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07/06/2006
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WEBSITE AT <;HTTP://WWW.ASBAREZ. COM 1) Kocharian Wraps Up Iran Visit 2) Bryza Jumps The Gun, Again! 3) US, Turkey Sign 'Strategic Vision' Document 4) Karabakh Urges Inclusion Conflict Resolution Process 1) Kocharian Wraps Up Iran Visit TEHRAN (RFE/RL, Armenpress)President Robert Kocharian Thursday ended a two-day visit to Tehran during which he and his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called for the strengthening of the already close economic and political links between Armenia and Iran, reported Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. The two men met twice and presided over the signing of seven Iranian-Armenian agreements covering a broad range of areas on Wednesday. One of the agreements paves the way for the construction of a third transmission line that will connect the power grids of the two neighboring states. The high-voltage line will allow for a substantial increase in exports of Armenian electricity to Iran after the construction of a pipeline which is due to start pumping Iranian natural gas into Armenia next year. Yerevan borrowed $34 million from Tehran to finance the ongoing work on the first Armenian section of the pipeline and will repay the loan with electricity supplies. Ahmadinejad and Kocharian were widely expected to discuss the under-construction pipeline and, in particular, Russia's desire to control it. However, they were not reported to have mentioned the issue at their joint news conference. The two leaders only stressed, in general terms, the need for their nations to bolster their relationship which Ahmadinejad said has a "huge potential." "The Islamic Republic of Iran welcomes and supports the development of ties with Armenia in various areas, particularly in energy fields as well as transportation, sports, and tourism," The Tehran Times daily quoted Ahmadinejad as saying. "I hope the Armenian president's trip to Iran would serve as an important step toward the development of all-out ties between the two countries." Kocharian, for his part, reportedly welcomed "noticeable progress" in the development of Iranian-Armenian ties, while calling for unspecified "new steps" to implement bilateral agreements signed in the past. He also threw his weight behind an extremely ambitious idea to build a rail link between Armenia and Iran. It is not clear whether mounting international tensions over Iran's controversial nuclear program were also on the agenda of Kocharian's separate talks with Ahmadinejad and Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki. Armenian officials have repeatedly expressed hope for a "diplomatic" solution to the dispute. Yerevan fears that possible US military action against Iran could thwart the implementation of Armenian-Iranian energy projects and have other unpredictable consequences. Kocharian highlighted Iran's significance for Armenia by choosing to publicly shake hands with Ahmadinejad and invite him to Yerevan at a time when Tehran's nuclear standoff with the West is coming to a crunch. The Iranian president is facing Western ostracism for his hard line on the issue and public denials of the Holocaust. Before wrapping up his trip, Kocharian met with the Armenian community of Iran to hear their ideas about how to boost cooperation between Armenia and the community and other Armenia-Diaspora related issues, reported the Armenpress news agency. The Armenian-Iranian community commended the "One Nation-One Culture" festival organized and held for the third consecutive time by Armenian authorities, suggesting that this festival may be taken beyond Armenia to the countries with strong Armenian communities. The community members pledged active participation in the third Armenia-Diaspora conference scheduled for September in Yerevan. During the meeting president Kocharian awarded the Armenian medal of Mkhitar Heratsi to prominent Iranian-Armenian psychiatrist Harmik Davtian. Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian positively assessed the results of Kocharian's visit to Iran. He said the visit was important taking into consideration the fact that after the election of the new president a new team has been formed in Iran. "Today the two countries aim to expand relations. In this respect we have executed quite positive changes," the foreign minister said, while underscoring the importance of the meeting of the two presidents. Oskanian also emphasized the political importance of the visit, saying that quite serious developments are taking place in the region, in which Iran is fully and actively involved and therefore, it is useful for the Armenia to be aware of Iran's posturing on regional issues. It is important that Iran, as a regional country, learns about the developments in the ongoing Nagorno-Karabakh peace process directly from Armenia, explaining that Kocharian informed his Iranian counterpart about the developments in that realm. 2) Bryza Jumps The Gun, Again! YEREVANThe US co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Matthew Bryza told the Haykakan Zhamanak newspaper Wednesday that US Ambassador-designate to Armenia Richard Hoagland will assume his post in some two weeks, immediately after his formal confirmation by the US Senate. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee, however, held delayed Hoagland's confirmation following a controversial and often heated hearing process last week when he failed to provide satisfactory answers to inquiries from key committee members on US policy on the Armenian Genocide and the dismissal of the current US Ambassador to Armenia John Evans, who characterized the events of 1915 as "a Genocide." Both Houses of Congress are on their annual July 4 recess and will returned to Washington next week. When the Senate committee hearing resume, Hoagland faces a new set of questions submitted late last week regarding the aforementioned issues. Late last month, in his capacity as co-chairman of the OSCE Minsk Group, Bryza leaked confidential principles of a peace plan, sending the diplomatic community in a furor over the disclosure of sensitive information regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process. . "Hoagland is a very attentive person and he is perfectly aware of the history of the Caucasus. As for incumbent Ambassador Evans, he is an excellent personality and Ambassador. It's not true to sat that he is recalled and even removed from diplomatic service," Bryza said. "Ambassadors serve the President and they are obliged to follow his policy. President Bush's policy as it regards the mass killings of Armenians