n a 70-minute address to the parliament session on 30th August broadcast on Uzbek radio, Uzbek President Islam Karimov criticized Russian newspapers for spreading false information about the situation in Uzbekistan and Central Asia with regard to the recent militants' incursion into the country, and said that such articles were of a made-to-order nature. He said:

"The `Izvestiya' newspaper on 25th August carried [an article]. I don't know who the journalist is - a certain Maksim Yusin. Of course, he did not write it himself. We know that someone prepares and gives them and why they are published. If you read what they write it looks as if big military operations were carried out here, that there was no peaceful place on the territory of Uzbekistan and that many thousands of militants were set to invade the country, that, in general, Uzbekistan, Central Asia has turned into a place for harbouring militants.

"According to the newspaper, our country's relations with neighbouring countries are deteriorating, we allegedly are confronting each other and the number of militants who have penetrated the Tashkent Region is very great and tomorrow they could possibly attack the city of Tashkent, while they in Moscow are sympathetic to us.

Some time later the `Komsomolskaya Pravda' newspaper wrote that the city of Tashkent was surrounded by approximately 300,000 Wahhabists! Three hundred thousand! More than 300,000 Wahhabists had allegedly surrounded the city of Tashkent and were going to invade Tashkent tomorrow! And [it alleged] that the Uzbek government was at a loss and did not know what to do. Every day the Russian press writes that a great number of groups [of militants] have been concentrated in northern Afghanistan to attack our country.

"I would like to repeat that publishing such materials has its own aim. It is an issue for seperate talk. But I would like to address my people, the public and say that during the events at Paytok in Izboskan District [in eastern Andizhan Reigon, when Uzbek forces flushed out an armed group] I realized that our people will never allow such machinations. They will never add water to their mill. Never!"

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he Uzbek president has called for joint efforts to remove security threats to the Central Asian region. Speaking to journalists at the ceremony of opening a section of the Tashkent-Andizhan-Osh-Kashgar road at the Kamchik pass, Islam Karimov said international forces with "big money" were behind the recent outbreak of violence on Uzbek and Kyrgyz borders. He also said the Tajik authorities should stop denying that their territory was being used by militants to get training and cross to Uzbekistan. Karimov also said the new road was important from the security point of view as it would help stop militants from infiltrating the country. The following are excerpts from a special Uzbek TV programme on 29th August:

[Presenter] Respected television viewers, the ceremony of opening the Kamchik and Rezak tunnels, which are the main connecting part of the Tashkent-Andizhan-Osh-Kashgar road, took place today. Here is our report on the ceremony.

[Question] Foreign and Uzbek journalists were impressed with the opening ceremony of the Kamchik and Rezak tunnels. President Islam Karimov answered many questions from journalists.

[Karimov in Uzbek] This route is very important for Uzbekistan from the security point of view. We can talk about this. People understand this. Those who want to understand will understand it, and those who do not want to understand, they will not.

I want to say that there are certain rats gawking at and attempting to cross our borders. Their patrons - rascals with ill intentions and and big money and their international centres - want to turn Uzbekistan into an area under their influence. Many events show this. For example, take the events taking place in Saryassiya [District in southern Surkhandarya Region] and in mountainous areas in Tashkent Region. We have many new opportunities to destroy them [militants] in mountainous areas of Tashkent Region. It started yesterday and is continuing today. No doubt that they will bite the dust very soon.

This route plays a great role in putting obstacles in the way of the rascals, rats and poisonous snakes attempting to penetrate into our country, in sealing our borders. It will be a kind of a fortress against any mean forces, which are easily entering the valley from outside, and will serve to strengthen our borders. This route plays a great role from the security point of view, too. We should never forget about this.

[Question] How do you assess the security of Uzbekistan's borders? Do you think that this year's events are more serious than those last year?

[Karimov in Russian]

Their [militants'] bases are located in mountainous areas in eastern Tajikistan - these are the Tavildara, Jirgatol, Hoit, Gharm and Qarotegin areas. The Mastchoh area, called old Mastchoh, has now been added to those. However, Tajikistan's leaders deny this. I repeat again that we have a large amount of evidence. If they continue to say that they do not know where they [militants] have crossed from, we will be forced to publish testimonies of prisoners, the testimonies of the bandits taken prisoner both by us and the Kyrgyz and the Tajik themselves. The evidence will be made public and then I do not know what other reasons or grounds will they find to say that Tajikistan, or Tajikistan's leadership, or Tajik territory have nothing to do with this. But this is not serious. This the assessment of the events happening this year.

I must say that impunity always brings the consequences we see today. I will reiterate that impunity always leads to the most grievous results. I mean the ransoms these bandits have received, I will not specify how much, you know very well about this. This has given them the opportunity to build up their forces once again, buy new weapons and train new bandits with vigorous backing from international extremist centres, camps and bases in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

I met, Mr [Gen Pervez] Musharraf, the Pakistani leader [Chief Executive] at the ECO [Economic Cooperation Organization] member countries summit in Teheran, quite recently, about two months ago. I handed him the addresses of all the camps for training bandits, saboteurs and terrorists not only in Afghanistan, not only around Kabul or Mazar-e Sharif, so to speak, in the north, but also on the territory of Pakistan itself - the Peshawar area in the north of Pakistan, the Karachi area and so on. We know about these bases, they had been put on a map and I personally handed over the list of these bases and camps to Mr Musharraf in the presence of his foreign minister. He promised to look into all these incidents and take relevant measures, as it were.

