Corruption
Bank seeks jail term for Kazakh tycoon
01.12.2011. Category:Kazakhstan
The former chairman of BTA Bank, the Kazakh lender that defaulted on $12bn (£8bn) of debt owed to the likes of Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays, breached a court order after aides falsified documents to assist him in hiding his assets, the high court was told yesterday.
Mukhtar Ablyazov, who has fled Kazakhstan and been granted asylum in the UK, hid and dealt with his assets in violation of a 2009 freezing order by Mr Justice Teare, BTA’S barrister claimed at the start of a two-week contempt of court hearing. The bank is seeking a prison term for Ablyazov.More ...
Mukhtar Ablyazov, who has fled Kazakhstan and been granted asylum in the UK, hid and dealt with his assets in violation of a 2009 freezing order by Mr Justice Teare, BTA’S barrister claimed at the start of a two-week contempt of court hearing. The bank is seeking a prison term for Ablyazov.More ...
Extradition request once again rejected
17.06.2011. Category:Kazakhstan
Today, a court in Vienna rejected to extradite Rakhat Aliyev and his aides back to Kazakhstan. The men are accused of kidnapping two bank managers and were sentenced to a long-term prison penalty by a Kazakh court.
Meanwhile, the bodies of the two managers were found, two German forensic experts after examining the corpses said that they were tortured and murdered.
The lawyer of the two widows said after the decision by the Austrian judge that he in his professional life never could expect such a dilettant behaviour by the judicial system of his country. He said that it is a failure, commenting the decision.
It is most likely that a new extradition request, now for murder, will be issued by the Kazakh authorities, together with a legal suit before the European Court for Human Rights.
Meanwhile, the bodies of the two managers were found, two German forensic experts after examining the corpses said that they were tortured and murdered.
The lawyer of the two widows said after the decision by the Austrian judge that he in his professional life never could expect such a dilettant behaviour by the judicial system of his country. He said that it is a failure, commenting the decision.
It is most likely that a new extradition request, now for murder, will be issued by the Kazakh authorities, together with a legal suit before the European Court for Human Rights.
The European Union has allocated a grant of 3,7 million Euro to an organization controlled by the daughter of Uzbek dictator
03.06.2011. Category:Uzbekistan
Will it not be spent on another party of celebrities?
The European Union has allocated 3.7 million Euro to a charitable organization controlled by Lola Karimova-Tillaeva, the daughter of the Uzbek dictator. Karimova-Tillaeva is also Uzbekistan’s representative to UNESCO.
On 19 May 2011, in his defense statement in the suit brought by Lola Karimova against the French online publication "Rue89," lawyer Antoine Germain mentioned a letter sent by the office of Europa House in Uzbekistan to the Republican Center for Social Adaptation of Children (hereinafter – Center), the director of which is the Lola Karimova-Tillaeva. The letter confirms that the European Union has allocated 3.7 million Euro to the Center, which will be transferred to its accounts in 2011. The letter from Europa House, dated 20 April 2011, was probably intended to attest to the respectability of Madame Karimova to the court in Paris.At the same court proceedings, the journalist Anaelle Verzaux served as a witness presenting the cost estimates for a charity event organized by Lola Karimova-Tillaeva in February 2010 at the Versailles Palace. According to these estimates, this organization, run by Lola Karimova, paid 230,000 Euro for the attendance of the well-known actress Monica Bellucci at the party. It was not reported whether the guests to the party gave even one Euro to the fund for Uzbek children. Expenses were incurred only by Lola Karimova-Tillaeva, but obviously not from her personal pocket.More ...
The European Union has allocated 3.7 million Euro to a charitable organization controlled by Lola Karimova-Tillaeva, the daughter of the Uzbek dictator. Karimova-Tillaeva is also Uzbekistan’s representative to UNESCO.
On 19 May 2011, in his defense statement in the suit brought by Lola Karimova against the French online publication "Rue89," lawyer Antoine Germain mentioned a letter sent by the office of Europa House in Uzbekistan to the Republican Center for Social Adaptation of Children (hereinafter – Center), the director of which is the Lola Karimova-Tillaeva. The letter confirms that the European Union has allocated 3.7 million Euro to the Center, which will be transferred to its accounts in 2011. The letter from Europa House, dated 20 April 2011, was probably intended to attest to the respectability of Madame Karimova to the court in Paris.At the same court proceedings, the journalist Anaelle Verzaux served as a witness presenting the cost estimates for a charity event organized by Lola Karimova-Tillaeva in February 2010 at the Versailles Palace. According to these estimates, this organization, run by Lola Karimova, paid 230,000 Euro for the attendance of the well-known actress Monica Bellucci at the party. It was not reported whether the guests to the party gave even one Euro to the fund for Uzbek children. Expenses were incurred only by Lola Karimova-Tillaeva, but obviously not from her personal pocket.More ...
EU under fire for £3.5 million grant to daughter of Uzbek dictator
03.06.2011. Category:Uzbekistan
The European Commission has come under fire for awarding a £3.5 million grant to a charity controlled by Lola Karimova-Tillyaeva, the daughter of Uzbekistan's strongman president.More ...
Cablegate: LIFESTYLES OF THE KAZAZHSTANI LEADERSHIP
30.11.2010. Category:Kazakhstan
-------
Summary
-------
1. (C) Kazakhstan’s political elites appear to enjoy typical hobbies -- such as travel, horseback riding, and skiing. Not surprisingly, however, they are able to indulge in their hobbies on a grand scale, whether flying Elton John to Kazakhstan for a concert or trading domestic property for a palace in the United Arab Emirates. This cable recounts several instances in which Embassy officers have learned of, or witnessed, the recreational habits of Kazakhstan’s leaders. End Summary.More ...
Summary
-------
1. (C) Kazakhstan’s political elites appear to enjoy typical hobbies -- such as travel, horseback riding, and skiing. Not surprisingly, however, they are able to indulge in their hobbies on a grand scale, whether flying Elton John to Kazakhstan for a concert or trading domestic property for a palace in the United Arab Emirates. This cable recounts several instances in which Embassy officers have learned of, or witnessed, the recreational habits of Kazakhstan’s leaders. End Summary.More ...
Cablegate: GOVERNMENT’S ANTI-CORRUPTION CAMPAIGN
30.11.2010. Category:Kazakhstan
1. (C) SUMMARY: The Kazakhstani authorities recently launched a well-publicized anti-corruption campaign that has resulted in the arrest of several high-ranking individuals, including the Minister of Environment and a Deputy Minister of Defense, and in convictions of a number of others. The campaign appears to have the full support of President Nazarbayev, who has repeatedly called on the government and the ruling Nur Otan party to battle this “most serious evil.” Political analysts and civil society leaders remain skeptical, however, that the government’s clean-up efforts will bring permanent results. Most see the campaign simply as evidence of a power struggle among elite groups within the Kazakhstani government and doubt that any of the “biggest fish” will be affected. END SUMMARY.More ...
Cablegate: MONEY AND POWER
30.11.2010. Category:Kazakhstan
1. (S) SUMMARY: During a private dinner, KazMunaiGaz First Vice President Maksat Idenov named, in his view, the four most powerful gate-keepers around President Nursultan Nazarbayev: Chief of Administration and General Services of the President’s Office Sarybai Kalmurzayev, the President’s Chief of Staff Aslan Musin, State Secretary-Foreign Minister Kanat Saudabayev, and the tandem of Prime Minister Karim Masimov and Nazarbayev’s billionaire son-in-law Timur Kulibayev. According to Idenov, in Kazakhstan, market economy means capitalism, which means big money, XXXXXXXXXXXX. The following details are a single snapshot of one version of current reality. The significant point is that Nazarbayev is standing with Idenov, not Kulibayev, to maintain international standards to develop the massive Kashagan and Karachaganak hydrocarbon projects. END SUMMARY.More ...
Cablegate: CANDID DISCUSSION WITH PRINCE ANDREW ON THE KYRGYZ
30.11.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
1. (C) SUMMARY: On October 28, the Ambassador participated in a two-hour brunch to brief HRH the Duke of York ahead of his meetings with the Kyrgyz Prime Minister and other high-level officials. She was the only non-subject of the United Kingdom or the Commonwealth invited to participate by the British Ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic. Other participants included major British investors in Kyrgyzstan and the Canadian operator of XXXXXXXX. The discussion covered the investment climate for Western firms in the Kyrgyz Republic, the problem of corruption, the revival of the “Great Game,” Russian and Chinese influence in the country, and the Prince’s personal views on promoting British economic interests. Astonishingly candid, the discussion at times verged on the rude (from the British side). END SUMMARY.More ...
Did Bakiev’s government try to milk Manas Airbase money out of China?
30.11.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
Remember all that hubub in 2009 about the possible closure of the Manas Airbase? Well, WikiLeaks reveals, so to speak, the Chinese view on the matter, albeit via American eyes.
Arguably, it appears the Kyrgyz officials were trying to slyly induce China into giving them additional cash — or, conversely, that there was some talk of a deal, which the Americans sniffed out and confronted the Chinese about. The Chinese Ambassador seems rather frank in this account, talking about unemployment and discontent in his country, as well as the resentment China felt over the fate of Guantanamo Bay’s Uighur prisoners (”imply[ing] that the Guantanamo situation had made China look for ways to hit back at the U.S.”)
Here’s the digital diplomatic cable in full text, with a link back to the WikiLeaks site:More ...
Arguably, it appears the Kyrgyz officials were trying to slyly induce China into giving them additional cash — or, conversely, that there was some talk of a deal, which the Americans sniffed out and confronted the Chinese about. The Chinese Ambassador seems rather frank in this account, talking about unemployment and discontent in his country, as well as the resentment China felt over the fate of Guantanamo Bay’s Uighur prisoners (”imply[ing] that the Guantanamo situation had made China look for ways to hit back at the U.S.”)
Here’s the digital diplomatic cable in full text, with a link back to the WikiLeaks site:More ...
Kyrgyz Government Unhappy with DoD Decision
09.11.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan president Roza Otunbayeva has expressed her disappointment with the November 3 U.S. Defense Department (DoD) decision to renew its contract with Mina Corp Ltd., which has supplied jet fuel to the U.S. Transit Center Manas in Bishkek for the past six years. The one-year, $315 million contract will allow Mina to supply 96 million gallons of fuel to Manas. The contract can also be extended for another year.More ...
Kyrgyzstan urges US to scrap fuel contract for crucial supply base
09.11.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan's government has demanded that the Pentagon cancel a $630 million (£390 million) contract to supply fuel to the US's Manas airbase because its chosen bidder, Mina Corp, is under investigation by Kyrgyz law enforcement agencies.More ...
US awards Kyrgyzstan contract to company probed by Congress
04.11.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
The U.S. Defense Department has awarded the Mina Corporation a $315 million jet fuel contract at a key U.S. air force base in Kyrgyzstan, after a congressional investigation stalled the deal.More ...
The White House, the Pentagon, and Central Asia
04.11.2010. Category:Central Asia
Following the April revolution in Kyrgyzstan, the nation’s new political leaders were virtually unanimous in one criticism of the United States: “All they care about is that air base.” The charge was validated by the personal testimony of President Akayev’s ambassador to Washington, who negotiated the terms of the air base deal. The Americans used to raise issues of human rights and democracy with us, he wrote. But once the base was in place, that was it. White House advisor Michael McFaul has pushed back, insisting that Washington has always cared about a variety of issues, and that military concerns are only a piece of the agenda.More ...
Aliyev Blog Post - Rhetorics of a Haunted?
04.11.2010. Category:Kazakhstan
Statement by ETG Director Michael Laubsch:
Vienna - Although I am tired of playing a return ball to Dr. Aliyev’s ongoing „op-ed“ war against my person and Eurasian Transition Group, I would like to give a brief comment on his recent blog post. At the same time, let me underline the fact that I am not willing to participate further in a publishing battle with accusations and responds of a fugitive, whose personal reputation is at least doubtable.More ...
Vienna - Although I am tired of playing a return ball to Dr. Aliyev’s ongoing „op-ed“ war against my person and Eurasian Transition Group, I would like to give a brief comment on his recent blog post. At the same time, let me underline the fact that I am not willing to participate further in a publishing battle with accusations and responds of a fugitive, whose personal reputation is at least doubtable.More ...
US stops refueling tanker planes at key base
01.06.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman says the military has stopped refueling tanker planes at the Manas air base in Kyrgyzstan as the U.S. renegotiates with the local government on how much it will pay for fuel.
The base is considered a crucial transit center for sending troops and supplies in and out of Afghanistan. U.S. access was threatened this spring when street protests brought down the government and forced the president to flee.
Whitman and other U.S. military officials said Tuesday that transit flights continue at the base. But the spokesman also said that in an effort to conserve fuel, tanker planes are no longer stopping at Manas and are going elsewhere to refuel.
Washington Post
The base is considered a crucial transit center for sending troops and supplies in and out of Afghanistan. U.S. access was threatened this spring when street protests brought down the government and forced the president to flee.
Whitman and other U.S. military officials said Tuesday that transit flights continue at the base. But the spokesman also said that in an effort to conserve fuel, tanker planes are no longer stopping at Manas and are going elsewhere to refuel.
Washington Post
US Congress Hearing on Kyrgyzstan
23.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
After the Subcommttee Hearing at the US Congress, the journalist Steve LeVine interviewed some of the experts who gave a testimony.
New York-based lawyer Scott Horton, asserts that, if the precise same fuels contract had involved a U.S. commercial entity, it would be subject to investigation by the U.S. Justice Department.
Alexander Cooley, a Columbia University professor who has studied the Manas base as part of a look at numerous U.S. bases around the world, called the fuel scandal a problem both of local Kyrgyz politics and U.S. national security. He said that Kyrgyz politicians are certain to seize on the military base as an issue in October presidential elections. If the fuel scandal isn't resolved by then -- meaning if the U.S. hasn't fessed up -- Cooley suggested that the base could be in trouble.
Sam Patten, who watches Eurasia for Freedom House, a New York-based NGO, also raised the issue of the Embassy failing to engage with the opposition, but went further and argued that the State Department had ultimately failed to observe U.S. law obligating it to encourage democracy. Patten asserted that the State Department needs to watch more closely, because uprisings are bound to spread regionally. "The question in Uzbekistan isn't if revolution will happen, but when it will happen," Patten told the committee.
Oil and Glory
New York-based lawyer Scott Horton, asserts that, if the precise same fuels contract had involved a U.S. commercial entity, it would be subject to investigation by the U.S. Justice Department.
Alexander Cooley, a Columbia University professor who has studied the Manas base as part of a look at numerous U.S. bases around the world, called the fuel scandal a problem both of local Kyrgyz politics and U.S. national security. He said that Kyrgyz politicians are certain to seize on the military base as an issue in October presidential elections. If the fuel scandal isn't resolved by then -- meaning if the U.S. hasn't fessed up -- Cooley suggested that the base could be in trouble.
Sam Patten, who watches Eurasia for Freedom House, a New York-based NGO, also raised the issue of the Embassy failing to engage with the opposition, but went further and argued that the State Department had ultimately failed to observe U.S. law obligating it to encourage democracy. Patten asserted that the State Department needs to watch more closely, because uprisings are bound to spread regionally. "The question in Uzbekistan isn't if revolution will happen, but when it will happen," Patten told the committee.
Oil and Glory
The Bakiyev system of corruption an misuse of international money
22.04.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
In a briefing on April 16 in Brussels, ETG presented its findings on the corruptive system during the Bakiyev reign.
The presentation charts are attached.
The presentation charts are attached.
Internet censorship: Kyrgyzstan blocks independent web-sites
10.03.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
Today, since the early morning, internet users around Kyrgyzstan have been discussing blocking of a website of Information Agency Ferghana.Ru, popular independent web-site that is critical of Central Asian governments. Kyrgyz internet users say that Fergana.Ru, which was accessible in Kyrgyzstan users until today, has been blocked by most of the internet providers in Kyrgyzstan.More ...
US citizen a key player in alleged Italian telecom fraud
09.03.2010. Category:Kyrgyzstan
An apparently well-connected Soviet-born U.S. citizen has emerged as a key player in a massive Italian telecom fraud, according to court documents and published reports.
Rome Judge Aldo Morgigni has issued an arrest warrant for Eugene Gourevitch, believed to have been born in the Soviet Republic of Kyrgyzstan and who has reportedly held a U.S. passport since 1990, for alleged involvement in a fraud that is said to have siphoned an astonishing US$2.7 billion from the wholesale telephony divisions of Telecom Italia SpA and Fastweb SpA between 2003 and 2006.More ...
Rome Judge Aldo Morgigni has issued an arrest warrant for Eugene Gourevitch, believed to have been born in the Soviet Republic of Kyrgyzstan and who has reportedly held a U.S. passport since 1990, for alleged involvement in a fraud that is said to have siphoned an astonishing US$2.7 billion from the wholesale telephony divisions of Telecom Italia SpA and Fastweb SpA between 2003 and 2006.More ...
Kazakhstan says reading 'banned' book no longer illegal
27.05.2009. Category:Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan's Prosecutor-General's Office has announced that people are allowed to read the previously banned book about President Nursultan Nazarbaev but not allowed to distribute it, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports. More ...
The Godfather-In-Law: Arkadi Dubnov's article in Vremja Novostei
26.05.2009. Category:Kazakhstan
Нурсултан Абишевич Назарбаев заслуженно пользуется репутацией одного из самых мудрых политиков на постсоветском пространстве. Так считали еще на пространстве советском, когда оно в этом качестве доживало свой век почти 20 лет назад. Не случайно же тогда еще 50-летнего первого секретаря Компартии Казахстана прочили в премьеры обновленного СССР.More ...
Kazakhstan's book ban and the issue of 'Prior Restraint'
25.05.2009. Category:Kazakhstan
"Godfather-In-Law," a book about Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev, has struck a raw nerve with authorities in that country.
More ...Deutsche Bank complicit in Niyazov's terror regime
12.03.2009. Category:Turkmenistan
A new report slams a leading German bank for allowing Turkmenistan’s former president, Saparmurat Niyazov, to stash billions of dollars in state earnings in a personally controlled account.More ...
New Government in Austria uncomfortable with Aliyev
27.12.2008. Category:Kazakhstan
After the collapse of the Austrian Government under Chancellor Gusenbauer and the early elections with a new government the new political leadership at the Danube would like to reassess the case of R. Aliyev, who was convicted in absentia in 2007 for a long-term sentence by a Kazakh Court of a variety of charges, including kidnapping and foundation of a criminal organization. Although Kazakh authorities asked for the extradition of the former Kazakh Ambassador in Austria in 2007, a Vienna court turned down Astana's extradition request for Aliyev, saying he could not expect a fair Kazakh trial. Meanwhile, authorities in Vienna were still discussing the possibility of bringing action against the former son-in-law of the Kazakh President under Austrian law.
More ...