American-Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce
Business Newsletter

 

Week in Review:


February 24, 2012 - March 3, 2012  

 

In this issue
AUCC in Brief
First 20-Truck Convoy Leaves Afghanistan on the reverse Kazakhstan-Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan (R-KKT)
Uzbekistan Airways receives another Boeing 767-300ER
Uzbekistan, EU discuss trade, investment cooperation
EU helps to mobilize investments for transport on the Europe-Caucasus-Asia Corridor
Contact Us
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AUCC in Brief 

Established in 1993, the American-Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce (AUCC) is a private, non-profit trade association representing interests of U.S. businesses ranging in size from small private enterprises to large, multinational corporations conducting business in Uzbekistan.

Our Mission: To advocate the views of the business community to ensure that private sector positions are considered during the development of key policies that impact American businesses and the future of U.S.-Uzbekistan relations.

Our Objective: To serve the needs of its members by strengthening commercial relations between the United States and Uzbekistan. 

http://finance.yahoo.com of 3/1/2012      

  

FMN Logistics Executes First Retrograde Mission

 

Early on the afternoon of February 29th, (around 5:00 AM EST), FMN Logistics, a leading freight forwarder on the Northern Distribution Network, managed a privately contracted 20-truck U.S. Military convoy of non-lethal cargo crossing the Tajikistan-Afghanistan Friendship Bridge from Sher Khan Bandar, Afghanistan to Nizhniy Panj in the former Soviet Republic of Tajikistan. With this movement, one of the major components of the US Military drawdown from Afghanistan is now officially underway.

This shipment of AM-2 Matting for the US Military is historic because it represents the first retrograde shipment to be sent along the reverse KKT route out of Afghanistan as part of the drawdown of military forces.  The convoy of specialized 25-ton trucks, which are equipped to handle heavy loads in some of the most difficult terrain, winter weather, and highest mountain passes in the world, is now in transit on the reverse KKT route.

It will traverse north through Tajikistan before moving through Kyrgyzstan and entering its capital Bishkek, where the cargo will be offloaded onto rail platforms bound through Kazakhstan and Russia then on to the Baltic port of Riga in Latvia and, eventually, to a military depot in the continental United States.

"This is truly exciting," said Harry Eustace, FMN's Washington D.C. based founder and CEO. "We are honored to be an integral part of the first retrograde mission on this particular route for the US Military, and ultimately, to be assisting our forces in reaching the 2014 target dates for a near 100% drawdown."

"To be the first logistics provider to deliver on the challenge of managing retrograde options on the reverse KKT is something we're extremely proud of. We'd like to thank our Afghan trucking and logistics partner Ahmadi Karwan Logistics (AKL) and, of course, our customers' confidence in FMN's ability to execute this most important and historic mission," added Mr. Robert Hass, FMN's Dubai-based Director of Global Operations.

The reverse KKT Route, together with a route through Uzbekistan, have been designated by the U.S. as the prime arteries for the retrograde of U.S. forces and material using the already established in-bound networks on the Northern Distribution Network (NDN).

 

About FMN Logistics

FMN Logistics, Inc., together with its Afghan strategic alliance partner, Ahmadi Karwan Logistics (AKL), is managing the history-making movement. FMN has delivered over 4,000 containers from various locations in former Soviet Central Asia into Afghanistan and is one of the largest third party logistics providers (3PL) by volume in the region and the only U.S. owned and registered 3PL operating in the Central Asian Area of Responsibility (AOR).

http://uzdaily.com of 2/29/2012  


Uzbekistan Havo Yollari (Uzbekistan Airways) received the second of four ordered Boeing 767-300ER aircrafts on 29 February. The airplane successfully landed to Tashkent International Airport.

As reported earlier, Uzbekistan Havo Yollari received the first Boeing 767-300ER airplane on 9 February 2012. By the end of 2013, the Uzbek airline will get two more aircrafts of this modification. The airline also ordered two Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircrafts.

Boeing 767-300ER is optimal long distance aircraft to carry out flights up to 6,000 km (or 9-hour flights).

The aircraft has 12 seats in business class and 235 seats in economy class. Maximum take-off weight is 175 tonnes and landing weight - 145 tonnes. The maximum load is 38 tonnes and fuel load - 74 tonnes. The highest speed of airline is 900 km/h and the highest altitude - 13,000 meters.

Boeing specialists noted that new aircraft differs with new, even more passenger-pleasing cabin interior, low operating costs and technological innovations.

Uzbekistan Havo Yollari has been using Boeing 767 aircrafts since 30 November 1996, when it received the first airplane of this model. It added that this kicked of long-distance flights in history of Uzbekistan Havo Yollari.

Currently, the fleet of Uzbekistan Havo Yollari includes Boeing 757/767, Airbus 320, Airbus 310, Rj-85 and locally made IL-114-100.

http://uzdaily.com of 2/29/2012  


The Eighth session of the Uzbekistan-European Union sub-committee on economic, trade and investment issues was held in Tashkent on 23 February 2012, the pres service of the Ministry for Foreign Economic Relations, Investments and Trade (MFERIT) of Uzbekistan said.

The EU delegation was led by Victor Andres Maldonado, Head of the Southern Caucasus and Central Asia Unit of the European Union.  The Uzbek delegation was represented by Elyor Ganiev, Head of the MFERIT.

The bilateral discussion focused on macroeconomic developments in Uzbekistan and the European Union. Both parties discussed current state of affairs and prospects for developing trade and investment cooperation between Uzbekistan and the EU.  Sector-specific cooperation in areas such as energy, transport and finances was also discussed.

http://www.egovmonitor.com of 2/28/2012  


Today the European Commission hosts the Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia (TRACECA) Investment Forum to help attract investments into transport infrastructure between the EU and Central Asia. The high level conference brings together representatives of the international donor community and the countries in TRACECA to discuss potential funding for priority projects.
Stefan F�le, European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy, commented: "An efficient transport system is the backbone of effective regional integration. Our Eastern neighbours, who link the Black and the Caspian Seas to China and beyond, could benefit from stronger transport infrastructure and services, in order to help them reach their full potential in their economic and trade relations with the EU."

Vice-President Siim Kallas, European Commissioner responsible for Mobility and Transport, added: "Our experience in developing transport corridors and making sure that high transport safety, security and social standards are applied, can be shared with our partner countries. Better connections benefit passengers and operators both in the EU and our partner countries."

12 projects will be presented at the Forum to potential donors and investors interested in logistics centres and road, rail, maritime and aviation transport. Improving the current border crossing procedures, which can hamper the smooth flow of goods and people, will also be discussed.

The TRACECA Investment Forum aims to attract investment for transport infrastructure in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Romania, Tajikistan, Turkey, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Improving partners' infrastructure, in particular their transport networks, leads to better interconnection and safer and more reliable transport services, with a clear impact on living conditions and economic growth both in the partner countries and in the EU. Improving connections with the Trans-European Transport network is also one of the objectives of the Eastern Partnership transport cooperation.

  

Facts and figures on the TRACECA programme

TRACECA is a transport cooperation programme among 12 countries in the Black Sea, Eastern Partnership and Central Asia regions. With a permanent Secretariat in Azerbaijan, it covers the areas of maritime transport, aviation, road and rail, transport security, and transport infrastructure. Initially started in 1993 as a programme funded by the European Union, TRACECA also aims to strengthen economic relations, trade and transport links between the countries.

Up to now, the EU has supported this cooperation with technical assistance with a total of almost €170 million for 80 projects, which since 2004 have mostly focused on transport safety and security, legal harmonisation initiatives, trade facilitation and institutional support.

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Contact Information

 

The American-Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce
1300 I Street, N.W., Suite 720W
Washington, DC 20005
phone: 202.509.3744
info@aucconline.com
www.aucconline.com  

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