US embassy cable - 05ALMATY1992

UNCLAS ALMATY 001992 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/CACEN (JMUDGE), IO/T (DRISCOLL), IO/S 
(JOHNSTON) 
 
GENEVA FOR CHAMBERLIN AND KRUGLILOVA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB, PREL, PGOV, PHUM, BB, CU, KZ 
SUBJECT: ILO CONFERENCE DEMARCHES DELIVERED; KZ DELEGATION 
WILL INCLUDE MINISTER AND KEY OLIGARCH 
 
REF: (A) STATE 94763 
 
     (B) STATE 94801 
     (C) 04 ALMATY 4821 (NOTAL) 
 
1. (U) Econoff delivered Reftel A and B demarches and 
talking points to Askar Akhmetov, Head of the Division for 
Specialized International Organizations of the Kazakhstani 
MFA.  Akhmetov acknowledged the demarche but did not have an 
immediate substantive response. 
 
2. (U) Akhmetov informed Econoff that the Kazakhstani 
Minister of Labor and Social Protection, Gulzhana 
Karagusova, would lead the GOK delegation to the June 
conference.  See Reftel C for background on Minister 
Karagusova. 
 
3. (U) The Kazakhstani delegation will also include the 
president of the largest trade union confederation in 
Kazakhstan, Siyazbek Mukashev.  The Federation of Labor 
Unions of Kazakhstan is the successor organization to the 
Soviet trade unions and represents, as of February 2005, 
1,860,000 workers. 
 
4. (SBU) The delegation will also include the president and 
vice president of the Kazakhstani Association of Employers, 
Kadyr Baykenov (a former energy minister and president of 
the state atomic energy company) and vice president 
Alexander Mashkevich.  Mashkevich, a billionaire oligarch, 
heads the Eurasian Industrial Association.  His business 
interests are primarily in metals, and his main customer in 
Kazakhstan is Mittal Steel.  Mashkevich is also reputed to 
own one of the main newspapers in Kazakhstan.  He maintains 
his close relations with President Nazarbayev by funding one 
of the main "pro-presidential" political parties in 
Kazakhstan. 
 
5. (U) Minimize for Dushanbe considered. 
 
Asquino 
 
 
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