I will not tell you about our talks, I will not say what we agreed on. But, answering this question, I want to say that in the person of Mr Musharraf I see a man who is seeking to bring order in his country, a man who sincerely wants to put an end to that chaos in Afghanistan, a man who wants to establish normal, I would say, friendly relations with the Central Asian countries, including Uzbekistan. I want your newspapers or radio stations tell about my attitude to this man. I hope that all his plans will be realized. However, I understand quite well what powerful forces are there in Islamabad and what powerful forces are setting the tone there today. We know this. But at the same time I must admit that Mr Musharraf is trying do something, he is striving and we can see this.

I must say that we have been carrying out all this preparatory work for a year. I am reiterating, such work is being carried out both on the Uzbek-Tajik and the Tajik-Kyrgyz borders. Thus we have enough evidence, including radio interceptions. We are analysing other data as well as information from prisoners.

What other evidence the Tajik leadership needs to start paying attention and acknowledge that not the whole of Tajik territory is controlled by government troops? Such acknowledgement, I think, would give us the opportunity to neutralize these forces. But it [Tajikistan] has stubbornly tried to deny that these forces have been trained on Tajik territory - what is more, they were helped and were escorted by Kamaz lorries. These incidents are well known and attempts to deny them, I reiterate, sound unconvincing and this will do no good. This danger must be eliminated jointly by all those who are interested in putting an end to this aggression and incursion by gang formations.

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zbekistan's relations with Tajikistan will continue to be built on a strong foundation of good neighbourliness and friendship," President Islam Karimov told journalists during a break in the session of the Uzbek Parliament which started in Tashkent today.

Karimov stressed: "No forces can hinder our two countries in this. I would like to say yet again what has been said many times before - Uzbeks and Tajiks are one people which just speaks two different languages, Uzbek and Tajik. This, I think, says it all about how relations of Uzbekistan will develop not only today but also in the distant future." (Russian news agency ITAR-TASS, August 30)

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zbekistan and China exchanged instruments of ratification of an extradition treaty on Wednesday [30th August] in the Uzbek capital of Tashkent, the Chinese embassy in Tashkent told Xinhua.

The treaty, signed in Beijing in November 1999, was approved respectively by the Uzbek and Chinese parliaments in February and July this year. The treaty will enter into force on 29th September. (Chinese news agency Xinhua, August 30)

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zbek President Islam Karimov has called on Central Asian countries to coordinate their activities in fighting international terrorists.

Speaking at a parliament session in Tashkent today, he called on Tajiks not to allow "our common enemy" to take shelter "on sacred Tajik soil."

Fugitives from Uzbekistan have undergone training in Afghanistan and eastern Tajikistan and have become professional militants and terrorists, Karimov said. He praised the Tajik cabinet for its effort to instil peace and stability in its country.

"Peace has just begun to take hold in Tajikistan, but certain countries want it to swerve from the road it has taken. Those who fomented trouble in Tajikistan and now pose as neutrals are supporting terrorists who want to subvert Uzbekistan. These cowardly groups will stop at nothing. It is not accidental that they are targeting Uzbekistan, the region's largest country. The choice that Uzbekistan makes will influence the entire region," Karimov said.

Karimov praised Kyrgyz army units fighting militants who are trying to infiltrate into Uzbekistan from Tajikistan across Kyrgyzstan. Uzbekistan supports whatever Kyrgyzstan and its president, Askar Akayev, are doing, he said. (Russian news agency Interfax, August 30)

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cooperation agreement has been signed between the Tojiktekstilmash [Tajik textile machinery] production amalgamation in Dushanbe and enterprises of the cotton processing industry in Uzbekistan.

The chief engineer of the Tojiktekstilmash, Juma Kholmatov, told a Khovar news agency correspondent that the amalgamation would produce cotton cleaning machinery and spinning looms for cotton processing plants in Bukhara, Samarkand [southwestern Uzbekistan] and Fergana, Kokand and Andizhan [eastern Uzbekistan]. In exchange, cotton processing enterprises in Uzbekistan will provide fuel and varoius metals to the amalgamation or transfer cash [Kholmatov said].

This sort of equipment and spare parts for them are in great demand now that cotton harvesting is in full swing. (Tajik radio, August 30)

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zbek President Islam Karimov has called for greater vigilance to ensure security, especially in border areas, and said that neighbourhood and frontier guard auxiliary detachments should play "an extremely important role" in this. Addressing parliament, Karimov said that measures should be taken to provide defence, law enforcement and security agencies, as well as these public detachments, with the "necessary means to increase their combat readiness". He said extremist forces had lead astray "weak-willed people" with "big money" and promises to build mosques and religious schools. The following is the text of the radio report:

[Presenter] The third session of the Supreme Assembly of the Republic of Uzbekistan of the second convocation started its work in Tashkent today. The chairman of the Supreme Assembly, Erkin Khalilov, opened the session. After that, the session elected its secretariat and approved the agenda. Then the floor was given to the president of our country. Before beginning his speech, the head of our country asked the deputies to stand for a minute to pay tribute to the memory of those brave lads of our country who gave their life to preserve the stability of our borders and the population's peaceful life. After that, the president dwelt on events taking place at the borders. Amongst other things, he said the following:

[President Islam Karimov] Since the first days when we gained our state independence, the restoring of our trampled [national] values, traditions, faith and our culture has been a priority task for us. Unfortunately, certain people have taken advantage of all this, that is, of our attitude towards our sacred religion, in order to meet their dishonest aims and for turning our religion into politics. As a result, people belonging to various harmful sects such as Wahhabism [conservative Muslim trend] and Hezb-e Tahrir [banned Party of Liberation] have appeared in our country. The growing activity of those people and centres which advocate the restoration of true Islam and the setting up of eighth-century caliphates, but in fact who are trying to take our country dozens and hundreds years back, has been especially felt in our country over the last few years.

Life itself calls on each intelligent person to realize how dangerous this threat is to our present day and future and to take measures against it.

These extremist forces started their activity in the years when the former Soviet Union collapsed. Centres with huge financial resources, their representatives who entered our country under the cover of compatriots and as people belonging to the same religion, advocated their false ideas and slogans, which at first glance looked impressive. They even expressed their readiness to build mosques and madrassahs. Using big money, they led astray certain weak-willed people, the aftereffect of which is felt even in our present day life.

They especially increased their activity from 1991 to 1993. At the beginning, we accepted these people as religious, as people rendering us unselfish aid for the sake of God. The majority of our people not only opened their doors widely but also their souls to them. Of course a reason for that was also our people's unaffectedness, benevolence and generosity. Because if there are two unaffected nations in the world, one of them is the Uzbek people, and if there is only one then it is the Uzbek people.

The most damage these evil forces inflicted on our country was that they tried and have been trying to lead our young people astray. They have been poisoning their brains at various mosques, distorting the true essence of our sacred religion, misinterpreting it. And by leading our children astray they are attempting to set them against their people, country and parents. As a result of such dirty machinations, many young people have been trapped by fundamentalists for big money.

Stepping up the population's vigilance, above all of those citizens living on border areas, is especially important for ensuring our country's security. Mahalla [neighbourhood] and Frontier Guards' auxiliary detachments should play an extremely important role here. Currently, there are more than 7,000 Mahalla and more than 150 Frontier Guards' detachments functioning in our country. These detachments made up of brave and courageous young people, who are loyal to their homeland, should become an important link in ensuring the country's security. Measures should be taken to provide defence, law enforcement and security agencies, as well as these public detachments, with the necessary means to increase their combat readiness.

Local neighbourhood committees should step up their activity to ensure public order, enhance people's vigilance and their intelligent attitude towards events taking place around them. Their task and main duty should be to increase the population's, the public's vigilance severalfold and to bring the call "Let's protect our home ourselves" to be implemented in practice.

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he Tashkent office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees has provided humanitarian aid for the people removed from the areas of combat operations against international terrorists in Saryassiya District, [southern] Surkhandarya Region.

Tents, blankets, mattresses, kitchen sets and hygienic goods have been handed over through Uzbekistan's Red Crescent Society. The Termez UNHCR office also delivered a consignment of blankets to be distributed among residents of the republic's southern areas.

The head of the UNHCR mission in Tashkent, Peter Nicolaus, told a Turkiston Press national news agency correspondent that over the last three years the mission had been actively cooperating with the Red Crescent Society of Uzbekistan by assisting in setting up a mobile camp and fitting it with basic equipment. Nicolaus said that their office in Uzbekistan had been increasing its local resources in case of emergency situations. (Uzbek newspaper 'Tashkentskaya Pravda')

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zbekistan "categorically denies" foreign media reports to the effect that it has sought military assistance from Russia in the fight against the terrorists who have intruded into that republic. An ITAR-TASS correspondent was told this today by Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Komilov. Such claims "can only be viewed as wishful thinking", he said.

As for military and technical cooperation with Russia, "it is continuing within the framework of agreements concluded earlier in the usual way", the minister remarked.

On Tuesday [29th August], the head of the International Military Cooperation Division in the Russian Defence Ministry, Col-Gen Leonid Ivashov, denied reports to the effect that Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan had asked Russia for urgent military assistance in connection with the intrusion of Islamic fighters. "Firstly, no such requests have been received, and, secondly, there is no need for that, and the matter is not under consideration at the Russian Defence Ministry," he stated. Gen Ivashov voiced the conviction that the armed forces and law-enforcement bodies in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan "will cope, using their own resources, but military and technical assistance will be provided as necessary". (Russian news agency ITAR-TASS, August 30)

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ussia will provide Uzbekistan with "all necessary assistance, and not only in the political sphere", to eliminate the gangs of fighters who have infiltrated that Central Asian republic. According to the Russian foreign minister, "so far, there has been a request from the Uzbek leadership concerning the provision of assistance regarding individual types of weapons". "That matter is being considered, and a positive decision will, I think, be taken," Ivanov commented. (Russian news agency Interfax, August 30)

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ext of report by the Uzbek newspaper 'Ozbekiston Ovozi'.

A curse be on the rebellious son

Nobody says anything to me, but the damnation of being "the mother of traitor Tohir Yoldosh [a leader of the banned Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan]" has covered me with shame. My youngest son was five when his father died. I worked hard in a bakery and brought him up with difficulties. I turned this disobedient Tohir out of the house after he had for nothing severely beaten up his younger brother. Ten years have passed and I have not seen him since. I wish I died instead of giving birth to such a bloodthirsty and evil child.

I was invited to a meeting at a school and everybody said "damn you!" to me. What can I say, if this good-for-nothing, unbelieving evil is my son. Even my grandchildren cannot mix with others. I am giving up the traitor, who has disturbed people's peaceful life and is serving to beasts, to spirits. Let his father's spirit punish him. I am sure that curses of a mother like me, who has had a hard life, will have effect. Facing the kiblah [the direction of Mecca, to which Muslims turn in prayer] I, as a mother, say: may Tohir be swallowed up by the earth, may he and his accomplices rot in their graves.

As soon as I hear that the traitors, who have renounced their parents, have been destroyed, I will find money and give a party. I blush before our president and all the people. May this rebellious Tohir, who has made me feel like this, die. (By Karomat Asqarova, Tohir Yoldoshev's mother, the town of Namangan, Avliyo domla neighbourhood)

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man disguised as a shepherd who was allegedly spying on government troops has been detained in the mountains in Parkent Districts of Tashkent Region, `Vatanparvar' newspaper reported on 29th August.

The man was spotted in the area of the deployment of an artillery subdivision responsible for the Region's Parkent and Bostanlyk Districts, the paper said. A guard saw that "the stranger turned his binoculars in the direction of the military unit and, obviously, started observing," it said.

"After the detention, the suspect pretended he was a local shepherd, however failed to answer how many sheep he had and where they were grazing. He had no identification documents on him. It has only been established that the `shepherd' is 21 years old," the paper said. It added that the relevant agencies were establishing his identity and what he was doing in that area.

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wo Uzbek servicemen held hostage by the Islamic terrorists were freed in Bostanlyk District in Tashkent Region on Wednesday [30th August], the Uzbek Defence Ministry's press service has announced.

During an operation to reveal and eliminate gangs of international terrorists who had crossed into Uzbekistan's high-mountain districts from the Asht District of Tajikistan's Leninobod Region, a group of 15 rebels were found in the area of the Chitkal range.

Eight terrorists were killed and a large amount of weapons and ammunition were confiscated. The two border guards who had been considered missing were freed. The surviving terrorists have been sealed off. The government troops are continuing the operation to eliminate them. (Russian news agency Interfax, August 30)

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he national football team of Uzbekistan lost its friendly match against Russia's professional club CSKA 2:0 in Moscow on Tuesday. 1,000 people attended the match that Uzbekistan used to see the condition of its players before the Asian Cup in Lebanon later this year. Shatskikh from Dynamo Kyiv and Kasymov from Krilya Sovetov (Russia) played in the match as well as some new players. Other key players like Akopyants and Fedorov didn't play but coach Yuriy Sarkisyan had a chance to speak to them. CSKA scored its both goals ten minutes before the end of the match. The second goal was made from the penalty after keeper Bugalo fouled against a CSKA forward. This match was possible due to the efforts of CSKA coach Pavel Sadyrin who had served as the coach of the Uzbek national team for two months before returning to CSKA for the third time.

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hina will supply armaments to Tashkent, Uzbek President Islam Karimov said on Tuesday.

He said that Uzbek Defence Minister Yuriy Agzamov visited China three days ago and signed an accord on the military and military-technical cooperation. "That agreement gives us a lot of chances. Primarily, it gives the legal basis for the bilateral relations. From now on Uzbekistan can count on the military assistance of China in the repulsion of an aggression which is being planned at the international centres on territory of Afghanistan and other South Asian countries," Karimov said.

China has supplied several hundreds of sniper rifles, flak- jackets and other material to Uzbekistan. "That assistance is not large, but we value the very fact of China's sympathy and intention to help us," Karimov said. "Uzbekistan is not simply satisfied with the move of China. It is very grateful to China and personally Jiang Zemin." (Russian news agency ITAR-TASS, August 29)

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zbek President Islam Karimov on Tuesday [29th August] accused Dushanbe of connivance with extremists.

"No matter how the leadership of Tajikistan denies that, we have plenty of facts to confirm the situation. If Tajikistan continues to say that terrorists did not come to Uzbek and Kyrgyz lands from the territory of Tajikistan, we will have to publish official testimonies of the captured and other documents," Karimov said.

"It is at least not serious for the authorities of Tajikistan to deny the fact that international terrorists have settled in the highland zone of the republic, the Dzhirgatal, Tavildara, Garm and Matchin areas. What else is needed for an official announcement of the Tajik leadership headed by Emomali Rahmonov that terrorists have settled on their territory and they need help to destroy the terrorists and their centres? In that case, I can assure you, both Uzbekistan and other Central Asian republics will give assistance to Tajikistan," he said. (Russian news agency ITAR-TASS, August 29)

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ceremony was held to mark the launch of a railway bridge over the Chirchik river near the Sergeli railway station [in Tashkent] on the eve of Uzbekistan's Independence Day.

Addressing the gathering, Deputy Prime Minister Anatoliy Isayev underlined that the cost of the construction of the bridge would be recouped hundred times and that the bridge would serve to improve the railway link between Almalyk and Angren [both in Tashkent Region] and the Fergana Valley.

The bridge is 215 metres long, 56 metres longer than the previous one. This will enable to solve the problem of making way for flood waters. Millions of soms have been spent to reinforce the river banks and bed in this section of the river. (Uzbek "Narodnoe Slovo" newspaper)

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he official opening ceremony of the Kamchik and Rezak tunnels at the Kamchik pass, linking the Uzbek capital, Tashkent, with the Fergana Valley was held on Tuesday with Uzbek President Islam Karimov's participation.

Afterwards, the president gave an interview to the mass media. In reply to the question about the importance of the fact that the tunnels meet world standards and specific features of their location he said:

[Karimov] This route is very important for Uzbekistan from the security point of view. We can talk about this. People understand this. Those who want to understand will understand it, and those who do not want to understand, they will not.

I want to say that there are certain rats gawking at and attempting to cross our borders. Their patrons - rascals with ill intentions and and big money and their international centres - want to turn Uzbekistan into an area under their influence. Many events show this. For example, take the events taking place in Saryassiya [District in southern Surkhandarya Region] and in mountainous areas in Tashkent Region. We have many new opportunities to destroy them [militants] in mountainous areas of Tashkent Region. It started yesterday and is continuing today. No doubt that they will bite the dust very soon.

This route plays a great role in putting obstacles in the way of the rascals, rats and poisonous snakes attempting to penetrate into our country, in sealing our borders. It will be a kind of a fortress against any mean forces, which are easily entering the valley from outside, and will serve to strengthen our borders. This route plays a great role from the security point of view, too. We should never forget about this. (Uzbek Radio, August 29)

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he Uzbek authorities will not hold talks with representatives of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, Uzbek President Islam Karimov told the press on Tuesday [29th August].

Tohir Yoldosh and Juma Namangoniy, the leaders of this movement, are "bandits who are being searched for", Karimov said. "Their arms are up to the elbows in blood," he said, adding that the USA has also entered the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan on its list of terrorist organizations. "No talks can be held with terrorists. It is a truth acknowledged all over the world. If they refuse to surrender, they will just be eliminated," he said.

