Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09BISHKEK945
2009-08-24 10:42:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Bishkek
Cable title:  

KYRGYZSTAN: POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT FOR

Tags:  PGOV PREL ECPS EINV KIDE KG 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO9518
RR RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHLH RUEHNEH RUEHPW
DE RUEHEK #0945 2361042
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 241042Z AUG 09
FM AMEMBASSY BISHKEK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2603
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 1524
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 3577
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2963
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO BRUSSELS BE
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RUMICEA/USCENTCOM INTEL CEN MACDILL AFB FL
C O N F I D E N T I A L BISHKEK 000945 

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR SCA/CEN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/24/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL ECPS EINV KIDE KG
SUBJECT: KYRGYZSTAN: POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT FOR
AMERICAN-FINANCED MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY

Classified By: Ambassador Tatiana C. Gfoeller for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (
d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L BISHKEK 000945

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR SCA/CEN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/24/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL ECPS EINV KIDE KG
SUBJECT: KYRGYZSTAN: POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT FOR
AMERICAN-FINANCED MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY

Classified By: Ambassador Tatiana C. Gfoeller for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (
d).


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: On August 5, EmbOff met with Ross Jacoby,
the Chairman of Katel, an American-financed mobile
telecommunications company based in Kyrgyzstan. Jacoby told
EmbOff of the Kyrgyz government's recent decision to overturn
an earlier decree that allocated a portion of Katel,s
frequencies to a competitor. Katel still has not obtained
the lost frequencies, however, and continues to face a
challenging business and investment environment. END SUMMARY.


2. (SBU) EmbOff met with Katel Chairman Ross Jacoby on August
5 to receive an update on Katel,s ongoing battle with the
National Agency of Communications (NAC) of the Kyrgyz
Republic to recover frequencies that had been taken from
Katel two years earlier. Jacoby provided a copy of a decree
from the NAC dated July 27, 2009 that canceled the June 2007
NAC decree that had allocated a significant portion of
Katel,s frequencies to Aktel, a competitor of Katel. Jacoby
noted that while Aktel had yet to return the frequencies to
Katel, he believed the latest decision by the NAC was a
positive step toward the return of these lost frequencies.


3. (SBU) Jacoby noted that it was important for Katel to
receive these frequencies before upgrading its network's
Second Generation Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) system
into a third generation Universal Mobile Telecommunications
System (UMTS) solution, a necessary step in order for Katel
to keep pace with its competitors. The Katel Chairman noted
that while the company had received permission from the
Kyrgyz government approximately one year ago to make the
transition, the frequency dispute and the global financial
crisis had made it difficult to move forward on the
implementation. Jacoby explained that while Katel,s two
primary investors, Citibank and the Royal Bank of Scotland,
had already invested USD 50 million into Katel, tens of
millions were still needed to move forward on the TDMA )
UMTS transition.


4. (C) COMMENT: Katel,s experiences in Kyrgyzstan represent
the difficult local business operating environment. Katel is
one of the largest U.S. investors in Kyrgyzstan. The
decision by the NAC to rescind its previous decree regarding
its frequencies is positive news and will hopefully lead to
additional investments in Kyrgyzstan,s mobile
telecommunications sector.
GFOELLER