Author: Boris Nahapetian

WHO CAN SCORE AGAINST ROMAN?
A1plus
| 18:06:01 | 27-06-2005 | Sports |
The goalkeeper of the Armenian national football team Roman Berezovski
has not allowed a single goal for the last 3 games in “Dinamo”. Roman
is in perfect fit now and finished the game with “Tomi” 0:0.
As for Perm “Amkar” midfielder Albert Sargsyan, he continues to get
yellow cards. In the 13th round he played against “Krilya Sovetov”
and got the usual yellow card.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ITAR-TASS News Agency
TASS
June 20, 2005 Monday
Armenia hails Karabakh poll, Azerbaijan says it was illegitimate
By Tigran Liloyan
YEREVAN
Armenia hails the results of another election in Nagorno-Karabakh,
its foreign minister, Vartan Oskanian has said.
“The people of Nagorno-Karabakh have once again expressed their
political will to act on their own to form a government capable of
assuming the responsibility for the future of Karabakh and its
people, Oskanian told a news conference in Yerevan.
He believes that “the authorities elected in a democratic way
contribute to a peace, comprehensive settlement of the Karabakh
problem and to the solution of internal social problems.”
In the meantime, Azerbaijan argues that as long as the conflict
remains unsettled, the election in Nagorno-Karabakh cannot be seen as
either legitimate or democratic, Itar-Tass correspondents in Baku
report.
“Elections or referenda in Nagorno-Karabakh cannot be regarded as
democratic, because one-third of the region’s population (the
Azerbaijani community – Itar-Tass) have been forced out of their
places of permanent residence,” Azerbaijani special presidential
envoy at the Karabakh settlement talks, Araz Azimov said at a news
briefing on Monday.
He recalled that the Azerbaijani foreign ministry last week issued a
special statement “expressing new ideas and addressed to the future.”
The message central to the statement is that Azerbaijanis and
Armenians must find a way of living in Nagorno-Karabakh together in
the spirit of cooperation.
“Only in this situation it will be possible to form legitimate bodies
of power of any level,” Azimov said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

AMENDMENTS RATIFIED
A1plus
| 14:34:28 | 17-06-2005 | Official |
On June 16 Robert Kocharyan signed the RA Laws on Exploitation of
Agricultural equipment and Seeds.
On the same day he also signed the Laws on making amendments to the
RA Laws on the Application of Cashier apparatuses, Value Added Tax,
Road Tax, Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Legislative acts, Fire
Security and the Water Code.
Kocharyan has also signed the Laws on RA State awards, amendment to
the RA Law on Holidays and memorial days, and Laws on the Medals for
“Service to the Motherland” and “Social activities”.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

CONSULTATION AT NKR GOVERNMENT
Azat Artsakh – Nagorno Karabakh Republic [NKR]
26 May 05
On May 23 the prime minister of NKR Anoushavan Danielian held a
consultation of the government to clarify the agenda of the upcoming
meeting of the government. The Executive approved the document on the
code and the structure of the NKR Water Supply. According to the Code,
the NKR State Committee of Water Supply is an agency of the executive
power, which works out and implements the government policy on
management and use of the state-owned water supply systems. The
government provides for setting up the administration of the State
Committee of Water Supply under the NKR government and confirming the
structure of the administration. The government meeting will discuss
the decisions on reorganization of the Fund for Development of Small
Businesses and the code and inventory of the state non-commercial
organization Development Agency of Artsakh, as well as the
privatization of state and community property, the size of the licence
fee for broadcasting (rebroadcasting) TV programmes, payment of
compensation to Karabakh Telecom CJSC. A series of bills refer to tax
reforms. The government will discuss the amendments to the NKR law on
tax, the NKR law on stable payments, the NKR law on organizing and
conducting audit, and the NKR law on the use of cash registers. The
government will also discuss the NKR bill on amendments to the NKR law
on social security of parentless children, as well as the
establishment of civil defence structures. The Executive will also
discuss the reports of the heads of regional administrations on the
year 2004.
AA.
