БанкМонитор
май 2003

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Название: Новости.
Главные Пункты:
* Совет Директоров АК "Транснефтепродукт" одобрил привлечение кредита ЕБРР в сумме до $75 млн. на модернизацию магистральных нефтепродуктопроводов.
* Минтранс РФ планирует в январе 2004 г. начать переговоры с ЕБРР о возможности привлечения на строительство автомагистралей и мостов займа на сумму до $100 млн. без гарантий правительства. Помимо ЕБРР, среди наиболее вероятных кредиторов - ЕИБ и ВБ.
* Руководство АБР заявило, что в декабре будет завершен процесс подбора иностранных компаний для начала строительства Трансафганского газопровода.
* Президент Украины и глава ЕБРР обсудили перспективы сотрудничества, в частности по продвижению проекта "ХАЭС2/РАЭС4" и возможному привлечению ЕБРР к стратегическим проектам в сфере нефте- и газотранспортных систем.
* Эксперты ВБ приняли участие в конференции "Байкал. Сохранение биоразнообразия", организованной в рамках проекта глобального экологического фонда "Сохранение биоразнообразия РФ".
* Совет директоров МВФ выделяет правительству Азербайджана дополнительно $18 млн. для реализации программы по сокращению бедности.
* Ряд арабских финансовых институтов готов профинансировать проекты по реконструкции дорог в Азербайджане.
* В июле будет открыта кредитная линия ЕБРР в сумме $290 млн. на реализацию проектов строительства КАД Санкт-Петербурга и автодороги Чита-Хабаровск.
* Иностранные инвесторы не спешат вкладывать деньги в реализацию Трансафганского проекта.
* Планы по привлечению ОАО "Ленэнерго" кредита ЕБРР в размере 1,2 млрд. руб. будут отложены, по крайней мере, до 2004 г.
* По состоянию на 1 января текущего года ЕБРР выделил Молдавии €170,2 млн. для финансирования проектов в различных секторах экономики, в т.ч. в области энергетики, инфраструктуры и промышленности.
* Замминистра иностранных дел РФ принял главу представительства ЕБРР в России В.Пастора. Стороны обсудили вопросы сотрудничества между РФ и Банком и перспективы его деятельности на территории России.
* Участники III Форума балтийских НКО требуют проведения международной общественной экологической экспертизы проекта Д6, реализуемого крупнейшим заемщиком ЕБРР - компанией ЛУКОЙЛ.

Новые материалы на сайте ECA Watch (на англ. языке). (31.05.03)
* "Трубопровод БТД под обстрелом". Несколько общественных организаций призвали к мораторию на строительство нефтепровода.
* Подана жалоба на консорциум во главе с компанией ВР в связи со строительством нефтепровода БТД.
* Организация "Transparency International" критикует экспортно-кредитную группу OECD.
* Институт "Открытое Общество" обнародовал свой доклад "Неожиданные удачи каспийской нефти: кто извлечет выгоду?", призывающий к прозрачности доходов от реализации нефтяных и газовых проектов в Казахстане и Азербайджане. Электронная версия доклада доступна на http://www.eurasianet.org/caspian.oil.windfalls/ .
* и др. материалы на сайте www.eca-watch.org.

Бюллетень MDBNews 21/03 - II (на англ. языке). (31.05.03)
* Пресс-релизы:
* "Молдавия может получить кредит ВБ для улучшения систем водоснабжения и канализации" (ВБ);
* "Возобновление роста в Европе и Центральной Азии требует принятия реформ по обеспечению экологической устойчивости" (ВБ);
* "Президент ЕБРР посетил экологический форум в Киеве" (ЕБРР).

Бюллетень MDBNews 21/03 - I (на англ. языке). (30.05.03)
* Группа узбекских правозащитников требует отставки судей.
* Азиатский Банк Развития одобрил выделение Узбекистану $1 млн. на улучшение корпоративного управления и реструктуризацию местных предприятий.
* БТД: международная организация "Amnesty International" призывает к действию.
* "Транснефть" планирует профинансировать Балтийский трубопровод путем выпуска дополнительных акций.
* Компания ВР обвиняется в оказании давления на правительство Турции при реализации проекта БТД.
* Телевизионный позор узбекского президента.
* Всемирный Банк выделяет Кыргызстану кредит на сумму $171 млн.
* МВФ выделяет Азербайджану дополнительно $18 млн. для реализации программы сокращения бедности.

Бюллетень MDBNews 20/03 (на англ. языке). (30.05.03)
* Кыргызстан сталкивается с постоянными проблемами из-за фальшивомонетчиков.
* На переговорах прикаспийских государств наблюдается прогресс. Неурегулированным остается вопрос о границах.
* Россия, Казахстан и Азербайджан делят Каспийское море.
* США: дешевая нефть из Ирака не препятствует реализации проекта БТД.
* МФК планирует выделить $150 млн. для проекта БТД.
* МВФ предлагает помощь Центральной Азии по борьбе с отмыванием денег и терроризмом.
* Неожиданные удачи каспийской нефти: кто извлечет выгоду? Новый доклад Института "Открытое Общество".
* Официальные лица: глобальная система банкротства нуждается в сдерживании долгового кризиса.
* Заболевший Алиев возвращается в Баку. Политические интриги продолжаются.
* Пресс-релизы: "Всемирный Банк обнародовал новую стратегию поддержки для Кыргызстана" (ВБ).

Инвестиционный климат в странах Средней Азии и Кавказа. (30.05.03)
* Статья независимого журналиста Д. Шрика (Eurasianet): "Грузия пытается привлечь иностранные инвестиции в энергетический сектор".

Проект по строительству нового "саркофага" для ЧАЭС. (29.05.03)
* В 1997 г. ЕБРР взял на себя управление Чернобыльским Фондом "Укрытие", который финансирует всесторонние программы, направленные на предотвращение последствий аварии на ЧАЭС. Летом 2003 г. ожидается окончание стадии разработки новой, более безопасной защитной конструкции, которая будет "сдерживать" выброс радиоактивных элементов 4-го реактора.

Нефтегазовые проекты на Сахалине. (28.05.03)
* Проекты "Сахалин-4" и "Сахалин-5" будут реализованы альянсом "Роснефти", ВР и ТНК.
* Танкер "Приморье" готовится к принятию и транспортировке первой партии нефти в рамках проекта "Сахалин-2".
* В рамках проекта "Сахалин-2" "Сахалин Энерджи" планирует вложить до $15 млн. в модернизацию автодорог и объектов инфраструктуры в муниципальных образованиях Сахалинской обл.
* Директор департамента нефтегазового комплекса Сахалинской обл. Г. Павлова среди ближайших задач российской стороны по проектам "Сахалин-1" и "Сахалин-2" назвала обеспечение максимальной экологической безопасности и охраны уникальных биоресурсов.
* Действие поправок в закон о СРП не будет распространяться на проекты "Сахалин-1" и "Сахалин-2", соглашения по которым были подписаны до принятия этого закона.
* Полномасштабная добыча углеводородов по проекту "Сахалин-1" начнется в те же сроки, как и по проекту "Сахалин-2".
* Компания "Сахалин Энерджи" объявила о начале 2-ого этапа освоения проекта "Сахалин-2". Общий объем инвестиций в проект на 2-ом этапе составит около $10 млрд.
* Крупнейшая японская газовая корпорация "Токио Газ" подпишет в 2004 г. окончательное соглашение с компанией "Сахалин Энерджи" на покупку российского газа в рамках проекта "Сахалин-2".

Новости проекта по строительству нефтепровода БТД. (27.05.03)
* Во второй половине июня в Баку пройдет очередной раунд переговоров о присоединении Казахстана к проекту БТД.
* Азербайджанская пресса опубликовала списки правозащитников, которые готовят акции против строительства БТД.
* 23 мая в восточной Грузии в районе Тетрицкаро была заложена первая труба и официально объявлено о начале строительства нефтепровода БТД.
* Первый вице-президент ГНКАР И. Алиев сообщил, что тарифы на транспортировку нефти по трубопроводу БТД будут намного ниже, чем у других нефтепроводов региона.
* Азербайджано-российская страховая компания "Атешгях" заключила договор страхования работ по строительству нефтепровода БТД.
* Стоимость турецкого участка нефтепровода БТД несколько возрастет по сравнению с ранее указанной суммой в $1,4 млрд.
* Представители Азербайджана, Грузии и Турции подписали соглашение о соблюдении всех международных экологических, социальных, трудовых норм, а также прав человека при строительстве БТД.
* В Азербайджане идет выплата компенсаций за аренду земельных участков под строительство нефтепровода БТД.
* Координатор Кавказской региональной сети НКО по ВБ К. Дгебуадзе считает, что противниками строительства БТД движут не экологические, а политические цели.
* Советник Госдепартамента США по вопросам энергетики Каспийского региона С. Манн убежден, что "дешевая нефть из Ирака не помешает планам строительства БТД".
* По словам вице-президента МФК П. Войке, обсуждение вопроса финансирования строительства БТД находится на одной из последних стадий и в октябре-ноябре проект будет одобрен советом директоров МФК.
* Менеджер по ОВОСС консорциума ВТС Со. Ф. Мидлтон заявил, что если в ходе работ на БТД будут обнаружены предметы, подтверждающие археологическую ценность участка, строительство нефтепровода будет приостановлено.
* и другие сообщения.

Проект нефтепровода Баку-Тбилиси-Джейхан и НПО - 2. (26.05.03)
* Обращение "Движения зеленых Азербайджана" к директорам ЕБРР по поводу проекта строительства нефтепровода БТД. Организация просит Банк помочь Азербайджану реализовать этот, по ее мнению, важный для страны проект, но при соблюдении нескольких условий.
* В конце апреля 2002 г. вдоль азербайджанской части маршрута будущего трубопровода БТД прошла экспедиция, в которой приняли участие представители 6 НКО. Рассказ Ф. Гусейновой, председателя организации "Движение зеленых Азербайджана".

Проект нефтепровода Баку-Тбилиси-Джейхан и НПО - I. (25.05.03)
* На пресс-конференции, проходившей в рамках конференции министров в Киеве, нефтепровод БТД стал одной из горячих тем обсуждения. Представители Bankwatch сообщили о множестве нарушений, которые были обнаружены во время недавней поездки ряда НКО по маршруту будущего трубопровода в Грузии.
* Международная организация Amnesty International опубликовала доклад, в котором говорится, что при строительстве БТД будут насильственно переселены до 30 тыс. чел. и нанесен серьезный ущерб окружающей среде. Организация призвала правительство Великобритании отказать компании BP в кредитных гарантиях.
* Несколько международных экологических организаций подали жалобу на компанию ВР в правительства Великобритании, Франции, Германии, Италии и США. Они обвинили нефтяного гиганта и его партнеров в том, что те, при реализации проекта по строительству нефтепровода БТД, нарушают положения "Руководств OECD для транснациональных корпораций".
* Проигнорируют ли международные финансовые институты нужды обычных граждан, чтобы поддержать "глобальный проект трубопровода", или попытаются гарантировать защиту элементарных прав и свобод человека? (Статья Bankwatch).

Новости. (14.05.03)
* Компании Sakhalin Energy (SE) и Tokyo Gas подписали основные условия соглашения, которые помогут принятию акционерами SE решения об инвестициях в реализацию 2-ого этапа освоения месторождений по проекту "Сахалин-2".
* ЕБРР планирует предоставить Казахстану кредит в размере $119 млн. на реконструкцию автомобильной дороги Атырау-Актау.
* Вице-президент ВБ по Европе и Центральной Азии Й. Линн посетил Тбилиси.
* Японские компании "Мицуи" и "Мицубиси" совместно с голландской группой "Роял Датч - Шелл" планируют вложить около $10 млрд. в проект "Сахалин-2".
* По словам вице-президента ВБ Й. Линна, инвестиционный климат в России и имидж страны в глазах международных инвесторов улучшаются.
* ВБ пообещал руководству Таджикистана помощь в развитии энергетики республики.
* Доноры и международные организации намерены увеличить оказываемую финансовую помощь Таджикистану.
* В Кыргызстане прошел бизнес-форум стран-участниц организации ЦАЭС, в котором приняли участие около 200 представителей более чем из десяти стран мира, а также сотрудники ВБ, ЕБРР, МФВ и АБР.
* Исламский банк развития выделяет Кыргызстану кредит в $9 млн. на реконструкцию дороги Тараз-Талас-Суусамыр.
* С 5 по 17 мая в Баку будет находиться Контрольная миссия ВБ. Целью визита является обсуждение выполнения условий выделения 2-ого транша кредита на проведение структурных реформ в Азербайджане в объеме $30 млн.
* Президент Узбекистана И. Каримов рассчитывает на поддержку ЕБРР в экономическом развитии Центральной Азии.
* Между администрацией Санкт-Петербурга и ЕБРР без проведения государственной экологической экспертизы заключено кредитное соглашение на реализацию проекта рекультивации земель экспериментального предприятия в Ленинградской обл.
* В мэрии Архангельска состоялась презентация проекта повышения эффективности работы МУП "Водоканал". Его финансирование будет осуществляться за счет кредита ЕБРР (€10 млн.) и гранта международного экологического фонда "Северное измерение" (€8,2 млн.).
* Активная фаза строительства КЗС Петербурга планируется на август 2003 г. В настоящее время для завершения КЗС открыта кредитная линия ЕБРР в объеме $245 млн.
* Из ранее предполагавшейся суммы на строительство петербургской КАД в объеме $135 млн. ЕБРР выделит лишь $105 млн. Остальные средства ($30 млн.) "Росавтодор" направит на финансирование федеральной автотрассы "Чита-Хабаровск".

Бюллетень MDBNews 18/03 (на англ. языке) - II (14.05.03)
* Пресс-релизы: "Водные ресурсы Юго-Восточной Европы: уникальные возможности и проблемы" (ВБ); "Доноры и правительство Таджикистана планируют укрепить сотрудничество по борьбе с бедностью" (ВБ); "Украина: Всемирный Банк поддерживает развитие информационных технологий" (ВБ).
* Краткая информация о новых проектах: Проект по развитию системы городского водопотребления в Херсоне, Украина (ЕБРР); Новые тендеры ЕС.

Бюллетень MDBNews 18/03 (на англ. языке) - I (14.05.03)
* Экологи подали жалобы на участников трубопроводного консорциума.
* Узбекский президент под давлением. ЕБРР рассчитывает на правовые реформы.
* Столица Узбекистана готовится к Сессии ЕБРР.
* ЕБРР требует от президента Узбекистана принятия реформ.
* Сессия ЕБРР в Ташкенте началась с критики Узбекистана.
* Президент ЕБРР встречается с узбекским лидером и призывает Узбекистан соответствовать целям реформирования.
* НКО обвиняют консорциум во главе с ВР в нарушении Руководства для транснациональных корпораций OECD при реализации каспийского трубопроводного проекта.
* Ежегодное Собрание ЕБРР в Ташкенте заканчивается призывом к реформам.
* Главный экономист ЕБРР отмечает медленный экономический рост в Узбекистане.
* Президент Кыргызстана заявил, что Центральной Азии следует учиться у ЕС.
* Всемирный Банк все еще сомневается по поводу финансирования БТД из-за экологических вопросов.
(31.05.2003)

Полный Текст
Новости.
Бюллетень MDBNews 18/03 (на англ. языке).
***
News
1. GREENS FILE AGAINST PIPE GROUP (Oil Daily Apr 29)
2. UZBEK PRESIDENT UNDER PRESSURE AS EBRD BANKS ON RIGHTS REFORM
(Financial Times May 2)
3. UZBEK CAPITAL GEARS UP FOR EBRD (IWPR May 2)
4. EBRD DEMANDS REFORM FROM UZBEK PRESIDENT (Financial Times May 5)
5. EBRD MEETING IN TASHKENT OPENS WITH CRITICISM OF HOST (RFE/RL May
5)
6. EBRD PRESIDENT MEETS UZBEK PRESIDENT, CALLS FOR UZBEKISTAN TO MEET
REFORM GOALS (RFE/RL May 5)
7. BP-LED CONSORTIUM VIOLATING OECD CODE IN CASPIAN PIPELINE PROJECT,
NGOS CHARGE (International Environment Daily May 6)
8. EBRD ANNUAL MEETING ENDS IN TASHKENT WITH CALLS FOR REFORM (RFE/RL
May 6)
9. EBRD CHIEF ECONOMIST NOTES SLOW GROWTH IN UZBEKISTAN (RFE/RL May 6)

10. KYRGYZ PRESIDENT SAYS CENTRAL ASIA SHOULD LEARN FROM EU (RFE/RL
May 7)
11. WORLD BANK STILL HAS ECOLOGY CONCERNS ABOUT BTC PIPELINE (Agence
France Press May 7)
Press Releases
1. WATER IN SOUTH EASTERN EUROPE - UNIQUE OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES
(World Bank May 6)
2. DONORS, TAJIK GOVERNMENT PLEDGE TO INTENSIFY PARTNERSHIP IN
FIGHTING POVERTY (World Bank May 3)
3. UKRAINE: WORLD BANK SUPPORTS E-DEVELOPMENT (World Bank May 6)
New Project Summaries
1. KHERSON MUNICIPAL UTILITIES DEVELOPMENT PROJECT, Ukraine (EBRD Apr
29)
2. NEW EU TENDERS

GREENS FILE AGAINST PIPE GROUP (Oil Daily Apr 29)
As OECD leaders meet in Paris this week, environmental organizations
submitted complaints to the British, French, German, Italian, and US
governments charging that BP and its consortium partners in the
proposed Baku-T'bilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline are breaching the
OECD's "Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises." US partners are
Unocal, ConocoPhillips, and Amerada Hess.
The proposed BTC oil pipeline would span 1,056 miles from the
Azerbaijan capital of Baku, through T'bilisi Georgia, ending in the
Mediterranean city of Ceyhan, Turkey.
In their complaint, the groups charge the consortium with having
exerted undue influence on the regulatory framework for the project
and undermining the host governments' ability to mitigate threats to
the environment and human health.
The OECD Guidelines, which were revised in June 2000, cannot be
legally enforced.
The groups are calling for an immediate moratorium of construction
activities and for financial support to be placed on hold until the
consortium has remedied the breaches to the OECD Guidelines.
"US companies like Unocal and ConocoPhillips are violating agreements
that our government has endorsed and professes to uphold," said Carol
Welch, deputy director of international programs at Friends of the
Earth.
***
UZBEK PRESIDENT UNDER PRESSURE AS EBRD BANKS ON RIGHTS REFORM
(Financial Times May 2)
Islam Karimov, the authoritarian president of Uzbekistan, has for
months faced intense diplomatic pressure to improve human rights in
his country and, in particular, to end prison torture. On Sunday he
will reveal in a televised speech whether this concerted criticism has
had any effect.
Mr Karimov will be speaking at the opening of the biggest
international event in the former Soviet republic's short history -
the annual meeting of the European Bank for Reconstruction and
Development, attended by more than 1,600 government officials,
business people and journalists from about 60 countries.
The president will doubtless seize the opportunity to strut on the
global stage. The EBRD hopes that he will also face up to some of
Uzbekistan's problems, including the use of torture.
Jean Lemierre, EBRD president, says he has "a reasonable expectation"
that Mr Karimov will fulfil the bank's hopes. But just in case he does
not, Mr Lemierre has travelled to Tashkent with two speeches of his
own - one welcoming promises of reform, the other expressing
disappointment.
From the outset Uzbekistan was a controversial choice of venue for the
EBRD. Tashkent's supporters, headed by Japan, hoped the prospect of
playing host would stimulate political and economic reform in one of
the former Soviet Union's poorest states. But in the three years since
the decision was made, Mr Karimov has only tightened his grip on power
and the economy.
After a series of bombings in Tashkent in 1999, allegedly set off by
Islamic extremists, Mr Karimov cracked down on those he perceived as a
security threat among the population of 25m.
After September 11 2001 he deflected western criticism by
enthusiastically supporting the global war on terrorism and the
advance of American influence in central Asia. Human Rights Watch
estimates that 7,000 or more people have been jailed for their
religious or political beliefs. A United Nations human rights report
this year said torture was "systematic".
A brief flurry of economic reforms in the early 1990s has been
followed by a tightening of controls, including the introduction of a
multiple exchange rate system. Business people have been forced into
barter. Foreign companies have mostly stayed away: foreign direct
investment last year dropped to $65m (-58m, ?41m) - one of the lowest
levels of all former communist economies, says the EBRD. Repeated
missions from the International Monetary Fund, seeking reform-oriented
programmes, have left empty-handed.
Far from trying to improve policies in advance of the EBRD meeting,
Uzbek officials have in the last 12 months imposed high tariffs on
imported goods, temporarily closed markets and prevented traders from
crossing into neighbouring countries.
Uzbek officials justify some of their actions by pointing to the
threat of terrorism in their country, which borders Afghanistan. A
cloud has been cast over the EBRD meeting itself by a US State
Department warning of the danger of attack by terrorists, including
al-Qaeda militants.
Some western analysts see in repression signs of a power struggle
around Mr Karimov. There were reports last week of a possible change
in the leadership when parliament - dominated by Mr Karimov's
supporters - approved a law that granted the head of state immunity
after his term expires, or if he should be force to retire early "for
health reasons". Mr Karimov denied having plans to retire, but the
vote left an air of political uncertainty.
Mr Lemierre says that, despite the difficulties, the EBRD meeting can
stimulate change in Uzbekistan. He rejected calls by international
human rights groups to cancel the meeting. Instead, he has encouraged
Uzbek non-government organisations to participate.
Many human rights workers are not convinced, including Matilda Bogner,
who heads the Tashkent office of Human Rights Watch. She says: "The
government is putting out the message that the international community
approves of what is going on in Uzbekistan and the meeting is a reward
for its policies." Her worst fear is that the meeting will be followed
by a further crackdown.
Diplomats also have their doubts. "There is almost an explicit
understanding that now is not the time for an Uzbek reform programme,"
says one. "Officials here obviously consider their system strong
enough to weather any type of public criticism, even that coming from
the EBRD meeting."
***
UZBEK CAPITAL GEARS UP FOR EBRD (IWPR May 2)
Human rights groups voice concerns about accolade EBRD meeting will
give Uzbekistan.
In the run-up to a meeting of the European Bank for Reconstruction and
Development, EBRD, Uzbekistan has come under renewed criticism for its
poor human rights record. The EBRD's annual meeting in Tashkent on May
4-5 will be the first the bank has held in Central Asia. As such it is
something of a coup for the Uzbek government, which has had a rocky
relationship with international lenders as well as human rights
groups.
At least 2,000 participants are expected to attend, and although the
meeting is not actually about Uzbekistan, the government is clearly
hoping it will be an opportunity to attract investment. "The choice of
Tashkent... means that it is taking on the role of an international
financial centre not just in the Central Asian region, but outside it
as well," economics minister Rustam Azimov told a press conference.
Not everyone agrees that Uzbekistan was a wise choice of venue for
EBRD. Human Rights Watch issued a statement on May 2 criticising
Uzbekistan's record on human rights and questioning the EBRD's
judgement. "The bank has justified the choice of Tashkent as an
incentive for reform," said Elizabeth Andersen, head of the
organisation's Europe and Central Asia division.
"But talk of future improvements will be empty if at the same time the
Uzbek authorities are harassing, beating and arbitrarily detaining
people."
The EBRD's mandate says that it must only work in countries that are
committed to democratic principles. Its latest strategy paper for
Uzbekistan, published in March, raises concerns about systematic
violations of human rights, arbitrary detention and torture, and the
development of multi-party democracy. According to Human Rights Watch,
it should use the meeting to push for reforms in Uzbekistan.
"The bank squandered important leverage by not making the need for
human rights improvements a condition for the meeting. Bank officials
should speak out about human rights concerns at the meeting and engage
in serious and sustained follow-up after it," Andersen said.
Within Uzbekistan, human rights activists are just as critical.
"We think that by cooperating with the government of Uzbekistan, where
people are imprisoned for their beliefs and human rights activity, the
EBRD is breaking its own regulations," said Talib Yakubov, head of the
Human Rights Society for Uzbekistan, HRSU.
Yakubov thinks the EBRD should make investment policy conditional on
improvements in human rights.
About 10 human rights activists demonstrated outside the prosecutor's
office in central Tashkent on April 29 at the start of six days of
planned protests. They carried placards demanding changes to
government policy and the release of HRSU members Tursunbai
Otamuradov, Jura Muradov, Musulmankul Khamraev and Norpulat Rajabov.
All four were arrested last May.
The authorities are clearly concerned by the possibility that the
showcase event will be disturbed. The Tashkent mayor's office said
police are on high alert.
"The number of police in the city will be increased by 10 per cent,
and the sites of EBRD meetings and hotels will be heavily guarded,"
said press officer Dilshod Nazirov.
At least a week before the forum was due to start, Uzbek police began
controlling entry to the city and checking everyone's passport. There
are reports that the city will be completely closed to non-residents
during the meeting.
The authorities have done their best to make Tashkent look tidy. Roads
have been repaired and flowers planted along them, and buildings have
been spruced up.
In a matter of months, hotels that had long stood neglected have been
transformed into opulent establishments, and have changed their old
Soviet names to new western ones. The Tashkent Hotel is now Le
Meridien Tashkent Palace, and the Hotel Russia is the Grand Mir. The
facelift was embarked on in a hurry when officials realised that the
city had good quality hotel capacity for 700 people, compared with the
2,500 guests who might turn up.
To meet the deadline, labourers worked on building sites in three
shifts, 24 hours a day. Many of them were recruited from the
countryside and virtually lived in the hotels as they were being
rebuilt, eating and sleeping on the sites.
However, many people in Tashkent are asking who will stay in the
revamped hotels once the visitors have left. They have had millions of
dollars invested in them, and may yet prove to be white elephants.
Managers at the two existing luxury hotels, the Inter-Continental and
the Sheraton, say they are usually only 45 per cent full.
At the same time, ordinary Uzbeks who could afford the hotels when
they were still dingy and unreconstructed will find they have nowhere
to stay when they come to the capital.
***
EBRD DEMANDS REFORM FROM UZBEK PRESIDENT (Financial Times May 5)
Jean Lemierre, president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and
Development, on Monday threw down the gauntlet to Islam Karimov,
Uzbekistan's authoritarian president, warning that Tashkent could face
cuts in the bank's financial support next year unless it implemented
wide-ranging reforms.
Mr Lemierre urged Mr Karimov to make radical economic and political
changes, including eliminating torture in his prisons, by March 2004,
when the EBRD board will meet to consider alternatives, including
reducing the bank's activities to negligible levels.
Speaking at the end of the EBRD's controversial annual meeting in
Tashkent, Mr Lemierre said: "We have a range of options between moving
forward and investing, and reducing our activity as we have done in
other countries."
Mr Lemierre was responding to Mr Karimov's failure, during the
conference, to pledge publicly to root out torture, despite intense
pressure from the EBRD before the meeting.
The bank, which was established to aid the 27 states of the former
communist bloc, has already severely limited its support in two
countries for political reasons - Belarus and Turkmenistan, both ruled
by repressive regimes.
The bank is the only international financial institution which is
limited by its charter to operating in states that are implementing
democracy.
In its early days, at the beginning of the 1990s, it paid little
attention to this clause, focusing instead on economic reforms.
But in recent years, its priorities have changed, as officials
acknowledged the dangers to progress posed by authoritarian leaders.
Mr Lemierre conceded that reform was difficult in central Asian states
such as Uzbekistan, which had emerged from communism with few
free-market or democratic institutions.
But the direction of change mattered, he said. "It's a process. There
must be progress."
The bank's strategy for Uzbekistan involves measuring improvements in
seven areas - media freedom, non-government organisations' rights,
abolition of torture, foreign exchange liberalisation, competition,
and reform in banking and the utilities.
The bank will monitor Uzbekistan in co-operation with ambassadors from
the US, the EU and other states. It is particularly anxious that Uzbek
activists who participated in the annual meeting should not now be
harassed by the authorities.
"This is a very important point for us and it's clear that it must not
happen," said Mr Lemierre.
Clare Short, the British international development minister and
current EBRD chair, delivered the same message to the bank's
governors, including the Uzbek representatives.
However, European diplomats in Tashkent said the bank's tough message
might be undermined by the fact that Tashkent sees itself as protected
by Washington since it became a key ally in the US-led war against
terrorism.
Human Rights Watch, the international NGO, estimates there are about
6,500 political prisoners, including many devout Muslims arrested for
religious observances. Uzbekistan claims they are militants, intent on
overthrowing the government.
***
EBRD MEETING IN TASHKENT OPENS WITH CRITICISM OF HOST (RFE/RL May 5)
The annual meeting of the EBRD's board of governors opened on 4 May in
Tashkent with sharp criticism of the host country by Human Rights
Watch (HRW) acting Director Kenneth Roth, centrasia.ru reported. Many
international human rights organizations have criticized the EBRD for
choosing Uzbekistan for its meeting, and the grounds for their
objections to the venue were set out by Roth in his statement at the
opening ceremony. Roth said Uzbekistan has not implemented the
political and economic reforms required by the bank. The EBRD mandate
requires that countries show progress in these areas in order for the
bank to continue its activities with them. According to centrasia.ru,
Roth asserted that human rights and the protection of civil liberties
have deteriorated in Uzbekistan in the last year, citing specifically
the deaths of eight prisoners allegedly by torture, the 6,500 known
political prisoners, the harassment of journalists and human rights
activists, and the "questionable referendum" that increased President
Islam Karimov's presidential prerogatives. According to centrasia.ru,
a small group of demonstrators outside the venue demanded an end to
the use of torture and the release of political prisoners. The banned
political group Birlik issued a statement approving the choice of
Tashkent and noting that bank documents have made clear that the
institution has no illusions about the situation in Uzbekistan.
Centrasia.ru published the statement on 3 May.
***
EBRD PRESIDENT MEETS UZBEK PRESIDENT, CALLS FOR UZBEKISTAN TO MEET
REFORM GOALS (RFE/RL May 5)
At the opening session of the EBRD annual meeting on 4 May, EBRD
President Jean Lemierre delivered a statement in which he said that
"Uzbekistan has the capacity for far more investment" than it is
currently receiving and for greater economic development, uzreport.com
reported on 5 May. But in order for the EBRD to invest more in the
country, Lemierre said, Uzbekistan will have to take some fundamental
steps to improve the investment climate. He noted that the bank has
recently set benchmarks against which Uzbekistan's performance will be
measured. The political benchmarks are political liberty, freedom for
the media and for NGOs, and respect for human rights. The economic
benchmarks are reducing trade barriers, ending foreign-currency
controls, and developing a private sector. He also stressed the need
for greater regional cooperation. Prior to the opening of the two-day
meeting, Lemierre met with President Karimov to discuss the bank's
cooperation with Uzbekistan, uza.uz reported on 3 May. Karimov was
quoted as saying that the EBRD meeting is proof of the bank's
confidence in Uzbekistan. Since the EBRD launched its first project in
the country in 1993, it has implemented 20 projects worth $1.4
billion, of which $723.8 million was direct investment by the bank.
Eight more projects are reported to be under consideration.
***
BP-LED CONSORTIUM VIOLATING OECD CODE IN CASPIAN PIPELINE PROJECT,
NGOS CHARGE (International Environment Daily May 6)
PARIS--Several environmental organizations April 29 submitted
simultaneous complaints to the governments of France, Germany, Italy,
the United Kingdom, and the United States charging that British
Petroleum and its 10 consortium partners in a proposed Caspian oil
pipeline are violating a code of corporate conduct established by the
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The complaint--
unveiled in Paris to coincide with the first day of the OECD's annual
ministerial meeting, which brought together April 29-30 development,
finance, and trade ministers from the 30 OECD member states--alleges
that the BP-led consortium has violated the OECD Guidelines for
Multinational Enterprises throughout the planning phase of the $3.5
billion Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline project.
Nongovernmental organizations in the anti-BP campaign--including
European and American chapters of Friends of the Earth, the Italian
Campaign for Reform of the World Bank, and U.K.-based The Cornerhouse-
-say that the 1,056-mile BTC pipeline is an environmental disaster in
the making. They are seeking to use the complaint process allowed
under the OECD's Guidelines to limit public funding for the project,
particularly from the World Bank and other multilateral financing
organizations.
The OECD Guidelines--first established in 1976, and then revised in
2000--oblige companies to "contribute to sustainable development and
to refrain from seeking or accepting exemptions from environmental,
health, safety, labor, taxation, and other legislation."
While the Guidelines are nonbinding, governments across the OECD have
accepted them as the standard for good corporate behavior, and all
operate "contact points" at which citizens, NGOs, and others may
report alleged violations.
Complaint Details
As planned, the BTC pipeline would move oil, and later natural gas,
from Caspian fields via the Azerbaijan capital of Baku, through
Tbilisi, Georgia, and on to a terminal point in the Turkish
Mediterranean city of Ceyhan. BP and its partners are seeking
government funding--including export credit financing--as well as
loans from multilateral organizations to support various aspects of
the massive construction project.
In their nine-page complaint, the NGOs charge the BP-led consortium--
a who's who list of the global oil industry, including U.S.-based
Unocal and ConocoPhillips, Norway's Statoil, Italy's ENI, and France's
TotalFinaElf--with violating the OECD Guidelines by:
exerting undue influence on the project's regulatory framework;
seeking or accepting exemptions relating to social, labor, tax, and
environmental laws; pressuring the Georgian environment minister to
approve an Environmental Impact Assessment, despite protests that the
document violates national law; failing to properly consult with
project-affected communities; and undermining the host government's
ability to mitigate serious threats to the environment, human health,
and safety, through the negotiation of agreements that free the
pipeline project from any environmental, public health, or other laws
that the three host countries might adopt in the future.
Halt to Public Financing Sought
Among the evidence presented by the NGOs in their complaint are copies
of letters from BP President John Brown to Georgian President Eduard
Shevardnadze, in which the top executive demands assistance in
obtaining quick approval of the EIA, and a letter from Georgian
Environment Minister Nino Chkobadze to Brown protesting BP's
"unjustifiable" tactics, which include "requesting the Georgian
government to violate our own environmental legislation." "BP markets
itself as a clean and green oil company," said Nicholas Hildyard, of
The Cornerhouse. "But this complaint reveals how BP and its partners
are routinely seeking exemptions from public health and environmental
laws, and circumventing genuine public consultation," Hildyard said
during an April 29 news conference.
Heike Drillishch, of Germany NGO WEED, added, "We hope that evidence
in the complaint will convince governments to withhold support,
particularly from public financing, until the consortium has remedied
the breaches to the OECD Guidelines."
BP had no specific response to the multinational OECD Guidelines
complaint. A spokesman May 5 told BNA that the BTC pipeline project
aims to contribute to the prosperity and progress of the three nations
involved, both through the revenues generated and new supplies of
energy, and he reiterated plans to make environmental protection a key
element of all phases of development.
***
EBRD ANNUAL MEETING ENDS IN TASHKENT WITH CALLS FOR REFORM (RFE/RL May
6)
The annual meeting of the EBRD's board of governors ended in Tashkent
on 5 May with a closing speech by board Chairwoman Clare Short, the
U.K. secretary for international development, in which she listed what
the bank sees as the key steps to be taken to attract international
investment to the region, uzreport.com reported on 6 May. These steps
include creating a favorable investment climate, developing regional
cooperation, reducing poverty, eliminating excessive bureaucracy,
combating corruption, establishing rational and predictable rules and
regulations, and respecting human rights. Short noted that the EBRD
meeting was open to representatives of civil society, at the bank's
insistence, adding that the real test will be whether respect for
civil society and freedom of expression continue after the meeting.
Short has criticized the EBRD, according to uzreport.com, for not
devoting more attention to the social welfare of the populations of
countries where economic transition has been slow.
***
EBRD CHIEF ECONOMIST NOTES SLOW GROWTH IN UZBEKISTAN (RFE/RL May 6)
At a news conference on 5 May in connection with the EBRD annual
meeting, EBRD Chief Economist Willem Buiter presented the latest
version of the bank's report on the progress of countries with
transition economies, focusing particularly on the situation in
Uzbekistan, Interfax reported. Buiter noted that foreign investment in
Uzbekistan is the lowest -- $6 per capita -- of the Central Asian
countries where the bank is active. The EBRD report projects a growth
rate of 2.5 percent for the Uzbek economy in 2003 and an inflation
rate of 18.4 percent. Quoting these figures, Buiter noted it is
difficult to expect progress in the economy without radical reforms.
Among the elementary market reforms needed in Uzbekistan, Buiter
listed the unification of the currency-exchange rates and the creation
of a free market in currency, trade liberalization, the reduction of
customs duties, and the development of cross-border trade. He was
quoted as saying that the Uzbek state needs to provide social
guarantees to its citizens and to develop trade in agricultural
products.
***
KYRGYZ PRESIDENT SAYS CENTRAL ASIA SHOULD LEARN FROM EU (RFE/RL May 7)

In his opening statement to the second Business Forum of the Central
Asian Economic Community, Askar Akaev told participants that the
countries of Central Asia must learn from the experience of the
European Union and need to start taking concrete steps toward economic
integration, including promoting intra-regional development, adopting
international standards, and resolving problems by consensus, RFE/RL's
Kyrgyz Service and Interfax reported on 6 May. Akaev was quoted as
saying the process of economic unification will promote regional
security and that, without economic interaction and the support of the
international community, it will be impossible to fight effectively
against terrorism, extremism, and drug trafficking. The forum, which
is being held in Osh, is being attended by deputy prime ministers from
Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan; representatives of the World
Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD);
and officials from the United States and Great Britain. The United
States is represented by Undersecretary of the Treasury John Taylor,
who told Interfax that U.S. involvement in the reconstruction of Iraq
will not affect programs promoting economic development and trade in
Central Asia. Taylor added that the members of the Central Asian
Economic Community -- Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and
Uzbekistan -- need to work on regional development, particularly the
removal of trade barriers, the standardization of legislation, and
opening borders.
***
WORLD BANK STILL HAS ECOLOGY CONCERNS ABOUT BTC PIPELINE (Agence
France Press May 7)
A top official with the World Bank's private finance arm said
Wednesday he wanted additional assurances that the planned
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline was environmentally sound
before agreeing to finance the project.
Peter Woicke, Executive Vice President of the International Finance
Corporation (IFC), said worries persisted about the routing of the
pipeline through Georgia's Borjomi Valley, the site of mineral water
springs.
"Before you go through the Borjomi valley you want to make absolutely
sure that none of the other routes are workable," Woicke told AFP on
the fringes of an investment conference in the Azeri capital, Baku.
"(You also want to make sure) that the chances of a spill are as small
as possible and that if an accident does happen then the water sources
are not going to be endangered in any way.
"We had asked for a detailed study on alternative routes which BP has
only recently delivered to us and we are studying them ... although it
looks like this one (through the Borjomi valley) may be the only one
that is workable."
Asked if the IFC would approve the financing of the pipeline by this
September, as the BTC consortium hopes, Woicke said: "If all our
environmental issues are solved by May then this seems reasonable."
The BTC consortium, led by oil giant BP, has said it is seeking a loan
of 150 million dollars (131 million euros) from the IFC to help offset
the 2.9-billion-dollar cost of building the pipeline.
It is also in talks about finance with the European Bank for
Reconstruction and Development, private banks, national export credit
guarantee agencies and political risk insurers.
BP had hoped to have the finance wrapped up by next month but has now
said that will not happen before September. The consortium has blamed
the complexity of negotiations for the delay.
But lenders are also sensitive to claims from environmental groups
that the pipeline project will damage the fragile ecology along its
route and is neglecting the interests of local communities.
Construction has already got underway on the pipeline. When completed
in 2005 it will pump up to one million barrels of crude a day from
Azerbaijan, through Georgia to Ceyhan, a port on Turkey's
Mediterranean coast.
Investors in the pipeline consortium include BP, which is the
operator, Statoil, ConocoPhilips, TPAO, Delta Hess, ENI Agip, Itochu,
Inpex, Unocal and Azerbaijan's state oil company SOCAR.

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