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08/30/2005
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WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) France Pushes Ahead with Cyprus Question pre Turkey-EU Talks 2) ANCA Sets Record Straight in Face of Continued Azeri Misinformation on Mountainous Karabagh 3) No Breakthrough in Kazan, Says FM Okanian 4) Cascade Credit Issued Armenian Bonds Gain USAID Guarantee 5) Heated Debates on Proposed Constitutional Reforms Continue in Armenia's Parliament 6) Parliament Chairman to Participate in State Department Program for Emerging Leaders 1) France Pushes Ahead with Cyprus Question pre Turkey-EU Talks (AFP/RTE News)--French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy has raised the pressure on Turkey over Cyprus, saying it is inconceivable that a country seeking to enter the EU could fail to recognize all its members. Turkey is due to start EU entry talks on October 3, but has angered the union by saying that its signing of a key EU protocol does not signify recognition of the Greek Cypriot government. The EU recognizes the Greek Cypriot government of the divided island of Cyprus, while Turkey has long supported the breakaway Turkish Cypriot northern region. "It is hardly conceivable that a country that is asking to enter a community refuses to recognize one of its members," Douste-Blazy told a conference of French ambassadors. France "does not want to start a new crisis in Europe" but as an EU member it "is within its rights in asking Turkey to clarify its position" on Cyprus, Douste-Blazy said. Turkey was high on the agenda of the ambassadors' meeting, whose theme this year was the implications of the May 29 referendum in which French voters rejected the proposed EU constitution treaty. Opposition by some French parties to Turkey joining the EU was used as an argument during the campaign for the constitution referendum, although the issue was unconnected with the treaty itself. French President Jacques Chirac said on Monday Turkey had to clarify its stance on Cyprus and added it must offer assurances that it will carry out all its commitments to the European Union. Chirac has promised to put the issue of Turkish membership to a referendum; the European Commission repeated on Monday its position that Turkey did not have to recognize Cyprus in order for accession talks to begin. EU President Jose Manuel Barroso said in an interview published on Tuesday that no European Union members have suggested delaying the start of EU membership talks with Turkey. "So far, no country has signaled to me that it wants to delay the start of talks [from the Oct. 3 target date]," Barroso was quoted as saying by Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza. "The European Commission prepared a project of negotiations with Turkey. It is up to the countries in the EU to decide [to back it or not]," he said. Douste-Blazy said France wanted to "respect its commitments but expects Turkey and other candidate countries to respect theirs and satisfy the conditions for joining the Union 2) ANCA Sets Record Straight in Face of Continued Azeri Misinformation on Mountainous Karabagh "At the heart of this issue is Nagorno Karabagh--a democracy defending itself against a corrupt monarchy that blockades its neighbors and abuses its own citizens." --ANCA Memo to Congress, August 26, 2005 WASHINGTON, DC--In letters sent last week to every Member of Congress, the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) responded to the recent escalation of Azeri Embassy's misinformation campaign by outlining the long-standing United States record in support of Mountainous Karabagh. In an August 26th memo to Congressional offices, ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian explained that, "the Azerbaijan government--on the defensive about its own record on democracy and freedom--is again resorting to misstatements and outright falsehood to advance its agenda." The ANCA letter came in response to an August 17th letter by Azeri Ambassador Hafez Pashayev, which misrepresented the progress of democracy and free elections in Mountainous Karabagh. Erroneous statements in the letter included false assertions that "Nagorno Karabagh was never independent nor a part of Armenia," as well as untrue charges about Armenian aggression. The ANCA memo highlighted several key points concerning United States support for Mountainous Karabagh: - Declassified CIA reports from the seventies, eighties, and nineties reveal a pattern of official --although confidential-acknowledgment that Mountainous Karabagh is a historic part of Armenia. () - In the late 1980's, the United States welcomed Mountainous Karabagh's historic challenge to the Soviet system and its leadership in sparking democratic movements in the Baltics and throughout the Soviet empire. - The US Senate, in November of 1989, adopted SJ Res 178, recognizing that "Nagorno-Karabagh has continually expressed its desire for self-determination and freedom." - The US State Department's representative to the OSCE "Minsk Group" regularly visits Mountainous Karabagh, which is an official party to the peace process, and consults with its democratically elected leaders. - The US Government, since 1992, has been on record officially condemning Azerbaijan's blockades and other uses of force against both Armenia and Mountainous Karabagh (Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act). - The US Government, over Azerbaijan's protests, has provided direct humanitarian assistance to Mountainous Karabagh since 1998. - On August 3rd, Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Joe Knollenberg (R-MI) initiated a Congressional letter to President Bush, drawing attention to "the important progress being made by the people of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, Artsakh, towards freedom, peace and prosperity." This letter, which is currently gaining signatures during the Congressional recess, notes that, just as, the US champions "freedom for all peoples around the world, we should also continue supporting the aspirations of the people of Artsakh to live in freedom, particularly in the strategically important South Caucasus." ANCA chapters and activists have been contacting their legislators over the past month in support of the Congressional letter to President Bush, set to delivered to the White House on September 30th. 3) No Breakthrough in Kazan, Says FM Okanian YEREVAN (RFE/RL/Yerkir)--Armenia's foreign minister Vartan Oskanian indicated that though talks between the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan were positive, there were no breakthroughs resulting from their weekend meeting in Kazan. "True, no breakthrough was achieved during that meeting, but we do consider it positive and believe that the negotiations are following a positive course," he told a news conference on Tuesday. "The most important thing is that the presidents' meeting in Kazan enables the [foreign] ministers to continue their work. I think that there will be a meeting of the ministers in the near future." He pointed out that the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group may also be visiting the region. "I think that we have some work to do regarding the results of the presidents' meeting and that there is now new room for continuing the process," Oskanian said. Oskanian's Azeri counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov seems to agree. He told reporters on Monday that though each presidential meeting is a step forward, it is too early to talk about progress. "We have not yet reached a point where we need to inform our public about details," he explained. "We are still not there. That is why it is not worth thinking about that," he told reporters on Monday. Talks between Armenian President Robert Kocharian and Azeri President Ilham Aliyev were held on the sidelines of the August 27 summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States in Kazan, the capital of Russia's Tatarstan. Oskanian provided to reporters an overview of that summit as well as Armenia's integration process into Europe, emphasizing joint projects carried out by Armenia, the European Union, and NATO. 4) Cascade Credit Issued Armenian Bonds Gain USAID Guarantee YEREVAN (ArmenPress)--Cascade Credit CJSC and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) signed a loan guarantee agreement on Tuesday, whereby USAID has agreed to guarantee Cascade Credit CJSC issued bonds. US Ambassador John Evans, USAID Country Mission Director Robin Phillips, and Cascade Credit Executive Director Garegin Gevorgyan signed the agreement at Cascade Capital Holding headquarters in Yerevan, Armenia. This agreement will provide a partial guarantee of Cascade Credit bonds to be issued and traded on the Armenian Stock Exchange (ARMEX). If necessary, the guarantee will cover up to 50 percent of the principal amount of Cascade Credit's public debt. The proceeds from the bond issuance will be primarily used for financing Armenian exports. A subsidiary of Cascade Capital Holdings, Cascade Credit CJSC is a non-banking credit organization actively engaged in developing the Armenian Public Corporate Debt market, by introducing a range of financial products and concepts specifically tailored for Armenia. It aims to become a major mediating financial player in Armenia, focusing on identifying market inefficiencies and eliminating them through profitable strategies. Cascade Capital Holdings is 100% owned by the Cafesjian Family Foundation (CFF), a United States 501(C) 3 organization. According to Garegin Gevorgyan, Executive Director of Cascade Credit, "the USAID partial guarantee for bonds to be issued by Cascade Credit will pave the way for development of capital markets in Armenia by illustrating the viability of public corporate debt market." "It is also a major step towards Cascade Capital's goal to become a financial market leader in Armenia and the Caucasus," elaborated Jonathan Stark, Deputy Director of Cascade Capital Holdings. 5) Heated Debates on Proposed Constitutional Reforms Continue in Armenia's Parliament YEREVAN (ArmenPress/Yerkir)--Armenian lawmakers continued to debate constitutional reforms proposed by the President and the coalition government, but failed to meet the vote deadline, after their second and final reading. The draft was harshly criticized by members of the opposition "National Unity" and "Justice" factions, who called on Armenians to reject the proposed amendments during a national referendum in October. But Levon Mkrtchian, the leader of Armenian Revolutionary Federation faction in parliament rejected the oppositions arguments that the proposed draft would be "tantamount to losing an opportune chance to advance reforms." "These draft amendments will enable us to become the most democratic country of the region," Mkrtchian told the parliament's extraordinary session on constitutional amendments. He also noted that when presenting the amendments to the public, politicians should be truthful in mentioning both the positive and the negative aspects of the charter. "Today, we are determining the country's future and not the issue of tomorrow's rulers," Mkrtchian told the opposition. The proposed reforms enjoy the backing of the Council of Europe, particularly its advisory body on constitutional law, the Venice Commission. But the opposition Justice alliance's Shavarsh Kocharian insisted that the draft does not include 16 of the key proposals by the Venice commission, including the issue of electing the capital's mayor via direct polls. The head of the Council of Europe office in Armenia, Bojana Urumova told parliament on Monday, however, that the Venice Commission "believes in [the] text and supports it fully." She was speaking on behalf of the Commission's secretary Gianni Buquicchio. The European Union and the United States also back the reforms. "The United States supports the efforts of all those who have been involved in the process of attempting to amend the current Armenian Constitution, and encourages all parties to engage in responsible and constructive debate on this issue," US Ambassador to Armenia John Evans said in a statement published by Yerevan newspapers on Saturday. 6) Parliament Chairman to Participate in State Department Program for Emerging Leaders YEREVAN (Armenpress)--The US Embassy in Armenia said the US Department of State will host a series of meetings for Armenian Parliament Chairman Arthur Baghdasarian during the Washington, DC portion of his trip to the United States. Baghdasarian will be in the US August 31 to September 7, as a part of the State Department's International Visitor Program, and will meet with government officials, NGO representatives, and the press. Baghdasarian is scheduled to hold meetings with Speaker of the House of Representatives J. Dennis Hastert (R-Illinois), Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean, and Congressmen Knollenberg (R-MI) and Pallone (D-NJ) of the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues, as well as with various high-level Department of State, National Security Council, US Agency for International Development and Millennium Challenge Corporation officials. Baghdasarian is also expected to give a presentation at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Launched in 1940, the US Department of State International Visitor Program seeks to build mutual understanding between the United States and other nations through professional visits to the US for current and emerging foreign leaders. Over 180 current and former heads of government and state and other world leaders in public and private sectors have participated in Program. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. 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