Press Review August 4-18

President Rahmonov and President Putin met in Sochi

Newspaper "Vostochny Express" (Orient Express) # 29 informs that President Rahmonov has met the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in Sochi. During the meeting they have discussed the current situation in Central Asia. The paper also informs that on August 18-19, an informal meeting of the leaders of the CIS countries will be held in Yalta, Crimea. Presidents of 10 member countries of the CIS will take part at that meeting. The President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov and the President of Turkmenistan Saparmurad Niyazov will not come to the meeting. According to the paper, at he very last moment, the President of Kirgyzstan Askar Akayev also refused his trip to Yalta because of unstable situation at frontier of his country.

Tajik authorities have extradited the Uzbek terrorist to Tashkent

Newspaper "Vostochny Express" # 29 informs that that one of these days, a sub-unit of the government armed forces of Tajikistan detained and extradited to the Uzbek authorities the main instigator of the last year February terrorist acts in Tashkent Ulughbek Babajanov.

Armed skirmishes in Uzbekistan

Asia-Plus informs that operation of the power structures of Uzbekistan and Kirgyzstan on annihilation of armed groups of terrorists of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) is going on. According to the Ministry of Defense of Uzbekistan during the skirmishes in the Surkhandarya region of Uzbekistan the government forces of the country had lost 8 servicemen in killed and several others had been injured. Now, the government forces of Uzbekistan are cleaning up the areas with use of helicopters, mortars and grenade launchers. It allows, according to the Uzbek Ministry of Defense, to minimize casualties among the servicemen. The Uzbek servicemen have defined more precisely the strength of the Uzbek militants - 70 persons. According to official sources, more than 30 dead bodies of the terrorists have been already discovered. According to official sources, active military actions have stopped and only small broken groups have remained, but the government forces have blocked them. The military sources of Uzbekistan informed that the terrorists got in touch with the their foreign managers and asked for help.

Hostilities begun in Kirgyzstan

Asia-Plus # 30 informs that at the end of the last week the militants of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan tried to open the second front - in Kirgyzstan. On August 11, about 100 supporters of the IMU penetrated into the territory of the Laylak district in the Southern Kirgyzstan. The militants tried to force their way through Kirgyzstan to Uzbekistan, but they were stopped by the Kirgyz border guards. Next day, August 12, heads of the Security Councils of Uzbekistan, Kirgyzstan and Tajikistan - Mirakbar Rahmonqulov, Bolot Januzakov and Amirqul Azimov came together in Batken. The agreed to form a staff on coordinating joint actions of power structures of the three countries in Khujand. The First Deputy Minister of Security Anatoly Kuptsov, the First Deputy Minister of Defense Ghayrat Adhamov and the Secretary of the Security Council Amirqul Azimov represent Tajikistan in that staff. The staff has been given two helicopters for transferring armed groups to the areas of the possible break-through of the militants (Mountain Mastchoh, Asht, and Bobojonghafurov districts). Asia-Plus informs that during armed skirmishes in Kirgyzstan 17 government servicemen were killed and 7 others were injured. Three servicemen were missing.

Meeting of heads of power structures held in Khujand

Newspaper "Tojikiston" informs that an enlarged meeting of the heads of power structures of Uzbekistan, Kirgyzstan and Tajikistan has been held in Khujand. The Minister of Interiors of Uzbekistan A. Almatov, the first Deputy Minister of National Security of Kirgyzstan V. Verchagin, the Minister of Interiors of Tajikistan Khumdin Sharipov and the Governor of the Leninabad Region Qosimjon Qosimov participated at the meeting. The participants of the meeting came to an agreement to form a joint operation staff. They worked out a joint plan of conducting investigation and operation works on annihilation of the armed groups of the terrorists in Uzbekistan and Kirgyzstan. The parties agreed to exchange operation information and technical support. According to the newspaper, at present, armed skirmishes are going on in the Surkhandarya region of Uzbekistan, the Laylak districts in Kirgyzstan and in the Mountain Mastchoh district.

Kirgyz authorities affirm that the IMU militants have come from Tajikistan

Asia-Plus informs that on August 16, the Secretary of the National Security Council of Kirgyzstan Bolot Januzakov stated at a press conference in Bishkek that the militants had penetrated into Kirgyzstan from the territory of Tajikistan. According to him, at present, about 800 terrorists are concentrating in Tajikistan, in districts bordering upon Kirgyzstan and Uzbekistan and any moment, they may penetrate into the Kirgyz and the Uzbek territories. The official Dushanbe has refuted that information. On August 16, the Deputy Secretary of the Security Council of Tajikistan Nuralisho Nazarov said in his interview with Asia-Plus that the power structures of Tajikistan ere controlling the situation on the frontier with Uzbekistan and Kirgyzstan. According to him, in the course of verifications of operation information about 800 militants in the Tajik border areas received from the Kirgyz side the facts have not confirmed. According to operation information of the Tajik military, formations of the IMU continue concentrating in the mountain village Zardaly in the Batken region of Kirgyzstan, bordering upon the Jirgital district of Tajikistan. N. Nazarov says that militants of Juma Namangani used that base to penetrate into far inland of Kirgyzstan both last year and the current year. The Deputy Secretary of the Security Council of Tajikistan also excludes that former militants of the United Tajik Opposition (UTO) having been incorporated into government power structures provide support to the Uzbek militants.

Supporters of mutinous Colonel Mahmud Khudoberdyyev have been sentenced to death

The Russian-language newspaper "Vecherny Dushanbe" # 33 informs that the Supreme Court of the republic of Tajikistan has sentenced two supporters of the mutinous Colonel Mahmud Khudoberdyyev - Olim Rahimov and Bakhtiyor Boboqulov to death. According to the paper, Olim Rahimov was one of the criminal leaders of the Tursunzade districts and he was committing armed robberies and murders. In January 1997, he joined the armed group of the ex-Mayor of Tursunzade Ibod Boymatov and Mahmud Khudoberdyyev. After defeat of Mahmud Khudoberdyyev, he has been hiding in Uzbekistan. According to the paper, on October 16, he took part in attacking barracks of the Presidential Guard. At the end of 1998, law enforcement agencies of Tajikistan arrested him.

FIGHTING IN UZBEKISTAN

Newspapers inform that for several days already, the Uzbek government forces have been conducting operation on annihilation of the armed terrorist groups having penetrated into the Uzbek territory - Sariosiyo and Uzun districts of the Surkhandarya region. Fighting having been started at the end of the last week is going on near Zevar and Kishtud villages, 20 kilometers to the Tajik-Uzbek frontier. A total strength of the Uzbek militants is about 100 persons. The Security Council of Tajikistan supposes that these militants are most likely members of the armed group of the well-known Uzbek field commander Juma Namangani. According to the last data, the Uzbek government forces have blocked the groups of terrorist in mountain gorge of the Surkhandarya region. There are casualties among the government forces of Uzbekistan. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan Abdulaziz Komilov speaking at the briefing said that power structures of Uzbekistan were operating in coordination with the power structures of Tajikistan.

TASHKENT AFFIRMS THAT THE MILITANTS HAVE PENETRATED INTO UZBEKISTAN FROM TAJIKISTAN

At the beginning of the current week, the official Tashkent stated that the terrorist groups had penetrated into Uzbekistan through the Tajik territory. The Tajik authorities have repudiated this allegation of the Uzbek side. The Head of the Tajik MFA Information Department Igor Sattarov stated that " Tajikistan having endured the civil war itself is not interested in destabilization of the situation in wherever it is, including Central Asia, especially in neighboring fraternal Uzbekistan. To take operation measures, since the first days of the events appropriate agencies of the Republic of Tajikistan have been taking necessary measures to strengthen coordination of actions and opportune exchange of information". The First Deputy Chief of the Committee n Frontier Protection of Tajikistan Major General Safarali Sayfulloyev stated that the Uzbek militants had not been able to penetrate into Uzbekistan from the Tajik territory, because lately the guard of the Tajik-Uzbek frontier had been reinforced. At the same time Asia-Plus # 29 notes that one of ideological leaders of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) Tohir Yuldosh stated in his interview with Regional Radio that the ITU militants fighting in Surkhandarya had not come to Uzbekistan from wherever, they had been always staying in the territory of Uzbekistan.

THIS YEAR, FAMINE MAY THREATEN 2-3 MILLION PEOPLE IN TAJIKISTAN

Newspapers inform that about 2-3 million people in Tajikistan may be faced with famine. The Regional Manager of the WFP John Powel stated about that at a press conference on August 7. Mr. J. Powel noted that after official appeal of the Tajik President to the UN Secretary General in May 2000, the WFP had organized a trip of the mission. The results of the mission's trip have shown that Tajikistan has been really faced with such serious problem as drought. According to Mr. J. Powel, the Tajik Government is making all necessary measures to persuade the world community to provide support to people suffered from the drought. For these purposes the WFP is working out special measures to attract donor means. During his visit the Regional Manager of the WFP has met representatives of the government, regional authorities and farmers. Mr. John Powel said that Tajikistan was taking measures to deliver wheat from Kazakhstan and the WFP would support the Tajik Government in that direction. During the next week, the WFP office in Tajikistan in common with specialists of other agencies of the United Nations will collaborate closely with the Tajik Government on working out the food support program. The WFP will bring 136,000 tons of food and seeds into Tajikistan. The Russian-paper "Vostochny Express" (Orient Express) # 28 also adds that during the meeting of Mr. John Powel with the Deputy PM for Agriculture Qozidavlat Qoimdodov, the last stated that drought damage amounted to $ 50 million, but not $ 3 million as some foreign mass media had reported.

Malignant anthrax threatens Tajikistan

The Head of the Republican Sanitary and Epidemiological Station of Tajikistan Bandisho Shoismatulloyev said in his interview with "Vecherny Dushanbe" that malignant anthrax epidemic might break out in Tajikistan. If for six months of 1999, only five cases of this disease have been registered in the country, for seven months of 2000, the number of cases of malignant anthrax has reached 160. The main outbreaks of malignant anthrax are in Khatlon region and districts subordinate to the center. Therefore, they are controlling foods delivered to Dushanbe for sale. Special checkpoints consisting of representatives of veterinary service and police have been set up in Kofarnihon and Fayzabad. Bandisho Shoismatulloyev considers that in August-September the spread of malignant anthrax may intensify.