CZECHS BLOCK SENIOR GOB VISAS, PASS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 MINSK 000605

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/09/2016
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR PHUM BO
SUBJECT: CZECHS BLOCK SENIOR GOB VISAS, PASS
MONEY-LAUNDERING RUMORS

REF: A. MINSK 443

B. 05 MINSK 470

C. 04 MINSK 1331

Classified By: AMBASSADOR GEORGE KROL FOR REASONS 1.4 (B, D)


1. (C) Summary: The Czech Embassy recently passed over
information that Lukashenko's son, Dmitry, and Prime Minister
Sergei Sidorsky and his family all applied for Czech visas.
The Czechs did not issue to Dmitry or Sidorsky, even though
neither is on the EU's visa ban list. The Czech Charge also
passed speculation he has heard that Sidorsky may be using
his daughters to launder money for the regime. Recently,
another long-term embassy source repeated similar accusation
about Sidorsky and money-laundering, as well as more details
on the alleged illicit business connections of Viktor
Lukashenko and former pro-regime presidential candidate
Sergey Gaidukevich. Post cannot confirm this information,
but rates it as plausible. Post notes that the Czech Charge
speaks with Podgol, so these accusations may be from one
source. End summary.


Visa Bans Effective
--------------


2. (C) On June 7, Czech Charge Vladimir Ruml passed to Poloff
information on several recent Czech visa applicants. Dmitry
Lukashenko (DPOB 23 March 1980 Mogilev, passport DP003126),
son of President Aleksandr Lukashenko, and his friend Andrei
Karpovich (DPOB 1 March 1972 Minsk, passport DP0003856)
applied for visas to spend ten days in the Czech Republic.
Lukashenko's application said he works as Chairman of the
Presidential Sports Club, while Karpovich's listed him as an
army officer (albeit one with a diplomatic passport). The
Czechs did not deny them visas, neither is on the EU visa ban
list, but simply and purposefully told them "Prague has not
told us what to do." The two retrieved their passports
without the visas.


3. (C) Also in late May Prime Minister Sergei Sidorsky (DPOB
13 March 1954 Gomel, passport DP0003734),his wife Lyudmila
Sidorskaya (DPOB 22 August 1954 Gomel, passport DP0004137),
eldest daughter Elena Melnikova (DPOB 30 October 1976
Belarus, passport MP1995515) and her husband Vitali Melnikov
(DPOB 8 July 1973 Belarus, passport MP1995516),as well as
younger daughter Oksana Sidorskaya (DPOB 15 June 1983
Belarus, passport MP2095550, name likely changing to Oksana
Markovicha) and her husband Yury Markovich (DPOB 9 January
1968 Belarus, passport MP2094763) applied for Czech visas.
Oksana and Yury were recently married and the family wanted
to go on honeymoon to the Czech Republic. The Czechs issued
to Lyudmila, but refused PM Sergei, even though he is also
not on the EU's visa ban list. They were prepared to issue
limited visas to the rest, but the family retracted the
applications. Ruml said the German Embassy had issued
Schengen visas to the Sidorsky family, so they might be able
to travel to his country
regardless. He added that many senior GOB officials travel
to his country (ref A),and that many Belarusian KGB officers
travel especially to Karlsruhe.


The Money Trail, Version 1
--------------


4. (C) Ruml also stated that he has heard that Sidorsky is
using his family ties to move money out of Belarus. Ruml
said that according to their visa applications daughter Elena
and her husband are both economists working for Belneftekhim
somewhere in Germany. Younger daughter Oksana is an
economist for Velcom, which Ruml stressed is owned by the GOB
(including Beltechexport, a GOB arms exporter) and a Syrian
company, SB Telecomm (ref B). Ruml claimed that Velcom is
used to launder money from arms exports, and that his sources
told him Sidorsky then transfers money to the EU through his
daughter in Germany.


The Money Trail, Version 2
--------------


5. (C) During two separate meetings on May 26 and June 6,
independent analyst Vladimir Podgol passed Poloffs
information about GOB officials and their roles in laundering
illicit weapon and oil-for-food money. Podgol, who is
researching the family ties of those on the EU visa ban list
(for who he did not say, although Post knows he gives
information to several EU embassies),implicated two GOB

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officials involved in the process--leader of the
pro-government Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus (LDPB),
Member of Parliament, and former "presidential candidate"
Sergey Gaidukevich and PM Sergey Sidorsky. According to
Podgol's source (former LDPB deputy leader Oleg Markevich),
Lukashenko's eldest son Viktor and Gaidukevich are, for
business purposes, very close. Viktor, who Podgol said held
the rank of Colonel but has the power of a Major General, is
rumored to be the principal official in charge of Belarus'
weapons trade. During this year's elections, Lukashenko and
his cabinet were angry with Gaidukevich for
his laziness and failure to steal the desirable number of
votes from the opposition. But now Gaidukevich is one of the
most protected and untouchable men in Belarus. According to
another Podgol source, the Presidential Administration
forbade security services from investigating, following, or
conducting surveillance on Gaidukevich. Therefore, Podgol
suspects Gaidukevich is laundering Viktor's weapons-trade
money through channels in Europe, particularly through his
daughter, Anya, who is a "student" living and studying in
Austria.


6. (C) Podgol went into greater detail about Gaidukevich's
oil-for-food schemes (Note: Gaidukevich is named in the
Duelfer Report.). Gaidukevich reportedly cheated dozens of
people out of their share of the money, including from his
LDPB deputies. One of those who he stole from is Russian oil
man Vladimir Grigorivich Stepanov (Moscow, Ul. Oktyaberskaya,
Nessi Office, building 4 (or 6),behind the Soviet Army
Theater.). Podgol accused the U.S. firm Chevron of being the
final buyer of the Iraqi oil purchased and moved by
Gaidukevich. Podgol reasoned that if someone were curious
enough to investigate further, all one would have to do was
locate Stepanov and ask him for the bank account numbers he
sent his money to for Gaidukevich.


7. (C) Podgol speculated that Gaidukevich could have his
fingers in Belarus' gold reserves. His son, Oleg Sergeivich,
is deputy chief of the Partizansky district police. Oleg's
wife works at Trustbank (formerly known as Infobank, under
U.S. Treasury sanctions) and her father is the director of
the Committee of Precious Metals. Podgol speculated that
Gaidukevich is using his daughter-in-law's father to convert
illicit money into precious metals and jewelry, which could
explain why Belarus' gold reserves continue to increase.


Velcom: A Company With A History
--------------


8. (C) It is widely speculated that Velcom is part of the
GOB's money laundering system. Sidorsky's daughter is an
economist with Velcom and Viktor Lukashenko in 2005 was
appointed deputy director general of the GOB-created cell
phone company, BeST, which has monopolized all Belarus'
mobile networks, including Velcom (ref B). Podgol explained
that Velcom's shady business came into the open a few years
ago when its director, a Lebanese (or Arab, Podgol continued
to interchange these terms) named Gasan Chalabi was arrested.
According to Podgol, the acting BKGB chief at the time,
Leonid Yerin was ordered by the Kremlin to assume tight
control over the GOB's money laundering scheme in case the
GOR needed to quickly deprive Lukashenko of his revenue
sources. Yerin hired two Colonels who specialized in
computer and economic security and over time discovered that
Chalabi stole USD 1,000,000 from Lukashenko. Chalabi was
arrested on this pretext and was to be interrogated, but the
day after his arrest, Lukashenko
stated on TV that he personally pardoned Chalabi.


9. (C) Podgol suspects Lukashenko did not want Chalabi to
disclose details about the money laundering via Velcom and
freed him before interrogations. Chalabi disappeared abroad
not long afterwards. Lukashenko ordered Yerin to fire the
two Colonels under his command and deprived them of their
pensions. Podgol claimed much of his information comes from
these two Colonels, who regularly leak secrets out of spite.
(See ref C for previous info from Podgol on Velcom's ties to
terrorism.)


Comment
--------------


10. (C) Due to the GOB's secretiveness and obvious lack of
transparency, we are unable to confirm these money-laundering
rumors. However, we have heard similar statements about
Gaidukevich in the past from his own LDPB deputies and from
other sources. If this is true, than Gaidukevich is likely a

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marked man and needs the protection that Podgol claims
Lukashenko affords him. As for Sidorsky, we cannot confirm
his involvement in moving illicit money to Europe, but his
daughters' employment and his ability to move easier than
other GOB officials through Western Europe (Sidorsky is not
on the EU visa ban list) would make him a valuable commodity
to any purported GOB money laundering scheme.
Krol