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Viewing cable 06MINSK1050, EMBASSY MINSK WEEKLY POL/ECON REPORT - SEPTEMBER 26,

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
06MINSK1050 2006-09-27 03:33 2011-08-26 00:00 UNCLASSIFIED Embassy Minsk
VZCZCXRO1313
RR RUEHAST
DE RUEHSK #1050/01 2700333
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 270333Z SEP 06
FM AMEMBASSY MINSK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5139
INFO RUCNOSC/ORGANIZATION FOR SECURITY COOPERATION IN EUROPE
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MINSK 001050 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM ECON EPET ENRG KTDB BO
SUBJECT: EMBASSY MINSK WEEKLY POL/ECON REPORT - SEPTEMBER 26, 
2006 
 
 
MINSK 00001050  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
1.  The following are brief items of interest compiled by 
Embassy Minsk. 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS 
 
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS 
----------------------- 
 
- Date Announced for CIS October Summit in Minsk (para. 2) 
- Belarus' Foreign Minister to Address UNGA (para. 3) 
- Foreign Ministries of Belarus, Iran Consult in Tehran (para. 4) 
- Bearus, China Consider Easing Visa Procedures (para.5) 
 
CIVIL SOCIETY 
------------- 
 
- Minsk City Court Rejects Kozulin's Appeal (para. 6) 
- Kozuln Threatens Hunger Strike, Wants Shadow Cabinet (pra. 7) 
- Opposition Leader Released after 10 Day in Jail (para. 8) 
- Information Ministry Suspens Magazine "Arche" (para. 9) 
 
TRADE AND INVESTMENT 
-------------------- 
 
- Russia Seeks Lion's Share of Belarus' Export Duties (para. 10) 
- Belarus May Make Iranian Samand under Its Own Brand (para. 11) 
 
DOMESTIC ECONOMICS 
------------------ 
 
- Statistics Ministry Reports 60,000 Jobless in August (para. 12) 
- Belarus' Gas Pipeline Transit Up Seven Percent on Year (para. 
13) 
 
- QUOTE OF THE WEEK (para. 14) 
 
----------------------- 
International Relations 
----------------------- 
 
2.  Date Announced for CIS October Summit in Minsk 
 
On September 21, a source in the Commonwealth of Independent States 
(CIS) Executive revealed to Belarusian independent media that the 
CIS summit would be held October 16-17 in Minsk.  Kazakhstan, which 
currently chairs the alliance, reportedly has approved the agenda. 
Foreign ministers and the heads of government are scheduled to hold 
their sessions on October 16.  Heads of state will meet the 
following day.  The CIS High-Level Group for Increasing Efficiency 
will submit to the heads of state proposals for reform of the CIS, 
including a draft agreement on Turkmenistan's associate membership 
and a statement on cooperation in countering illegal migration. 
The heads of state are also expected to sign agreements on the 
prevention of money laundering, terrorist financing, and combating 
human trafficking. 
 
3.  Belarus' Foreign Minister to Address UNGA 
 
On September 21, Belarusian Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrei Popov 
announced that Foreign Minister Sergei Martynov will participate in 
a general political discussion at the 61st session of the UN 
General Assembly between September 24 and 27.  Martynov will 
articulate Belarus' positions on issues of international security, 
including the Middle East and reform of the United Nations. 
According to Popov, Martynov hopes to garner support for Belarus' 
proposals for development and a global partnership against slavery 
and human trafficking that were offered by President Lukashenko at 
the 2005 World Summit. 
 
 
4.  Foreign Ministries of Belarus, Iran Consult in Tehran 
 
On September 18-19, the foreign ministries of Belarus and Iran held 
a round of consultations in Tehran.  Belarus' Deputy Foreign 
Minister Viktor Gaisenok and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for 
Asia-Pacific Affairs Mehdi Safari led discussions on trade, 
investment and banking, and transportation.  Gaisenok also met with 
Iranian Trade Minister Mohammad Shariatmadari, who co-chairs the 
Belarusian-Iranian commission for economic cooperation.  In 
addition, Gaisenok  visited Belarus' section at an international 
fair in Tehran and attended the opening ceremony for a Belarusian- 
Iranian economic conference. 
 
5.  Belarus, China Consider Easing Visa Procedures 
 
On September 19, representatives from the Belarusian and Chinese 
foreign ministries met in Minsk to discuss easing visa procedures. 
The Belarusian delegation was led by Oleg Karnachev, head of the 
passport and visa office of the consular department, and the 
Chinese delegation was headed by Zhang Ligo, deputy director 
 
MINSK 00001050  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
general of the Department of Consular Affairs.  The meeting also 
covered consular protection, the prevention of illegal immigration, 
and exchange of information. 
 
------------- 
Civil Society 
------------- 
 
6.  Minsk City Court Rejects Kozulin's Appeal 
 
On September 19, in a session attended by Poloff, the Minsk City 
Court judicial board rejected former opposition presidential 
candidate Aleksandr Kozulin's appeal to overturn his politically 
motivated prison sentence of five and a half years for alleged 
"hooliganism" and disturbing the peace.  Kozulin's defense team 
cited numerous violations of Belarus' Criminal Procedure Code as 
proof that Judge Aleksey Rybakov failed to hold an unbiased trial. 
The prosecutor denied any grounds for reviewing the verdict. 
Following the appeal, authorities transferred Kozulin to a minimum 
security correctional labor facility in the northern village of 
Vitba near Vitebsk, where he is to serve out his prison term. 
 
7.  Kozulin Threatens Hunger Strike, Wants Shadow Cabinet 
 
On September 20, imprisoned former opposition presidential 
candidate Aleksandr Kozulin threatened an open-ended hunger strike 
beginning on October 20 in protest against President Lukashenko's 
third term in office.  Kozulin called on the Belarusian opposition 
to convene a meeting for the formation of a shadow cabinet. 
According to Kozulin, the meeting should include current government 
officials, the Belarusian National Assembly, representatives of the 
Belarusian diaspora, and members of the 13th Supreme Soviet, which 
Lukashenko dissolved following the controversial 1996 
constitutional referendum.  Kozulin also urged non-governmental 
organizations and the Political Council of the United Democratic 
Forces opposition coalition to create a tribunal commission for 
trying Lukashenko.  He stressed that "justice and the rule of law 
should be restored" in the country.  He warned that otherwise 
Belarus might lose its independence, language, culture and people. 
 
8.  Opposition Leader Released after 10 Days in Jail 
 
On September 22, authorities released opposition activist 
Vyacheslav Sivchik.  On September 18, Minsk Tsentralniy District 
Court Judge Inna Sheyko had sentenced Sivchik to 10 days in jail 
with six days time served for his role in an unauthorized three-day 
opposition demonstration in October Square after Belarus' March 19 
presidential election.  Sivchik was convicted in May, but the Minsk 
City Court invalidated the sentence because he was tried in 
absentia.  Sivchik's defense team plans to appeal to the Minsk City 
Court and the city prosecutor's office to overturn the ruling. 
Sivchik was severely beaten by police at the opposition "tent city" 
in October Square on March 23.  He fled to Ukraine shortly after 
authorities attempted to arrest him at the hospital where he sought 
treatment for his injuries.  He returned to Belarus in mid-August. 
 
9.  Information Ministry Suspends Magazine "Arche" 
 
On September 21, independent media reported that Belarus' Ministry 
of Information has suspended the Belarusian-language intellectual 
magazine "Arche" for three months.  In its letter to "Arche" Editor- 
in-Chief Valery Bulgakov, the ministry accused the monthly magazine 
of publishing articles about politics in violation of its license 
and cited the magazine's September issue whose cover features a 
photograph of police officers violently dispersing anti-government 
protesters in 1995.  Bulgakov pledged to appeal the suspension and 
insisted the article in question, published under the headline 
"Crackdown: Recollections of 12th Supreme Soviet Deputies," is 
about history, not politics.  Article 11 of Belarus' Media Law 
requires publications to notify the Ministry of Information one 
month in advance about changes in the subjects they cover.  In 
2005, the magazine filed a request with the Ministry of Information 
for permission to publish articles about politics but received no 
official reply. 
 