is precise and he mentions it in his annual statement. Certainly if somebody doesn't agree with the president's policy, he can take his own decisions, however they should not be announced publicly. We all serve the President and our job is to contribute to his policy. We should also give him advice but when matter concerns public statements we should support the President's policy," Bryza said. Evans' recall is said to be caused by his statement on the Armenian Genocide. On February 19, 2005, during his public presentation at the University of California, Berkeley, hosted by Armenian Studies Program Executive Director, Prof. Stephan Astourian, Evans announced, "I will today call it the Armenian Genocide." The Ambassador, who has studied Russian History at Yale and Columbia universities and Ottoman History at the Keenan Institute, argued that, "we, the US government, owe you, our fellow citizens a more frank and honest way of discussing this problem. Today, as someone who's studied it... There's no doubt in my mind what happened." 3) US, Turkey Sign 'Strategic Vision' Document WASHINGTON (Anatolia News Agency) Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice stated that they have agreed on common vision document between Turkey and the United States. Following their meeting at US State Department on Wednesday, Gul and Rice held a joint news conference. Gul said, "we have discussed Iraq, Iran, the PKK and Middle East problem as well as energy issues and Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline project which will be implemented soon. We would like to host a US representative during the inauguration ceremony of the pipeline." When asked why Turkey and the United States needed a strategic vision document, Gul said that the strategic vision document reflects the shared values of the two countries like democracy, human rights and free market economy as well as the close cooperation, adding that they thought it would be beneficial to put these things down on paper and accept as a reference. On the other hand, US Secretary of State Rice expressed pleasure about Turkey's initiatives in the region, and said that they discussed the problems in the Middle East and the situation in Iran. She stressed that Iran should meet the demands of international community and show that it is sincere in this issue. Rice thanked Gul for the support he gave for extension of democracy in the region. Rice said the strategic vision document underscores the mutual trust that exists between the two countries. The document is a reminder that the relationship is broad and deep and based on shared values and interests, Rice said. Stressing that Turkey-US relations continue on basis of strong friendship, strategic relation and dependence on common values, Rice noted that the vision document will have great contribution to regional and global stability. Upon a question about PKK terrorism, Rice said that the United States defines PKK as a terrorist organization, and she made specific reference to the joint US-Turkish stand against the violence employed by PKK. No one wants the PKK to carry out attacks anywhere, especially from north of Iraq, Rice said. Upon a question, Rice praised the diplomatic efforts of Turkey with the Syrian government to ease accelerating tension between Israel and Palestine. Rice noted that Turkish envoys have told Syrian authorities, as directly as possible, that they should use their leverage to secure the release of the Israeli soldier detained by Palestinians. Rice called the Turkish role very helpful. She urged Israel and Palestine to show restraint in order to prevent a further deterioration of the situation. The situation in Gaza is very tense, she said. Rice noted that the United States exerts efforts for humanitarian aid to Palestine, adding that Hamas should fulfill its responsibilities as well. Upon a question about Iran's nuclear program, Rice warned Iran not to delay talks aimed at ending its nuclear program. If indeed Iran is trying to stall, it's not going to work, Rice said. She added, we need to know if the path of negotiation is open or not. Rice said a substantive response from Iran was needed before the Group of Eight leaders meet later this month. 4) Karabakh Urges Inclusion Conflict Resolution Process YEREVAN (YERKIR) Nagorno-Karabakh Republic foreign minister Georgi Petrossian Wednesday emphasized that the country's position on the conflict resolution process remained unchanged and urged the inclusion of a Karabakh side in the peace process. "Nagorno-Karabakh took part in the establishment of the cease-fire, thus it is entitled to participate in talks that will decide its fate," Petrossian emphasized. He emphasized that Karabakh would not like to see the elimination of the results of the conflict, but rather concrete solutions to resolve the issue. He also reported that during their visit to the US, Karabakh representatives voiced their concerns over publicizing the principles of a peace plan drafted by the OSCE Minsk Group. Late last month, the Minsk Group US co-chairman Matthew Bryza leaked the confidential details of a peace plan being negotiated for the last two years. "The latest developments in the conflict resolution process have created a new situation and it is not yet how the talks will resume," said Petrossian. Meanwhile, Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Parliament Speaker Ashot Ghulyan told a press conference Wednesday that the latest proposals by the OSCE Minsk Group can serve as a basis to continue the peace talks and the conflict resolution process. Ghulyan said that not all provisions proposed by the Minsk Group are acceptable to the leadership of both Armenia and Karabakh. "Publicizing the principles of the OSCE-proposed peace plans by the mediators is aimed at launching public discourse among the parties to the Nagorno- Karabakh conflict." said Ghulyan. "In doing so, the Minsk Group co-chairs provide an opportunity to the parties to find a solution to the problem on their own," added Ghulyan. The speaker expressed optimism that the resolution to the conflict would be comprehensive, citing recent statements by the Minsk Group co-chairmen. In discussing a possible resolution by this year, Ghulyan emphasized the political situation in Azerbaijan, as well as the posturing by the Azeri leadership as reasons that Baku was not willing settle conflict as soon as possible. "An agreement by Azerbaijan to engage in dialogue with Nagorno-Karabakh will signal Azerbaijan's willingness to resolve the conflict," Ghulyan said. 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) 2006 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets.