U.S. Department of State

Annex A: Assessments of Progress in Meeting the Standards of Section 498A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961

UZBEKISTAN

While the overall human rights and democratic situation remains very poor in Uzbekistan, there have been small steps in the area of democratization and rule of law in the past year.

The Constitution of Uzbekistan provides for the separation of powers between the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. However, President Karimov and the centralized executive branch that serves his authoritarian regime dominate political life. The Government has not permitted the existence of a registered opposition party since 1993.

Chosen president in a 1991 election that most observers considered flawed, President Islam Karimov had his term in office extended until 2000 in a Soviet-style referendum in March 1995. In January 2000, Karimov was elected to a second term with 92.5 percent of the vote. The OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) stated that it could not "justify the deployment of an observation or assessment mission" to the presidential election because "the voters of Uzbekistan will have no genuine choice and the election cannot be considered competitive." The OSCE adjudged the presidential election, in which even the opposition candidate acknowledged voting for Karimov, to have fallen short of international standards. On January 27, 2002, the Government held an advisory referendum on extension of the term of the President from five to seven years. The referendum passed by a large margin and was judged to be neither free nor fair by most observers. Parliament then passed a constitutional amendment extending the term. On April 4, President Karimov announced that the next presidential elections would take place in December 2007, resulting in an extension of his current term to just short of eight years.

On March 19, 2003, Uzbekistan's second independent human rights group, Ezgulik, was officially registered by the Government. This follows the March 2002 registration of the Independent Human Rights Organization of Uzbekistan (IHROU). Other human rights groups, such as the Human Rights Organization of Uzbekistan (HROU) and Mazlum, have faced problems with registration, but have continued to function. Freedom House, which opened an office in Tashkent in July 2002 and a branch office in the Fergana Valley in June 2003, has continued to do outstanding work. In addition to offering media resources and a secure meeting place, Freedom House has been extremely active in training human rights defenders and in July 2003 began a program to provide legal assistance to local human rights defenders.

While two large opposition parties, Birlik and the Party of Farmers and Entrepreneurs (PAPU), have been denied registration, they have been able to operate more freely over the past year than they have in the past. Birlik convened national organizing congresses in March and August 2003. PAPU also held its second organizing congress in August 2003. After some government interference, the opposition party Erk, which continues to insist its 1991 registration remains valid, was able to hold a national congress in October. However, its members continue to face harassment, including the arrest and disappearance of one member in May who was allegedly beaten and remains unaccounted for. Uzbek authorities deny he is in custody.

In May 2002, the Government removed the requirement that the press must seek the approval of the office of the censor to publish articles. While prior censorship has been abolished, self-censorship is still practiced and most editors and journalists continue to express concerns about potential consequences of conducting serious investigative journalism. In the most prominent case, Ruslan Sharipov, former head of the Independent Union of Journalists of Uzbekistan was arrested and convicted on charges of sodomy and sex with under-aged persons, charges that many observers see as either fabricated or an example of selective prosecution. A member of his defense team was badly beaten during his trail. Nonetheless, some articles critical of the Government have appeared in both state and private press, and a clear increase in their number over 2002 is evident. The few independent radio and television stations are closely monitored by the Government and generally exercise self-censorship. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and the Voice of America are not permitted to broadcast from within the country, despite the Government's 1992 contractual agreement to allow this activity. We have urged the Government to meet its contractual obligations. The Government allows both organizations to have correspondents in the country. The BBC World Service was required to broadcast on a very low FM frequency, which most radios are unable to receive. Limited numbers of foreign periodicals can be found in Tashkent, and authorized groups can obtain foreign periodicals through subscription. There are no private publishing houses, and government approval is required for all publications.

A mass media law, which came into effect in January 1998, guarantees freedom of expression, protects the rights of journalists and reiterates the ban on censorship. Nonetheless, several articles are worded in such a way that they could be used to punish government critics. One provision makes journalists responsible for the truth of the information contained in their news stories, potentially subjecting journalists to prosecution if a government official disagrees with a news report. Another permits authorities to close media outlets without a court judgment. Two TV stations were closed in 1999 under this provision; only one was allowed to reopen in 2000. Observers believe the dissident political background of the owner of the second station was the reason for the Government's refusal to grant it a new license. The owner fled Uzbekistan in July 2001 to avoid arrest on charges related to an allegedly forged letter of recommendation from 1991. Finally, the law prohibits registration of organizations whose purposes include subverting or overthrowing the constitutional order.

The Government abolished the requirement in October 2002 that all Internet service providers must route their connections through a government service provider. There appears to be a regular increase in Internet providers and there are no reports of censorship of internet sites.

Section 498A(a)(2): "make significant progress in, and is committed to the comprehensive implementation of, economic reform based on market principles, private ownership, and integration into the world economy, including implementation of the legal and policy frameworks necessary for such reform (including protection of intellectual property and respect for contracts)."

Since Uzbekistan became independent in September 1991, only limited progress has been made in the transition to a market economy. The Uzbek authorities have pursued an economic strategy based on import-substitution and extensive state control over the economy. Progress was made in implementing some key measures agreed upon under an IMF staff-monitored program during 2002 and early 2003. The authorities adhered to tight fiscal and monetary policies, gradually improved access to foreign exchange, and introduced reforms in agriculture. However, there were also major setbacks and overall performance was uneven. The Government record on economic reforms has been mixed in 2003. In early 2003, Uzbekistan effectively closed its borders to the shuttle traders bringing in goods from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. This step severely restricted people's access to foreign goods and has caused macro economic stagnation and a decline in real purchasing power, in addition to impeding regional economic cooperation. On October 15, 2003, Uzbekistan announced full currency convertibility according to the standards of the IMF's Article 8. However, this step had virtually no effect as the closure of the borders had severely reduced the demand for foreign currency. Cash shortages resulting from an overly tight monetary policy, as well as government wage and pension arrears, are also depressing economic activity.

Inflation has fallen from 30% in the first six months of 2002 to 10% in the same period of 2003. GDP growth, which was 4.1% in the first six months of the year, has fallen sharply as the economy has come to a standstill. There are major weaknesses in economic data, including apparent political interference in the processing and dissemination of data.

Much remains to be done to improve the business climate and achieve the Government's objective of creating a market economy. Uzbekistan's large balance of payments surplus (in this case, a sign of a moribund economy) and comfortable external reserves position provide ample room for taking decisive steps to liberalize the trade regime, including the re-opening of borders with neighboring countries, and to introduce other reforms.

Uzbekistan is a member of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). In 1998, it submitted its Memorandum of Foreign Trade Regime to the World Trade Organization (WTO) secretariat but little progress was made in 2003 toward WTO accession. Under current economic policies, no stand-by arrangement with the IMF is possible.

An OPIC agreement entered into force in October 1992. A bilateral trade agreement with the United States that includes intellectual property rights provisions entered into force in January 1994. However, Uzbekistan remained on the U.S. Special 301 "Watch List" in 2003 due to failure to remedy deficiencies in its intellectual property rights regime as required by that agreement and shortcomings in enforcement of existing laws. Uzbekistan has been determined to be compliant with the freedom of emigration provisions of the Jackson-Vanik amendment for Normal Trade Relations (subject to a semi-annual reporting requirement on its continued compliance with these provisions). The Senate gave advice and consent to ratification of the U.S.-Uzbekistan Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) in October 2000, but raised concerns about the investment climate. The Administration gave assurances that entry into force would not be initiated until the investment climate improved. In this regard, the Administration is in the process of evaluating the current investment climate in Uzbekistan. Preliminary discussions on a treaty to avoid double taxation began in 1993, but major tax reform in Uzbekistan will be necessary before negotiations can move forward.

Section 498A(a)(3): "respect internationally recognized human rights, including the rights of minorities and the rights to freedom of religion and emigration."

Although the overall human rights situation remains very poor, the Government has taken some small but significant steps to improve the situation in the past year. The 1992 law on citizenship and the constitution prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex, religion, language, or social status, and officially sanctioned discrimination does not occur. The election, religion and media laws all contain statements of principle that, if adhered to in practice, would substantially improve the Government's human rights record.

Uzbekistan authorities continued to commit numerous serious abuses, such as torture of detainees. Indeed, at least three deaths as a result of torture in detention occurred in 2003. Arbitrary arrests and detentions of those suspected of being security threats are common.

Uzbekistan's citizens are still prevented from exercising their right to change their Government peacefully. Freedom of expression remains severely constrained. The expression of religious beliefs is still limited by a restrictive law on religion.

Uzbekistan's constitution provides for an independent judiciary. However, the judicial branch takes its direction from the executive branch and has little independence in practice. Parliamentary and presidential elections held in December 1999 and January 2000, respectively, failed to meet Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) standards for being free, fair, transparent or accountable. The next round of parliamentary elections will be held in December 2004.

Despite Uzbekistan's reiteration of its commitment to the objectives of the Declaration on the Strategic Partnership and Cooperation Framework in April 2003, we are concerned that there has been backsliding on human rights.

In July 2003 and again in August 2003, the United States recommended to the Uzbek Government that six specific steps be taken to demonstrate a commitment to human rights required for certification for assistance under the Cooperative Threat Reduction Act; however, none of the steps has yet been taken:

• President Karimov has not publicly condemned torture;

• There has been no open independent forensic investigation or accountability for the two torture deaths in custody in May or the death in December;

• Although the Government of Uzbekistan has taken the admirable step of proposing a draft action plan to combat torture in response to the visit of the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on Torture who concluded in his February 2003 report that that the use of torture in Uzbekistan is "systematic", these steps will only begin to be implemented in late 2004;

• The Government of Uzbekistan has not registered any political parties. Although parties have been allowed to hold organizational meetings, the two parties that have attempted to register have both been denied for technical reasons;

• Uzbekistan has not introduced election legislation compliant with OSCE standards, nor has it issued a regulation allowing all political parties to campaign freely with equal access to the media;

• Uzbekistan has not provided lists of prisoners released in the most recent amnesty. Beginning December 8, 2003, Uzbekistan began a similar amnesty. We have repeatedly called on Uzbekistan to release a list of those amnestied.

An intensive and continuing dialogue between the Department of State and our Embassy in Tashkent on the one hand, and Uzbekistan's leadership on the other, concerning the need to address human rights abuses has achieved some important, but limited results.

The response from the Government of Uzbekistan to the report from the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture was frank; however, the President did not condemn torture, as called for in the report. Instead, in a statement to the press in March 19, 2003, State Advisor for Foreign Policy Abdul Aziz Kamilov acknowledged that serious abuses occur in Uzbek prisons and pre-trial detention facilities and pledged that the Government will "use all the resources in its possession" to combat abuses. Following Kamilov's statement, officials from the Ministry of Interior met with foreign ambassadors and UN officials to discuss the Rapporteur's recommendations.

The Government also convened an inter-ministerial working group, chaired by Akmal Saidov of the National Center for Human Rights, to implement the Special Rapporteur's recommendations. A draft Action Plan was released in August 2003. This was followed by a strategy meeting involving the Government, embassies, and members of the international and local human rights community. However, the Plan remains vague, the initial parts of this plan do not go into effect until late 2004, and the bulk of the reforms do not begin until 2006.

In January 2001, the Government of Uzbekistan signed a prison agreement with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on access to all detention facilities in Uzbekistan and to all detainees, regardless of their status (before charges are brought, pre-trial and post trial). The ICRC began visiting prisons in late 2002, and by August 2003 had visited 18 facilities. The ICRC reported good cooperation from the Uzbek authorities and adequate access to facilities and prisoners.

Over the past six months, the Government has allowed Embassy officials to visit Navoi Prison and Karshi Prison. Prisoners interviewed in the facility and a human rights activist recently released from prison reported that prison conditions and the treatment of prisoners had improved, results they attributed to the increased access given to international observers, particularly the U.S. visits. However, others continue to report poor conditions, abuses, and particularly harsh treatment of those suspected of extremism in prisons. These reports include beatings, torture, and restrictions on freedom of religion, such as not being allowed to pray or possess a Koran.

In May 2003, two persons in custody died as a result of torture, as did one prisoner in December, in addition to four prisoners in 2002. Demarches demanding a swift investigation of the May deaths were made at senior levels, and in none of these cases has the Government brought charges against those responsible. Human rights observers believed that many more prisoners died as a result of poor prison conditions aggravated by severe mistreatment. In some cases, law enforcement officials warned families not to talk about their relatives' deaths, which were often attributed by government officials to purely natural causes.

Lawyers may, and occasionally did, call on judges to reject confessions and to investigate claims of torture. In almost all cases, however, the judge simply ignored the claims of torture, or dismissed them as groundless. The one reported exception to this occurred on March 10, when a court in Fergana City dismissed charges against five persons charged with murder on the grounds that the testimony that had been coerced during pre-trial detention was inadmissible under Uzbek law. The next day, however, the judge was reportedly visited by representatives of administration and made to resign. There are reports that the judge has been put under house arrest and that the prosecutor has also been disciplined.

Following terrorist explosions in Tashkent in February 1999, the Government launched a crackdown against political Islam during which many non-political Muslims allegedly were arrested. The number of persons arrested on religious or political grounds has declined from an estimated height of 4,700 in 1999 to 600 in 2002. An estimated 6,200 political prisoners remain in prison. In late 2002 and early 2003, the Government of Uzbekistan released 923 political prisoners as part of a broader amnesty of 5000 prisoners. Prisoners were reportedly forced to sign a confession to be released under the amnesty; there were allegations that some prisoners who refused to do so were subject to physical mistreatment.

Following the March 2002 registration of the Independent Human Rights Organization of Uzbekistan (IHROU), in March 2003, the Government registered a second independent human rights group, Ezgulik. Other human rights groups such as the Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan (HROU) and Mazlum have faced problems registering, but have continued to function. While opposition parties have also been able to operate more freely over the past year than they have in the past, none has been registered. Birlik convened national organizing congresses in March and August 2003. The Party of Farmers and Entrepreneurs (PAPU) also held its second organizing congress in Tashkent in August 2003. However, both Birlik and PAPU had their registrations rejected in October on technical grounds. Birlik was able to resubmit corrected documents on November 24. Because the letter from the Ministry of Justice outlining the technical errors in its application was sent to a wrong address, PAPU was unable to resubmit its document before the imposed deadline, and will have to begin the registration process from the beginning. The opposition party Erk continues to insist its 1991 registration remains valid. After some government interference, Erk was able to hold a national congress in October; however, its members continue to face harassment, including the arrest and disappearance of one member in May who was allegedly beaten and remains unaccounted for. Uzbek authorities deny he is in custody.

The Constitution provides for freedom of religion and for the principle of separation of church and state; however, in practice the Government restricted this right for many groups by enforcing a law on religion that prohibits or severely restricts activities such as proselytizing, importing and disseminating religious literature, and offering private religious instruction. The Government continued its harsh campaign against unauthorized Islamic groups it suspected of extremist sentiments or activities, but of unofficial mosques once closed now are being re-opened in increasing numbers under the watchful eyes of the security services and approved imams. A number of minority religious groups, including congregations of a variety of Christian confessions, especially those with ethnic-Uzbek members, had difficulty satisfying the strict registration requirements set out by the law. Many of those congregations also reported harassment.

Intensive U.S. Government dialogue with Uzbekistan's leadership on the need to address human rights abuses has achieved some modest results, and despite its generally poor record, the GOU responded favorably to U.S. engagement on some issues. For example, in January 2001, after extended discussion, the Government of Uzbekistan signed a prison agreement with the ICRC on access to all detention facilities in Uzbekistan and to all detainees, regardless of status (before charges are brought, pretrial and post trial). However, it was not until 2002 that the ICRC was able to get government cooperation to conduct visits to pre-trial detention facilities. In November 2002, the Government hosted a visit from the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and participated in an OSCE round-table on torture. In another positive step, the Government registered an indigenous human rights NGO in March 2002. In addition, Freedom House was allowed to open a second office in the Fergana Valley.

Though Uzbekistan has made public commitments to observing human rights, the follow-through on these commitments has been lacking. The Administration will continue to monitor Uzbekistan's observance of human rights commitments closely, and will continue to press the issue of human rights with the Government of Uzbekistan.

Section 498A(a)(4): "respect international law and obligations and adhere to the Helsinki Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Charter of Paris, including the obligations to refrain from the threat or use of force and to settle disputes peacefully."

The Government of Uzbekistan generally has respected international law and obligations. It joined the OSCE in January 1992. An OSCE regional office opened in Tashkent in September 1995, and the OSCE has held numerous national or regional seminars in Uzbekistan on human rights and other subjects. In 2003, Tashkent hosted an OSCE training course for border guards and customs officials which included Tajik as well as Afghan participants. A pilot training and monitoring program for prison staff was also begun in December, 2003. Nevertheless, the Government continues to violate its commitments under various agreements to protect human rights, as detailed above.

In response to the Summer 2000 incursions into Uzbek territory from the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan by militants of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, the Uzbek military laid anti-personnel mines in some border areas. Several dozen people have reportedly been killed and injured by these mines.

Section 498A(a)(5): "cooperate in seeking peaceful resolution of ethnic and regional conflicts."

The Government of Uzbekistan supports regional and international efforts to resolve the conflicts in neighboring Tajikistan. The Government of Uzbekistan is a guarantor of the 1998 Tajik peace accords and has allowed UNHCR to repatriate Tajik refugees from northern Afghanistan through Uzbekistan. It has continued to support the Tajik peace accords while criticizing Tajikistan for harboring forces of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. On September 9, it concluded an agreement that completely delimited the border between Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. It has held similar discussions with Tajikistan and the Kyrgyz Republic.

Section 498A(a)(6): "implement responsible security policies, including--

(A) adhering to arms control obligations derived from agreements signed by the former Soviet Union;

(B) reducing military forces and expenditures to a level consistent with legitimate defense requirements;

(C) not proliferating nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons, their delivery systems, or related technologies; and

(D) restraining conventional weapons transfers."

The Government of Uzbekistan supports international efforts to eliminate nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and has consistently reiterated its acceptance of relevant arms control obligations of the Former Soviet Union. Uzbekistan became a party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons as a non-nuclear-weapons state in May 1992. Its safeguard agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency entered into force in October 1994, and it signed the Additional Protocol, which entered into force in December 1998. Following up on a conference on a Central Asian Nuclear Weapons Free Zone in September 1997, which it hosted, it participated in negotiations with its neighbors in the Fall, 2002 resulting in a proposed text of an agreement establishing such a zone. The text has been circulated to the five NPT nuclear weapon states, which have provided their views. Uzbekistan also participated in the 2000 Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference. Additionally, Uzbekistan has acknowledged it is a successor to the former Soviet Union's obligations under the Intermediate and Shorter Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. Although it does not actively participate in the Special Verification Commission, it continues to observe the Treaty's obligations. Uzbekistan also was an original subscribing state to the International Code of Conduct Against Ballistic Missile Proliferation, which were brought into effect on November 25, 2002.

