EU ministers gave a tiny bit of ground to the German position, and have agreed to a very small rollback of sanctions against Uzbekistan. From the EU Council’s conclusions on Uzbekistan (PDF):
The Council recalls its Common Position of 13 November 2006, lifting restrictions on technical meetings, and extending the arms embargo for another 12 months and the visa restrictions for another 6 months. The Council decided to renew the visa restrictions for individuals listed in the annex of the relevant Common Position for another 6 months.
It may look as if everything has been extended, but to spot where sanctions have been reduced, one apparently has to look at the list of individuals in the “annex of the relevant Common Position.” According to RFE/RL, four names have been removed from the visa ban list, and the EU has not named them. Those removed from the list all are apparently no longer serving in the same positions they held at the time of the Andijon events. The list originally included the following twelve people:
1. Almatov, Zakirjan, Minister of Interior
2. Mullajonov, Tokhir Okhunovich, First Deputy Interior Minister
3. Gulamov, Kadir Gafurovich, Defence Minister
4. Mirzaev, Ruslan, National Security Council State Adviser
5. Begaliyev , Saidullo Begaliyevich, Andizhan Regional Governor
6. Akhmedov, Kossimali, Major General
7. Ergashev, Ismail Ergashevitch, Major General (Retired)
8. Ergashev, Pavel Islamovich, Colonel
9. Mamo, Vladimir Adolfovich, Major General
10. Pak, Gregori, Colonel
11. Tadzhiev, Valeri, Colonel
12. Inoyatov, Rustam Raulovich, Chief of SNB (National Security Service)
Almatov is retired, so he is probably off the list. Kadyr Gulyamov was removed from office in November 2005 and is reported to have had criminal charges levied against him. One could go on through the list and find out who has moved and at this point, figure they were removed from the list. That apparently was the criterion for deciding whom to remove. Ruslan Mirzaev became Defense Minister after Gulyamov was sacked, and there was an attempt — thwarted by the Netherlands — to remove him from the list.
Defence Minister Ruslan Mirzayev remained on the list after the Netherlands objected to a proposal to remove restrictions on him. The seven other banned individuals include the chief of the National Security Service Rustam Inoyatov and several special forces officers.
The Council’s conclusions also called for the release of Gulbahor Turaeva and other human rights activists and the removal of restrictions on Umida Niazova. The ministers say they welcome more human rights dialogue with Uzbekistan and that they will reconsider sanctions if Uzbekistan makes constructive efforts to meet its human rights obligations.
This post was written by...
Nathan Hamm – author of 2974 posts on Registan.net.
Nathan is the Founding Editor and Publisher of Registan.net, which he launched in 2003. He was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Uzbekistan 2000-2001 and received his MA in Central Asian Studies from the University of Washington in 2007. Since 2007, he has worked full-time as an analyst, consulting with private and government clients on Central Asian affairs, specializing in how socio-cultural and political factors shape risks and opportunities and how organizations can adjust their strategic and operational plans to account for these variables. Nathan is currently seeking research, analysis, and consulting opportunities. He can be contacted via Twitter or email.
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