Eurasia News Week in Review - February 28, 2014 Share This /

The same week the State Department released its annual report on global human rights, four Central Eurasia countries were included in Politico Magazine’s list of the United States’ most discreditable allies. Below is a roundup of these stories and some of the other top articles and news highlights from around Central Eurasia over the last week:

Top stories from Central Asia and the South Caucasus:

• A Georgian delegation led by Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili met with President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State John Kerry and various Congressional leaders this week. Following the meetings the White House affirmed its strong support for Georgia’s territorial integrity and Euro-Atlantic aspirations and thanked Georgia for its contributions to NATO-led missions. Secretary Kerry also pledged additional assistance to support Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations, and though no specific details were released, the aid does not appear to have a military focus. Georgia’s Prime Minister, meanwhile, stated that the country “is moving actually to a new stage of relations with the United States,” calling the U.S. Georgia’s most important strategic partner. 
• During his visit, Prime Minister Garibashvili surprised some by calling for NATO to grant Georgia a Membership Action Plan (MAP) at the September NATO Summit. While Garibashvili is not the first Georgian official to call for a MAP, he is the highest-level official in the current government to make this a public demand. Georgia’s prospects for receiving a MAP increased this week, as the State Department responded to a February 5 Congressional letter by endorsing Georgia’s quest for a MAP. Representative Ted Poe (R-TX) also introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives on Wednesday advocating NATO members to offer Georgia this instrument for cooperation.
• Politico Magazine lists four countries from Central Eurasia – Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan – in its roundup of the United States’ 25 most awkward allies, or countries in which the U.S. has prioritized aims other than democracy and human rights promotion. For instance, journalist Joanna Lillis describes how U.S. coddling of two former dictators in Kyrgyzstan eventually soured relations between the countries, leading to Kyrgyzstan’s refusal to renew the leasing agreement for the U.S. airbase in the country. Likewise, journalist Joshua Kucera questioned the futility of the U.S.’s growing counternarcotics assistance and training to Tajikistan, especially since this assistance might be cementing the role of the government in supporting illicit narcotrafficking in the county.

Quick Hits from Central Asia and the South Caucasus:

• The closure of the Manas Transit Center in Kyrgyzstan continued this week, as the Defense Department ended all KC-135 refueling operations out of the airbase on Monday. The base’s department for cooperation and security – which oversaw humanitarian assistance and military exchanges programs – also closed this week.
• Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Richard Hoagland held meetings with Tajikistani and Uzbekistani officials this week. While details from the meetings are scarce, the Tajik presidential press service noted that the 2014 drawdown from Afghanistan received “special attention” during the discussion between Hoagland and President Emomali Rahmon.
• The commanders of U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) and U.S. Transportation Command (TRANSCOM) offered their posture statements in front of the House Armed Services Committee on Thursday. Surprisingly, Central Eurasia and the Northern Distribution Network received scant attention from TRANSCOM chief General William Fraser, who briefly referenced the closure of Manas and the retrograde process through Azerbaijan.
• An official from the State Department’s International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Bureau met with the chairman of Kyrgyzstan’s State Drug Control Service on Thursday. The two sides discussed various provisions of assistance to the Drug Control Service.  
• Current chairman of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Swiss Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter, testified in front of the U.S. Helsinki Commission on Tuesday. Burkhalter called for increased U.S. engagement, stating: “I’m convinced that the stalemate in these protracted conflicts [Nagorno Karabakh and Georgia] can only be overcome with greater engagement and attention by international key players such as the United States.”
• Trend News Agency interviewed the U.S. Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Richard Morningstar, who discussed the need for continued economic and democratic reforms in the country. Morningstar also highlighted Azerbaijan’s role as a U.S. counterterrorism partner.
• Armenia and the U.S. held a number of defense cooperation events this week, including a consultation regarding Armenia’s Strategic Defense Review and a weeklong sergeants training course.
• The State Department released its 2013 County Reports on Human Rights Practices, which can be read in their entirety here.