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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 DUSHANBE 000284 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR P, R, E, SCA/CEN, SCA/PPD, EUR/ACE, DRL, S/P 
EUR FOR DAS BRYZA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL:  2/13/2016 
TAGS: PREL PGOV ECON EAID KPAO KDEM RS UZ KG TI
SUBJECT: KHUJAND, THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA OF TAJIKISTAN 
 
REF: DUSHANBE 0277 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Richard E. Hoagland, Ambassador, EXEC, Embassy 
Dushanbe. 
REASON: 1.4 (b), (d) 
 
 
 
¶1.  (C) SUMMARY:  Khujand, Tajikistan's "second city," in the 
Ferghana Valley and separated from Dushanbe by a formidable 
mountain range, represents what Tajikistan could be - not a 
democratic paradise, but a confident, relatively progressive, 
stable society open to new ideas and cautiously resistant to 
negative ideological pressure.  The educated population, 
well-disposed to the United States, have maintained their 
dignity in desperate economic circumstances.  They are 
sophisticated, inquisitive, and welcoming.  The subtle sense, 
sometimes oppressive, of authoritarian political correctness 
that pervades other parts of the western half of Tajikistan, 
especially around Kulob, but even to a degree in Dushanbe, is 
much less evident.  Even government officials readily speak 
their minds, and seem relaxed about it.  Khujand gives us reason 
to believe in the Central Asian "corridor of reform."  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) The Ambassador, POL/ECON Chief, A/PAO, and a LES 
support staff visited Khujand February 7-8 and met with 
journalists, students, development workers, small-business 
entrepreneurs, and government officials.  Alexander the Great 
founded Khujand two and a half millennia ago as "Alexandria 
Eskhata," "Further Alexandria," a name that is still recalled in 
the up-and-coming private Eskhata Bank, which has the youngest 
executive leadership of any bank in Tajikistan.  The peg for the 
trip was for the Ambassador to cut the ribbon for a $4.4 million 
donation of medicines from Project Hope for hospitals and 
clinics in Khujand and Sogdh Oblast, but the cargo plane was 
delayed eight hours.  The delegation instead toured Bobojon 
Ghaffurov District Hospital, one of the primary recipients for 
the Project Hope donation. 
 
¶3.  (C) Khujand, located in the Ferghana Valley, is different 
from Dushanbe and even more strikingly so from Kulob in Khatlon 
Oblast in the south.  During the Soviet era, Khujand, then known 
as Leninabad, was the industrial, intellectual, and cultural 
center of Tajikistan.  Khujandis, dignified and restrained in 
their disappointment at lack of power, look down on the 
currently dominant Kulobis as less-educated hick thugs, who, 
nevertheless, currently have a lock on power and, thus, the 
economy. 
 
¶4.  (C) Although the Khujand authorities provided police escort 
and protocol minders (the junior protocol officer was likely 
from the Ministry of Security) for the Ambassador at all times, 
they made no effort to interfere with the pre-arranged program - 
a marked contrast to Kulob's authorities who ham-fistedly 
hijacked the Ambassador's itinerary and intimidated our 
interlocutors last year.  In fact, the senior protocol officer 
seemed pleased to have someone to listen to his monologues on 
life in Khujand.  He became so enthusiastic about his visitors 
that he proposed a joint summer vacation, away from all work, at 
a lake in the valley.  The city authorities also inserted a 
journalist and cameraman from Khujand State TV into all events 
and meetings.  But they, too, were not disruptive, and we judged 
that a camera in the face at all times was a small price to pay 
for the wall-to-wall TV coverage of a U.S. visit - and to 
demonstrate that we had nothing at all to hide during such an 
official visit. 
 
DUSHANBE 00000284  002 OF 003 
 
 
 
