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ArmenPress
Nov 30 2004

MHER SHAHGELDIAN BACK FROM UMP’S CONGRESS IN PARIS

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS: Mher Shahgeldian, the chairman
of an Armenian parliament committee on defense and national security
issues from Orinats Yerkir party and David Shahnazarian from
ex-president Levon Ter-Petrosian’s Armenian National Movement (ANM)
were invited by France’s president Jacques Chirac’s governing Union
for a Popular Movement (UMP) party to attend its congress in Paris
that elected the outgoing French Finance Minister Nicolas Sarkozy as
the new party head. President Chirac did not attend the congress, but
was represented by his wife, Bernadette.
Sarkozy replaces Chirac’s ally, Alain Juppe and is widely expected
to use the post to build up support for a presidential run in 2007
against Mr. Chirac, his former mentor. He won the party leadership
ballot comfortably, with 85% of the vote.
Back in Yerevan Shahgeldian told reporters today that on the
sidelines of the congress he had a meeting with the chairman of
France’s Senate Christian Poncelet to convey to him a message by
Armenian parliament chairman Arthur Baghdasarian.
He also said that Chirac’s decision to award the Legion of Honor
to Baghdasarian is the acknowledgment of his contribution to the
strengthening of Armenian-European ties.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

PRESS RELEASE
Fund for Armenian Relief
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Contact: Edina N. Bobelian
Tel: (212) 889-5150; Fax: (212) 889-4849
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:

November 30, 2004
____________________

FAR FELLOWS SERVE AS PIONEERING PROFESSIONALS:
The Legacy of the Fund for Armenian Relief’s Medical Fellowship Program

Volunteerism in Armenia?

Whoever says Armenians in Armenia do not have the mindset to volunteer
and help their brethren has not encountered the FAR Fellowship Alumni
Association (FAR FAA).

The most recent example of FAR FAA’s volunteerism is the October 10-13,
2004 follow-up medical mission to Karabagh, led by Dr. Gevorg Yaghjyan,
a plastic reconstructive surgeon from Yerevan. In August, the team of
doctors examined more than 60 patients to select candidates for surgery
and provide medical care to young and old alike. During the October
mission, four surgeons performed 10 operations at the Shushi Hospital
and the Stepanakert Republican Hospital. Not only were services free,
the doctors also brought their own medical supplies for the mission.

In addition to performing the surgeries, Dr. Hovsep Shamakhyan, a burn
surgeon and Head of the Department of Combustiology in Yerevan,
conducted six lectures on burns treatment, infusion therapy, first aid
during burns, and post-burn rehabilitation. Dr. Yaghjyan also presented
a lecture on the use of flaps for the treatment of burn defects.
Participants attending the FAR FAA seminars, promoted by Karabagh’s
Ministry of Health, included doctors and staff from regional hospitals.

Legacy of FAR’s Medical Fellowship Program

In 2000, close to 80 Armenian physicians formed FAR FAA, a nonprofit
organization composed of the leading healthcare professionals in Armenia
who selflessly work to improve the healthcare system, advance the
medical sciences in Armenia, and provide free medical care for orphans
and indigents. The alumni association is a testament to the giving,
caring spirit of all Armenians.

FAR FAA’s founding members are the participants in FAR’s Medical
Fellowship Program. Between 1990 and 1998, these Armenian doctors
received three months training in (a) medical training – learning the
latest western medical techniques and specialties, or (b) health care
management – learning the modern concepts of organization, support,
finance and administration of hospitals at the University of California
Los Angeles, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, Cornell University
Medical Center, and the University of Michigan Medical Center under the
patronage of FAR.

Dr. Edgar M. Housepian, Vice Chairman of the FAR Board of Directors and
Chairman of FAR’s Medical Committee, directed the FAR Fellowship
Program. “I am extremely pleased with this group of young men and
women. They are taking what they saw and the lessons they learned here
in the U.S. and applying them in Armenia. They are proud to be Armenian
and helping the Armenian people,” said Dr. Housepian. “It reflects well
on FAR too, that, years later, our program has evolved independently and
is resulting in good works and volunteerism in Armenia.” Dr. Housepian
continues to maintain regular contact with the Fellows, three of whom
have served as Armenia’s Minister of Health.

FAR FAA’s Accomplishments

In less than four years, FAR FAA has established the Armenian Diabetes
Association, an epilepsy clinic, a neurological center, and cancer
clinics. It has promoted the specialization of neuromuscular disease,
provided support for laparoscopic surgery, and authored articles and
books on medical practices and discoveries.

FAR FAA has hosted or co-sponsored several health seminars, conferences,
symposiums and training programs in Armenia and partnered with other
professional associations and international and charitable foundations.
Last year, with a successful grant proposal, it launched the Salzburg
Medical Seminars, a joint venture with the Austrian American Foundation
and the Open Society Institute, a part of the Soros Foundation network,
to help the next generation of Armenia’s doctors gain access to
fellowship opportunities and participate in international professional
organizations.

Today, FAR FAA membership has expanded to include other motivated
doctors in Armenia who did not partake in the FAR Medical Fellowship
Program but care about the welfare of their communities and country.
For more information about FAR FAA, please visit its websites:
medlib.am/welcome.html and

About FAR

FAR is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in New York,
with offices in Yerevan, Gyumri, and Stepanakert. For 15 years, FAR has
implemented various relief, development, social, educational, and
cultural projects valued at more than $250 million. It is the
preeminent relief and development organization operating there.

For more information on FAR and our medical and health projects, contact
us at 630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016; telephone (212) 889-5150,
fax (212) 889-4849; , [email protected].

— 11/30/04

E-mail photos available upon request.

CAPTION1: FAR FAA members Dr. Gevorg Yaghjyan, Dr. Hovsep Shamakhyan,
Dr. Mushegh Israelyan, and Dr. David Barseghyan traveled to Shushi and
Stepanakert on a medical mission. Here, they are preparing the
operating room, checking the integrity of equipment and collecting sets
of instruments for the surgeries.

CAPTION2: Dr. Shamakhyan conducted six one-hour lectures in the
auditorium of the Stepanakert Maternity House on topics such as burns
treatment, infusion therapy, first aid during burns, and post-burn
rehabilitation. Dr. Yaghjyan also presented a lecture on the use of
flaps for the treatment of burn defects.

CAPTION3: Two surgeons taking a break between surgeries on the FAR FAA
medical mission to Karabagh.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Bahrain Tribune, Bahrain
November 30, 2004 Tuesday

Archbishop due on December 10

The region’s head of the Armenian Orthodox Church, Archbishop Goryoun
Babyan, will be in Bahrain next month on his maiden visit to meet and
hold services for the Armenian community here.

Archbishop Babyan, who is the church’s head for the Gulf States and
parts of Iran, is expected to be in Bahrain from December 9 to 11.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

RIA Novosti, Russia
Nov 29 2004

ARMENIAN PILOTS SENTENCED TO IMPRISONMENT IN EQUATORIAL GUINEA

YEREVAN, November 29 (RIA Novosti) – The Court of Malabo, the capital
of Equatorial Guinea, has passed its verdict on the case of a coup
attempt that involved six Armenian pilots as the accused.

The court sentenced the crew commander to 24 years in jail, and the
other pilots to 14 years, Gamlet Gasparyan, press secretary of the
Armenian foreign ministry, told RIA Novosti.

A South African citizen accused of organising the coup attempt was
sentenced to 63 years while three other South Africans to 50-60
years.

Local residents facing the same charges have been sentenced to one
year.

The court held to confiscate the fishing vessel owned by the Armenian
Dvin concern.

Lawyers of the Armenian pilots intend to appeal the verdict in the
Supreme Court of Equatorial Guinea, and international courts, if need
be.

