Author: Emil Lazarian

FREEDOMS ARE POLITICAL CRITERIA TURKEY SHOULD FULFILL, KRETSCHMER
Turkish Press
Oct 4 2006
ANKARA – Freedom of expression, religious freedoms, and
civilian-military relations are political criteria that Turkey should
fulfil, as all other member states had done, said Hansjoerg Kretschmer,
the head of the Delegation of the European Commission to Turkey.
Appearing on a live broadcast on Turkish private NTV channel,
Kretschmer underlined importance of progress in political criteria,
and said that Turkey has to do more.
Kretschmer noted that EU`s stance towards civilian-military relations
is obvious, and he expressed his views about this matter in a meeting
held by the Turkish Economic & Social Studies Foundation (TESEV),
when commenting on yesterday`s remarks of Chief of General Staff
Gen. Yasar Buyukanit at the War Academies.
Recalling Buyukanit`s words that “the army has a different role in
Turkey”, Kretschmer said, “there are two different positions and
views. And the commanders said that the TSK (Turkish Armed Forces)
is different from the armies in the EU. We will see if it changes
within the negotiation process.
Civilian-military relations are important in the EU process, and it
should be solved. I think that it is possible.”
Kretschmer expressed belief that Turkey will fulfill all required
criteria, adding, “I am hopeful and optimistic. I think that Turkey
will be successful at the end of the process.”
On the so-called Armenian genocide allegations, Kretschmer said that
it is not one of the accession criteria but it can be effective within
the general framework of the accession process.
Kretschmer noted that Turkish government is determined and willing
to make more reforms.
Commenting on the views that the EU is trying to divide Turkey,
Kretschmer said, “it is even impossible to talk about Turkey`s
division. Political criteria are for the best interest of Turkey and
Turkish people.”
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

MP PASHAYEVA PREPARED 2 WRITTEN APPEAL CONCERNING ARMENIAN AGGRESSION TO SUBMIT TO COMMITTEE OF MINISTERS OF COE
Author: J. Shakhverdiyev
TREND, Azerbaijan
Oct 4 2006
MP Ganira Pashayeva, a member of the Azerbaijani delegation to the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has prepared
two written appeals concerning Armenia`s aggression policy for further
submission to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe,
the MP told Trend herself today.
She pointed out that one of the two appeals is connected with the
frequent violations of the cease fire regime by Armenian Force. “The
appeal speaks about the fact that Armenia does not observe the
cease fire regime signed in 1994, as well as the resolutions of PACE
and UN Security Council. The appeal also points out that Armenians
also subject even the population of its non-occupied territories of
Azerbaijan”, pointed out Mrs. Pashayeva.
She told that the appeal includes the statistics where it is pointed
out that 36 local residents killed, 65 wounded and 41 captured, and
only 31 out of them have freed. “Even after the cease fire regime was
announced, Armenians has continued to explode houses and communications
on the territories of the contact line”, the MP told.
According to Mrs. Pashayeva, the violation of the cease fire regime
has been linked with the announcements of Armenian President Robert
Kocharyan with the participation of Armenia`s Defense Minister Serg
Sarkisyan at the military training of Armenian separatists in 2006.
The second appeal is connected with the Armenian aggression policy
as well.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

IRAN-ARMENIA GAS PIPELINE ON STREAM EARLY 2007
Tehran Times
Oct 4 2006
TEHRAN – The project of Iran’s gas conveyance pipeline to Armenia will
come on stream early 2007, Reza Kasaiizadeh, the managing director
of the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC) said here on Wednesday.
“First, Iran will export 3 million cu. m. of gas per day to
Armenia. The figure will gradually reach 10 million cu. m. of gas per
day, according to the schedule,” he told Iranian Students News Agency
(ISNA).
Shifting to Iran-Turkey gas pipeline, he said that Iran’s gas export
to Turkey was resumed on October 2, after parts of the pipeline which
were damaged by last Thursday’s explosion were repaired.
“The explosion was the first of a kind occurred at Iran’s border. NIGC
is pursuing plans to increase security in border regions in order to
prevent such events in future,” he added.
He also said that Iran presently exports 20 million cu. m. of gas to
Turkey per day.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

EX-SPEAKER ALLEGES ARMENIAN CURRENCY MANIPULATION
By Emil Danielyan
Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
Oct 4 2006
Former parliament speaker Artur Baghdasarian launched a blistering
attack on the Armenian authorities late Tuesday, adding his voice
to opposition allegations that they are artificially boosting the
national currency for personal gain.
Risking more accusations of populism, he also announced that his
Orinats Yerkir party, which was forced out of the governing coalition
last spring, will push for a major reduction of key utility fees.
“Elementary calculations show that we are dealing with a direct
embezzlement of $200 million,” Baghdasarian charged in a speech in
parliament, referring to a further surge in the value of the Armenian
dram registered in the last six months. He claimed, without naming
names, that the authorities have engineered the dram’s appreciation
to pocket a large part of hundreds of millions of dollars in cash
remittances sent home by Armenians working abroad.
The Armenian Central Bank and the government strongly deny such
accusations, which have been voiced by opposition leaders and other
government critics ever since the dram began its dramatic rise in
December 2003. The Armenian currency has since gained more than 40
percent in value against the dollar, hurting local manufacturers and
scores of people dependent on the dollar remittances.
The authorities in Yerevan, backed by the International Monetary Fund
and the World Bank, insist that the exchange rate fluctuation is the
result of Armenia’s double-digit economic growth and a substantial
increase in the volume of wire transfers from Russia, Europe and
the United States. The transfers are expected to total at least $1.5
billion dollars this year.
Making his first appearance in the National Assembly since his
resignation in May, Baghdasarian claimed that if the dram’s exchange
was indeed market-based, the basic utility and consumer prices in
Armenia would have fallen by now. “The prices of gas, electricity and
water remain the same, even though the dollar is falling,” he said,
arguing that Armenia imports the bulk of its energy resources.
Baghdasarian added that Orinats Yerkir will seek a Constitutional
Court ruling allowing Armenian citizens to challenge utility prices
set by state regulators in court. Under an existing Armenian law,
decisions taken by the Public Service Regulatory Commission can not
be overturned by local courts.
Baghdasarian and other opposition leaders say the law is
unconstitutional.
Baghdasarian’s initiative seems heralds the start of Orinats Yerkir’s
preparations for next year’s parliamentary elections. The ambitious
ex-speaker has long been accused of resorting to populism to win
votes and his latest comments will likely prompt more such accusations.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

INSPIRED IN ARMENIA, PLAYED IN L.A.
By Richard S. Ginell, Special to The Times
Los Angeles Times
Oct 3 2006
The Dilijan series, which blends European pieces and works by Armenian
composers, begins a second season.
Dilijan is a forested Armenian resort town not far from Lake Sevan
that has attracted composers and musicians over the decades. It is
also the inspiration for the Dilijan Chamber Music Concert Series
in faraway Los Angeles, which began its second season in the Colburn
School’s Zipper Concert Hall on Sunday afternoon.
So far, the launch seems to have taken hold. The series has a concept –
mixing standard European repertoire with works by Armenian composers –
a marvelously warm-sounding acoustical space, top-notch guest artists
and a built-in audience from the L.A. area’s vast, loyal Armenian
community that filled most of the seats Sunday. And as the lineup of
musicians indicated, you don’t have to be Armenian to play.
In the field of new or overlooked repertoire, Dilijan scored big with
the powerful Violin Sonata of Arno Babajanian (1921-1983), who may be
the best-known Armenian composer in the West after Aram Khachaturian.
Like Khachaturian, Babajanian was a nationalist who was never
fashionable among the new-music gatekeepers, despite his embrace of
serial ideas late in life. But this piece has universal substance
amid the Armenian flavor, with its turbulent first movement themes and
development, its ghostly interludes in the second and third movements,
its laconically singing passages that recall Shostakovich.
Violinist Movses Pogossian – who is also the artistic director of
the Dilijan series – audibly identified with this piece to his core,
producing a particularly striking, thin yet taut steel-wire tone in
the muted passages of the second movement. Pianist Robert Thies was
his sympathetic partner.
The chief marquee name on the program was violinist Ani Kavafian,
who with Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra violist Roland Kato and cellist
Antonio Lysy offered a bustling rendition of Beethoven’s String Trio,
Opus 9, No. 1, whose skittering, whirlwind finale seems to anticipate
the scherzos of Mendelssohn.
Then all five musicians came together in Brahms’ mighty Piano
Quintet in F minor – conventionally paced, with enough virile weight,
lush symphonic textures in the lower middle range, and streaks of
vehemence in the scherzo and finale. Understandably, after this heavy
main course, there were no encores.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

KLO ATTEMPTS TO PROTEST AGAINST OSCE CO-CHAIRS’ ARRIVAL IN AZERBAIJAN
Today, Azerbaijan
Oct 3 2006
Some members of the Karabakh Liberation Organization (KLO) attempted
to stage a protest action against the arrival of the co-chairs of
OSCE Minsk Group outside the Foreign Ministry.
KLO protests against the co-chairs’ mediating activity in the
settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict.
Baku police prevented the protesters. Several KLO members have been
taken to the police station. Necessary action will be taken about
the detained. So far, KLO members are being inquired.
The KLO also issued a statement in protest against the co-chairs’
visit to Azerbaijan. The statement criticizes the co-chairs for their
pan-Armenian activity and visit to the region for this purpose. It
denounces their intention to arrive in Khankendi (Stepanakert) from
the aggressor Armenia not from Azerbaijan again.
“The latest option offered by the co-chairs meets Armenian interests
unambiguously and justifies Armenia’s aggressive actions. If this
option is accepted, Azerbaijan will lose Nagorno Karabakh together
with Lachin forever. Armenian terrorist president Robert Kocharian
has stated that they agree to the latest option unconditionally,”
the statement reads.
The KLO demands stopping the co-chairs’ visit to the region and their
activity at all.
URL:
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

EU INDIVIDUAL ACTION PLAN FOR CO-OPERATION WITH AZERBAIJAN INCLUDES NK CONFLICT – AZERI DEPUTY FM
Author: S.Agayeva
TREND Information, Azerbaijan
Oct 3 2006
The individual Action Plan of the European Union (EU) for the
co-operation with Azerbaijan also includes Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,
the Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Mahmud Mammadguliyev told
journalists, Trend reports.
According to him, this question is one of the sections of the Action
Plan. The Deputy Minister stressed that the document reflects the
position of EU regarding the settlement of Armenian-Azerbaijani
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
According to Mammadguliyev, the Action Plan fully meets the interests
of Azerbaijan. He emphasized that the documents reflects all directions
of the future co-operation in the spheres such as policy, economy,
human rights, visa and customs affairs.
During the adoption of the Action Plan, Azerbaijan will undertake a
series of obligation, according to which it needs to make a number
of changes he political and economical spheres.
The separate debates with EU will be organized on the visa issues,
Mammadguliyev said. According to him, the sides have reached an
agreement.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

IT WOULD BE ILLOGICAL TO IMPOSE SANCTIONS ON IRAN: ANALYST
Mehr News Agency, Iran
Oct 3 2006
TEHRAN, Oct. 3 (MNA) — Political analyst Barin Kayaoglu, a Turkish
national attending the University of Virginia, says it would be naive
for the international community to expect to impose sanctions on Iran
without a response from Tehran that would cause oil and natural gas
prices to go up.
In view of global energy prices, there is no sensible reason for
pushing for sanctions against Tehran, he told the Mehr News Agency
in an interview on September 30.
Following is the text of the interview.
Q: What could cause the U.S. efforts to fail?
A: Well, given the fact that there are still no UN-endorsed sanctions,
other countries won’t follow the example of the U.S. With the economic
boom of the 1990s cooling in the past couple of years, no country
can really afford to shut out any market, especially one that is as
promising as the Iranian market.
Q: Do you think that the U.S. is in a position to move on sanctions,
and do you think that it will be effective?
A: Well, I am not sure what effect it is going to have for the U.S.
to single-handedly implement more sanctions on Iran. As far as
American companies’ prospects of doing business with Iran, it will
obviously not be possible for them to enter the Iranian market given
the present state of things.
As for extending these sanctions to shutting out the American
market to international companies doing business with Iran, that’s
a possibility. On the other hand, modern business practices have
perfect ease in circumventing such rules. Hypothetically, if a U.S.
company wanted to sell something to an Iranian company, it could do
that through third parties, say, through a company in Turkey, Armenia,
or more sensibly, Dubai.
Q: How far will Russia and China go in backing Iran, and do you think
that the sanctions will produce regional backlashes?
A: I think the Iranians should rely on Russia and China only so much.
They will stand alongside Iran, because both countries are unhappy
with the U.S. presence in the Middle East. The Chinese, meanwhile,
because of their own unique and historical reasons, feel evermore
threatened by the U.S. military presence in East Asia. And recently
they are voicing these concerns in rather undiplomatic language.
The U.S. military, as you may recall, has recently had to abandon its
bases in Uzbekistan because of the Bush administration’s criticism
of that country’s domestic politics. This will certainly help the
Russian Federation increase its leverage in Central Asia. In this
regard, they will probably support Iran to the extent that it serves
Russian interests.
But Iranians should keep in mind that Russia and China will support
Iran in line with their own interests, NOT those of Iran.
As for regional backlashes, for the reasons I’ve stated (in response)
to your first question, I do not believe that other countries will
follow suit without a UN Security Council Resolution nor could the
U.S. implement similar sanctions against another Middle Eastern
country.
Q: Do you foresee major differences between the U.S. and the EU on
one hand and China and Russia on the other in regard to sanctions?
A: The U.S.-EU bit of that question will be determined by how the
Europeans want to engage Iran. They are paranoid about the perceived
“Islamic threat” emanating from the Middle East. We Turks are probably
witnessing this in our dealings with them more than any other Muslim
country.
So, the answer is, if they look at the question as “Muslims with
bombs” instead of a dilemma that can be solved by diplomacy, they
will probably join the U.S. That is still a moot point.
If Iran, on the other hand, fails to make a convincing case that its
nuclear program is strictly peaceful and remind (the human memory is
truly elusive, don’t you think?) others that it is still a party to
the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), then there is always the risk
that Russia and China might not protest possible sanctions against
Iran. What Iran needs to do at this stage is to juxtapose its adherence
to the NPT regime with Israel’s, Pakistan’s, and India’s possession
of nuclear weapons.
Of course, all of these points may or may not be valid when we think of
Iran’s importance for global energy. Can the international community
expect to impose sanctions on Iran without a response from Iran that
would cause oil and natural gas prices to go up? It would be naive
to think so. With global energy prices at such exorbitant rates,
I do not believe that there is a sensible reason for pushing this
sanction business too far.
On the human side, sanctions do not work against governments, they
work against the people. Following the First Persian Gulf War, UN
sanctions did not work against Saddam Hussein’s regime, they worked
against the Iraqi people. Saddam enjoyed “la dolce vita” until the
Americans showed up at his doorstep in April 2003.
Q: As you know, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Florida Republican, is
behind the new sanctions bill. Given her record, how do you view the
Zionist lobby’s influence on the bill, given the fact that its approval
was applauded by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC)?
A: The reason why Israel and pro-Israel Americans are concerned with
Iran’s nuclear program is that they draw a weird connection between
the Holocaust and what might happen if Israel ever lost a war. David
Ben-Gurion once said, “Israel can never gain legitimacy in the eyes
of its Arab neighbors even if it won a hundred wars. But it cannot
lose a single war; if it does, everything is over.” That mindset is
precisely why they embarked on their nuclear program and now possess
nuclear weapons. You may know that they actually deployed their
nuclear arsenal during the October 1973 war, in case the front broke.
Just as Western countries perceive Islam as a threat, whether that
perception is true or not (I believe it isn’t true), Israel, when
looking around the region, sees countries that are bent on repeating
the Holocaust, whether that is true or not. I believe that that
perception is also false.
On the other hand, to be perfectly honest with you, I do not understand
why President Ahmadinejad is mocking this central concern of Israelis
and world Jewry. I understand that Iranians question the fundamental
relationship between the Holocaust and the Israeli mindset, but
the way that they are doing it is unwise. I think you are also doing
research on this topic too, but denying the existence of the Holocaust
is neither helping Iran’s security nor its prosperity. I think what
the Iranian government should be saying is something along these
lines: “We do not deny that Jews suffered a tragedy at the hands
of the West. It is not our intention to make them suffer. But how
justified is it for the Palestinians to suffer in similar conditions
at the hands of Israelis?” I know that your government is saying a
good deal of this. But by mocking the Holocaust, it is not serving
Iranian interests.
To make my long answer short, it is only sensible for AIPAC to applaud
yesterday’s (September 29) vote, given their perception of Israel,
Islam, and Iran.
Barin Kayaoglu is a Ph.D. student at the Corcoran Department of
History of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

DAYS OF ARMENIAN CULTURE FESTIVAL OFFICIALLY OPENS IN BRATISLAVA
Noyan Tapan News Agency, Armenia
Oct 3 2006
BRATISLAVA, OCTOBER 3, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The concert
of Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Eduard Topchian and
with participation of violinist Sofia Jaffe took place on October 3
at the Reduta well-known philharmony hall of Bratislava. The concert
was organized within the framework of the Days of Armenian Culture
festival dedicated to the 15th anniversary of Armenia’s independence.
The solemn opening of the festival took place two days before near the
Armenian khachkar (cross-stone) placed in the center of Bratislava,
with participation of Slovakian officials and many guests. The
Armenian khachkar was placed with joint efforts of the Nig-Aparan
compatriotic union, the Chairman of which is RA Prosecutor General
Aghvan Hovsepian, and Armenian community of Slovakia, in token of
gratitude for adoption of the resolution recognizing the Armenian
Genocide at the Slovakian Parliament.
As NT correspondent informed from Bratislava, at the opening ceremony
of the Days of Armenian Culture, Ashot Grigorian, Chairman of the
Representation of Armenian Organizations in Europe, emphasized
that Armenian-Slovakian contacts continue to develop and the
Armenian community also has a great contribution to this issue. In
A.Grigorian’s words, A.Hovsepian and First Deputy Prosecutor General
of Slovakia, Martin Lauko, also rendered great services to development
of Armenian-Slovakian contacts.
The speeches were followed by first concert performances, then
the concert continued at the hall of the Ararat club. Soloists
of A.Spendiarian National Theater of Opera and Ballet, soprano
Lusine Ordukhanian, performed some works of Komitas, and tenor Artak
Kirakosian performed arias from Italian operas. Their performances were
highly appreciated by the spectators. Well-known pianist in Slovakia
Hasmik Gabrielian also performed on the first day of the concert.
During the reception organized after the concert, the guests,
especially former Prime Minister Jean Charnagurski, Martin Lauko and
others emphasized that this event is of exclusive importance from
point of view of getting to know the Armenian culture closely and
understanding the Armenian nation better.
Within the framework of the festival concerts will be held both in
Bratislava and in Prague. As NT was informed by festival organizer
Ashot Grigorian, Chairman of the Slovakian Armenian community and
Representation of Armenian Organizations in Europe, unfortunately,
the Armenian Embassy in Vienna not only did nothing to support this
initiative of the Armenian community of Slovakia, but also tried to
do everything possible to hamper holding of this cultural festivity
in this city.

CD “DEDICATED TO KOMITAS” RELEASED IN MUNICH
Noyan Tapan News Agency, Armenia
Oct 3 2006
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 3, NOYAN TAPAN. The Super Audio Compact Disk (SACD)
“Dedicated to Komitas” was released by the Audit record studio
(Germany) in September. It contains works performed by two famous
Armenian musicians – soprano Hasmik Papian and piano-player Vardan
Mamikonian. Conrad Kuhn, dramaturge of the Austrian State Opera and
the Munich Opera, stated this at the October 3 presentation of the
disc, which was recorded during a Yerevan concert in 2005.
In addition to 26 Armenian songs, the disc contains 9 works of Komitas
written to verses of German poets. Komitas created these works while
studying in Berlin. In the words of C. Kuhn, the Armenian composer’s
excellent knowledge of Western musical traditions is felt in these
songs which are performed for the first time.
It was noted that the disk is first of all intended for foreign
audience, presenting in most comprehensive way the Armenian music,
with the great Komitas making his contribution to its development.
A booklet-disc contains the texts of the songs in Armenian, German,
English an French. It also provides information about the life and
activity of Komitas. Taking into account the great interest that
foreigners show to the works of Komitas, the author of the booklet
Claude Mutafian, professor of Sorbonne University, mathematician and
historian, presented both Komitas’ life and the Armenian history of
his period in an original form that makes an easy reading.
Asked by reporters why she chose Komitas’ works, Hasmik Papian replied:
“When I was just making ny first steps as a singer, I always had
an idea of recording some Komitas songs in my performance. It was
important to me and it was a dedication to the great musician. This
is my tribute to the memory of Komitas.” In her words, it is the duty
of every singer to present the Armenian culture abroad.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress