Trend

February 5, 2015 

 

The US intends to continue strengthening the bilateral cooperation with Uzbekistan, newly appointed US Ambassador to Uzbekistan Pamela Spratlen said at her first press-conference in Tashkent Feb. 5.

Among the priorities of her activity she called the political sphere, cooperation in the fields of economy, security and human rights.

The consultations between the foreign ministries of the US and Uzbekistan, a business forum with participation of business circles of the two countries were held in Tashkent in late 2014.

They allowed determining the priority areas of cooperation.

Spratlen also stressed the growing concern of US leadership in connection with the situation in Afghanistan.

"We intend to seek joint ways of ensuring stability and security in the region," the ambassador said. "Uzbekistan is making a great contribution to the strengthening of stability in Afghanistan."

Spratlen also stressed that as the ambassador to Uzbekistan she will advance the relations with the civil society.

Spratlen began working as the US ambassador to Uzbekistan in January.

Earlier, Spratlen has led the US Embassy in Kyrgyzstan since 2011.

Spratlen replaced George Krol, who had worked at this position since 2010. Currently, Krol serves as US ambassador to Kazakhstan.

 

The Times of Central Asia

February 4, 2015 

 

Japan's Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems, Ltd. (MHPS) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Uzbekistan's state energy company Uzbekenergo under which the two companies will collaborate in the area of power plant operation and maintenance. In accordance with the document, MHPS will provide operation and maintenance support and related services for power plants owned by Uzbekenergo, the Japanese company said.

The signing ceremony was held at the 12th Uzbek-Japanese Economic Cooperation Forum in Tokyo last week.

The MOU covers three areas: power plant operation and maintenance, technical training of engineers, and organization of technical seminars.

MHPS will provide operation and maintenance support to the Navoi and Talimarjan power plants and a cogeneration plant in Tashkent to which the company has previously supplied gas turbines and other core equipment. MHPS will also provide technical training to Uzbekenergo's engineers in both Uzbekistan and Japan. The Japanese company will hold technical seminars periodically to make Uzbekenergo familiar with the latest technologies and share information relating to operation and maintenance of gas turbine combined cycle (GTCC) power generation plants.

Uzbekenergo is a state-operated power provider established in 2001, and it currently meets almost 100 percent of Uzbekistan's power needs. The company relies on three core fuel sources - coal, oil, and natural gas.

The Uzbek-Japanese Economic Cooperation Forum is a series of forums operated by a joint economic committee set up in 1994. The forums bring together numerous government officials from both countries to discuss issues such as bilateral trade and investment.

 

Trend

January 30, 2015 

 

National Airline company Uzbekistan Airways will acquire a multi-purpose twin-engine helicopter Mi-8 MTV-1 from the Russian holding "Russian Helicopters" for $12.7 million, the company management told Trend.

The contract for the supply of the helicopter was signed in January 2014. Financing of the contract is carried out at the airline company's own expense, according to the source.

It is expected that in March 2015 the helicopter will be delivered to the airline company "SAO" (special aviation operations airline company, part of the Uzbekistan Airways).

The helicopter will carry out cargo and traffic transportation.

"SAO" JSC was created in 1997 for implementation of special aviation operations, including aviation chemical operations in agriculture, rendering services at the request of Uzhydromet and MOE.

The airline has a fleet of six helicopters of Mi-8 MTV-1, as well as AN-2 planes in the agriculture, transport and passenger versions and IL-76 transport aircrafts.

Uzbekistan Airways NAC, the monopoly aviation carrier in Uzbekistan, is wholly owned by the state.

 

Trend

January 31, 2015 

 

The German Armed Forces will continue to use transport and transshipment hub based on airport of Termez city, located in the south of Uzbekistan in the vicinity of the Uzbek-Afghan border, the online publications of Uzbekistan reported.

Uzbekistan provides the German Air Forces with a civilian airport near the city of Termez for transit of non-military goods since the end of 2001. Official lease agreement was signed in February 2002. Germany has invested 12 million euros in the airport modernization, mainly in upgrading the runways.

Since January 2015, the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) has officially ceased its mission in Afghanistan. Instead, NATO is launching a new mission called "Resolute Support", within the framework of which 12, 500 soldiers from 40 countries will be responsible for preparing and advising Afghan security forces. Germany provides about 850 of its servicemen for participation in the mission.

During the mission, the German Armed Forces will use the air base in Termez. The corresponding agreement was signed on September 1, 2014 in Tashkent. The cost of renting the airport is not reported.

The government of Uzbekistan in 2016 plans to direct $10.4 million to the establishment of an international logistics center based on the Termez airport. Funding for the project is planned to be partially maintained at the expense of the Commission of the European Union.

 

ETurboNews

February 4, 2015 

 

Uzbekistan has won its first ever International TO DO! award that goes to responsible tourism organizations every year.

The TO DO! 2014 awards included winners from Costa Rica, India, and Uzbekistan, and the 20th Award Ceremony of the International Contest for Socially Responsible Tourism will be held on March 4, 2015 at ITB Berlin. TO DO! awards are equally distributed among winners, and this is first time Uzbekistan contested for an award, and the Samarkand-based responsible tourism organization, Silk Road Destinations (C.A.T.I.A), won this prestigious responsible tourism award.

"At ITB Berlin 2015, the TO DO! will be awarded to tourism projects that implement socially responsible tourism development in an extraordinary manner. In the 20th contest round, projects from 10 countries have been submitted, including from Uzbekistan for the first time. The expert jury selected 3 projects, each of which was checked on location. All these projects confirmed the positive impression from the applications submitted," said the press statement issued by TO DO! authorities.

Despite all the differences, the three equal winners of the TO DO! 2014 Contest which came from Costa Rica, India, and Uzbekistan, all have one characteristic in common - they are all exemplary examples of responsible tourism, and they are all involved with the local population in a kind of tourism that is managed sustainably. They create alternative sources of income and strengthen self-awareness of local culture and traditions.

Silk Road Destinations (C.A.T.I.A) is an incoming tour operator in Uzbekistan that set up a community-based project in the remote village of Mitan. In Mitan, the guests get into direct contact with local families and their Muslim culture and traditions. The project is aimed at generating an additional income for the villagers. It is also meant to contribute to cultural exchange and to a better understanding between people with different social and religious backgrounds.

This project namely, "Mitan Responsible Tourism Project," is unique in a way that no local or foreign funding is involved in this project from the stage of initialization to the level of its operation comparing to other Community Based Development (CBD) or Community Based Tourism (CBT) projects as most of them have local or foreign donations/funding at almost every stage of the project.

This project is more than Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) because Silk Road Destinations (SRD) Company was not getting any business or economical benefit from this area before initiating and launching this project in Mitan village. This remote village had never been on the tourism map of Uzbekistan as a "destination" until a tourism operation was started by Silk Road Destinations (C.A.T.I.A) and visitors were introduced to this village.

This project is exceptional in the region (of Central Asia) as it is providing practical training of tourism development and destination management to youth of a remote area at their doorstep and creating a tourism workforce for the future so youth of this small village can ensure their jobs in the tourism sector in the future.

This project is providing a model of interfaith harmony to youth of this Muslim community and facilitates a face-to-face intercultural dialogue among groups and individuals having different social and religious backgrounds.