Author: Emil Lazarian

BAGHRAMIAN AVENUE BUSIEST IN YEREVAN
Noyan Tapan
Apr 03 2006
YEREVAN, APRIL 3, NOYAN TAPAN. According to the RA Ministry of
Nature Protection, the motor transport emissions account for 97%
of the pollutants of Yerevan’s ambient air. This fact has aroused
concern of ecologists, since 16-288 tons of carbon dioxide, 1.7-3
tons of carbon monoxide, 1.5 tons of nitric oxides and up to 30 tons
of heavy metals is annually emitted into atmoshere per 1 km of Yerevan
streets. About 200 various substances have been found in car emissions,
with nearly 20% of them falling into the first and second category
of danger. Baghramian Avenue is the busiest street in Yerevan. NT
correspondent was informed at the Center of Eco-Noospheric Studies of
the RA National Academy of Sciences that air photos showed that during
rush hours the load per 1 km of this section makes 7,667 cars. Komitas
Street is in second place by this index, followed by Mashtots Avenue
and the area adjacent to the Rossia Cinema.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

APRIL 4 IS THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR MINE AWARENESS AND ASSISTANCE IN MINE ACTION
A1+
[05:18 pm] 03 April, 2006
On 8 December 2005, the General Assembly declared that 4 April of each
year shall be officially proclaimed and observed as International Day
for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action (resolution 60/97). It
called for continued efforts by States, with the assistance of the
United Nations and relevant organizations, to foster the establishment
and development of national mine-action capacities in countries where
mines and explosive remnants of war constitute a serious threat to the
safety, health and lives of the civilian population, or an impediment
to social and economic development at the national and local levels.
“A single landmine – or even the fear of its presence – can hold an
entire community hostage. It can prevent farmers from growing crops,
refugees from returning home, even children from playing,” says UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan in his message issued especially for the
day. “It blocks the delivery of humanitarian relief and impedes the
deployment of peacekeepers. In post-conflict societies landmines remain
one of the greatest impediments to rebuilding and renewal”, he adds.
The battle against landmines is being won, with some countries already
achieving mine-free status. But victory will depend on the unflagging
commitment of the governments of those countries where mines still
exist and on the sustained support of the international community,
according to Max Gaylard, director of the United Nations Mine Action
Service.
“The task of eliminating landmines is enormous, but it can be completed
in years, rather than decades, as long as mine-affected countries do
everything in their power to become mine-free, and donor countries
and organizations maintain their interest and financial support,”
Gaylard adds. “Unlike so many of the global problems of our day, this
one can be solved. April 4 is an opportunity to remind the world that
there is light at the end of the tunnel.”
According to the Landmine Monitor Report 2005, 84 countries are
affected to some extent by landmines and unexploded ordnance, which
together kill or maim between 15,000 and 20,000 adults and children
annually, down from an estimated 26,000 in the late 1990s. Fourteen
United Nations agencies, programmes, departments and funds are together
helping find and destroy these devices and providing other mine-action
services in 30 countries and three territories.
“Mine action” refers to a range of efforts to clear landmines and
explosive remnants of war and to mark and fence off dangerous areas. It
also includes assisting victims, teaching people how to remain safe in
a mine-affected environment, advocating for universal participation
in international treaties related to landmines, explosive remnants
of war and their victims, and destroying landmines stockpiled by
governments and non-state armed groups.
Landmine facts & figures:
– Number of countries thought to be affected to some extent by
landmines and explosive remnants of war: 82
– Number of landmines still buried in the ground worldwide: Unknown
(what’s more important than the quantity is their impact on lives
and livelihoods)
– Number of governments reported to have used landmines as of 2005: 3
– Number of countries that are producing or capable of producing
landmines: 13
– Number of countries confirmed to have traded or exported landmines
in 2005: 0
– Number of countries participating in the antipersonnel mine-ban
treaty: 149
– Landmines still stockpiled worldwide: 167 million
– Number of countries reporting new victims of landmines and explosive
remnants of war in 2004-2005: 58
– Estimated number of new casualties each year: 15,000 to 20,000
– International funding for mine action in 2004: $399 million
– World’s top donor for mine action in 2004: USA ($96.5 million)
– Country receiving the largest amount of mine action funding in 2004:
Afghanistan ($91.8 million)
– Number of countries where mine risk education services were provided
in 2004-2005: 61
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian National Institute
1518 K Street, NW Suite M
Washington, D.C. 20005
Phone: (202) 383-9009
Fax: (202) 383-9012
E-mail: [email protected]
Web:
PRESS RELEASE
April 3, 2006
ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE DANIEL FRIED SPELLS OUT U.S. POLICY ON THE
ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
“To foster reconciliation and peace based on an understanding of
history, not a denial of it.”
Washington, DC – Speaking to an audience of Armenian-Americans gathered
in Washington for a national conference organized by the Armenian
Assembly of America and co-sponsored by more than a dozen U.S.-based
Armenian community organizations, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for
European and Eurasian Affairs Daniel Fried called on “Turkey to reflect
more seriously about subjects which have been taboo for generations in
that country.” He added: “We do not support…export of denialist
literature or positions. We do support efforts by Turkey to deal with
its history more seriously.”
While continuing to avoid the term ‘genocide,’ and reflecting earlier
language used by President George W. Bush in his April 24 commemorative
statements, Fried applied what has been referred to as the dictionary
definition of the events: “murders on a mass scale, killings without
justification, deportations. Over 1.5 million people lost their lives,
innocent victims.”
Admitting that the administration has “a policy which many of you
disagree with,” the Assistant Secretary also stated that “the United
States government has never denied the events of 1915.”
Stressing what additional steps Turkey needs to take, Fried remarked:
“We believe that the tragedy of 1915, the killings, is of enormous human
significance and its historical assessment should be determined not on
the basis of politics, but introspection among civic leaders and
scholars. This process has begun in Turkey where it needs to take
place.”
Speaking about the pace of this process in Turkey, he went on to say,
however: “It is certainly not going fast enough to satisfy you. It is
not going fast enough to satisfy us.”
He granted that “dealing with the history of the mass killings of
Armenians is painful for Turkey,” but also expressed hope that it will
“bring greater understanding to Turks of their own history.”
Fried also underlined the U.S. view that “a productive dialogue is the
best way to establish a shared understanding of history that honors the
victims of these horrific events.”
In what appeared to be an oblique reference to the independent report
prepared by the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) at
the request of the much-disputed Turkish-Armenian Reconciliation
Commission (TARC), Fried added: “It produced a serious look at those
issues which we have recognized officially.”
Despite the implied State Department recognition of this report, Fried
also made it clear that the “U.S. position on events of 1915 has not
changed.”
It may be noted that the ICTJ report, issued in 2003, reached the
conclusion that “the Events, viewed collectively, can thus be said to
include all of the elements of the crime of genocide as defined in the
[1948 Genocide] Convention, and legal scholars as well as historians,
politicians, journalists and other people would be justified in
continuing to so describe them.”
The Assistant Secretary concluded his remarks by saying: “We will
continue to urge our Turkish friends to face difficult issues of their
past seriously, and we will urge Armenia to help the Turks make this
possible without ever sacrificing historical truth or your position.”
A complete transcript of the March 27, 2006, statement and remarks made
by Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried may be viewed at:
T he Armenian National Institute is a Washington-based organization
dedicated to the study, research, and affirmation of the Armenian
Genocide.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
04/03/2006
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <;HTTP://WWW.ASBAREZ. COM 1) Genocide Commemoration Announcement 2) Oskanian Meets with Kofi Annan And UN Leadership 3) Rice and Mamedyarov to Meet in Washington 4) Kurdish Protests Toll Rises to 15 1) Genocide Commemoration Announcement April 24, Armenian Genocide Commemoration Day, is fast approaching. 91 years after the Genocide, Armenian people are still deprived of their rights. Turkey refuses to acknowledge the Genocide, which it thoroughly planned and perpetrated, and is now launching denialist campaigns throughout the world, before the international community. Turkey's denial is not a new crime. It adds to the still unpunished crime against humanity. The Armenian people will pursue their rights until a just solution is reached. The demand for these rights has only gotten stronger, as Armenians continue political activities in Europe, the US, and the Middle East, in order put press on Turkey, and to gain genocide recognition and restitution for the Armenian people. In order to make our voice heard, the political, cultural, and community organizations of California Armenians will commemorate those who lost their lives in the Genocide together. The central commemorative event will be held at the Genocide Monument in Montebello on Sunday, April 23 at 4 PM. We call on all Armenians in California to attend this event so that our voice will be heard throughout the world. Further information will be provided by the media. Respectfully, Western Diocese of the Armenian Church North America Western Prelacy of the Armenian of Apostolic Church California Armenian Catholic Community Armenian Evangelical Community of California ARF "Dashnagtsutyun" of Western USA Armenian Democratic Liberal Party (Ramgavar) Armenian General Benevolent Union Armenian Society of Los Angeles Istanbul Armenian Organization Armenian Youth Association of California 2) Oskanian Meets with Kofi Annan And UN Leadership Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian met last week with Kofi Annan, Secretary General of the United Nations (UN), Jan Eliasson, President of the General Assembly of the UN, and Kemal Dervis, Administrator of the UN Development Program. During his meetings with Secretary General Annan and Eliasson, Oskanian discussed the Karabagh resolution process as well as recent ceasefire violations. He expressed Armenia's serious concern that the military rhetoric of Azerbaijan's leaders is leading to increasingly more frequent ceasefire violations by the Azeri military along the line of contact. Armenia's Foreign Minister also discussed UN reforms, and welcomed the formation of the new Human Rights Council, reiterating Armenia's desire to remain engaged in human rights issues. In these meetings, and during his talks with Dervis, Oskanian also stressed Armenia's commitment to rural development. He stressed that the Millennium Challenge Compact, recently signed with the US government, will create a necessary momentum to spur development and that the Armenian government is committed to building on this momentum with its comprehensive plan. He said the Armenian government's plan for rural development is based on a public-private partnership, which includes Armenia's diaspora, Armenia's business community, the Armenian government, and international organizations. 3) Rice and Mamedyarov to Meet in Washington YEREVAN (RFE/RL/PanArmenian.Net)--Russia's chief Karabagh negotiator and Minsk Group co-chair Yuri Merzlyakov said Monday that the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan will hold further discussions on the Karabagh conflict this week in Moscow and Washington respectively. Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedyarov will meet with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Washington, DC from April 6-7. At the same time, Armenia's Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian is scheduled to meet his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow. The Karabagh dispute will be high on the agenda of both talks. "The Minsk Group is today working in a more bilateral format. Namely, the co-chairs plus a representative of Armenia or Azerbaijan," said Merzlyakov. Merzlyakov said that the peace process is not in deadlock and may still yield a breakthrough this year. He pointed to a continuing flurry of diplomatic activity involving top representatives of the conflicting parties as well as the three nations co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group. The Russian diplomat added that the Minsk Group's French co-chair, Bernard Fassier, will pay a separate visit to Baku and Yerevan later this month. The group's third, US co-chair, Steven Mann, toured the conflict zone last month as part of a high-level US delegation led by Assistant Secretary of State Dan Fried. In a March 27 speech in Washington, Fried said he was "sufficiently encouraged" by what he was told by Azeri and Armenian leaders. He also said that the United States will not seek to impose any solutions on the parties. "We're not going to force Armenia or Azerbaijan to take anything," he said. Merzlyakov also stated that the international mediators do not plan to arrange another meeting between Presidents Robert Kocharian and Ilham Aliyev in the coming months. He said the two leaders could only meet on the sidelines of an international forum. "The meeting of the Presidents should be properly prepared and this demands time," he said. 4) Kurdish Protests Toll Rises to 15 ISTANBUL (Reuters)--Hundreds of