-------------------- 
Trade and Investment 
-------------------- 
 
10.  Russia Seeks Lion's Share of Belarus' Export Duties 
 
On September 20, independent media reported that the Russian 
government is demanding a larger share of export duties on oil 
products produced from Russian oil at Belarusian refineries.  The 
GOR will reportedly ask the GOB for 85 percent of the duties, which 
could bring USD 350 million to the Russian budget every year. 
Subsidiaries of Russian firms supply duty-free oil to Belarusian 
refineries and export oil products with low Belarusian duties to 
Western Europe. 
 
 
MINSK 00001050  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
11.  Belarus May Make Iranian Samand Under Its Own Brand 
 
On September 21, Belarusian First Deputy Minister of the Interior 
Ivan Demidovich predicted that Belarus' closed joint stock company 
ZAO Yunison could produce Iran Khodro's Samand cars under a 
Belarusian brand name.  Yunison began production of Samand vehicles 
in August and expects to produce 1,000 Samands by the end of 2006. 
The company's goal for 2007 is 5,000 to 6,000 vehicles. 
Ultimately, Yunison hopes to increase annual Samand output to 
50,000 to 60,000 vehicles.  Under the current agreement between 
Yunison and Iran Khodro, Samands assembled in Belarus may be 
exported to Europe and Russia only with the consent of Yunison's 
Iranian partners.  The Samand is based on the Peugeot 405 platform 
and is produced by Iran Khodro, reputedly the largest producer of 
motorcars and buses in the Middle East. 
 
---------------- 
Domestic Economy 
---------------- 
 
12.  Statistics Ministry Reports 60,000 Jobless in August 
 
On September, the Ministry of Statistics and Analysis reported that 
the official number of unemployed persons in Belarus totaled 60,000 
by the end of August 2006, a 17.8-percent decrease since August 
2005.  Belarus' official unemployment rate was 1.4 percent of the 
economically active population, 0.2 percentage point lower than a 
year ago.  Unemployment was higher in the Brest, Mogilyov and 
Vitebsk regions, 1.7 percent, than in Minsk, which had the lowest 
rate of 0.7 percent.  By September, 203,000 people reportedly 
applied for employment assistance, of whom 135,000 were officially 
recognized as unemployed.  Meanwhile, employment centers helped 
133,000 people find jobs in the period.  About 83 percent of all 
vacancies were factory jobs.  Employment centers reportedly 
organized job training courses for 16,000 persons and assigned 
about 62,000 to do community work, including 43,000 unemployed. 
The average unemployment allowance in August was USD 20. 
 
13.  Belarus' Gas Pipeline Transit Up Seven Percent on Year 
 
On September 21, the Belarusian Ministry of Statistics and Analysis 
reported that natural gas transportation through Belarus' pipeline 
system increased seven percent on the year between January and 
August to 44.4 billion cubic meters.  Meanwhile, Belarus' natural 
gas imports increased 5.2 percent to 13.5 billion cubic meters. 
Gas transit via Belarus' pipelines increased 8 percent to 30.9 
billion cubic meters.  Of that total, Russia's gas transit via 
Belarus' pipelines to Poland accounted for 70 percent, to Ukraine 
20 percent, and to Lithuania eight percent.  The profitability of 
Belarus' pipeline companies dropped 47.8 percent between January 
and July from 64 percent in that period of 2005.  In 2005, gas 
transportation via Belarus rose 10.8 percent to 60.9 billion cubic 
meters. 
 
----------------- 
Quote of the Week 
----------------- 
 
14.  Following the recent summit of the Non-Aligned Movement in 
Havana, President Lukashenko told a BBC interviewer: 
 
"If the United States believes that we are a sovereign state, which 
we are, they should act in accordance with this belief instead of 
lording it over us or pressing us.  We deserve to be talked to as a 
sovereign state.  We do not want much.  We just want normal 
cooperation that will be of benefit to our state.  If the Americans 
agree, we are ready to cooperate with them as early as tomorrow." 
 
Stewart