We are not aware that the Government of Uzbekistan has engaged in the proliferation of nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons. Uzbekistan is a State Party to the 1993 Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction (CWC). It has filed a declaration with the Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Uzbekistan acceded to the 1972 Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on their Destruction (BWC), and has submitted annual voluntary BWC related CBM Data Declarations four out of the past seven years, including in 2003. To our knowledge, the Government of Uzbekistan has not engaged in any significant level of conventional arms transfers. It has taken steps to develop its own export control system, and it has positively engaged with U.S. cooperative programs to counter proliferation and develop export controls. Under the terms of the Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) agreement with DOD of May 1999, the Uzbek Government worked alongside U.S. Defense Department experts to dismantle, remove and destroy the specialized equipment and infrastructure of the Soviet-era chemical weapons-associated facility in Nukus. As of May 2002, a CTR team completed its demilitarization project at Nukus. Under their 2001 agreement on cooperation in the area of demilitarization of biological weapons associated facilities and the prevention of proliferation of biological weapons technology, the U.S. Defense Department and the Uzbek Ministry of Defense have decontaminated the test facility on Vozrozhdeniye Island, eliminated the infrastructure of the test facility, and are working to improve the security of dangerous pathogen collections stored at scientific institutes throughout Uzbekistan so as to prevent their possible proliferation. The Uzbek Government has twice in the past few years intercepted radioactive materials shipped through Uzbekistan from elsewhere in Central Asia.

The Government of Uzbekistan has some 65,000 troops in its armed forces. The Government has allowed the basing of U.S. forces on its territory, for use in operations in Afghanistan. Other coalition forces have been allowed to temporarily stage in Uzbekistan. The Government does not allow any other basing of foreign forces on its territory.

Uzbekistan has submitted Confidence- and Security-Building Measures (CSBM) annual data declarations for 1995-2003 as provided for in the OSCE convention. It has also undergone CSBM inspections and evaluation visits in accordance with the OSCE Vienna Document, although not without some difficulties.

Section 498A(a)(7): "take constructive actions to protect the international environment, prevent significant trans-border pollution, and promote sustainable use of natural resources."

Uzbekistan has suffered severe environmental damage, including from lingering agrochemical pollution, as a result of the cotton monoculture imposed during the Soviet era. The Government continues to rely on a state order system for cotton, grain, and rice. This forces farmers to grow set amounts of these crops, thus exacerbating water shortages, land degradation, and the inexorable decline of the Aral Sea.

Several agencies and committees of the Parliament deal with environmental and ecological issues. The Government, bilaterally and through regional organizations, has sought and used international assistance to deal with these issues. Uzbekistan and its neighbors continue to negotiate on problems of the Aral Sea watershed, although they struggle to find a mutually satisfactory mode for long-term cooperation. Current mechanisms for cooperation include work under organs of the International Fund for the Aral Sea (IFAS), and implementation of the 1998 multi-year agreement on water-and power-sharing among the four countries of the Syr Darya river basin (Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Tajikistan).

The Uzbek Government has made some effort to increase public consciousness and understanding of environmental problems, although discussion of problems created by government policies is limited. Uzbekistan joined the other Central Asian states in supporting the establishment of a regional environmental center (CAREC) in Almaty, Kazakhstan, and in early 2002 signed an MOU with the CAREC to establish a branch office in Tashkent. This independent, non-profit, and non-political organization is working to strengthen civil society and support sustainable development and promotes public awareness and participation in regional environmental decision-making. In addition, Uzbekistan has signed and ratified many treaties and conventions on the environment and sustainable development. It has, for example, ratified the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Waste, the Montreal Protocol on ozone depletion, and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). The GOU recognizes that implementation of some of these agreements could be strengthened. The State Department is providing technical assistance to implement CITES, and consults regularly with the GOU on implementation of other agreements.

Section 498A(a)(8): "deny support for acts of international terrorism."

The Government of Uzbekistan does not grant sanctuary from prosecution to individuals or groups that have committed acts of international terrorism or otherwise support international terrorism. Uzbekistan is a party to all twelve UN counter-terrorism conventions. Uzbekistan actively works to increase international cooperation aimed at defeating terrorist organizations. The Government has been supportive of U.S.-led efforts to eradicate terrorism and to remove the Taliban and Al-Qaeda from power in Afghanistan. The Government has provided the United States with access to an air force base at Karshi-Khanabad in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Section 498A(a)(9): "accept responsibility for paying an equitable portion of the indebtedness to United States firms incurred by the former Soviet Union."

In October 1991, shortly before the Soviet Union dissolved, Russia and nine other Soviet republics signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) declaring themselves jointly and severally liable for the foreign debts of the Soviet Union. In December 1991, Russia and seven other former republics, including Uzbekistan signed an agreement which assigned to each of the newly independent states a share of all the external assets and foreign debt of the former Soviet Union. Beginning in 1992, Russia sought to replace the joint and several liability principle by seeking full liability for the debt in return for all the external assets. In November 1992, Uzbekistan signed a "double-zero option" agreement with Russia under which Russia will pay Uzbekistan's share of the debt of the former Soviet Union in return for Uzbekistan's share of the FSU's external assets.

Please see section 498A(a)(9) of the Russia assessment regarding indebtedness to the United States incurred by the former Soviet Union.

The U.S. effort to uncover evidence of American POWs and MIAs in the former Soviet Union is being conducted through the U.S.-Russian Joint Commission on POWs/MIAs that was established in March 1992. The Government of Uzbekistan has been cooperative with all related interviews conducted in Uzbekistan and in February 1996 hosted a successful visit by the Commission.

Section 498A(a)(11): "terminate support for the communist regime in Cuba, including removal of troops, closing military and intelligence facilities, including the military and intelligence facilities at Lourdes and Cienfuegos, and ceasing trade subsidies and economic, nuclear, and other assistance."

We have no evidence from which to conclude that the Government of Uzbekistan is providing military and intelligence, economic, nuclear, or other assistance to the Government of Cuba.

UZBEKISTAN

No. The President has not made such a determination at this time. However, the U.S. Government remains concerned by the human rights situation in Uzbekistan. Lack of the freedoms of association, assembly, and press make real democracy impossible, while police planting of evidence, unfair trials, and torture raise serious concerns regarding the credibility of the system of justice in Uzbekistan. The law on religion continues to restrict freedom of conscience. Despite these problems, the Government of Uzbekistan has taken small but significant steps to improve its human rights records.

We will continue to monitor the Uzbekistan Government's human rights performance and maintain this issue as a key part of our bilateral relationship. We will also work to better address Uzbekistan's human rights problems not only through our diplomatic efforts but also through our assistance programs.

Section 498A(b)(2): Has the President determined that the Government of Uzbekistan "has failed to take constructive actions to facilitate the effective implementation of applicable arms control obligations derived from agreements signed by the former Soviet Union"?

No. The President has not made such a determination at this time.

Section 498A(b)(3): Has the President determined that, after October 24, 1992, the Government of Uzbekistan "knowingly transferred to another country --

(A) missiles or missile technology inconsistent with the guidelines and parameters of the Missile Technology Control Regime; or

(B) any material, equipment, or technology that would contribute significantly to the ability of such country to manufacture any weapon of mass destruction (including nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons) if the President determine[d] that the material, equipment, or technology was to be used by such country in the manufacture of such weapon"?

No. The President has not made such a determination at this time.

Section 498A(b)(4): Is the Government of Uzbekistan "prohibited from receiving such assistance by section 101 or 102 of the Arms Export Control Act or sections 306(a)(1) and 307 of the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act of 1991?"

No. The Government of Uzbekistan is not prohibited from receiving assistance under these statutes.

Section 498A(b)(5): Has the President determined and certified to the appropriate congressional committees that the Government of Uzbekistan "is providing assistance for, or engaging in non-market-based trade (as defined in section 498B(k)(3)) with the Cuban Government? If so, has the President taken action to withhold assistance from Uzbekistan under the Foreign Assistance Act within 30 days of such a determination, or has Congress enacted legislation disapproving the determination within that 30-day period?"

No. The President has not determined that the Government of Uzbekistan is providing assistance for, or engaging in any non-market-based trade with, the Cuban Government.