Regarding leader of the Islamic Revival Party Said Abdullo Nuri's offer to act as a mediator in the talks between the Uzbek government and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, Karimov said that by doing so Nuri "is giving himself away completely". "This means that he is guiding and assisting the terrorists and that he is not a politician, but a puppet in the hands of the international centres," he said.

Tajikistan has not yet recognized that the rebels crossed into Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan from Tajik territory, Karimov said. The rebels seized in Kyrgyzstan have testified that they were trained in Tajikistan, he said. The states which have military bases for training terrorists must take "the most rigorous measures to eliminate them", he said. (Russian news agency Interfax, August 29)

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ussia is prepared to provide arms to Uzbekistan in the framework of "bilateral relations and understandings", the head of the International Military Cooperation Division in the Defence Ministry, Col-Gen Leonid Ivashov, told Interfax on Tuesday [29th August].

Uzbekistan's request for supply of a small amount of certain defence hardware has reached the ministry, Ivashov said. There is no question of sending Russian troops or military experts to Uzbekistan, he said. The country's leaders are in full control of the situation, Ivashov said. The invading bands have been nearly destroyed, he noted. (Russian news agency Interfax, August 29)

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he situation in the area of combat operations in [southern] Surkhandarya Region has been relatively calm over the past few days. The united group of government forces yesterday (August 28) finished a planned operation to reinforce guard posts. No armed clashes with terrorists took place on August 29. Bandits are still hiding in caves and mountain gorges and not taking any active actions. The border troops are stepping up security on the border in order to prevent attempts by bandit formations to cross to Uzbekistan from abroad.

Detachments of the power-wielding structures are carrying out operations to find and destroy the group of international terrorists which infiltrated almost inaccessible mountainous areas of Tashkent Region from Asht District of Tajik Leninobod [now Soghd] Region.

During a planned special operation on Monday, a group of 15 armed militants was spotted on a spur of the Chatkal range. As a result of an armed clash, eight terrorists were killed and modern firearms and a large amount of ammunition were confiscated. Two missing borer guards were released as a result of the operation. The rest of the bandits were reliably blockaded. (Uzbek TV, August 29)

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ceremony of signing notes of exchange between the governments of Japan and Uzbekistan on rendering free aid for the purchase of children's vaccines to the tune of 204m yen has taken place at the Cabinet of Ministers of Uzbekistan. The major aim of the project is to reduce the death rate among the little citizens of the country.

On the Japanese side, the notes were signed by the Japanese ambassador to Uzbekistan, Ms Kyoko Nakayama, and on the Uzbek side - by Deputy Prime Minister Hamidulla Karomatov. Ambassador Nakayama said that the government of Japan had rendered similar aid through UNICEF in 1995. This time the agreement is signed directly with the government of Uzbekistan.

Among the plans for the nearest future there is the implementation of two projects: the supply of equipment to a secondary school in Fergana and the supply of equipment to the Fergana Region for the creation of jobs for women. (Uzbek TV, August 29)

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zbekistan has officially asked Moscow to render military and technical assistance in order to liquidate extremist groups which have invaded the republic.

Military and diplomatic sources in Moscow told Interfax that "Russia is urgently considering the issue after receiving the request". The sources said that the military and technical assistance will be rendered in the framework of bilateral agreements between the two countries.

Earlier (August 24) First Deputy Russian Chief of General Staff Col-Gen Valeriy Manilov said in a news conference in Moscow that "Russia would consider Uzbekistan's appeal for help promptly and would make a decision providing assistance to Uzbekistan in wiping out the bandit formations if such an assistance was officially requested by this central Asian country." (Interfax news agency, August 29)

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zbek President Islam Karimov has signed an amnesty decree. The act was timed for the ninth anniversary of the republic's independence on 1st September, his press service told Interfax on Monday [28th August].

World War II veterans, Chernobyl victims, women and men over 60 years of age, minors, disabled persons and foreign nationals are eligible for amnesty. Prisoners charged with crimes against the constitutional system, terrorists, extremists and members of other illegal organizations convicted of inciting ethnic and racial strife are not eligible.

Many "reformed" convicts had been freed under amnesty in recent years: 25,000 people were set free and prison terms were curtailed for 43,000 people in 1998-1999 under Uzbek President Islam Karimov's amnesty decrees.

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he [Kyrgyz capital] Bishkek summit of the heads of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan [on 20th August], which was attended by a special envoy of the Russian President [Security Council Secretary Sergey Ivanov], expressed anxiety over the fact that the region had become one of the main targets of international terrorism.

Reports disseminated by the world media say that [Saudi dissident] Usamah Bin Ladin personally gave 20m dollars to [a leader of the banned Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan] Juma Namangoniy to carry out terrorist acts. In 1994-1995 Turkey's former prime minister allocated 100,000 dollars for [a leader of the banned Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan] Tohir Yoldosh to carry out terrorist acts in Uzbekistan. A commercial organization which operates in Germany, concluded a contract with Yoldosh for buying arms worth several hundreds of thousands of dollars. Besides that, in December 1997 a resident of Saudi Arabia, an Uigur national gave Tohir Yoldosh 260,000 dollars to buy arms. Another source says that in the middle of 1999 the Taleban supreme leader, Mohammad Omar, sent 50,000 dollars for Yoldosh's family and supporters in Afghanistan. (Uzbek Hurriyat newspaper)

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mam of the mosque in the town of Ishim in the Russian Tyumen Region Khadzhi Khudzhayev, 38, will be extradited to Uzbekistan in the very near future, the press secretary of the Russian Federal Security Service Omsk regional directorate, Natalya Grudtsina, told RIA.

Five years ago Khudzhayev was charged with plotting to overthrow by force the government of Uzbekistan and was on the international wanted list since then. Khudzhayev was detained on 18th August in Omsk where he came to attend the second Kurultay [congress] of Muslims of the Asian part of Russia.

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ccording to the united general staff of the Uzbek armed forces, the army is keeping under control the whole situation in the mountains of the southern region of Surkhandarya and each movement of the terrorists who are attempting to penetrate more deeply into Uzbekistan. The headquarters is located high in the mountains, over 5,000 metres above sea level. Special air force helicopters constantly monitor the terrorists' movements to establish their whereabouts, in order to carry out the inevitable strikes on the enemy. The State Border Protection Committee, the Defence Ministry and the Internal Affairs Ministry have sent their well-trained troops and officers to do the monitoring from the juniper thickets, caves and flat country to establish the whereabouts of the terrorists and report to the command in order to wipe them out.

On Saturday a great deal of work was done to strengthen the border and provide technical support for the military subdivisions. The militants are more and more narrowly encircled with every passing day, and the utmost is being done to destroy him. According to intelligence data, the remnants of the militant formations are concentrated in the villages of Kishtut and Hamidarcha. The terrorists have not been engaged in active combat for several days now. According to Uzbek TV, given the fact that this could have been a tactical move by the militants, who have undergone military training in Afghanistan and Chechnya, the command of the united troops took measures to increase the number of check-points in the mountains and on mountain paths. Snow has fallen in the Hisor mountains in the past few days. For this reason, Uzbek troops have blockaded the main movement routes of the terrorists.

As M. Utaganov, head of the main staff of the State Border Protection Committee, says a decision has been made today by the united grouping of troops to fit out the state borders of Uzbekistan technically. A plan has also been devised to implement the decision. Troops have begun to carry this task out starting from Saturday. The main objective involves destroying with mines the remaining mountain passes, paths and roads leading to the country.

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he third session of the Supreme Assembly of the Republic of Uzbekistan (Oliy Majlis) of the second convocation will open in the city of Tashkent on 30th August. The Uzbek parliament will consider a number of drafts and will adopt some of the laws on the agenda.

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visit to the People's Republic of China by an Uzbek military delegation led by Defence Minister Yuriy Agzamov took place on 23rd August.

During talks with Chinese Defence Minister Chi Haotian, the sides discussed military and technical cooperation between the two countries. The talks resulted in the signing of a cooperation agreement between the defence ministries of Uzbekistan and China.

As a gesture of goodwill towards the people of Uzbekistan and its armed forces, the Chinese side decided to give Uzbekistan military aid worth 3m yuans, 365,000 US dollars.

The Uzbek delegation was also received by Chinese Vice-President Hu Jintao, who is also vice-chairman of China's Central Military Commission. He said that China was ready to further strengthen and expand cooperation with Uzbekistan in combating ethnic separatism, international terrorism, religious extremism and cross-border crime. (Uzbek TV, August 25)

n the morning of 25th August, President of Turkmenistan Saparmyrat Niyazov visited the Vatan farmers' association in Chardzhou District [bordering on Uzbekistan].

"You should keep good relations with your Uzbek neighbours. We have held talks with the Uzbek president [Islam Karimov]. At present there are two issues that remain unresolved between us, and we have to resolve these so that there is no focus here for possible disputes and misunderstandings in future. One of them is our 1,700 kilometre-long common border with Uzbekistan: every inch, every village and every area of this must be delimited on a legal basis, proceeding from the times of our forefathers and by mutual consent. Our expert groups from both sides have been working on this for the last two months and they have succeeded in resolving it. As you know already, they [Uzbek delegation] recently came here and experts from both sides examined carefully every border point and they agreed its final version. Not a single point has been left for dispute. Our side was represented by [Turkmen deputy premier] Redzhep Saparov and there was a top state official from the Uzbek side," he said. "We plan to meet [Uzbek President Islam] Karimov during his visit here at the beginning of September, or rather in the first half of September, sometime between 8th and 10th. An agreement will be signed to confirm that every point of our borders has been agreed and nobody will have the right to violate that border agreement. "Another agreement will be on water issues. Uzbekistan has a mechanized mobile unit working here on the Amu-Bukhara [canal, running to Uzbekistan through Turkmen territory]. Though all the staff are our local people, they still are being paid in Uzbek currency, which is not sufficiently in circulation in our country because it has a different rate. Every country has its own currency and they [Uzbeks] should pay either in our currency or purchase our currency and then make payments in our currency," concluded the Turkmen president. (Turkmen TV, August 25)

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he military operations against the terrorists positioned up in mountainous areas bordering on Tajikistan in Uzun and Saryassiya districts [southern Surkhandarya Region] and in Bostanlyk District of Tashkent Region are continuing.

The terrorists have not carried out any military operations for two days now. The reason is that they have run out of ammunition. On August 24 and 25 the terrorists tried for four or five times to establish communication in several languages with their foreign patrons, however they failed to get any reply so far.

There were several exchanges of fire between Uzbek servicemen and the terrorists on the Qorayurt path on 22nd and 23rd August. So far there have not been reports about casualties. According to some unconfirmed reports, a group of terrorists has attempted to retreat to Tajikistan but found itself in a desperate position and wants to surrender to Uzbek forces.

Intelligence service officers have established that among the militants there are foreign women snipers. According to reports from the armed forces headquarters in Burchmulla [village in Bostanlyk district outside capital Tashkent], the urgent operation to blockade and wipe out the militants in mountainous areas bordering on Tajikistan in Bostanlyk District is continuing. No further details are known so far.

taff of the Internal Affairs department of Andizhan Region [eastern Uzbekistan] have destroyed a group of terrorists in the town of Paytok in Izboskan District of Andizhan Region.

