KAZAKHSTAN: VAT COMMISSION APPROVES CTR CONTRACTS

UNCLAS ASTANA 000974 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR SCA/CEN (M. O'MARA),SCA/RA (A. CUMMINGS) SECDEF FOR ATSD/NCB/CT/TR AND ASD/ISP/TSP/CP/CTR E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PARM PREL KNNP KZ SUBJECT: KAZAKHSTAN: VAT COMMISSION APPROVES CTR CONTRACTS REF: A. ASTANA 950 B. ASTANA 927 C. ASTANA 906 D. ASTANA 860 ¶1. (SBU) Finance Minister Korzhova informed the Ambassador late on April 13 that the interagency commission established to review Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) value-added tax exemption claims for subcontractors had approved nine of ten pending contracts. (Note: Post submitted five of the subcontracts, one of which covered consulting services and was set aside for future review. Post will seek an alternate funding mechanism for the contract. Five were submitted by Kazakhstan's National Nuclear Center, which is also a prime contractor.) The commission's recommendations will now be forwarded to Prime Minister Masimov for final approval. ¶2. (SBU) Post was just informed that Prime Minister Masimov must make the final decision. In the interim, we have asked for written confirmation of the commission's decision and have been told that a letter to the Ambassador has been prepared for Minister Korzhova's signature. ¶3. (SBU) Comment: Prime Minister Masimov pressed for a quick and positive resolution of the VAT issue and we thus have every confidence that he will approve the exemptions. End comment. ORDWAY