Kurds clashed with police in southeast Turkey on Monday and in Istanbul three people were killed as they fled a bus set ablaze by protesters, bringing the death toll over the past week to 15. The latest violence sustained a week of unrest triggered by the funerals of 14 rebels from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) who were killed in clashes with security forces. It marked some of Turkey's worst civil unrest since the PKK took up arms against the state in 1984 in an insurgency which has killed more than 30,000 people and fueled fears of an escalation of the conflict. Demonstrators threw petrol bombs at a bus on Sunday evening and Istanbul's governor said the three died, apparently crushed by the bus, as they fled. Anatolian news agency said the three victims were two teenage sisters and a 62-year-old woman. In Istanbul's Gazi district, which has a sizeable Kurdish population, police also fired tear gas to break up a 150-strong group of stone-throwing youths who had set up barricades and set fire to rubbish containers, CNN Turk reported. "Molotovs in their bags, massacre on its way," Hurriyet newspaper said in a headline below a photo of masked youths setting petrol bombs alight. Police fired tear gas and water cannon to break up a crowd of some 500 protesters in Viransehir near the Syrian border, chanting slogans in support of jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan and waving PKK flags, security officials said. Police fired shots into the air and the crowd scattered from the main square, throwing petrol bombs and stones at the security forces and local buildings, smashing some windows. The governor's office in the mainly Kurdish region's largest city Diyarbakir said the toll there had risen to nine after three people died in hospital. Two people have died in Kiziltepe near the Syrian border and one in the town of Batman. "We have launched rapid efforts to heal the wounds... In 10 days 30 of our citizens have lost their lives," said Diyarbakir mayor Osman Baydemir. Baydemir said it was "shameful" that an official investigation had been launched into comments he had made about the latest violence, including the deaths of the militants. The cabinet is expected to discuss the violence at a meeting on Monday and parliament is scheduled to hold a debate on the issue on Tuesday. Some 360 people have been injured in the violence, including 199 members of the security forces. Of 566 people detained by police, 354 have been remanded in custody awaiting trial. Political analysts and diplomats say the violence reflects local anger over high unemployment, poverty and Ankara's refusal to grant more autonomy to the mainly Kurdish region. Ankara, like the European Union and the United States, regards the PKK as a terrorist organization responsible for the deaths of more than 30,000 people since it launched its armed campaign for an ethnic homeland in 1984. But many Kurds sympathize with the PKK. The country's main Kurdish political group, the Democratic Society Party (DTP) said the government had failed to respond to its calls for talks on the violence. "We wanted to talk with (Prime Minister Tayyip) Erdogan, but this was rejected. There is a lack of dialogue," DTP deputy chairman Hasip Kaplan said during a visit to the Diyarbakir mayor. The local DTP leader in Batman turned himself in to police on Monday a day after police ordered his arrest for calling on locals to take part in protest marches. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2006 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets. From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel: (202) 775-1918
Fax: (202) 775-5648
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet:
PRESS RELEASE
April 4, 2006
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918
SYSTEM OF A DOWN TO LAUNCH THREE-DAY WASHINGTON, DC
CAMPAIGN FOR ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RECOGNITION
— Band Members to Join Rally at Turkish Embassy; Screen New
Genocide Documentary; Meet with Media and Key Congressional
Officials on Pending Armenian Genocide Legislation
LOS ANGELES, CA – Serj Tankian and John Dolmayan of the Grammy
Award-winning band System of a Down will travel to Washington, DC
on April 24th for a three-day campaign to urge Speaker of the House
Dennis Hastert and other Congressional leaders to end their
complicity in Turkey’s ongoing denial of the Armenian Genocide.
On the evening of Monday, April 24th – starting at 5:00pm – the
multi-Platinum-selling group members will join with the Armenian
National Committee of America and Armenian Youth Federation in
leading a grassroots demonstration outside the gates of the Turkish
Embassy at 2525 Massachusetts Ave, in Northwest Washington, DC.
The Turkish government, through its Embassy in Washington, spends
millions of dollars each year to bully, threaten, and blackmail the
U.S. government not to recognize the Armenian Genocide.
The band members will devote Tuesday, April 25th to providing
interviews to the political media in Washington, and, in the
evening, hosting a Congressional screening of “Screamers,” a new
documentary by filmmaker Carla Garapedian about the band’s
worldwide campaign for Armenian Genocide recognition.
On Wednesday April 26th, System will meet with key Members of
Congress to urge them to allow a vote on legislation recognizing
the Armenian Genocide, and – at 5:30pm – will participate in the
annual Capitol Hill commemoration of the Armenian Genocide. This
event, now in its 11th year, is regularly attended by over 30
Members of Congress, diplomats, ethnic community leaders, human
rights activists, genocide prevention advocates, and Armenian
Americans from across the country.
Beginning on April 24, 1915, the Ottoman Turkish government began a
centrally planned and systematically executed campaign to
annihilate the Armenian people from their ancient homeland. By
1923 over 1.5 million Armenians were killed and hundreds of
thousands deported, in what constituted the first genocide of the
20th century. Congressional legislation recognizing this crime
(H.Res.316 / H.Con.Res.195 / S.Res.320) has broad bipartisan
support, but has been blocked from coming to a vote by
Congressional leaders, despite the fact that, five years ago, U.S.
House Speaker Dennis Hastert promised to allow Members to vote on
this human rights measure.
In September of last year, Serj Tankian and John Dolmayan from the
band traveled to the Speaker’s hometown of Batavia, Illinois to
lead a rally urging him to allow a vote on the Armenian Genocide
legislation. During the rally, Tankian delivered a personal and
powerfully worded message calling on the Speaker to do the right
thing, and stressing that “historical truths should never be denied
in a democracy – especially one with such a proud heritage of
freedom.”
Speaker Hastert has it in his power to accomplish one of System’s
goals – official U.S. recognition of Turkey’s destruction of 1.5
million Armenians between 1915 and 1923. By allowing Congress to
vote on this legislation, Speaker Hastert can end U.S. denial of
this crime and open the doors to justice – to the restoration,
reparation, and restitution owed to the victims of genocide. By
continuing to block a vote on this legislation, Hastert effectively
joins in the denial of this crime against humanity, and the denial
of justice to an entire nation.
The members of System of a Down, Serj Tankian, Daron Malakian, John
Dolmayan and Shavo Odadjian, who are of Armenian descent, all
personally lost family members and family history to the Armenian
Genocide. “Because so much of my family history was lost in the
Armenian Genocide,” said Malakian, “my grandfather, who was very
young at the time, doesn’t know his true age. How many people can
say they don’t know how old they are?” Tankian, Dolmayan and
Odadjian all identify their grandparents’ memories as the only
links they have to their respective family heritages, as most of
their families were obliterated during the Armenian Genocide.
“It’s important for people to be aware of the Armenian Genocide,”
explained Tankian, “and that those actions continue to be covered
up by the Turkish government, the U.S. State Department, Turkey’s
allies in the defense and oil industries, and by our present U.S.
Administration. Had the Armenian Genocide been acknowledged as a
Crime Against Humanity as it was, Hitler might not have thought he
could get away with the Jewish Holocaust. History does and will
repeat itself, unless we stop that cycle.”
#####

RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
_________________________________________ ____________________
RFE/RL Iran Report
Vol. 9, No. 12, 3 April 2006
A Review of Developments in Iran Prepared by the Regional Specialists
of RFE/RL’s Newsline Team
******************************************** ****************
HEADLINES:
* U.S. TALKS UNLIKELY TO END TEHRAN’S ‘SOFT POWER’ IN IRAQ
* IRAQI PRESIDENT MEETS WITH IRANIAN ENVOY
* IRAN IS IRAQ’S NO. 1 TRADING PARTNER
* AHMADINEJAD MEETS WITH TURKISH ENVOY, REJECTS U.A.E. CLAIMS TO ISLANDS
* IRAN TO HOLD GULF NAVAL MANEUVERS
* IS IRAN CLOSER TO URANIUM ENRICHMENT THAN PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT?
* AHMADINEJAD SAYS IRAN IS FEARLESS ABOUT NUCLEAR PROGRAM
* UN SECURITY COUNCIL GIVES IRAN 30 DAYS TO END NUCLEAR ACTIVITIES
* RUSSIA SENDS MIXED MESSAGES ON IRAN
* IRAN REITERATES CLAIM ITS NUCLEAR PROGRAM IS ONLY PEACEFUL
* FOREIGN MINISTER CRITICIZES ‘HASTY’ MOVES ON IRAN DOSSIER
* ‘ENEMIES’ ALLEGEDLY SEEK TO BREAK IRAN THROUGH PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE
* SUPREME LEADER PRAISES IRAN’S VIGILANCE AGAINST WEST
* DEFENSE MINISTER SAYS IRAN AIMING FOR ‘INTELLIGENT’ WEAPONRY
* OFFICIAL SAYS IRAN MAY CURB FUEL CONSUMPTION
* JUDICIARY HEAD CRITICIZES CORRUPTION WITHIN STATE SECTOR
* HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER TO GO ON TRIAL
* POOR IRANIAN REPORTEDLY KILLS HIS FAMILY, HANGS HIMSELF
* RIGHTS GROUP CONCERNED ABOUT IRANIANS FACING EXECUTION
* POWERFUL EARTHQUAKE HITS WESTERN IRAN
********************************************* ***************
U.S. TALKS UNLIKELY TO END TEHRAN’S ‘SOFT POWER’ IN IRAQ.
The much-heralded Iran-U.S. talks on Iraq, to which Tehran agreed in
mid-March, may result in an end to direct Iranian involvement in
Iraqi affairs. But even if Iran ends its use of direct means — such
as the provision of arms and money to militias — its use of indirect
means, or “soft power,” to influence Iraqi affairs seems likely to
continue.
The Iran-U.S. talks have not begun yet but already they seem
to be dead in the water. One reason for this is that all Iraqis do
not support the talks. They were called for by the leader of one of
the country’s main Shi’ite parties — Abd al-Aziz al-Hakim of
the Supreme Council of the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI) and the
United Iraqi Alliance — but another Shi’ite leader, Muqtada
al-Sadr, has spoken out against them. In addition, Iraqi Sunnis
oppose the talks because they resent marginalization in their
country’s affairs and fear that official Iranian involvement will
contribute to this process.
“The Guardian” commented from London on March 27 that
following complaints from Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, the talks
must wait. The Iraqis are demanding that representatives from their
government participate, and this cannot happen until a new Iraqi
government is formed. It has been more than three months since
Iraq’s parliamentary elections, but the various factions have so
far been unable to come up with a broadly acceptable government list.
A particular sticking point is whether Prime Minister Ibrahim
al-Ja’fari, a Shi’ite, should continue in office.
When U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice first called
for U.S.-Iran talks on Iraq in October 2005, she made it clear that
the objective was to discuss alleged Iranian interference in Iraqi
affairs. U.S. officials since then have charged repeatedly that this
interference has not subsided.
“Iran seeks a Shi’a-dominated and unified Iraq but also
wants the U.S. to experience continued setbacks in our efforts to
promote democracy and stability,” U.S. National Intelligence Director
John Negroponte said in late February in Congressional testimony.
“Accordingly, Iran provides guidance and training to select Iraqi
Shi’ite political groups and weapons and training to Shi’ite
militant groups to enable anti-coalition attacks.”
The same day, U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency Director
Lieutenant General Michael D. Maples said: “Money, weapons, and
foreign fighters supporting terrorism move into Iraq, primarily
through Syria and Iran. We believe Iran has provided lethal aid to
Iraqi Shi’ite insurgents
Tehran rejects such accusations and attributes violence in
Iraq to U.S.-led coalition forces. After the late February bombing of
the Golden Mosque in Samarra, for example, Iranian Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the occupation forces and “the Zionists
deployed in Iraq” are responsible.
The next week, Expediency Council Chairman Ali Akbar
Hashemi-Rafsanjani delivered a sermon about the bombers’ desires.
“Perhaps their most important aim is to weaken the solidarity
that is gradually shaping in the world of Islam,” Hashemi-Rafsanjani
said. “Because the Muslims feel that global arrogance, America in
particular, intends to create problems for the Muslims by promoting a
Greater Middle East plan…. The main objective of the Greater Middle
East plan is to create a rift among Muslims, weaken the Islamic
world, and force it to surrender.”
Some outside observers disbelieve U.S. statements and doubt
media reports of Iranian interference in Iraqi affairs. Some Iraqis
also reject claims of an Iranian hand in the violence. Abd al-Aziz
al-Hakim, for example, told CNN on January 26 that such claims are
unsubstantiated.
“They always accuse Iran of such things, and they told us
about such things even from the first month that we’ve been here
until now,” he said. “And we were always asking for evidence, but
nobody came with evidence.”
It is difficult to verify most of the accusations,
counteraccusations, and denials. However, one significant aspect of
Iran’s effort to influence Iraqi affairs is information
operations using broadcast media, and this can be verified by anybody
with satellite television reception. Two Iranian Arabic-language
television stations can be viewed in Iraq terrestrially and by
satellite — Al-Alam and Al-Kawthar.
Al-Alam is an official Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting
channel that went on the air in March 2003. It portrays U.S.-led
coalition forces and their activities in a negative light, comparing
them to Israeli activities in Palestine. It is an important means by
which Iranian views are conveyed to the Iraqi people. Al-Kawthar is
the new name for Al-Sahar, another official Iranian station that went
on the air in 1997. Al-Kawthar’s news reporting is fairly neutral
on Iraqi affairs, but it is as hostile to Israel as Al-Alam is,
referring to Israel as “the usurping entity” and discussing “the
Palestinians’ usurped rights.” Al-Kawthar’s programming on
the United States is negative, too, and it is supportive of Lebanese
Hizballah and Hamas.
The Iran-U.S. talks on Iraq may eventually get under way, and
there is a remote possibility that direct Iranian involvement in
Iraqi politics will end. However, it is very unlikely that Iran will
end its effort to influence Iraqi affairs through broadcasting and
other applications of “soft power.” Tehran’s interest in shaping
developments to its west and its desire to undermine the United
States indirectly and at a relatively low cost to itself preclude it
from adopting a disinterested approach to what happens in Iraq. (Bill
Samii)
IRAQI PRESIDENT MEETS WITH IRANIAN ENVOY. Iranian Foreign Minister
Manuchehr Mottaki said in Geneva on March 30 that “we have accepted
the proposal of Iraqi officials for talks” between Iran and the U.S.
concerning Iraq, the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported.
“These talks will only be about Iraq,” he said.
Separately, Jalal Talabani met on March 30 with Iran’s
charge d’affaires in Baghdad, Hassan Kazemi-Qomi, who asked for
the release of hundreds of Iranian detainees in Iraq, IRNA reported.
The two discussed bilateral ties, and Talabani thanked Iran for the
support it has given to Iraq’s political process. Kazemi said
Iran is ready to participate in Iraq’s reconstruction and general
development, and respects Iraqi elections and their results, hoping
they will help bring peace to Iraq. He asked for the release of
“about 250 Iranian nationals who are mostly pilgrims” to Iraq’s
Muslim Shi’a shrines, “arrested for allegedly entering Iraq
illegally.” Talabani said he hopes they will be released after
relevant coordination between Iraq’s justice and interior
ministries. (Vahid Sepehri)
IRAN IS IRAQ’S NO. 1 TRADING PARTNER. Iran is now Iraq’s No.
1 trading partner, according to Industry and Minerals Minister Usama
al-Najafi, azzaman.com reported on March 24. Al-Najafi said that
while other regional states are weary of engaging with Iraq because
of the insurgency, Iran has pressed ahead to expand bilateral trade
ties. Iran has become the biggest exporter to Iraq and has recently
provided financial incentives to set up large-scale heavy industries,
he added, saying some $60 billion is needed to revive the industrial
sector. Al-Najafi claimed that much of the foreign aid for the sector
has been diverted to security. (Kathleen Ridolfo)
AHMADINEJAD MEETS WITH TURKISH ENVOY, REJECTS U.A.E. CLAIMS TO
ISLANDS. President Mahmud Ahmadinejad told Hasanu Gurkan, the new
Turkish ambassador in Tehran, on March 28 that Iran and Turkey must
rely on “the Islamic world’s immense, latent power” to work
together and play a more active international role, and criticized
the “imposition of incorrect conditions” on Turkey for entry into the
EU, the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) reported on March 29.
These conditions are a “denigration of [Turkish] culture and
customs,” and “Turkey must maintain its power and dignity,” he said.
Ahmadinejad welcomed Turkey’s “new approach” in playing a
“greater role” in Islamic world affairs, and said Iran will place its
“advances” at the service of neighbors, including Turkey.
The same day in Tehran, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza
Assefi rejected claims by the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) to three
islands in the Persian Gulf held by Iran, ISNA reported on March 29.
At a summit in Khartoum on March 29, foreign ministers of the Arab
League affirmed the sovereignty of the U.A.E. over the islands of
Greater and Lesser Tunbs and Abu Musa. Assefi said the islands are an
“inseparable” part of Iran, and dismissed the resolution as meddling
in Iran’s internal affairs. He added that the “irresponsible
interference of other parties” in Iran’s ongoing talks with the
U.A.E. on the matter “will not help this process,” ISNA reported.
