Month: June 2005

EU official says Turkey must strengthen ties with Armenia
Anatolia news agency, Ankara
19 Jun 05
Kars, 19 June: Turkey-European Union (EU) Joint Parliamentary
Commission Co-Chairman Joost Lagendijk has indicated that Turkey’s most
important task in its EU process is good relations with its neighbours.
Lagendijk was at the Kars Mayor Naif Alibeyoglu’s office yesterday
where he made some comments on Turkey-EU relations.
“Turkey must strengthen its relations with Armenia. Nothing can be
achieved with isolationist policies. I believe that Azerbaijan can
get back its territory through dialogue. The EU must play an active
role to find a solution to the Armenian-Azerbaijani dispute. We must
look at the Turkey-Armenia and Armenia-Azerbaijan problems as ones
separate from each other,” told Lagendijk.
According to Lagendijk, it is vital to have regional policies to
develop the economy in poor areas. “We agree with Mr Erdogan on his
stance vis-a-vis Armenia. An independent committee of historians must
be formed to study the incidents of early 20th century. Independent
studies must take place on the events of 1915. However, the border
gate between Turkey and Armenia must be opened soon,” said Lagendijk.
Meanwhile, Kars Mayor Naif Alibeyoglu stressed that the people of
Kars wholeheartedly support Turkey’s EU membership. “The EU is a
goal outlined by Kemal Ataturk. We want to be a part of the EU,”
noted Alibeyoglu.

DELEGATION HEADED BY NORWEGIAN STORTING PRESIDENT TO ARRIVE IN YEREVAN
ON OFFICIAL VISIT ON JUNE 21
YEREVAN, JUNE 16, NOYAN TAPAN. The official visit of the delegation
headed by Jorgen A.Kosmo, President of Norwegian Parliament, Storting,
to Yerevan is planned for June 21-24. According to Noyan Tapan’s
information, the delegation will meet with Armenian parliamentarians,
as well as country’s high-ranking leaders. The results of the visit
will be summed up at the press conference at RA National Assembly.

PROGRESS IS EXPECTED IN ARMENIAN-POPULATED REGIONS OF GEORGIA AS
RESULT OF REFORMS OF LOCAL SELF-GOVERNANCE BODIES
AKHALKALAK, JUNE 16, NOYAN TAPAN. Elections of local self-governance
bodies will be held in Georgia just in a year. Gergia already
certified (with some reservations) the European Charter of Local
Self-Governance, and elections will be held by the new law which is
not adopted yet. But President Mikheil Saakashvili created a special
commission which must work out draft reforms of local self-governance
bodies which may become a basis fro the new law. The commission created
by the President will pay great attention to decentralization of local
bodies and creation of their budget balances. The issue of separation
of the administrative-regional structure of Georgia, which depends on
making clear relations of Tbilisi with Abkhazia and the South Ossetia,
may remain open in the draft reforms. According to the “A-Info”
agency, it is expected in the south Armenian-populated regions of
Georgia, especially in Javakhk that as a result of reforms of local
self-governance bodies, the regions will have an opportunity to act
independent in issues of decentralization and local character.

