President of Kazakhstan Noursultan Nazarbaev did not hide his dissatisfaction with Kazakh-Russian relations at the border regions forum.
Photo: Dmitry Azarov
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Kazakh President Puts Brakes on Relations with Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Kazakh President Noursultan Nazarbaev yesterday at the annual border regions forum in Novosibirsk. Kommersant special correspondent Andrey Kolesnikov was struck by tense atmosphere at the meeting, which had never been there before.
Before the forum, Putin and Nazarbaev visited an exhibition of the accomplishments of the border regions. At one stand, retired general Ravil Kalimulin showed them what high standards of security could be attained through the use of electronic surveillance devices. Every centimeter of the border could be watched, with the technical support from the American GPS system.
“Maybe there's a system like that that could automatically capture criminals,” it was suggested.
“No,” Kalimulin replied regretfully. “They can only be destroyed automatically.”
I asked if it wouldn't be better if it ran on the Russian GLONASS system. Kalimulin replied regretfully that that will be impossible until GLONASS has at least 24 satellites in orbit. “Not only that, GLONASS takes more space and consumes more,” he added, as though it had just occurred to him.
“Then maybe you don't need GLONASS,” I conceded.
“When X hour comes,” Kalimulin said ominously, “the Americans will change the frequency and none of this will work.”
Another interesting exhibit was the pilot-less multipurpose Patrol complex, or, simply put, an airplane. At first glance, it is toy-sized, but it does quite grown-up things. It can photograph everything that moves and it can hover. As one of its developers noted, it can shot Paris Hilton at the beach with all the details (if anyone cares). “The finder is requested to call ……… or the service center at ……… for a reward” was stenciled on its wing.
A life-size Patrol was parked outside the regional administration center. It turned out to be the only exhibit Putin was really interested in. It was already dark outside.
“How much runway does it need?” the president asked the developers.
“A hundred meters,” they replied.
“Flight distance?”
“Twelve hundred meters.”
“How does it transmit?”
“On Inmarsat.”
“Video?”
”And photo.”
“Where are they made?”
“St. Petersburg.”
”And what does it cost?”
“A set of three planes for 30 million rubles,” one of the developers said quickly. He knew it was now or never.
Putin nodded and they moved on to a complex-looking armored vehicle. This time Nazarbaev asked the questions. I noticed that two of the three vehicles on display has Moscow license plates.
“Do they float?” Nazarbaev asked.
“Not these, but we're working on one that does.”
The presidents were back in front of Kalimulin's stand again shortly.
“Fast detection?” asked Nazarbaev.
“Very,” answered Kalimulin weightily.
“And who will catch the ones it detects?”
Kalimulin shrugged.
Putin's opening speech at the forum was short and uneventful. He did not speak of victories, because there were none to speak of. Nor did he mention defeats. He did not mention Kazakhstan's ban on Russian Proton rockets because he did not want to. A high-placed source involved in the negotiations later said that Russia would pay Kazakhstan damages, for the reason that the justification of its claims was hard to deny. “If that mush poisonous fuel were poured on our territory, how would you feel?” the source asked.
Nazarbaev did not hide his feelings. He said that Kazakhstan has already finished its part of the road from Eastern Kazakhstan to Russia, while Russia has not even started its 40-km. stretch in Altai Territory. He was dissatisfied with RAO UES of Russia's plans to put off building third and fourth lines at the Ekibastuz power plant until 2012. RAO had won the tender for it, but Nazarbaev made it clear that they could find other investors if RAO didn't change its mind. None of the ten border checkpoint built is operating because there is no agreement on their joint control.
Oleg Derispaska did not sign a memorandum of intentions with AO Kazakhstan Holding for the management of State Samruk Assets. They said the problems with the document would be worked out and it would be signed later, but that sounded a little scandalous.
“Next year our meeting will take place in Kazakhstan,” Nazarbaev grumbled near the end of the forum, “if you don't mind.”
Putin didn't mind and didn't look at all interested.
Andrey Kolesnikov
All the Article in Russian as of Oct. 05, 2007
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