“We are convinced that the Armenian pilots have nothing to do with
any actions aimed against Equatorial Guinea and its authorities, and
the court failed to provide any substantial evidence to prove that
they are guilty. The Armenian government will do its best to make
sure that the competent Equatorial Guinean bodies make a fair
decision to the point of releasing them,” the Armenian Foreign
Ministry reported.

The official Armenian delegation to Malabo that visited Equatorial
Guinea more than once before and spared no effort will further stay
in the country to discuss the release of the Armenian pilots to
Armenia with the local authorities, the Foreign Ministry said.

Six Armenian pilots worked in Equatorial Guinea from January 2004
onboard the AN-12 aircraft registered in Armenia in accordance with
an agreement between the German KAL company and the Armenian company,
Dvin Concern. Late on March 7, the Armenian pilots and a
representative of the German firm were arrested in Malabo.

The authorities of Equatorial Guinea are accusing them of involvement
in the coup attempt as mercenaries. They are also accused of
espionage – collecting information of political, economic and
military interest.

The Armenian pilots strongly deny the charges.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

The Messenger, Georgia
Nov 29 2004

Azeri-Georgian rail border closed to cargo

Tbilisi waits for official explanation though some say cargo bound
for Armenia led to delay
By Anna Arzanova

Over 900 train cars carrying cargo, including 114 loaded with a
donation of wheat from Kazakhstan bound for Tbilisi, are currently
stalled at the Azerbaijan-Georgia border.

The reason for the stoppage is unclear although officials in Tbilisi
have speculated that the cargo has been detained, some for as long as
ten days now, because of a dispute between the Azeri and Georgian
governments regarding cargo being transported from Azerbaijan to
Armenia via Georgia.

Only Azeri products, including crude oil, petrol and diesel fuel, are
being allowed to cross into Georgia, and analysts are concerned not
only by the losses currently being made by Georgian importers, but
also that Georgia’s image as a reliable transit country is being
damaged.

Head of Georgian Railway Davit Onoprishvili told journalists on
Friday that the prevention of cargo from crossing the border was
having a negative impact on revenues.

He also said that the Azeri side had not officially said to either
Georgian Railways or any other Georgian state structure that they are
blocking the transit of cargo. “According to official information,
the Azeri side is just checking the cargo,” he said.

Deputy Minister of Economy Geno Muradian added that the Azeri side
was checking the cargo because of suspicions that much of it is bound
for Armenia.

“According to unofficial data the Azeri side suspects that 40 percent
of the cargo [currently waiting to cross into Georgia] is bound for
Armenia. The second reason given for the blocking of cargo is that
the Azeri side is allegedly fighting against corruption,” Muradian
said.

In June 2004, Azerbaijan and Georgia signed an agreement, which has
been ratified in Azerbaijan but not in Georgia, according to which no
cargo bound for any third country that could damage Azeri interests.
Although no country is named, the article was meant to prevent
transit of goods to Armenia.

However, Onoprishvili denies that any of the cargo is bound for
Armenia, saying that inscriptions on the train cars show they are
bound for Batumi and Poti.

Analyst Gia Khukhashvili, meanwhile, who was one of the authors of
the June agreement when he was a member of the railway’s supervisory
board, says that the dispute is actually due to the detention of
train cars belonging to the Azeri Bashlam company by Georgia because
of the non-payment of transportation costs.

“This concerns the payment of train car fees. The Azeri side has
certain arguments in connection with this matter. Some times ago the
Georgian side detained cargo belonging to the Bashlam company.
Azerbaijan is not an ordinary country and we have to understand that
all issues connected with Azerbaijan must be solved through
negotiations,” said Khukhashvili, adding that it is impossible to
maintain good relations with Azerbaijan when their cargo is being
detained.

However, Onoprishvili attacked Khukhashvili’s opinion as absurd,
saying that Georgian Railway has every right to detain cargo until
its transportation has been paid for. “His statement is absolutely
absurd. As for the company, if somebody has a debt to us, we stop the
train. The law gives us such a right and I think that otherwise it
would not be possible to make people pay their debts,” he said.

Onoprishvili thinks that if the money is not paid in advance no cargo
should be transported. According to him, there is no other way of
retrieving the debt. This way, he said, Bashlam know they must pay
their debts.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia is waiting to receive an
explanation from Azerbaijan. “We want to clarify now why cargo bound
for Georgia is being blocked,” said Deputy Minister of Foreign
Affairs Mikheil Ukleba.

The Azeri Ambassador to Georgia has been summoned to the ministry on
Monday and according to reports the fate of the cargo will be decided
then.

Davit Onoprishvili has also left for Azerbaijan in order to settle
this problem.

When Presidents Eduard Shevardnadze and Heidar Aliev were in power, a
limited amount of cargo was transited to Armenia from Azerbaijan via
Georgia, and some too from Armenia to Azerbaijan. Heidar Aliev closed
his eyes to this and never questioned Georgia about it.

However, his son President Ilham Aliev has put the issue firmly on
the agenda: Alia reports that during the summer he threatened not to
visit Georgia unless the paragraph forbidding the transportation of
goods bound for any third country be included in the June agreement
between the two sides.

Clearly concerned, Armenian President Kocharian traveled to Tbilisi
almost immediately after the agreement was signed.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

2nd Iran-Armenia electricity line to be launched

IRNA News Agency (Tehran)
29/11/2004

Tehran, Nov 29, IRNA — A second line of the Iran-Armenia electricity
network with a capacity of 230 kw is due to be inaugurated tomorrow.
Iranian Energy Minister Habibollah Bitaraf and his Armenian counterpart,
Armen Movsisian, will be attending the inaugural ceremony.
“Electricity exchanges between the two countries will reach a total of 450
megawatts through this project,” the managing director of the Iranian SANIR
Electricity Company said on Monday.
Alireza Kadkhodaei said that the project costs 8.4 million dollars.
He also announced that the two countries’ energy ministers are scheduled to
sign an agreement for construction of a third line of the the two
countries’
electricity network.
Meanwhile, Iran and Armenia on May 13 signed an agreement to construct a
42-km gas pipeline between the Armenian cities of Megri and Kajaran.
The project is to be inaugurated during an upcoming visit of Energy
Minister
Bitaraf in Armenia.
The Iran-Armenia trade volume is expected to reach 10 billion dollars in
the
next 20 years with implementation of the above-stated project.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

RIA OREANDA
Economic Press Review
November 29, 2004 Monday

New Kalmykia Senator Promises Economic Prosperity for his Republic

Elista. Appeared in Russian in Moscow’s NEZAVISIMAYA GAZETA. At its
eighth session on November 26, the People’s Parliament of the
Republic of Kalmykia elected Levon Chakhmachian as the senator to the
Council of the Federation of Russia’s Federal Assembly from Kalmykia.
Levon Chakhmachian is the leader of the political party Russian Party
of Self-government of the Working People, first vice president of the
Association for Russo-Armenian Business Partnership, and cochairman
of the Patriots of Russia political coalition. In his speech,
Kalmykia’s Parliament Speaker Viacheslav Bembetov emphasized that the
party he chairs is not only consistent in supporting the constructive
policy pursued by the republic’s leadership, but is also unraveling
an economic program to develop and support small and medium
businesses by creating public enterprises whose stock will belong to
the personnel. The decision to elect Levon Chakhmachian senator to
the Council of the Federation was approved by secret ballot: 19 ayes
versus 5 nays with one abstention. In his activity the new senator
will pay special attention to the federal targeted programs on
Kalmykia’s, funding of republican projects aimed at developing cattle
breeding, meet processing, gasification, and water supply to
villages, creating jobs, expanding oil and gas prospecting projects,
upgrading the key sectors of industry, and addressing social
problems. Copyright (c) 1997-2004 RIA “OREANDA”

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Ethnic Kurds in Armenia mark party anniversary

Noyan Tapan news agency, Yerevan
29 Nov 04

YEREVAN

A ceremony to mark the 27th anniversary of the Kurdistan Workers’
Party [former PKK, now People’s Congress of Kurdistan] was held at the
Youth Palace in Yerevan on 27 November. About 100 people took part in
the ceremony, including representatives of the so-called Kurdistan
committee, Kurds from different parts of Armenia, popular Kurdish
singer (?Jomard) who lives in Germany, etc.

A representative of the Caucasus branch of the PKK, (?Bagr Zagros),
made a speech in Kurdish. The chairman of the Kurdistan committee and
editor-in-chief of the Mezopotamia newspaper published in Yerevan,
(?Chakraye Mstoyan), said this ceremony was part of the struggle for
the release of the PKK leader, Abdullah Ocalan. Mstoyan told a Noyan
Tapan correspondent that the problem of Kurdish people attracts
international attention and that the European Court of Human Rights is
expected to make a decision on Ocalan’s release.

Mstoyan is convinced that the demand of the 40m-strong Kurdish people
that Ocalan be released will sooner or later be satisfied.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Georgia plays down stoppage of transit cargo in Azerbaijan

Rustavi-2 TV, Tbilisi
29 Nov 04

[Presenter] Let’s turn to the events in Georgia. Azerbaijan’s
representatives in Georgia have made their first comments about the
stoppage of Georgia-bound cargo.

Tomorrow employees of the two countries’ customs departments will
start inspecting railway wagons heading for Georgia. The Georgians
will have to prove that the neighbouring state’s produce is not being
forwarded to Armenia. A total of 712 Georgia-bound wagons are sitting
idle at the stations in Azerbaijan. [Passage omitted]

[Correspondent] Azerbaijan’s ambassador to Georgia, who had a meeting
at the Georgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs this morning, has said
that the agreements should not be violated. He was referring to the
agreement prohibiting the forwarding of transit cargo to third
countries if this harms national interests of either country.

[Ramiz Hasanov, Azerbaijan’s ambassador to Georgia, interviewed] Every
country has its own interests. Would we be infringing Georgia’s
national interests if we were supplying diesel or other produce to
Abkhazia or [South] Ossetia? I think that we would.

[Mikheil Ukleba, deputy foreign minister] Not all cargo is being
blocked. Two hundred and seventy four tank wagons, as well as
grain-loaded trains, have left for Georgia. He [presumably Hasanov]
has stressed that not a single Georgia-bound shipment will be
stopped. [Passage omitted]

[Correspondent] The Georgian Customs Department has said that Georgia,
not Armenia, is the consumer of the products made in Azerbaijan.

[Levan Jgharkava, captioned as head of directorate of the customs
control] Goods made in Azerbaijan have not been going to Azerbaijan
[should be Armenia] via Georgia because there is a separate agreement
on this. While this agreement speaks about the produce of other
countries, i.e. Turkmenistan, passing through Azerbaijan and
Georgia. [sentence as heard]

A delegation of Azerbaijan’s customs department will arrive in Georgia
tomorrow. Together with the Georgians, they will study the information
about the shipments suspended in Azerbaijan.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

SECOND HIGH VOLTAGE POWER TRANSMISSION LINE LAID BETWEEN ARMENIA AND IRAN

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 29. ARMINFO. The second high voltage (220 KV) power
transmission line between Armenia and Iran is to be launched Nov 30
2004, says the director general of the High Voltage Power Transmission
Lines (HVPTL) company Sahak Abrahamyan.

The 82 km line was laid on Iran’s $8.4 mln credit. Its capacity is 200
MW. The line connects Shinuar and Agarak towns in Sunik and is
expected to redouble electricity flows between Iran and Armenia.

The general contractor is Sanir (Iran), the client HVPTL. The project
is based on the energy cooperation memorandum signed by Armenia and
Iran in July 2002. The Iranian credit is to be repaid in electricity
supplies. Dec 1 the sides are to sign a memorandum to lay the third
high voltage line.

Sanir is also the general contractor of the project to lay the
Armenian section of the Megri-Kajaran 42 km gas pipeline. The work is
to be started Nov 30 2004.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress