Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

ANCA SHARES ARMENIAN AMERICAN OUTRAGE OVER SAFAROV EXTRADITION WITH HUNGARIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE US

armradio.am
12.09.2012 11:28

During a meeting at the Hungarian Embassy with Ambassador Gyorgy
Szapary, an Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) delegation
shared the Armenian American community’s outrage over the Hungarian
government’s decision to transfer to Baku convicted Azerbaijani
axe-murderer Ramil Safarov, despite the clear indications that he
would, upon his arrival, be pardoned for his crime and praised as a
national hero.

The ANCA delegation criticized the weak response from Budapest
regarding Azerbaijan’s pardon and promotion of a proud and unrepentant
Safarov, who was, until his extradition, serving a life sentence
in Hungary for the 2004 brutal axe-murder of Lt. Gurgen Margaryan,
in his sleep, during a NATO English language training program.

In calling upon the Hungarian government for an open apology and a
meaningful condemnation of Baku’s shameful actions, the ANCA expressed,
during the course of an hour-long meeting, the full range of the
community’s concerns, including the following three points:

1) It is not credible for the Hungarian government to argue that it
was unaware of the obvious “pardon” loophole in its extradition treaty.

2) It is not credible for the Hungarian government to argue that it was
unaware of the Azerbaijani government’s public praise of Ramil Safarov
as a national hero, or the very high likelihood that this killer
would be released by Ilham Aliyev if he were transferred to Baku.

3) It is not credible for the Hungarian government to argue that it was
unaware that its actions would contribute to emboldening Azerbaijan to
escalate its threats and acts of violence, de-stablizing the region,
and setting back the cause of peace.

From: Baghdasarian

OPPOSITION BLOC MP INCLUDED IN ARMENIA’S DELEGATION AT PACE – NEWSPAPER

news.am
September 12, 2012 | 08:13

YEREVAN. – The makeup of Armenia’s new delegation to the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) was finally decided on
Tuesday, Chorrord Inknishkhanutyun daily reports.

“According to our information, the matter is finally resolved as to
who from the opposition will be represented in the delegation.

It was already decided that Armenian National Congress Faction leader
Levon Zurabyan will be represented in the main composition of the
Armenian delegation to PACE.

To note, prior to this, Zaruhi Postanjyan from [the] Heritage and Armen
Rustamyan from [the] ARF [Dashnaktsutyun parties] were represented
in the makeup of this delegation as [the opposition’s] parliamentary
representatives,” Chorrord Inknishkhanutyun writes.

From: Baghdasarian

ALIYEV WANTS TO ROUSE PATRIOTIC FEELINGS AMONG AZERBAIJANIS BY THE CYNICAL STEP: MARKEDONOV

ARMENPRESS
12 September, 2012
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS: Assassinate Safarov extradition and
subsequent pardon by Azerbaijani authorities was aimed at solution of
internal political issues. In the briefing with Armenpress Russian
political scientist Sergey Markedonov spoke about criminal Safarov
transfer by Hungarian Government killing innocent Armenian officer
in Budapest. The political scientist qualified murder of sleeping
officer a cynical step.

“Aliyev was seeking to rose patriotic feelings among Azerbaijani nation
by releasing the criminal reportedly taking into consideration the
forthcoming Presidential elections, which after constitutional
amendment would allow Aliyev to run for President without
restrictions”Sergey Markedonov noted.Dwelling on possible impact of
Safarov extradition and pardon on NKR conflict negotiation procedure,
Russian political scientist stated it may delay the conflict settlement
as the negotiation process does not receive much support by two
countries nations.

” The conflicting parts are not ready to register peace at the
expense of compromises” Markedonov came forth with. According to
the interlocutor the regulation principles suggested by Minsk Group
Co-Chairs are not elaborated in a necessary limit, many essential
issues are disguised by vague formulations, which mostly stems from the
interests of the super power states and not the conflicting parties.

Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov axed to death Armenian innocent
officer Gurgen Margaryan when the latter was sleeping , February 19,
2004 in Budapest . The two officers were taking a training program
in Budapest under the auspices of NATO’s Partnership for Peace Program.

Hungarian court sentenced Ramil Safarov to life imprisonment, without
a right to be pardoned during the first 30 years in jail. Yet the
criminal was extradited by Hungary Government on August 31, 2012. On
the same day the assassinate was granted pardon by Azerbaijani
President. Armenia has suspended its diplomatic relations with Hungary.

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIA LED BY EUROPEAN CIVILIZATION VALUES. JEAN ASSELBORN

ARMENPRESS
11 September, 2012
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS: Armenia has the same civilization
values as EU, reports Armenpress citing Luxembourgian Deputy Prime
Minister and Foreign Affairs’ Minister Jean Asselborn.,I know one
can not improve everything on EU’s 60 million euros. Financial
resources have been cut during last years but we should do our
best to develop relations between EU countries” notes Deputy Prime
Minister. According to Asselborn it is a hard period for EU but as a
contradiction Germany should support those EU member countries which
are in a difficult situation.

Deputy Prime Minister believes that despite financial crises it is
of crucial importance to keep the European unity. He thinks that one
should not forget about development programs during such ,,unsteady”
periods.

From: Baghdasarian

LES ARMENIENS DE NEW YORK MANIFESTENT DEVANT LE CONSULAT DE HONGRIE POUR DENONCER L’EXTRADITION DE SAFAROV
Krikor Amirzayan

armenews.com

mardi 11 septembre 2012

Lundi 10 septembre, la communaute armenienne de New York a manifeste
sa colère dans l’affaire de l’extradition de Ramil Safarov, devant
le Consulat de Hongrie a New York. Près de 300 personnes etaient
presentes, tenant des bougies. Elles etaient venues a l’appel
du bureau de Hay Tad (Cause Armenienne) de New York-New Jersey,
de la Federation de la jeunesse armenienne et de l’association de
l’eglise Sourp Vartan de New York. Les manifestants scandaient ”
Honte a la Hongrie “, ” Honte a l’Azerbaïdjan “, ” Honte a la Turquie,
” Aliev est un menteur “, ” l’Azerbaïdjan doit repondre “, ” Justice
“. Le public demandait egalement ” la reconnaissance de la Republique
de Haut Karabagh “. A la fin de la manifestation, le public deposa
des fleurs et des bougies devant le portrait de l’officier armenien
Kourken Markarian placee devant le Consulta de Hongrie.

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIA DEFEATED HUNGARY AND REGISTERED CHECKMATE IN ISTANBUL – SABAH
By Arthur Hakobyan

news.am
September 11, 2012 | 17:44

The victory of the Armenian men’s chess national at the 40th World
Chess Olympiad almost passed by the Turkish media outlets, except
for the Sabah.

Turkish media outlets simply mentioned the word Armenia when stating
the winner and that is all. While when the Russian women’s chess
national won, many Turkish journalists approached and took interviews,
but no Turkish journalist approached to the Armenian national.

Opposed to all the Turkish media, the Sabah newspaper spoke about
Armenia’s victory in details and also touched upon the world No. 2
strongest player Levon Aronian.

‘Armenians registered checkmate in the chess’ article by the Sabah
journalist Bilge Eser stated that Armenia, Russia and China were
playing equal, however the victory over Hungary awarded the Armenian
national with the first place.

From: Baghdasarian

HUNGARIAN EXPERT: HUNGARIAN PEOPLE STAND NOT BY GOVERNMENT BUT BY GRAVESTONE OF MURDERED ARMENIAN SOLDIER

Panorama.am
11/09/2012

The world must know that in the question of Ramil Safarov the
Hungarian, Christian people stand not by the government, but by the
gravestone and the family of the murdered Christian Armenian soldier,
Gurgen Makaryan, Peter Farkas Zarug, a Hungarian political analyst
and Assistant University Professor, told Panorama.am.

“In Hungary the foreign policy of the second Orban cabinet has
arrived at its final bankruptcy. The Hungarian nation does not want
blood money for the Armenian serviceman, it abhors the promise of a
fistful of dollars,”he said.

The analyst said that there is no one today in the civilized Christian
world, who receives not with acute embarrassment or loud denunciation
the act of the muddle-headed, blundering Hungarian Foreign Office in
returning Major Ramil Safarov to his home in Azerbaijan.

“The Foreign Affairs’ vacuous excuses and the sheepish presentation
on behalf of the Orban cabinet of a memorandum to the Azerbaijani
ambassador in Budapest, all aim to prove that from Janos Martonyi
to Zsolt Nemeth, from Peter Szíjjarto to Viktor Orban everyone was
convinced that the Azeris will keep Safarov in prison until the end
of his life. They are trying to make us, Hungarians, the Christian
nations of the world and the Armenians of the world believe that
they trusted the Azeri promise that the ax murderer will be treated
as guilty and subject to due punishment,” said he.

In his opinion, following the 2004 language training course within the
NATO Partnership for Peace, during one night of which an Azeri officer
hostile to Armenia executed in his sleep the Armenian serviceman,
official participant at the event, it became clear that Hungary had
no extradition agreement with Azerbaijan and for a crime committed
on its territory, Safarov was to face trial for murder in Hungary.

“Besides, Safarov could not be repatriated for trial, since due to
the state of war with Armenia, his act would not be regarded as a
crime by Azerbaijan. Bearing in mind the above, according to the
code of practice and rules of international law, the sentence also
needed to be enforced and served on the territory where the crime was
committed, i.e in Hungary. The international judicial interdiction of
extraditing Safarov thus did not only apply to the trial stage of the
case, but also to the duration of serving the sentence,” said Zarug.

As he said, in the spirit of eastern opening and in pursuit of sources
for the external financing of Hungarian state debt, in his second
premiership Viktor Orban has already paid two visits to Azerbaijan.

“He has been in negotiations with President Ilham Aliyev – son of
Heydar Aliyev, the communist ex-KGB boss promoted to president –
who pardoned Safarov the minute his plane landed in Baku. He rewarded
the ax murderer with a new apartment, promotion and back-dated wages,
while the Azeri foreign office expressed its gratitude to the Orban
cabinet for more than a year’s fruitful co-operation,” he added.

The analyst said that, of course, in Hungary each played the same tune,
that the silver piece is not his, he struck no deal, nor indeed was
there ever a word uttered around the dinner tables laden with Eastern
wealth and arrows of irony aimed at EU bureaucrats about a fistful
of dollars. Albeit only a week earlier it was the Orban-leadership
itself that boasted in its media that it was on the brink of a three
billion government bond agreement with Azerbaijan.

He wonders whether the government correctly assesses that this is in
the longer-term interest of Hungary, for which it is worth swallowing
this ‘tiny’ bitter pill. How long can one impute interests to again and
again trample underfoot their moral fundaments, only because there are
some who – following today’s increasingly confused Hungarian foreign
policy directions – assert that: this is the Hungarian interest!

“No! The interest of the Hungarian people – with or without the
expected Azeri billions – would have been that the Hungarian state
defends its sovereignty and Safarov complete his prison sentence in
Hungary. It was not a Hungarian interest to be branded as Judas by the
entire Christian civilization. It was not in our interest to be made
the laughing stock of the international community of nations. No! All
well-intentioned Hungarians, Armenians, Christians, Europeans and
democrats are united in their protest against this. This is alien to
our civilisation,” the expert added.

From: Baghdasarian

NOT SURE WHO DECEIVED WHOM
Arman Galoyan

Story from Lragir.am News:

Published: 13:15:32 – 10/09/2012

Interview with Ambassador Arman Navasardyan, former vice-minister of
foreign affairs of Armenia

Mr. Navasardyan, the most discussed issue today is Ramil Safarov’s
extradition and the scandal it caused. The authorities criticize
Hungary and Azerbaijan. Diplomatic relations with Hungary have been
suspended. What do you think about Armenia’s share of guilt? Could
the authorities prevent these events?

It is very easy to criticize the MFA after the diplomatic collapse.

When there are too many mistakes and few results, you start being
skeptical about that service. Most likely, it was possible to prevent
it if our diplomacy was not passive but active and attacking. We need
such diplomacy in this phase.

Foreign Minister Nalbandyan says they had learned about the decision
but the government of Hungary assured them in a letter that nothing
similar was planned. What is the reason that Armenia has been deceived?

If the Hungarian side had long negotiated with Azerbaijan, to say
nothing about malicious interest which is not ruled out, then Armenia
had to have conducted a preventive diplomacy. But I would avoid
accusing Budapest of deception, especially because it didn’t break
the international law. It is still to be found out whether Budapest
deceived Yerevan or Baku deceived Budapest.

There is an opinion that Ramil Safarov’s extradition was an invitation
to war. Is the resumption of hostilities possible?

That was surely an obscene and provocative step by Aliyev. I don’t
think it is an invitation to war and I don’t think it will lead to
resumption of hostilities. Most probably, Aliyev is pursuing election
goals making an image of strong fight against the enemy (Armenians).

Deeper scenarios are not ruled out. Safarov’s case was a test to check
the reaction of Armenia and international organizations. I don’t rule
out a bigger provocation by Aliyev and the forces behind him. All of
us, our army, the diplomatic and special services need to be alert
and mobilized.

What will the impact of the Syrian issue on other regional issues,
especially the NKR issue be?

I don’t think Safarov’s story may be a turning point in the Karabakh
issue. But no doubt it needs to be manipulated in all directions. The
only stress here should be the fact that “Azerbaijan is unable to
ensure the physical security of the Karabakh people.

Consequently, it needs to be an independent subject of the
international law”. This is a good diplomatic card which should
be used.

As to the Syrian issue, it may influence on the whole regional policy,
including the Karabakh issue, depending on the dynamics of development
of the events.

Is the solution of the Syrian issue close?

I think it even keeps going further. A religious war between the
Shiites and Sunnites is underway in the region. Super powers draw
their geopolitical plans in the blood of people. If Assad falls,
a new reality of Sunnites and “Muslim brothers” may be created in
the region which will be connected with Turkey, Egypt, Gaza, Syria
and Jordan. This may be a deadly threat to people of other religions,
first of all, Christians.

Can we presume that the super powers will engage in the solution of
the Karabakh issue after the solution of the Syrian issue?

We can presume that the new wave will arrive in the South Caucasus
and will involve Iran.

World powers seem to be interested in the settlement of the NKR
issue. Is their interest real?

The world powers are interested in regional stability. But on the
other hand they are not interested in establishing peace. For the
time being they will keep using the NKR issue as a negotiation coin.

Is the policy of Armenia towards the Armenian Syrian right?

This policy depends on the home situation. The government cannot do
anything else, even if it wanted. How can it organize immigration if
emigration is at highest rates in the country? In case of a force
majeure situation in Syria and danger of the lives of Armenians,
Armenia could organize the transit transportation of Armenians to
Armenia and other countries.

From: Baghdasarian

PARLIAMENT’S REACTION WAS WEAK AND INADEQUATE

Story from Lragir.am News:

Published: 10:24:42 – 10/09/2012

Upon the request of Lragir.am, the head of the NKR public council of
foreign policy and security Masis Mayilyan commented on the National
Assembly statement on Ramil Safarov’s extradition.

He says the favorable atmosphere of protest in and outside Armenia
should be an opportunity for the Armenian authorities to take decisive
steps, including the stipulation of the agreement on the recognition of
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and strategic interstate partnership which
includes mutual security elements. These steps could prevent military
developments and could strengthen regional security, he said, adding
that unfortunately the reaction of the Armenian parliament was weak
and inadequate.

The recent developments showed that Azerbaijan’s policy of buying
international and national officials threatens the security of Artsakh
and Armenia, as well as the settlement of the Karabakh issue.

Under these conditions, Armenia could suspend its participation in the
Minsk Group-mediated process and the Armenian sides to the Karabakh
issue could demand reliable security guarantees from the OSCE Mink
Group to continue the talks. Only the international recognition of
Artsakh and its involvement in the international security system may
ensure the necessary guarantees, said Masis Mayilyan.

From: Baghdasarian

LETTER: CANADIAN ACTIVIST SENDS MISSIVE TO HUNGARIAN AMBASSADOR

Opinion | September 10, 2012 10:00 am

(The following letter was sent to Laszlo Pordany, Hungary’s ambassador
to Canada, in Ottawa.)

Dear Mr. Ambassador,

I am raising my voice of disapproval for your Government’s act of
negligence releasing a murderer called Ramil Safarov. A killer judged
by law and serving a life sentence in your country was released and
sent back to his country of ori gin, Azerbaijan.

A childish and a naive act of good-willingness resulted in making
a hero out of a criminal. As matter of fact as per a news release,
the killer on his return has been congratulated by Aliyev, cleared
of any guilt awarded over eight years’ worth of salary for the time
he spent in a Hungarian prison, and gifted him with an apartment.

As per another report from news.az, the Azerbaijani Defense Minister
Safar Abiyev pro- moted Ramil Safarov from the rank of lieutenant
to major, a day after the latter was extradited to Azerbaijan from
Hungary and received a pardon from Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.

I am full of disgust for the way your government acted.

Economic considerations and financial dealings should never be a
valid cause to suppress human rights. Unfortunately, as an EU member,
Hungary, which cherishes the principles of democracy and justice,
supported the nasty pro- gram of justifying an Azerbaijani murderer,
a fact, which is pregnant with the threat of murders on the basis of
nationality and religion.

We need to see a serious effort in correcting this blunder. Your
minister of justice as well as your minister of foreign affairs are
to be demoted and to be brought to order.

The promoted hero “Major” Safarov is to be repatriated (if yet
possible) and Azerbaijan’s way of handling the issue is to be
questioned.

Simple face-saving actions will not be enough.

– Berdge Manoukian Armenian Rights Council of Canada Montreal

From: Baghdasarian