DoD aid to Eurasia in 2011-2012 Favors Georgia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan
Georgia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan saw notable increases in the amount of aid they got from United States Department of Defense (DoD) programs in 2011 and 2012, according to data recently released to Security Assistance Monitor.
The Section 1209 reports, which detail DoD security assistance programs around the world from 2011 and 2012, show that the most noticeable aid increase in the region was in programs for counternarcotics assistance. In 2012, the amount that DoD spent on the Section 1004 and Section 1033 programs in the region went from about $35 million in 2011 to $78 million in 2012.
This chart includes assistance to Central Asia from the DoD’s Section 1004 and Section1033 programs
In Tajikistan, DoD counternarcotics funding funded communications equipment and border outposts for Tajikistan security forces in 2012. The report stated:
This construction strengthened the Tajik-Afghan border to deter illicit transit of Afghan opium and other illicit contraband which provide funding for corruption and insurgent activities in the region. This project was a major USCENTCOM counterdrug regional security upgrade to address the largest Central Asian States corridor for drug flow to Russia and Western Europe the report said.
And in Uzbekistan, counternarcotics money bought two scanners “to inspect rail cargo for contraband going to and from Afghanistan and facilitate the retrograde of military equipment from Afghanistan.”
The 2012 report also highlighted the Central Asia Regional Training Team, a joint program by the DoD and Drug Enforcement Agency to train drug enforcement officials around the region. “In addition to improving regional security in Central Asia, this program continues to provide opportunities for key leader engagement with Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Interior personnel,” the report said.
Georgia received over $100 million in 2012 for “pre-deployment training and supplies” for its deployment to Afghanistan under Section 1233, which the Pentagon uses to pay countries which participate in U.S.-led military operations. The report noted that Georgia was by far the greatest recipient of such aid in Europe, receiving $154 million between 2010 and 2012 (the next greatest amount was received by Romania, with $40 million).
Data from the Security Assistance Monitor. The chart includes data for programs in the 1209 report as well as assistance programs not tracked by the 1209 report, such as the Cooperative Threat Reduction account.
Uzbekistan saw its aid spike sharply in 2012, rising from about $5 million in 2011 to over $17 million. The difference was made up by over $11 million in “Counternarcotics Equipment,” according to the 2012 report.
As data from SAM shows, prior to 2010, the last time Uzbekistan received a large amount of assistance from the Defense Department was in 2003.