Azerbaijan denounces poll in separatist Karabakh as “sham”
ANS TV, Baku
18 Jun 05
[Presenter] On the one hand, Armenia is holding talks with the
Azerbaijani foreign minister and the Karabakh mediators of the OSCE
Minsk Group co-chairs in Paris and on the other hand, it is going to
conduct a sham [parliamentary] election in Nagornyy Karabakh tomorrow
[19 June]. The Azerbaijani Central Electoral Commission has already
issued a statement on the 19 June elections to be conducted by the
self-declared Nagornyy Karabakh regime.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry also protested against the elections.
Turkey regards the separatist regime’s plan to hold parliamentary
polls in Karabakh on 19 June as an attempt to undermine the process
of settling the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict.
[Passage omitted: correspondent says the Paris meeting between the
Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers yielded no results].
Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov said that separate and joint
meetings between the ministers and the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs
are a follow-up to the Prague meeting.
[Azimov over telephone from Paris] It is yet too early to speak about
progress. The process is under way. Nevertheless, the pace of meetings
and the essence of the discussions, in my opinion, are promising.
[Correspondent] Nevertheless, the separatist Nagornyy Karabakh regime
thinks differently. So, Arman Melikyan, the self-styled foreign
minister of the Armenian community of the Nagornyy Karabakh, said that
they were expecting nothing extraordinary from the meeting between
the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers. Melikyan said that
the Armenians would never give up Karabakh’s independence.
[Aleksey Manvelyan from Yerevan] They are sticking to what they
have been saying for ages. Another generation has been brought up
believing in the right of their state to exist. I am constantly
looking for someone who would say that he is ready for coexistence.
There are no such people. They listen to radio and TV reports which
frighten them. They have no confidence. When you interview Armenians
in Armenia, they prove to be more moderate than the ones in Karabakh.
[Correspondent] Such views and the conduct of the illegal parliamentary
election will have a negative impact on the talks. Therefore, the
[Paris] meeting condemned the Armenian step.
[Azimov] The co-chairs issued a statement which recognizes Nagornyy
Karabakh as an integral part of Azerbaijan. The statement does not
recognize the separatist regime and the legitimacy of the event to
be held under this regime.
[Correspondent] The Azerbaijani Central Electoral Commission has
issued a statement regarding the conduct of the elections in Karabakh
by the Armenians as an attempt to mislead the international community
and to undermine the peace talks.
[Chairman of the CEC Mazahir Panahov] Irrespective of the geography,
it is illegal to conduct elections on occupied lands. The elections
will be of no significance. They are designed to irritate Azerbaijan.
[Correspondent] The statement added that the sham elections on the
occupied Azerbaijani territory run fully against international legal
norms and the constitution of Azerbaijan. Elections and referendums
on the occupied lands can be conducted only on the basis of the
Azerbaijan’s constitution after the liberation of the lands and
the restoration of Azerbaijan’s integrity. The CEC also urged
international organizations to refrain from monitoring the bogus
elections in Karabakh, end of quote.

COURT FINDS TWO POLICEMEN GUILTY OF AUTHORITY TRANSGRESSION COMBINED WITH VIOLENCE
YEREVAN, JUNE 16, NOYAN TAPAN. The court of the first instance of Lori
marz chaired by Vladimir Aslanian sentenced the deputy commander of
the State Premises Protection Regiment of the RA Police Ruben Sahakian
and an assistant officer on duty of the RA Police Erebuni Department’s
Nubarashen Unit Gurgen Arushanian to 3 years in prison, depriving them
of the right to engage in certain type of activities for two years. The
two above mentioned persons, however, did not serve thier sentences,
since the incident happened in 1998, and the amnesty declared in 2001
on the occasion of the 1700 anniversary of the adoption of Christianity
by Armenia applied to them. The accused were found guilty of exceeding
their official authority combined with violence. R. Sahakian who
was at the time the deputy head of the Lori regional department of
the Ministry of Interior Affairs, and G. Arushanian, a policeman of
the Vanadzor department, committed violence against Armen and Artur
Poghosians in order to make Armen Poghosian confess in the rape and
murder of the 11-year-old Geghetsik Ghandilian. As a result of this,
in 1999 Poghosian was sentenced to 15-year imprisonment, but in 2004,
during an investigation into a similar case it emerged that the
crime had been actually committed by Boris Khasoev, based on which
the criminal prosecution against A. Poghosian was stopped.

