From: Justin Burke (JBurke@sorosny.org)
Date: Fri Apr 04 2003 - 11:51:32 EST
CASPIAN NEWS AGENCY
CNA all-inclusive newsline
/15:34 04.04.2003/ Armenian president to pay an official visit to India
this year
Yerevan, April 4, 2003. (CNA). India's ambassador to Armenia Mr. Deepak
Vohra met today with Armenian president Robert Kocharian to extend an
official invitation, sent by president of India Abdul Kalami, to pay an
official visit to India. President Kocharian accepted the invitation,
which his press office said is most likely to take place in the second
half of the year. Kocharian's press office said the meeting was also
centered on bilateral relations, particularly, on accomplishment of
joint economic projects and looking into prospects for new ways of
partnership.
Both men stated that India and Armenia could efficiently cooperate in IT
sector. They aloe exchanged thoughts about the war in Iraq.
______
/15:17 04.04.2003/ Russian Itera reduced gas supply to Georgia without
specifying the reasons
Tbilisi. April 4, 2003. (CNA). Gas supply to more than a half of capital
city Tbilisi's residents was suspended today after the Russian energy
giant Itera reduced gas supply to Georgia.
Tbilgazi company, which distributes gas in Tbilisi reports that the
supply in capital city is reduced to 500,000 cubic meters, while Tbilisi
consumes 1,6 million cubic meters of gas per-day. "Itera does not
specify the reasons of reduction of gas supply. I do not think that our
debt to the Russian company is the reason," Tamaz Arshilava, Deputy
General Director of Tbilgazi told Civil Georgia. Russia is the only
supplier of the gas to Georgia, Civil Georgia reports.
______
/14:58 04.04.2003/ IMF to allocate to Armenia next tranche of Poverty
Reduction and Growth Facility program
Yerevan, April 4, 2005. (CNA). The International Monetary Fund board of
directors has approved disbursal of the next tranche of a Poverty
Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) program, of 10 million SDR, to
Armenia, the IMF office in Yerevan reported in a press release. The
Armenian authorities are worthy of praise for their achievements within
the PRGF program, the IMF said. The government has been able to reduce
the budget deficit, clear arrears and maintain a low level of inflation.
Recent steps to increase banking control and introduce a future bank
deposit insurance system can be commended, Interfax reports. The IMF
took into account the fact that the 2003 fiscal program includes steps
to toughen tax administration and maintain all social spending. The Fund
asks that Armenia make additional efforts to resolve the power industry
debt problem and raise efficiency in power sector management in 2003. It
recommends that Armenia transfer trust management of state companies on
a contract basis and publish the results of financial audits in the
power industry. The IMF hopes that in May 2003 Armenia will finalize its
development of the poverty reduction program and prepare a program
against corruption.
The PRGF program began in May 2001. Since then the IMF has allocated 30
million SDR (not including the new tranche), of the program's total 69
million SDR.
______
/14:45 04.04.2003/ Uzbekistan's media biased covering American
aggression against Iraq, Russian daily writes
Tashkent, April 4, 2003. (CNA). Uzbek media are paying almost no
attention to the American aggression against Iraq, reports Golos Rossii.
Uzbek news programs show statements of the US President, American
politicians, and their British allies. At the same time, Uzbek
television is closed for diplomats from Palestine and other Arab
countries, as well as for representatives of Russia, France and Germany
that have different viewpoints concerning the war. Thus, most Uzbek
citizens do not know about the peacekeeping initiative of the Russian
leader and Russia's humanitarian program to help Iraqi refugees.
However, the Uzbek government newspaper, Pravda Vostoka, once wrote:
"Uzbekistan is respectful of the position of countries that disagree
with the United States." Local observers think that by supporting the
United States, the Uzbek government has become estranged from its
people, Kabar reports.
______
/13:53 04.04.2003/ Iraqi war will not affect implementation of large
investment projects in Kazakhi oil sector, head of Kazakh National Bank
considers
Astana, April 4, 2003. (CNA). Military operations in Iraq by the U.S.
and its allies will not affect the implementation of large investment
projects in the Kazakh oil sector, Kazakh National Bank Chairman Grigory
Marchenko said.
"To say that they [foreign investors] will now drop everything half-way
through and begin to develop some field or other in Iraq shows an
incorrect understanding of the situation," he said at a press conference
in Astana on Thursday.
Marchenko noted that contracts entered into earlier with foreign
investors are long-term, covering 40 to 60 years. "I do not share the
opinion that things will change," he said.
Information about the Kazakh balance of payments in 2002 refutes reports
of an alleged drop in investment activity by foreign investors, he said.
He remanded that last year over $2 billion in foreign direct investment
was invested in the Kazakh economy.
He also noted that due to proposed growth in oil production, the peak in
Kazakh revenue from the oil sector, with average world prices of $18-$19
per barrel, will begin in 2021 and continue until 2034-2035. The state
will receive about $120 billion per year in this period.
In the mid-term and long-term future, we should decide what part of this
revenue should be paid into the National Fund and other financial
institutions for development, or spent on social projects and to reduce
taxes, Marchenko said.
"The main task is to properly divide up this large oil pie, so that each
layer of society benefits," he said.
However, he noted the importance of the republic not receiving more
money than it is able to digest. Developed countries like the U.S.,
Britain and Norway have already passed their oil production peak, and in
10 year their production levels will fall. This means that with time
developed counties will become net consumers of oil and developing
countries will be net exporters.
As reported earlier, Kazakhstan proposes to increase annual oil
production to 150 million tonnes by 2010. This year the republic plans
to increase oil and gas condensate production to 52 million tonnes from
47 million tonnes in 2002 and 40 million tonnes in 2001, Kabar informs.
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