Month: October 2006

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
—————————————— —-
PRESS AND INFORMATION DEPARTMENT
Government House # 2, Republic Square
Yerevan 0010, Republic of Armenia
Telephone: +37410. 544041 ext 202
Fax: +37410. 562543
Email: [email protected]

PRESS RELEASE

26-10-2006

Minister Oskanian Meets with French Counterpart
Philippe Douste-Blazy

On October 24, Minister Oskanian met with his French counterpart Philippe
Douste-Blazy.

During the meeting, the two discussed the Armenia – France relationship, as
well as issues having to do with the ongoing Armenia Year in France.

Speaking about EU-Armenia relations, the Ministers assessed positively the
Action Plan to be signed on November 14 in the framework of Armenia – EU
Cooperation Council. The Action Plan will also promote deepening of the
bilateral cooperation, Minister Oskanian said.

The Armenian and French Ministers discussed regional issues, and the
possible impact of Russian-Georgian relations on the region.

They also exchanged views on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement
process.
From: Baghdasarian

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
—————————————— —-
PRESS AND INFORMATION DEPARTMENT
Government House # 2, Republic Square
Yerevan 0010, Republic of Armenia
Telephone: +37410. 544041 ext 202
Fax: +37410. 562543
Email: [email protected]

PRESS RELEASE

26-10-2006

Minister Oskanian Meets with Elmar Mammadyarov,
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister

On October 24, a meeting between Minister Oskanian and Azerbaijani Foreign
Minister Elmar Mammadyarov took place under the auspices of the OSCE Mink
Group Co-Chairs.

The two discussed new ideas proposed by the Co-Chairs during the Foreign
Ministers’ meeting in Moscow on October 6, 2006.

As a result, the Ministers reached an agreement to continue their
consultations in order to further clarify their positions. The next meeting
will be held on November 14 in Brussels, in the framework of EU-Armenia
Cooperation Council.

The Globe and Mail
It’s no use papering over Turkey’s past

Thursday, October 26, 2006

The Canadian government has taken the contradictory position of recognizing
the 1915 genocide of more than one million Armenians in Turkey and, as of
this week, supporting Turkey’s proposal for a fresh study of those events.
It would be possible to square those two acts if there were any reason to
believe that Turkey is ready to openly and honestly look at the historical
truth. There isn’t.

This is a country that persists in laying criminal charges for "insulting
Turkishness" against writers who dare to question the official state denial
that the genocide happened. Novelist Orhan Pamuk, who won this year’s Nobel
Prize for literature, was one of those charged. Turkey also persists in
threatening to limit trade with countries that use the g-word. In May, after
Prime Minister Stephen Harper explicitly recognized the genocide, Turkey
recalled its ambassador and withdrew its jet fighters from NATO exercises at
CFB Cold Lake in Alberta.

Turkey did do Canada the courtesy this summer of taking in thousands of its
nationals who otherwise would have been stuck in a war zone in Lebanon. But
surely Turkey does not expect that every time it does a favour for a North
Atlantic Treaty Organization ally, the quid pro quo will be some form of
symbolic support for the Turkish denial of its past.

As an act of realpolitik, this support for more "study" is far from Canada’s
first sop to the Turks. In 1996, when a Bloc Québécois MP put forward a
motion to recognize the genocide, none other than the Liberal secretary of
state for multiculturalism, Hedy Fry, amended the motion to say tragedy
instead of genocide. When a Reform MP amended that amendment to say "the
tragedy of genocide," the government voted to defeat the motion. Mr. Harper
is not the first to bow to Turkish pressure, but his backtracking is at odds
with the principled stand he prides himself on taking on international
issues.

Twenty years ago, Benjamin Whitaker of Britain, a special rapporteur to the
United Nations Sub-Commission on the Prevention of Discrimination and the
Protection of Minorities, included the massacres of the Armenians on a list
of 20th-century genocides. "At least one million, and possibly well over
half of the Armenian population, are reliably estimated to have been killed
or death-marched by independent authorities and eyewitnesses." Corroborating
information, he said, was in reports in U.S., British and German archives
and in those of contemporary diplomats in the Ottoman Empire; as he noted,
Germany was Turkey’s ally in the First World War. The Turkish position was
that all evidence to the contrary was forged.

Some day Turkey will have to do what most of Europe has done and acknowledge
its genocidal past.

globeandmail.com and The Globe and Mail are divisison of Bell Globemedia
Publishing Inc., 444 Front St. W., Toronto, Canada M5V 2S9
Philip Crawley, Publisher
All material copyright Bell Globemedia Publishing Inc. or its licensors. All
rights reserved.

