Author: Badalian Vardan

TURKEY, ARMENIA ONE STEP CLOSER TO OPEN BORDER

Hurriyet Daily News
Sept 1 2009
Turkey

Turkey and Armenia declared their intention to restore diplomatic
relations in a joint statement issued Monday night. Now both
governments, targeted by nationalists, have six weeks to convince
the public at home prior to the signing of two official agreements

ESTABLISHING COMMUNICATION: President Gul went to Armenia last year
unconditionally, said Davutoglu in an interview on a national news
channel.

Ending nearly a century-old animosity, Turkey and Armenia declared
late Monday that they have agreed to restore diplomatic ties and open
their sealed border.

Operating under Swiss mediation, the two neighboring countries
announced their intension to sign two protocols, one to establish
diplomatic relations and the other to develop bilateral ties, within
six weeks.

The historic move would ensure Armenian President Serge Sarkisian’s
visit to Turkey in October for the Turkey-Armenia World Cup qualifying
match.

"The two protocols provide a framework for the normalization of
bilateral relations within a reasonable timeframe. The political
consultations will be completed within six weeks, following which
the two protocols will be signed and submitted to the respective
parliaments for ratification by each side. Both sides will make
their best efforts for the timely progression of the ratification
in line with their constitutional and legal procedures," read the
joint statement.

The protocols will enter into force only after a ratification
process. According to Turkish constitutional law, the Parliament’s
ratification and presidential approval are required. Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Tuesday that "the protocols will not come
into force without the ratification of the Parliament."

Informing the public about the developments, Foreign Minister
Ahmet Davutoglu said the move was in line with the government’s
zero-problems-with-neighbors policy. "Our main goal is to surround
Turkey with a safe environment that is a source not of crisis but of
stability," he said in an interview with NTV on Tuesday.

Parallel tracks

Turkey and Armenia agreed to a road map April 22, one day before
the traditional U.S. presidential statement on the mass killings of
Armenians during World War I. However, due to the strong Azerbaijani
reaction, Turkey had to subsequently declare that "the border
could be opened only after the withdrawal of Armenian troops from
Nagorno-Karabakh."

When asked whether Turkey has changed its policy again and will open
the border unconditionally, Davutoglu said that "Turkey was envisaging
parallel tracks and it was impossible to sustain the normalization
process without a comprehensive reconciliation in the region."

The foreign minister did not, however, entirely rule out the
possibility of opening the border before an interim solution had been
reached between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Turkey tried to alleviate Azerbaijani concerns over the weekend by
sending two of its top diplomats to Baku to inform them about the
process. "Turkey would never do something to the disadvantage of its
Azerbaijani brothers," Davutoglu said.

"Nothing is more important than Turkish-Azerbaijani friendship,"
the foreign minister added. "We guarantee that the protocols issued
yesterday will not harm the national interests of Azerbaijan. It is
a basic principle. On the contrary, it will accelerate putting an
end to the occupation [of Azerbaijani land]."

Noting that President Abdullah Gul had visited Armenia last year
unconditionally, Davutoglu said it was their right to ask the same
thing from the Armenian leader. Sarkisian has urged Turkey to open
the border or show a sign of intent to do so if it wants him to come
to Turkey to watch the match.

Lobbying at home and abroad

The six-week period designed for political consultations will
be a key lobbying window for Turkish diplomats both at home and
abroad. "Acceptance by society is important. Political leaders will
express the details to the public within domestic consultations,"
Davutoglu said.

The foreign minister, who met with the different political parties
to inform them about foreign-policy issues, is planning to brief
opposition leaders on the latest developments as well. "I can start
a second informative consultation process when I return to Turkey,"
he added. "It is not necessary to hold [bilateral] talks at the same
quick pace since we’ve reached an agreement."

Davutoglu’s comments hinted that lobbying efforts would be increased
in the international arena.

"Over the next six weeks, we will conduct work in this direction with
the international community as well," he said. "In order to make the
efforts known, we will hold talks at every level, including with the
Minsk Group, which is related to the Azerbaijani-Armenian track."

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will bring the issue to the agenda
of the U.N. General Assembly.

In the forthcoming talks with world leaders, both Erdogan and
Davutoglu intend to stress that both the Azerbaijani-Armenian and
Turkish-Armenian tracks should improve in parallel with each other
since a comprehensive solution is required to address the frozen
conflicts in the Caucasus.

"To establish a sustainable and permanent peace is also
a responsibility of the international community, such as the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe [or OSCE] and
the U.N. It necessitates protection of the unity of Azerbaijan," the
Turkish foreign minister said. "We will push both the international
community and Yerevan for a solution in the Minsk talks."

Davutoglu briefed OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairman and French Foreign
Minister Bernard Kouchner about the latest developments and the
Turkish vision in a phone conversation Tuesday.

European Union Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana hailed the agreement
between Armenia and Turkey as a "crucial step" toward ending their
decades-long dispute. "I welcome yesterday’s agreement between
Turkey and Armenia to start internal political consultations… for
establishing diplomatic relations," Solana said in a statement
issued Tuesday.

DENYING THE ‘OTHER’ HOLOCAUST
By Marilyn Henry

Asbarez
enying-the-other-holocaust/
Aug 31, 2009

Ten years ago, I was in Armenia for Genocide Memorial Day. Armenians
from their "galut" around the world had come to Yerevan to participate
with local citizens in the solemn commemoration. I was with a group
that came from the US, including Henry Morgenthau III. He was there
because the government intended to honor his grandfather, the first
Henry, who as the US ambassador to Constantinople in 1915 had raised
the alarm about the Armenian genocide.

The Morgenthaus and I were Jews among the Armenians. After a week
together, however, it was hard to remember that the Armenians
weren’t Jews. We have much in common: lost families, lost homes,
lost countries, lost languages, lives as minorities, a diaspora,
fears of assimilation, factions in religious practice – and genocide,
as well as foes who would deny that the genocide ever happened.

But this also is where Jews and Armenians part. No civilized society
will tolerate Holocaust denial. Nearly a century later, however,
denial of the Armenian genocide persists, and it pops up in the most
unexpected places.

Most recently it was in the federal appeals court in California. In
a ruling on August 20, two members of a three-judge appellate panel
did not quite deny the Armenian genocide; it was more like "genocide
squelching." At issue was one of a handful of California laws that
collectively extended the statutes of limitations so that Nazi victims,
including slave laborers, as well as victims of the Armenian genocide,
would have additional time to file various claims for redress from
human rights abuses and other losses.

The Armenians were seeking insurance payments from the period in the
waning days of the Ottoman Empire during which they were deported
and massacred by the Turks. This was akin to efforts within the
Jewish community in the last decade to recover insurance payments
for policies written during the Nazi era.

Jewish insurance claims were handled by an international commission
chaired by former US secretary of state Lawrence Eagleburger. Armenians
fended for themselves. Claims from the Ottoman/World War I era were
handled by lawyers who dealt with individual insurance companies. The
American insurer New York Life and the French company AXA reached
settlements with the Armenians.

The case in federal court in California pits Armenians against German
insurance companies. (Let’s put aside for this discussion that German
enterprises should be sensitive to any claim related to genocide,
or that it was Hitler who blithely predicted that no one would
remember the fate of the Armenians.) The German insurers resisted
any discussion of claims, including the possibility of humanitarian
settlements with payments to charitable institutions, said Brian
Kabateck, the Los Angeles attorney representing the Armenians.

The German companies argued that US presidential foreign policy
prohibits legislative recognition of an "Armenian genocide." Although
more than 40 American states have policies on the Armenian genocide,
there is no federal policy recognizing it. Each time in recent years
that a congressional resolution appeared likely to affirm that the
genocide had occurred, the Bush and Clinton administrations argued
against it, saying it would hurt American foreign policy by offending
Turkey, a key ally. The Turks have never recognized the genocide;
they refer to an Armenian revolt.

In a very broad statement that went far beyond California’s laws on
claims deadlines, the federal appellate panel concluded that "there
is an express federal policy prohibiting legislative recognition of an
‘Armenian genocide.’"

"By using the phrase ‘Armenian genocide,’ California has defied the
president’s foreign policy preferences," the panel ruled.

It was not swayed by the fact that the federal government has
not expressly prohibited states from using the phrase "Armenian
genocide." And the US government did not participate in this case,
so its position on how states treat the genocide is entirely unclear.

Kabateck, the Los Angeles attorney, vowed to appeal to
the full appellate court, saying the two judges’ ruling was
"genocide-squelching." "The court says the words ‘Armenian genocide’
when said by any state or local government violates the foreign powers
of the US government and is unconstitutional," he said. "Taken to its
logical extreme, if these two judges are correct, no state or local
government in the United States may use those words in any capacity."

The Court ignored the US record, including president Ronald Reagan’s
1981 proclamation explicitly referring to "the genocide of the
Armenians," said Rouben Adalian, director of the Armenian National
Institute in Washington. "This decision has so many egregious mistakes
it makes one wonder what else was going on. It is frightening to
see how even judges could be so misled into dangerous and really
shameful territory."

There is now concern that the ruling will be used as Turkish
propaganda, and to expand the assault on teaching about the genocide
in American public schools.

In June, a federal judge in Boston rejected a lawsuit filed by several
students, teachers and the Assembly of Turkish American Associations
that challenged Massachusetts’ state curriculum. The education
guidelines characterize the World War I-era deaths of Armenians as
genocide. Mark Wolf, the chief judge of the US District Court in
Massachusetts, said the sensitive questions on the historic tragedy
should be debated in the legislature, not the courts.

American Jews don’t face these horrific fights over atrocities and
whether to teach them. New York, New Jersey, California, Florida and
Illinois have laws requiring the teaching of the Holocaust. Ten other
states have regulations recommending Holocaust education. Twelve
states also have Holocaust commissions or councils that support
Holocaust education.

But we surely remember our own battles against Holocaust denial. And
as we are aggressive in protecting our history and in protesting
contemporary atrocities such as in Darfur, so should we protest the
denial of other atrocities of the past.

ARMENIAN CHURCHES IN CRIMEA UNDER THREAT

Panorama.am
10:55 31/08/2009

Armenian Apostolic churches of Archangels Michael and Gabriel; and
St. George located in Crimea (Ukraine) are reported to be in extreme
bad conditions, "Yerkramas" reports.

According to the source neither Armenian Community nor municipal
budget have means to finance recovering activities.

It is said that once 39 churches were constructed in Crimea and only
4 of them stand till today. 15 years ago 3 churches – Archangels
Michael and Gabriel, St. George and St. Sargis were handed to Armenian
Apostolic Church.

Vice President Of VimpelCom OJSC: The Experience Of Management Of A Large Fixed Telephone Network In Armenia Has Proved Useful For VimpelCom In Its Work With Big Corporate Clients

ArmInfo
2009-08-27 19:56:00

ArmInfo. The experience of management of a large fixed telephone
network in Armenia has proved useful for VimpelCom in its work with
big corporate clients, Vice President of VimpelCom Dmitry Pleskonos
said during a video-conference today.

"Armenia is a country where we have a large-scale business in both
fixed and mobile telephony. This is a good opportunity to exchange
experience and knowledge. Some of the services we first introduced
in Armenia were later transferred to Russia. I, first of all,
mean client-oriented convergent solutions, like Balance Transfer,
allowing our customers to pay both fixed and mobile Beeline bills. The
development of fixed networks helps us to more effectively work with
big corporate clients. Fixed networks have large staffs. This is
one more novelty for VimpelCom. As regards Armenia, we realize our
responsibility to the local society and state. And this stimulates
us to work better," Pleskonos said.

ArmenTel is 100% subsidiary of VimpelCom in Armenia. The company
enjoys dominance in fixed telephony and leading positions in mobile
telephony. It also provides internet services.

AZERBAIJANI FOREIGN MINISTRY: DEPLOYMENT OF PEACEKEEPERS NOT STANDS ON AGENDA NOW

Today.Az
055.html
Aug 27 2009
Azerbaijan

"Today Armenia and Azerbaijan discuss general principles for a
settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,"
Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesperson Elkhan Polukhov said
commenting on media reports about possible deployment of peacekeepers
in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan which will provide security
for returnee population in the Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding
occupied areas in case of agreement between the sides.

"Issue of peacekeepers’ deployment is not on the agenda at the
moment. Today the parties are discussing the general principles for
a settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,"
he said.

‘The issue of deployment of peacekeepers in the conflict zone is
one of the items within the overall process of implementation of the
agreements reached. Deployment of peacekeepers is a multi-component
question which may consist of many different parts," Polukhov said.

"This issue includes participating countries who will send their
representatives, types of forces to be deployed, their armament,
mandate and location. That is, this is whole complex of issues that may
be subject to regular discussions between the parties, but only after
a general agreement to resolve the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict," Polukhov said.

MINSK TO ASSUME CSTO CHAIRMANSHIP AND SIGN CRRF AGREEMENT

PanARMENIAN.Net
28.08.2009 10:53 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Belarus will assume CSTO chairmanship and sign
agreement on Collective Rapid Reaction Forces (CRRF), Belarusian
President Alexander Lukashenko told journalist Thursday, after
finishing negotiations with his Russian colleague Dmitry Medvedev.

Having invested much effort in studying CRRF issues, Belarus cannot
but accept the document. "We invested much both in the contents and
essence of the agreement," Belarusian President said, stressing the
importance of legally formalizing his country’s chairmanship.

"We haven’t been a chairing country for six months, therefore
we decided to undertake chairmanship for the next term as well,"
Lukashenko said, noting that "it will be probably achieved through
a statement by Belarusian side."

As reported by Russian President’s press service, Presidents Medvedev
and Lukashenko discussed schedule for upcoming meetings, particularly,
they agreed to take part in West-2009 military drills due in Belarus
on September 29, 2009. Russian President reiterated his willingness
to take part in EurAsEC interstate council’s session scheduled in
Minsk on November 27, BELTA news agency reports.

Russia has temporarily undertaken organization’s chairmanship. "CSTO
member states agreed to hand over temporary chairmanship to Russia,
a country which is going to convene a relevant summit," President
Medvedev said in a CSTO summit in Moscow.

Decision to create collective rapid reaction forces (CRRF) was adopted
by state leaders on February 4, 2009. Rapid reaction forces will be
used for repulsing military aggression, undertaking special operations
in fight against international terrorism and extremism, transnational
organized crime and drug trafficking, as well as eliminating the
impact of emergency situations.

CSTO is a military political union consisting of seven states –
Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and
Uzbekistan. The organization came into existence based on Agreement
on Collective Security, dated May 15, 1992.

ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT EXTENDED TERMS OF CREDIT PROVISION TO AGARAK COPPER MOLYBDENUM INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX

ArmInfo
2009-08-27 19:58:00

ArmInfo. At Thursday session, the government of Armenia extended
the terms of credit provision to Agarak Cooper Molybdenum Industrial
Complex.

Finance Minister of Armenia Tigran Davtyan, who introduced the
decision, said a decision was made at the visiting session to Syunik
region to grant credit to ACMIC to the sum of $14 million for 4 years
at a half-year rate Libor + 8 from the date of the credit repayment
beginning December 15, 2009.

(Ed. The funds have been granted within the frames of the Russian
stabilization credit of $500 million received by Armenia). The loan
was provided to acquire equipment and upgrade the complex. Moreover,
by the government’s decision, the credit can be also used to solve the
transport problems and replenish the floating capital. The minister
said this will allow ACMIC to implement its investment programme,
fulfill the assumed liabilities and fully restart the complex. In
its turn, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Armenia Armen
Movsisyan said the complex carries out all the agreements with the
country’s government on both the workplaces and investments. According
to the prime minister, the government responds to the plant
management’s request and allows to replenish the floating capital.

However, the company undertakes to sign a contract of pledge with
the government on the acquired equipment, during 4 months, he
said. GeoProMining Group of companies acquired the shares of Agarak
Copper Molybdenum Industrial Complex in December 2007.

OPENED A MUSEUM TO GAREGIN NJDEH

Aysor, Armenia
Aug 26 2009

"The aim of Compatriot Unions is to come back to their cradle and to
bring it back. The aim of our Compatriot Union is to unite the people
on a common idea", – said the president of "Nakhijevan" Compatriot
Union Mels Lazarian in the press conference.

For gathering the world spread Armenians on one idea, the "Nakhijevan"
Compatriot Union recurrently holds activities on preserving the
Armenian national traditions: pilgrimages to the tombs of Garegin
Njdeh and Paruyr Sevak, the realization of Armenian rituals.

M. Lazarian among the activities mentioned the works held on
the opening of the museum to Garegin Njdeh. He informed that the
government provided place for the museum, a part of the school #161,
where the hall was repaired and furnished, but the registration of
samples was still in progress.

As to M. Lazarian, the issue of Nakhijevan is one of the topics in the
Compatriot Union agenda. He mentioned that they refer to the problem
of destroying the memorials. On this occasion the union has gathered
specialists to provoke accusation against Azerbaijan on destroying
the memorials.

TURKISH AMBASSADOR GOES BEYOND THE DIPLOMATIC ETHICS

Information-Analytic Agency NEWS.am, Armenia
Aug 26 2009

15:13 / 08/26/2009MP Eduard Sharmazanov, Spokesman of the Armenian
Republican Party (ARP) headed by Serzh Sargsyan, suggested Turkish
Ambassador to Azerbaijan to offer advice to leadership of his own
country rather than those of the neighboring one.

"If H.E. Ambassador thinks deeper and more impartially, moreover,
perform his direct duties, he would realize it is better to counsel his
own superiors, say on necessity to adhere to the agreements reached,"
Sharmazanov declared.

Meanwhile, he mentioned that Turkish Ambassador to Baku is a specific
diplomatic officer, that is conditioned by the current situation. Thus,
his statements periodically go beyond the bounds of diplomatic
ethics, not always and not really reflecting the official position
of his country. Instead the pursued aim is to win the sympathy of
the fellow-country [Azerbaijan] leadership.

Turkish Ambassador to Azerbaijan Hulusi Kilic suggested Armenian
President to arrive in Turkey by air for the football match, as
"Armenia-Turkey border gate opening is connected with the Karabakh
issue settlement."

NKR CITIZENS HAVE YET TO PETITION CONSTITUTIONAL CHAMBER
Anahit Danielyan

Nagorno Karabakh court
2009/08/26 | 17:54

According to Ararat Danielyan, President of the NKR Supreme Court,
no cases have been brought to the Constitutional Chamber by Karabakh
citizens since they were allowed to do so as of July 1, 2009.

With the passage of the NKR Constitution, the Supreme Court was granted
the right to have cassation and constitutional chambers. Mr. Danielyan
told "Hetq" that the most likely reason that citizens have not yet
taken advantage of the constitutional body is that it is just two
months old and that most residents still do not know of its existence.

In many appeals, regarding violations of the law or constitutional
amendments, and he expressed amazement that citizens haven’t yet
petitioned the Constitutional Chamber.

He went on to say that citizens had the right to petition the chamber
when all other court processes had been exhausted and when a citizen
isn’t arguing the decision of a lower court but the constitutionality
of the laws on which the decision was based.