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RFE/RL Newsline, 08-01-25
CONTENTS
[01] RUSSIA WANTS NEW SECURITY SYSTEM
[02] RUSSIAN DAILY NOTES MINISTER'S 'PRAGMATIC' APPROACH
[03] U.S. SAYS TALK OF NEW COLD WAR WITH RUSSIA IS 'NONSENSE'
[04] RUSSIAN MINISTER SAYS RUSSIA UNAFFECTED BY GLOBAL FINANCIAL
TURBULENCE
[05] EUROPEAN COURT BLASTS RUSSIAN RIGHTS RECORD
[06] RUSSIAN RIGHTS GROUP LAUNCHES SUIT AGAINST FOREIGN MINISTRY
[07] RUSSIA BUYS POWERFUL SUPERCOMPUTER
[08] 13 PERCENT OF KASYANOV'S SIGNATURES DECLARED INVALID...
[09] ...AND PROSECUTORS CLAIM THEY WERE FALSIFIED
[10] COULD KASYANOV HIMSELF FACE PROSECUTION?
[11] COMMUNISTS RESPOND TO RUMORS THAT ZYUGANOV WILL QUIT RACE
[12] DAGHESTAN TO INVESTIGATE DISMISSALS OF CONTRACT SERVICEMEN
[13] FORMER MEMBER OF KARACHAYEVO-CHERKESSIA JAMAAT APPREHENDED IN
MOSCOW
[14] NORTH OSSETIA DRAFTS LONG-TERM ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
[15] ARMENIA FORMS ELECTION FRAUD TASK FORCE
[16] TURKISH POLITICIAN ARRESTED IN AZERBAIJAN
[17] TERRORISM EXPERT GOES ON TRIAL IN AZERBAIJAN
[18] GEORGIA REJECTS RUSSIA'S CALL TO ABJURE USE OF FORCE...
[19] ...DENIES ABKHAZIA OPENED FIRE ON ITS WARSHIPS
[20] SOUTH OSSETIAN LEADER AGAIN CALLS FOR TOP-LEVEL TALKS WITH GEORGIA
[21] KAZAKH PRESIDENT APPOINTS SEVERAL NEW OFFICIALS
[22] KYRGYZ MINISTER OUTLINES ECONOMIC AND TRADE PRIORITIES
[23] KYRGYZ PREMIER BRIEFS U.S. AMBASSADOR ON ECONOMIC REFORMS
[24] KYRGYZ OMBUDSMAN REAPPOINTED
[25] TAJIK INDUSTRY HIT BY ELECTRICITY CUTOFF
[26] MORE THAN HALF OF TAJIK POPULATION REPORTEDLY LIVES BELOW POVERTY
LINE
[27] BELARUSIAN AUTHORITIES RELEASE YOUTH LEADER BEFORE END OF SENTENCE
[28] COUNCIL OF EUROPE CALLS FOR RENEWED DIALOGUE WITH BELARUS
[29] UKRAINE SAYS NATO BID 'BROADENS STABILITY ZONE'
[30] UKRAINIAN PREMIER SEEKS TO RENEGOTIATE GAS TRANSIT FEES WITH
RUSSIA
[31] BOSNIAN SERB LEADER CALLS FOR DISBANDING ARMY
[32] KOSOVAR GOVERNMENT TO SLASH EXPENSE ACCOUNTS
[33] MACEDONIAN POLICE KILL MURDER SUSPECT
[34] MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT WANTS 'STRATEGIC' PARTNERSHIP WITH RUSSIA...
[35] ...AND WINS AWARD FROM RUSSIAN PATRIARCH
[36] YOUNG AFGHAN JOURNALIST SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR 'BLASPHEMY'...
[37] ...WHICH AFGHAN JOURNALISTS CONDEMN
[38] MULLAH OMAR REDIRECTS TALIBAN TO FIGHT U.S., NATO FORCES IN
AFGHANISTAN
[39] WORLD POWERS DRAFT MILD UN RESOLUTION FOR IRAN...
[40] ...AS PRESIDENT VOWS NUCLEAR PROGRAM WILL CONTINUE
[41] IRANIAN MINISTRY SAYS IT APPROVED MOST HOPEFULS FOR POLLS
[42] IRANIAN RIGHTS GROUP CALLS FOR INQUIRY INTO STUDENT'S DEATH
[43] IRANIAN PRESIDENT ACCEPTS INVITATION TO VISIT IRAQ
[44] IRAQI POLICE CHIEF KILLED IN SUICIDE BOMB ATTACK
[45] IRAQI VICE PRESIDENT SAYS SUNNIS NOT YET DISCUSSING RETURN TO
GOVERNMENT
[46] IRAQI GOVERNMENT SAYS 25 MILLION LAND MINES NEED TO BE REMOVED
[47] RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER ASKS IRAQ TO SET DATE FOR TROOP
WITHDRAWAL
[48] THERE IS NO END NOTE TODAY.
Thursday, January 24, 2008 Volume 12 Number 16
Russia
[01] RUSSIA WANTS NEW SECURITY SYSTEM
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at his annual start-of-the-year
news conference on January 23 that Russia and NATO need a new approach
to security that offers collective security "without detriment to the
security of others," mid.ru and Russian news agencies reported (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," April 11 and October 2, 2007, and "RFE/RL Newsline,"
End Note, September 6, 2007). He noted that collective security depends
on European countries as well as the United States and Russia. Lavrov
slammed NATO expansion as "a policy inherited from the Cold War" and
"not seriously motivated by security concerns." He added that "we hear
that NATO enlargement is not directed against Russia... But [imperial
German Chancellor Otto von] Bismarck said that in politics, especially
in military affairs, you have to judge not intentions but potential.
And the potential, the military spending, is increasing." Lavrov said
that "future cooperation between Russia and Ukraine depends to a large
extent on how [Ukraine's movement towards NATO membership] develops."
