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Каспинфо август 2001 |
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Название: Короткие материалы на англ. языке Главные Пункты: * 36 конгрессменов обратились в Дж. Бушу с предложением поддержать прокладку трубопровода Баку -Джейхан через Армению * Г.Алиев заявляет, что инцидент с Ираном не приведет к отмене его неоднократно откладывавшегося визита в Иран. * Бывший советник Г.Алиева комментируя инцидент с Ираном 23 июля предложил разместить в Азербайджане базу НАТО. * МИД ИРИ подал формальный протест еще 21 июля в связи с планами Азербайджана разрабатывать месторождение Араз-Алов-Шарг, которое Иран считает находящимся в его секторе Каспия. * и др. сообщения. (02.08.2001) Полный Текст Короткие материалы на англ. языке Короткие сообщения на англ. языке *** U.S. CONGRESSMEN CALL FOR BAKU-CEYHAN PIPELINE TO PASS THROUGH ARMENIA. Thirty-six members of U.S. Congress have set a letter to President George W. Bush calling on him to ensure that the Baku-Ceyhan pipeline will pass through Armenia, Caucasus Press reported on 26 July. Such a route, the letter said, is not only the most efficient but will also promote regional stability. PG RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 141, Part I, 27 July 2001 *** Parker Drilling Company Advises of Kazakhstan Tax Assessment Thu Jul 26 17:35:00 2001 GMT HOUSTON, July 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Parker Drilling Company (NYSE: PKD) today announced that the Kazakhstan branch of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Parker Drilling Company International Limited (PDCIL), has received an assessment for approximately $29,000,000 in additional taxes from the Ministry of State Revenues of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The assessment is based primarily on a determination that payments of $99,050,000 made to PDCIL, in reimbursement for costs attributable to improvements to Rig 257, are income to PDCIL and, therefore, taxable. The payments were made to upgrade barge Rig 257 which is currently drilling in the Caspian Sea. On July 13, 2001, PDCIL filed an Act of Non-Agreement objecting to the tax assessment. Based on the advice of its tax advisors, Parker's management believes that PDCIL has sound legal bases for objecting to the assessment. It is too early in the process to make a reasonable determination of the probable outcome of this matter. This release contains certain statements that may be deemed to be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Securities Acts. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, that address activities, events or developments that the Company expects, projects, believes or anticipates will or may occur in the future, including the outcome of any tax assessment cases, the Company's defenses thereof, the Company's ability to finance the payment of any such tax assessments, and other such matters, are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that its expectations stated in this release are based on reasonable assumptions, actual results may differ from those expressed or implied in the forward- looking statements. For a more detailed discussion of risk factors, please refer to the Company's reports filed with the SEC, and in particular, the report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2000. Each forward- looking statement speaks only as of the date of this release, and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement. http://tbutton.prnewswire.com/prn/11690X66522416 *** From: Dwight Peck Organization: Bassins, Switzerland The Ramsar Bureau is delighted to announce that on 21 May 2001 Azerbaijan deposited with the Director General of UNESCO its instrument of accession to the Convention on Wetlands, as amended by the Paris Protocol of 1982 and Regina Amendments of 1987, and thus the Convention and amendments will enter into force for Azerbaijan on 21 September 2001. Two wetlands have been designated as the new Party's first additions to the List of Wetlands of International Importance: "Agh-Ghol" (500 hectares, 40deg01'N 047deg38'E) is listed as wetland types Q and Sp (permanent saline/brackish/alkaline lakes and marshes/pools) and is said to be particularly important for wintering waterbirds (Criterion 5), with some 130,000 birds counted in 1994/95, the most recent year for which data are available. "Ghizil-Agaj" (99,060 hectares, 39deg07'N 048deg59'E) includes both coastal lagoons and shallow marine waters with permanent lakes and marshes/pools both brackish and freshwater; like Agh-Ghol, this site has been designated under the representativeness criterion and under the 20,000+ waterbirds Criterion 5. The data for both sites exist presently only in Russian but translations are being arranged. This accession brings the Convention to 125 Contracting Parties and is the 22nd in the Bureau's Asian administrative region, with 1075 wetlands on the List of Wetlands of International Importance. Best regards, Dwight Peck Dwight Peck, Rue de l'Eglise CH-1269 Bassins, Switzerland dpeck@iprolink.ch, peck@ramsar.org *** IRAN WARNS AZERBAIJAN OVER CASPIAN OIL DEVELOPMENT. Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Ahani on 21 July lodged a formal protest with Azerbaijan's charge d'affaires in Tehran against plans by the Azerbaijan state oil company SOCAR and foreign oil companies, including BP and Exxon/Mobil, to develop the Araz-Alov-Sharg oil deposits that Iran considers lie within its section of the Caspian Sea, Turan and the "Financial Times" reported. Two Iranian air force planes overflew the Araz-Alov-Sharg deposit on the afternoon of 23 July, and later that evening an Iranian warship entered Azerbaijani territorial waters and threatened to open fire on an Azerbaijani oil exploration ship unless it left the area, AP reported. Azerbaijan's Prime Minister Artur Rasizade summoned Iranian Ambassador Ahad Gazai on 24 July to protest those actions, which he described as "a gross violation of international norms," according to Turan. LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 138, Part I, 24 July 2001 *** BP SUSPENDS SURVEY AT DISPUTED AZERBAIJANI CASPIAN DEPOSIT... BP on 24 July announced that it has suspended further survey activities at the Araz-Alov-Sharg hydrocarbon deposit southeast of Baku following the threats made to two of its survey vessels the previous day by an Iranian naval vessel and aircraft, Russian agencies and the "Financial Times" reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline" and "RFE/RL Azerbaijan Report," 24 July 2001). A BP official said the two survey vessels will remain in Baku port for the foreseeable future. He added that BP expects the Azerbaijani and Iranian governments to resolve their dispute over the dividing line between their respective sectors of the Caspian. LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 139, Part I, 25 July 2001 *** ...AS IRAN BLAMES AZERBAIJAN FOR INCIDENT... Also on 24 July, Iran's ambassador to Baku, Ahad Gazai, told journalists that the Azerbaijani leadership is to blame for the previous day's incident, Turan reported. Gazai said Tehran has repeatedly warned Baku not to conduct exploratory work at offshore oil fields whose ownership is disputed. He said he cannot predict how the Iranian government will respond to the diplomatic protest note he received from Prime Minister Artur Rasizade. No explanation has been offered as to why it was Rasizade who summoned Gazai to hand over that note, rather than Foreign Minister Vilayat Quliev as would have been normal diplomatic procedure. Nor has President Heidar Aliev yet publicly commented on the incident. Azerbaijan's Deputy Foreign Minister Halaf Halafov on 24 July condemned the Iranian moves as violating law and order and creating a dangerous precedent, according to ITAR-TASS. Reuters quoted a senior Iranian diplomat as saying that other Caspian states face similar "consequences" if they begin exploration of deposits that lie within what he termed "our 20 percent of the Caspian." LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 139, Part I, 25 July 2001 *** ...WHICH FORMER ADVISER SAYS PROVES NEED FOR NATO PRESENCE. Commenting on 24 July on the Caspian incident, Vafa Guluzade, a former foreign policy adviser to President Aliev, suggested that Iran resorted to military action because it was aware that Azerbaijan was unable to retaliate and has no ally in the region, Turan reported. Guluzade argued that the incident demonstrates the need for a NATO base in Azerbaijan. Prior to his resignation in October 1999, Guluzade had repeatedly called for a permanent NATO or U.S. military presence in Azerbaijan (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 19 and 22 March 1999). LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 139, Part I, 25 July 2001 *** AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT, DEFENSE MINISTER RULE OUT USE OF FORCE IN DISPUTE WITH IRAN... Speaking at Baku airport before his departure for Sochi, President Aliev affirmed that Azerbaijan wants "friendly and good neighborly" relations with neighboring states, Turan reported. He downplayed the recent violations by Iranian aircraft and gunboats of Azerbaijani airspace and territorial waters as "minor incidents" which, he said, will not have an impact on the scheduling of his much-delayed visit to Tehran. Also on 1 August, Defense Minister Colonel General Safar Abiev told journalists that "Azerbaijan's air defense system is ready to repulse an air attack at any time," but that Azerbaijan would not resort to shooting down Iranian aircraft as "Iran is not a hostile country," Turan reported. Abiev confirmed that his deputy Gorkhmaz Garaev has been dismissed, but denied that he is suspected of corruption (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 31 July 2001). The independent ANS-TV reported late on 1 August that an Iranian war plane twice entered and overflew Azerbaijani airspace over the Caspian Sea earlier that afternoon, ITAR-TASS reported. LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 145, Part I, 2 August 2001 *** ...WHILE PRESIDENT'S SON DOES NOT. Making his first public appearance on 1 August after being incapacitated for six weeks by a sports injury, President Aliev's son Ilham, the first vice president of the state oil company SOCAR, said that "Baku will have to take similar measures if the threat of force is made" in the ongoing standoff with Iran, Turan and Reuters reported. Ilham Aliev also said that SOCAR will insist that BP continues its exploratory surveys at the Araz-Alov-Sharg deposit from which two survey ships were warned away on 23 July by an Iranian military vessel (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 24 July 2001). A BP spokesman said after that incident that the company will not resume survey activities until the Azerbaijani and Iranian governments reach agreement on the dividing line between their respective sectors of the Caspian Sea (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 25 July 2001). LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 145, Part I, 2 August 2001 *** RUSSIA WANTS AZERBAIJAN TO DOUBLE OIL EXPORTS VIA RUSSIAN TERRITORY. During an Internet press conference in Moscow on 1 August, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Khristenko said Russia would like to see Azerbaijan increase oil exports via the Baku-Novorossiisk pipeline from the current 2.5 million tons to 5 million tons in 2002, Interfax reported. He suggested that the two countries sign a long-term agreement on the volume of future exports. Transneft President Semen Vainshtok offered in January to cut transport tariffs for SOCAR crude exported via the Baku-Novorossiisk pipeline if Azerbaijan guaranteed the export of a minimum of 5 million tons per year. LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 145, Part I, 2 August 2001 *** UKRAINIAN PREMIER TRUMPETS BENEFITS OF PIPELINE. Anatoliy Kinakh said on 2 August that Ukraine plays a key role in supplying Western Europe with energy, AP reported. Kinakh, in Budapest for a one-day visit, said that the planned pipeline running from the Black Sea port of Odesa will allow Ukraine to "take Caspian Sea oil and even Middle East oil...[and] be able to ship 40 million tons of petroleum a year through the pipeline. This will enhance Europe's energy security." The pipeline will stretch 667 kilometers from Odesa to the Ukrainian town of Brody. PB RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 146, Part II, 3 August 2001 *** RUSSIA, IRAN END TALKS ON CASPIAN CRISIS... Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Ahani told journalists in Moscow on 9 August after two days of talks with Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and Deputy Foreign Minister Viktor Kalyuzhnyi that Iran will not after all be excluded from the Caspian summit proposed last week by Russian President Putin, Interfax reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 6 August 2001). He said Tehran is aware of the plan to hold a summit of all five littoral states in Turkmenistan this fall, but has not yet received an invitation to attend. In what appears to be a shift in Tehran's official position, Ahani said Iran still considers that the optimum approach to dividing the Caspian is to employ the condominium principle, but failing that, each littoral state could have a 25-kilometer coastal zone for sovereign use. Iran had earlier insisted that the Caspian be divided into five equal-sized zones, which would have augmented Iran's sector which currently constitutes only 14 percent of the sea. Ahani said deputy foreign ministers of the five littoral states will hold a "working meeting" in Astana next month. LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 151, Part I, 10 August 2001 *** ...AS TURKEY CALLS FOR DIALOGUE TO DEFUSE IT. In a statement released on 9 August, Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Husein Dirioz called on Azerbaijan and Iran to resolve their differences over the Caspian through peaceful dialogue, noting that neither the use nor the threat of force is compatible with the fundamental principles of international law, Turan reported. Ankara has a fundamental interest in the export of Azerbaijan's Caspian oil via its territory. LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 151, Part I, 10 August 2001 *** AZERBAIJAN REJECTS MOST RECENT TURKMEN STATEMENT. Unnamed officials from Azerbaijan's state oil company SOCAR on 9 August denied that any structure named Geygel exists in the vicinity of the Kyapaz Caspian oilfield of which both Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan claim ownership, Turan reported. Turkmen Deputy Prime Minister Yelly Gurbanmuradov had accused SOCAR the previous day of preparing to begin exploitation of that deposit (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 9 August 2001). He argued that since the field in question is only 100 kilometers from the coast of Turkmenistan and 210 kilometers from the Azerbaijani shore of the Caspian there can be "no doubt" that it belongs to Turkmenistan. LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 151, Part I, 10 August 2001 *** ...AS IRAN AGAIN VIOLATES AZERBAIJANI AIRSPACE. Two Iranian military aircraft entered Azerbaijani airspace during the afternoons of 8 and 9 August, Turan reported. Similar incursions took place on 6 and 7 August. Neither the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry nor the Defense Ministry has issued a statement on those overflights. LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 151, Part I, 10 August 2001 *** GEORGIAN FOREIGN MINISTER CANCELS LATVIA VISIT OVER GAS TALKS IMPASSE. Irakli Menagharishvili has cancelled a visit to Latvia scheduled for 15-17 August in order to continue work on the texts of agreements on the export via Georgia of natural gas from Azerbaijan's offshore Shah-Deniz field, Caucasus Press reported on 10 August. Those agreements were originally slated for signing on 27 July (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 7 August 2001). Caucasus Press cited unidentified "reliable sources" as saying that Georgia is hoping for $92 million annually in transit fees for that gas, while Azerbaijan is prepared to offer only $52 million. It is not clear whether Georgian-Azerbaijani relations are also strained as a result of Georgia's commitment to repair and modernize a total of 46 Turkmen military aircraft in lieu of payment of its outstanding bills for Turkmen natural gas in cash. LF RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol. 5, No. 151, Part I, 10 August 2001 |