TASHKENT TIDBITS OCTOBER 20, 2008 \

174394 2008-10-20 12:40:00 08TASHKENT1201 Embassy Tashkent CONFIDENTIAL VZCZCXYZ0001\ PP RUEHWEB\ \ DE RUEHNT #1201 2941240\ ZNY CCCCC ZZH\ P 201240Z OCT 08 ZDK\ FM AMEMBASSY TASHKENT\ TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0435\ INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY\ RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE PRIORITY\ RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING PRIORITY 1128\ RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD PRIORITY 4621\ RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 2912\ RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 1571\ C O N F I D E N T I A L TASHKENT 001201 \ \ SIPDIS \ \ E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/19/2018 \ TAGS: PREL PGOV ECON UZ SUBJECT: TASHKENT TIDBITS OCTOBER 20, 2008 \ \ Classified By: POL-ECON Chief Nicholas Berliner for \ reasons 1.4 b and d. \ \ \ UNDP and Uzbek Customs Launch New Web Site \ -------------- \ ¶1. (C) The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and \ Uzbekistan's State Customs Committee have launched a new \ website (www.customsreform.uz),which will include updates on \ the latest changes in Customs regulation and discussions of \ the new Customs Code. An English-language version is in the \ works. \ \ Non-Stop Service to Switzerland \ -------------- \ \ ¶2. (C) Uzbekistan Airlines last week announced the expansion \ of its route network to include a new non-stop flight linking \ Tashkent and Geneva. At first glance this seems like an \ unusual choice since the airline already serves several major \ European hubs and Geneva is not a particularly large city; \ Zurich is also a more of a gateway airport. We can't even \ convince the Government of Uzbekistan to extend prison visit \ agreements with the Geneva-based International Committee of \ the Red Cross. The main reason may be that the new Uzbek \ Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva happens to be \ President Karimov's daughter, Gulnora Karimova, who would \ otherwise be subjected to time-consuming layovers in Paris, \ Frankfurt, or Milan on her commutes. The direct flight may \ also prove popular with Uzbek "biznessmen" seeking to do \ anonymous banking. \ \ Russian Ambassador Moving On \ -------------- \ ¶3. (U) The Russian MFA reported on its website that the \ Russian Ambassador to Tashkent, Farit Muhametshin, has been \ appointed the head of the Federal Agency for Commonwealth of \ Independent States (CIS) Affairs, Citizens Living Abroad, and \ International Humanitarian Cooperation. The Charge \ d'Affaires will be Vazyh Ibragimovich Serazaev until a new \ envoy is named. In an October 18 article the Uzbek website \ uzmetronom.com credited Muhametshin, an ethnic Tatar, with \ the "restoration of friendly and allied relations between the \ states." \ \ Russia's Economy and Uzbek Migrants \ -------------- \ ¶4. (C) The effect of the world economic crisis on Uzbekistan \ was the topic of discussion at a meeting of embassy and IFI \ economists hosted last week by the Tashkent office of the \ EBRD. A significant portion of the discussion was devoted to \ the effect a downturn in the Russian economy would have on \ the up to 5 million Uzbek migrant laborers in Russia. A \ representative of the Russian trade mission assured us that \ the Russian migration service would be ruthless and efficient \ in deporting undocumented laborers, but his assertion was met \ with raised eyebrows. Other participants posited the more \ believable notion that highly qualified Uzbeks working in \ Russia will always find work and will remain through any \ recession, whereas unskilled laborers employed mainly in the \ construction industry may flood back to their family bases in \ Uzbekistan. Given that officially acknowledged remittances \ amounted to USD 1.6 billion in 2007 (nearly 9% of the Uzbek \ GDP),a mass return of unskilled laborers could be the most \ significant manifestation of the world economic crisis in \ Uzbekistan. \ \ Iranian Ambassador Takes Four Months to Present Credentials \ -------------- -------------- \ ¶5. (C) Iran's new ambassador to Uzbekistan Muhammad \ Keshovarzoda was in Tashkent for four months before \ presenting his credentials to President Karimov on October \ ¶15. That Karimov was clearly in no hurry to receive \ Keshovarzoda can be seen as a reflection of GOU attitudes \ about Iran generally and suspicions about Tehran's motives in \ the region. \ NORLAND \