¶5.  (C) Khujand is still post-Soviet, post-Civil War poor. 
Mayor Olimjon Jalolov understands that infrastructure 
maintenance is essential but made clear he has no funds for it. 
By example, he told us the city has about 450 kilometers of 
streets and roads badly in need of repaving, but the budget for 
that purpose is under $100K.  The city has about 620 high-rise 
Soviet-era apartment buildings, and about half the roofs are in 
critical need of repair.  And yet, there is more money 
circulating than just several years ago.  We heard that 
Khujandis last year spent $21 million on foreign personal 
vehicles (Mercedes-Benzes on every street), and there is a boom 
in residential construction, as elsewhere in the country. 
During an official lunch when the topic of the mushroom growth 
of mini-mansions came up, one American officer commented, 
"Especially around Kulob," making reference to the Kulobi 
dominance of the economy.  The Khujandi hosts were delighted, 
laughed, shook the officer's hand, and offered yet another vodka 
toast, as happens when someone makes an especially telling point. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Mayor Jalolov made a rather pro-forma request for the 
United States to establish joint ventures to get the vast number 
of idle, decrepit, in fact hopeless, Soviet-era factories back 
into production.  More seriously, he noted that the United 
States seems to have lost interest in the critical ecological 
problem of dangerous uranium-tailing sites in the area.  The 
Ambassador assured him the United States has not lost sight of 
the problem and that we hope for new attention to this issue 
soon.  (NOTE:  EmbOffs had already visited the site that week. 
END NOTE.) 
 
¶7.  (C) The one issue we heard everywhere was the problem of 
Uzbekistan's strangling visa regime and near blockade of the 
region.  The blockade is not only visas, affecting business and 
personal travel, but also includes parsimonious provision of 
annually-agreed Uzbek electricity to Khujand, which harms 
business activity and makes life generally miserable - a fact we 
can attest to because the public buildings and private hotels we 
experienced were frigid. 
 
¶8.  (C) By contrast, our interlocutors praised relations with 
Kyrgyzstan and the ease of crossing the border:  "We almost seem 
like one country.  In general, Khujandis look first to 
Kyrgyzstan for trade and commerce and have little awareness yet 
of possibilities in Afghanistan.  The Anzob Tunnel is scheduled 
to open in 2006, providing an all-year land route south, but the 
Khujandis so far seemed to see this mainly as a link to 
Dushanbe. 
 
¶9.  (C) The Ambassador asked at several meetings if the 
Khujandis thought that Russia would possibly mediate the 
problems with Uzbekistan, including the harsh visa regime, now 
that Uzbekistan has joined the Eurasian Economic Community, and 
now that Tashkent has a "new best friend" relationship with 
Moscow.  Universally, our interlocutors rolled their eyes and 
made clear they expect no improvement so long as President 
Karimov remains in power.  In one telling comment, when the 
Ambassador asked why Uzbekistan is so difficult, the response 
was, "You [the United States] have had only 15 years of problems 
with Uzbekistan - we've had a thousand years."  To the same 
question, Mayor Jalolov replied he was not prepared with an 
official response but would be glad to give his personal 
opinion, which he did and which was far from positive. 
(COMMENT:  That a senior official would readily proffer a 
personal opinion is further evidence of the remarkable openness 
of the Khujandis.  END COMMENT.) 
 
DUSHANBE 00000284  003 OF 003 
 
 
 
¶10.  (C) Khujandis know a better way of life is possible.  At 
the Bobojon Ghaffurov District Hospital, an oblast health 
official asked for the U.S. to provide equipment for endoscopic 
surgery and the latest technology for cardiovascular 
micro-surgery.  This was in a frightenly sad bare-bones building 
that would not stand comparison with early 20th-century U.S. 
medical facilities.  But the medical staff were clearly 
dedicated to providing the best service with what little they 
had.  The hospital officials were almost embarrassingly 
insistent on proving to the Ambassador that they were using U.S. 
medical donations effectively and responsibly and keeping a 
careful log of every single tablet dispensed. 
 
¶11.  (SBU) As almost everywhere in the world, the hope for a 
better future is with the younger generation.  The highlight of 
our visit was with about 20 FLEX-alumni young people at the 
American Corner where the city library director and officials 
from the oblast Ministry of Education warmly welcomed us, and 
appeared genuinely to enjoy the lively give-and-take between the 
Ambassador and the gratifyingly well-informed young people. 
 
¶12.  (C) COMMENT:  Academic exchange programs, and the American 
Corners that provide refuge and support to the young alumni and 
many others, are the most important and cost-effective U.S. 
long-term investment we can make to achieve eventual results for 
our commitment to Transformational Diplomacy.  We have asked 
(reftel) to double the number of American Corners in Tajikistan. 
 The door is still open to us.  We really must take advantage of 
the opportunity while it exists.  We do not mean to be alarmist, 
but we want to point out that Moscow's current policy to 
dominate its neighbors may eventually close that door to us 
unless we stay pro-actively engaged.  END COMMENT. 
HOAGLAND