Author: Ekmekjian Janet

ITAR-TASS News Agency
TASS
June 29, 2004 Tuesday 7:38 AM Eastern Time
RCC approves introduction of digital broadcasting format in CIS
CHOLPON
ATA (Kyrgyzstan), June 29 – The Council of communications
administration heads of the Regional Commonwealth in the field of
Communications (RCC) has approved the introduction of digital
broadcasting format in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).
“The recognition of the stance of CIS countries on the development of
digital radio broadcasting is an important step on the way to
promoting various broadcasting technologies in the territory of the
Commonwealth member states,” Russian Minister of Communications and
Information Technologies Leonid Reiman said at a meeting of the
Council of RCC communications administration heads held at the city
of Cholpon-Ata (Kyrgyzstan) on Tuesday, Prime Tass reports.
According to Deputy Communications Minister Andrei Beskorovainy,
technical fundamentals for the introduction of digital broadcasting
in the entire CIS territory have been approved.
Thus the list of the countries that are transferring to digital radio
broadcasting will include Central Asian states, Azerbaijan and
Armenia.
“We shall begin to introduce the digital radio broadcasting format on
equal terms with European countries,” Beskorovainy pointed out.
Director of the radio communication bureau of the International
Telecommunications Union (ITU) Valery Timofeyev said the plan of
frequency distribution adopted at the Tuesday meeting of RCC council
is an important stage of digitalisation of CIS television and radio
broadcasting.
According to Timofeyev, Russia has introduced three zones of digital
radio broadcasting – in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Nizhny Novgorod.
The system’s putting into operation will make it possible in the
future to provide not only radio broadcasting services, but also
access to the Internet, data transmission and telephony.

REMARKS BY PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH IN ISTANBUL, TURKEY (AS PREPARED FOR
DELIVERY)
WhiteHouse.gov
June 29, 2004
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen: Laura and I are grateful for the
warm hospitality we have received these past three days in the Republic of
Turkey. I am honored to visit this beautiful country where two continents
meet – a nation that upholds great traditions, and faces the future with
confidence. And America is honored to call Turkey an ally and a friend.
Many Americans trace their heritage to Turkey, and Turks have contributed
greatly to our national life – including, most recently, a lot of baskets
for the Detroit Pistons from Mehmet Okur. I know youre proud that this son
of your country helped to win an NBA championship, and America is proud of
him as well.
I am grateful to Prime Minister Erdogan and President Sezer for hosting the
members of NATO in an historic time for our alliance. For most of its
history, NATO existed to deter aggression from a powerful army at the heart
of Europe. In this century, NATO looks outward to new threats that gather in
secret and bring sudden violence to peaceful cities. We face terrorist
networks that rejoice when parents bury their murdered children, or bound
men plead for their lives. We face outlaw regimes that give aid and shelter
to these killers, and seek weapons of mass murder. We face the challenges of
corruption and poverty and disease, which throw whole nations into chaos and
despair – the conditions in which terrorism can thrive.
Some on both sides of the Atlantic have questioned whether the NATO alliance
still has a great purpose. To find that purpose, they only need to open
their eyes. The dangers are in plain sight. The only question is whether we
will confront them, or look away and pay a terrible cost.
Over the last few years, NATO has made its decision. Our alliance is
restructuring to oppose threats that arise beyond the borders of Europe.
NATO is providing security in Afghanistan. NATO has agreed to help train the
security forces of a sovereign Iraq – a great advantage and crucial success
for the Iraqi people. And in Istanbul we have dedicated ourselves to the
advance of reform in the broader Middle East, because all people deserve a
just government, and because terror is not the tool of the free. Through
decades of the Cold War, our great alliance of liberty never failed in its
duties – and we are rising to our duties once again.
The Turkish people understand the terrorists, because you have seen their
work, even in the last few days. You have heard the sirens, and witnessed
the carnage, and mourned the dead. After the murders of Muslims, Christians,
and Jews in Istanbul last November, a resident of this city said of the
terrorists, “They do not have any religion … They are friends of evil.” In
one of the attacks, a Muslim woman lost her son Ahmet, her daughter-in-law
Berta, and her unborn grandchild. She said, “Today Im saying goodbye to my
son. Tomorrow Im saying farewell to my Berta. I dont know what [the killers]
wanted from my kids. Were they jealous of their happiness?”
The Turkish people have grieved, but your nation is also showing how
terrorist violence will be overcome – with courage, and with a firm resolve
to defend your just and tolerant society. This land has always been
important for its geography – here at the meeting place of Europe, Asia, and
the Middle East. Now Turkey has assumed even greater historical importance,
because of your character as a nation. Turkey is a strong, secular
democracy, a majority Muslim society, and a close ally of free nations. Your
country, with 150 years of democratic and social reform, stands as a model
to others, and as Europes bridge to the wider world. Your success is vital
to a future of progress and peace in Europe and in the broader Middle East –
and the Republic of Turkey can depend on the support and friendship of the
United States.
For decades, my country has supported greater unity in Europe – to secure
liberty, build prosperity, and remove sources of conflict on this continent.
Now the European Union is considering the admission of Turkey, and you are
moving rapidly to meet the criteria for membership. Mustafa Kemal Ataturk
had a vision of Turkey as a strong nation among other European nations. That
dream can be realized by this generation of Turks. America believes that as
a European power, Turkey belongs in the European Union. Your membership
would also be a crucial advance in relations between the Muslim world and
the West, because you are part of both. Including Turkey in the EU would
prove that Europe is not the exclusive club of a single religion, and it
would expose the “clash of civilizations” as a passing myth of history.
Fifteen years ago, an artificial line that divided Europe — drawn at
Yalta – was erased. Now this continent has the opportunity to erase another
artificial division – by fully including Turkey in t
Turkey has found its place in the community of democracies by living out its
own principles. Muslims are called to seek justice – fairness to all, care
for the stranger, compassion for those in need. And you have learned that
democracy is the surest way to build a society of justice. The best way to
prevent corruption and abuse of power is to hold rulers accountable. The
best way to ensure fairness to all is to establish the rule of law. The best
way to honor human dignity is to protect human rights. Turkey has found what
nations of every culture and every region have found: If justice is the
goal, then democracy is the answer.
In some parts of the world, especially in the Middle East, there is wariness
toward democracy, often based on misunderstanding. Some people in Muslim
cultures identify democracy with the worst of Western popular culture, and
want no part of it. And I assure them, when I speak about the blessings of
liberty, coarse videos and crass commercialism are not what I have in mind.
There is nothing incompatible between democratic values and high standards
of decency. For the sake of their families and their culture, citizens of a
free society have every right to strive peacefully for a moral society.
Democratic values also do not require citizens to abandon their faith. No
democracy can allow religious people to impose their own view of perfection
on others, because this invites cruelty and arrogance that are foreign to
every faith. And all people in a democracy have the right to their own
religious beliefs. But all democracies are made stronger when religious
people teach and demonstrate upright conduct – family commitment, respect
for the law, and compassion for the weak. Democratic societies should
welcome, not fear, the participation of the faithful.
In addition, democracy does not involve automatic agreement with other
democracies. Free governments have a reputation for independence, which
Turkey has certainly earned. That is the way democracy works. We deal
honestly with each other, we make our own decisions – and yet, in the end,
the disagreements of the moment are far outweighed by the ideals we share.
Because representative governments reflect their people, every democracy has
its own structure, traditions, and opinions. There are, however, certain
commitments of free government that do not change from place to place. The
promise of democracy is fulfilled in freedom of speech, the rule of law,
limits on the power of the state, economic freedom, respect for women, and
religious tolerance. These are the values that honor the dignity of every
life, and set free the creative energies that lead to progress.
Achieving these commitments of democracy can require decades of effort and
reform. In my own country it took generations to throw off slavery, racial
segregation, and other practices that violated our ideals. So we do not
expect or demand that other societies be transformed in a day. But however
long the journey, there is only one destination worth striving for, and that
is a society of self-rule and freedom.
Democracy leads to justice within a nation – and the advance of democracy
leads to greater security among nations. The reason is clear: Free peoples
do not live in endless stagnation, and seethe in resentment, and lash out in
envy, rage, and violence. Free peoples do not cling to every grievance of
the past – they build and live for the future. This is the experience of
countries in the NATO alliance. Bitterness and hostility once divided France
and Germany… and Germany and Poland … and Romania and Hungary. But as
those nations grew in liberty, ancient disputes and hatreds have been left
to history. And because the people of Europe now live in hope, Europe no
longer produces armed ideologies that threaten the peace of the world.
Freedom in Europe has brought peace to Europe – and now freedom can bring
peace to the broader Middle East.
I believe that freedom is the future of the Middle East, because I believe
that freedom is the future of all humanity. And the historic achievement of
democracy in the broader Middle East will be a victory shared by all.
Millions who now live in oppression and want will finally have a chance to
provide for their families and lead hopeful lives. Nations in the region
will have greater stability because governments will have greater
legitimacy. And nations like Turkey and America will be safer, because a
hopeful Middle East will no longer produce ideologies and movements that
seek to kill our citizens. This transformation is one of the great and
difficult tasks of history. And by our own patience and hard effort, and
with confidence in the peoples of the Middle East, we will finish the work
that history has given us.
Democracy, by definition, must be chosen and defended by the people
themselves. The future of freedom in the Islamic world will be determined by
the citizens of Islamic nations, not by outsiders. And for citizens of the
broader Middle East, the alternatives could not be more clear. One
alternative is a political doctrine of tyranny, suicide, and murder that
goes against the standards of justice found in Islam and every other great
religion. The other alternative is a society of justice, where men and women
live peacefully and build better lives for themselves and their children.
That is the true cause of the people of the Middle East, and that cause can
never be served by the murder of the innocent.
This struggle between political extremism and civilized values is unfolding
in many places. We see the struggle in Iraq, where killers are attempting to
undermine and intimidate a free government. We see the struggle in Iran,
where tired and discredited autocrats are trying to hold back the democratic
will of a rising generation. We see that struggle in Turkey, where the PKK
has abandoned its ceasefire with the Turkish people and resumed violence. We
see it in the Holy Land, where terrorist murderers are setting back the good
cause of the Palestinian people, who deserve a reformed, peaceful, and
democratic state of their own.
The terrorists are ruthless and resourceful, but they will not prevail.
Already more than half of the worlds Muslims live under
democratically-constituted governments – from Indonesia to West Africa, from
Europe to North America. And the ideal of democracy is also powerful and
popular in the Middle East. Surveys in Arab nations reveal broad support for
representative government and individual liberty. We are seeing reform in
Kuwait, and Qatar, and Bahrain, and Yemen, and Jordan, and Morocco. And we
are seeing men and women of conscience and courage step forward to advocate
democracy and justice in the broader Middle East.
As we found in the Soviet Union, and behind the Iron Curtain, this kind of
moral conviction was more powerful than vast armies and prison walls and the
will of dictators. And this kind of moral conviction is also more powerful
than the whips of the Taliban, or the police state of Saddam Hussein, or the
cruel designs of terrorists. The way ahead is long and difficult, yet people
of conscience go forward with hope. The rule of fear did not survive in
Europe, and the rule of free peoples will come to the Middle East.
Leaders throughout that region, including some friends of the United States,
must recognize the direction of events. Any nation that compromises with
violent extremists only emboldens them, and invites future violence.
Suppressing dissent only increases radicalism. The long-term stability of
any government depends on being open to change, and responsive to citizens.
By learning these lessons, Turkey has become a great and stable democracy –
and America shares your hope that other nations will take this path.
Western nations, including my own, want to be helpful in the democratic
progress of the Middle East, yet we know there are suspicions, rooted in
centuries of conflict and colonialism. And in the last 60 years, many in the
West have added to this distrust by excusing tyranny in the region, hoping
to purchase stability at the price of liberty. But it did not serve the
people of the Middle East to betray their hope of freedom. And it has not
made Western nations more secure to ignore the cycle of dictatorship and
extremism. Instead we have seen the malice grow deeper, and the violence
spread, until both have appeared on the streets of our own cities. Some
types of hatred will never be appeased; they must be opposed and discredited
and defeated by a hopeful alternative – and that alternative is freedom.
Reformers in the broader Middle East are working to build freer and more
prosperous societies – and America, the G-8, the EU, Turkey, and NATO have
now agreed to support them. Many nations are helping the people of
Afghanistan to secure a free government. And NATO now leads a military
operation in Afghanistan, in the first action by the alliance outside
Europe. In Iraq, a broad coalition – including the military forces of many
NATO countries – is helping the people of that country to build a decent and
democratic government after decades of corrupt oppression. And NATO is
providing support to a Polish-led division.
The government of Iraq has now taken a crucial step forward. In a nation
that suffered for decades under brutal tyranny, we have witnessed the
transfer of sovereignty and the beginning of self-government. In just 15
months, the Iraqi people have left behind one of the worst regimes in the
Middle East, and their country is becoming the worlds newest democracy. The
world has seen a great event in the history of Iraq, in the history of the
Middle East, and in the history of liberty.
The rise of Iraqi democracy is bringing hope to reformers across the Middle
East, and sending a very different message to Teheran and Damascus. A free
and sovereign Iraq is also a decisive defeat for extremists and terrorists –
because their hateful ideology will lose its appeal in a free, tolerant,
successful country. The terrorists are doing everything they can to
undermine Iraqi democracy, by attacking all who stand for order and justice,
and committing terrible crimes to break the will of free nations. The
terrorists have the ability to cause suffering and grief, but they do not
have the power to alter the outcome in Iraq: The civilized world will keep
its resolve … the leaders of Iraq are strong and determined … and the
people of Iraq will live in freedom.
Iraq still faces hard challenges in the days and months ahead. Iraqs leaders
are eager to assume responsibility for their own security, and that is our
wish as well. So this week at our summit, NATO agreed to provide assistance
in training Iraqi security forces. I am grateful to Turkey and other NATO
allies for helping our friends in Iraq to build a nation that governs itself
and defends itself.
Our efforts to promote reform and democracy in the Middle East are moving
forward. At the NATO summit, we approved the Istanbul Cooperation
Initiative, offering to work together with nations of the broader Middle
East to fight terrorism, control their borders, and aid the victims of
disaster. And we are thankful for the important role that Turkey is playing
as a democratic partner in the Broader Middle East Initiative.
For all of our efforts to succeed, however, more is needed than plans and
policies. We must strengthen the ties of trust and good will between
ourselves and the peoples of the Middle East. And trust and good will come
more easily when men and women clear their minds, and their hearts, of
suspicion and prejudice and unreasoned fear. When some in my country speak
in an ill-informed and insulting manner about the Muslim faith, their words
are heard abroad, and do great harm to our cause in the Middle East. When
some in the Muslim world incite hatred and murder with conspiracy theories
and propaganda, their words are also heard – by a generation of young
Muslims who need truth and hope, not lies and anger. All such talk, in
America or in the Middle East, is dangerous and reckless and unworthy of any
religious tradition. Whatever our cultural differences may be, there should
be respect and peace in the House of Abraham.
The Turkish writer Orhan Pamuk has said that the finest view of Istanbul is
not from the shores of Europe, or from the shores of Asia, but from a bridge
that unites them, and lets you see both. His work has been a bridge between
cultures, and so is the Republic of Turkey. The people of this land
understand, as Pamuk has observed, that “What is important is not [a] clash
of parties, civilizations, cultures, East and West.” What is important, he
says, is to realize “that other peoples in other continents and
civilizations” are “exactly like you.”
Ladies and gentlemen, in their need for hope, in their desire for peace, in
their right to freedom, the peoples of the Middle East are exactly like you
and me. Their birthright of freedom has been denied for too long. And we
will do all in our power to help them find the blessings of liberty.
Thank you, and God bless the good people of Turkey.
Return to this article at:

Baku Today, Azerbaijan
June 29 2004
Gul Says EU, NATO Keen to Stabilize Caucasus
Baku Today 29/06/2004 13:24
Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul on Monday said both NATO and
the EU are keen to stabilize the conflict-torn Caucasian region,
Agence France Press reported.
According to the report, Gul said following a meeting with his
Azerbaijani counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov and Vardan Oskanian in
Istanbul that the three had agreed to hold further trilateral
meetings later in the year.
Armenia’s Oskanian reportedly said, referring to the enlargement of
the EU and NATO: “We need to shape a new strategic vision for the
Caucasus so that we can keep pace with the developments around us.”
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Mamedyarov added: “We will try to do our
best to bring peace and stability to the region.”
Turkey’s Anadolu news agency reported that the sides decided to
continue their trilateral meeting in September.

ArmenPress
June 25 2004
ALEXANDER TREGER TO PERFORM IN YEREVAN
YEREVAN, JUNE 25, ARMENPRESS: Alexander Treger – a noted US
violinist, accomplished conductor and gifted educator, has arrived in
Armenia at the invitation of the Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra to
perform a concert here on June 25. He will play the works by
Bernstein, Dvorak, Beethoven. His visit to Yerevan and the concert
are also sponsored by the US embassy in Yerevan, Alexander Treger was
appointed Music Director of the acclaimed American Youth Symphony in
1998. He succeeded Mali Math and is only the second conductor to lead
the ensemble since it was founded in 1964. One of the nation’s top
pre-professional orchestras, the American Youth Symphony provides
hands-on training in orchestral performance.
Prior to being named Music Director of the American Youth
Symphony, Treger guest conducted the orchestra in 1994 and 1996. An
inspiring teacher, who enjoys working with promising young musicians,
he has given numerous master classes around the world and held the
position of Professor of Violin at the UCLA Music Department for two
decades from 1977 to 1997.
A musician with many interests and talents, Treger has served as
Concertmaster of the Los Angeles Philharmonic since 1985, although he
continually devotes more of his time to conducting. During the past
two seasons, he guest conducted the Turk Philharmonic in Finland and
will return during the 2002-2003 season to once again guest conduct
the esteemed orchestra. Several years ago, he stepped in at the last
minute to conduct the Los Angeles Philharmonic, successfully
replacing the indisposed Franz Welse-Most.
He has also appeared as a guest conductor with the Santa Barbara
Chamber Orchestra, California’s Music in the Mountains Festival
Orchestra, the New World Symphony and the Santa Monica Symphony. In
addition, he served as the interim conductor of the UCLA Symphony in
1992 and was appointed the Music Director/Conductor of the Crossroads
Chamber Orchestra in 1993, where he has developed a youth orchestra
of the highest caliber.
Treger began his musical training at the age of five in his native
Russia, where he studied violin and piano. By the age of thirteen, he
had won numerous music competitions in his country, and was later
chosen by the renowned violinist David Oistrakh to study at the
prestigious Moscow Conservatory. He describes the six years he spent
at the Conservatory being mentored by Mr. Oistrakh “among the most
influential on my development as a musician.” While a student there,
he also took a great interest in conducting.
After graduating, Treger became a member of the Moscow Radio
Symphony and, subsequently, left Russia to become the
Concertmaster/Soloist of the Israel Chamber Orchestra.
Treger arrived in the United States in 1973 and joined the Los
Angeles Philharmonic in 1974. He was appointed Assistant
Concertmaster in 1978, promoted to Second Concertmaster two years
later, and appointed Concertmaster in 1985, a position he still
holds. Treger has won high praise for his numerous solo performances
with the orchestra at the Music Center and the Hollywood Bowl, which
have included concertos by Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Bartok,
Mendelssohn, Sibelius, Shostakovich, and Prokofieff under the
direction of Zubin Mehta, Carlo Maria Giulini, Simon Rattle, Pierre
Boulez, Vladimir Ashkenazi, Valery Gergiev, Yuri Temirkanov, and
Esa-Pekka Salonen.
He has also appeared as soloist with a number of major U.S.
orchestras including the San Francisco, Denver, Dallas, and Houston
Symphonies. An avid chamber performer, he has collaborated in
concerts with such well-known artists as Radu Lupu, Yefim Bronfman,
Andre Previn, Bernard Greenhouse and Emmanuel Ax.

Germany to help Armenia improve water supplies
Public Television of Armenia, Yerevan
22 Jun 04
[Presenter] Armenian and German businessmen are preparing cooperation
plans. The Armenian side is presenting in Berlin proposals to
increase the volume of commodity turnover. Armenian legislation is
more liberal on protecting investment and ensuring economic
competition.
[Correspondent Hermine Bagdasaryan from Berlin] An additional 8m euros
to improve water supplies to Armenia’s distant districts – Armenian
Prime Minister Andranik has reached this agreement with German
Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development Heidemarie
Wieczorek-Zeul. This is not the beginning of German support, but a
continuation of several years of a programme of improvement for the
republic’s water supply, assisting small and medium-sized businesses
and developing alternative sources of energy.
Minister Zeul asked Andranik Markaryan about the Caucasus Initiative
programme, expressing concern that only Armenia and Georgia are
involved in it. Our neighbours [Azerbaijan] politicize our joint
cooperation in the ecological and economic sectors although Armenia
has declared its readiness for cooperation without any conditions,
Andranik Markaryan said.
Markaryan and Zeul also discussed a peaceful settlement to the
Karabakh problem.
The agenda of the Armenian delegation also included economic
events. More than 200 businessmen have arrived in Berlin to take part
in the Armenian-German economic cooperation forum and industrial
exhibition.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Azer Tag, Azerbaijan State Info Agency
June 22 2004
SPEECH BY ILHAM ALIYEV, PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF AZERBAIJAN
[June 22, 2004, 18:14:47]
Esteemed Mr. President,
Dear guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I do extend my cordial greeting to you once again and wish you
welcomed here.
Today, a new page is being opened in the relations between the
Republic of Azerbaijan and the Hellenic Republic. Useful political
dialogue is being held. Relations are developing fast. We want these
relations would cover all areas.
Dear Mr. President, I highly appreciate your official visit to
Azerbaijan and I am confident that this visit will pave ground for a
new level of relationship between our countries. It goes without
saying that the conducted discussions and meetings will define new
areas for mutual activities and contribute to the further expansion
of the relation in future.
Expansion and the development of relations between our countries in
political, economic, humanitarian, cultural and tourism fields are of
paramount importance. I wish to express my hope that the ties to be
established between Greek businessmen and Azerbaijani entrepreneurs
during the Greek-Azerbaijani business Forum will give an impetus to
our cooperation. Relationship will strengthen after your visit.
Today, Azerbaijani State continues the foreign and home policy
founded by the national leader Heydar Aliyev. From this points of
view the integration of Azerbaijan into the Europe and Euro-Atlantic
structures, to the international organizations has an important
place.
Thanks to the wise policy of Heydar Aliyev, today Azerbaijan takes
its well-deserved place in the world. Our country is the member of
Council of Europe and successfully cooperates with the NATO in the
framework of “Partnership for Peace” program and with the European
and Euro-Atlantic structures. Azerbaijan has been included into the
EU ” Wider Europe and neighbors” policy.
Today, the biggest energy projects of the world are being implemented
in Azerbaijan. The transportation of the energy resources from the
Caspian basin to the West, implementation of TRACECA Program, the
restoration of the Great Silk Road, the projects like the
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline
are wonderful examples to this. After the implementation of these
projects a new stage of integration into Europe and the development
in Azerbaijan, as well as the countries of the region will start. The
operation of Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline will significantly
expand Azerbaijan-Greek relations. This pipeline will not only make
our countries to prosper, but it will also have a positive impact on
their relationship.
Azerbaijan is closely co-operating with all the countries of the
region. Only Armenia has isolated itself from such co-operation. As a
result of military aggression of this country, 20% of our lands has
been occupied, more than 1 million refugees and internally displaced
people were ousted from their native places. Four UN Security Council
Resolutions and OSCE decisions regarding the conflict remain
unfulfilled. The Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorno Karabakh conflict must
be solved soon based upon the international law norms and the
territorial integrity of Azerbaijan must be restored.
It is with pleasure I wish to note that the Olympic games in the
current year will be held in its historic Motherland-Greece.
Azerbaijani sportsmen, as well as people form cultural and artistic
communities are having special preparation for this noble event.
Esteemed Mr. President, once again I want to express that I do attach
a high importance to your official visit to the Republic of
Azerbaijani and wish you good health and permanent development and
prosperity to your country. I raise my glass, Mr. President to You,
to the development of sincere friendship and mutually beneficial
relations between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Hellenic
Republic.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian Grids seeks $38 Mln from JBIC
Interfax
June 21 2004
Yerevan. (Interfax) – Armenian Grids expects to sign an agreement with
Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) later this month for
a loan worth $38 million to finance energy projects, company General
Director Yevgeny Gladunchik said Friday.
He said $30 million would be used to reconstruct low-voltage power
plants acquired during privatization and $8 million would be used to
buy and install 150,000 electric meters.
JBIC representatives will visit Yerevan June 21 – 28. Gladunchik said
the loan would be used by the end of 2006.
The Armenian government and JBIC signed a loan agreement in 1999 to
finance the reconstruction of 33 power substations. The money was
never received because Armenia began privatizing its power grids.
The loan will be used to modernize just 30 substations since prices
for energy equipment have risen substantially in the past five years,
he said.
Armenian Grids must pay $2 million on the loan each year. The loan
will be provided for 30 years at 1.8% annually. Britain’s Midland
Resources Holding Ltd bought 100% of Armenian Grids for $12.15 million
in November 2002.

AEROFLOT SET TO SPREAD ITS WINGS INTO GEORGIA
by Tracey Boles Transport Editor
The Business
June 20, 2004
Empire building is alive and well in Russia – at least in its aviation
sector. Aeroflot Russian Airlines has opened tentative talks with
Georgian flag carrier Air Zena with a view to purchasing it outright
or taking at least majority control of the airline.
As well as developing its presence outside Russia, Aeroflot is looking
to enhance its domestic services and is courting various Russian
airlines as potential purchases. The national carrier is understood to
be interested in Samara Airlines and Kuban Airlines, with the aim of
establishing new regional bases at Samara and Kransnador. In addition
it has not ruled out an investment in Siberia’s Arkhangelsk Airlines.
Air Zena was formed as a charter airline in 1994 and has established
a strong network into Europe from its base at Tbilisi. Acquiring flag
carrier status in 1999 following the demise of Georgian Airlines,
it has played an important role in developing the country’s economy
and its links with the west. A private airline, it operates three
Boeing 737-500 and two Antonov 2 aircraft on routes connecting Tbilisi
with Moscow, Prague, Paris, Athens, Tel Aviv, Frankfurt, Amsterdam,
Vienna and Kiev.
Aeroflot believes an equity investment in the Georgian carrier will
help expand its activities in the Commonwealth of Independent states
(CIS) and prove a boon to the SkyTeam alliance, which the Russian
airline will join within the next two years.
“We confirm that we are in talks for Air Zena , but this is a
preliminary stage and it is too early to talk about results,” Lev
Koshlyakov, deputy general director of Aeroflot, said. “We have
an interest in the CIS market and we are building up contacts and
relations as this could be our trump card in the SkyTeam alliance.”
If Aeroflot buys up Air Zena, it will be following the example of
Russia’s number two carrier Sibir, which acquired Armenia’s Armavia
airline in 2002. Sibir has used Armavia not only to expand its network,
but also to import Airbus 320 planes duty-free and to gain experience
operating them on the CIS market.
Sibir has already imported four such aircraft and is only required to
pay a small registration fee in Armenia. But the aircraft cannot be
used on the routes of Sibir proper due to government restrictions on
using imported planes; Aeroflot is allowed to operate only 27 foreign
jets in its fleet of 78.
Last month Aeroflot signed a preliminary agreement to join the Air
France-led SkyTeam airline alliance, a deal that could take a year
to be finalised.
Aeroflot intends to increase market share on Russian-US routes
with what it bills as an improved service – supposedly gone is the
unfriendly and unreliable image of Soviet times, to be replaced with
new uniforms and an la carte menu. The first North American office
for frequent fliers opened recently.
But Aeroflot’s ability to revamp its much-maligned fleet is limited
by the measures designed to protect Russia’s aircraft industry;
value-added-tax and import duties that increase the price of
foreign-made jets by up to 40%. As a result, Boeing, which has 500
engineers in Russia and has invested $ 1.3bn (715m, E1bn) into joint
ventures with the country since the early 1990s, sells more planes
to Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Ukraine.
The good news for both manufacturers is that the Russian airline
plans to double its fleet to 150 jets by the end of the decade;
the lack of sufficient Russian aircraft may play straight into their
hands. Of 110 foreign-made jets flown by CIS airlines, 88 are Boeings.

Azeri, Armenian foreign ministers see Prague talks on Karabakh as “positive”
MPA news agency
22 Jun 04
Baku, 22 June: Different aspects of and prospects for resolving
the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict have been discussed in Prague by the
Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers.
Elmar Mammadyarov and Vardan Oskanyan expressed concern about the
recent cease-fire violations on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border,
MPA reports. The sides pointed out that the situation was being dealt
with in an atmosphere of mutual understanding.
The ministers said that the meeting was useful and positive. It was
attended also by the cochairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group from the USA,
Russia and France, and the special representative of the OSCE chairman,
Andrzej Kasprzyk.

Be very afraid: There’s a term for every fear
By PAULA LaROCQUE / The Dallas Morning News
Dallas Morning News , TX
June 19 2004
The horror genre has a concept that seems far more laughable than
horrifying – the concept of the “Invisible Man.” I mean: An empty
suit – how scary is that? Yet terrified folks flee, shrieking:
Aiieee! There’s nothing there! Literally, running from nothing.
Only those afraid of everything would run from nothing, if you follow
me. And there is in fact such a fear – pantophobia, which means fear
of everything. Fear of nothing – unless it’s the kind of “nothing”
presented by the Invisible Man – also has a name. It’s hypophobia,
or the absence of fear.
Fear of everything and fear of nothing are equally irrational,
of course. And there’s a difference between a simple fear and
a full-blown phobia. But judging from the huge number of “phobia”
words, there’s much to fear.
A few better-known terrors are claustrophobia, agoraphobia,
ochlophobia, ophidiophobia, musophobia and brontophobia – more
commonly known as fear of closed spaces, open spaces, crowds, snakes,
mice and thunder.
Certain fears are so prevalent that popular culture capitalizes on
them. The 1990 film Arachnophobia took fear of spiders to a comic
extreme, for example. Acrophobia, or fear of heights, was a central
theme in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 movie Vertigo. Fear of heights
also afflicted British TV’s beloved Inspector Morse. Aviatophobia
lent novelist Erica Jong the richly symbolic title of her 1973 book,
Fear of Flying.
The Oxford English Dictionary lists many odd, even outlandish phobia
words. Such words also can be found in the Insomniac’s Dictionary of
the Outrageous, Odd, and Unusual by Paul Hellweg; Crazy English by
Richard Lederer; and Words at Play by O.V. Michaelsen.
For some, apparently, hell really is other people. Anthropophobia
is fear of people; androphobia is fear of men; gynephobia, fear of
women; pediophobia, children; parthenophobia; young girls; xenophobia,
strangers or foreigners.
But do we really need a word such as armenophobia? Is fear of Armenians
a viable category?
Some fears are understandable even if you don’t share them
– dentophobia, for example, fear of going to the dentist. Or
agrizoophobia (fear of wild animals), algophobia (pain), poinephobia
(punishment), pyrophobia (fire) and hematophobia (blood).
And a biggie, thanatophobia – fear of death.
One can understand policophobia (fear of the police) in certain
circumstances, and even more readily politicophobia (fear of
politicians). But blennophobia, alliumphobia and arachibutyrophobia ?
Fear of slime, of garlic, of getting peanut butter stuck to the roof
of the mouth?
There’s no shortage of curious phobias. Tridecaphobia, fear of the
number 13, is well-known. I was surprised to find we need such a word
as porphyrophobia – fear of the color purple – until I discovered
chromophobia, fear of color in general. There’s a word for those who
can’t stand prosperity – chrematophobia, fear of wealth – and another
for those afraid of getting good news – euphobia.
One group of phobias makes you wonder if folks have been reading too
much DaVinci Code. Paterophobia, for example – fear of the Fathers of
the early Church. Ecclesiophobia means fear of church; hagiophobia,
fear of holy things; and homilophobia, fear of sermons.
Hard on the heels of those phobias may be hadephobia, fear of hell.
Could Franklin D. Roosevelt have had phobophobia in mind when he said,
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”? Phobophobia is fear
of fearing.
Wordsmiths have fears, too. Metrophobia, for example, is fear of
poetry. And don’t mention “Madam I’m Adam” to sufferers of aibohphobia,
fear of palindromes. (A palindrome is something that reads the same
backward as forward. Notice that the cleverly named aibohphobia is
a palindrome).
There’s even phobologophobia – a malady that could make reading this
column a nightmare. It means fear of phobia words.
Paula LaRocque, former Dallas Morning News writing coach, is author
of “The Book on Writing: The Ultimate Guide to Writing Well” and
“Championship Writing.” Send e-mail to plarocque @sbcglobal.net.