Ãóíäîãàð, Turkmenistan
Gundogar – For Democracy and Human Rights in Turkmenistan
Oct 27 2006
Bermuda Triangle
Leonid Kolosov/Gundogar
Turkmenistan – Turkey – EU: how will their further relations develop?
Events seemingly independent from each other – EU’s refusal to ratify
the interim trade agreement with Turkmenistan and tightening of the
process of Turkey’s possible entry into the European Union,
nevertheless, appear to be closely connected.
And the point is not that in both cases debates are aroused by
antidemocratic policy of authorities of the two countries and
violations of human rights, which in opinion of the European
officials is absolutely not acceptable.
In case with Turkmenistan, according to the resolution of the
International Trade Committee of the European Parliament, the
European Union will approve an interim trade agreement with
Turkmenistan only if `clear, tangible, and sustained progress on the
human rights situation is achieved.’ Before continuing negotiations
Turkmen government has to release all political prisoners, allow the
registration and free functioning of nongovernmental organizations,
and to grant international human rights monitors access to
Turkmenistan to oversee the situation in the country.
Europe already knows enough about dictatorial method of government
embraced by Saparmurat Niyazov and the European officials had enough
opportunities to become acquainted with it personally. `It is the
most repressive country I’ve ever been to, – British conservative,
deputy of the European Parliament Martin Callanan said after
returning from a five-day trip to Turkmenistan. – There are no human
rights at all’.
Therefore, it is not a surprise that a question: `to trade or to not
trade with Turkmenistan?’ – was answered by prevailing common sense
and unwillingness to soil the reputation by cooperating with
dictator, even considering the `countless’ hydrocarbon resources and
interest in deliveries of Turkmen energy to Europe. `I do not say,
that we should buy oil and gas only in the democratic countries –
with such an approach we shall buy nothing at all, – M. Callanan
said. – However signing of the new agreement, should probably be
postponed until improvements with human rights situation in
Turkmenistan begin to show’.
In order to reach EU standards, Turkey also has to undertake a number
of measures in sphere of political and civic freedoms, in particular,
regarding freedom of speech and civil control over the army. Till now
pace of these reforms was considered insufficient. Besides, Till now
Turkey did not get over the stumbling block – an issue of recognition
of genocide of Armenians in 1915 and the Cyprian problem – and this
won’t happen in the near future.
`Turkey may stop it’s movement towards the West, which started 80
years ago with Kemal Ataturk and start implementing Islamic and
nationalist policy instead’, – reports British Financial Times.
In turn, head of the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs Frank-Walter
Steinmeyer sharply criticized Ankara and has declared that progress
in observance of the human rights `in this country exists only on
paper’.
But if we assume that European countries will open doors of the
European Union for Turkey how in this case they will look at more
than friendly relations between Turkey and Turkmenistan? Which way
the EU’s geopolitical pendulum will swing: will the Europe follow a
course of principle and will not encourage numerous trading and
economic contacts of Turkey with Turkmenistan which for Turkey,
certainly, will be difficult to refuse or will be indulgent to their
`related’ communication?
`One nation – two states’ – this is the principle of mutual relations
which have developed between Turkey and Turkmenistan since the first
days of declaration of independence of the last. During 15 years
which have passed since then, interdependence of the two countries
became even more evident. Turkey, trying to achieve long-term
influence among the independent Turkic states of Transcaucasia and
Central Asia: Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and
Kirghizia – used Turkmenistan as a base for development of this
influence, which promised considerable gain. Huge fuel and energy
resources, low level of development of the infrastructure,
opportunity to find new markets made Turkmenistan attractive to
Turkish businessmen, and the new Turkmen ideology proclaimed by
Saparmurat Niyazov and which made Turkmen hostages of their own
history, conformed to ideas of panturkism in the best way.
Turkmen-Turkish colleges, libraries, cultural centers started
appearing in the country. Ashkhabad got Turkmen-Turkish university,
Turkish hospital, supermarket `Yimpash’, Turkish language newspaper
`Zaman-Turkmenistan’ appeared in print, Turkish TV was broadcasted.
Ottoman style mosques were built with participation of Turkish
builders…
Turkish `brothers’ have introduced into practice kissing Niyazov’s
hands, and for a reason! More than 300 Turkish firms have been
registered in Turkmenistan. Projects, on which they worked, were
estimated in billions of dollars. Thousands of workers have been
delivered from Turkey; there was even talk about resettlement to
Turkmenistan, to `their historical native land’, of two millions
Anatolia Turks to whom `kind’ Turkmenbashi promised the land and the
citizenship.
Large and small Turkish firms account for hundreds of building
contracts, energy and textile branches are practically completely
supervised by Turkish business. Niyazov often invites representatives
of the Turkish side to sessions of the Cabinet to discuss economic
issues.
Niyazov entrusts the most important projects to Turkish companies
`Chalyk Holding’, `Chalyk Energy’, `Norsel’, `GAP Inshaat’,
`Polymex’, `ERKU’: the factory producing polyethylene, polypropylene,
glass-fiber and steel wire reinforced thermoplastic pipes of various
diameter, hoses and pipes for drip irrigation in Rukhabad (cost of
the project is 85 million dollars) – to firm `ERKU’; shopping center
in Ashkhabad (cost of the project is 34 million dollars), olympic
water-sports complex (cost of the project is 25 million dollars),
Turkmen `Disneyland’ (cost of the project is 50 million dollars) – to
firm `GAP Inshaat’; gas turbine power station in Ashkhabad vicinity
(cost of the project is more than 109 million dollars) – to firm
`Chalyk Energy’, hydropark in Ashkhabad (cost of the project is 63
million dollars) – to firms `Polymex’, `GAP Inshaat’, `ERKU’.
All of this is only a top of the construction iceberg. Only this year
volume of capital investments mastered by smaller Turkish
construction firms makes hundreds of millions US dollars.
Turkmenistan with its low standard of life represents a huge market
for selling cheap Turkish products and merchandise. Only during the
first quarter of 2006 delivery of goods from Turkey have increased by
4,6 times in comparison with the same period of the last year.
Turkish businessmen are the most frequent visitors at the tenders of
the Turkmen commodity exchange. They are interested in cotton yarn,
knitted wear and garment, yarn and cotton-spinning waste, gray cloth,
raw silk, cattle skins, diesel fuel, gasoline, black oil,
polypropylene, technical carbon, technical iodine, petroleum coke,
virgin gasoline and other goods.
In May of this year Turkmenistan has prolonged till 2010 the
effectiveness of the contract on deliveries of the electric power to
Turkey. According to Niyazov’s decree the state power supplier
`Turkmen Energo’ of the Ministry of Energy and Industry was entrusted
to complete an additional agreement with the Turkish electric power
trader `TETAS’ to contract on delivery of the electric power from
Turkmenistan to Turkish Republic from 12 May 1999, prolonging
validity of the contract with preservation of volumes of delivered
electric power (300 million kilowatt hour per year) and prices (3,35
US cents for 1 kilowatt hour).
We shouldn’t ignore some not quite legal forms of Turkmen – Turkish
cooperation. First of all, it concerns laundering of huge money
through different projects, which in most cases are carried out in
obviously overestimated prices, which interests first of all the
Turkmen party led by Niyazov, and the Turkish – led by Ahmed Chalyk.
The full control of these two figurants extends not only to economic
and political life of the country. They also control the
traditionally active drug-traffic, connecting the Afghani
manufacturers, through Turkmenistan and Turkey, with the European
consumers.
Therefore the analysts who consider that `Turkmenistan is not so
sensitive to reproaches of the European Union’ and that even in case
of removal of the European business Turkmenistan hardly will lose
much, are rather right. Ashkhabad has an alternative, it has enough
trading partners, and one of the most active ones is Turkey.
But Turkey aspires to join the European Union, the political and
economic organization which considers violations of the human rights
in Turkmenistan as a reason sufficient enough to refuse ratification
of the trade agreement with this country. It would be logical, if one
more condition of Turkey’s entry into EU would be its refusal to
cooperate with regime of the Turkmen dictator, at least, at the state
level.
Certainly, a choice which can be put in front of Turkey by the
European Union: Turkmenistan or Europe – looks at first sight rather
fantastic.
Well, what if?..
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