On 22nd August, staff of the Internal Affairs department of the above Region learned that a group of suspicious-looking people were living in a house in Paytok. The house was situated in a densely populated area of the town and, apart from this, there were women and two children in the house.

When the bandits turned down the order to surrender the operation started. Eight terrorists were destroyed in the course of the operation. Later servicemen seized nine various kinds of weapons and grenades. Unfortunately, a deputy head of the Region's internal affairs department for public order, Col. Bahodir Khoshimov, was killed during the fighting. Three policemen were wounded. They have been taken to the central hospital in Izboskan District.

Junior Police Lieutenant Shuhrat Zahidov says that during the negotiations with the bandits it was made clear to them that this was no joking matter. In the long run they bit the dust. These criminals,who had lost their human face, kept two children hostage. Their father, one of the bandits, was even ready to sacrifice them, though their grandfather pleaded with him not to do this.

More than 10,000 people have come to bid farewell to Police Colonel Bohodir Khoshimov on his last journey. He was not afraid of the criminals' bullet. People, at first, did not want even to bury the bodies of those who had raised their hands against their compatriots. A neighbourhood elder, Abdulla Mamajanov, said that the bandits deserved contempt and damnation. The bandits were buried like animals by two men.

Passions have calmed down in the town now. Peace has been restored. The law-enforcement agencies are investigating the incident.

mports of socially significant goods will be uninterrupted. The government is setting up a state joint-stock company, Ozoziqovqatta'minot [Uzbek foodstuff supply], to this end. The authorized capital of the new company is 20m dollars. The aim is to ensure an uninterrupted supply of staple foods to the republic.

In line with a resolution by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Ozoziqovqatta'minot is entrusted with the task of fully meeting the population's requirements and the state's needs of such food items as sugar, vegetable oil, butter and a number of others. Centralized purchases of these goods will be made and they will subsequently be sold on the domestic consumer market.

The state share in the authorized capital of the company will be 26 per cent, in the form of property and land usage rights. Major wholesale and wholesale and retail sale companies in the country will hand over to the new company storehouses and other infrastructure sites as a share in its authorized capital. Thus their stake in the authorized capital will be 24 per cent.

It is envisaged that 50 per cent of the authorized capital will belong to major foreign companies, foodstuff suppliers with an impeccable international reputation and have an experience of working in the Uzbek market.

Under the government resolution, the Ozoziqovqatta'minot state joint-stock company together with the State Reserve and the Finance Ministry are instructed to ensure stockpiles of sugar in 2000 in line with the norms for reserves.

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mam of the Ishim city mosque Khadzhi Khudzhayev, wanted by Interpol on suspicion of involvement in preparing an attempt on Uzbek President Islam Karimov's life, has been detained in Omsk, Siberia.

Khudzhayev, who arrived in Omsk to participate in a congress of Moslems of the Asian part of Russia, was detained on 18th August, reads a release circulated by the Russian Federal Security Service department for Omsk Region on Friday [25th August].

Khudzhayev is currently being held in a detention cell and will soon be deported to his country, in line with the treaty on mutual extradition between Russia and Uzbekistan. (Russian news agency Interfax, August 25)

he militants who have recently intruded into southern Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan are sponsored by the Afghan Taleban who are using them to thwart supplies of "military and technical aid" to the anti-Taleban Northern Alliance, Kyrgyz Kabar news agency commented on 23rd August. The Taleban are thus trying to consolidate their recent successes in northern Afghanistan and then bring it under their full control. In order to achieve their ends, the militants are using such tactics as creating "nervousness and confusion" between Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan and creating "distrust" between their leaders. The following are excerpts from an analytical article by T. Akimov carried by the Kabar news agency and received via its website the same day:

The events of summer 2000 taking place on the territory of Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan have once again shaken Central Asia. Armed clashes are under way on the territory of the two countries, and to judge from what the militants themselves say, they belong to the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. The main hostilities are proceeding in Uzbekistan's [southern] Surkhandarya Region and in Batken Region of Kyrgyzstan. Kyrgyz experts reckon that the events in Surkhandarya are only a diversionary manoeuvre for an entry into Fergana [eastern Uzbekistan], and the main direction of the breakthrough is still through Batken.

The peculiar desire to break through into the centre of the Fergana basin can be explained by the idea that an adequate base has been created there out of Uzbekistan's "fifth column" who, possibly, are simply waiting for the touchpaper to be lit. Kyrgyz experts surmise that the number of those who sympathize with the Islamic movement stands, even at the most moderate estimates, at 70,000 people. Taking into account the fact that they live densely together on the territories of Namangan, Fergana and Andizhan Regions [in the Fergana Valley], then most undesirable processes may happen.

In order to understand the situation more fully, some figures should be taken into account which let one understand to a certain degree what is happening. Uzbekistan's armed forces are divided into ground units, air force, security forces (internal security and border guards) and the National Guard. Uzbekistan's defence spending stands at about 200m dollars a year according to 1997 figures, and according to 1999 estimates Uzbekistan can simultaneously call up about 5m people to the army if the military need arises.

Kyrgyzstan does not have such a huge force and the southern grouping of troops, numbering approximately 5,000 men, is stationed on [its] southern borders. The small number of the grouping is compensated for by its gradually increasing military experience. In addition, the Kyrgyz army was busy strengthening the borders and increasing combat readiness for the whole of last year. Fortification work, work to perfect tactics for actions in mountain conditions, to reconnoitre and get to know possible directions of terrorists' movements and others were carried out. However, the current losses among servicemen are raising doubts about the professionalism of middle rank commanders.

The leadership of the Islamic extremists obviously understood this situation only too well and prepared themselves for the current actions in a more practical way. Last year's events showed, and this year's events are confirming this, that not only those opposing Uzbekistan's authorities, but also those who have experience of fighting in the Afghan and Chechen wars, are fighting in the ranks of the militants. Naturally, they are much more experienced than those who are opposing them. Small groups of well-trained militants are now puzzling the government troops a great deal and making them learn. If intelligence data saying that the Islamists' armed wing has a well-equipped group numbering 4,000 to 5,000 men are true, then the development of the situation in the region will be very difficult to predict.

But one first should understand what is really happening in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan this summer. Why are small detachments of the militants tormenting the CIS's southern borders so intently and thoroughly despite knowing only too well that they have only three autumn months for this? Taking into account the fact that the tactical war is limited in time, it is hard to assume that the militants could be counting on a military success or, at least, on stirring up the population of the Fergana Valley. As is known, only [Iraqi President] Saddam Husayn succeeded in winning the quickest war against Kuwait using suprise as the ally.

Last year's Batken experience and the very nature of the events which are now happening there again indicate the following patterns:

1. Uzbek and Kyrgyz power-wielding agencies are aiming to foil the Islamic militants' plans to base themselves in hard-to-reach mountainous areas between the three contiguous countries. The militants' actions are intended to create nervousness and confusion between the countries of the region. Probably, they are counting on shaking the population in the valley with this and winning them over using the strained religious feelings of the population. Amongst other things, they are trying to create an atmosphere of distrust between the presidents of the three countries involved in the conflict. They have almost succeeded in this: the summit meeting of the presidents [of Central Asian countries] in Bishkek showed that [Tajik President] Emomali Rahmonov was in effect in a state of depression and [Kazakh President] Nursultan Nazarbayev tried to distance himself from the conflict, which in the end cannot be beneficial for the countries of the region.

2. The militants are trying to settle and create bases in those places which have virtually no communication with the mainland. The geography of the combat areas itself leads one to this idea. However, knowing only too well that it is not possible to destabilize the situation in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan by closing themselves in mountain villages, the militants are seeking more active military and sabotage actions. It is not difficult to assume that the Fergana Valley, where huge human reserves can be engaged, is most suitable for this. In all, over14m people live in the Fergana Valley. This is the reason why the militants are trying to isolate it from central Uzbekistan and the fighting on the Kamchik mountain pass connecting the Fergana Valley with the Tashkent basin is evidence of that.

3. In actual fact, the current events are not a declared jihad. The militants' leaders understand only too well that accidental casualties [among civilians] will always occur during sabotage and terrorist acts in crowded places and near facilities of special importance such as a television centre, power facilities and so on. This may set people against them and a ruined economy will not create any trust [for them] by any means. The mojaheddins' leaders understand only too well that the success of Uzbekistan's political opposition is fully dependent on the people's mood.

4. The events cannot be described in any way as a reconnaissance for battle as this creates still more obstacles on the way towards the militants' main aim. At the same time, the impossibility of coping quickly with a situation such as that which has arisen today will always undermine the reputation of the leadership of any country and play into the hands of destructive forces. Uncertainty about people's security and failure by a state to protect people may undermine social stability and then centrifugal moods may appear. If a state becomes weaker and looses control then a group of field commanders take over power. To counter the artificial confusion among people is a task of the first order for the leaders of the region's countries.

A study of the above-mentioned nuances leads to the conclusion that the nature of the mojaheddins' tactical actions and the general situation in the region make the assumption that their actions are linked with events outside the CIS as more probable.

The militants of the Islamic movement are playing the role of destabilizers on the southern borders of the Commonwealth [of Independent States] in order to consolidate the Taleban's relative successes in northern Afghanistan. At the moment, the Taleban have managed to wring from [Northern Alliance commander Gen Ahmad Shah] Masud strategically important transport corridors which connect him with the Northern Alliance. And if they manage to consolidate their hold on the new areas and to thwart the transfer of military and technical aid from Uzbekistan's and Tajikistan's territory to Gen [Ahmad Shah] Masud with the help of their Muslim brothers [the militants], then the Taleban will be close to taking the entire territory of Afghanistan under complete control and make the north safe for themselves at the same time.

Given the Taleban's influence over Juma Namangoniy [a leader of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan] and the money spent on him, the assumption that the Uzbek mojaheddins are directed by the Taleban is more than probable. The Islamists owe much to the Taleban and they have not yet responded to them with any significant gratitude. Therefore, the lives of one or two hundred young mojaheddin fighters breaking through into the Fergana Valley for "the kindness" of their protectors is not a problem for the extremists' ideological leaders.

resident of the Uzbek capital's Region with a criminal record has been sentenced to death for killing his mother, `Toshkent Haqiqati' newspaper reported on 23rd August.

The man, identified as Valeriy Kharkov, escaped from prison and stayed with his old mother for almost four months. When she said that she would not give him money for alcohol any more and told him to go back to prison of his own free will otherwise she would tell the police, he got angry and beat her to death, the report said.

Neither people in the neighbourhood nor any of the neighbours, who should have noticed him, informed the police that he was staying there, the article said.

ajikistan's minister for emergencies and former commander of armed units of the United Tajik Opposition, Mirzo Ziyo, told a news conference that there are no militants of Uzbekistan's Islamic movement on Tajikistan's territory and no bases for their training.

Answering a question from ITAR-TASS, he flatly denied the possibility of the militants crossing into borderline districts of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan from Tajikistan's territory. "The government commission of which I am a member has been staying, on the instruction of Tajikistan's President Emomali Rahmonov, in districts of the eastern areas near the Pamirs over the past two months. Members of the commission inspected all gorges and have not seen a single militant there," Ziyo said.

Ziyo believes the events in Uzbekistan are that country's domestic problem and should be resolved in a peaceful political way. (Russian news agency ITAR-TASS, August 28)

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