He said that "we have our understandable, legitimate, explicit, and
transparent interests in the post-Soviet region, but we intend to
realize these interests through cooperation based on mutual respect and
mutual benefit." He argued that "many people assume that Russia has
such a firm position on Kosovo and warns that [its declaration of
independence] will set a precedent just because it [secretly wants
this] to happen in order to begin recognizing" other regions declaring
independence near Russia. However, he said, "the Russian leadership has
never said that after Kosovo we will immediately recognize Abkhazia and
South Ossetia." He said that Russia did not interfere in the recent
Georgian presidential vote, "unlike others." Lavrov noted that Russia
supports the strengthening of the EU, especially through its new Treaty
of Lisbon, but he objected to what he called the manipulation of EU
solidarity by individual countries against Russia. In this respect, he
singled out Britain in the ongoing dispute over the right of the
British Council to operate in Russia (see below), along with unnamed
"neophytes" in the bloc. PM
[02] RUSSIAN DAILY NOTES MINISTER'S 'PRAGMATIC' APPROACH
The Russian daily "Gazeta" noted on January 24 that Foreign Minister
Lavrov said the previous day that Russian foreign policy is based on
pragmatism and not ideology. Lavrov added that Russia now has the
political and financial resources to return to the world stage. The
daily "Kommersant" suggested on January 24 that Lavrov was "optimistic"
in his views on the future of the CIS. "The Moscow Times" wrote on
January 24 that Lavrov "lashed out repeatedly at the European Union,
saying that 'a reorganization of European architecture'" is one of
Russia's top objectives for 2008. The "International Herald Tribune" on
January 24 reported that Lavrov's comments on NATO "were unusually
toughly worded." PM
[03] U.S. SAYS TALK OF NEW COLD WAR WITH RUSSIA IS 'NONSENSE'
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said at the annual World
Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on January 23 that unspecified
talk of a new Cold War between Moscow and Washington is "hyperbolic
nonsense," news agencies reported. She noted that "there have been
disappointments" in bilateral relations, and called on Russia to work
toward a "transparent and open global energy economy." Rice argued that
"Russia's greatness will ultimately be secured best through greater
political freedom for its people -- and through the establishment of
strong institutions that check the power of the state, rather than
serve the interests of a few." She also met with Ukrainian President
Viktor Yushchenko in Davos on January 23. After the meeting, State
Department spokesman Sean McCormack said that Rice "reiterated the U.S.
view that NATO should leave the door open to those European, democratic
states [that] meet membership requirements" (see "RFE/RL Newsline," May
15, 2007). In Brussels on January 23, a NATO spokesman said that the
alliance has invited President Vladimir Putin to attend the April NATO
summit in Bucharest, AP reported. The news agency noted that Putin last
met with NATO leaders outside Rome in 2001. In Moscow on January 23,
Dmitry Rogozin, the new Russian ambassador to NATO, said that "the
prospect of holding such a meeting depends largely on the [state] of
our relations on key issues," Interfax reported. PM
[04] RUSSIAN MINISTER SAYS RUSSIA UNAFFECTED BY GLOBAL FINANCIAL
TURBULENCE
Finance Minister Aleksei Kudrin said in Davos on January 23 that Russia
remains a "haven" for investors, newsru.com reported (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," September 27 and October 1, 2007). He added that the Russian
economy continues to be stable despite the turbulence on stock markets
elsewhere. He argued that "over the past few years, Russia has managed
to achieve economic stability piling up substantial international
reserves, which play the role of an airbag. I believe Russia will soon
be the focus of [international] attention as a haven of stability." RIA
Novosti reported on January 23 that Russia's Stabilization Fund stood
at $157 billion on January 1, 2008, up from $89.1 billion one year
earlier. On January 24, Aleksandr Shokhin, who heads the Russian Union
of Entrepreneurs and Industrialists (RSPP), said in Moscow that "the
liquidity crisis in the U.S. economy" could affect Russian companies'
ability "to finance large-scale projects requiring stable volumes of
commodity exports," RIA Novosti reported. PM
[05] EUROPEAN COURT BLASTS RUSSIAN RIGHTS RECORD
The Strasbourg-based European Court of Human Rights released a report
on January 23 saying that Turkey and Russia are easily the worst
offenders in a ranking chart of the court's human rights judgments for
2007, news agencies reported. The court's president, Jean-Paul Costa,
said the majority of Russian complaints concerned rights abuses in
Chechnya. Ukraine and Poland are the third and fourth-worst offenders
on the court's list. The German weekly "Der Spiegel" once described the
Strasbourg court as a "beacon of hope" for Russians, many of whom have
little confidence in their own judicial system. More Russian citizens
file cases in Strasbourg than do citizens of any other country
belonging to the Council of Europe. President Putin has called many of
the resulting court rulings politically motivated. PM
[06] RUSSIAN RIGHTS GROUP LAUNCHES SUIT AGAINST FOREIGN MINISTRY
Igor Sazhin, the leader of the Memorial human rights group in the
Republic of Komi, told RFE/RL's Russian Service from Syktyvkar on
January 23 that his organization filed a suit earlier that day against
the Russian Foreign Ministry for closing down the British Council's
regional offices. He said that "there are no grounds for closing down
information centers such as the British Council. [The ministry's move]
is essentially illegal. There should have been a court decision
[first], at least." Sazhin stressed that "the state must return to
[observing] the law, and if they want to close [the British Council
offices] they should do it in accordance with the law on culture, which
says that citizens have the right to information. It is precisely the
purpose of the British Council" to provide information, he said. (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," January 17, 18, and 22, 2008). On January 24, an
unnamed Foreign Ministry representative was quoted by Interfax as
saying that the "ministry's position is legal. That will become obvious
to any court if it holds a hearing on the matter." The ongoing dispute
over the right of the British Council to operate in Russia is widely
seen as part of the continuing row between the two countries stemming
from the 2006 London murder of former Russian security agent Aleksandr
Litvinenko. PM
[07] RUSSIA BUYS POWERFUL SUPERCOMPUTER
IBM said in a statement on January 24 that Moscow State University has
bought a Blue Gene supercomputer in the first sale of such technology
to a former Soviet republic, Reuters reported from Moscow. The news
agency noted that the "device is capable of 27.8 trillion operations
per second [and will be used] in research on nanotechnology and [other]
scientific applications, such as modeling the heart." The U.S.
government uses versions of Blue Gene that Reuters described as almost
20 times more powerful than the model approved for sale to Russia. PM
[08] 13 PERCENT OF KASYANOV'S SIGNATURES DECLARED INVALID...
