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Armenian Assembly of America
122 C Street, NW, Suite 350
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: [email protected]
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PRESS RELEASE
September 23, 2004
CONTACT: David Zenian
E-mail: [email protected]

REPS. KNOLLENBERG AND PALLONE CALL ON PRESIDENT BUSH TO DEMAND AN END TO
AZERI THREATS AGAINST ARMENIA AND NAGORNO KARABAKH

Washington, DC – The Armenian Assembly commended Congressional Caucus on
Armenian Issues Co-Chairs Reps. Joe Knollenberg (R-MI) and Frank Pallone,
Jr. (D-NJ) for bringing the continued threats by Azerbaijan against Armenia
and Nagorno Karabakh to the attention of President George W. Bush and
calling for urgent U.S. action to put an end to Baku’s war-mongering and
belligerence.

In a joint letter circulated among Caucus members Wednesday night,
Representatives Knollenberg and Pallone said Azerbaijan’s rhetoric and
repeated threats had intensified in recent months and it was time for the
United States to act in the interest of peace and stability in the Caucasus
region.

“We urge you to sign the attached letter to President Bush imploring him to
publicly condemn the ongoing Azerbaijani war rhetoric and other increasingly
bellicose remarks against the Republic of Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh,”
Reps. Knollenberg and Pallone wrote to their colleagues.

“We applaud the initiative of the Co-Chairs. These repeated and escalating
Azeri threats against Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh are not only dangerous,
but can ultimately only lead to further destabilization in an already
volatile region,” Assembly Board of Directors Chairman Anthony Barsamian
said.

“The United States urgently needs to impress on Azerbaijan that its present
policies are not conducive to peace – and peace is a prerequisite to
regional security and stability,” Barsamian said.

In their letter to President Bush, the Co-Chairs said:

Dear Mr. President,

We are writing to strongly urge you to condemn the ongoing Azerbaijani war
rhetoric and other increasingly bellicose remarks made against the Republic
of Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh. These statements undermine U.S. interests
in the region.

As you know, a cease-fire in the conflict over Nagorno Karabakh was
established in 1994 and sensitive peace negotiations to achieve a final
agreement are ongoing. However, the government of Azerbaijan continues to
make dangerous claims and threaten war against Armenia. This war rhetoric
has continued unabated and has intensified in recent months.

In July, as reported by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the Azerbaijani
Defense Ministry spokesman called for Azerbaijan’s takeover of Armenia and
removing its entire population. He said, “In the next 25-30 years there
will be no Armenian state in the South Caucasus. This nation has been a
nuisance for its neighbors and has no right to live in this region.
Present-day Armenia was built on historical Azerbaijani lands. I believe
that in 25 to 30 years these territories will once again come under
Azerbaijan’s jurisdiction.” Mr. President, this reprehensible call for
ethnic cleansing and even genocide warrants the strongest possible reply
from our country.

The President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, has repeatedly declared that
Azerbaijan could launch a new war in Karabakh. Just two months ago, he
stated, “At any moment we must be able to liberate our territories by
military means. To achieve this we have everything.” Aliyev has directly
linked Azerbaijan’s economic progress to its military “superiority.” “Under
these circumstances we cannot react positively to those calling us to
compromise,” Aliyev stated.

Last year, as reported by BBC Monitoring, Azerbaijani Defense Minister
General Safar Abiyev said that occasional violations of the cease-fire were
“natural” since Azerbaijan is still “at war.” Statements like this not only
undermine the peace process, but can also serve to actually encourage
attacks against Armenia.

Just this month, NATO cancelled its Cooperative Best Effort (CBE) 2004
exercises in Baku, Azerbaijan after the government of Azerbaijan barred
Armenia from participating. U.S. General James Jones, Supreme Commander of
Allied Forces in Europe, expressed regret over Azerbaijan’s refusal to honor
its host obligations to accept delegates from all interested partners. As
part of its commitment to international security in the Caucasus, Armenia
welcomed both Azerbaijan and Turkey to participate in the NATO CBE 2003
exercises in Yerevan, Armenia.

Efforts to reinforce stability and reduce the risk of conflict are in the
best interests of the United States and the region. The Nagorno Karabakh
peace process will achieve nothing if Azerbaijan is allowed to risk war and
predict ethnic cleansing with impunity. To this end, we urge that you
condemn these remarks and call upon the government of Azerbaijan to desist
from making any further threats against Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh.

The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide
organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian
issues. It is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

NR#2004-082

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Council of Europe report on Karabakh unacceptable for Armenia, minister says

Arminfo
22 Sep 04

YEREVAN

The report by the PACE [Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of
Europe] rapporteur on Nagornyy Karabakh, Terry Davis, is unacceptable
for Armenia, Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan told a news
conference in Yerevan today.

He said the report was based on a subjective opinion of “one person”.

“We cannot agree with it because it presents an inaccurate picture,”
the foreign minister said.

At the same time, he said the report has no status, all the more so
because the new PACE rapporteur, David Atkinson, will have to prepare
his own report.

Asked whether it is not alarming that the new rapporteur, as was the
case with the previous one, represents Great Britain which is known
for its conservative approaches to the Nagornyy Karabakh issue, Vardan
Oskanyan said that whether or not the new report is based on the
previous one, it is necessary to work with the new rapporteur so that
the report does not reflect the opinion of only one man and that it
does not affect the settlement of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian defence minister discusses military ties with German envoy

Public Television of Armenia, Yerevan
22 Sep 04

Armenian Defence Minister Serzh Sarkisyan received today the
newly-appointed Polish ambassador to Armenia, Tomasz Knothe. They
discussed the implementation of the agreements reached during
Sarkisyan’s recent visit to Warsaw.

Defence Minister Serzh Sarkisyan and the German ambassador to Armenia,
Heike-Renate Peitsch, discussed today the establishment of the legal
foundations for military cooperation between Armenia and Germany.

We regard ourselves as part of the European fold and view cooperation
with NATO as part of Armenia’s security, Serzh Sarkisyan announced.

The German ambassador also spoke about the possibility of training
Armenian officers at Hamburg’s military school. The ambassador
expressed the hope that beneficial cooperation between Armenia and
Germany will be possible not only in the military sphere but in other
spheres as well.

[Video showed both meetings]

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Kurdish Media
Sept 23 2004

Remembering Musa Anter

23/09/2004 KurdishMedia.com
London (KurdishMedia.com) 23 September 2004: Musa Anter, known to
millions of Kurds as Apê (Uncle) Musa, was born around 1918 in the
village of Zivinge in Nusaybin.

He never knew his true year of birth. He was first registered as born
in 1924, and his year of birth was later legally changed to 1920.
However, told by his mother that he was born right after the Armenian
Genocide, he believed he was born in either 1917 or 1918.

His family, like many in this area, had relatives in the Turkish and
Syrian-occupied segments of Kurdistan.

In his simple village, where the only drinking water available was
that collected from the rain, Apê Musa grew up hearing oral accounts
of various events in Kurdish history, tales of persecution and
bravery.

Apê Musa became an activist writer, fighting for justice for his
people peacefully using the written word. He was one of the most
prominent journalists of the pro-Kurdish newspaper Ozgur Gundem and
Chairman of the Mesopotamian Cultural Center in Istanbul, and was
widely regarded as one of the most knowledgeable men in the nation on
Kurdish culture.

On September 20, 1992, Apê Musa was the fifth member of the Ozgur
Gundem staff to be assassinated, murdered by a Turkish death squad in
the city of Amed (Diyarbakir).

Lured from a hotel room by a telephone call and then shot four times
by an assassin pretending to be a taxi cab driver, Apê Musa became a
martyr in the embattled capital of Kurdistan, where he was visiting
to sign books for a cultural festival.

Twelve years later, as Kurds in all parts of Kurdistan continue to
fight for the simple right to live as Kurds, Apê Musa’s memory lives
on.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Northern District Times (Australia)
September 22, 2004 Wednesday

No animosity insists group

A RYDE-based Armenian group has defended its relationship with
another Armenian group in the area.

The Northern District Times reported last month that the Armenian
Community Association of Australia (ACAA) was lobbying Ryde Council
to keep using a derelict clubhouse at Burrow Park.

Following the article, ACAA vice president Toros Boyadjian denied
claims Ryde Council offered his group an option to share the scout
hall at Santa Rosa Park, which is occupied by another Armenian group.

Mr Boyadjian said there were differences in dialect between the
parties but insisted there were no religious differences dividing
them.

Meanwhile, council has resolved to seek expressions of interest in
restoring the heritage building at a cost of $300,000.

“It’s expensive, I would be surprised if it turned out to be a viable
proposition,” Ryde Mayor Terry Perram said.

“It’s not a building that lends itself (to restoration).”

Cr Perram said the building would only have limited day use.

Mr Boyadjian said the ACAA would meet tonight (Wednesday) to discuss
whether it would pursue the option of restoring Burrow Park
clubhouse.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ANSA Notiziario Generale in Italiano
September 21, 2004

UE-TURCHIA: PAGLIARINI, ANKARA AMMETTA GENOCIDIO ARMENI

ROMA

(ANSA) – ROMA, 21 SET – Giancarlo Pagliarini, della Lega,
sostiene che la Turchia non puo’ entrare nella Ue se Ankara non
ammette le responsabilita’ storiche nel genocidio degli armeni.

“Anche se la Turchia riformasse il suo codice penale non
potrebbe comunque far parte dell’Europa – afferma Pagliarini –
se prima non ammette il genocidio del popolo armeno che l’impero
Ottomano ha compiuto nel 1915”. Pagliarini invita la
Commissione europea lasciar perdere “le furberie, il codice
penale, i requisiti” e domanda come reagirebbe “se la
Germania, faccio un esempio, a un certo punto dicesse: ‘ma cosa
vogliono gli ebrei? Noi non gli abbiamo fatto nulla'”. “Credo
che un’affermazione del genere sconvolgerebbe, giustamente, le
coscienze eppure e’ esattamente quello che la Turchia afferma
nei confronti del popolo armeno che ha massacrato”.

Pagliarini afferma poi che su questo genocidio c’e stato
solo silenzio: “al silenzio degli assassini si e’ aggiunto
quello degli stati, delle vittime, della diplomazia e della
coscienza degli uomini. E anche i pochi armeni che sono riusciti
a fuggire al massacro hanno scelto il silenzio – afferma
Pagliarini – per ricominciare a vivere”.

Per questo, “noi e i nostri colleghi, membri dei parlamenti
degli altri ventiquattro paesi che fanno parte dell’Unione
europea, abbiamo il dovere di interrompere questo silenzio delle
coscienze e di dare il nostro contributo affinche – conclude
Pagliarini – tutti i paesi membri dell’Unione europea proclamino
con forza e ricordino questa verita’ storica”.(ANSA).

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

The Messenger
Sept 22, 2004

Protesters plan to block Tbilisi-Baku railway
Inhabitants of the Gardabani region are going to block the Tbilisi-Baku
railway on Wednesday to demand the creation of a state commission studying
the corruptibility of local officials. Representatives of the Labor Party
told Prime News that they are also going to go on hunger strike.
According to the party, on August 18 the protestors addressed President
Mikheil Saakashvili, Labor leader Shalva Natelashvili and Minister of
Justice Giorgi Papuashvili with the request that corrupt local officials be
punished. They complain that the president’s representative in Kvemo Kartli,
Soso Mazmishvili, the majority MP of Rustavi Gogi Salakia and also the
Chairmen of the Board of Gardabani region conducted illegal personnel
changes.
Pipes from the gas pipeline Russia-Armenia are stolen and sold as scrap
metal, they allege, and bread prices were deliberately raised. GEL 3,8
million, which was allocated for carrying out repair works of the
Rustavi-Vakhtangisi highway, disappeared, the inhabitants declare.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Agence France Presse
21 septembre 2004 mardi 12:58 PM GMT

La Turquie divise les Français, au plus haut niveau (PAPIER D’ANGLE)

PARIS

Le débat sur l’entrée de la Turquie dans l’Union européenne est
particulièrement vif en France, rare pays en Europe où le parti au
pouvoir et le gouvernement s’opposent sur cette question sensible.

Plusieurs Etats membres ont des réticences à l’égard de l’adhésion
d’Ankara à l’UE, comme l’Autriche ou les Pays-Bas, mais rares sont
ceux où le débat est à ce point passionnel et où il oppose
gouvernement et majorité.

Le président français Jacques Chirac s’est à plusieurs reprises
prononcé en faveur de l’entrée de la Turquie dans l’Europe, même s’il
souligne que cette perspective est encore lointaine. Aussi lointaine
soit-elle, celle-ci est encore trop menaçante pour son propre parti,
l’UMP, qui s’est prononcé en avril dernier contre l’entrée de la
Turquie dans l’Union.

Le président de l’UMP, Alain Juppé, avait alors expliqué que “les
pays proches” de l’Union européenne, y compris la Turquie, n’avaient
“pas vocation à y entrer sous peine de la dénaturer”.

L’autre parti de la majorité, l’UDF, partage ce point de vue en
estimant que la Turquie dans l’Union signerait l’arrêt de mort du
projet européen, comme l’a affirmé son fondateur, l’ancien président
français Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, il y a deux ans.

En rejetant ainsi la Turquie hors de l’Europe, l’ancien président
français a dit tout haut ce que beaucoup d’hommes politiques français
pensaient tout bas.

“Il fallait bien que quelqu’un mette un jour les pieds dans le plat.
Beaucoup de responsables, Français ou autres, disent en privé que la
Turquie ne rentrera jamais dans l’Union européenne”, relevait ainsi
le sénateur français Hubert Haenel, membre de la Convention sur
l’avenir de l’Europe que présidait M. Giscard d’Estaing.

Le pavé dans la mare jeté par l’ancien président français a libéré le
débat en France, note à ce propos Deniz Akagül, spécialiste des
relations entre la Turquie et l’UE auprès de l’Institut des relations
internationales et stratégiques (IRIS) à Paris.

Le débat est particulièrement vif en France en raison de la
popularité du concept d’Europe puissance dans les milieux politiques.
Or celle-ci, soutiennent les détracteurs d’Ankara, ne sera jamais
réalité si la Turquie rejoint l’UE.

Pierre Lequiller, député UMP et président de la délégation pour l’UE
de l’assemblée nationale française, est de cet avis, et son récent
séjour en Turquie à la tête d’une mission d’information parlementaire
ne l’a pas fait changer d’avis.

“La Turquie n’a pas vocation à entrer dans l’UE”, a-t-il affirmé à
l’AFP ce week-end à son retour d’Ankara.

Ces questions posées sur les conséquences d’une adhésion éventuelle
de la Turquie à l’UE sur le contenu du projet européen ne se posent
guère dans les autres pays européens, a expliqué M. Akagül à l’AFP.
Elles cachent aussi certains “soucis électoralistes”, a-t-il ajouté.

“Le débat est surtout motivé par l’opinion publique, car les sondages
montrent que celle-ci en France est majoritairement contre une
adhésion de la Turquie”, a expliqué ce chercheur.

La Turquie est ainsi devenu l’un des principauux sujets pendant la
campagne des élections européennes de juin et certains redoutent
qu’elle ne vienne perturber la campagne pour le référendum de
ratification de la Constitution de l’UE.

“Les Français ont peur. Il faut qu’on leur promette que ce sont eux,
et non l’Elysée, qui décideront de l’entrée de tout nouveau pays”,
estime ainsi le député européen Alain Lamassoure (UMP), hostile à
l’adhésion d’Ankara.

A gauche, le Parti socialiste est officiellement en faveur de cette
adhésion, mais il est en réalité divisée. Il a ajouté récemment une
condition supplémentaire à cette adhésion en réclamant des autorités
turques qu’elles reconnaissent le génocide arménien, sous la
pression, selon la presse française, de la communauté arménienne
particulièrement bien implantée dans plusieurs circonscriptions en
région parisienne et à Marseille (sud).

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Belmont Citizen-Herald, MA
Sept 22 2004

Expert to lecture on Armenian Christianity

The place of Armenian Christianity within the larger context of world
Christianity will be the subject of a lecture by Dr. Ara Dostourian
on Thursday, Sept. 30, at 8 p.m. at the Center and Headquarters of
the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR),
395 Concord Ave., Belmont.

Dostourian, a retired professor of history at West Georgia State
University and former research fellow in Armenian Studies at Harvard
University, has spent decades studying the development and
characteristics of Christianity as practiced historically by the
Armenian people.

Frequently, when Armenian Christianity is analyzed, it is viewed
without reference to world Christianity and other Christian
traditions. Moreover, the national or ethnic character of Armenian
Christianity is emphasized rather than its position within a larger
Christian context.

Dostourian will present an overview of basic Christianity and
its relationship to the other Abrahamic faiths (Judaism and Islam) as
well as the two major non-Abrahamic world religions (Hinduism and
Buddhism) and place Armenian Christianity within the context of the
three major Christian traditions: Orthodoxy, Catholicism and
Protestantism.

A special emphasis will be placed on Armenian Christianity’s
relationship with Orthodox Christianity, as the Armenian tradition is
part of the Oriental Orthodox family of churches (with Syriac,
Coptic, Ethiopian and Indian). Armenian Orthodoxy will be compared
with that of the Eastern Orthodox family (Greek, Russian, Ukrainian,
Serbian, Bulgarian, etc.). Finally, the uniqueness of Armenian
Christianity as a faith that took root in a particular place and
historical context – political, economic and cultural – will be
discussed.

Dostourian received a Ph.D. in Byzantine history from Rutgers
University, having earlier received a master of arts degree in
medieval history from Fordham University and a master of divinity
degree from the Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge. He is the
author of numerous articles on Armenian history and religion, and is
the translator and editor of “Armenia and the Crusades, 10th to 12th
Centuries: The Chronicle of Matthew of Edessa.”

Admission to the event is free (donations appreciated). The
NAASR bookstore will open at 7:30 p.m. Ample parking is available
around the building and in adjacent areas.

For more information call 617-489-1610, or e-mail [email protected].

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

THERE ARE GOOD CONDITIONS FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF RELATIONS BETWEEN
AZERBAIJAN AND GREAT BRITAIN

AzerTag
September 22, 2004

On September 21, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan Elmar
Mammadyarov has met with the special representative of the Great
Britain on Southern Caucasus Brian Fall, who is now visiting
Azerbaijan.

As was informed to AzerTAj from the press center of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, having noted development of relations between
Azerbaijan and the Great Britain, Mr. Brian Fall has especially
emphasized presence of favorable conditions for continuation and
henceforth cooperation between our countries. Having stated that rich
natural resources of Azerbaijan create for it favorable economic
opportunities, the visitor has noted importance of the even greater
attraction in our Republic of the English investors.

Highly having estimated cooperation between our countries, minister
Elmar Mammadyarov has agreed with ideas concerning expansion of
economic relations. The Minister spoke of the importance of attraction
of the English investors not only in oil sector, but also in non-oil
sector of Azerbaijan. Mr. Mammadyarov has expressed confidence that
meetings, conferences and other actions render positive influence on
process of expansion of economic relations between our
countries. Highly having estimated connections of our countries not
only in economic sphere, but also in the field of politics, the
Minister has expressed hope for support of the Great Britain in the
question of settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorny Karabakh
conflict.

Having emphasized that his country supports withdrawal of the armed
forces of Armenia from the occupied Azerbaijan territories, special
representative Brian Fall has emphasized confidence of returning of
the IDPs to their native lands. The British visitor has expressed hope
that the Nagorny Karabakh conflict would be settled by peace way on
the basis of norms and principles of international law.

At the meeting, also present was the ambassador of the Great Britain
in Azerbaijan Mr. Lawrence Bristow.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress