were a coordinated attempt. The motivation behind their dissemination is likewise not apparent. However, there are several conceivable outcomes such a campaign would seek to achieve. The articles could aim to evoke concerns between rivaling states and the communities they represent. These false representations could include:

1) Kazakhstan has abandoned its neutrality and is building alliances with NATO and/or China; and

2) Kazakhstan’s leadership is jeopardizing the security of its people by provoking a conflict with Russia.

These articles could have been created by a state actor aiming to influence Kazakhstan’s government to alter its diplomatic stance towards the U.S., China or Russia. They could have also been placed by private Kazakhstani actors intent on making political gains by presenting Kazakhstan’s leadership as unhinged in its diplomatic engagement and thereby undermining the security of the country’s people.

While it should not be ruled out that the articles were placed in Chinese media to specifically target a Chinese audience, the reason behind this choice of placement may also have to do with obfuscating the original source of misinformation.

In any circumstance, this case serves to remind world audiences once again that purported news pertaining to any country’s relationship with Russia, China or the U.S. should be viewed with extreme prejudice and caution in the current geopolitical environment.

Times of Central Asia

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23 Apr 2024
Central Asia, Kazakhstan Environment, Kazakhstan Local Politics, Kazakhstan Life & Culture, Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan Business & Economy

A Third Of Kazakhstan’s Flood-Protection Structures Are Damaged

More than 500 hydraulic structures in Kazakhstan intended to hold back water during floods need to be repaired, according to a report from the country’s Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation.

Specialists from the ministry, together with akimats (local administrations), counted 1,502 hydraulic structures in the country, of which 537 are damaged. According to the department, the hydraulic structures will be repaired as funds are received from the national budget.

The survey comes amid Kazakhstan’s battle with historic spring flooding, which has set in motion a frantic grind of evacuations, pumping water and shoring up dams. While the threat remains, water levels are declining in some areas and the country is working to help disaster victims over the long term.

Some 22,700 people who fled their homes to escape floodwaters have returned, and the flood situation has stabilized in some hard-hit places such as the Aktobe region, according to the government. Still, thousands of residents — many of them children — remain in evacuation centers, whilst others are in temporary housing. More than 100,000 people have been evacuated over the course of the crisis, which began in March as snow melted quickly in the warmer weather.

 

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23 Apr 2024
Central Asia, International Affairs, Kazakhstan, Business & Economy, Kazakhstan International Affairs, Kazakhstan Business & Economy

Kazakhstan Has Become Main Trade Partner of China’s Xinjiang Province

According to Chinese Customs Service data from the first quarter of 2024, Kazakhstan became the main trade partner of China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Since the beginning of the year, Xinjiang has conducted trade with 193 countries and regions of the world. The volume of imports and exports with Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan in currency terms has increased by 58.8% and 1.9% respectively.

The volume of foreign trade originating from Xinjiang since the beginning of 2024 has increased by 42.7% year-on-year and reached about $13.2 billion. That puts Xinjiang in second place in China in terms of trade growth at the provincial level. Imports of agricultural products specifically increased by 36%.

According to the General Customs Administration (GCA) of China, last year the trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Xinjiang increased by 63% and reached $20.3 billion.

In the first half of 2023 China became Kazakhstan’s main trading partner, displacing Russia. China supplies the country with cars, computers and laptops, plastics and plastic products — and from Kazakhstan imports oil, natural gas, uranium, ferroalloys, mined ores and concentrates and oilseeds.

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23 Apr 2024
Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan Lead Story, Home, Justice, Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan International Affairs, Local Politics, Kyrgyzstan Local Politics, Features, Kyrgyzstan Opinions

Kyrgyzstan’s Law on NGOs: What Alarms Human Rights Activists?

In April 2024 Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov signed a law on non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Now all NGOs must submit full financial reports and register with the Ministry of Justice. Despite the authorities’ statements about the need for a document regulating the financing of such organizations, the law has numerous opponents.

President Japarov himself claims that some NGOs have deceived donors by using foreign funds — meant for roundtable discussions, training sessions and projects — for personal purposes.

“If you say that this is not true, I can prove it. Why do NGOs in developed countries register with the Ministry of Justice, tax service, open a bank account and do not do the same when they come to us? Or are we a second-rate country? No, we are not. We will not allow such dubious actions anymore,” Japarov said after criticism from NGO representatives.

Under the new legislation, an NGO that has received foreign aid will be called a “foreign representative”. Public activists claim that the rule is consonant with the Russian law on foreign agent status for nonprofits that accept foreign funding. Such a situation will carry certain reputational risks: according to the law, organizations that receive funding from abroad and deal with political issues must be included in a special register and operate under the control of state bodies.

In an interview with The Times of Central Asia, Azisbek Ashurov, head of the NGO ‘Lawyers of Fergana Valley Without Borders’ and a human rights activist, spoke about the pitfalls of the law. In Ashurov’s opinion, the document is designed to limit the activities of the private sector.

“We are concerned about the re-registration procedure itself. Either it is just an application procedure, or someone will approve, make decisions. When decisions are made, how transparent and non-corrupt will it be?” he asked. Ashurov gave the example that in Kyrgyzstan there are NGOs providing legal assistance to citizens. If there is a dispute with a government body, the decision is challenged in the courts. However, now such structures will be dependent on the state and will not be able to work fully independently.

“State bodies have been authorized to interfere in the activities of NGOs. This is participation in their internal activities. We discuss some of our cases [via] collegiums, when lawyers discuss the strategy for different cases. Now, imagine, a representative of the state will sit and listen to confidential information that in the interest of the citizen we should not disclose. The balance is grossly upset. The adversarial principle is violated if we are preparing for court hearings against state bodies, for example, against the Ministry of Justice,” Ashurov added.

According to him, the Ministry of Justice was given the opportunity to suspend the activities of NGOs for violations. However, the current legislative framework doesn’t specify the violations for which an NGO can be suspended. The law prescribes that state bodies may request information from NGOs — however, it’s not specified what kind of information should be provided. In fact, the rules conflict with each other, Ashurov said.

A big challenge for independent organizations will be the mandatory annual financial audit. “The procedure is extremely costly. Small regional NGOs will have a particularly difficult time. Most of Kyrgyzstan’s auditing companies are located in Bishkek and other major population centers of the country. This will be costly for human rights defenders in the regions,” Ashurov said.

The authorities’ claims that NGOs are not financially transparent are also unfounded. Previously, organizations provided the grantor with a full report upon request — not on a regular basis, but once or twice a year. “Under the terms of the grantor, they do their own audits with us. They have their own financial departments, and they fully check the fulfillment of grant obligations. And, in parallel, we make a report to the state,” Ashurov explained.

NGOs in Kyrgyzstan are already registered as legal entities. They submit reports to the tax service and other government agencies. Ashurov added: “We receive all our funds through banks. Our transfers, according to the law on banking, are transparent and controlled by the National Bank. We provide banks with full information about the registration of the legal entity, founders, donors and so on. We provide a certificate from the tax authorities on the absence of debts. Our financial activity is absolutely transparent.”

“I believe that the new law is a tool to limit the activities of NGOs. In any case, this is the impression one gets after reading the text of the document. It is not aimed at achieving more transparent activities of NGOs,” he concluded.

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