Author: Chalian Meline

PanARMENIAN.Net

Istanbul police chief was aware of Dink killing scheme

09.02.2007 15:28 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Turkish Ministry of Interior has initiated
proceedings against Istanbul Police Chief Celalettin Cerah and ex-head
of the intelligence department Ahmed Ilham Guler, who did not react
properly to the information on planned attempt on Hrant Dink’s
life. The information was furnished 11 months before the
assassination. As a Turkish Interior Ministry’s official, who
preferred to remain unknown, told France Press, the investigators have
disclosed `administrative and legal violations by Cerah and Guler.’
Both officials will have to provide explanation, reports RFE/RL.

Ahmed Ilham Guler was dismissed over the case the other day.

EUObserver, Belgium
Feb 9 2007

Russia raises prospect of UN veto on Kosovo

09.02.2007 – 18:08 CET | By Andrew Rettman

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – Russia has made clear it will veto any UN
security council resolution that proposes Kosovo independence without
Serb agreement, adding it would favour a confederation between
Belgrade and Pristina instead to help soothe separatist tension in
the Western Balkans and beyond.

"If it is a negotiated solution, Russia will not oppose it. But if it
is an imposed solution, Russia will oppose it," Russia’s EU
ambassador Vladimir Chizhov told EUobserver on Thursday (8 February).
"Russia may not be happy even with a negotiated solution because of
its impact on other parts of the world."

"If a negotiated solution based on something different from
independence is found then it makes Kosovo a positive precedent –
it’s hard to speculate, maybe a loose confederation, a union or
whatever," he added. "But if there is an imposed solution based on
independence, it will serve as a negative precedent."

The remarks come after UN envoy Martti Ahtisaari last week presented
a draft blueprint for Kosovo’s future that puts the UN-administered
region on the road to statehood, with talks between Belgrade – which
has condemned the plan – and Pristina to take place in Vienna on 21
February.

The Kosovo issue will ultimately be decided by a new UN security
council resolution in the next few months, with Russia and China
holding vetos at UN level and with the other veto powers, the US, the
UK and France broadly in favour of giving Pristina the independence
it craves.

Ravaged by ethnic conflict just eight years ago, Kosovo continues to
see skirmishes between its ethnic Serb minority and ethnic Albanian
majority in a situation that risks plunging Europe back into the
darkest period in its recent history and causing ripples in disputed
territories around the world.

"Whether you or I like it or not, Kosovo will serve as a precedent
for others," Mr Chizhov said, outlining a "concentric circle" effect
that could see future calls for independence by ethnic Albanian
enclaves in Serbia’s Presevo Valley, parts of Macedonia and
Montenegro as well as by the Serb portion of Bosnia.

"Then if you look further afield, people in Transdniestria [Moldova],
South Ossetia [Georgia], Abkhazia [Georgia], Nagorno-Karabakh
[Azerbaijan], not to mention Northern Cyprus…would say they have
more reasons to claim independence than Kosovo," the ambassador went
on.

"What about Quebec? And if you look to the other side of the planet,
what about Taiwan? This is a concern for another member of the
permanent security council [China]," he said, adding there is "no
sense of inevitability" about Kosovo’s independence in Moscow today.
"The Ahtisaari proposals…might change."

The Russian ambassador also criticised the EU and US’ excessive focus
on the sensitivities of Kosovo Albanians and the safety of
international peacekeepers, while neglecting the rights of the Serb
nationalist camp – associated in the EU with Slobodan Milosevic’s
bloody crackdown against ethnic Albanians in 1998.

"You cannot count on a solution that requires difficult choices for
one side and easy choices for the other," Mr Chizhov said. "Everybody
is afraid of the Kosovo Albanians going ballistic, but nobody is
talking about what the Serbs might do."

"Let’s face it: UN resolution 1244 [which currently governs
Serbia-Kosovo relations] has been implemented only partially, only
those parts that favour Kosovo Albanians," he explained, giving the
example of a UN mandate for a contingent of 999 Serb soldiers to
guard Serb holy sites in Kosovo "which never materialised."

EU seeks ways to placate Serbia
Meanwhile, EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels on Monday will
discuss the possibility of re-starting EU integration talks with
Serbia despite Belgrade’s non-compliance with the UN war crimes
tribunal in the Hague, which has demanded the hand-over of fugitive
general Ratko Mladic.

UN prosecutor Carla del Ponte last week urged the EU not to re-engage
with Belgrade until Mladic is in the dock in a line championed by the
Netherlands at EU level, but with an increasing number of EU states
swinging toward giving Serbia a political gift to improve the
prospects for Mr Ahtisaari’s plan.

"We won’t necessarily follow her advice," an EU diplomat told
EUobserver on Friday, before questioning Ms del Ponte’s judgment by
saying she is prone to "mood swings" and "may be focusing on Mladic
too much."

UNDP IN ARMENIA TO FINANCE PUBLICITY OF OMBUDSMAN

Yerevan, February 8. ArmInfo. Today, the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) and the Human Rights Defender’s Office (HRDO) of
Armenia signed an agreement that marked the start of a new joint
project in support of human rights protection and promotion in
Armenia. Importantly, public awareness-raising is the one of the
main components of the project: a series of TV programmes, where the
Ombudsman will raise and discuss major human rights issues for the
country, will be produced and broadcasted on national television. In
addition, the capacity of the HRD office to annually report back to
the public on their activities will be enhanced, which will contribute
to the human rights promotion and protection in the country. The Head
of UN and UNDP in Armenia Ms. Consuelo Vidal noted in her speech:
"We are proud to continue our collaboration with the Ombudsman’s
office. We strongly believe in UN values and human rights are the
basis of the whole UN programme in Armenia. With this project we will
strive to ensure that public awareness of human rights is increased
and appropriate capacity is created for human rights education,
protection and promotion in Armenia." Mr. Armen Harutyunyan, Human
Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia stated: "This project
will greatly contribute to the awareness raising campaign regularly
carried out by our institution throughout the country. Due to TV-shows,
envisaged in this project, the Human Rights Defender will have an
opportunity to provide transparency as well as be accountable to the
public at large on the activities carried out by the Institution. "I
express my gratitude to the organisers and have the strong belief
that such activities can increase the level of legal awareness among
the population and create a culture of promotion of human rights." –
mentioned Mr. Harutyunyan.

YURI MERZLYAKOV: THE PRESIDENTS WILL NOT MEET BEFORE PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IN ARMENIA

ArmRadio.am
08.02.2007 18:05

Most probably the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan will not meet
before the parliamentary elections in Armenia, Russian Co-Chair of the
OSCE Minsk Group Yuri Merzlyakov told Trend agency, Mediamax reports.

The diplomat said he does not agree with his American colleague
Matthew Bryza, who says that the main components of settlement have
been agreed upon and only some technical issues remain. "I would not
say these are simply technical components," said Yuri Merzlyakov.

The Russian Co-Chair informed about the intention of the mediators
to organize the recurrent round of negotiations between the Foreign
Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan early March. "We are working
in that direction, but there is no final agreement yet," said the
Russian diplomat.

WAS SERGE SARGSYAN CALLED TO THE USA?

A1+
[09:02 pm] 08 February, 2007

Aram Karapetyan, leader of the "New Times" Party, is going to run
for the parliament by majority system. So far he hasn’t decided in
which constituency of Yerevan he will be nominated.

During the 2003 elections Aram Karapetyan was nominated in the
constituency 17 of Erebouny where his rivals were Tigran Karapetyan
and Armen Danielyan, member of Republican Party. But then Aram
Karapetyan couldn’t participate in the election contest because of
"his registration".

The leader of "New Times" is convinced that he won’t counter suchlike
problems this time; the police head of Moscow wrote a letter to the
RA passport and visa department informing that Aram Karapetyan isn’t
a RF citizen, and he lived in Moscow as a temporary citizen. Aram
Karapetyan anticipates other problems, even pressure. In his words,
a political figure must combat till the end, regardless of the fact
"his rival is an oligarch, a vandal or someone else" as "the form of
legal power derives from elections".

"In my opinion the authorities always face problems as they fully
realize that election frauds and fabrications are inadmissible
for the international community" says Mr. Karapetyan and adds, "My
contacts show that the international community seeks to see fair and
transparent elections".

Aram Karapetyan doesn’t believe that we can have free and fair
elections without public pressure. "But the ruling elite is well aware
of the fact that unfair elections will put the issue of legitimacy
into peril".

Aram Karapetyan informed A1+ that RA Defense Minister Serge Sargsyan
will leave for the USA to hold serious talks on the elections.

Proportional list of the "New Times" is already ready.

It involves 130 people. "We tend to have a common list with the
opposition", says Mr. Karapetyan. The leaders of the opposition will
consider the matter in the nearest future.

ARMENIA BANS POULTRY IMPORTS AMID FEARS OF BIRD FLU OUTBREAK

Armenpress
Feb 07 2007

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 7, ARMENPRESS: Armenian health authorities have
imposed a temporary ban on poultry imports from a number of countries
out of concern over the spread of the bird flu virus. These countries
are Russia, England, Ukraine, Turkey, Romanian, Hungary, Iran and
South East Asian countries.

"We cannot rule out the possibility of the bird flu virus spreading to
Armenia," Anushavan Aghajanian, head of a secretariat set up to handle
a World Bank credit to help Armenia withstand the avian influenza
threats, said. He said all the necessary preventive measures have
been reinforced, especially at border checkpoints.

The deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu has claimed dozens of human lives
since it first appeared in Asia in 2003. It has since spread worldwide,
and scientists fear the virus could mutate into a form transmissible
between humans, sparking a global pandemic.

Armenia has about 4.5 million chicken at eight poultry farms and kept
by rural households. Aghajanian said none of farms reported a case
of chicken deaths.

Last year the World Bank has approved a $6.25 million loan to Armenia
designed to help its government guard against and, if necessary,
cope with a possible outbreak of bird flu.

PRESS OFFICE
Department of Communications
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Contact: Jake Goshert, Coordinator of Information Services
Tel: (212) 686-0710 Ext. 160; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:

February 7, 2007
___________________

ST. VARTAN CATHEDRAL IN NEW YORK CITY TO HOST SERVICE OF EVELEVATION

On Sunday, February 11, 2007, Bishop Vicken Aykazian, legate and ecumenical
officer of the Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern), will be
elevated to the rank of Archbishop. The honor is conferred upon him by His
Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians.

The service will be at 5 p.m. in New York City’s St. Vartan Cathedral, 630
Second Ave. at 34th St. in Manhattan. It will be followed by a reception in
Haik and Alice Kavookjian Auditorium.

Along with serving the Diocese, Bishop Aykazian is a leader of the
ecumenical movement. He serves as president-elect of the National Council
of Churches (NCC) and on the executive committee of the World Council of
Churches. He is also a member of the international board of Habitat for
Humanity.

Bishop Aykazian was born in Siirt, Turkey, in 1951 and studied at the
Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem. He was ordained a deacon in 1968, and
then as a celibate priest in 1971. In 1992, His Holiness Vasken I,
Catholicos of All Armenians, ordained him a bishop at Holy Etchmiadzin.

Bishop Aykazian’s diverse assignments have included director of the Fund for
Armenian Relief’s Yerevan office; primate of the Diocese of the Armenian
Church of Switzerland; preacher at the Armenian churches in Istanbul and
assistant to Archbishop Shnork Kaloustyan, Armenian Patriarch of
Constantinople.

Bishop Aykazian received his doctorate degree in history from the Armenian
Academy of Sciences in 1999. He completed the course requirements for a
doctorate degree at Fribourg Catholic University in Switzerland, received a
bachelor’s of divinity degree from Kings College in London, studied pastoral
theology at St. Augustine’s College in Canterbury, and attended the Armenian
Theological Seminary in Jerusalem along with the Holy Cross Armenian
Seminary in Istanbul.

DAY OF CELEBRATION

Earlier that day, Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Eastern
Diocese, will ordain Jason Demerjian as a deacon. A recent graduate of the
St. Nersess Armenian Seminary in New Rochelle, NY, Demerjian served for two
years as the Diocese’s college ministry facilitator.

Before joining the Diocese, he lived in Armenia as a U.S. Peace Corps
volunteer before starting and running the Armenia Volunteer Corps. He has a
master’s degree from the Harvard Divinity School.

"It is exciting to see a young Armenian, such as Jason, who is dedicated to
his heritage and passionate about his Christianity," Archbishop Barsamian
said. "I am pleased to see him take this next step in his journey of faith
and service. He and his wife Anna are true gifts to the Armenian Church
family."

— 2/7/07

# # #

US AID TO CENTRAL ASIA: "THE RHETORIC AND THE NUMBERS ARE AT ODDS WITH ONE ANOTHER"
by Joshua Kucera

Eurasianet, NY
February 6, 2007

Afghanistan and Pakistan are set to receive large boosts in US aid in
the upcoming fiscal year, while the rest of Central Asia will see its
already meager funding drop, according to Bush administration budget
documents released February 5.

Aid to Afghanistan would total $1.07 billion in fiscal year 2008,
up from $968 million from the current fiscal year. That includes an
18 percent increase in funding for counter-narcotics programs. It
also allocates nearly $700 million for a variety of reconstruction
initiatives, including the extension of road and electricity
infrastructure and the expansion of Provincial Reconstruction teams,
as well as for programs to assist the government in delivering basic
services and in paying state employees in a timely manner.

Pakistan’s aid would go up to $785 million from $499 million last
year. Its package would include $300 million in military assistance,
the same amount it has received the past several years. But Pakistan
would get more money for economic programs, education reform, health
care for women and children and democracy-building programs.

Funding for the five Central Asian states of the former Soviet
Union, by contrast, will decline 24 percent compared to the amount of
assistance allocated in fiscal year 2006. "Much of the decline comes
in Uzbekistan, where the government has worked actively to limit US
assistance related to reform, and in Kazakhstan, whose oil wealth
lessens the need for our assistance," the State Department said in
documents explaining the new budget. "Assistance is instead focused
on the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan, where there are
opportunities to consolidate stability and promote democratization."

Nevertheless, the aid to Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan
remains very modest. "The rhetoric and the numbers are at odds with one
another," said Martha Brill Olcott, senior associate with the Russian &
Eurasian Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Tajikistan is getting about $28.1 million in aid, up from $24.6
million in the 2006 budget. The money will go "to promote democratic
and economic reform, fight infectious diseases, combat extremism,
improve education, and strengthen Tajikistan’s borders in the face
of an increasing flow of illegal drugs from Afghanistan," the State
Department said.

Kyrgyzstan is getting $26.5 million, a decrease of more than $5
million from two years ago, for similar programs. And Turkmenistan’s
funding remains steady at roughly $5.8 million. Aid to Turkmenistan
could increase during the year if Washington determines that the
new government is serious about reform, Olcott said. Turkmenistan
is scheduled to hold a special presidential election February 11 to
replace Saparmurat Niyazov, the dictator who died suddenly in late
December. [For background see the Eurasia Insight].

"We’re sending really tiny sums there [to Central Asia]," Olcott
said. "The United States has had declining influence in the area and
this isn’t going to stop it [the decline]."

Olcott suggested the US strategy for assuring stability in Central
Asia appeared to overly concentrate aid efforts on Afghanistan. [For
background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. "We’re putting all our
eggs in one basket and we’re not doing a very good job in that basket,"
Olcott said.

Concerning the Caucasus, the United States is proposing to increase
its military aid to Azerbaijan, while decreasing it to Armenia. The
budget would include $4.3 million in military aid to Baku and $3
million to Yerevan, despite a law enacted by Congress that mandates
equal financing to each country. Armenian organizations in the US
protested the aid discrepancy. The Armenian Assembly of America called
the budget "fundamentally flawed" and said that it would "undermine
stability in the South Caucasus."

The Democrat-controlled Congress can amend the Bush budget before
approving it, and the funding to Armenia in particular is likely to
change. Economic aid to Armenia, however, dwarfs that to Azerbaijan.

Armenia is set to get $95.6 million, while Azerbaijan would get $18
million under the current fiscal year 2008 budget.

Georgia is slated to get $50.5 million "to help consolidate [Tbilisi’s]
democratic and economic reforms, address rural poverty, increase the
country’s engagement with separatist regions, and decrease its energy
dependence on Russia," the budget documents said.

Georgia is also on track to get $67.6 million in the coming year from
the Millennium Challenge Corporation, which rewards good governance
with targeted aid, and $10.8 million in military aid, a slight decrease
from previous years.

The budget includes $75 million for a previously announced program for
Iran "to support the aspirations of the Iranian people for a democratic
and open society by promoting civil society, civic participation, media
freedom and freedom of information," according to the State Department.

The State Department also manages the budgets for Voice of America
and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Those services plan to cut back
broadcasts in Uzbek and Kazakh, as well as to implement previously
proposed decreases in Georgian broadcasts. The services will focus
more heavily on broadcasts in Arabic and those targeted to Venezuela
and North Korea.

US ADMINISTRATION WILL WORK WITH THE CONGRESS ON THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BILL

ArmRadio.am
06.02.2007 12:15

Official representative of the US Department of State Sean McCormack
said that the issue of the Armenian Genocide resolution will be
most probably discussed during the meeting between US Secretary of
State Condoleezza Rice and Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul,
Mediamax informs.

In response to the question about the possible steps of the US
Administration to counter the adoption of the bill, Sean McCormack
said, "As for the work on the issue with the Congress, we are doing it
every year. This year is not an exception. I expect that the question
will be discussed during the meeting of the Secretary of State with
the Foreign Ministry of Turkey. It’s obvious that the issue is a very
sensitive for a number of communities in the United States and abroad."

GEORGIAN OPPOSITION LEADER DETAINED ON GEORGIAN-ARMENIAN BORDER – INTERIOR MINISTRY

Interfax News Agency
Russia & CIS General Newswire
February 5, 2007 Monday 9:00 PM MSK

Leader of Georgia’s Imedi opposition party Irina Sarishvili was
stopped on the Georgian-Armenian border on Monday, because she had
failed to declare to customs gold jewelry and foreign currency she
carried with her while traveling from Armenia to Georgia, a Georgian
Interior Ministry spokesman told Interfax.

We are talking about 300 grams of gold jewelry, $58,000 and 7,000
rubles in cash, the spokesman said.

Sarishvili is being interrogated, after which a decision will be made
whether to charge her with violation of customs rules.

Earlier in the day, the Interior Ministry published video footage of
Sarishvili’s detention at a border checkpoint.

Sarishvili also headed a charity set up by ex-State Security Minister
Igor Georgadze, who is wanted on terrorism charges. The fund ceased
to exist in the summer of 2006.

Last autumn, 12 supporters of Georgadze were arrested and accused of
attempting to organize a coup.