THE MORMONATOR: MITT ROMNEY’S BLINDING AMBITION. PLUS, THE INEXPLICABLE
OPPOSITION TO AN ARMENIAN-GENOCIDE MEMORIAL

The Phoenix, MA
Oct 25 2006

1.aspx

Political dynasties are as American as apple pie. Since the Civil War,
witness the marks made ‘ or still being made (for better or worse) ‘ by
the Tafts of Ohio, the Stevensons of Illinois, the Roosevelts of New
York, the Bayhs of Indiana, the Bushes of Connecticut and Texas, the
Clintons of Arkansas and New York, and the Kennedys of Massachusetts,
New York, and Rhode Island.

Now comes Mitt Romney, son of George, who as governor of Michigan in
1968 unsuccessfully sought to become the first Mormon elected president.
Son Mitt hopes to succeed where dad George failed. And Mitt, the
governor of Massachusetts, is not going to let anything stand in his
way. On the surface he is as smooth and as gentlemanly as his dad. But
in his heart Mitt is a sharpie, as cold as he is ambitious. Like George
Bush II, who saw his dad outflanked on the right by Reagan, and on the
left by Clinton, Mitt Romney is not going let the failings of his
paternity mess with his success. His will to power, whatever the price,
is straight out of Nietzsche. And his desire to do his dad one better,
whatever the cost, feels like pure Freud.

Armchair analysis aside, Mitt Romney’s dedication to his own success is
undebatable. With the help of Christy Mihos (a politically delicious
irony), he strong-armed Republican acting governor Jane Swift aside to
stake his claim to Beacon Hill. He shamelessly fudged his Utah residency
to get on the Massachusetts ballot. He cavalierly abandoned
Massachusetts’s voters after two years in order to launch his White
House run, and he held on to his office to use it as a convenient bully
pulpit. From that perch he morphed from a centrist to a right-winger,
flip-flopping on choice and suggesting ‘ with a straight face ‘ that the
sort of stem-cell research conducted at Children’s Hospital and Harvard
Medical School should be criminalized. Mitt Romney: what an hombre.

In his latest exercise in duplicity, Romney secretly lobbied an
influential member of the Mormon church’s innermost ruling council to
leverage resources in the service of his White House campaign. The
scandal of this is that Romney has long sought to wrap himself in the
mantle of Roman Catholic John Kennedy, who in his 1960 presidential run
stressed that he would not be an ideological slave to the pope. On the
eve of that election American Protestants ‘ especially the evangelicals
and fundamentalists whom Romney now courts so assiduously ‘ still feared
Rome’s potential influence on the American Caesar. (What a difference 50
or so years can make.)

The case for an Armenian memorial

The Boston Globe, the Boston Herald, Mayor Thomas Menino, and the
Greenway Conservancy advisory board chaired by well-respected corporate
citizen Peter Meade all agree that a proposed monument commemorating the
deaths of at least 600,000 Armenians in the Turkish-prosecuted genocide
– the first historically recognized genocide – has no place in a park
named after Rose Kennedy, located on land cleared by the Big Dig near
the waterfront. We ask this simple and clearly inconvenient question:
why not? Are these Boston worthies afraid of offending local Muslim
sensibilities? Is their vision of the Rose Kennedy Greenway so sterile
and so suburban as to hold that history should not punctuate the reality
of this public space as it does so elegantly in the Public Garden and
along the Commonwealth Avenue Mall? Our advice is simple: set a limit.
Reserve space for a set number of monuments and memorials. Devise design
requirements. And set a high-minded example by approving this worthy
project. The august and historic Public Garden found a place for a
tasteful and quietly moving memorial to local victims of the 9/11
attacks. The Holocaust is memorialized near Faneuil Hall. The Irish
Potato Famine is remembered on Washington Street near Downtown Crossing.
The firemen who fell battling the blaze that almost destroyed the Hotel
Vendome, in 1972, are honored for their service on the nearby mall –
although approval for that modest shrine required a shameful battle.

The Armenian slaughter, together with Hitler’s holocaust, Pol Pot’s
massacre of his fellow Cambodians, and today’s carnage in the Sudan,
stand as sad testimonies to mankind’s capacity for inhumanity. We
memorialize tragic events such as these so that we may remember and
learn. Surely in these early days of the 21st century we have it in our
hearts to join in communion with our Armenian friends and neighbors, and
together say: never again.