26-05-2005
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Pan Armenian News
INTERPOL BUREAU IN ARMENIA COLLABORATING WITH NUMBER OF STATES
11.05.2005 06:48
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ 265 Armenian citizens are wanted by Interpol presently,
head of the Interpol National Bureau in Armenia Vardan Eghiszarian stated
today. The information on 13 of them including several women accused of
pandering can be found on the website of the organization. Besides Vardan
Eghiszarian informed that 69 hijacked cars have been imported in Armenia
>From European countries since March 2004. In Eghiazarian’s words the
Armenian Interpol Bureau is actively collaborating with a number of states.
He also informed that the meeting of the Interpol representatives will be
held in Yerevan this summer. When commenting on the location of former RA
Minister of Home Affairs and one of the ideologists of the Armenian National
Movement party Vano Siradeghian Vardan Eghiazarian noted that the search is
under way though no progress has been achieved yet. To remind, the former
minister is accused in organization of a number of ordered crimes,
misappropriations, etc, IA Regnum reported.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

GERMANY READY TO OPEN ARCHIVES
06.05.2005 05:23
/PanARMENIAN.Net/”We wish the Armenian-Turkish relations normalized.
Germany is ready to assist the process and open its sources for
the historian”, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder stated in
Ankara. During the meeting with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan Mr. Schroeder supported the proposal on the formation of a
joint commission for the investigation of the fact of the Armenian
Genocide.”I hope Armenia understands the delicacy of the situatio”,
the German Chancellor noted. When touching upon the possibility of
Turke’s EU membership Gerhard Schroeder stated that the referendum
on the European Constitution scheduled for May 29 in France will by
no means affect the process. In his turn Erdogan expressed concern
over”Bundesta’s appeal to Turkey to assess its pas”, RFE/RL reported.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

El genocidio armenio
La Opinion
May 1, 2005 Sunday
Estados Unidos es una de las pocas naciones del mundo en no reconocer
hasta el dia de hoy que fue un genocidio el que se cometio contra
los armenios a principios del siglo XX. Es vergonzoso que todavia
haya razones geopoliticas, como no incomodar al aliado Turquia, que
impiden llamar por su nombre la sistematica matanza de 1.5 millones
de personas y la expulsion de otras 500 mil por solo pertenecer a
una etnia determinada. La politica de las distintas administraciones
anteriores, incluyendo la actual, pese a que George W. Bush prometio
durante su campana el reconocimiento, debe ser corregida. Esta actitud
atenta contra el principio basico de primero reconocer un genocidio,
luego no olvidarlo, para que nunca mas se repita.
Entre 1915 y 1923, bajo la sombra de la Primera Guerra Mundial,
el Imperio Otomano que hoy es Turquia, deliberadamente actuo contra
la poblacion de origen armenio bajo la excusa de que estos ayudaban
a los invasores rusos. En esta oportunidad se deportaron hombres,
mujeres y ninos, expropiando sus bienes, condenandolos a la hambruna y
masacrandolos. Decadas mas tarde, el autor de la palabra “genocidio”,
Raphael Lemkin, mencionaria este horror como un ejemplo de los crimenes
contra la humanidad al establecerse como delito ante la Organizacion
de las Naciones Unidas. El 24 de abril es la fecha en que cada ano
se recuerda este hecho.
Este tragico capitulo es parte de la larga historia de los armenios que
se remonta desde el siglo VI antes de Cristo, y que paso a traves de
numerosas batallas, conquistas e invasiones que dominaron esa region
del mundo. En 1991 finalmente se declaro la Republica de Armenia,
independizandose de la Union Sovietica e iniciando una nueva pagina
de su historia. Hoy los mas de tres millones de armenios que viven
en el exterior son parte de esa patria a traves de los afectos y las
remesas que ellos envian.
Se estima que un tercio de la diaspora armenia esta en Estados Unidos y
Los Angeles es una de las areas mas beneficiadas de su rica cultura y
pujanza ejemplar. Desde el barrio de Little Armenia, hasta la ciudad
de Glendale –donde un tercio de los habitantes son armenios– se
puede apreciar la generosa contribucion al diverso mosaico etnico de
nuestra sociedad.
