VZCZCXRO5760
RR RUEHAST RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHLH RUEHLN RUEHNEH RUEHPW RUEHSK
RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHNT #1201/01 1941241
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 131243Z JUL 09
FM AMEMBASSY TASHKENT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1129
INFO ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
CIS COLLECTIVE
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
RHMFISS/USCENTCOM INTEL CEN MACDILL AFB FL
RHMFIUU/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 0073
RUEHC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHINGTON DC
RUEHNT/AMEMBASSY TASHKENT
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE USD FAS WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 TASHKENT 001201 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/CEN, USDA/FAS FOR OCBD/MIRELES AND 
CROUSHORN, 
OCRA 
FOR NENON, ANKARA FOR FAS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAGR ECON ECIN SOCI PREL PGOV UZ
SUBJECT: Uzbekistan: U.S.-Uzbekistan Working Group Discusses 
Agriculture Cooperation 
 
REF: 08 TASHKENT 385 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: The U.S.-Uzbekistan Joint Working Group (JWG) met 
on June 24 for an update on the implementation of 38 projects 
funded by U.S. Food for Progress programs.  Despite the apparent 
benefits that these jointly-agreed projects on irrigation, 
improving agricultural productivity, and enhancing sanitary 
conditions would bring to Uzbekistan, implementation of these 
projects continues to languish (ironically, during President 
Karimov's "Year of Rural Development.")  Millions of dollars in 
funding simply collect interest in Uzbek banks.  Because several 
years have elapsed since the list of 38 projects was created, both 
sides agreed to revisit the original proposals and replace them as 
needed with more relevant projects.  End summary. 
 
 
 
¶2. (SBU) The U.S-Uzbekistan Joint Working Group (JWG) met for the 
twelfth time on June 24 in Tashkent at Uzbekistan's Ministry of 
Finance.  Ministry of Finance Deputy Minister Tursunov and 
Ankara-based Agriculture Counselor Ralph Gifford jointly co-chair 
the JWG, which reviews implementation of 38 jointly-agreed funded 
with 16.75 billion UZS (11.22 million USD) from FY 2003 and FY 2004 
USDA Food for Progress programs. (Note: As of June 30, 2009, one 
dollar is equivalent to 1,493 soum.  End note.)  Four other 
Government of Uzbekistan officials attended, including Alisher 
Mursaliyev of the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations; Oybek 
Shagazatov of the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations; Tulkin 
Mirzaev of the Agriculture Department of the Ministry of Finance; 
and Asatilla Salimov, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Economics. 
The U.S. side included Political Officer Steven Prohaska and 
Agricultural Specialist Nizam Yuldashbayev. 
 
 
 
¶3. (SBU) Deputy Minister Tursunov first apologized for the late 
response to the Embassy's May 7 diplomatic note requesting this 
meeting.  He then reviewed an April decision by Uzbekistan's 
Cabinet of Ministers to finance three of the USDA Food for Progress 
projects: construction of three bracken (forage)-producing lines by 
local companies (at a cost of 175 million soum); developing new 
cotton varieties with greater resistance against wilt disease (25 
million soum); and increasing the efficiency of providing emergency 
medical assistance (450 million soum).  The Ministry of Health and 
the non-governmental organization Medical Teams International (MTI) 
have a schedule for the financing of projects, and funds for such 
projects are transferred into a special account that MTI has 
opened. 
 
 
 
Cabinet Refuses to Approve Certain Projects 
 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
 
 
¶4. (SBU) AgCounselor noted that Uzbekistan has not fulfilled its 
promises, particularly with regard to the implementation progress 
reports for 12 projects that it had agreed to provide to the United 
States "within a month" at the previous meeting in March 2008 
(reftel).  Tursunov said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was 
supposed to provide them with reports on the implementation of 
these projects, and he pledged to follow up with his colleagues on 
this issue.  He noted that both sides had agreed last year that 
these 12 projects should be financed, and so the Ministry of 
Finance had submitted a draft proposal to the Cabinet of Ministers. 
The Cabinet had asked the project initiators for presentations on 
implementation of these projects, and found several presentations 
insufficiently compelling.  The Cabinet then asked for new 
presentations defining their goals and justifying their funding. 
Tursunov explained that project No. 11-aimed at constructing 
"Havast-Gallakor" water pumping stations in Syrdarya Province-had 
 
TASHKENT 00001201  002 OF 004 
 
 
been rejected because it would have required the construction of 
facilities on Tajikistan's territory.  He alluded vaguely to 
problems from the Tajikistani side.  Noting that Project No. 27 
listed USAID as the initiator, Gifford asked if representatives 
from USAID had been invited to the interview.  He asked whether the 
Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources (MAWR) has been in 
touch with them.  Tursunov indicated that he didn't know, and that 
a MAWR representative was not present today because he was on a 
trip. 
 
 
 
Delays in Responding to Embassy Requests 
 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
 
 
¶5. (SBU) Gifford further noted that he has been in Tashkent for one 
week now.  He had indicated in a May diplomatic note that he would 
be available to visit a project site-the Rezakasay Water Reservoir 
in the Ferghana Valley-that Tursunov had invited the United States 
to inspect last year, but the Government of Uzbekistan had never 
responded.  This very meeting had not been confirmed until 
Gifford's last day in Tashkent.  Nevertheless, U.S. Embassy staff 
would still like to have the opportunity to visit one of these 
projects.  Tursunov expressed regret that the project site visit 
had not been arranged.  He indicated that the Cabinet of Ministers 
had given its approval to Post's diplomatic note only yesterday. 
Tursunov proposed that both sides work out a mutually convenient 
date for a project site visit, and noted that he himself would 
accompany any Embassy representatives on this trip. 
 
 
 
Status of Funds 
 
------------------ 
 
 
 
¶6. (SBU) Tursunov presented some additional data regarding the 
current status of Food for Progress funds: That the 16.8 billion 
soum to be used for projects had earned an additional 2.346 billion 
soum in interest; there are now 19.146 billion soum available for 
project funding; and of the 16.8 billion soum, 7.236 billion soum 
have been approved to be disbursed, leaving 9.7 billion soum from 
the original sum that have been undisbursed. 
 
 
 
¶7. (SBU) Gifford indicated that, according to his calculations, 30 
percent of the total project funds have been disbursed for 
completed projects and 10 percent have been allocated to incomplete 
projects, but 60 percent of the funds have not yet been assigned. 
He requested that Uzbekistan assign someone to work with Embassy's 
Agricultural Specialist to ensure that both sides are working with 
the same financial data.  Gifford expressed hope that the remaining 
projects be funded as soon as possible and that Uzbekistan had made 
many promises in the past, but results are necessary. 
 
 
 
MTI Project 
 
------------- 
 
 
 
¶8. (SBU) Gifford also asked for the GOU's opinion on a recent 
proposal from Medical Teams International (MTI) to shift funds from 
a project to develop commercial production of broiler chickens to 
one involving cervical cancer screening and HPV vaccinations. 
 
TASHKENT 00001201  003 OF 004 
 
 
(Note: MTI is not permitted to be involved in commercial projects. 
End note.)  Tursunov said he supports the idea and had discussed 
the matter with Alisher Sharipov of MTI.  They had discussed 
leaving the poultry project for local governments to administer and 
using interest accumulating from the Food for Progress funds 
currently residing in bank deposit accounts to finance this new 
vaccination project, which would cost some 500-600 million soum. 
 
 
 
Uzbekistan Proposes Replacing Some Projects 
 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
 
 
¶9. (SBU) Tursunov said that the current list of 38 Food for 
Progress projects had been approved in April 2006, and thus had 
been originally developed in 2004-2005.  Given how much time has 
elapsed, some of these projects are not as important now as they 
had seemed then.  Tursunov proposed replacing some of these 
projects with new proposals.  Gifford agreed that much has changed 
over the past several years, and the it would be worthwhile to 
review some of the U.S.-proposed projects.  Tursunov stated that 
both sides can retain the earlier 50/50 division of 
U.S./Uzbek-proposed projects. 
 
 
 
¶10. (SBU) By that evening, the Government of Uzbekistan had faxed a 
preliminary list of three new projects to Post.  These include: (1) 
the improvement and monitoring of sanitary conditions in Chirchik 
city, to be implemented by the Ministry of Health; (2) improvement 
in the monitoring of air pollution in Chirchik, to be implemented 
by UzGidromet; and (3) screening and treatment of women's cervical 
cancer, to be implemented by the Ministry of Health and MTI. 
Tursunov mentioned incidentally that a high-ranking official comes 
from Chirchik.  In addition, they want to fund two 
previously-approved projects: expanding the water supply system of 
the Urgut district center and supplying microfinance to small and 
private businesses in Syrdarya and Jizzakh Provinces.  Tursunov had 
suggested earlier that day that projects (1) and (2) would cost 310 
million and 500 million soum respectively, and would be implemented 
during the 2009-2011 timeframe.  He also indicated that Uzbekistan 
might decrease the total number of projects by consolidation. 
 
 
 
Improving Communication 
 
------------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶11. (SBU) The U.S. side proposed that the Embassy double-track 
communications with the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Foreign 
Economic Relations rather than rely exclusively on the Ministry of 
Foreign Affairs to relay communications between them.  Moreover, it 
would be helpful if the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Foreign 
Economic Relations could inform Post when it has transmitted 
information to MFA to be delivered to the United States.  Tursunov 
pledged to try to work more closely with Embassy staff. 
 
 
 
Further Steps 
 
---------------- 
 
 
 
¶12. (SBU) Gifford requested that the Government of Uzbekistan 
provide detailed information on its new project proposals so the 
 
TASHKENT 00001201  004 OF 004 
 
 
United States can review them.  Meanwhile, the United States will 
review its own previously proposed projects.  Both sides will 
recommend funding MTI's HPV vaccination proposal using accumulated 
interest on deposited funds.  The United States also wants a 
commitment from Uzbekistan to assign someone to work with the U.S. 
to coordinate all financial data.  Tursunov said Uzbekistan will 
try to provide Post with a progress report on the implementation of 
projects in 10 days and will share a new list of projects. 
 
 
 
Comment: 
 
----------- 
 
 
 
¶13. (SBU) It is very difficult to distinguish incompetence from 
malfeasance in this frustrating process, and the failure to get 
this meeting scheduled until the very last minute was particularly 
egregious.  We will try, nevertheless, to identify what little bit 
of the glass is full: as usual, the GOU apologized for not keeping 
the promises it had made at the previous meeting and then made a 
new series of promises-but it actually kept one promise before the 
day was through.  Furthermore, we were able to verify that 
Tursunov's description of the unsuccessful presentations to the 
Cabinet of Ministers was candid, and therefore his suggestion that 
we basically start over on a list of projects for the remaining 
funds makes sense.  We intend to follow up on this meeting with a 
series of diplomatic note reminders, to see if constant follow-up 
may be more effective than sporadic follow-up.  AgCounselor will 
discuss updating the U.S. project list while in Washington in July. 
 
 
 
¶14. (U) AgCounselor has cleared this cable.  Post appreciates his 
visit and support. 
NORLAND