The Georgian way leads Tajikistan to nowhere

The Soviet Union is not existed for already 20 years and Russia has proved as sincere and true friend of independent Tajikistan for all this time. The Russian military men carried out peacemaking problems with honor during international conflicts. In territory of this country there is the Russian 201st military base, the presence of which moderates the appetites of Islamic extremists rather strongly: after all the extent of frontier of Tajikistan makes more than 4000 kilometers and its third is with Afghanistan.

Besides the Russian and Tajik frontier guards protected jointly the borders of this country for long time, interfering with a drug trafficking from Afghanistan. And the thousands of citizens of Tajikistan work in the Russian Federation which, thus, helps the brotherly republic with job supply of its citizens.

It would seem that the strengthening of brotherly communications with Russia in such conditions is quite well-founded and logical way of the further development of Tajikistan, besides in the interests of all people. However, as practice shows, there are forces which, possibly, don’t like it….

Here are the facts: on March, 12th of this year in connection with the termination of the contract of the company “Rolkan investments Ltd” which has two planes An-72, with the American logistics firm “Supreme”, the crews of these aircrafts have taken off for Russia. According to the management of “Rolkan investments Ltd”, the planes have been leased to firm “Air Space” from Arab Emirates which, in turn, has concluded the contract with the firm “Supreme” which serves the United Nations and armies of the United States. Both planes carried out recently the transportations in territory of Afghanistan, transporting not military-oriented cargoes in interests of grouping of the NATO.

The task in view of clearing of parking was put to our pilots in connection with a military operating regime of the airport Kabul. Having gathered all technical property of two planes including spare parts (1 spare engine) and personal things of the crews and having obtained the permit of crossing the border with Tajikistan, both planes have taken off towards the airport of Kurgan - Tyube of Republic Tajikistan on March 12, 2011 with an interval of 20 minutes. Having reached the point of intersection of border and having communicated with the dispatcher of Tajikaeronavigatsii, they have received suddenly the information on absence of the permission to border crossing and the offer to return to the airport Kabul.
Having accounting the quantity of fuel and delay possibility at return to the airport Kabul, the commander of the first plane, being guided by the International Air Code and by the absence of the guaranteed emergency rest of fuel, has made the decision on inquiry to an emergency landing at the airport of Kurgan - Tyube with a view of safety of crewmen and the plane and has obtained the official permit. The second commander of crew also has requested an emergency landing and has obtained the official permit. The customs officers on duty have approached to planes in airdrome, having examined the planes, have drawn up the statement about absence of any illicit and forbidden subjects.

After this procedure the workers of the Committee Department of National Security of Tajikistan of Khatlon region have approached to the crews and have kept them from March, 12 till March 14, 2011 year in the premises of the Committee Department of National Security , without showing any official charges.

Accordingly, the Russian embassy in Tajikistan hasn't been informed also.

On March, 14th, after withdrawal of personal papers, both crews have been placed in hotel where they were under protection till May 12, 2011, again without a presentation of official charges. “Home arrest” has been almost applied and it didn't allow the crews to take off home or freely to move the city. Such methods of freedom restriction aren't provided by the legislation of Tajikistan, but have been applied for some reason …

The commanders of the crews have been arrested on May 12, 2011: Vladimir Sadovnichy and Alexey Rudenko. Other members of the crews have been released.

On November 8, 2011 the Tajik court has sentenced the citizen of Russia Vladimir Sadovnichy and the citizen of Estonia Alexey Rudenko to 8,5 years of imprisonment in a colony of high security to everyone. They have been found as guilty of illegal crossing of frontier, contraband and infringement of rules of the international flights.

“We have driven abroad not a donkey. We are in air, we should make the decision. And we have analyzed the situation that if we would return to Kabul, so we have kerosene to reach, but according to security measures of civil aircraft I should have a guarantee safe rest”, Vladimir Sadovnichy has stated the point of view.

On one of the aviation forums someone from pilots has estimated the situation so:

- Most likely Dushanbe was reserve for them (I do not confirm, but I assume). They did that for always. Or Hudzhant. But what to do if on the entry of the air space of Tajikistan (FIR Dushanbe) they have begun to shout that the permission is void and the entry is forbidden? To go to the left and try to enter the air space of Uzbekistan through a point of Termez? And they are the same “clowns” – can’t let go. Kabul won't let go for 100 % - they simply declare “be off and we are not interested where”. Well, the men also have decided for old time's sake that the question will be solved somehow in the allied republic... But they were mistaken. All has appeared even worse... It appears that now it is better to go to Kabul on last drops, though there are white people in airdrome. If the worst comes to the worst they will arrest the planes but not the crew on 10 years of high security.

Certainly, to read such about neighboring country, which Russia considered as the friendly state until recently, is rather unpleasant. All the more other representatives of the aviation public call for application of much more cardinal measures to utmost: to dispatch of all Tajik citizens who are in territory of the Russian Federation, the interdiction of money resources transfer to Republic Tajikistan etc. Such point of view is supported also by some deputies of the State Duma, for example, the committee-man of the international affairs Semen Bagdasarov …

And the public prosecutor of Tajikistan Sherkhon Salimzoda has urged at press conference … not to give “political coloring” to case of pilots Vladimir Sadovnichy and Alexey Rudenko who have been sentenced on November, 8th to imprisonment. The public prosecutor has declared that “incident is a usual crime” and has no “political character”.

Earlier the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation named the sentence which has been taken out concerning Sadovnichy and Rudenko as “politically committed” and “extremely severe”. Besides, there was a message about telephone conversation of the department head Sergey Lavrov with his Tajik colleague on the web site of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As followed from the press release, Lavrov named the sentence of pilots as unreasonable.

The president of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev also paid attention to the case of Sadovnichy and Rudenko. As he said, “the decision on this case causes a considerable quantity of questions - both from the point of view of the corpus delicti and how this process passed”.
But the Tajik authorities insist that the pilots have made landing without permission. According to the public prosecutor, the dispatchers refused landing for seven times, however the planes continued to “go deep” into the territory of Tajikistan.

As Salimzoda has declared, the pilots also have illegally included the notice on a crash landing as there was no any necessity to do that. “Survey of planes with participation of experts has shown that they had possibility to come back to the city of Kabul”, he has declared.
Let's try to understand the true reasons of incident. So, the first version: the new lease contract of 201st military base should be soon signed and Tajikistan tries simply to “obtain” any preferences in such impartial way.

The second version: someone has solved “to take” both planes as they are rather appreciated in aviation circles as simple in service and the reliable cars as well as possible adapted for flights in mountain and deserted conditions.

And, at last, the third version, specifying in turn, who actually stands up for arrest of planes and pilots. As it became known as a result of contacts to some aviation experts in airdrome Kabul, the American company “Supreme” behaved concerning our crews, to put it mildly, rather incorrectly – endlessly withhold the payment of wages, forced to work in unfavorable weather conditions, including with risk for life, etc. Besides, it also owes rather big sums. The further work in such conditions became impossible for our pilots and they have decided not to prolong the contract. And the heads of the company have decided to punish the pilots for refusal of cooperation on crushing terms and have asked to influence the management of Tajikistan with the help of the US State department that it has helped them with the decision of these problems. That is called, by one shot – the Americans get clear of debts by arrest of pilots and their “partners in crime” from Tajikistan receive the aviation equipment …

Most actively thus, without hiding the pro-American interest, behaved the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan Hamrokhon Zarifi and head of the State Committee of National Security Saymumin Yatimov.
What to say here? If Tajikistan considers itself as the civilized state and it would be desirable to trust, so to refuse to the planes asking a crash landing is not only uncivilized but simply somehow not humanly … The arrest of pilots for it can be considered as a savage act, similar to capture of ships sailors by the Papuans who were wrecked near their island.

It is all clear concerning the US State department: they always were ready to do anything, even the wars for the sake of interest protection of the American companies. And what about Tajikistan? Unfortunately, there are precedents on the post-Soviet territory when the reckless following in the tideway of the American policy led to the big bloodshed: it is enough to remember the Georgian aggression which has received the impartial name in a press as “War of 08.08.08”. Saakashvili got his just deserts quite naturally, besides Georgia has lost a part of the territory. Does another's experience learn to nothing?

As to NATO and actually the USA it becomes simply not clear, who and how will want to cooperate with them after all happened … It especially surprisingly, Alexey Rudenko is the citizen of Estonia, a member of NATO...