Author: Badalian Vardan

Hurriyet, Turkey
July 8 2011

The Caucasian Winter

Friday, July 8, 2011
ZAUR SHIRIYEV

The Middle East is at the top of the international community’s
political agenda: The `Arab Spring’ and developments in Libya remain
priorities. On June 24, however, the world was looking to the Russian
city of Kazan, where the Russian, Armenian and Azerbaijan presidents
were meeting to discuss the long-running Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Before the meeting, local analysts had
expressed anxiety about a new war. They spoke of a `Caucasus Winter,’
suggesting that political relations between regional countries were
becoming increasingly frosty and that the region might return to the
international spotlight. Other analysts have given exclusive focus to
the issues raised by the Arab Spring revolutions as they might be
transferred to the Caucasus, but the question of this possible
`Winter’ carries far more urgency.

Before the Kazan meeting, the international community shared these
fears about the re-opening of the conflict and Kazan was described as
the `last chance for peace.’ These hopes for the Kazan meeting
followed what many consider to be an unprecedented joint statement by
the United States, Russian and French presidents, at the G8 Summit in
Deauville, France on May 26. The presidents of Armenia, Russia and
Azerbaijan issued a joint statement after Kazan, to say the parties
have recorded progress on the Basic Principles of Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict resolution.

It seems the main unresolved and contentious issues between the
parties involved are the `basic principles’ of the `Madrid
Principles,’ proposed by the OSCE Minsk Group in 2007. After years of
debate between the relevant parties, there is still some way to go
before the `Madrid Principles’ are accepted as the basis for peaceful
political resolution. However, the procedural parameters for the
settlement as described in the Madrid Principles are clear. This is
the basic formula that has underpinned all previous attempts to
negotiate a deal and which has been publically accepted by the
Azerbaijani government, although Baku has attempted to compromise by
offering to give Nagorno-Karabakh the `highest level of autonomy’
within its territory (much as Tatarstan functions inside the Russian
Federation). There is certainly a feeling within government circles in
Azerbaijan that the current process is payback for the past years of
`failed hopes,’ and in the absence of pressure on Armenia by the
international community, the peace process has served only to support
and solidify the status quo. This is why Azerbaijan saw the Kazan
meeting as a key opportunity to establish a concrete peace process.
The fear was that if this discussion fails to provide any further
developments, as they have in the past, Azerbaijan may boycott future
meetings.

In order to fully understand the dynamics of the peace negotiations
and the current stalemate, it is important to consider the underlying
basis of the Armenian position. On a practical level, Yerevan is under
pressure from both Nagorno-Karabakh’s de facto authorities and the
Armenian Diasporas, notably in the U.S. These groups are more
nationalistic and less willing to compromise than opposition parties
within Armenia itself, due in the former instance to `frontier
spirit,’ in the latter, to the luxury of distance. These groups
exercise financial, political and ideological leverage over the
Armenian government and are certainly not beholden to its policies.
Any pledge by Armenia to withdraw from the districts surrounding
Karabakh will face staunch opposition in Khankendi (Stepanakert) and
could push the Nagorno-Karabakh separatist’s military to launch
attacks against Azerbaijan, as a means of disrupting the peace
process. The fact that Armenia is building an airport in the occupied
territories of Azerbaijan constitutes a real provocation; if
Azerbaijan responds with military action, then it will be easier for
Armenia to argue that Azerbaijan poses a threat to peace. The risk is
that that the resolution framework will be abandoned and replaced by
unilateral – and potentially military – approaches by both sides. This
was demonstrated in a recent BBC Russia interview with Ter-Petrosyan,
former president and the current leader of Armenia’s opposition. He
argued `the Karabakh conflict has not been resolved because the people
of Karabakh demonstrated a maximalist approach – they decided that
this was not enough, they could push harder and get more… And not
just people in Karabakh,’ said the ex-president, who was forced to
resign in February 1998, less than half a year after presenting his
vision for ending the conflict.

It might reasonably be asked: Is this process about delineating the
terms of a fair peace agreement, or is it about sustaining the status
quo?

Obviously, each time the peace process has been restarted, we have
heard the same kinds of hopeful statements from the OSCE Minsk Group
Co-chairs and the same counsel from political analysts. Each time we
have been told that those who criticize the Armenian position are
`opponents of peace.’ But each time, this flawed political process has
brought us no closer to a workable solution. Perhaps it is time to
imagine a different process, one that takes seriously both the
security concerns of Karabakh Armenians and the rights of Karabakh
Azerbaijanis, as seriously need be. In other words, the ultimate
objective of the settlement process is to elaborate and define a
political model and legal framework for the status of the
Nagorno-Karabakh region within the internationally recognized borders
of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan believes the process of defining any such
status shall take place in normal peaceful conditions with direct,
full and equal participation of the region’s entire population, namely
the Armenian and Azerbaijani communities, with constructive
interaction with the government of Azerbaijan and within the framework
of a lawful and democratic process.

Last but not least, what the peace process procedure needs is a change
in its `location’; it does not need to change its current format, only
strong support and innovation can lead to resolution. Otherwise, the
international political agenda will feature the war of the `Caucasus
Winter,’ war and chaos as seen in August 2008, or a continued silence
of `no war, no peace,’ as is seen internationally. The international
community must bring `Spring’ to the Caucasus and this means peace,
constructive discussion (as in the 2001 Key West and 2006 Rambue
talks). What we do not need is fruitless discussion based on
copy-pasting of the Arab demonstrations. In the near future, the
involvement of the international community in the peace process is a
source of optimism; that is to say, the U.S., and France as a
representative of the EU could bring a breath of `fresh air’ to the
process.

* Zaur Shiriyev is a Foreign Policy Analyst at the Center for
Strategic Studies in Baku, Azerbaijan and the Executive Editor of
Caucasus International journal.

news.am, Armenia
July 8 2011

Karabakh must be actively populated – Heritage party

July 07, 2011 | 12:58

YEREVAN. – Armenian opposition Heritage party made a statement calling
Armenian and Karabakh authorities to actively populate liberated
territories of Nagorno-Karabagh.

`Ilham Aliyev made another militant statement saying that Azerbaijan
will secure its territorial integrity even through army force. Aliyev
utters militant statements and in the meantime signs documents on
Karabakh conflict resolution mediated by OSCE Minsk group. Those
documents secure conflict resolution only through peace negotiations
and exclude use or threat of force. Thus, nothing holds Armenian side
back from starting the process of populating liberated territories of
Karabakh.

Heritage party calls Armenian and Karabakh authorities to start
collaboratively the process of populating Karabakh and in liberated
territories reunited to it. This is especially important based on the
fact that there are many Armenians who leave the country without
having necessary conditions to live. Authorities should help those
people to reside in Karabakh by securing sufficient conditions for
life. Moreover, 10,000 people should reside there annually.

We call the authorities to accelerate the process based on
Azerbaijan’s another violation of a point in the document signed by
Baku, which can be either militant statement or snipers’ shots at the
contact-line. Moreover, populating Karabakh is not a violation from
Armenian side, and can be accepted as the best way to lessen tense by
Baku in the region,’ the statement reads.

news.am, Armenia
July 8 2011

Corsica to hold Armenian-Corsican-Karabakh cultural exchange events

July 07, 2011 | 23:38

PARIS. – Corsica will hold three-day events on cultural exchange
between Armenia, Corsica, and Nagorno-Karabakh. The event is organized
by Associu Scopre with the collaboration of Action Culturelle
Arménienne des Pennes Mirabeau and Tavagna Club, Nouvelles d’Arménie
informs.

The events will take place in Mariani and Talazan on July 15, 16, 17.
Ambassador of Armenia, a high ranked official of Karabakh, Mayor of
Marseille, and officials of Corsica will participate in the events.
Events include Ani ensemble dance, music, conference, liturgy, and
exchange of Armenian and Corsican cultures.

Russia makes remote-controlled small tank

13:32 – 10.07.11

Specialists at the Omsk branch of the Scientific-Educational Centre of
Russia’s Ground Troops have invented a small remote-controlled tank,
Russian online newspaper Vzglyad reported.

The tank is of 90cm length and 40cm width and weighs around 110kg.

The tank turret has a machine gun or a rocker propeller and a system
that tracks down the live forces of the rival.

It can also swim and overcome 50cm hurdles.

The tank is remotely controlled by two persons – the driver and the shooter.

This invention is planned to be used for demining and eliminating
snipers and terrorists.

Tert.am

Tax Officials Padlock Store After Owner Complains to Hetq

Grisha Balasanyan

hetq
13:43, July 7, 2011

The fact that Gagik Hambardzumyan, a small store owner, recently spoke
to Hetq and complained about the actions of Arabkir tax officials,
evidently didn’t sit well with that agency’s top heads.

This morning at around 9:45, tax officials padlocked the grocery store.

The head of the tax agency arrived with closure document in hand. The
store will be closed for 5 days.

The agency argues that an undercover tax official wasn’t given the
required sales receipt after making a purchase.

Hambardzumyan refutes the allegation and spilled the beans about the
agency’s shenanigans to Hetq.

During his June 30 conversation with Hetq, Hambardzumyan had
complained that local tax officials liked to stage intricate ploys
designed to make it nearly impossible for store cashiers to issue
sales receipts.

That same day, Hambardzumyan filed letters with the Appeals Board of
the State Revenue Committee and with the head of the Arabkir Tax
Agency.

The store owner told Hetq that tax operatives would then urge him to
enter into payment negotiations with the agency.

As described by Hambardzumyan, the tax agency seemed to be operating a
blackmail ring than exposing actual tax code violations.

“They could have waited and heard my appeal. In fact, by law, they
could have postponed executing the closure order for up to 30 days.
But they didn’t. They speeded things up because I talked to Hetq and
refused to bow down quietly,” said Hambardzumyan.

The storeowner also believes that his ownership rights are also being
violated. He argues that only a court order can prevent him from
entering his private property and not the tax agency.

Hambardzumyan has no idea when the Appeals Board will review his case.

In any case, since the telephone number on the petition is that of the
store, Hambardzumyan will never know if the Board has called for
additional information.

The small business owner says he’s determined to fight the case in the
courts if need be.

“They have passed a law that states that in addition to the penalty I
must also pay 300,000 AMD so that the store remains open for the 5
days. Businesses like mine don’t take in 60,000 AMD per day. Such laws
only benefit the oligarchs and their supermarkets,” says
Hambardzumyan.

Hurriyet, Turkey
July 10 2011

Mayor fighting ‘discrimination’

Sunday, July 10, 2011
Çaðla Pýnar Tunçel
DÝYARBAKIR – Hürriyet Daily News

The Sur mayor, says he has started services in Kurdish, Armenian and
Syriac ‘to prevent discrimination,’ although he is facing
discrimination charges

Sur Mayor Demirbaþ says balance is the key in the Kurdish issue.

The mayor of Sur Municipality in Diyarbakýr is continuing to face a
discrimination case due to the local authorities’ provision of
services in Kurdish, Armenian and Syriac and a decision to increase
the salaries of officials speaking these languages.

“The prosecutor will investigate whether our regulations are creating
discrimination; I, however, have launched many systems in order to
prevent discrimination,” Mayor Abdullah Demirbaþ recently told the
Hürriyet Daily News.

According to Turkish law, the project that has been launched in the
region is a crime, the mayor of the eastern district said. “To prevent
discrimination, the government should reach out to the people and
solve their problem in the quickest way.”

Given that English is tolerated by the Constitution, languages other
than Turkish that are spoken in the southeast region should be
approved as well, said Demirbaþ.

The municipality has been offering services in Turkish and English, as
well as Armenian, Kurdish and Syriac, since 2007.

Reaching balance through peace

Regarding a decision by independent candidates supported by Peace and
Democracy Party, or BDP, to boycott Parliament’s opening after the
deputyship of their colleague, Hatip Dicle, was quashed by the Supreme
Election Board, or YSK, Demirbaþ said he was afraid another conflict
between the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, and the Turkish
military could soon begin.

Demirbaþ said balance was the most important thing to foster. “One
cannot survive by destroying the other, two should remain to keep the
balance.”

Demirbaþ and Osman Baydemir, the mayor of the Diyarbakýr Metropolitan
Municipality, as well as some members of the Sur Municipal Assembly,
have been previously acquitted in a case against their multilingual
municipal services. Demirbaþ said he believed that by reaching
democratic reconciliation in its Kurdish issue, Turkey could be a role
model for the Middle East. Demirbaþ was arrested as part of the
Kurdish Communities Union, or KCK, trial but was released last year
after four months of captivity due to health problems. The KCK is
accused of being the urban wing of the PKK, which is listed as a
terrorist group by Turkey.

Sur Mayor Demirbaþ says balance is the key in the Kurdish issue

ARMENIA: ARE SELECTIVE ABORTIONS BEHIND BIRTH RATIO IMBALANCE?

Marianna Grigoryan

EurasiaNet.org
July 6, 2011

Armenia’s high rate of male births is alarming international and
Armenian pre-natal specialists. Their chief concern is that selective
abortions are contributing to a demographically undesirable gender
imbalance.

Government statistics indicate that a gender imbalance in births has
existed since the early 1990s, but the trend has become more visible
in recent years. The State Statistical Service of Armenia reports
that 23,800 boys and 20,900 girls were born in 2010, working out to a
rate of about 114 male births for every 100 female births. In 2009,
23,600 boys and 20,700 girls were born, marking approximately the
same birth ratio as in 2010.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) puts the worldwide sex
ratio at birth at 105-106 males per 100 females. Armenia has an
overall population of 2.96 million.

Assessing the birth ratio, the head of the State Statistical Service’s
Census and Demography Department warned that Armenia faces “a serious
problem.”

“A study must be conducted to find out whether this imbalance is the
consequence of selective abortions, or something else,” said Karine
Kuyumjian. “[T]he problem is obvious, and it will become even plainer
later, when, along with demographic issues, we will face a lack of
future mothers.”

Representatives from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council
of Europe (PACE) recently reached a similar conclusion. Armenia’s
above-average rate of male births indicates “that there must be some
sort of pre-natal sex selection,” said Doris Stump, a PACE rapporteur
on pre-natal sex selection who travelled to Yerevan in June to assess
the problem.

“But there is no knowledge yet about how it is done and what is the
responsibility of doctors telling the sex of the child to the parents,”
Stump said. “More research has to be done on that question.”

A report about the need for member-countries “to fight against the
preference for boys” in family planning will be presented to PACE in
October, she added.

As elsewhere in the Caucasus (Georgia and Azerbaijan also post high
rates of male births, PACE reports), much of the problem may have to
do with a heavy cultural emphasis on the value of having sons.

“A good man must have a son,” said sociologist Aharon Adibekian,
commenting on Armenian attitudes toward their children’s gender. “If
you don’t have a son, who will inherit your belongings, your house and
[look after] your family?”

That perspective is on display at Armenian hospitals; at one Yerevan
facility recently, the overjoyed father of a newborn baby boy danced
to Armenian folk music, while medical staff consoled the mother of
a newborn baby girl that she’d “have a boy next time.”

Sociologist Adibekian, however, scoffs at the notion that this
preference would prompt women to abort female fetuses. “In countries at
war, the number of boys is high; this is called a war phenomenon,” he
asserted, referring to a spike in male births noted by demographers in
countries engaged in long-term combat, where 120 boys can be born for
every 100 girls. The same might be happening amid Armenia’s ongoing
standoff with Azerbaijan, Adibekian suggested.

Dr. David Mkhitarian the medical director of Yerevan’s prominent
Shengavit Medical Center, also dismisses as “nonsense” the claim that
female fetuses are being aborted selectively. “It’s just that more
boys than girls are born,” Dr. Mkhitarian said.

Armenia’s current population slightly favors women (51.5 percent) over
men (48.5 percent), a difference that could reflect labor migration
trends. The UNFPA’s deputy representative to Armenia cautions that
legitimate grounds exist for connecting Armenia’s high male birth rate
to “intentional actions.” The UNFPA expects to finalize a report on
the issue this November.

“[S]ince the findings of the study are yet unknown, maybe it’s too
early to speak about it with certainty, but if we try to consider
it logically, we will see it is very likely to be so,” said Garik
Hayrapetian.

“The birth rate has decreased about twice now as compared to the
1980s, and by reducing the number of baby girls we risk entering a
vicious circle,” Hayrapetian continued. “When we say we need soldiers
to provide for Armenia’s security, we should not forget that we need
enough … mothers to whom these soldiers will be born in the future.”

But for women like 27-year-old Yerevan homemaker Gayane Hovhannisian,
her husband and her family’s “honor” outweigh any concern about
Armenia’s demographic situation.

A mother of two daughters, Hovhannisian says that she did not
hesitate to opt for an abortion when she learned she was pregnant
with a third girl. Six months later, she got pregnant again; this
time, with boy-girl twins. To avoid having another girl, she chose
another abortion.

“After these abortions, I finally fulfilled my husband’s dream, and
our son was born,” Hovhannisian said. “I would burn with shame if I
failed to give birth to a son.”

Official statistics show that the number of abortions in Armenia
(13,797 cases) increased by roughly 10 percent in 2010 compared with
the previous year; some specialists, though, maintain that the actual
figures are higher.

A fetus’ gender cannot be determined until the 14th week of pregnancy,
but Armenian law only allows abortions through the 12th week of
pregnancy for women without contraindications.

That suggests that many abortions “are performed secretly and
illegally,” said Marine Margarian, a project coordinator on gender
rights issues at the Public Information and the Need for Knowledge
non-governmental organization. “Of course, an abortion performed after
the 12th week of pregnancy is not registered officially; otherwise,
the picture would be clearer.”

Dr. Mkhitarian cautions that warnings about gender-based abortions
will do nothing to stop the use of abortions for “family planning.”

“[I]f … a woman of about 40 has three daughters and she learns she
is expecting a fourth girl, she will go for an abortion despite any
recommendations by either PACE or the Republic of Armenia or whoever
it may be,” said Mkhitarian.

Editor’s note: Marianna Grigoryan is a freelance reporter based in
Yerevan and editor of MediaLab.am.

RUSSIA’S LEASE OF ARMENIAN AIR BASE EXTENDED TILL 2044

Novinite.com

July 6, 2011
Bulgaria

World | July 6, 2011, Wednesday An agreement between Russia and
Armenia has allowed the former to extend its lease of an Armenian
air base until 2044.

The agreement allowing Russia to field air force units at an Armenia
base until 2044 went into effect on Wednesday, the Interfax news
agency reported.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov signed the defense treaty in
a Moscow ceremony with his Armenian counterpart Edvard Nalbandyan.

The deal extends a 1992 lease allowing Russia to field MiG-29
interceptor jets, S-300 anti-aircraft missiles, and some 2 500 soldiers
and officers at airfield some 120 km north of the Armenian capital
Yerevan, DPA reported.

Approximately 2 000 Armenian soldiers and family members also live
on the base, which operates as part of an Russia-managed air defense
network covering most of the airspace of the former Soviet Union.

Under a similar agreement made in April 2010, Ukraine agreed to extend
Russia’s lease of the Sevastopol naval base in the Black Sea for the
Russian Navy from 2017 until 2042, or even till 2049, if a second,
five-year extension clause kicks in.

Russia and Armenia already have an excellent defense relationship and
will sign new economic cooperation agreements in coming days, Armenian
Foreign Minister Nalbandyan is quoted as saying, according to Interfax.

Ties between Moscow and Yerevan have been close for more than two
decades since Armenia became a member of the Collective Security
Treaty Organization (CSTO), a regional mutual defense treaty also
including Belarus, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan.

Russia has traditionally supported Armenia in its long-standing
deadlocked conflict with Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh
province, which is technically in Azerbaijan but is controlled by
Armenian forces.

Armenia and Azerbaijan need to accept compromise to resolve the
conflict, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said at the press conference
on Wednesday.

ARMENIAN ANALYSTS ON POSSIBLE CONFRONTATION IN KARABAKH

The Messenger
July 6, 2011
Georgia

Armenian analyst Alexander Iskanderian stated on July 4 that there
is little possibility of the outbreak of full scale war in Karabakh
as the resources and conditions involved are not conducive to conflict.

Iskanderian stated that the Azeri leadership would be crazy to start
war and undermine the country’s welfare. In the event of starting war,
it will not last more than 5 days, thinks Iskanderian. In this time
the Azeri attack will be stopped without achieving any significant
results and Azerbaijan will have suffered big losses and problems
from a social and economic point of view.

PRESIDENT OF AZERBAIJAN FALSIFIES HISTORY AND IMPOSES IT ON PEOPLE –

news.am
July 6, 2011
Armenia

YEREVAN. – Armenian MFA commented on Azerbaijani President Ilham
Aliyev’s statement at Congress of World Azerbaijanis that Armenians
are guests in Karabakh and Armenian State is built on historic
Azerbaijani lands.

“These kinds of pearls from the president of Azerbaijan are amusing,
taken into account that Azerbaijan is a county that could not be
found on the world map a century ago. Most probably this is the hidden
motive for barbarous extermination of centuries-old cultural heritage
of Armenians and everything that reminds of Armenians on the territory
of a state that is called Azerbaijan today,” reads the statement of
Armenian MFA.

Commenting upon the statement of Azerbaijani president on the military
factor, Armenian MFA stressed that during the years of Azerbaijani
aggression against the right for self-determination of Nagorno-Karabakh
(Artsakh) Republic, when Azerbaijani youngsters were sent to the
frontline as a cannon fodder, Aliyev was far away.

“Aliev is still far away from the frontline, not only ignorant of the
history of the region but also of international law and the actual
essence of negotiation process. He lives in a world of illusions. In
the event of renewed hostilities, it is difficult to say, the capital
of which state would agree to shelter Mr. Aliyev,” reads the statement
of Armenian MFA.