PRESS RELEASE
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America
138 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-689-7810
Fax: 212-689-7168
e-mail: [email protected]
Website:
Contact: Iris Papazian

October 26, 2006

YOUTH GATHERING WITH CATHOLICOS ARAM I
"We need to listen more to our youth to know what they are thinking, to
let them know that the Church needs them and they need the Church," said
Archbishop Oshagan recently as he described his enthusiasm for the upcoming
gathering with the youth which will take place in Dearborn, Michigan,
December 1 to 3.
It was these same thoughts that prompted His Holiness to ask that a
gathering of the youth be organized during his visit to the Midwest where he
will be the keynote speaker at a conference at Notre Dame University. The
three Prelacies (Eastern, Western, and Canadian) joined together to organize
the gathering, forming a committee made up of representatives of the same
age group, 18 to 30, that is being urged to attend the gathering.
Incidentally, participants of the youth gathering who can extend their stay
are invited to attend His Holiness’s keynote address and service at Notre
Dame. More about this next week.
The theme of the youth gathering is Your Church. Your Future. Engage.
According to program committee co-chair Nayiri Baljian, the event is
intended to "provide an opportunity for the youth to learn about their
heritage of faith and to experience some of the best of what the Armenian
Church can offer." The weekend activities will include speakers, film,
music, worship-all with the goal of answering the questions: Where have we
come from? Where are we going? How far can we go?
For details about this event click

PRELATE WILL TRAVEL TO WORCESTER
The Prelate, Archbishop Oshagan will preside over the Divine Liturgy at
Holy Trinity Church, Worcester, Massachusetts, this Sunday, October 29, and
the celebration of the 72nd anniversary of the church which will take place
immediately after church services.

VICAR AT WCC MEETING
Bishop Anoushavan, Vicar General, is attending meetings of the Board of
Directors of the U.S. Conference for the World Council of Churches (WCC),
today and tomorrow, at The Interchurch Center, in New York City.

OCTOBER/NOVEMBER ISSUE OF OUTREACH ON LINE
The October/November of Outreach is available on the Prelacy web page.
For a preview of the 48-page issue click
6.pdf.

CHILDREN’S CONCERT ON NOVEMBER 18
WILL CELEBRATE "FALL COLORS"
Tickets for the children’s concert "Fall Colors" are selling briskly.
There are less than 100 tickets left, so do not delay. Reserve yours today.
For information click

DE LEGATION OF FRENCH PROTESTANT CHURCHES
VISITS HIS HOLINESS ARAM I
His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, received
a high-ranking delegation representing the Protestant Churches of France.
Bishop Nareg Alemezian, Ecumenical Officer of the Catholicosate, also
attended the meeting, which took place in Antelias, Lebanon. Various issues
related to ecumenical relations, local and regional developments and the
activities of the World Council of Churches were discussed. Turkey’s
potential membership to the European Union was also discussed. His Holiness
praised the French Parliament in acknowledging the Armenian Genocide.

90th ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARMENIAN LEGION
Tomorrow, October 27, is the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Legion
(Legion d’Orient). The Armenian Legion was formed on October 27, 1916, two
years after the beginning of World War I. Under the agreement, Armenian and
Syrian volunteers were recruited to fight with Allied forces. France and
Great Britain promised autonomy for the Armenians in central and southern
Turkey. About 1,200 Armenian men from the United States joined Armenians
from all over the world and served in the Legion. The Armenian Legion
contributed mightily to the victory over German and Turkish forces at the
Battle of Arara (September 19, 1918). Promises made to the Armenians were
not kept.

FEAST OF THE DISCOVERY OF THE HOLY CROSS
This Sunday, October 29, the Armenian Church commemorates the Discovery
of the Cross (Giut Khatch). Empress Helena, mother of Constantine, was a
devout Christian. While in Jerusalem she wanted to find the True Cross. She
went to Golgotha (Calvary), which at this time had become an obscure and
neglected place. The Empress ordered excavation of the site, and three
wooden crosses were found. In order to identify the True Cross, the three
crosses were successively placed on the body of a youth who had just died.
When one of the crosses was placed on him, the young man came to life. This
cross was determined to be the True Cross. Christ’s exact burial site was
also found and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher was built on that spot in
335. The church was destroyed by fire in 614 when the Persians invaded
Jerusalem, and subsequently rebuilt. The current dome dates back to 1870.
Three denominations (Armenian Apostolic, Greek Orthodox, Roman
Catholic), administer and maintain the church and surrounding grounds (not
always harmoniously). Agreements regulate times and places of worship for
each denomination. Ironically, a neutral Muslim neighbor family has been the
custodian of the keys for centuries. The Church, within the walled Old City
of Jerusalem, is revered and is a popular destination for pilgrims.

ST. JOHN CHRYSOSTOM
On November 2, the Armenian Church commemorates the life of St. John
Chrysostom (Hovhan Voskeperan). He was a notable Christian bishop and
preacher from the 4th and 5th centuries in Syria and Constantinople. He is
famous for his eloquence in public speaking-Chrysostom literally means
"golden mouth." The Orthodox Church honors him as a saint and one of the
"Three Holy Hierarchs" (with Saints Basil the Great and Gregory the
Theologian). He is also recognized by the Catholic Church and the Church of
England.
John converted to Christianity in 368 when he was barely 21 years old.
He renounced a large family inheritance and a promising legal career and
went to live in a mountain cave where he studied the Bible. He was later
ordained a priest and soon his sermons were attracting huge audiences. He
challenged wealthy Christians, whose generosity was confined to donating
precious objects for display in churches. He told them they had a duty to
help the poor and needy. He wrote often about valuing the richness of nature
created by God which should be enjoyed and protected. Although he was very
popular with the people, his outspoken criticism was not appreciated by the
hierarchy and he was sent into exile at various times. His sermons made a
great impact on Christendom. He had a profound influence on the doctrines
and theology of the Armenian Church, because he spent the final years of his
exile in Armenia. Many of his important works are extant only in Armenian
manuscripts. He is also the author of liturgical prayers used in the
Armenian Church.

DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME ENDS
It is that time of the year again. Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m.,
this Sunday, October 29. We return to standard time by setting our clocks
back one hour.

Muse of the deep and ineffable Divine Mysteries,
Wise Prefect and Great Doctor of the world,
Like the rock of the Church, you were faithful to the key to heaven,
>From the beloved disciple, you received the Gospel.
>From the Holy Virgin Birth-giver you received your mark of authority.
O Patriarch John, by the grace of the Holy Spirit you received Wisdom.
Ode of the Armenian Church dedicated to St. John Chrysostom

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

October 27-Family Night at St. Gregory Armenian Church, North Andover,
Massachusetts. Dinner and fellowship. For information, 978-685-5038.

October 28-Saturday School Fall Festival, St. Sarkis Armenian Church,
Douglaston, New York.

October 29-72nd anniversary of Holy Trinity Armenian Church, Worcester,
Massachusetts.

October 29-Auxiliary Appreciation Day and drawing of Cruise Raffle, St.
Sarkis Armenian Church, Douglaston, New York.

November 3-4-51st Annual Bazaar of St. Stephen’s Church, Watertown,
Massachusetts, with special program for children on Saturday afternoon. For
information 617-924-7562.

November 3-4- Ladies Guild Food Festival, St. Gregory the Illuminator
Church, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

November 3, 4, 5-Sts. Vartanantz Church, Ridgefield, New Jersey, Annual
Bazaar and Food Festival. For information 201-943-2950.

November 4-Harvest Ball Dinner Dance to benefit programs of Holy Ascension
Sunday School, at Shore & Country Club, Norwalk, Connecticut. Information:
Judy Gavoor 203-834-1471 and Nadine Koobatian 203-421-7944.

November 5-Annual bazaar, St. Stephen Church, New Britain, Connecticut.

November 5-36th Anniversary Luncheon and program, St. Gregory Armenian
Church of Merrimack Valley, North Andover, Massachusetts.

November 10-12-Mini Datev program for teens, ages 13 to 18. At Colombiere
Retreat Conference Center in Clarkston, Michigan.

November 11-42nd Anniversary of Soorp Khatch Church, Bethesda, Maryland, in
the church hall.

November 11-12-Sts. Vartanantz Church, Providence, annual "Armenian Fest" at
Rhodes-on-the-Pawtuxet, Cranston, Rhode Island.

November 12-Food Festival and Bazaar. St. Sarkis Armenian Church,
Douglaston, New York, 1 to 5 pm. The newly published St. Sarkis Cookbook
will be available. For information 718-224-2275.

November 17 & 18-Annual Bazaar, Holy Trinity Armenian Apostolic Church,
Worcester, Massachusetts.

November 18-Children’s Concert, "FALL COLORS", sponsored by the Eastern
Prelacy at Florence Gould Hall, Alliance Francaise, New York City, featuring
TALINE AND FRIENDS.

November 18-"Christian Spirituality and the Armenian Apostolic Church," a
lecture by Rev. Fr. Nareg Terterian, at St. Sarkis Armenian Church,
Douglaston, New York.

November 26-St. Gregory the Illuminator Church, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
first Episcopal Badarak in Philadelphia by Bishop Anoushavan Tanielian.

December 9-Men’s Club Steak Dinner, St. Gregory the Illuminator Church,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

December 1-3-Gathering of the Youth with Catholicos Aram I, Hyatt Regency,
Dearborn, Michigan. For details click

December 10-52nd anniversary of St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Church,
Granite City, Illinois.

December 10-General Membership meeting and elections of auditing and
nominating committees, St. Sarkis Armenian Church, Douglaston, New York.

December 13-Thanksgiving Luncheon with the local NYPD and Fire Fighters, St.
Sarkis Armenian Church, Douglaston, New York.

December 16-"A Celebration of Service" in honor of past chairmen and board
of trustees members. Under auspices of His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan, St.
Sarkis Armenian Church, Douglaston, New York, 8 pm. For information and
reservations 718-224-2275.

December 17-50th anniversary celebration of the ordination of Archpriest Fr.
Moushegh Der Kaloustian, sponsored by the Prelacy Religious Council, at
Terrace on the Park, Flushing Meadows, New York.

December 24-Sunday School Christmas Pageant, St. Gregory the Illuminator
Church, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

December 31-New Year’s Eve Dinner-Dance, Sts. Vartanantz Church, Ridgefield,
New Jersey and ARF Dro Gomideh. Parsippany Hilton, New Jersey. Featuring
Arthur Apkarian and Armenia Band. For full information contact the church
office 201-943-2950.

December 31-New Year’s Eve Party, St. Sarkis Armenian Church, Douglaston,
New York.

January 6-Christmas party and special program for Saturday and Sunday school
students.

February 4-St. Sarkis name day, celebrating the patron saint of the churchy
and requiem service for Archpriest Rev. Fr. Asoghik Kelejian, St. Sarkis
Church, Douglaston, New York.

February 11-General Membership meeting and elections, St. Sarkis Church,
Douglaston, New York.

February 18-Poon Paregentan, Eve of Great Lent, International Cuisine Night,
St. Sarkis Church, Douglaston, New York.

Visit our website at

ANDRANIK MARGARIAN: THERE ARE WIDE OPPORTUNITIES TO INCREASE SWEDISH INVESTMENTS IN ARMENIA

Noyan Tapan
Oct 25 2006

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 25, NOYAN TAPAN. The Swedish Ambassador to Armenia
Hans Gunar Aden was received on October 25 by the RA Prime Minister
Andranik Margarian. According to the RA Government Information and
PR Department, congratulating the ambassador on his appointment, the
prime minister expressed confidence that his activities will promote
the further development of the Armenian-Swedish political and economic
relations. He restated the Armenian side’s interest in deepening the
mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries. A. Margarian
said that he is optimistic about the prospects of cooperation between
Armenia and Sweden, taking into account the successful course of the
technical programs implemented in Armenia since 1995 with financing of
the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA). Underlining the
importance of these programs, A. Margarian suggested discussing the
issue of extenstion of sectors covered by these programs by including
the local self-government and democacratic development fields as
well. Speaking about the development of the Armenian-Swedish economic
relations, the sides indicated such sectors as telecommunication,
IT, machine building, agriculture, tourism as promising ones. Noting
that favorable conditions have been created for implementation of
investment programs in the country, the prime minister considered it
desirable to carry out cooperation in science, education and culture
along with the political and economic cooperation. Noting that 9
companies with Swedish capital are currently operating in Armenia,
he underlined the existence of wide opportunities to increase their
number and the amount of Swedish investments in Armenia. At the request
of the guest, the prime minister presented Armenia’s activities aimed
at Eurointegration, cooperation with NATO, noting that for security
reasons and not contradicting the interests of any country, Armenia is
also actively cooperating as a member state of the Collective Security
Treaty Organization. Expressing his gratitude for the warm reception,
Mr. Aden said that his country is ready to develop relations with
Armenia. He assured that henceforth the Swedish side will allocate
more time and resources for the South Caucasian countries, including
for promotion of relations with Armenia, attaching importance to
Armenia’s involvement in the EU European Neighborhood Program. The
ambassador stated that Sweden will continue assisting Armenia in its
efforts aimed at Eurointegration.

BENEDICT WILL FACE TOUCHY ISSUES DURING TURKEY VISIT
By Edward Pentin – Register Correspondent

National Catholic Register, CT
Oct 25 2006

A look at the major issues that are involved, such as Catholic-Muslim
relations, issues involving the Orthodox, and also the effect the
trip might have on Turkey’s bid to get into the EU and particularly
the question of religious freedom rights in Turkey. Also, some
Italian commentators have suggested Benedict’s meeting with Armenian
Patriarch Mesrob II could fuel the ongoing controversy regarding
alleged Turkish genocide against Armenians in 1915.

October 29- November 4, 2006 Issue

VATICAN CITY – Pope Benedict XVI’s upcoming visit to Turkey is both a
diplomatic minefield and a sea of valuable opportunities.

Analysts say the trip is of major importance for three reasons: for
furthering religious freedom in Turkey and other Muslim-majority
states, for improving Muslim-Christian relations, and for advancing
the cause of Christian unity.

As the Register went to press, the details of the apostolic voyage
had yet to be finalized. But according to Asia News and Vatican
sources, the Pope is scheduled to arrive in the Turkish capital of
Ankara Nov. 28, where he will spend the day with the country’s
political authorities.

The following day, the Holy Father will travel to the port city of
Izmir near Ephesus where he will visit an ancient Christian
community, before moving on to Ephesus itself where he is expected to
visit Meryem Ana, a small house on a hilltop overlooking the Aegean
Sea where, according to tradition, Mary lived out her final years and
was assumed into heaven.

On Nov. 29, Benedict is scheduled to arrive in Istanbul, where he
will have a private audience with Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I,
the person who first invited the Pope to Turkey.

On Nov. 30, on the feast of St. Andrew, the Pope will attend a solemn
Divine Liturgy presided over by the patriarch. The Holy Father is
expected to deliver a discourse on the quest for Christian unity and
comment on this year’s resumption of the Commission of Theological
Dialogue between the Catholic and Orthodox Churches.

Before returning to Rome Dec. 1, the Pope will also meet with
Armenian Patriarch Mesrob II, who leads a Christian community that
has suffered intermittent persecution for centuries.

Religious Freedom

Turkish Christians still face discrimination, despite residing in the
country for 2,000 years (the Orthodox have few rights over their
property and are subject to special legal restrictions).

And while Turkey is ostensibly a secular state, in recent years it
has experienced a strong trend towards Islamism. The numbers of
attacks on Christians have risen, the most notorious being the murder
of Italian priest Father Andrea Santoro earlier this year.

"We have to hope that the Pope’s visit – to an ecumenical
patriarchate that is for all practical purposes controlled by the
Turkish government – advances the cause of religious freedom in
Turkey and throughout the Islamic world," papal biographer George
Weigel told the Register.

"No one should gainsay the difficulty of that project, however,"
Weigel said. "Not because of the Pope’s Regensburg lecture, which, in
fact, identified the crucial issues with precision, but because of
the current jihadist drift of too much Islamic thought and
sentiment."

A number of senior Vatican officials hope Benedict will be able to
reach out to Muslims during the trip by conveying the true message of
his Regensburg speech, which sparked intense anger in Turkey and
other Muslim countries.

Some observers recommended caution in addressing that issue.

"If he refers directly to it, I don’t think it will help because
Muslims are not ready to understand it," said Jesuit Father Samir
Khalil Samir, professor of Oriental theology at St. Joseph’s
University in Lebanon.

But others insisted that the focus of the Pope’s Regensburg address –
the need to reconcile faith and reason – is crucial to furthering
Muslim-Christian dialogue and to helping Muslims renounce violent
extremism.

"Why do we have to wait to discuss this?" asked Father Justo
Lacunza-Balda, rector emeritus of the Pontifical Institute of Arab
and Islamic Studies. "For years, we have not confronted these issues;
we have to begin somewhere."

EU Membership

Another touchy issue is Turkey’s bid to join the European Union,
which is linked to the issues of religious freedom and
Muslim-Christian relations. The matter is made more sensitive by
Benedict’s statement in 2004 that he was opposed to Turkey joining
the economic bloc.

A Turkish government spokesman told the Register Oct. 20 that the
Pope will probably have to "clarify" his position on the matter.

The meeting with Armenian Patriarch Mesrob II might also generate
friction. Some Italian commentators have argued that by meeting the
patriarch, the Pope will bear witness to allegations that Turkey
killed 1.5 million Armenians in a planned act of genocide in 1915.

The Turkish government strongly denies those charges.

Vatican officials, however, are playing down any such interpretation
of the meeting.

Benedict’s meeting with Patriarch Bartholomew I is likely to be much
less controversial, but potentially far more significant.

The patriarch told reporters Sept. 29 he was anticipating the visit
with "great brotherly love." That fraternal affection could be
decisive in reaching a constructive outcome now that formal
Catholic-Orthodox dialogue has resumed, and discussions have begun on
the key issue of papal primacy.

Security

Some Vatican analysts have expressed concern about the Pope’s
security in the wake of the Regensburg controversy. The Turkish
government spokesman stressed that Benedict will be welcomed as a
"foreign leader of a state" rather than a "religious leader," in
order to "give more importance" to the visit and ensure he is
"protected as a head of state."

The Turkish government has also moved to ease the security concerns
by noting that the country has hosted many world leaders without
problems, including President Bush in 2004.

The government spokesman said that Turks view the papal visit as an
opportunity for reconciliation, not confrontation.

"There is no opposition to his visit, but we have been heartbroken
and offended, recently after the Regensburg speech, but also
[through] the cartoon crisis and the war in Iraq and Lebanon," the
government spokesman said. "The hope is that he will bring healing,
and there are strong indications of that."

Edward Pentin writes from Rome.

NEW SAUDI RULES ON SUCCESSION: WILL THEY FIX THE PROBLEM?
By Simon Henderson

Washington Institute for Near East Policy, DC
Oct 25 2006

On October 20, 2006, eighty-three-year-old King Abdullah of Saudi
Arabia announced changes to the kingdom’s "Basic Law"-effectively its
constitution-that appear to formalize procedures for the selection of
future kings. However, it is difficult to know how much the current
system of succession will actually change. For the foreseeable future,
it is most likely that the world’s largest oil exporter and the
center of the Islamic world will still be led by an octogenarian,
with the probability that his successor will be of similar age,
and perhaps even infirm.

Rules of Succession

The system of succession in Saudi Arabia is different from the
primogeniture model followed by other Middle Eastern monarchies. When
the founder of Saudi Arabia, Ibn Saud, died in 1953, he was indeed
succeeded by his eldest son, Saud. However, Ibn Saud also named
his second-eldest son, Faisal, crown prince. Since then the throne
has passed from elder brother to the next in age-and Ibn Saud had
thirty-four sons who survived him, born to seventeen of his twenty-two
wives. After Saud came his half-brother Faisal, then Khaled, then
Fahd-who died last year-and, now, Abdullah. After Abdullah’s younger
half-brother Sultan, there are another twenty-one surviving sons. All
are now probably grandfathers, if not great-grandfathers.

The new rules still restrict the throne to the sons and more than
one hundred grandsons of the kingdom’s founder, over the other
approximately 6,000 princes of the larger al-Saud family, including
the so-called "cadet branches" that have held occasional power in the
260-plus years since the al-Sauds initially seized power in central
Arabia. In reality, though, the pool is smaller: those sons who are
not genetically Arab are handicapped (at least five of Ibn Saud’s
sons had Armenian mothers); character, experience, popularity, and
an appropriately pious practice of Islam also count.

Prior to the new rules, kings and crown princes were chosen by secret
family conclaves of uncertain structure. On one occasion (Saud in
1964), such a conclave even deposed a monarch deemed unsuitable. In
1992, King Fahd declared that the monarch alone should choose the
crown prince. Now, future crown princes will have to be approved by an
"allegiance commission" made up of Ibn Saud’s sons, the eldest sons
of the brothers who have died since Ibn Saud’s death, as well as the
sons of the current king and crown prince. This suggests a membership
of around thirty-five (at least one brother did not produce a male
heir). The decisionmaking will still happen in secret.

The king will suggest three candidates; in the event of disagreement,
there will be a vote. Apparently mindful of the precarious health
of some of the princes, the new system also calls for a temporary
council of five princes to lead the country if neither the king nor
the crown prince is deemed fit to rule for medical reasons-though
defining such ill health could be a problem.

The Next Kings

Observers have long tried to guess the identity of the next in line-the
crown-prince-in-waiting. The new rules open up the field. A few years
ago, the guessing game was easy. Fahd was prime minister, Abdullah
was first deputy prime minister, and Sultan was second deputy prime
minister. But the latter post was not reassigned when Abdullah became
king and made Sultan his crown prince. Indeed, the main challenger for
that position, Interior Minister Prince Nayef-a reportedly mercurial
character-appears to have been sidelined shortly after Fahd’s death. It
is said that the other senior princes permitted Nayef to retain his
ministerial title while operational control of the powerful ministry
itself was handed to his son, Prince Muhammad bin Nayef.

Now one is left to wonder whether or not King Abdullah has managed
to outmaneuver the so-called Sudairi faction, which includes Sultan
and Nayef as well as the former King Fahd. The largest group of full
brothers among the sons of Ibn Saud, the Sudairis have often been
seen as a factor restricting the authority of Abdullah (who has no
full brothers), especially in 1995-2005 when he was crown prince
and de facto monarch after Fahd fell sick. Yet the position of the
Sudairis appears to remain strong. The new rules-which essentially
call for a vote to decide the most suitable crown prince if there is
disagreement with the king’s choice-will not apply until after Sultan,
age eighty-three and recovering from cancer, becomes king.

With Nayef out of the picture, the most obvious contender for the
throne-despite a reported heart condition-is seventy-year-old Salman,
another Sudairi (the name is that of the mother’s tribe) and the
long-serving governor of the giant Riyadh province, where the capital
is located.

Immediate Saudi public comment on the new rules is, as might be
expected, laudatory: "momentous," "it will remove the uncertainty,"
"it will ensure the continuity of the ruling family." The announcement
suggests both King Abdullah’s concern about the kingdom’s future
leadership and his confidence in his current power within the al-Saud
family. Safeguarding the king’s grip on the new commission will be
its secretary-general, the U.S.-educated Khaled al-Tuwaijeri, who is
also Abdullah’s private secretary.

Time may test the patience of Ibn Saud’s grandsons. Which ones will
emerge as contenders remains to be seen. Ibn Saud’s youngest son,
Miqrin, sixty-three, is a former air force pilot and currently heads
the Saudi external intelligence service. If he ever became king, the
move to the next generation might be twenty years off. Of Ibn Saud’s
grandsons, arguably the most prominent, Foreign Minister Prince Saud
al-Faisal, is plagued by poor health. Prince Turki, an ambassador in
Washington, D.C., and former intelligence chief, is one possibility.

Prince Bandar, now serving as secretary-general of the Saudi national
security council, is probably disqualified because his mother was
a slave girl; he also suffers from depression, according to a new
biography. Sons of Fahd, Abdullah, Sultan, and perhaps Salman are
also likely to hope for the role.

Saudi Policy Debates Will Remain Veiled

Although Washington has grown accustomed to the glacial pace of
change in the kingdom, it will want to see more steps taken to open
up Saudi politics. Yet, under the new system, as under the old, Saudi
policymaking is an exclusively royal prerogative, so changes will
probably be part of the debates and negotiations undertaken by the
new commission. Washington will have few ways of knowing about-and
little chance of affecting-those discussions. This is a matter of
concern because Saudi oil policy has worldwide implications, as
does the kingdom’s approach to its leadership role in the Arab and
Islamic worlds.

Simon Henderson is the Baker fellow and director of the Gulf and
Energy Policy Program at The Washington Institute. His publications
include the 1994 Institute Policy Paper After King Fahd: Succession
in Saudi Arabia.

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MINISTER OF TERRITORIAL ADMINISTRATION DOES NOT GIVE EXACT DATE OF COMPLETION OF KOMITAS STREET REPAIRS

Noyan Tapan
Oct 25 2006

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 25, NOYAN TAPAN. Repairs of Komitas Street (Yerevan)
with the Lincy Foundation’s funds have been delayed "in connection
with one-two problems". The RA Minister of Territorial Administration
Hovik Abrahamian stated this in the RA National Assembly on October
25. Not giving the details of these problems, the minister said that
the issue of replacing the water pipeline is also under discussion,
for which 85 mln drams (about 223.5 thousand USD) will be allocated
from the State Water Industry Committee. Assuring that the repair
work will resume, H. Abrahamian did not give the exact date of
the work’s completion. "We all realize that winter is approaching,
so we do our best to complete the work as soon as possible," the
minister said. According to some information, the repair of the Arabkir
community’s main street was stoped due to discontinuation of financing
from the Lincy Foundation. The foundation took this decision because
cheaper and low-quality building material was purchased instead of
the Russian one.

HISARCIKLIOGLU ON FRENCH RESOLUTION

Turkish Press
Oct 25 2006

PARIS – "I am having difficulty in understanding why a country like
France, which is a pioneer in democracy, secularism and freedom of
expression, has brought up a resolution on making denial of the
so-called Armenian genocide a crime," said Rifat Hisarciklioglu,
the Chairman of the Union of Chambers & Commodity Exchanges of Turkey
(TOBB).

Hisarciklioglu, who is actually in French capital of Paris to
lobby against the resolution presented by the Socialist Party, met
representatives of Movement of French Enterprises (MEDEF) and French
chambers of commerce at a dinner last night.

After the dinner, Hisarciklioglu told Turkish reporters that he
expressed their concerns over the resolution.

Hisarciklioglu stated that Turkish-French relations would be hurt if
the resolution is adopted.

"I told my French colleagues that they should behave with common
sense and logic, and not with their feelings," he added.