EXBS: KAZAKHSTAN ADVISOR'S MONTHLY REPORTING CABLE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ASTANA 001910 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR ISN/ECC PVANSON, ACHURCH, JHARTSHORN DEPT FOR ISN/ECC-AMT LSPRINGER DEPT FOR EUR/ACE RBUCK DEPT FOR SCA/RA JSCHLOSSER DEPT FOR SCA/CEN M. O'MARA CBP/INA FOR CDONOFRIO AND RWATT USDOE/NNSA CWALKER, TPERRY AND EDESCHLER DOC FOR DCREED AND GPETERSEN-BEARD USCG FOR BGOLDEN AMEMBASSY BERLIN FOR CUSTOMS ATTACHE AMEMBASSY TASHKENT, BISHKEK, BAKU, DUSHANBE AND ASHGABAT FOR EXBS ADVISORS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ETTC MNUC PARM PREL KSTC KNNP KZ SUBJECT: EXBS: KAZAKHSTAN ADVISOR'S MONTHLY REPORTING CABLE (MAY-JUNE 2007) ¶I. BROAD ITEMS OF INTEREST TO ADVISORS AND AGENCY MANAGERS: ¶1. TDY EXBS Jim Kelly departed post on June 21. ¶2. Small Boat Operations Course in Aktau, July 9-20. The EXBS office has received a cable requesting our cooperation and assistance in preparing for an advance Safe Boat Operations Course for Kazakhstan Maritime Border Guards in Aktau, Kazakhstan. EXBS sent a CC Cable for the U.S. Coast Guard team and a Diplomatic Note requesting Kazakhstan Maritime Border Guards' participation. ¶3. Administrative Enforcement Training (AE). The Department of Commerce will send one U.S. export control technical specialist to Kazakhstan to assist the Customs Control Committee to conduct an Administrative Enforcement Workshop for customs officials in Almaty on July 11-12. EXBS sent the CC Cable for a U.S. technical specialist and a Diplomatic Note requesting Kazakhstan Customs' participation. ¶4. ISN/ECC Export Control and Related Border Security (EXBS) Program Manager for Central Asia Jeff Hartshorn visited Kazakhstan for a program review and consultations with Embassy and GOK officials from June 25 to June 29. II. COMPLETED ACTIONS FOR THE REPORTING PERIOD ¶A. SITE ASSESSMENTS AND MEETINGS CONDUCTED ¶1. May 14-18 - TDY Advisor Kevin Cummings and Kazakhstan EXBS Program Manager Gulnara Abildaeva traveled to the Dostyk Customs Port and the Bakhty Border Crossing on the Kazakhstan-China border. The EXBS team accompanied the representative from the Nuclear Technology Safety Center (NTSC) to Dostyk and Bakhty to conduct Border Site Assessments. As part of the assessment process, the EXBS team inspected all equipment donated by EXBS and reviewed port facilities, operations and procedures. The Border Guards do the majority of searches on the passenger trains and on the external area of all cargo trains- a function normally performed by customs in the United States and in most other countries. Both the Border Guards and Customs at Dostyk would like a site visit to a US rail entry port to understand the US inspection process at international rail facilities. Those assessment reports have been submitted to INS/ECC Country Lead Jeffrey Hartshorn. ¶2. Department of Energy Software Upgrades. May 14-25 - A representative of NTSC upgraded the software for the portable X-ray Florescence (XRF) metal analyzers provided to the Dostyk, Bakhty and Maikapchagai customs posts. ¶3. June 14-15 - TDY Advisor Jim Kelly and EXBS Program Assistant Oxana Limareva performed an assessment of the status and capabilities of the Kazakhstan Border Guards and Customs at the border posts of Zhana-Zhol and Kyzyl-Zhar along the Kazakh-Russian border. During the assessment the EXBS team also surveyed equipment donated to the Government of Kazakhstan under the Export Control and Related Border Security Assistance (EXBS) program, observed how Kazakhstan Customs and Border Guards officers conduct inspections of commercial trucks, and examined the commodities and vehicles crossing the border in both directions. ¶4. On June 19, the Ambassador, TDY EXBS Advisor, EXBS Program ASTANA 00001910 002 OF 003 Manager and Chief of USAID Astana office attended a meeting with the Chairman of the Customs Control Committee, General Karbuzov. Customs procedures and Volunteer Visitor Programs were discussed. ¶5. During his June 25-29 trip to Kazakhstan, EXBS Program Manager for Central Asia Jeff Hartshorn attended country team and met with the Ambassador, DCM, Pol/Econ, INL, DTRO and USAID Officers. He also met in Astana with the Kazakhstan Border Guards, Customs and Ministry of Industry and Trade officials to discuss what Kazakhstan border security agencies need to improve their capabilities to prevent WMD. General Berkaliyev, first deputy director of the Border Guards Service stated that he looks forward to increased cooperation with the United States in the fight illegal activity. On June 29 Jeff Hartshorn with INL Staff and the Second Line of Defense (SLD team) visited the Customs K-9 Training Center in Almaty. ¶B. TRAINING DURING THE REPORTING PERIOD ¶1. Industry-Government Relations Forum. TDY EXBS Advisor Jim Kelly and Kazakhstan EXBS Program Manager Gulnara Abildaeva attended the Industry-Government Relations Forum (IGR) on June 7-8 in Almaty. During the discussions, representatives from the Prime Minister's office and the Ministry of Industry and Trade expressed a desire to obtain (in some cases further) assistance in the following areas: a) Internal Control Programs; b) Product Identification Training; c) Administrative Enforcement Training; d) Industry Partnerships; e) enhancing/creating websites; and f) acquiring information on export control systems in other countries. During general discussions, government officials indicated that they could also use assistance in modernizing customs laws and procedures and automating their export license information ¶C. EQUIPMENT DELIVERED DURING THE REPORTING PERIOD ¶1. No equipment delivered during this reporting period. ¶D. IMMINENT TRAINING OR EQUIPMENT STATUS UPDATE ¶1. Task Order 79 Donation. Task Order 79 for the EXBS donation of Ural Trucks and Border Guard Shelters is nearing completion. EXBS was notified by Kazakhstan Border Guards that eleven URAL trucks had arrived at their final destination. Definite delivery dates for the shelters have not yet been determined. ¶2. Preliminary Department of Energy Second Line of Defense (DOE/SLD) site survey. The Second Line of Defense (SLD) program team will develop an installation and integration plan for the placement of radiation detection equipment and portal monitors at vehicle crossing sites throughout Kazakhstan. The date for the start of this project has been moved from July 1 to October 1. ¶3. Product Identification Tool Training (PIT). Commonwealth Trading Partners (CTP) Export Control Specialist Elizabeth Antonia Smiroldo conducted a two day Product Identification Tool (PIT) Technical Workshop for Kazakhstan Customs in Aktobe on June 21-22. CTP Export Control Specialist Adrian Boanca conducted PIT for ASTANA 00001910 003 OF 003 Kazakhstan Customs in Ust-Kamenogorsk on June 26-27. Assisting in the training was CTP's in country representative Business Inform, who translated the PIT into Russian and modified the software to make the program more useful and user friendly. PIT participants gave praised the training and the usefulness of the PIT software. ¶4. The Kazakhstan Border Guards Service postponed the U.S. Cost Guard Mobile training scheduled for July 9 to July 20 because the hull of the Safe boats provided to Kazakhstan Border Guards in May of 2006 are not painted with the anti-fouling paint. Two Safe boats are also not operational. The training was moved from July to October. ¶E. SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENTS IN EXPORT CONTROLS, NONPROLIFERATION, OR RELATED BORDER SECURITY ¶1. None. ¶F. CASPIAN SECURITY INFORMATION ¶1. None. III. RED FLAG ISSUES. ¶1. None. MILAS