Cablegate: Update On Uzbekistan's Contributions to Afghan

VZCZCXRO3306
RR RUEHDBU RUEHIK RUEHPOD RUEHPW RUEHSL RUEHYG
DE RUEHNT #1483 2541109
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 111108Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY TASHKENT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1312
INFO AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE
NATO EU COLLECTIVE
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RHMFIUU/CDR USTRANSCOM SCOTT AFB IL

UNCLAS TASHKENT 001483

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL NATO ELTN AF UZ
SUBJECT: UPDATE ON UZBEKISTAN'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO AFGHAN
RECONSTRUCTION

1. (U) Summary: Following recent discussions on the
subject, the MFA of Uzbekistan provided the Embassy with an update
on their involvement in the socio-economic reconstruction of
Afghanistan. The contributions of the GOU have been primarily in
the area of restoring and rebuilding infrastructure, including
cooperation on the development of the International Trans-Afghan
Transportation Corridor and facilitation of the shipment of goods
through the Hairaton Customs Facility on the Uzbek-Afghan border.
The export of electricity from Uzbekistan to Afghanistan has grown
steadily over the last three years, with plans to continue
increasing the volume of electricity supplied. Finally, a fiber
optic communications network connecting Afghanistan and Uzbekistan
has been partially completed. End Summary.

INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT: TRANSPORTATION AND TRANSIT

--------------------------------------------- ----------------------
-----------------

2. (U) In 2003, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Iran signed a
Trilateral Agreement on the creation of the International
Trans-Afghan Transportation Corridor (ITTC). The charter of the
Interstate Coordination Council (ICC) on the creation of the ITTC
was approved in 2005. To date, Uzbekistan has built eleven bridges
in the region between Mazar-e-Sharif and Kabul.

3. (U) Since the Hairaton Customs Facility in Termez,
Uzbekistan, opened in November 2003, more than 6 million tons of
humanitarian and other goods have entered Afghanistan through it.
The GOU believes that it is providing a valuable service to the
international community as a whole by facilitating transshipment of
goods to Afghanistan.

ENERGY

-----------

4. (U) Uzbekistan resumed its export of electricity to
Afghanistan in 2002. In the past few years, the volume of
electricity that Uzbekistan has supplied to Afghanistan has
increased steadily: exports were up from 20 Megawatts (MW) in 2007
to 24 MW in 2008 and are estimated to reach 150 MW by the end of
2009. A new power line and a new electricity substation unit were
put into operation in 2009 in order to increase Uzbekistan's
capacity to send power to Kabul. The GOU expects to export 300MW
of energy to Afghanistan in 2010.

COMMUNICATIONS

---------------------------

5. (U) The GOU and the IRoA began to cooperate in the area
of fiber optic communications in 2008, with the goal of connecting
Afghanistan to Uzbekistan's fiber-optic communication system.
Cable installation for this project has already been completed
within Uzbekistan; on the Afghan side of the border, nine out of a
total of 32 planned communication hubs have already been installed.

COMMENT

----------------

6. (SBU) Comment: Uzbekistan's important, albeit modest
contributions to Afghan reconstruction and development are
indicators of the caution with which the GOU's leadership
approaches the Afghan situation generally. Our challenge is to
slowly push the envelope of this engagement and give the Uzbeks a
greater stake in helping their Southern neighbor.
NORLAND

© Scoop Media