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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: JohnM who wrote (13534)	12/10/2001 8:30:27 AM
From: John Carragher	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

U.S. Won't Ease Iranian Pipeline Policy Despite Kazakstan's Aid in Terror War By NEIL KING JR. Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL MOSCOW -- When it comes to Iran and oil pipelines, some features of the political landscape haven't changed since Sept. 11. Such was Secretary of State Colin Powell's message Sunday to Kazakstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev. As with many world leaders who have lent a hand in the U.S. war on terrorism, Mr. Nazarbayev hoped to win favors from his American guest, among them some easing of the long feud over shipping Caspian oil through Iran to the Persian Gulf. But Mr. Powell disappointed the Kazak leader during a brief stopover in the capital, Astana, on a swing through the region to firm up support for the antiterrorism effort. "I see nothing in the post-Sept. 11 environment that leads me to think we should change" the U.S. policy on routing pipelines from Central Asia, Mr. Powell said in response to a reporter's question. Mr. Nazarbayev then jumped in with an unusual retort. The Iranian route, he said, "would be the most profitable" and efficient for Kazakstan and the largely U.S.-based oil companies active in his oil-rich country. Transporting oil through Iran, Mr. Nazarbayev said, is one of many routes Kazakstan would like to develop as it seeks to increase its oil exports to more than 150 million tons a year by 2015, up from about 20 million tons a year now. Mr. Powell made clear to reporters after leaving Kazakstan that the Bush administration isn't ready to budge on the Iran-pipeline issue, despite a slew of recent contacts with Iranian officials that suggests ties between the two foes could begin to warm. He said he is "open to exploring opportunities" with Iran, but the administration has no illusions about "the nature of the government" there. The U.S. has long blocked construction of an oil pipeline to Iran based on opposition to the Tehran government and its support for militant groups such as Lebanon's Hezbollah. The U.S. instead has promoted building a pipeline from the city of Baku in Azerbaijan to Ceyhan along the Turkish coast, and the Bush administration recently applauded the opening of a pipeline built by a U.S.-led consortium connecting Kazakstan to the Russian Black Sea port of Anapa. The U.S. for the past decade has sought to control oil exports from the Caspian, largely maneuvering to keep pipelines out of Iran and, to a lesser extent, Russia. As Kazakstan emerges as the most oil-rich of the Caspian states, its cooperation in pipeline construction is crucial. Mr. Powell had to deal with other prickly issues during his visit Saturday to Kazakstan's neighbor, Uzbekistan. The government in Tashkent has been key to the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan, offering bases for U.S. troops and an important staging ground for humanitarian aid. During Mr. Powell's visit, Uzbek President Islam Karimov agreed to open the Friendship Bridge over the Amu Darya River, the only land link between Uzbekistan and northern Afghanistan. The first train carrying tons of grain and flour crossed the bridge into Afghanistan Sunday. But U.S. officials are leery of getting too cozy with one of Central Asia's most repressive governments. Mr. Karimov has muzzled dissent since assuming power in 1990 and has imprisoned hundreds of men on suspicion of being radical Muslims. Aides traveling with Mr. Powell say the U.S. hopes to use its new ties with Uzbekistan to prod Mr. Karimov toward democratic reforms while it acknowledges the country must move at its own pace. Mr. Powell assured Mr. Karimov that the Bush administration is prepared, if necessary, to maintain a long-term military presence in the region. He also promised to seek better economic ties between the U.S. and Uzbekistan and to make sure the country also benefits from the rebuilding of Afghanistan. Mr. Powell made similar pledges of assistance to his Kazak hosts after he flew on to Astana, arriving there in subzero weather. Mr. Nazarbayev, during several hours of talks with Mr. Powell, requested that at least part of the Afghan reconstruction effort be run out of a large humanitarian relief base in Kazakstan, according to U.S. officials. When the work in Afghanistan turns to rebuilding such things as bridges and power stations, the president said he would like Kazak technicians and engineers involved in the projects. Mr. Powell said he would forward these desires to the appropriate parties. Mr. Powell's visit to Moscow comes amid noticeably improved ties between the U.S. and Russia since the Sept. 11 attacks. While in Brussels last week, the secretary helped orchestrate creation of a NATO-Russia council that will give Russia a bigger say in North Atlantic Treaty Organization affairs, despite some misgivings in the Pentagon. Monday, in talks with Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and President Vladimir Putin, Mr. Powell will turn his attentions to arms-control issues, including efforts to get Moscow's agreement to amend the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty so the U.S. can proceed with developing a missile-defense system. -- Jeanne Whalen contributed to this article. Write to Neil King Jr. at neil.king@wsj.com