ARMENIAN FOREIGN MINISTER PRESENTS ARMENIA’S ACTION PLANS TO NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL AND EU
BRUSSELS, JUNE 16, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The Armenian Foreign
Minister Vartan Oskanian presented on June 16 in Brussels two documents
that represent a landmark in the process of Armenia’s integration into
Europe. According to the RA MFA Press and Information Department,
Minister Oskanian submitted the presentation document of Armenia’s
Individual Partnership Action Plan (IPAP) to the North Atlantic Council
for approval. Following a speech of welcome made by NATO Secretary
General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, the minister presented the document in
general outline, Armenia’s approaches to cooperation prospects, as well
as the foreign policy priorities of the country to the ambassadors
of the 16 NATO member states. The document was developed by the RA
Interdepartmental Commission co-chaired by the Armenian Foreign and
Defence Ministers. The documents reflects Armenia’s objectives aimed
at further developing the relations between Armenia and NATO, as
well as the mechanisms for efficient cooperation in the defence and
security spheres. The document submitted by Armenia was appreciated
by the ambassadors who welcomed the country’s consistent efforts
to increase the cooperation, acclaimed its active participation and
cooperative spirit displayed in various fields, particularly during
the peace-keeping operations with NATO. Then Minister Oskanian
addressed in detail a number of issues raised by the ambassadors
and related to the development of the democratization process in
Armenia, prospects for the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement,
the Armenian-Turkish relations, the Armenian-Russian cooperation,
as well as cooperation within the framework of the Collective
Security Treaty Organization. Early June 16, prior to the sitting
of Council, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer met with
Minister Oskanian. Attaching inportance to Armenia cooperation with
NATO, Secretary General expressed confidence that IPAP will open
new opportunities and perspectives for further cooperation. At the
request of Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, Minister Oskanian informed him
about the current stage and opportunities of the Nagorno Karabakh
settlement process, as well as about a number of issues related
to the regional developments and security. After the approval of
the document by the North Atlantic Council, the action plan for
the program’s implementation will be worked out. On the same day
Vartan Oskanian submitted the draft EU-Armenia Action Plan within
the framework of the European Neighborhood Policy to the Benita
Ferrero-Waldner, Commissioner for External Relations and European
Neighborhood Policy of the European Commission. The sides discussed
the opportunities of cooperation between Armenia and the EU within
the framework of the European Neighborhood Policy, touched upon the
issues of Armenia’s relations with the neighboring countries, the
Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement process. The Armenian Foreign
Minister also had a meeting in Brussels with the Secretary General of
the Council of the EU, HIgh Representative for CFSP Javier Solana. At
the meeting, the sides discussed such issues as the Nagorno Karabakh
problem solution, the regional cooperation perspectives, including the
reopening of the Armenian-Turkish border, new initiatives regarding
the regional transport and energy to be undertaken under the aegis
of the EU, as well as issues related to working out the EU-Armenia
Action Plan. A wide range of issues was also discussed with Deputy
Director General for the External Relations of the European Commission
Michael Lee, with opinions being exchanged about the development of
the EU-Armenia Action Plan within the European Neighborhood Policy,
as well as about the processes taking place in Europe. On June 17,
Vartan Oskanian will leave Brussels for Paris in order to meet there
with the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedyarov with the
mediation of OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs.

SHOW OF ARCHIVAL DOCUMENTS IN MEMORY OF REPRESSED CLERGYMEN OPENS AT NAA
YEREVAN, JUNE 16, NOYAN TAPAN. A show of archival documents, “I am
Alive and You will be”, dedicated to the memory of the clergymen
repressed from the 1920s to the 1950s opened at the National Archives
of Armenia (NAA) on June 16. The show was organized jointly by the
Archives of the Mother See of Holy Echmiadzin and the NAA. The show
presents over 150 documenst kept at NAA, including the personal
files of the repressed clergymen, as well as the letters written
by the Armenian Catholicoses of that time to the Soviev authorities
demanding that the violence and persecutions unleashed against the
Armenian Church be stopped. Recalling that period, Chief Priest Eghishe
Sarsgsian, an inspector of the Gevorgian Seminary of Echmiadzin,
noted that about 200 Armenian priests died during the Stalin regime,
including Bishop Artak Smbatian, Archimandrite Vrtanes Hakobian,
Bishop Aristakes Zuloyan, Archbishop Sahak Ter-Hovhannisian and others
who photos are featured at the show. Priest Astghik Karapetian,
the director of the Archives of the Mother See, said that “this
joint initiative of the NAA and the Mother See of Holy Echmiadzin is
definitely demand for justice and a spiritual duty since, as Catholicos
of All Armenians Vazgen I wrote years ago, “it would be unfair to bury
in oblivion the sufferings and destruction inflicted to the Armenian
Apostolic Church in those cruel times.” The vocal quintet “Luys”
(“Light”) performed spiritual works at the opening ceremony. The show
will last until late June.

RA DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER: TODAY THERE IS GREAT POTENTIAL FOR DEVELOPMENT OF ARMENIAN-INDONESIAN RELATIONS
YEREVAN, JUNE 17, NOYAN TAPAN. On June 17, Mr. Alexander Laturiuw,
newly-appointed Indonesian Ambassador to Armenia (residence in
Kiev), handed the copy of his credentials to Armen Bayburdian, RA
Deputy Foreign Minister. RA Deputy Foreign Minister congratulated
the Indonesian ambassador on the occasion of his appointment and
wished him success in his high mission. He presented the ambassador
the friendly relations established as a result of Armenian-Indonesian
historic contacts and said that today there is great potential for the
development of these relations. The interlocutors touched upon the
prospects of extension of trade and economic relations between the
countries and mentioned the spheres where it’s possible to achieve
large-scale cooperation by joint efforts already today. Jewelry,
diamond procession, wood-working and furniture-making, agribusiness
are among them. They especially mentioned the prospect of using
Armenian and Indonesian great scientific potential in the respect of
implementing joint scientific projects. As Noyan Tapan was informed
by the Press and Information Department of RA Foreign Ministry,
Ambassador Alexander Laturiuw highly estimated the current process
of Armenian-Indonesian cooperation and attached importance to Armenia’s

APPEAL COURT APPROVES CHALLENGE AGAINST JUDGE CHAIRING COMPLAINT CASE
STARTED IN CONNENTION WITH DECISION TO DECLARE ELECTIONS OF CHAIRMAN
OF RA LAWYERS CHAMBER INVALID
YEREVAN, JUNE 17, NOYAN TAPAN. The RA Appeal Court on Civil Cases
approved on June 17 the challenge against Judge Tigran Sahakian
who chaired the case on the complaint filed against the decision
to declare the results of the elections of Chairman of the RA
Lawyers Chamber invalid. In addition to the challenge, the lawyer
Cromwell Grigorian, the representative of the third person in the
case, submitted an application received from the lawyer Hamlet
Stepanian. According to this application, the above mentioned judge
was conducting propaganda in favor of one of the candidates for the
post of the Chamber Chairman – Ruben Sahakian which provided the
ground for challenge. To recap, Enok Azarian was elected Chairman of
the RA Chamber of Lawyers. However, the court of Yerevan’s Kentron and
Nork-Marash communities examined the case as aresult of the complaints
filed by Ruben Sahakian and several other lawyers and made a decision
to declare the elections invalid.

ARMPOST PLANS TO ENGAGE IN FOREIGN CURRENCY EXCHANGE ACTIVITIES
YEREVAN, JUNE 17, NOYAN TAPAN. The Converse Invest company that
assumed the trust management of Haypost CJSC has submitted a bid to
the Central Bank of Armenia to get a license for foreign currency
exchange activity. According to a reliable source, it is planned to
open exchange offices in all the 900 branches of Haypost. The licenses
of 30 exchange offices have lately been recognized invalid by CBA for
the reason of violating the currency legislation. Converse Invest is
an investment company registered in Latvia, which, according to our
information, is founded by the Armenian Converse Bank.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress