When NATO representatives meet with their Afghan and Central Asian counterparts in Istanbul on November 2 to discuss the “New Silk Road” project, they will try to play up its mutual economic benefits.
Uzbekistan has taken a pounding recently over its human rights record, but financial wizards in Washington have measured praise for Tashkent’s economic performance, and at least some American executives remain upbeat about doing business in the Central Asian state.
During a Central Asian tour that focused on regional security issues, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gingerly applied pressure on the presidents of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan to improve their dubious human rights records. When pressing Uzbek President Islam Karimov to reform, Clinton reportedly secured a commitment from him to change his ways.
A Kyrgyz-Russian joint enterprise set up specifically to corner the fuel contract at the US-operated Manas Transit Center near Bishkek will begin deliveries of aviation fuel in November.
US legislators are willing to lift restrictions on the Defense Department’s ability to provide military assistance to Uzbekistan, a country with one of the world’s worst human rights records.
Provisional President Roza Otunbayeva has authorized the creation of a special oversight body that will monitor how Pentagon payments for the use of the Manas Transit Center are handled.
Uzbekistan’s desire to keep the Kremlin at bay appears to influence its participation in the Northern Distribution Network, a major supply line for the Afghan war effort.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev traveled to Russia on Aug. 9 to meet with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev. Much of the media coverage ahead of this visit focused on Russia’s continuing efforts to negotiate a settlement to the ongoing conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. However, Russia and Azerbaijan had broader-reaching issues to discuss.
Apple Computer, the global technology force, is finding that the formerly Soviet Republic of Georgia is a haven for copycat artists. But some Georgian high-tech experts contend that having unauthorized dealers in Tbilisi works to Apple’s advantage by boosting its brand recognition.
