Month: December 2008

ARMENIAN PM VISITS GEORGIA
By Temuri Kiguradze

The Messenger
Dec 10 2008
Georgia

Prime Minister of Armenia Tigran Sarkisian participated in a session
of the Georgian-Armenian Economic Development Commission in Tbilisi
on December 9.

Speaking to local journalists, Sarkisian stated that Georgian-Armenian
relations are very important for Yerevan and the "enlarging and
developing of relations between the two peoples is a primary task
for the [Armenian and Georgian] Governments."

Sarkisian met his Georgian counterpart Grigol Mgaloblishvili
and said afterwards that he was "impressed" by the discussion,
considering it would create a "good basis for a new beginning" for
Georgian-Armenian cooperation. "There are no relations that can’t be
negotiated. This is our first meeting and I am very grateful for the
open and honest conversation," stated the Armenian PM on December
9. Grigol Mgaloblishvili also expressed his satisfaction with the
results of the meeting, saying it would give a "new impetus" to the
future development of Georgian-Armenian relations.

One of the issues discussed by the Commission was the projected new
road linking Armenia and the Georgian coast. Sarkisian stated that
the Eurasia Foundation might sponsor this project and promised to
"start serious work on it in the near future." This project has
aroused criticism among many Georgian experts and politicians for both
economic and political reasons. "The project should reflect reality,"
said Niko Orvelashvili, Georgian political and economical expert
in October 2008. He doubted the possibility of its realization and
pointed out that it had been discussed for many years already without
any progress being made. He also mentioned political instability was
one of the reasons that may make the road unnecessary.

Several Georgian opposition politicians have protested against
the project. Niko Orvelashvili pointed to the statement of
Shalva Natelashvili, leader of the Georgian Labour Party, that a
Yerevan-Batumi road may serve as "a second Roki Tunnel," meaning that
in the event of conflict Russian military forces will be easily able
to enter southern Georgia from Armenia as the Russian troops entered
breakaway South Ossetia through the Roki Tunnel during the August
conflict. Soso Tsiskarishvili, another Georgian expert, said that
after the Russian-Georgian war, Russian troops which occupied a large
part of Georgian territory are finally leaving the country, but adds:
"Many of them have returned to military bases in Armenia. These troops
can only dream about a good road which will allow them to easily
enter Georgia once again." He added that he would welcome the road
if the project is dedicated to the economic development of the two
countries, however he is concerned that the new road may be another
"Putin preparation" for future conflict.

Among other issues discussed by the Commission were the restoration
of direct flights between Tbilisi and Yerevan and changes in
the Georgia-Armenia free trade agreement. Both parties signed the
Programme on Cooperation between the Georgian and Armenian Ministries
of Culture. Sarkisian was due to meet Georgian President Mikheil
Saakashvili on Tuesday evening.

AZERBAIJANI BECOMES GRADUATE OF U.S. NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL FOR FIRST TIME

Trend News Agency
Dec 10 2008
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan, Baku, 10 Dec/ Trend News corr J. Babayeva/ Tamerlan Vahabov
became first Azerbaijani graduate of the U.S. Naval Postgraduate
School. Third secretary of the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan obtained
master’s degree on International Security and Defense. During his
education Vahabov made presentations and organized forums on urgent
issues of Azerbaijan’s foreign and domestic policy, particularly
Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and security in the
South Caucasus.

U.S. Naval Postgraduate School is accredited higher school at
the Defense Department of the United States and is located in
Monterey, California. The graduates became master and doctor of
philosophy specialized at International Security, Master of Business
Administration and Engineering. American and foreign military men and
diplomats make up majority of students. Faculty consists of graduates
of authoritative higher schools of the world.

U.S. Naval Postgraduate School is school with good rating among
universities specialized at national and international security.

Two more Azerbaijanis will study in the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School
this year.

TRANSPORT MINISTER MOUTAFCHIEV PROPOSES INCREASE OF ROAD HAULAGE PERMITS TO ARMENIAN COUNTERPART SARGISIAN

BSANNA NEWS
Dec 10 2008
Ukraine

SOFIA, Dec 9. (BTA). Bulgarian Transport Minister Peter Moutafchiev
received Armenian Transport and Communication Minister Gurgen Sargisian
on Tuesday, the Transport Ministry said. Moutafchiev proposed an
increase of the number of universal permits for haulage by road up
to 500.

On his turn, the guest voiced hope for the launching of a direct
air service between Sofia and Yerevan. The Armenian national carrier
is ready to service this line, said Sargisian. Moutafchiev pledged
full support to the Armenian side noting that such a service would
be highly efficient.

During the talks the two ministers discussed the problem of the
inadequate capacity of the ferry lines. They were unanimous that
possibilities should be sought to intensify haulage in the Black
Sea region.

At a meeting with State Agency for ITC President Plamen Vachkov later
in the day, the guest showed interest in the Bulgarian experience
in the drafting of statutory instruments regarding the shift towards
digital television and the management of the radio frequency sector.

Vachkov familiarized the guest with one of the Agency’s priority
projects – on the establishment of an electronic communication
network. The project has promoted communication among parallel
departmental telecommunication networks and has made possible the
functioning of the 112 single emergency call system.

AMERICAN SENATOR SAXBY CHAMBLISS: "THE PASSAGE OF THE RESOLUTION ON THE SO-CALLED ARMENIAN GENOCIDE WILL HARM U.S. INTERESTS IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND CENTRAL ASIA"

Azeri Press Agency
Dec 10 2008
Azerbaijan

Washington – APA. Senator Saxby Chambliss of Georgia said the passage
of the resolution on the so-called Armenian genocide in the US Senate
would damage the country’s foreign policy.

APA reports that answering the letter sent through US Azeris Network,
the senator noted that the passage of S.RES.106 would damage United
States-Turkish relations and possibly harm U.S. interests in the
Middle East and Central Asia.

"Such a resolution will not advance the Turkish-Armenian dialogue
and it will not improve the process of Turkey’s examination of its
own past. The United States-Turkish relationship is both deep and
broad. Turkey is a strategic partner with the United States in a number
of significant areas, including the War on Terror and the United States
‘ involvement in Iraq. Our friendship with Turkey goes back a very
long way and we must continue to work together on issues of importance.

In response to the appeals of the US Armenian community for recognition
of the so-called Armenian genocide to the White House, Azerbaijani
and Turkish communities of the US have also begun counterpropaganda
among the White House officials, Congressmen and public. Letters about
the real essence of the 1915 happenings are sent to the US officials
through US Azeris Network.

FORMER PARTICIPANTS SING FOR PEACE
by Jarmo Siim

EuroVision
s?id=1623
Dec 10 2008
Switzerland

Boaz, Sirusho and Jelena TomaÅ¡eviÄ~G will record a song about
peace, written by themselves and the Nobel Peace Prize winner and
the incumbent Israeli president Shimon Perez.

The Head of Press of the Israeli delegation Elad Weissman told
Eurovision.tv the video of the song will be filmed today where a
famous ballerina Rona-Lee will also participate. The song will be
included in Boaz’s new album to be released in late January.

Boaz told the fan portal Esctoday.com: "With my two friends here,
Sirusho and Jelena, I truly believe that we can make a change with
our music and art. I hope we can make a change with this song. It
is an example of how the young people can make the difference and
influence others with their hopes and dreams."

Boaz represented Israel at the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest, Sirusho
did the same for Armenia and Jelena TomaÅ¡eviÄ~G for Serbia, all
achieving places in the top 10.

–Boundary_(ID_hraxxEMI21jWYAf/qTnSSA)–

WIKIPEDIA POSTS NAGORNO KARABAKH AS AN INDEPENDENT STATE

Azeri Press Agency
Dec 10 2008
Azerbaijan

Baku-APA. Wikipedia free encyclopedia posted misinformation
about the Nagorno Karabakh, an internationally
recognized and inalienable territory of Azerbaijan
( f_Nagorno-Karabakh).

According to disinformation posted on the link above, Nagorno Karabakh
purportedly held a referendum on December 10, 1991 and proclaimed
independence from Azerbaijan.

The misleading information reads that as though the official language
of the "state" was Armenian, area was 11,458.382 km2, international
dialing code was 374 47, "currency" was Armenian dram, "president"
was Bako Sahakyan, prime minister was Arayik Harutyunyan and other
fake info.

Besides, there is misinformation about Nagorno Karabakh’s economy
($114 million GDP), industry, finance, banks and foreign trade.

Thus, Nagorno Karabakh allegedly exports and imports goods and
materials to the CIS countries, Western and Eastern Europe, the United
States, and Canada.

In reality, Nagorno Karabakh is an internationally recognized part
of Azerbaijan. The territory was illegally occupied by Armenian
armed forces.

Wikipedia is operated by the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit
charitable organization dedicated to encouraging the growth,
development and distribution of free, multilingual content, and to
providing the full content of these wiki-based projects to the public
free of charge.

SARDAR CALALOGHLU: "IMPROVEMENT OF RELATIONS BETWEEN TURKEY AND ARMENIA CREATES A THREAT IN THE RESOLUTION OF THE KARABAKH PROBLEM"

Today.Az
olitics/49475.html
Dec 10 2008
Azerbaijan

"Improvement of relations between Turkey and Armenia does not
encourage the resolution of the Karabakh conflict", said chairman of
the Democratic Party of Azerbaijan Sardar Calaloghlu.

He said on the contrary the improvement of relations between Turkey
and Armenia creates a threat in the resolution of the Karabakh problem.

"Naturally, if Armenia rejects international recognition of the
so-called "Armenian genocide", returns the occupied lands of
Azerbaijan, such cooperation is welcomed. Yet, Armenia’s opinion
is strengthening in the current situation, which in turn, violates
Azerbaijan’s rights.

In such situation, the improvement of bilateral political and economic
ties between Turkey and Armenia causes only damage to the relations
with Azerbaijan", noted Calaloghlu.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

CSTO NATIONAL SECURITY SECRETARIES MEET IN ARMENIA
Karen Ghazaryan

"Radiolur"
10.12.2008 17:45

The sitting of the National Security Council Secretaries of CSTO
member states was held in Armenia today. The seven Security Council
Securities presented the results of the meeting to journalists during
a press conference.

A joint declaration was adopted at the sitting, which states that the
participants of the sitting of the National Security Secretaries of
CSTO member states confirm their support for the initiative of the
Russian Federation about a legally binding European Security Treaty,
which would allow creating a joint and secure system of collective
security over the Euro-Atlantic area.

"Deriving from the necessity of working out that document with equal
participation of all countries and international organizations
functioning over the Euro-Atlantic area, the countries member to
the CSTO welcome the Russian-French initiative of holding a summit
over OSCE area with participation of the CSTO, CIS, the European
Union and NATO to discuss the architecture of future security,"
the document reads.

The CSTO Security Council Secretaries adopted decisions on preventing
illegal drugs trafficking, resisting terrorism and illegal migration,
ensuring information security, tax control.

Speaking about the opportunities of the expansion of the organization,
the Secretary General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization,

Nikolay Bordyuzha, declared that the issue of mechanically involving
new countries is not on the agenda. At the same time, he informed that
besides the seven member states, another 22 countries participate
in the "Kanal" operation against drugs trafficking. The Secretary
General assured that the organization will intensify the activity in
all directions.

Turning to the opportunities of coming forth with a common stance on
different issues within international organizations, the Secretary
of the National Security Council of Armenia, Arthur Baghdasaryan,
said the issue been discussed many times on the level of CSTO
Foreign Ministers. "We will always exchange views on the issue,
which immediately refer to our national security, the CSTO member
states and the organization, as a whole," Arthur Baghdasaryan said.

According to Mr. Baghdasaryan’s assessment, the discussions in Armenia
pave the way for the improvement of the Organization. In his words,
rather ambitions programs with good perspectives of development have
been presented.

TURKEY IS LIKELY TO RECOGNIZE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE IN COMING 5-10 YEARS, EDITOR OF AGOS CONSIDERS

Noyan Tapan

Dec 10, 2008

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 10, NOYAN TAPAN. Turkey is likely to recognize
the Armenian Genocide in the coming 5-10 years. Bagrat Estukian,
the editor of Agos weekly’s Armenian department, expressed such an
opinion at the December 10 press conference. According to him, it will
become possible under some conditions, for instance, Armenia should
renounce land, material compensations. According to him, the issue
of recognition of the Armenian Genocide gradually becomes an issue of
dignity for Turkey. "Recognizing a genocide is not such an easy thing,
but is inevitable, as it is a historic truth," B. Estukian said.

According to him, it is sufficient that Turkey apologizes for the
Genocide.

"The psychology of a victim gradually has a harmful impact for the
Armenians. We cannot live from one generation to another with that
psychology. An apology will be a great psychological treatment for
the Armenian people," B. Estukian said.

Touching upon the Armenian-Turkish relations, he said that the
viewpoints and dispositions of Turkish society and state figures
differ in that issue.

However, according to him, the current Turkish government realizes the
senselessness of the borders’ being closed. In B. Estukian’s opinion,
it is done to please Azerbaijan.

B. Estukian also said that besides Istanbul, there is no other
well-organized Armenian community in other territories of Turkey with
the exception of the village of Vakvfle, Musa Dag. According to him,
mainly old people live there, who keep the unique Armenian identity.

EDITORIAL STAFF OF AGOS CONTINUES RECEIVING THREATS

Noyan Tapan

Dec 10, 2008

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 10, NOYAN TAPAN. After Hrant Dink’s murder
the circulation of the Agos weekly of Istanbul has increased
abruptly. Bagrat Estukian, the editor of newspaper’s Armenian
department, reported at the December 10 press conference. According
to him, the newspaper was published in the circulation of 3000-3500
copies during Hrant Dink’s lifetime, immediately after his murder for
some time the newspaper was published in a ten-fold and at present
in a three-fold more circulation.

B. Estukian said that the editorial staff of Agos is still receiving
threats of death, extermination. According to him, the local policemen
provide employees’ security. "However strong control is unbearable
for a person loving freedom. Even Hrant, who knew about those threats,
did not hire bodyguards, did not carry arms," he said.

In B. Estukian’s opinion, the trial on the case of Hrant Dink’s murder
is constantly deliberately dragged out, and everything is done so
as not to disclose crime’s authors. "As if it is enough that they
have caught the criminal, who has confessed his guilt," B. Estukian
confessed. According to him, H. Dink’s murder shocked the Turkish
society very much, everybody made sure that Dink was killed because
of being Armenian. B. Estukian also said that though for H. Dink’s
family it is dangerous to live in Turkey, they also cannot renounce
their principles and mission like Hrant.

It was also mentioned that the 4 pages of the 24-page Agos weekly
published since 1996 are published in Armenian.