ASBAREZ Online [05-24-2005]

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05/24/2005
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WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) French Armenians Full-force against Turkey Accession 2) US Regrets Azerbaijan Crackdown on Protest Rally 3) Ankara Condemns Dissident Conference on Armenian Genocide 4) Javakhk Armenians Face Russian Base Closure 5) US to Deploy Military Bases in Azerbaijan 1) French Armenians Full-force against Turkey Accession PARIS (Combined Sources)--Close to 2,000 Armenians gathered in Paris on Sunday to seek a delay in the start of European Union (EU) accession negations with Turkey. In a letter to French President Jacques Chirac, organizers pointed to Turkey's poor human rights record and its denial of the Armenian genocide, adding that the country is far from adopting and implementing European standards. The rally was organized by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, the Hunchagian, and Ramgavar political parties. As a means to stop Turkey's accession, the Armenian community in France, some 400,000-strong, has been expected to lean towards a 'no' vote on adopting the EU constitution. A nationwide referendum in France has been scheduled for May 29. Community leaders have insisted that France urge Turkey to acknowledge the 1915 genocide as part of the accession talks. Armenia's foreign minister Vartan Oskanian said though he could understand concerns of French Armenians, a "No" vote would nevertheless bring about a decreased French role and influence in Europe. "Armenia has, too, expressed its concerns over Turkey's failure to meet a set of EU membership requirements, particularly its persistent denial of the Armenian genocide and the blockade of Armenia, but we do not see any connection between the European Constitution and Turkey's EU membership," Oskanian said. But polls released over the past two weeks indicate opposition to the treaty is likely. According to a poll by Ipsos published in Le Figaro 51 percent of decided voters would reject the European Constitution. 2) US Regrets Azerbaijan Crackdown on Protest Rally WASHINGTON(AFP)--The United States expressed regret Monday over a move by police in Azerbaijan to break up a banned anti-government rally over the weekend, arresting and beating dozens of protestors. "We regret that Azerbaijan's government refused a request by the opposition to hold a peaceful rally," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said. "It's also regrettable that the police used force to disband small groups of protesters and detain participants in an unsanctioned rally." Authorities in the capital Baku refused to allow the rally Saturday on the grounds it fell too close to opening ceremonies for the $4 billion Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline (BTC). No figure was available for the number of injured in the crackdown, but an AFP reporter saw police flogging several protestors with rubber batons, knocking at least one man unconscious and beating a local reporter. Boucher said the government's handling of the rally and its decision to detain protesters violated the spirit of President Ilham Aliyev's decree last month that affirmed the constitutional right to peaceful assembly. "We again call on the government of Azerbaijan to honor the right of its people to assemble peacefully and freely and to ensure that those detained during the rally are afforded due process immediately," he said. 3) Ankara Condemns Dissident Conference on Armenian Genocide (AFP)--Turkish Justice Minister Cemil Cicek Tuesday accused of "treason" a group of academics organizing a conference to question Turkey's official position on the mass killings of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire, the Anatolia news agency reported. The three-day conference, which opens Wednesday at Istanbul's prestigious Bogazici University, will be attended by Turkish academics and intellectuals who dispute Ankara's version of the 1915-1917 massacres, recognized as genocide by several countries. Cicek condemned the initiative as a blow to government efforts to counter a mounting Armenian campaign to have the killings recognized internationally as genocide, which many fear may cloud Turkey's bid to join the European Union. "This is a stab in the back to the Turkish nation...this is irresponsibility," Anatolia quoted Cicek as saying at a parliamentary debate. "We must put an end to this cycle of treason and insult, of spreading propaganda against the (Turkish) nation by people who belong to it," he said. The opposition joined the criticism. Sukru Elekdag, a senior MP for the main opposition Republican People's Party and a retired ambassador, called the conference "a treacherous project" aimed at disseminating pro-Armenian propaganda "under the guise of research." Conference organizers said in a press statement that "it is high time Turkey's own academics and intellectuals collectively raise voices that differ from the official stance" on the Armenian killings. "The expression of critical and alternative opinions will be to Turkey's benefit, because it will show how rich in pluralist thinking Turkish society actually is," the statement said. Ankara fears that the genocide allegations could fuel anti-Turkish sentiment in international public opinion and cloud its image at a time when it is vying for EU membership. 4) Javakhk Armenians Face Russian Base Closure (RFE/RL)--Civic groups in Georgia's Armenian-populated Javakhk region called on the local population on Tuesday to stop protesting against and come to terms with the eventual closure of a Russian military base stationed in the area. A coalition of local non-governmental organizations was reported to urge the Javakhk Armenians to accept its withdrawal, demanded by the authorities in Tbilisi, as a "fait accompli." A joint statement issued by them came as the Russian and Georgian governments reported further progress in their difficult talks on a timetable for ending the longtime Russian military presence in Georgia. The Javakhk town of Akhalkalak is home to the two Russian bases in Georgia. It has also been the single largest employer in the economically depressed and restive area ever since the Soviet collapse. "True, the military base in Akhalkalak has somewhat mitigated economic problems and served as a psychological security guarantee, but the Javakhk people should not consider its withdrawal a tragedy," read the NGO statement cited by the local A-Info news agency. "If the Georgian state fails to ensure the security of the Javakhk people, one can always count on the assistance of the international community and international law." Tbilisi has long been seeking the closure of the Russian bases, regarding them as a holdover from the Soviet era that hampers its efforts to forge closer links with NATO and the European Union. The administration of the pro-Western President Mikhail Saakashvili stepped up pressure on Moscow last March, threatening to declare the Russian military presence illegal. Thousands of Javakhk Armenians rallied in Akhalkalak on March 13 in support of the Russian base. The protest was widely covered by state-run Russian media. President Robert Kocharian unexpectedly traveled to Georgia for informal talks with Saakashvili on April 1, just days after another rally in Akhalkalak. The situation in Javakhk was high on the agenda of the meeting. Saakashvili said afterward that he is satisfied with Yerevan's position on the issue. Meanwhile, Georgia's Foreign Minister Salome Zourabichvili said late Monday that Tbilisi and Moscow are close to finalizing an agreement on the time frame and other terms of the Russian pullout. Georgia has insisted the bases be out by January 2008, but Russia wants more time to prepare infrastructure to house the returning troops and equipment. Georgian officials have indicated that they would not mind if the Russians agree to close them in the course of 2008. Russia's armed forces chief of staff General Yuri Baluyevsky said last week Moscow might have to move some of the Akhalkalak base's military hardware to Armenia where it has stronger military presence. Baluyevsky's statement drew protests from Azerbaijan. "Such developments will not serve the interests of peace and security in the region and will create tensions ...in the process of solving the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan," the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said in a note to Moscow. 5) US to Deploy Military Bases in Azerbaijan BAKU (Interfax)--The US and Azeri governments have agreed on the deployment of US military bases in Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijani newspaper Echo reported, citing the US-Israeli strategic analysis and forecast center Stratfor. "These forces will start to be brought into the country this year, and taking into account the huge significance of the Caucasus region for the US, the American military presence here will be long-term. Moreover, the first US units will arrive in Azerbaijan within the next several weeks," reads an article published in the Saturday issue of Echo. Citing sources in the Azerbaijani government, Stratfor analysts said Washington and Baku reached the final agreement on this issue during US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's low-profile visit to the Azerbaijani capital on April 12. Under the agreement, US forces will be deployed in Kurdamir, Nasosnaya, and Guyullah. Various types of aircraft will be deployed at all the three bases, which have runways modernized for US military needs. 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) 2005 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.