Central Election Commission (TsIK) member Gennady Raikov announced on
January 24 that 13.38 percent of the signatures submitted by former
Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov in support of his presidential bid were
invalid. ITAR-TASS quoted TsIK Secretary Nikolai Konkin as saying the
result means Kasyanov has less than 2 million legitimate signatures,
which constitutes grounds for refusing to register a presidential
candidate. Konkin said the inspection of the signatures was completed
late on January 23 and that Kasyanov was summoned to the commission's
headquarters to receive a copy of the inspection's results but did not
appear. Konkin said representatives of Kasyanov received a copy of the
final tally on the morning of January 24. An initial check by the TsIK
of 400,000 of the signatures submitted by Kasyanov found that some 15
percent of them (62,000) were invalid (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January
23, 2008). JB
[09] ...AND PROSECUTORS CLAIM THEY WERE FALSIFIED
TsIK member Siyapshakh Shapiyev said at a press conference on January
23 that the prosecutor's offices in the Republic of Mari El and
Yaroslavl Oblast have opened criminal cases in connection with the
alleged falsification of signatures supporting former Prime Minister
Kasyanov's presidential candidacy, vesti.ru reported. Those accused of
falsifying the signatures, if found guilty, could face a large fine or
a jail term of up to three years. Shapiyev said signatures in support
of Kasyanov's candidacy were also falsified in Kursk Oblast, although
the TsIK has not yet received an official letter from the Kursk
authorities concerning the violations. Gazeta.ru on January 23 quoted
Stanislav Bisin, head of the TsIK branch in Nizhny Novgorod, as saying
that authorities found problems with nearly 50,000 signatures gathered
there in support of Kasyanov's presidential run. On January 22, Tatyana
Chernyshova, a spokeswoman for the Prosecutor-General's Office, said
petitions supporting Kasyanov's candidacy with false signatures were
discovered in the Yaroslavl Oblast city of Rybinsk and that Kasyanov's
campaign staffers had "falsified signature lists containing more than
3,500 citizens' signatures," RFE/RL reported. She said an additional
12,000 falsified signatures were discovered in Mari El and that a
criminal case has also been opened there. The head of Kasyanov's
campaign headquarters in Mari El, Rustam Abdullin, was detained on
January 11 on suspicion of forging 50,000 signatures. "RBK Daily"
reported on January 24 that Abdullin signed a confession, gave
evidence, and asked investigators for leniency but subsequently
withdrew his confession, saying it had been forced out him by
psychological pressure and threats. JB
[10] COULD KASYANOV HIMSELF FACE PROSECUTION?
Speaking to reporters on January 23, TsIK member Shapiyev said former
Prime Minister Kasyanov is not criminally liable for the falsification
of signatures on his behalf and that the responsibility lies with the
members of his campaign team who falsified signatures and received
money for doing so. According to Shapiyev, Kasyanov could be prosecuted
as an accomplice only if it is established that he conspired with those
who falsified the signatures. "But that is unlikely," vesti.ru quoted
Shapiyev as saying. However, the "RBK Daily" on January 24 quoted
lawyer Yury Nikolayev as saying that while, in theory, investigators
would need to prove Kasyanov's participation in a conspiracy to falsify
signatures, in practice investigators could interpret the evidence any
way they please and that if they wanted to charge Kasyanov with
involvement in such a conspiracy, the burden would be on Kasyanov's
lawyer to prove his client's innocence. Kasyanov, for his part, charged
during a news conference in Moscow on January 22 that the authorities
began carrying out a "massive, large-scale campaign of intimidation"
against his staff after his preliminary registration as a potential
presidential candidate, "The Moscow Times" reported on January 23. "The
authorities are scared of a genuine political fight," he told
reporters. JB
[11] COMMUNISTS RESPOND TO RUMORS THAT ZYUGANOV WILL QUIT RACE
Ivan Melnikov, first deputy chairman of the Communist Party's Central
Committee and the head of party leader Gennady Zyuganov's presidential
campaign, has responded to press reports that Zyuganov is seriously
considering pulling out of the March 2 presidential election (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," January 23, 2008). "Our party is organized in such a
way that decisions of such a kind are made exclusively collegially, on
the basis of the opinions of communists, assessments, discussions
within the party," regions.ru on January 23 quoted Melnikov as saying.
"Currently, raising the question of removing Zyuganov's candidacy from
the election is not relevant within our structures.... It's quite
another matter that the situation itself, in which the whole
administrative resource and administrative technologies work in favor
of the candidate from the regime, the situation of a massive
informational pumping up of Dmitry Medvedev, may force us to discuss
this problem. The reason is simple: we don't want to wind up in a
situation in which our candidate becomes a decoration for the accession
of the successor. And if we feel that such a scenario is the sole one,
then a discussion of this issue will become inevitable. Now this
problem is aggravated by the high likelihood of Dmitry Medvedev's
refusal [to participate in] debates.... But I repeat: currently, we are
taking part in the campaign, aiming at a full-fledged struggle, at a
second round of voting." Still, Communist Party Central Committee
Secretary Vadim Zolovyov told regions.ru that the issue of Zyuganov
pulling out of the election will become clear in a week or two, adding
that Zyuganov might pull out in order not be "a chip in Kremlin games."
JB
[12] DAGHESTAN TO INVESTIGATE DISMISSALS OF CONTRACT SERVICEMEN
More than 200 contract servicemen staged a picket in Makhachkala on
January 22 to protest their summary dismissal from the ranks of the
42nd Motor Rifle Division permanently stationed at the Russian base at
Khankala outside Grozny, kavkaz-uzel.ru reported on January 23. The
servicemen alleged discrimination, saying they were demobilized purely
on the basis of their ethnicity even though there are no tensions
between servicemen from Daghestan and other ethnic groups. More than
500 servicemen from Daghestan have been dismissed in the last few
months alone. Following a meeting between some of the men affected and
Daghestan's Military Commissar Magomed Tinomagomedov, a commission was
established including three parliament deputies and representatives of
the Committee of Soldiers' Mothers of Daghestan that will travel to
Grozny to investigate the situation. LF
[13] FORMER MEMBER OF KARACHAYEVO-CHERKESSIA JAMAAT APPREHENDED IN
MOSCOW
Police and security forces have arrested Pavel Novikov, a 21-year-old
Russian from the North Caucasus who reportedly converted to Islam and
joined the so-called Malokarachayevsk jamaat headed by Ruslan Ionov,
kavkaz-uzel.ru and the daily "Kommersant" reported on January 23 and
24, respectively. Novikov is said to have participated in an abortive
May 2007 attack on police in Karachayevo-Cherkessia and to have been
one of only five members of the jamaat who survived when they were
intercepted by the FSB in September 2007 while trying to cross the
border into neighboring Georgia. Novikov reportedly then fled to Moscow
where he took refuge with his father, who works as a carpenter. LF
[14] NORTH OSSETIA DRAFTS LONG-TERM ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
The government of North Ossetia has drafted a five-year program of
economic and social development for the period 2008-12 intended to
attract investment, reduce unemployment, raise real incomes, and ensure
the more rational use of government funds, kavkaz-uzel.ru reported on
January 24 quoting Economy Minister Zaur Kuchiyev. The total cost of
the various measures planned is estimated at 107.7 billion rubles
($4.37 billion). North Ossetia currently relies on federal subsidies
for some 60 percent of its annual budget (of the North Caucasus
republics, only Adygeya receives a small proportion from Moscow), but
according to official statistics, unemployment in North Ossetia is only
around 9 percent, compared to 64 percent in Chechnya and 67 percent in
Ingushetia. LF
Transcaucasia And Central Asia
[15] ARMENIA FORMS ELECTION FRAUD TASK FORCE
The Armenian Prosecutor-General's Office announced on January 23 the
creation of an ad hoc unit tasked with preventing election fraud and
reacting swiftly to any reports of irregularities during the February
19 presidential ballot, RFE/RL's Armenian Service reported. The unit
will be headed by Deputy Prosecutor-General Aram Tamazian, who told
journalists on January 23 that so far he has not seen any evidence of
serious violations. Harutiun Hambartsumian, who heads the NGO It's Your
Choice, which plans to deploy observers at each of Armenia's almost
2,000 polling stations, told RFE/RL that his organization has
registered only minor violations to date, and no allegations of the
vote buying that was widely reported during the May 2007 parliamentary
ballot. Meeting on January 22 with Ambassador Geert-Hinrich Ahrens, the
head of the OSCE Election Observation Mission, outgoing President
Robert Kocharian affirmed that the Armenian authorities will take all
available organizational measures to ensure that the conduct of the
ballot meets international standards for free and fair elections,
RFE/RL's Armenian Service reported. LF
[16] TURKISH POLITICIAN ARRESTED IN AZERBAIJAN
The Turkish Embassy in Baku has confirmed the arrest in October 2007 of
Mehmet Harun Gayaci, deputy chairman of the Independent Turkey Party,
day.az reported on January 24. Gayaci was apprehended during a police
operation to prevent "illegal religious propaganda" and has been
charged with propagating a religious sect that violates public order.
LF
[17] TERRORISM EXPERT GOES ON TRIAL IN AZERBAIJAN
The trial opened on January 24 at Azerbaijan's Court for Serious Crimes
of Rovsan Novruzoglu, director of the Center Of The Struggle With
International Terrorism And Corruption, day.az reported. Novruzoglu was
arrested in July 2007 and charged with forging official documentation
and posing as a government official. He denies those charges. LF
[18] GEORGIA REJECTS RUSSIA'S CALL TO ABJURE USE OF FORCE...
Acting Georgian Minister for Conflict Resolution David Bakradze
rejected on January 23 the proposal voiced earlier that day by Russian
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that the Georgian government should sign
formal agreements with the breakaway republics of Abkhazia and South
Ossetia pledging not to resort to military force against them, civil.ge
reported. Bakradze said Tbilisi is not against a cease-fire, but that
the format Lavrov proposed implies that the conflicts in question are
between neighboring independent states, and for that reason Georgia
"will never agree" to sign any such accord. Bakradze said any
nonaggression agreement "should specify that it concerns the settlement
of an internal Georgian conflict, which aims at the exclusively
peaceful restoration of Georgia's territorial integrity." In Sukhum,
Abkhaz Foreign Minister Sergei Shamba denounced Bakradze's statement on
January 23 as "blackmail" and further proof that Tbilisi has no
interest in preventing a new war, ITAR-TASS reported. LF
[19] ...DENIES ABKHAZIA OPENED FIRE ON ITS WARSHIPS
A spokesman for the Georgian Border Protection Service has rejected as
untrue the January 23 claim by Kristian Bzhania, spokesman for de facto
Abkhaz President Sergei Bagapsh, that Abkhaz coastguard vessels opened
fire at two Georgian naval vessels off the coast of Gali in southern
Abkhazia earlier that day, civil.ge reported on January 24. The press
service said no Georgian vessels were in the area at the time of the
purported incident. LF
[20] SOUTH OSSETIAN LEADER AGAIN CALLS FOR TOP-LEVEL TALKS WITH GEORGIA
Eduard Kokoity, leader of the unrecognized republic of South Ossetia,
appealed on January 23 to Russia and the OSCE to arrange a meeting
between himself and Mikheil Saakashvili, who was reelected earlier this
month to serve a second term as Georgian president, civil.ge reported.
Kokoity explained that he wants to discuss with Saakashvili proposals
contained in his 2005 peace proposal, in particular demilitarization of
the conflict zone, including a formal pact on the non-resumption of
hostilities; economic rehabilitation, which would encompass creation of
a "zone of economic preference" incorporating South Ossetia and the
neighboring Gori Raion in Georgia and the Alagir Raion of North
Ossetia; and South Ossetia's future political status. Kokoity further
affirmed that South Ossetia's recognition as an independent state "is
only a matter of time," and could be expedited by international
recognition of Kosova, according to RIA Novosti. He further appealed to
Moscow to condemn what he termed Tbilisi's efforts to undermine the
four-party Joint Control Commission, the primary forum for talks on
resolving the conflict, civil.ge reported. LF
[21] KAZAKH PRESIDENT APPOINTS SEVERAL NEW OFFICIALS
President Nursultan Nazarbaev made several new appointments on January
23, including Kayrat Kalimbetov as the new head of presidential
administration, Interfax-Kazakhstan reported. Nazarbaev appointed the
outgoing head of his administration, Adilbek Zhaksybekov, as the deputy
chairman of the ruling Nur Otan (Light of the Fatherland) party.
Kalimbetov was previously the head of the Kazyna sustainable
development fund. Nazarbaev also named Arman Dunaev, the chief of the
Financial Market Regulation and Control Agency, to replace Kalimbetov
as the head of the state fund. In yet another appointment, Albert Rau
was named the new governor of the central Aqmola region, replacing
Mazhit Yesenbaev, who in turn was appointed the chairman of a new state
agency for competition, according to Kazakhstan Today. RG
[22] KYRGYZ MINISTER OUTLINES ECONOMIC AND TRADE PRIORITIES
Speaking at a press conference in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Minister of Economic
Development and Trade Akylbek Japarov outlined on January 23 his
economic and trade priorities for 2008, AKIpress reported. Japarov
identified several goals for the year, including an increase in foreign
investment, the modernization of the country's infrastructure,
social-sector reforms, and the implementation of a more balanced
regional development program. Japarov then reported on economic
developments through 2007, noting that the country's gross domestic
product (GDP) increased by 8.2 percent and reached 139.7 billion soms
($3.88 billion). He also said that inflation is expected to reach 8
percent, mainly due to continued volatility in global commodity markets
and rising prices for energy and food. RG
[23] KYRGYZ PREMIER BRIEFS U.S. AMBASSADOR ON ECONOMIC REFORMS
During a meeting in the government offices in Bishkek, Prime Minister
Igor Chudinov on January 23 briefed U.S. Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch
on the state of economic reforms, heralding the emergence of a vibrant
private sector, which he said now accounts for over 40 percent of
Kyrgyz GDP, the 24.kg website reported. Chudinov also informed
Yovanovitch that the government intends to submit a newly formulated
Tax Code to the parliament, aimed at encouraging business to "rapidly
develop," and vowed to accelerate agricultural reform. For her part,
Yovanovitch told Chudinov that the U.S. Congress has recently approved
a new $15 million aid package to assist Kyrgyzstan in combating drug
smuggling. The Kyrgyz government has prioritized its efforts to fight
the drug trade and recently concluded a new agreement between the
Kyrgyz and Tajik counternarcotics agencies aimed at coordinating
efforts to uncover drug-smuggling routes and combat drug trafficking
(see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 23, 2008). RG
[24] KYRGYZ OMBUDSMAN REAPPOINTED
Kyrgyz ombudsman Tursunbai Bakir-uulu was reappointed on January 23 by
the leadership of his opposition Erk party, according to AKIpress.
According to a statement released in Bishkek, the party's decision to
nominate Bakir-uulu to a second term as ombudsman is "based on enormous
appeals of citizens, organizations, public associations, political
parties" which expressed their support for him. RG
[25] TAJIK INDUSTRY HIT BY ELECTRICITY CUTOFF
At a press conference in Dushanbe, Sharifkhon Samiev, the head of the
Tajik state-owned Barqi Tojik energy company, announced on January 22
that an ongoing energy crisis and a severe shortage of sufficient
electricity has forced the closure of many of the country's largest
industrial plants and factories, Asia-Plus reported. He noted that the
state-owned energy group has cut off electricity supplies to all
industrial enterprises, with the only exceptions limited to "facilities
of statewide importance" such as bakeries and dairy plants, hospitals,
airports, and communications centers. He added that schools and
universities will also "be unaffected as far as possible." It is not
clear whether the Tajik aluminum plant, which accounts for half
Tajikistan's electricity usage, is exempt from the cuts. Samiev noted
that the power cuts "will result in the supply of daily electricity in
the provinces being reduced to only three hours -- 1 1/2 hours of
electricity in the morning and 1 1/2 in the evening." RG
[26] MORE THAN HALF OF TAJIK POPULATION REPORTEDLY LIVES BELOW POVERTY
LINE
In a report released at a press conference in Dushanbe, Tajik Labor and
Social Protection Minister Shukurjon Zuhurov revealed on January 22
that more than half of the Tajik population lives below the
international poverty line, which he defined as equal to $1.20 per day
in 2007, according to Asia-Plus. Zuhurov said that despite a rise of
over 41 percent in the average monthly wage last year, to about 156.74
somonis ($44), the nearly 20 percent inflation rate for the same period
"practically devoured this achievement," as it sparked a "considerable
rise" in prices for basic foodstuffs and energy. Zuhurov warned that
"if cardinal measures to curb inflation are not taken, efforts by the
authorities to reduce poverty will not yield the desired results." He
then released a statistical analysis showing a 70 percent price rise in
prices for flour and bread last year, along with a price increase of
over 50 percent for energy. RG
Eastern Europe
[27] BELARUSIAN AUTHORITIES RELEASE YOUTH LEADER BEFORE END OF SENTENCE
Zmitser Dashkevich, the leader of the opposition Youth Front, was
released on January 23 from a correctional facility in Shklou, Mahilyou
Oblast, after serving 16 months of an 18-month term for heading an
unregistered organization, RFE/RL's Belarus Service and Belapan
reported. The prison's administration explained that a court ruled to
reduce Dashkevich's sentence. Dashkevich was arrested on September 15,
2006, and sentenced at a closed-door trial. While serving his sentence,
Dashkevich was also fined $870 for refusing to testify against another
Youth Front activist. Amnesty International has declared Dashkevich a
prisoner of conscience. Meanwhile, Homyel State University rector
Alyaksandr Rahachou on January 22 signed a second order to expel
Dzmitry Zhaleznichenka, a third-year mathematics student and a member
of the Belarusian Popular Front, for violating the university's
internal regulations, RFE/RL's Belarus Service and Belapan reported.
The first expulsion order was based on similar accusations, but
Zhaleznichenka, who has an excellent academic record at the university,
appealed the decision at a Homyel district court. The court last week
ordered the university to allow Zhaleznichenka to continue his studies.
Zhaleznichenka claims that he has not behaved improperly in the current
academic year, and considers the expulsion order politically motivated.
AM
[28] COUNCIL OF EUROPE CALLS FOR RENEWED DIALOGUE WITH BELARUS
Andrea Rigoni, the special rapporteur on Belarus at the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), said on January 22 that PACE
should restart political dialogue with Belarus, Belapan reported. "I am
against severing all contact with the Belarus authorities. As we have
seen, that has no effect on the situation in the country, and simply
makes it harder to get through to the people," Rigoni said at a meeting
of PACE's Political Affairs Committee in Strasbourg. Natallya
Andreychyk, a representative of the Belarusian legislature, said at the
meeting that "Belarus shares its past with the rest of Europe and is
open to dialogue." Vintsuk Vyachorka of the opposition Belarusian
Popular Front told the meeting that the situation with regard to human
rights and civil liberties has significantly deteriorated even since
the beginning of this year. Vyachorka said that the Belarusian
authorities continue to jail people for political reasons and obstruct
the activities of the opposition, nongovernmental organizations, civil
society, and the independent media. AM
[29] UKRAINE SAYS NATO BID 'BROADENS STABILITY ZONE'
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a January 23 statement that
Ukraine considers its possible accession to NATO to be "broadening the
zone of stability and security in Europe to the south and to the east,"
Ukrainian media reported. The ministry also stressed that Ukraine's
Euro-Atlantic aspirations should not be regarded as an exclusive
alternative to the further development of its relations with Russia.
The Russian Foreign Ministry recently stated that Russia will be forced
to review its relations with Ukraine and take "adequate steps" if
Ukraine joins NATO (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 15, 2007). Verkhovna
Rada speaker Arseniy Yatsenyuk suggested that the Russian statement is
interference in Ukraine's internal affairs, and said the two countries'
relations should be "based solely on mutual respect and
non-interference in our sovereign rights." Yatsenyuk, President Viktor
Yushchenko, and Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko recently sent a request
to NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer for Ukraine to be given
a NATO Membership Action Plan at the alliance summit in Bucharest in
April (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 16, 2007). AM
[30] UKRAINIAN PREMIER SEEKS TO RENEGOTIATE GAS TRANSIT FEES WITH
RUSSIA
Ukrainian Prime Minister Tymoshenko said on January 23 that Ukraine and
Russia should hold talks on the level of transit fees for the shipment
of Russian natural gas to Europe via Ukraine, UNIAN reported.
Tymoshenko said that Russia has increased the price for natural gas
delivered to Ukraine threefold since the start of 2006, while the
shipment fee has remained unchanged. Tymoshenko also said she has
ordered experts to examine fuel transit pricing schemes in other
countries. President Yushchenko recently urged caution in international
energy policy, claiming that renegotiating transit fees with Russia
might result in increased prices for Ukrainian gas consumers. Ukraine
currently pays $179.50 per 1,000 cubic meters of Russian gas, while
Russia pays Ukraine $1.7 for the transit of 1,000 cubic meters of gas
per 100 kilometers. AM
Southeastern Europe
[31] BOSNIAN SERB LEADER CALLS FOR DISBANDING ARMY
Bosnia-Herzegovina's army should be disbanded and security in the
country left to an international force, the country's leading
ethnic-Serbian politician, Milorad Dodik, proposed on January 22.
Speaking in Berlin at a forum organized by the Friedrich Ebert
Foundation, Dodik described the country's existing army as a
"caricature" and argued for transforming Bosnia into a demilitarized
zone protected by international troops. He also suggested that the 300
million-euro ($439 million) budgeted for Bosnia's army could be
redirected into social and development projects. The local press
reported on January 23 that a number of Bosnian Muslim and Croat
parties have already branded the proposal irresponsible and
unacceptable. Reports do not specify whether Dodik linked his proposal
to concerns about security in Bosnia should Kosova become an
independent state. The army was one of the first of the country's major
institutions to be consolidated and integrated ethnically. Bosnia,
which now has an all-volunteer army, is part of NATO's Partnership for
Peace program, and has a contingent serving in Iraq. Earlier this
month, NATO approved Bosnia's Individual Partnership Action Plan, which
outlines steps that Bosnia needs to take to integrate its military with
NATO. The current international troop presence in Bosnia is under the
EU's command and was halved in size last year. AG
[32] KOSOVAR GOVERNMENT TO SLASH EXPENSE ACCOUNTS
Ministers in the Kosovar cabinet recently formed by Hashim Thaci face
stricter scrutiny of their expense accounts, the Kosovar media reported
on January 23. "I will ask everyone to save as much as possible," Thaci
told his cabinet, indicating that he believes ministers could reduce
their spending by as much as 50 percent. In opposition, Thaci and other
politicians were highly critical of alleged operating costs run up by
ministers. Thaci's Democratic Party of Kosova (PDK) is in power with
the Democratic League of Kosova (LDK), which was the most powerful
party in the previous government. Among other issues currently high on
the government's agenda are preparations to implement recommendations
made by the UN's special envoy to Kosova, Martti Ahtisaari, as part of
his broader recommendation that Kosova be granted "supervised
independence." The government was officially approved by parliament on
January 9 (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 10, 2008). AG
[33] MACEDONIAN POLICE KILL MURDER SUSPECT
A man suspected of killing a Macedonian police officer was shot and
killed on January 22 when police attempted to arrest him. The news
agency MIA reported that the victim, Naser Nebija, opened fire on
police when they approached his home in Aracinovo, an ethnic-Albanian
village, prompting the police to return fire. Nebija was suspected of
being one of a number of gunmen who opened fire on a car carrying
members of an elite police unit near Skopje on January 3 (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," January 7, 2008). In addition to killing one police officer,
the gunmen wounded two others. Citing unofficial reports, the news
service Balkan Insight reported on January 22 that Nebija had a
criminal record that included rape, burglary, and illegal possession of
weapons, and that police found weapons and two cars with false license
places at his home. This was the second police death in the past
half-year. The previous killing, in October 2007, was one of a number
of incidents that the government has described as criminal rather than
political (see "RFE/RL Newsline," September 5, October 25 and 31, and
November 5, 8, and 9, 2007). The violence has nonetheless stoked
concerns that, as in 2001, latent tensions between the minority
Albanian and majority Macedonian communities could turn violent.
Aracinovo was a stronghold of ethnic-Albanian separatists during the
six-month conflict in 2001. AG
[34] MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT WANTS 'STRATEGIC' PARTNERSHIP WITH RUSSIA...
Moldova would like to cooperate more closely with Russia and for the
two countries' relationship to "evolve into a true strategic
partnership," President Vladimir Voronin said during a visit to Moscow
on January 22. Neither Voronin nor his Russian counterpart, Vladimir
Putin, said much in public, but the meeting is seen as a further sign
of a rapprochement between Moscow and Chisinau following Putin's
decision to lift bans on the import of Moldovan wine, spirits, meat,
fruit, and vegetables (see "RFE/RL Newsline," March 15 and June 25,
2007). Administrative barriers to the resumption of trade have come
down only slowly and erratically, but recent trade figures indicate
that Moldovan producers are slowly beginning to recover some of the
Russian market lost during the course of the bans, which were imposed
in 2005 and 2006 and lifted only in 2007. No recent meeting between
Voronin and Putin -- including three in June 2007 -- has produced much
in terms of fresh deals or public information about the state of
relations between the two countries, prompting criticism in Moldova and
fueling suspicion that Voronin and Putin may be nearing an
understanding about the future of Transdniester, a region that broke
away from Moldova in 1992 and is heavily dependent on and closely
aligned with Russia. A report of a pending deal on Transdniester in
April 2007 was followed by a flurry of diplomatic activity aimed at
reviving multilateral talks on Transdniester's status, but they have
yet to be resumed (see "RFE/RL Newsline," April 23 and 27, and May 7,
19, and 25, 2007). Voronin enjoyed a close relationship with Moscow
when he came to power in 2001, but his decision in late 2003 to reverse
his position on a plan for Transdniester in the face of public
opposition was followed by a reorientation in his foreign policy toward
the European Union. AG
[35] ...AND WINS AWARD FROM RUSSIAN PATRIARCH
During his visit to Moscow, Moldovan President Voronin was given an
award from the Russian Orthodox Church in recognition of his
"outstanding work to strengthen the unity of Orthodox Christian
peoples," "The Moscow Times" and the Moldovan news agency IPN reported.
"The Moscow Times" said Patriarch Aleksy II made the award on January
21 specifically to thank Voronin for resisting the alleged expansion of
the Romanian Orthodox Church into Moldova. During Voronin's two terms
in office, Moldova has repeatedly been criticized for restricting
religious freedom and has been sanctioned by the European Court of
Human Rights, which in one ruling in 2001 obliged Moldova to recognize
the Bessarabian Orthodox Church, which belongs to the patriarchy of the
Romanian Orthodox Church. Since late December, four of the eight
Romanian priests in the church have been forced out of Moldova,
officially because they breached work regulations (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," January 7, 2008). That move prompted the church's head,
Metropolitan Petru Paduraru, to write to the Council of Europe in
mid-January protesting harassment by the Moldovan authorities.
According to the Russian news agency Interfax, Voronin told reporters
on January 21 that the establishment in October 2007 of three new
dioceses by the Bessarabian Orthodox Church is "part of Romania's
aggressive policy against the Moldovan state." Aleksy said the creation
of new dioceses "was an anticanonical pact of intrusion on the
territory of another local Orthodox Church and establishing its
dioceses there." AG
Southwestern Asia And The Middle East
[36] YOUNG AFGHAN JOURNALIST SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR 'BLASPHEMY'...
On January 22, Sayed Perwiz Kambakhsh, a 23-year-old journalism student
in northern Afghanistan's Balkh Province, was condemned to death in a
"secret trial" in the city of Mazar-e Sharif for allegedly writing an
article critical of the Prophet Muhammad's views on women's rights,
RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan reported. Local and international media
denounced the verdict as biased and unjust. The Institute for War and
Peace Reporting (IWPR), which is involved in training journalists in
Afghanistan, accused the local authorities of prosecuting Kambakhsh
because his brother, Sayed Yaqub Ibrahimi, works for IWPR. "We feel
very strongly that this is a complete fabrication on the part of the
authorities up in Mazar, designed to put pressure on Parwez's brother
Yaqub, who has done some of the hardest-hitting pieces outlining abuses
by some very powerful commanders in Balkh and the other northern
provinces," IWPR country manager Jean MacKenzie said. Ibrahimi told
RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan that "every member of our family is
concerned about it. We are sorry to see this unjust decision by the
Balkh court." Kambakhsh, a student at Balkh University and a reporter
for "Jahan-e Naw" (The New World), newspaper was detained in October
over critical comments in an article referencing verses in the Koran
that were about women rights. MM
[37] ...WHICH AFGHAN JOURNALISTS CONDEMN
The head of Afghanistan's Independent Journalists Association,
Rahimullah Samandar, strongly condemned the verdict against Kambakhsh,
Radio Free Afghanistan reported. "The Afghan Independent Journalists
Association, and...the Committee to Protect Afghan Journalists..., both
organizations, strongly condemn this decree," he said. "This is
illegal, this is unjust, it's unfair. It is in accordance with neither
Afghan law nor the Afghan Constitution." Samandar appealed to President
Hamid Karzai to reverse the verdict, accusing Islamic clerics of
putting undue pressure on the judicial system. Samandar pledged
continued opposition to the verdict and asserted: "We will appeal to
other courts. We will appeal to the international community, to
international media organizations, and also to the Afghan president,
and the Afghan parliament to help us," and remedy the injustice.
Separately, Reporters Without Borders urged Karzai on January 22 to
intervene in the Kambakhsh case "before it is too late." "We are deeply
shocked by this trial, carried out in haste and without any concern for
the law or for free expression, which is protected by the [Afghan]
constitution," the Paris-based media watchdog added. MM
[38] MULLAH OMAR REDIRECTS TALIBAN TO FIGHT U.S., NATO FORCES IN
AFGHANISTAN
In a continuing sign of a split within the Taliban leadership, the Hong
Kong-based "Asia Times Online" claimed on January 23 that its sources
have learned that Mullah Mohammad Omar, the supreme Taliban leader, has
removed Baitullah Mehsud as the leader of the Pakistani Taliban and
urged all Taliban forces to redirect their efforts against the U.S. and
NATO forces in Afghanistan. Mehsud and his foreign jihadist allies,
including Al-Qaeda, have reportedly been the force behind the recent
military attacks on Pakistani security forces in Waziristan,
undermining the ability of other Taliban leaders to reach a peace
accord with the government. With Mehsud now replaced, Omar is said to
be aiming to rally all Taliban fighters in the tribal areas for a
spring offensive in Afghanistan. After the recent sacking of Mansur
Dadullah in southern Afghanistan, Mehsud's removal, if confirmed, may
signal a purge of key Taliban commanders with close ideological and
operational ties to Al-Qaeda. MM
[39] WORLD POWERS DRAFT MILD UN RESOLUTION FOR IRAN...
The foreign ministers of the five permanent members of the UN Security
Council and Germany agreed on new sanctions targeting Iran's contested
nuclear program on January 22, though without punitive economic
measures sought by the United States, Reuters reported on January 23.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said in Berlin after
the meeting that the draft will be presented to the UN Security Council
within weeks. Media reports give an impression of persistent divisions
between the United States and Iran-friendly powers China and Russia.
Citing an unnamed U.S. official, Reuters reported that the new
sanctions will include travel bans and asset freezes on unspecified
Iranian officials, while an unnamed EU official separately told Reuters
that the draft resolution lacks punitive economic sanctions and
contains no warning to Iranian banks thought to be involved in
financing nuclear activities. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
said in Moscow on January 23 that the new resolution will not impose
harsh sanctions but urge states to be vigilant in trading with Iran and
prevent the transfer of sensitive material there, AP reported. British
Foreign Minister David Miliband was more positive about the agreement,
and urged Iran on January 23 to choose economic incentives and the
benefits of cooperation with the international community, instead of
confrontation, AFP reported. VS
[40] ...AS PRESIDENT VOWS NUCLEAR PROGRAM WILL CONTINUE
President Mahmud Ahmadinejad said in Tehran on January 23 that any new
UN resolution against Iran would be illegal and ineffective, nor would
it deter Iran's bid to develop nuclear technology, Iranian and Western
news agencies reported. Ahmadinejad told the media in Tehran that "we
shall continue our path in the framework of international laws to
attain our evident rights. These countries cannot threaten" Iran or
"impose anything," and Iran will not stop its activities due to the
sanctions, Radio Farda reported. Iran's Supreme National Security
Council Secretary Said Jalili separately met with European
parliamentarians in Brussels on January 23 and reiterated that Iran's
is a peaceful program and nuclear weapons are not a part of its
defensive doctrine, Bloomberg reported. The head of media affairs at
the Supreme National Security Council, Ahmad Khademolmelleh, told IRNA
on January 23 that Jalili discussed a "shared paradigm" with EU
parliamentarians, and proposed talks on energy security, democracy, and
economic ties. He said Jalili's proposals indicated Iran wants
relations with the EU to go beyond the nuclear issue. Jalili met in
Brussels with European Parliament members including Angelika Beer, a
Green member familiar with Iranian affairs, and the head of the
parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, IRNA
reported. He was to meet on January 24 with EU External Relations
Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner, IRNA reported. VS
[41] IRANIAN MINISTRY SAYS IT APPROVED MOST HOPEFULS FOR POLLS
Following public objections by Iranian reformists that the Interior
Ministry has disqualified most of their registered hopefuls for the
mid-March parliamentary elections, Deputy Interior Minister Mohammad
Hussein Musapur told the Fars news agency in Tehran on January 23 that
the ministry has approved "more than 70 percent" of registered
candidates. Musapur said that of some 7,200 registrants, the ministry's
executive boards disqualified 20 percent and were unable to establish
the eligibility of a further 10 percent. Those approved by ministry
personnel must now be approved by the Guardians Council, a body of
senior clerics and jurists. Musapur said those in the uncertain 10
percent could take their cases to the Guardians Council. Reformist
campaign spokesman Abdollah Naseri told ISNA on January 22 that
reformists will use all legal channels "to follow up the issue of the
extensive disqualification of reformists." The disqualified or
"unqualified" include former members of parliament such as Elias
Hazrati, and sitting members from the minority or reformist faction
including Qodratollah Alikhani and Mehranguiz Morovvati, "Aftab-i Yazd"
reported on January 23, citing Iranian websites. VS
[42] IRANIAN RIGHTS GROUP CALLS FOR INQUIRY INTO STUDENT'S DEATH
The Center for Human Rights Defenders, a Tehran-based body led by the
Nobel Peace laureate and lawyer Shirin Ebadi, has in a statement called
on the Iranian government to investigate the death in custody of
student Ibrahim Lotfollahi, Radio Farda reported on January 23.
Officials in Sanandaj, western Iran, informed Lotfollahi's relatives on
January 15 that he committed suicide in prison there; his relatives are
skeptical. The Center for Human Rights Defenders said that there was a
"big question mark" over the fact that Iranian security agents
reportedly buried Lotfollahi at night, instead of handing his body over
to relatives for possible postmortem examinations. The statement
observed that suspect deaths are no surprise when interrogations are
not supervised in Iranian detention centers. "Such incidents are
warnings to officials to find a way to control the conduct of their
agents," the statement read. The New York-based Human Rights Watch also
called on Iran on January 18 to investigate the suspicious deaths of
Lotfollahi and Zahra Bani Yaqub, a medical student who died in
detention in the western town of Hamedan three months ago. Lotfollahi
was arrested in Sanandaj on January 6 and is thought to have died on
January 15, Radio Farda reported. VS
[43] IRANIAN PRESIDENT ACCEPTS INVITATION TO VISIT IRAQ
The Iraqi Foreign Ministry announced on January 23 that Iranian
President Mahmud Ahmadinejad has accepted an invitation from Iraqi
President Jalal Talabani to visit Baghdad, RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq
reported. No date has been announced for the visit, which will be the
first by an Iranian leader to Iraq since the Islamic regime came to
power in 1979. Talabani, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, and several
cabinet officials have led delegations to Tehran in recent months. KR
[44] IRAQI POLICE CHIEF KILLED IN SUICIDE BOMB ATTACK
Mosul Police Chief Brigadier General Salih Muhammad Hassan was killed
in a January 24 suicide bomb attack as he toured the wreckage from a
blast the previous day that destroyed an abandoned apartment building
used by insurgents. The attacker, wearing a police uniform, approached
Hassan and his bodyguards and blew himself up, Reuters reported. One
bodyguard was killed in the attack and five others were wounded. The
January 23 attack on the abandoned building in Mosul killed at least 12
civilians and three Iraqi Army personnel and wounded 132 civilians,
Multinational Force - Iraq reported on January 24. Many of the victims
were women and children. Reuters reported that 35 nearby homes were
either badly damaged or destroyed by the blast. U.S. Major General Mark
P. Hertling blamed the attack on Al-Qaeda in Iraq. KR
[45] IRAQI VICE PRESIDENT SAYS SUNNIS NOT YET DISCUSSING RETURN TO
GOVERNMENT
Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi told Al-Sharqiyah television that the
Iraqi Accordance Front (Al-Tawafuq) has yet to hold negotiations with
the government that would pave the way for the front's ministers to
return to work, the news channel reported on January 23. Media reports
in recent days suggested the front has already entered into
negotiations with the government (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 22,
2008). Al-Hashimi told Al-Sharqiyah that the government has yet to meet
the front's demands. "To be clear, the talks held days ago were only
general ones. Negotiations have not yet started," al-Hashimi said,
adding that talks "will begin when we open and discuss the Iraqi
Accordance Front's demands one by one." KR
[46] IRAQI GOVERNMENT SAYS 25 MILLION LAND MINES NEED TO BE REMOVED
Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh and Environment Minister
Narmin Uthman told reporters at a January 23 press briefing in Baghdad
that an estimated 25 million land mines remain planted in fields across
the country, RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq reported. That equals about one
land mine for every citizen, al-Dabbagh said. He added that the mines
are spread across some 4,000 minefields, and that some date back to the
1980-88 Iran-Iraq War and the 1991 Gulf War, as well as the 2003 war.
Uthman said she will head the effort to remove the land mines, which,
she said, have hindered development in the agriculture and oil sectors.
KR
[47] RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER ASKS IRAQ TO SET DATE FOR TROOP
WITHDRAWAL
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called on the Iraqi government
to set a date for the withdrawal of multinational forces from Iraq,
ITAR-TASS reported on January 23. "We understand the position of the
Iraqi government, that it cannot cope on its own without foreign
troops, but we believe it would be correct to fix the approximate terms
for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq," Lavrov said in Moscow.
He contended that a withdrawal of multinational forces would "make the
situation in the country somewhat calmer." "The factor of the presence
of foreign troops plays a substantial role in what concerns the
situation in the security sphere," he said. Lavrov also called on the
Iraqi government to work toward developing a national reconciliation
program. KR
End Note
[48] THERE IS NO END NOTE TODAY.
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