4 September, 2006

Politics
Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan sign several documents
Uzbek-Kazakh council to meet in November
Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan to hold joint command exercises
Trans-border drug trafficking route Afghanistan-Tajikistan-Uzbekistan-Russia broken

Business
Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan to double trade in future – Kazakh leader
Preparation for Uzbekistan AGROMINITECH EXPO – 2006 started
CNPC to tap oil and natural gas in Uzbekistan
Uzbek chamber organizes seminar for starting businesses
Chinese businesses to visit Uzbekistan next week
Tashkent to host Chinese engineering-technical exhibition

Society
Heads of Uzbek and Turkish Television and Radio Companies meet

POLITICS

UZBEKISTAN, KAZAKHSTAN SIGN SEVERAL DOCUMENTS

Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan signed several bilateral documents within the framework of the state visit of Uzbek President Islam Karimov to Kazakhstan.

On 4 September, President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov and President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbaev signed a joint statement and signed Regulations for interstate integration coordinate council under the patronage of both leaders.

Kazakh and Uzbek government inked agreements on mutual protection of classified information, on cooperation in state aircrafts flight safety and on tourism. The sides also signed programmes and action plans for economic cooperation for 2006-2008 and Protocol to Agreement on Kazakh-Uzbek state boundary checkpoints.

UZBEK-KAZAKH COUNCIL TO MEET IN NOVEMBER

The first meeting of interstate integration coordination council under the resident of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan will meet in November, Uzbek President Islam Karimov said in Astana, Kazakhstan, on 4 September.

Uzbek President Islam Karimov is paying state visit to Kazakhstan on invitation his Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbaev. On Monday, the leaders of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan held talks to boost bilateral ties.

After the talks, Nursultan Nazarbayev and Islam Karimov signed Regulations for interstate integration coordination council under the patronage of both leaders. According to the document, Prime Ministers of two states will be in charge of it.

Foundation of the interstate integration coordination council and holding of the first session will contribute to strategic considering and decision-making on urgent issues of bilateral cooperation, Uzbek head said. Initiation of such a council is the only case in the former USSR and in practice of two states, Islam Karimov underlined.

KAZAKHSTAN, UZBEKISTAN TO HOLD JOINT COMMAND EXERCISES

Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan Armed Forces will hold joint command and staff exercises, President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev said at the briefing on the results of the negotiations with Uzbek President Islam Karimov on 4 September.

An agreement on military and technical cooperation was reached too, Nursultan Nazarbayev said.

TRANS-BORDER DRUG TRAFFICKING ROUTE AFGHANISTAN-TAJIKISTAN-UZBEKISTAN-RUSSIA BROKEN

Sverdlovsk Department of the Federal Security Service of Russia believes that large consignments of heroine are shipped together with fruit.

A large load of heroine – 160 kg was intercepted in Ekaterinburg last weekend. It was being smuggled in refrigerator trucks together with grapes. "This is a powerful strike to the group of drug dealers," said first deputy head of the Department Sergey Staritsin. Drugs, whose wholesale price is estimated at US$5-8 million, were packed into 154 packages weighing around 1-1.2kg each.

The broken drug-trafficking route was trans-border. Thus heroine was transported along the corridor of Afghanistan-Tajikistan-Uzbekistan-Russia. The interception was carried out quickly and unexpectedly for the criminals, who failed to show any resistance.

BUSINESS

UZBEKISTAN, KAZAKHSTAN TO DOUBLE TRADE IN FUTURE – KAZAKH LEADER

Bilateral trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan will increase twice in near future, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev said during the meeting with his Uzbek counterpart Islam Karimov in Astana, Kazakhstan.

President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov started his state visit to Kazakhstan on invitation of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev on 4 September.

Nursultan Nazarbaev said the sides decided to charge ministries and departments of two states to work at some vital issues, outside of the framework of the documents signed. He added Kazakhstan is ready for economic and political cooperation to the benefit of the people.

Bilateral trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan made US$497 million in 2005 and US$293 million in the six months of 2006.

Uzbek leader Islam Karimov said in his turn that Uzbekistan highly appreciates an opportunity to widen collaboration with Kazakhstan.

It is expected that the presidents of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan will release a joint statement and it is planned to sign Regulations for interstate integration coordinate council under the patronage of both leaders. Besides the sides are planning to sign a number of bilateral documents, aimed at expansion of collaboration in trade-economic, cultural-humanitarian spheres, tourism, mutual protection of classified information, etc.

PREPARATION FOR UZBEKISTAN AGROMINITECH EXPO – 2006 STARTED

Uzbekistan AGROMINITECH EXPO – 2006, the first international specialized sales exhibition of mini-technology and compact equipment for agriculture, will be held on 21 October – 10 November in Tashkent.

The aim of the exhibition is to create favourable conditions for the familiarization of the farms and agricultural companies and firms specialized in processing of agricultural products with the latest mini-technology and equipment produced by the leading foreign companies. A workshop on the use of mini-technology by farms and agricultural companies was held last week at Tuhtaniyoz Ota agricultural firm, in Tashkent region. The meeting was organised pursuant to the Resolution of the President of Uzbekistan "On measures to organize international specialized sales exhibition of mini-technology and compact equipment for agriculture" dated 24 August 2006.

First Deputy Chairman of Tashkent regional Kengash (Council) of the Liberal Democratic Party of Uzbekistan (UzLiDeP) O.Sharipov, khokim (mayor) of Tashkent region S.Temirov, representatives of the regional departments of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce and Farmers Association of Uzbekistan, as well as managers of several agricultural companies attended the event.

Sharipov said that the Resolution identified modernization, improvement of the degree of automation and intensification of the process of product working as one of the main guiding lines for the development of farms. Today, over 180,000 farms occupying the total cultivated area of 4.7 million hectares operate on the territory of Uzbekistan.

Thus, last year, the share of grain produced by farms made up 85%. This year farms plan to produce 81% of the total harvest of cotton. It was also noted that while around 98% of the vegetables and cattle produced in the country was contributed by farms, only 5% owned some form of processing technology.

During the seminar, participants noted that the adoption of the resolution served as an important positive factor intended to stimulate the integration of modern technology in agriculture, with the ultimate goal of achieving waste-free production with the full resource processing cycle. Participants who spoke at the seminar also emphasized that the organization of regular sales exhibition of mini-technology and compact equipment for farms and agricultural firms would serve the expansion of the diversity and improvement of the quality of goods produced, as well as the decrease of prices. To stimulate the efficiency of the exhibition, booths will be provided to the exhibition participants free of charge.

Also, as an additional incentive, the samples of mini-technology and compact equipment brought to Uzbekistan (for the period of up to 2 years) for the purpose of promoting it for sale to the agricultural firms based on import and leasing contracts will be exempt from several customs duties. Thus, companies importing equipment will be freed of all customs duties, except for the fees for customs paperwork as well as value added tax, when selling this mini-technology and equipment to domestic producers.

CNPC TO TAP OIL AND NATURAL GAS IN UZBEKISTAN

China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), China's largest oil producer, has entered into two cooperative contracts with Uzbekistan, in Central Asia.

The company's in-house journal has announced the ratification of a production-sharing agreement on Wednesday with Uzbekistan's Uzbekneftegaz, Russia's Lukoil, Malaysia's Petronas and South Korea's National Oil Corporation to explore and develop prospective natural gas deposits in the Aral Sea.

The contract was signed after CNPC received exploration permission in five onshore blocks in Uzbekistan nearly ten days ago, China's Xinhua reported.

The launch of the two projects brings the countries receiving investment from CNPC to 24.

Uzbekistan claims a 10,000-square-km area in the Aral Sea, which is considered to have great oil and gas reserves.

The partners plan to collect seismic data and drill two wildcat wells in the first three years. Then they will establish a joint venture to carry out exploration work, said CNPC. Uzbekistan has oil reserves of more than five billion tons and natural gas reserves exceeding five trillion cubic meters. Its proven oil reserve is 530 million tons and natural gas, 3.4 trillion cubic meters.

CNPC signed oil and gas cooperation contracts with Uzbekneftegaz during Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to Uzbekistan in June 2004.

The two companies signed the exploration agreements for the five onshore blocks in June this year, under which they will collect two- and three-dimensional seismic data and drill 27 wells in the 34,000 square-km area in five years.

The two projects would avail CNPC of a gradual exploration of the country and contain potential for oil and gas discoveries of good commercial scale, said the company.

UZBEK CHAMBER ORGANIZES SEMINAR FOR STARTING BUSINESSES

Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Uzbekistan in cooperation with Foundation named after Conrad Adenauer and Centre on Development of Market Skills will organize a two-day exhibition entitled "Social oriented market economy and development of small and medium business in Uzbekistan" on 21-22 September.

The Uzbek commerce chamber said the seminar will take place in Chirchiq, Tashkent region. It is expected that businesses of Tashkent region, who do not have enough experience to organize private business, will attend the event.

Specialists of Centre on Development of Market Skills, Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Uzbekistan and employment services will consult these businesses.

CHINESE BUSINESSES TO VISIT UZBEKISTAN NEXT WEEK

A business delegation of China will pay visit to Uzbekistan on 10-13 September to hold negotiations with their Uzbek counterparts.

According to Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the delegation will include representatives of over 20 large Chinese companies and firms, operating in such sectors of economy as production of construction equipment, machinery, cargo transportation, agriculture, construction, textile, electronics and others.

It is expected that the business-seminar and cooperation exchange will be held within the framework of the visit.

TASHKENT TO HOST CHINESE ENGINEERING-TECHNICAL EXHIBITION

Uzexpocentre, national exhibition company, will host an engineering-technical exhibition of China on 26-28 September.

Commerce Ministry of China is initiator of the exhibition and its organizer is GENERTEK international advertisement-exhibition company. The event is held at official support of Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Uzbekistan and Uzexpocentre. The exhibition will be attended by large engineering, construction and high technology companies of China, including Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, ?NCEC, Ninsya and others.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Uzbekistan said in its website that some of Chinese companies are interested to establish business contacts with their Uzbek counterparts.

SOCIETY

HEADS OF UZBEK AND TURKISH TELEVISION AND RADIO COMPANIES MEET

A meeting between the Chairman of the National Television and Radio Company of Uzbekistan Alisher Hodjaev and Director General of Television and Radio Corporation of Turkey (TRT) Ali Guney was held on 30 August 2006.

Turkish delegation arrived in Tashkent to participate in the celebrations on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the independence of Uzbekistan and arrange direct satellite broadcasting about the celebrations taking place in Uzbekistan to foreign countries. The delegation was also to hold negotiations on establishment of bilateral cooperation between TRT and NTRC of Uzbekistan on contract basis.

In the course of the meeting, parties exchanged opinion on the issues of bilateral cooperation between the two organizations, as well as prospects for their expansion and strengthening. Having expressed satisfaction about the current status of bilateral relations, the parties specifically stressed substantial progress and high achievements observed in bilateral relations over the years of independence in Uzbekistan.

They also discussed specific measures to be taken for the implementation of the agreements achieved and signed a Joint Action Plant of TRT and NTRC of Uzbekistan for 2006-2007. The document outlines the measures to be taken to fulfill the agreements achieved by the parties on the mutual exchange of broadcasts and films, creation of joint television and musical programmes, and improvement of professional skills of the staff involved.