Varios estados de la Union Americana aceptan que existio un genocidio
armenio, como muchas naciones del mundo y la Comunidad Europea han
exigido a Turquia reconocer su pasado, al igual que Alemania en su
momento. Es hora de que Estados Unidos cumpla con el deber moral de
llamar al pan, pan y al vino, vino.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ErdoÄŸan in Israel to repair damaged relations – Part 1
TDN
Saturday, April 30, 2005
OPINIONS

The close relationship between Turkey and Israel in the security and
defense sectors has survived many vicissitudes over the decades
K.GAJENDRA SINGH*
In 1996, strategic dialogue between Israel and Turkey took their
relations almost to the level of allies with Ankara signing numerous
defense deals with Israeli arms industry players and the two countries
carrying out joint military exercises. But the illegal U.S. invasion
of Iraq in 2003 changed the regional strategic balance, with Israel
even interfering last year in Iraqi Kurdistan, adjoining Turkey’s own
turbulent Kurdish region.
Ankara withdrew its ambassador, barred El Al flights to Istanbul and
asked for an explanation. It publicly denounced Israel’s policy of
`state terrorism’ in Gaza, led by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
ErdoÄŸan. Bilateral relations plummeted. Satisfied, Ankara then
took steps to smoothen its relationship with Tel Aviv. After official
visits to iron-out differences over the last six months,
ErdoÄŸan himself would now visit Israel for two days starting on
May 1. He publicly refused an Israeli invite last year. The visit
would provide an opportunity to repair the damaged bilateral
relationship. ErdoÄŸan would also visit Palestine to maintain
the balance and Turkey’s new role as a peacemaker in the region.
Fearful of uncertain consequences from Iraq, which could go hay wire,
its own problems for entry into the Europe Union, the open ended
position of northern Cyprus, which it occupies and the international
outcry about the alleged Armenian genocide at the end of the Ottoman
Empire 90 years ago, Turkey also needs to normalize relations with
Israel. Ankara being its only friend in the region, Tel Aviv had kept
its cool last year. A close relationship between the two countries in
the security and defense sectors has survived many vicissitudes over
the decades.
ErdoÄŸan will be accompanied by Defense Minister Vecdi
Gönül and Trade and Industry Minister Ali Coşkun
on a trip to Israel. Gönül will hold talks with Israeli
military officials on the development of joint defense projects, such
as the co-production of Arrow II and Popeye II missiles. Officials
from both sides are scheduled to work out new counter-terrorism
intelligence systems. Additionally, nearly a hundred businessmen will
accompany ErdoÄŸan to Israel.
Turkey’s relations with Israel involve billions of dollars in joint
projects and strategic cooperation. Israel is currently upgrading 170
Turkish M-60 tanks, 54 F-4 fighter planes and 48 F-5s under a
multi-billion dollar agreement, which also includes the exchange of
visits by defense personnel and joint military exercises.
Abdullah Gül, Turkey˜s suave and soft-spoken foreign
minister, visited Israel at the beginning of January to prepare for
ErdoÄŸan’s visit. After his stance against Israel, which duly
warned Israel, ErdoÄŸan sent a delegation of three close
advisers to Tel Aviv in September as a goodwill gesture.
But, at the same time, Turkey’s relations with its NATO ally the
United States, Israel’s umbilically linked strategic partner, remain
wobbly. Despite the United States’ public disapproval, Turkish
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer recently visited Damascus. It was after
Turkish insistence on the Damascus visit that ErdoÄŸan’s visit
was broken in the Israeli media in the first week of April, to soothe
Israel, which had also not been happy with the president’s visit to
Damascus.
The official announcement was made in Ankara on April 18 after
ErdoÄŸan telephoned Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to
exchange ideas about the visit. Sharon reportedly told ErdoÄŸan:
”I see many areas to strengthen our relations and cooperation. We
believe you and Turkey will play an important role in the region, and
will have important contributions to peace and stability in the Middle
East. Thus, we attach importance to Turkey’s taking part in
developments in the Middle East.” In return, Prime Minister
ErdoÄŸan said, ”I will be pleased if my country contributes to
the peace process.”
In addition to Prime Minister Sharon, ErdoÄŸan is expected to
meet with Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom and President Moshe Katsav.
Turkey signed an agreement with Israel on April 19 to buy spy planes
(drones) costing $183 million. It will include three unmanned aerial
vehicle systems, 10 aircraft, surveillance equipment and ground
control stations, with Turkish companies providing sub-systems and
services worth 30 percent of the cost
Annual trade between the two countries now amounts to over $1.4
billion, excluding the defense sector. More than 300,000 Israeli
tourists (8 percent of the population) visit Turkey annually for
vacations to escape tensions at home as they find Turkey quite
safe. There are other important economic deals in the energy
sector. Last year, the two sides signed an agreement for Turkey to
sell to Israel more than 50 million cubic meters of water annually for
the next 20 years.
A few days before the visit, the Turkish Union of Chambers and
Commodities Exchanges (TOBB) will host Israeli and Palestinian
businessmen delegations in Ankara. The Israeli delegation will be
headed by Israeli Union of Manufacturers chief Shraga Brosh, while
Ahmet Azzghayar, the head of the Federation of Agriculture, Commerce
and Industry Chambers will lead the Palestinian delegation. `As
political efforts continue to seek a solution to the region’s
problems, business circles must also get closer to each other,’ said
TOBB Chairman Rıfat Hisarcıklıoğlu.
Deterioration in Turkish-Israeli relations:
When asked by Israel’s Haaretz newspaper in a May 2004 interview,
shortly after Israel’s assassination of Hamas’ spiritual leader Ahmed
Yassin, if he would define Israel’s actions against the Palestinians
as state terrorism. “How else can you interpret it?” ErdoÄŸan
replied.
In his May 25 meeting with Israeli Infrastructure Minister Yousef
Paritzky, ErdoÄŸan asked the Israeli minister: “What is the
difference between terrorists who kill Israeli civilians and Israel
which also kills civilians?” ErdoÄŸan had refused to meet with
Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who was in Ankara in
mid-July to mend Israel’s deteriorating relations with Turkey. This
was the first high-level contact after ErdoÄŸan repeatedly
characterized Israel’s policy in Gaza as “state terrorism.’
But it was an article in New Yorker magazine by veteran
U.S. journalist Seymour Hersh about Israel providing training to
peshmerga militias in northern Iraq and running covert operations in
neighboring countries that revealed the brewing differences between
Turkey and Israel. Soon Kurds in Syria created problems for
Damascus. The media reports of interference were denied by both Israel
and the Kurdish leadership in northern Iraq, but Turkey was far from
convinced. Israel’s case was not helped by other reports that it was
infiltrating agents into Iran’s clandestine nuclear-weapons program
for information for possible preemptive strikes by the Israeli air
force, believing that Tehran was about a year away from a breakthrough
in that program.
Beirut’s Daily Star wrote on July 17, “It appears that Foreign
Minister Abdullah Gül, one of ErdoÄŸan’s closest
confidants, was behind the leak of Israeli interference in Kurdistan,
to demonstrate Ankara’s deepening anxiety that Kurdish aspirations of
independence will be fueled by Israeli interference. Indeed, the
U.S. debacle in Iraq is driving neighbors Turkey, Syria and Iran into
each other’s arms.’ Israel would like to have a weak Iraq and even an
independent north Iraq.
It added: “ErdoÄŸan’s government has embarked on a high-profile
diplomatic effort to bolster relations with the Arab and Muslim world,
which were blighted by Israel’s 1996 military agreements with
Turkey. Ankara has settled its disputes with Syria and is seeking to
normalize its often fraught relations with Iran.”
Strained relations between Turkey and Israel caused serious concern in
the United States, which was conveyed by President George W. Bush to
ErdoÄŸan in Ankara prior to the June NATO summit in
Istanbul. But then, U.S. relations with Ankara have been on a roller
coaster with public airings of differences. The differences came about
after the illegal U.S. invasion of Iraq, a Muslim country generally
friendly to Turkey, which was opposed by a massive majority of the
Turkish population. When ErdoÄŸan publicly criticized Sharon’s
policies, members of his Justice and Development party (AKP), which
has Islamic roots, were even harsher, lambasting U.S. policies in Iraq
as well. The AKP must cater to its own constituency at home.
The Turkish-Israeli relationship reached a low point when
ErdoÄŸan publicly turned down an invitation to visit
Israel. Ankara temporarily withdrew its ambassador and consul general
from Israel. Relations took a turn for the worse when the Israeli
airline El Al had to suspend, for two weeks, six weekly flights to
Turkey from June 24 in a row over security at Istanbul airport.
Turkey’s Kurdish problems:
Turkey has serious problems with its own Kurds. The
separatist-terrorist campaign since 1984 against the Turkish state,
led by Abdullah Ã-calan of the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) — in
America’s and Europe’s list of terrorist organizations — has cost
more than 37,000 lives, including 5,000 soldiers. The economy of the
mostly Kurdish-populated region in the southeast was shattered. The
cost of countering the separatist terrorism at its height amounted to
between $6 billion and $8 billion a year. Whenever there has been
chaos and instability in northern Iraq, as during the Iraq-Iran war in
the 1980s or after the 1991 Gulf War, PKK activity has perked up in
Turkey.
The separatist terrorist campaign died down after the arrest and trial
of Ã-calan in 1999, when a ceasefire was declared by the PKK and a
Turkish court commuted to life imprisonment the death sentence handed
to Ã-calan. The Turkish Parliament also granted rights for the use
of the Kurdish language and took other steps, thus removing some of
the root causes of the problem. But the PKK shifted most of its 4,000
cadres to northern Iraq where they stay put. The United States has not
disarmed them despite promises to Turkey. The United States wants to
reward Iraqi Kurds, who have remained loyal and peaceful. Iraqi Kurds
have been ambivalent toward the PKK, often helping them. They remain a
card to be used in the region.
(K. Gajendra Singh served as Indian Ambassador to Turkey and
Azerbaijan in 1992 -96. He served as ambassador to Jordan during
the1990-91 Gulf war, Romania and Senegal. He is currently chairman of
the Foundation for Indo-Turkic Studies. The views expressed here are
his own. Email-Gajendrak
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

PRESS RELEASE
YERKIR UNION OF NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS
FOR REPATRIATION AND SETTLEMENT
RA, Yerevan, 47 Bagharmyan ave., ap 10a
tel: + (374 1) 26 28 75
[email protected]
Yerevan, Armenia, 2005, April 27
YERKIR UNION STATES ITS VIEWS ON POSSIBLE TERRITORIAL CONCESSIONS IN
KARABAGH CONFLICT SETTLEMENT PROCESS
“Yerkir” Union, which unites various non-governmental organizations
from the Republics of Armenia and Karabakh, as well as the Armenian
Diaspora since 1994 implementing the projects aimed to rebuild
strategic villages of Artsakh, has prepared a report, where it states
its views on possible territorial concessions in Karabagh conflict
settlement process. In this report and on the basis of political,
military and socio-economic analysis, “Yerkir” Union attempts to state
limitations of a possible territorial concession, whose violation will
inevitably threaten the national security of Armenia.
This report has been sent to appropriate high ranking officials of the
Republic of Armenia, including the president, national assembly
chairman and deputy chairmen, prime-minister, defense and foreign
ministers and heads of ruling coalition factions in the parliament.
`Yerkir’ Union considers that the whole nation must be unanimous and
calls for unity for the mission of rehabilitation of devastated
communities of Artsakh. Only by means of consolidation around this aim
will be possible to create stability and security in the region.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

GEORGIAN, IRANIAN OFFICIALS LIKELY TO DISCUSS SHIPMENT OF GAS VIA ARMENIA
Armenpress
TBILISI, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS: Iran’s vice-president Mohammad Reza Aref
is set to visit Georgia on April 25, where he will be holding talks
with president Mikhail Saakashvili, prime minister Zurab Noghaideli
and foreign minister Salome Zurabichvili on boosting bilateral trade.
Iran’s embassy in Tbilisi told Itar-Tass the focus in the talks will
be on energy sector.
Analysts do not rule out that Georgian and Iranian officials may
discuss the issue of transporting Iranian gas to Georgia via Armenia.
During a mid-March visit to Yerevan Noghaideli said Georgia was
interested in importing gas through Iran-Armenia gas pipeline.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress