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id: 45914
date: 11/23/2005 8:40
refid: 05DUSHANBE1852
origin: Embassy Dushanbe
classification: UNCLASSIFIED
destination:
header:
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of
the original cable is not available.
—————— header ends —————-
UNCLAS DUSHANBE 001852
SIPDIS
EUR/CACEN
SA
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREF, PGOV, TI
SUBJECT: UNHCR PROGRESS AND NEED FOR HELP IN TAJIKISTAN
1. (U) The UN High Commission for Refugees is shifting its focus
from emergency operations in Tajikistan for remaining refugees,
to development programs that will help to integrate the mostly
Afghan refugee community into Tajik society. The shift is made
possible by Tajikistan’s political stability, but is threatened
by a demand for bribes by the State Migration Service, a
proposal to move refugees from Dushanbe and Khojand to the
countryside, and the arbitrary deportations that create new
emergencies.
2. (U) UNHCR has repatriated over 53,000 refugees from
Tajikistan to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and other CIS countries.
An unknown number of refugees returned home without UNHCR
assistance. Some 1,400 refugees
have also been resettled in
Canada. Of the 1,500 refugees who
remain in Tajikistan, 98
percent are Afghan, and the rest from Iran and Iraq. UNHCR is
working to find durable solutions for the remaining refugees.
Very few refugees, mostly the elderly, handicapped, and single
mothers, are given cash stipends.
The rest UNHCR is hoping will
be considered for refugee status in the United States or fully
reintegrated into society. For
those remaining in Tajikistan,
UNHCR intends to use UNDP as an implementer for assistance,
taking over the micro-credit, housing, and school programs that
benefit not only the refugees, but also their local communities.
UNDP is responsible for
development programs, and UNHCR
considers itself more of an emergency response body, however,
UNHCR also plans to become more involved in border security
matters as well, particularly human rights and asylum case
training.
3. (U) The State Migration Service is often the main obstacle,
demanding bribes for refugees to stay in country, and now
threatening to move refugees from the major cities of Dushanbe
and Khojand, where they have access to UNHCR, schools, and
medical care, to the outlying countryside where they will be
more vulnerable than ever.
4. (U) Given this picture, the Embassy requests the next circuit
ride take place as soon as possible, and the Embassy will
actively join with UNHCR in its demarches to the Tajik
government, urging the Tajiks to allow these refugees, many of
whom have been here for ten years, to be resettled permanently
with either citizenship or legal resident status so that they
can become fully participating members in Tajik society.
HOAGLAND
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=======================CABLE ENDS============================
id: 45938
date: 11/23/2005 11:19
refid: 05DUSHANBE1855
origin: Embassy Dushanbe
classification: UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
destination:
header:
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of
the original cable is not available.
—————— header ends —————-
UNCLAS DUSHANBE 001855
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
STATE FOR EUR/CACEN, SA
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, ECON, KDEM, TI
SUBJECT: TAJIKISTAN: NEW ECON REFORM PARTY CHAIRMAN SAYS TAJIKISTAN
NEEDS SLOW ECONOMIC REFORM
1. (U) Sensitive but
unclassified. Please handle accordingly.
Not for public Internet.
2. (SBU) SUMMARY: Tajikistan’s new Party of Economic Reform
(PER) calls for gradual economic changes beginning with
agriculture reform, developing industry around farm products,
and creating a financial sector for agro-investment. The party
favors a strong government hand in initiating the reform
process, and criticizes the government for not moving forward
with proposed reforms. PER
accuses other parties of being too
economically liberal, but is sympathetic to the ruling People’s
Democratic Party of Tajikistan (PDPT).
PER Chairman Olimzhon
Boboyev praised an «Eastern model» of government and ideally
wished Tajikistan had a monarchy with Rahmonov as the figurehead
king and an elected President and Prime Minister. END SUMMARY.
PER’s PLATFORM: TAJIKISTAN NEEDS SLOW BUT REAL ECONOMIC REFORM
3. (U) In the local press, PER
Chairman Boboyev stated the
party’s goals: to reduce poverty, conduct proper privatization,
and attract foreign investments.
In a meeting with PolOff on
November 18, he proposed Tajikistan needs slow and gradual
economic reform, but is not yet ready for a free-market economy.
4. (U) PER’s platform is based on
a three-step gradual
transition to a market economy.
The first step is agrarian
reform. Boboyev argued the party
does not favor privatizing
land ownership because privatization could lead to a feudal
system with a few elite able to afford land controlling peasants
who must work the land. He called
on private- and state-owned
joint ventures to organize small farm cooperatives to create a
market for the exchange of land use.
5. (U) The second step, directly
related to the development of
the agriculture sector, is industrial reform. New industries
would use Tajikistan’s agricultural output. Boboyev identified
the need to fund small enterprises to process raw materials such
as cotton into yarn and then, over time, a textiles industry
could develop.
6. (U) The third step would be to
create a financial sector
revolving around agro-investment.
In Bobyev’s opinion, with
industrial support, Tajikistan could build large plants to be
competitive with foreign enterprises, although Tajikistan still
lacks reliable electrical power.
Boboyev touted the need for
foreign investment and said Tajikistan can receive large amounts
of aid from the West, but it will not help; Tajikistan needs
investment to develop its economy.
7. (U) The government should
prepare each sector for
liberalization. When the
government deems a sector is finally
ready for liberalization, it should privatize. The market will
then guide that sector and government influence would naturally
decrease.
8. (U) Unlike leaders of other
political parties, Boboyev has a
close working relationship with Parliamentarians and other
government ministries. The
Minister of Transport appointed him
head of the Transport Institute in 2003, and he often advises
Parliament on transport legislation.
Thus far, he has received
free access to and coverage by both independent and state media.
9. (U) Boboyev has been publicly
critical of the government
only in the realm of economic reform.
Politically, he agreed
with the current policies and specifically pointed out that
Rahmonov has chosen the best political approach towards
stability and built a positive image of the country. However,
he criticized the government for being ineffective, the
bureaucracy too large, and the ministries not independent, but
rather extensions of the President.
FORMING A NEW POLITICAL PARTY: A
12-MONTH PROCESS
10. (U) The Ministry of Justice
officially registered PER on
October 28. Boboyev claimed the
Party initiated the
registration process one year ago.
It currently has 1,112
members total, from every district, including Gorno Badakhshan.
Ninety percent of their members have advanced degrees and are
considered members of the intelligentsia, being economists,
lawyers, journalists, writers, and other educated professionals.
11. (U) PER’s Congress convened
representatives from all
districts September 19. According
to Tajik law, the Congress
established the party’s charter and elected staff members. The
next Congress will meet in three months.
Boboyev hoped to have
a PER representative in every village.
The party’s membership
fees are modest and not enough to meet the party’s financial
needs, but PER intends to raise funds by creating local
enterprises. Thus far, none have
been established, but will be
set-up during the next few Congresses.
Boboyev dodged PolOff’s
questions about how the party was initially funded.
12. (SBU) COMMENT: It is difficult to register any kind of
organization in Tajikistan, especially political parties —
unless the powers-that-be want them registered. PER’s
registration on its first try suggests the party is 100 percent
government approved, and likely government created. END COMMENT.
13. (U) PER shares few common
principles with the seven other
registered political parties.
Primarily, Boboyev believes other
parties are economically too liberal in calling for less
government interference in the economy.
The party insists
Tajikistan needs the government to stabilize and stimulate the
economy. He accused other parties
of abandoning Tajikistan’s
Eastern values and being too pro-Western. The one exception,
noted Boboyev, was the People’s Democratic Party of Tajikistan,
which shared a similar platform with PER.
14. (U) As next year’s
presidential election draws closer, PER
will announce its own presidential candidate. Boboyev did not
rule out supporting another party’s candidate, because, he
acknowledged, PER is a young party and could not win in the next
presidential election. He hoped
to establish a solid base for
the future, and believes the population will respect the party
because of its intelligentsia membership.
KING RAHMONOV
15. (SBU) Boboyev ideally would
like Tajikistan’s government to
mirror Japan’s. He favored a
monarchy for Tajikistan with
Rahmonov as king. (COMMENT: No, we are not making this up.
END COMMENT.) Boboyev explained
Rahmonov is concerned about his
own financial and political security and has infused his close
government circle with family members and people from the Kulyab
region. If Rahmonov were king, he
and his family would be
financed under the government’s budget, meaning a smaller group
of people would be living off state money instead of the current
hundreds benefiting from Rahmonov’s position. As king, Rahmonov
would still exert influence, but it would not be as overreaching
because there would be an elected President or Prime Minister.
Over time, the monarch would become a figurehead.
16. (SBU) COMMENT: It is likely that PER was formed as a
«pocket party» to give the illusion of «democratic
opposition»
as the government cracks down on the parties it does not like.
Boboyev’s emphasis on the need for economic development and
reform rather than relying on Western aid is a Rahmonov talking
point. As head of the Transport
Institute, Boboyev is a
government-appointed bureaucrat, leaving little question about
the «independence» of his party. His desire for a monarchy with
«King Rahmonov» is something we cannot fathom except to
suggest
it may be an atavistic memory about Central Asia’s medieval
khans. However, the trend for the
last several centuries has
been in the opposite direction — toward democracy. END COMMENT.
HOAGLAND
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=======================CABLE ENDS============================
id: 45941
date: 11/23/2005 11:28
refid: 05DUSHANBE1856
origin: Embassy Dushanbe
classification: UNCLASSIFIED
destination: 05STATE209622
header:
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of
the original cable is not available.
—————— header ends —————-
UNCLAS DUSHANBE 001856
SIPDIS
STATE FOR EUR/CACEN, SA
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, ECON, EAGR, EAID, TBIO, SENV, KSCA, SOCI, TI, KSTH,
WHO
SUBJECT: TAJIKISTAN: GOVT UNABLE
TO HANDLE POTENTIAL AVIAN FLU
OUTBREAK
REF: STATE 00209622
This cable is in response to STATE 00209622: Request for
Information on Avian and Pandemic Influenza
PREPAREDNESS/COMMUNICATION
1. Head Veterinarian, Dr. Mulojon Amirbekov, explicitly stated
that Tajikistan is not prepared to combat an Avian Flu outbreak.
Tajikistan does not have a
strategy for containing a pandemic
if it occurs; however, various government ministries have taken
measures, within their capabilities, to avoid an outbreak. The
Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Health are the lead
departments working to devise preventative steps. The Main
Board of Veterinary Service and State Veterinary Inspection,
housed under the Ministry of Agriculture, is the most informed
department and is spearheading prevention. Deputy Minister of
Health, Zievuddin Avgonov is the primary point of contact in the
Ministry of Health.
2. Amirbekov admitted the government does not understand the
seriousness of Avian Flu, paying minimal attention to the issue.
There are no specific funds for
fighting an influenza outbreak.
The Veterinary Service has
brought this problem to the
government’s attention. Amirbekov
believes the Prime Minister
would be an influential person who could give the issue due
attention, but he has not yet acted.
3. The Ministries of Health and Agriculture recognize the
importance of a collaborative international effort to prevent
Avian Flu from proliferating and would like to join the
International Partnership on Avian and Pandemic Influenza. The
government, given its scant resources however, has decided to
take the «wait and see» strategy and will not join unless
Avian
Flu is at its doorsteps.
4. Tajikistan is cooperating with regional governments only on
an ad hoc basis by implementing border controls and cooperating
on testing. There is no formal
regional working group on Avian
Flu. Tajikistan’s strongest
partner is Kazakhstan where they
are sending sample strains to be tested at the Institute of
Agriculture and Veterinary Institute in Aqtau, Kazakhstan. Two
veterinarian specialists await funding for a training trip to
Kazakhstan to learn how to combat Avian Flu. Amirbekov hopes to
send three to four experts from every region to Kazakhstan for
training. The cost would be
$500-$600 per person.
5. Tajikistan has requested financial assistance from
international NGOs and USAID, but has not yet received positive
responses. Amirbekov lamented in
the press the lack of funds
for prevention. According to him,
Tajikistan needs $100,000 to
prevent an outbreak of Avian Flu.
Avgonov has also claimed the
need for six million dollars’ worth of vaccinations. The
country does not produce flu vaccines and thus far has not
bought any vaccines or medication due to the prohibitive cost.
Tajikistan is open to assistance from the United States through
bilateral or multilateral means.
6. Vaccines, medicine, or other supplies from donor countries
will be subject to import laws unless the Ministry waives import
duties on an emergency basis. Amirbekov
claims there is a
liability shield in place for foreign donors. All medicines are
inspected prior to use.
7. The government’s public statements about Avian Flu have
focused on the limited measures the government has taken to
prevent the flu. They have not
educated the public effectively
about personal safety measures.
Avgonov admitted to PolOff that
even medical professionals had asked for information about the
virus. The Ministry of Health
designed an educational piece for
public dissemination, but it has not been produced due to lack
of funds. The Veterinary Service,
in conjunction with the World
Food Program, prepared a brochure to train farmers to detect the
virus. Representatives from both
Ministries appeared on state
television to inform the public and alert farmers to sources of
help.
8. It is questionable how forthright the government will be in
announcing any cases of Avian Flu.
Earlier this year, there was
a suspected cholera outbreak in northern Tajikistan, which the
government attempted to cover-up and would not admit was
cholera. The economic and
political ramifications of an Avian
Flu outbreak might encourage the government to remain silent and
conceal any cases.
SURVEILLANCE/DETECTION
9. The Veterinary Service and the Ministry of Health have
implemented several measures in efforts to prevent Avian Flu
from entering Tajikistan. The
government banned poultry
products from ten countries including Russia, Kazakhstan, China,
and Turkey. Tajikistan now
imports 95 percent of chicken and
poultry products from Brazil, Canada, and the United States.
Ninety-five percent of eggs are imported from Iran.
10. The Chief Veterinarian believes that because vaccines are
prohibitively expensive, the most effective and easiest way to
stave off a pandemic would be to eliminate or quarantine the
birds. The government is working
on developing the country’s
own supply of healthy poultry products and therefore has imposed
a quarantine on all of the country’s large poultry farms. In
addition, Tajikistan has begun to more closely control its
border with Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and China. The Head
Veterinarian sought permission from the State Committee for
Environmental Protection and Forestry to shoot migratory birds
and test them for the virus.
Experts from the Veterinary
Service have begun to inspect chicken and poultry products in
the local markets and on all poultry farms.
11. Tajikistan used diagnostics equipment purchased from Russia
to test 200 strain samples at facilities in country. However,
Kazakhstan has more sensitive and reliable equipment and the
previously tested strains are being sent to Kazakhstan to be
retested. Because Tajikistan
relies on Kazakhstan, there will
inevitably be a lag.
12. Tajikistan’s veterinarians have also developed a project for
monitoring and studying immune-biological features of pathogenic
organisms for Avian Flu, which they hope to implement in
2006-2008. However, they lack
funds to carry out the project.
The most requested funding is to train Tajik experts to monitor
and detect the problem.
RESPONSE/CONTAINMENT
13. Tajikistan has no official plan to respond to an outbreak of
even one case of Avian Flu. Due
to a lack of funds, the
government cannot stockpile antiviral medication, vaccines or
protective gear for the population.
If a case occurs, the
government would attempt to localize it by quarantining the farm
or local village, eliminating infected birds, and disinfecting
contaminated facilities.
Tajikistan purchased three tons of
disinfectants from Russia for these purposes. There is no
response plan in place to deal with a human contraction of the
virus.
HOAGLAND
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=======================CABLE ENDS============================
id: 46042
date: 11/25/2005 6:10
refid: 05DUSHANBE1858
origin: Embassy Dushanbe
classification: UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
destination:
header:
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of
the original cable is not available.
—————— header ends —————-
UNCLAS DUSHANBE 001858
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
EUR/ACE
SA
IO
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, TI, UNGA
SUBJECT: SIRODJIDDIN ASLOV APPOINTED TO THE UNITED NATIONS
1. (SBU) Sirodjiddin
Mukhriddinovich Aslov has been named as
Tajikistan’s new Permanent Representative to the United Nations.
For the last two years Alsov has
been Deputy Foreign Minister
and a useful and active interlocutor for the Embassy.
2. (SBU) The following are notes
from his official biography
and recent meetings with DCM.
3. (SBU) Aslov was born on
February 17, 1964 in Kangurt Village
of Sovet (Temurmalik) District of Khatlon Region. In 1986 he
graduated with Honor from Odessa Hydrometereology Institute and
his major was «Agrometereology». In 2001 he graduated from
Tashkent State Economic University the Faculty to International
Economic Relations. He has
finished postgraduate study of
Hydrometcenter of USSR in Moscow.
4. (SBU) Aslov started his career
in 1986 at Tajikistan
Hydrometcenter as an Engineer-Agrometereology and then worked as
a Chief of Scientific-Technical Development and Standards at the
Ministry of Environment Protection of the Republic of
Tajikistan, Deputy Chief, Department of Hydrometereology and
Control of Environment.
5. (SBU) In 1996 he was appointed
the Plenipotentiary
Representative of the Republic of Tajikistan at the Executive
Committee of the International Aral See Foundation (IASF). He
worked at this position till 2002 and at the same time he was
heading different regional projects in Central Asia.
In June 2002 he was appointed the Chairman of Executive
Committee of Aral Sea Foundation.
6. (SBU) In February 2004 he was
appointed the First Deputy
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Tajikistan and at
the same time worked as the Chairman of IASF. He is the author
a dozen scientific articles on the issues related to monitoring
and management of water resources, the flooding dangers posed by
Lake Sarez, ecological problems, hydrometereology and others.
Aslov is a national Coordinator of the Republic of Tajikistan at
the SCO and has the rank of First Class Extraordinary and
Plenipotentiary Minister.
7. (SBU) As Deputy Minister he
has been involved in a wide
range of issues and is often a decision-maker on our bilateral
issues. His English level is
fairly basic, about a 2 according
to FSI standards. He is very
interested in improving his
language skills and the Embassy has provided him with some basic
English materials. He has been to
several American cities and
speaks warmly of the more rural states like Nebraska. Aslov has
yet to be won over by New York because of its immensity,
traffic, noise and pollution.
Aslov is believed to be related
to President Rahmonov but we do not know the exact connection.
Aslov said, and other MFA counterparts confirm, that the Foreign
Minister is in no hurry to replace him, and may leave the post
vacant for several months. For
the Embassy, we may have to
either go to Ismat Nasredinov, Chief of the North American Desk,
or the Minister himself to resolve problems. Sirojdin Aslov is
41, married with four kids. He
will go to Post first and his
family will follow later in December or January.
HOAGLAND
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=======================CABLE ENDS============================
id: 46139
date: 11/28/2005 4:13
refid: 05DUSHANBE1867
origin: Embassy Dushanbe
classification: UNCLASSIFIED
destination: 05DUSHANBE1855
header:
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of
the original cable is not available.
—————— header ends —————-
UNCLAS DUSHANBE 001867
SIPDIS
STATE FOR EUR/CACEN, SA
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, KDEM, TI, Internal Politics
SUBJECT: AGRARIAN PARTY OF TAJIKISTAN:
ANOTHER POCKET PARTY FOR
RAHMONOV
REF: DUSHANBE 1855
1. The Agrarian Party of
Tajikistan (APT) is the brainchild of
its Chairman, Amir Karakulov, or so he insists. Karakulov, a
former member of the Communist Party of Tajikistan, decided
three years ago that he would like to form his own party to
protect farmers’ rights. A
self-proclaimed Soviet-Era man, he
was the former (1972-1988) Deputy Minister of Agriculture. He
has served as Director of the Cattle Farmer’s Institute since
1989, and is also the Vice Rector of the Tajik Agriculture
Academy.
2. The new APT claims to be an
independent party fighting to
protect the agricultural population’s rights. However, in a
meeting with PolOff November 23, Karakulov stated his party
respects Rahmonov, and he will personally support him because
Rahmonov brought stability to the country. With its small
membership, APT will not put forth a candidate in next year’s
presidential elections. Karakulov
allied the party with the
People’s Democratic Party of Tajikistan (PDPT) and the newly
formed Party of Economic Reform (reftel). He added he respects
all other parties’ goals and ideas and would even like to
cooperate with them, but does not want his party to be divisive
or provocative.
3. The APT’s primary agenda
includes poverty reduction,
agrarian workers’ rights, and creating an agricultural industry
that is competitive with foreign companies. Karakulov argued
the government should pave the way for land privatization,
structure SMEs around agriculture, and set policies to attract
foreign investment. He insisted
that Tajikistan must have a
permanent agro-industrial base.
The nation’s political
independence depends on its agricultural independence and food
security. He appreciated American
grain and seed donations, but
said Tajikistan needs aid for development, including new
American technology and assistance in scientific research.
4. The Ministry of Justice
registered the APT on November 15
with members from every district in Tajikistan. Karakulov, in
response to criticisms his party is a «pocket party,» insisted
on showing PolOff the membership registration sheet with all
1300 names, addresses, and telephone numbers. He claimed that
the Ministry of Justice took one month to inspect the entire
membership. Karakulov let slip an
anecdote that the APT already
had targeted members and simply asked farmers to sign on the
dotted line. One farmer, fearing
government retribution, asked
if this party was for or against Rahmonov. The APT told him the
party supported Rahmonov so that he would sign.
5. The majority of APT’s members
are farmers and peasants, but
the upper echelon are agriculture specialists. Karakulov was
elected Chairman during the October 1 party congress. The party
has three deputies in the Sughd region, Khatlon, and Dushanbe,
37 elected central committee members, and seven staff.
Membership fees range from 50 diram to one somoni (or 16 to 30
U.S. cents). APT plans to fund
operations by soliciting
entrepreneurs, landowners and businessmen as sponsors.
6. COMMENT: A subdued and complacent party such as the
APT is
precisely the type of «pocket party» Rahmonov would welcome to
give the appearance of political diversity but really to
guarantee his support and supposed legitimacy. Karakulov’s
admission that members were recruited and targeted takes away
from the independence of his political movement. The party’s
membership solicitation style, broad platform, political
compadres, and Karakulov’s current government position and
former membership in the CPT (another PDPT ally) all point to
APT being an attempt by the government to manage the political
system by providing the illusion of a multi-party coalition
behind President Rahmonov. END
COMMENT.
HOAGLAND
NNNN
=======================CABLE ENDS============================
id: 46150
date: 11/28/2005 6:48
refid: 05DUSHANBE1869
origin: Embassy Dushanbe
classification: CONFIDENTIAL
destination:
header:
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of
the original cable is not available.
—————— header ends —————-
C O N F I D E N T I A L DUSHANBE
001869
SIPDIS
STATE FOR EUR/CACEN, SA, INR/B
NSC FOR MERKEL
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/28/2015
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PINR, TI, Internal Politics
SUBJECT: TAJIKISTAN: TWO NEW
DEPUTY MINISTERS APPOINTED
UNEXPECTEDLY
CLASSIFIED BY: Richard E. Hoagland, Ambassador, EXEC, Embassy
Dushanbe.
REASON: 1.4 (b), (d)
1. (U) President Rahmonov
unexpectedly appointed two key deputy
ministers on November 24 — Saidmumin Sattorovich Yatimov as new
First Deputy Foreign Minister and Kosim Abdusalomovich Gaforov
as Deputy Minister of Security.
2. (SBU) Major-General Yatimov
had been Deputy Minister of
Security for International Relations and Cooperation with
Foreign Security Services since 2001.
He is a career KGB
officer and replaces the Foreign Ministry’s First Deputy
Sirojiddin Aslov who has been named Tajikistan’s PermRep to the
United Nations.
3. (C) Prior to his new
appointment, Colonel Gaforov headed the
Counter-Intelligence Department at the Ministry of Security
since April 2004. A former Soviet
KGB officer, Gaforov was the
Chief of the Tajik Tourism Agency 1998-2004. (COMMENT:
That
says a lot about the Tajik «tourism» industry. END COMMENT.)
4. (C) The appointments were
unexpected, even for the
appointees. On the morning of
November 24, both were at
Dushanbe International Airport working on a sensitive case when
they received word that Rahmonov wanted to see them immediately.
Yatimov reportedly blanched. They expected the worst.
Instead, they got new jobs.
5. (C) On November 21, Foreign
Minister Talbak Nazarov had
groused to the Ambassador that with Aslov going to the UN, he’d
have to find a new First Deputy, and it could take several
months. Instead, it took three
days. Although the Foreign
Ministry has a good number of secunded Security Ministry
officers in its various sections, Yatimov will be the most
senior among them. During the
past 18 months, in the aftermath
of the «color revolutions» and the ascendancy of Russia in the
Ministry of Security, Yatimov has been the point man designated
to meet (rarely) with the Ambassador and other senior Western
officials. However, he had also
been disliked within the
Security Ministry for being imperious.
He had recently
campaigned for the UN PermRep job.
In his late 40’s, he speaks
reasonably good English, although it becomes increasingly
fractured in long meetings, and insists on using it even with
Russian-speaking American officers.
His English seems to some
to have a slight Chinese accent.
6. (C) While there had been
politically elite chatter that
Yatimov might replace Aslov as First Deputy Foreign Minister,
Gaforov’s promotion is a real surprise, especially since he had
let it be known in-house that he was disgruntled after not
having reached the rank of general in the last round of
promotions earlier this year, and it was thought he would soon
retire. Embassy Dushanbe
maintains a good relationship with
him. He has been particularly
helpful in resolving difficult
AmCit consular cases. In his late
40’s, he speaks fluent
English with a British accent. In
November 1992, Gaforov
orchestrated the Embassy’s first meeting between then-U.S.
Charge d’affaires Edmund McWilliams and at that time Chairman of
Government Emomali Rahmonov.
7. (C) COMMENT: We are intrigued by these appointments. It
had become conventional-wisdom chatter in the Western diplomatic
community that President Rahmonov appeared to be selling out to
Moscow — and that kind of chatter gets picked up and reported.
It could be that Rahmonov is sending a signal, or wants to give
the illusion, that he is restoring a degree of balance in his
relations between Russia and the West.
Foreign Ministry
officials have told us they are taking a wait-and-see attitude
about Yatimov. We don’t rule out
that he will crack a velvet
whip to rein in a bit the relatively liberal Foreign Ministry.
We will know more once we begin to deal with him for
problem-solving. With Ghaforov,
it is unclear if he will have
any clout with the hard-line Ministry of Security. Initially to
us, his appointment seems possibly a cosmetic calculation for
Western consumption. END COMMENT.
HOAGLAND
