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November 21, 2006

Uzbek Court Snubs Foreign Arbitration

November 21, 2006 -- Uzbekistan's Constitutional Court has ruled that the government should not recognize international arbitration proceedings that foreign investors might launch without its consent.


The decision came on November 20.
 
The issue was addressed following reports that the U.S. Newmont Mining Corporation had appealed to an international arbitration tribunal against a Nawaiy regional court order in late-September that declared the company's Uzbek joint venture bankrupt.


The Zarafshan-Newmont joint venture had been operating one of the world's largest open-pit gold mines, in Uzbekistan's Qizilqum desert, 400 kilometers west of Tashkent.


Uzbek authorities cited tax arrears allegedly owed by the company to justify the move.
 
(Interfax, uzmetronom.net)


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