ASBAREZ Online [11-15-2004]

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11/15/2004
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WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) Estonian President Visits Armenia 2) Kocharian Pessimistic about Karabagh Peace 3) Armenia Denies Kurdish Rebel Link 4) Georgia Warns Moscow to Stay Away from Abkhazia Conflict 1) Estonian President Visits Armenia YEREVAN (RFE/RL)--President Robert Kocharian and Estonian counterpart President Arnold Ruutel decided to bolster commercial contacts during an official meeting in Yerevan on Monday. Following their talks, the two officials said they discussed means to revive bilateral economic ties that existed before the collapse of the Soviet Union. They presided over the opening session of an Estonian-Armenian business forum later in the day. According to Armenian government figures, the volume of Armenian-Estonian trade over the past four years is a meager $1.5 million. Ruutel, who had for years headed Soviet Estonia's parliament before spearheading its independence drive in 1988, said his country's recent accession to the European Union (EU) and Armenia's inclusion in the EU's New Neighborhood program should boost commercial exchange. "Estonia is very interested in developing cooperation with Armenia," the 76-year-old president told a news conference. He also said Estonia is ready to share with Armenia its highly successful experience in the transition to democracy and a market economy. The tiny Baltic state is the most economically developed in the former Soviet Union and is considered an established democracy in the West. Estonia is also known for its widespread use of information technology by government agencies and business community. Over 90 percent of Estonians have access to the Internet, making their economy one of the most IT-oriented in Europe. 2) Kocharian Pessimistic about Karabagh Peace YEREVAN (REF/RL)--President Robert Kocharian voiced skepticism on Monday about the long-awaited resolution of the Mountainous Karabagh conflict, citing Azerbaijan's refusal to negotiate with the Karabagh Armenians and engage in joint economic projects with Armenia. "I don't have much optimism at the moment," he said at a joint news conference with the visiting Estonian counterpart Arnold Ruutel. Kocharian stressed that internationally sponsored peace talks will lead nowhere unless they include representatives of the Mountainous Karabagh Republic (MKR). "I think that this format is not quite correct and does not reflect the essence of the conflict," he said. Azerbaijan, however, refuses to recognize MKR as a separate party to the conflict, saying that the disputed region and Azerbaijani territories surrounding it are controlled by Armenia proper. An Azeri Foreign Ministry spokesman repeated last week that Baku will not negotiate with MKR representatives. He also rejected Armenian warnings not to raise the Karabagh issue with the United Nations. The UN General Assembly is expected to discuss Azeri claims about a massive resettlement of Armenians in the occupied Azeri lands later this year. Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian warned last week that Azerbaijan risks reversing "serious progress" made during a series of talks earlier this year between him and Azeri counterpart Elmar Mamedyarov. The Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, he stressed, must remain the sole international mediator of the Karabagh peace process. Azerbaijan will have to deal with MKR if it insists on bringing the UN into the picture, he added. Kocharian likewise stressed that the Minsk Group, which is co-chaired by the United States, Russia and France, represents the optimal mediation framework. He said the co-chairs have been "objective" to this point and should not be blamed for the lack of progress. 3) Armenia Denies Kurdish Rebel Link YEREVAN (Combined Sources)--The Armenian Foreign Ministry immediately dismissed allegations that members of a Kurdish rebel group arrested in southern Netherlands, were planning to be sent to Armenia to fight for the PKK following their training session. On Friday, Dutch police raided a suspected paramilitary training ground for Kurdish militants, arresting close to 30 people. "It is not apparent what grounds the Dutch press has to even link these 'militant trainees' to Armenia, or what the suspects have themselves said to Dutch officials," announced Armenia's Foreign Ministry Press Secretary Hamlet Gasparyan. According to press reports, the detainees are all alleged members of the former Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, a rebel group which now calls itself KONGRA-GEL. The group seeks to carve out an independent Kurdish state in the mountains of Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey. "Certain Political motives have, in the past, prompted the circulation of similar assertions which have not been substantiated. As in the past, this 'revelation' is considered not serious," stressed Gasparyan. According to prosecutors' statements, more than 20 people were being trained for armed conflict. There were also indications that "a number of the trainees were destined for Armenia," it said. Other detainees allegedly arranged money transfers, passports, and passed along information to PKK members in Turkey and Armenia, prosecutors said. The detainees, whose names were not released, included 33 men and five women. Prosecution spokesman Wim de Bruin said the group had been under observation for several months and that "the course was nearly finished." "We wanted to prevent the group from leaving the country and putting to use the knowledge they had gained," he said. It has been on Europe's list of terrorist organizations since April. Dutch prosecutors said those arrested Friday will likely be charged as members. The suspects apparently did not use weapons or explosives in their training, which were described as "more theoretical." According to prosecutors, the suspects said they were Kurdish but were considered Turkish nationals by the Dutch state. On Monday, The Hague's district court blocked the extradition of alleged PKK leader Nuriye Kesbir to Turkey for her suspected role in a series of bombings in the 1990s. The Turkish justice ministry said it would appeal the decision. 4) Georgia Warns Moscow to Stay Away from Abkhazia Conflict (Financial Times/Itar Tass)--Georgia has warned Russia not to interfere in a continuing political stalemate in its breakaway republic of Abkhazia. The warning came after Georgia's foreign ministry summoned Russia's ambassador to protest the movement of a small group of Russian military forces towards the Abkhaz capital Sukhumi on Saturday. The troop movement came after supporters of Sergey Bagapsh--the opposition leader who won a disputed presidential election on October 3--took control of the parliament and presidential administration buildings in Sukhumi. The occupation, which began on Friday, is in protest of the government's decision to order a reelection that would null the October 3 vote. Georgia urged Russia not to intervene in the Abkhaz power struggle after Russia's foreign ministry issued a statement saying Moscow would "take the necessary measures to defend its interests" if Bagapsh's supporters "illegally" seized power--a reference to Friday's seizure of the public buildings. Meeting with the candidates separately, Abkhazian Prime Minister Nodar Khashba, told Itar Tass on Monday, that an understanding had been reached, and that "the events of past Friday" have transcended the boundaries of legality." He expressed confidence about bringing the two men together in the coming few days, or even hours, to "work out the only correct common decision, which will make it possible to leave behind a political crisis in Abkhazia." All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2004 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. 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