Tajikistan demands Russians for base rent; India needs Iran to connect to Central Asia; Riyadh to fund one of the transport corridors in Kyrgyzstan; World Bank to finance Kyrgyz hydroelectric facilities and canals; Kazakh defense ministry purchases 8 Airb
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    • According to reports, the Tajik ambassador to Moscow Abdulmajid Dostiyev said that Russia must start paying rent for use of military facilities in Tajikistan. He conceded that the Tajikistan would even accept 10 percent of the rent demanded last year by the Tajik Foreign Minister Khamrokhon Zarifi to a tune of $300 million per year for the four bases that Russia uses. 1

    In another development, according to reports, notwithstanding the U.S. pressure to scale down its engagement with Iran, official sources in New Delhi said that Iran not only remains an important source of oil for India, but is crucial to opening up routes to Central Asian and Caucasian countries, where New Delhi's quest for hydrocarbons and minerals is gathering critical mass. 2

    Reports noted that Saudi Arabia will fund $15 million for the construction of the critical road, stretching from the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek through central town Naryn to the border town with China, Torugart. 3 This will be one of the six priority transport corridors in the region. In order to improve farm irrigation in Kyrgyzstan, the World Bank offers to fund the reconstruction of nearly 2,000 hydroelectric facilities and canals. 4

    According to reports, the Kazakh defense ministry has purchased two planes from Airbus Military, a subsidiary of European aerospace firm EADS, and has placed an order for six more. The planes are of the C295 model, and are to be used for maritime patrol. 5

    Reports noted that Kazakh Defense Minister Adilbek Dzhaksybekov and his British counterpart on 27th February inked a military transit deal that would permit Britain to open up an overland supply route to get military equipment out of Afghanistan, after Pakistan closed a vital supply route to NATO troops. 6

    In other developments, reports noted that Kazakhstan has put forward its application to join the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) from 2013-2015, despite the fact that it has in recent months has come under scrutiny for human rights abuses, especially following the brutal crackdown on union protesters last year in the restive western province of Zhanaozen. 7 In the meanwhile, Kazakh state-owned oil and gas firm KazMunaiGas (KMG) recently secured a $4 billion loan from Kazakhstan’s general welfare fund, Samruk-Kazyna, to develop the Kashagan project. 8

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