(Vahid Sepehri)
IRAN TO HOLD GULF NAVAL MANEUVERS. Iran is to hold large-scale naval
maneuvers in the Persian Gulf and the Oman Sea from March 31, IRNA
quoted navy chief Morteza Saffari-Natanzi as saying in Tehran on
March 29. Saffari said naval forces of the Islamic Revolution Guards
Corps (IRGC) will carry out the maneuvers together with the regular
navy and air force, unspecified “air and missile forces,” the
IRGC-affiliated Basij militia, and the police. The exercises will
involve more than 17,000 personnel, and about 1,500 vessels. The war
games, to be carried out along the coast from “the northern Persian
Gulf to Chabahar,” an Iranian port close to Pakistan, and as far as
40 kilometers from the coast, are designed to raise defensive
capacities, test weaponry produced in Iran, enhance the experience of
military personnel, and show Iran’s defensive capacity, but also
to “send a message of peace and friendship” to neighboring states,
Saffari said. They are to last until April 6, he added. (Vahid
Sepehri)
IS IRAN CLOSER TO URANIUM ENRICHMENT THAN PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT?
Unidentified diplomats from UN Security Council member states have
told the “Los Angeles Times” that Iran is closer than previously
thought to enriching uranium, the paper reported on March 27. The
initial estimate was that it would take Iran five to 10 years to
produce enough highly enriched uranium to build a nuclear bomb;
officials now believe that Iran could build a bomb within three
years, said the diplomats, who were recently briefed by the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The diplomats said Iran
has bypassed the usual testing periods for centrifuges in an attempt
to assemble as many as possible, as quickly as possible. (Kathleen
Ridolfo)
AHMADINEJAD SAYS IRAN IS FEARLESS ABOUT NUCLEAR PROGRAM. President
Mahmud Ahmadinejad told a crowd on March 27 in the town of Gachsaran
in the southwestern province of Kohkiluyeh va Boir Ahmad that Iran is
a peaceful country but will not be deterred from its nuclear program
by Western “psychological warfare,” ISNA reported the same day. “They
do not know that the right to use peaceful nuclear technology is the
wish of the entire Iranian nation,” and Iranians will defend this
right “in unison.” He was presumably referring to the United States
and to EU states, which fear Iran’s program may be used to
develop bombs. “They think that by holding meetings, making
statements, and issuing resolutions, they can prevent our
people’s progress,” ISNA quoted him as saying. Iranians and their
government will not “retreat one bit” over the nuclear program, he
stated.
Separately, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Assefi said
in Tehran the same day that Iran has agreed to talk to U.S. officials
about Iraqi affairs because of “our increasing concern over
America’s mistaken conduct in Iraq,” ISNA reported. While “we
distrust America’s motives,” discussions are intended to help
bring security to Iraq, he said. (Vahid Sepehri)
UN SECURITY COUNCIL GIVES IRAN 30 DAYS TO END NUCLEAR ACTIVITIES. The
highest body in the United Nations late on March 29 unanimously
approved a statement calling on Iran to fully suspend all
uranium-enrichment activities. The statement requests that the
UN’s nuclear watchdog agency, the International Atomic Energy
Agency, report back in 30 days on Iran’s compliance with demands
to stop enriching uranium, a process that can lead to the development
of a nuclear weapon. The statement offers no indication of what the
Security Council might do if Iran fails to halt such work. John
Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the UN, told reporters the
council’s statement sends a clear message to Iran that “we want a
response from the government of Iran. And the response we want is
full compliance with the obligations it voluntarily undertook under
the [Nuclear] Nonproliferation Treaty.” Iran’s UN ambassador,
Javad Zarif, who was denied a chance to address the Security Council,
told reporters that Iran is not seeking nuclear weapons but will not
abandon its right to nuclear energy and will “not accept pressure or
intimidation.” (Vahid Sepehri)
RUSSIA SENDS MIXED MESSAGES ON IRAN. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
said in Berlin on March 30 that his country insists on a diplomatic
solution to the Iranian nuclear dispute, news agencies reported. He
added that “there is no doubt that [the problem should be resolved]
exclusively by political and diplomatic means, as many of our
European colleagues and our Chinese friends have said many times. Any
ideas of resolving the matter by compulsion and force are extremely
counterproductive and cannot be supported.” Lavrov argued that “the
last report of the [International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA)]
says that it cannot assert that there is a military aspect to the
Iranian nuclear program. So, before we call any situation a threat,
we need facts, especially in the region like the Middle East, where
so many things are happening.” But in Moscow, the Foreign Ministry
issued a statement calling on Tehran to “heed with great attention
the common opinion of the UN Security Council members.” Teheran
should “ensure full-fledged cooperation with the IAEA on all
remaining issues,” the statement added. (Patrick Moore)
IRAN REITERATES CLAIM ITS NUCLEAR PROGRAM IS ONLY PEACEFUL.
Iran’s ranking nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani told the French
weekly “Le Point” on March 27 in Tehran that Iran is pursuing an
“entirely clear” and peaceful nuclear program and has done nothing to
deserve referral to the UN Security Council, IRNA reported on March
30. He said Iran wants two things: to pursue nuclear technology
research, and to assure a supply of fuel for the power stations it
intends to build. Larijani said Western powers have not honored
commitments they made to Iran’s pre-1979, pro-Western regime,
which also had a nuclear program. Larijani suggested the formation of
a multinational consortium in Iran to enrich uranium, with partners
such as France, Germany, or Russia.
He dismissed a suggestion that Iran would use its know-how to
carry out secret enrichment work elsewhere in Iran, but also deplored
as a breach of confidence reports — apparently sent by sources close
to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) — that Iran will
soon operate a cascade of 164 centrifuges at its Natanz plant. These
operate as part of the uranium-enrichment process, he said, and
added: “We have done nothing against international norms and laws to
deserve [referral to] the Security Council. In my opinion, the
referral of Iran’s dossier from the [IAEA] governing board to the
Security Council is a professional embarrassment for the agency,
showing how politics dominate [its] professional work,” IRNA
reported. (Vahid Sepehri)
FOREIGN MINISTER CRITICIZES ‘HASTY’ MOVES ON IRAN DOSSIER.
Manuchehr Mottaki said in Geneva on March 30 that “reporting
Iran’s dossier to the Security Council was a mistaken move,” and
he expressed the hope that the issue will be solved through
“negotiation and dialogue” at the IAEA, IRNA reported. Giving Iran a
30-day deadline to suspend its enrichment activities indicates “hasty
decisions,” he said, though unspecified parties “are seeking
pretexts, and have openly said they are pursuing other aims.” Mottaki
said after the Conference on Disarmament that the situation will only
become more complicated “if certain other people are pursuing other
aims.” He said he does not believe sanctions are a likely option “for
now,” and dismissed the possibility of Israeli strikes on Iranian
installations, adding that Iran has readied itself for “different
conditions.” Iran prefers “finding an agreement, but we have in the
past increased our potential and capabilities in various areas” as
the country came to terms with “existing sanctions,” IRNA reported.
(Vahid Sepehri)
‘ENEMIES’ ALLEGEDLY SEEK TO BREAK IRAN THROUGH PSYCHOLOGICAL
WARFARE. Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad said on March 26 that
the enemies of Iran are trying to gain concessions through a program
of psychological warfare and misinformation, IRNA reported the same
day. “Our nation will respond to the enemies and the mischievous ones
resolutely,” Ahmadinejad said in a public address in the province of
Kohkiluyeh va Boir Ahmad. The president called on Iran’s enemies
to apologize for accusing his country of “warmongering,” calling such
accusations a huge insult to the Islamic republic. Ahmadinejad said
that Iran will continue its path to acquiring nuclear energy, adding
that Iran will seek reparations for the 2 1/2-year delay in carrying
out its nuclear activities; he did not say from whom he would seek
the reparations.
Ahmadinejad claimed in a March 25 meeting with Syrian Vice
President Faruq al-Shar’a that the United States intends to
create discord among Muslim countries in order to control them and
make them dependent on it, the Iranian Labor News Agency (ILNA)
reported the same day. Ahmadinejad claimed that the United States and
the West are facing a crisis in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Palestine and
“therefore are trying to transmit their problems to others through
creating discord and division.” Regarding possible talks with the
United States on Iraq, Ahmadinejad said that though Iran does not
trust the United States, it cannot ignore requests by Iraqi officials
that a meeting be held. (Kathleen Ridolfo)
SUPREME LEADER PRAISES IRAN’S VIGILANCE AGAINST WEST. Supreme
Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei praised the Iranian nation in a March
26 speech for its vigilance against the enemies of Iran, saying the
country’s resilience has earned it the respect of both its
friends and enemies, the Iranian state television channel Voice and
Vision of the Islamic Republic reported. Speaking about the ongoing
nuclear standoff between Iran and the West, Khamenei told a gathering
of thousands of Basij militia in Tehran: “There is a possibility that
these threats [from the West] will be realized, in which case only a
nation that can stand up to its enemy without retreating from its
position will maintain its respect, greatness, identity, and
interests.” Calling the United States and Israel Iran’s greatest
enemies, Khamenei said the West is trying to create a global
consensus against Iran. He maintained that the true global consensus
is against “America’s arrogance and its warmongering…and not
against the Iranian nation.”
Basij Resistance Force commander Mohammad Hejazi told the
same gathering that the Basij plans to expand its military and
defense capabilities this year in order to fulfill its revolutionary
and religious duties to defend national interests, the state-run
television reported. (Kathleen Ridolfo)
DEFENSE MINISTER SAYS IRAN AIMING FOR ‘INTELLIGENT’ WEAPONRY.
Defense Minister Mustafa Mohammad Najjar told a gathering of officers
in the Basij militia in the Kohkiluyeh va Boir Ahmad province on 27
March that the Defense Ministry will seek to make defense-industry
equipment “intelligent,” and raise the quality of products in the new
Persian year, which runs until March 2007. This would be one of a
series of moves to raise defensive capabilities, assure “greater
flexibility,” and use “advanced technologies,” ISNA reported the same
day. Najjar said Iran has made “very good” progress in “the
production of electronic technologies” that will help raise the
intelligence of defensive equipment. “We are now able to produce
intelligent weaponry to precisely identify and target the aims of the
enemy,” he said. “We shall expand this advanced technology in the
armored, air, aerospace, marine, automobile, missile, and other
determined industries,” he said. He added that, “as we have declared
many times,” the armed forces’ response to any enemy aggression
will be “decisive and crushing, so the enemy will regret its move,”
ISNA reported. (Vahid Sepehri)
OFFICIAL SAYS IRAN MAY CURB FUEL CONSUMPTION. The head of the
Management and Planning Organization, Farhad Rahbar, said Iran may
restrict the use of car fuel for a six-month period before March 2007
to cut costly fuel imports caused by Iranians’ excessive fuel
consumption, RFE/RL’s Radio Farda reported on March 28. Economist
Fereidun Khavand says Iran spent about $4.5 billion importing about
30 million liters of gasoline in the Persian year ending in March
2006. Rahbar’s reported comment, he said, is a response to the
fact that parliament has allocated no more than $2.5 billion to cover
fuel imports in the Persian year ending in March 2007. ISNA quoted
the head of the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution
Company, Hassan Zia-Kashani, as saying on March 18 that Iranians used
66.9 million liters of gasoline in the year to March 2006, and are
expected to use about 74 million liters in the year ahead. He said
the government has not yet issued directives restricting fuel, ISNA
added. (Vahid Sepehri)
JUDICIARY HEAD CRITICIZES CORRUPTION WITHIN STATE SECTOR. Ayatollah
Mahmud Hashemi-Shahrudi, the head of Iran’s judiciary, told
members of northeastern Khorasan Province’s chamber of commerce
on March 28 that “judicial officials today see support for the
country’s economic progress as one of their main duties,” ISNA
reported. He said that “those who have doubts over the private sector
should know that most cases of corruption and abuse are in the state
sector, and one must trust the private sector.” He said Iran’s
economy had suffered due to the distrust between the state and
private sectors in the past, and the private sector should consider
itself part of the state apparatus — since it shares the aim of
making Iran prosperous — “and help the government in its executive
activities,” ISNA reported. He urged the formation of a central body
that would include representatives of the private sector, government
officials, and members of the judiciary to discuss related issues and
maintain dialogue. He dismissed the idea that Iran’s polity
opposes private enterprise: “All this comes from enemy propaganda,
which wants to create divisions among social institutions.” (Vahid
Sepehri)
HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER TO GO ON TRIAL. Abdolfattah Soltani, a lawyer
released in early March after seven months in detention, is to be
tried on April 5 by a Revolutionary Court in Tehran, Radio Farda
reported on March 28. Mohammad Ali Dadkhah, one of a team of lawyers
representing Soltani, told Radio Farda that “the sum of his charges
indicates some form of political crime.” Soltani, he added, is to be
tried in a court specially formed for this case, and “there is no
sign of any jury, and so far we do not know if it will be an open
trial or not.” Dadkhah told Radio Farda that Soltani is charged with
disclosing nuclear secrets, apparently while defending suspects
charged with nuclear espionage. Dadkhah added, however, that one of
the interrogators who will be involved in the trial believes the
dossier and the evidence available do not warrant the charges brought
against Soltani. Dadkhah argued that, in any case, neither legal
officials nor attorneys have access to top-secret material in trials.
(Vahid Sepehri)
POOR IRANIAN REPORTEDLY KILLS HIS FAMILY, HANGS HIMSELF. A man
reportedly killed his six children and wife before killing himself
because he could no longer pay the rent for his apartment in Tabriz,
northwestern Iran, RFE/RL’s Radio Farda reported on March 29,
citing neighbors and local journalist Payman Pakmehr. The rent was a
little over $50 a month, Pakmehr told Radio Farda. Neighbors told
Pakmehr the man left a note saying he could no longer afford living
expenses and rent, and that the family had been evicted before for
not paying rent. It is not clear when the killings happened.
Neighbors called in the police when alerted by the stench of
decomposed bodies, Pakmehr said. Police are investigating, Radio
Farda reported. (Vahid Sepehri)
RIGHTS GROUP CONCERNED ABOUT IRANIANS FACING EXECUTION. Amnesty
International (AI) has expressed concern over the imminent execution
of 28-year-old Valiollah Feyz Mahdavi, currently in prison in Karaj,
near Tehran, RFE/RL’s Radio Farda reported on March 30. AI stated
on its website on March 29 that prison authorities forced Mahdavi,
reportedly a supporter of the Mujahedin Khalq Organization, an armed
opposition group based in Iraq, to sign a paper on March 24 stating
May 16 as the date of his execution. Amnesty said Iran executed
another man at that prison in February 2005 after informing him of
his execution in a similar manner. Mahdavi was tried in a
revolutionary court without a defense attorney, Amnesty stated. AI
also reported on March 28 that Iran is to execute Fatemeh
Haqiqat-Pajuh, who was convicted of murdering her husband, by April
1. The Supreme Court has cancelled a stay of execution granted her
last October. (Vahid Sepehri)
POWERFUL EARTHQUAKE HITS WESTERN IRAN. Three earthquakes rocked
western Iran early on March 31, killing dozens and injuring more than
1,000 others, international media reported. The quake’s epicenter
was in Luristan Province. The hardest hit areas are villages between
the towns of Dorud and Borujerd. Hospitals in those two towns are
full to capacity with the wounded. Emergency officials have put out
an urgent call for medical supplies and assistance.
************************************* ********************
Copyright (c) 2006. RFE/RL, Inc. All rights reserved.
The “RFE/RL Iran Report” is a weekly prepared by A. William Samii on
the basis of materials from RFE/RL broadcast services, RFE/RL
Newsline, and other news services. It is distributed every Monday.
Direct comments to A. William Samii at [email protected].
For information on reprints, see:
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Back issues are online at
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ONE AZERI SOLDIER KILLED, ONE WOUNDED IN ARMENIAN CEASEFIRE VIOLATION
ANS TV, Baku
3 Apr 06
[Presenter] Armenian troops subjected the Azerbaijani positions and
the village of Cafarli of the Qazax District to fire from automatic
and machine guns at 2305 [1905 gmt] last night.
The Armenian troops fired on the Azerbaijani positions near the
village of Asagi Abdurrahmani in Fuzuli District at 2145 [1645 gmt].
One Azerbaijani solder was martyred and another wounded when repulsing
an attack from the Armenian troops. The correspondent of ANS’s Karabakh
bureau, Sahin Rzayev, has the details.
[Correspondent by phone] The Armenian armed forces have subjected the
Azerbaijani positions and settlements in Fuzuli District to heavy
fire four times over the last 24 hours. Azerbaijani soldier Saban
Yagubov from Zaqatala District was seriously wounded and died.
Soldier Niyamaddin Sirinov from Goranboy District was badly wounded.
It must be noted that the Armenians primarily fired on the Azerbaijani
positions in Asagi Abdurrahmanli and the Azerbaijani soldier was
martyred on the territory of this village.
The Armenian armed forces carried out their last attack against
Asagi Abdurrahmanli at 2145 [1645 gmt]. Residents of the villages of
Sukubayli and Alxanli said that the Armenians had subjected them to
fire from automatic weapons and machine guns for about half an hour.
The Armenians fired on the Azerbaijani positions in Alxanli from the
village of Qaraxanbayli in Fuzuli District, which is under Armenian
occupation, from 2315 [1915 gmt]. Single shots can be heard on the
contact line even as we speak.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

RUSSIA HAILS COOPERATION WITH ARMENIA, DEFENDS GAS PRICE RISE
Today, Azerbaijan
April 3 2006
Russia’s ambassador to Armenia said Monday that the two countries were
promoting stability in the Caucasus region, and that Gazprom’s decision
to raise natural gas prices for the former Soviet republic was in
line with current policy to move towards free-market pricing schemes.
“Our teamwork has had a positive effect on regional stability and
integration processes among former Soviet republics,” Nikolai Pavlov
said in an interview to RIA Novosti.
While acknowledging that Russia’s decision to raise natural gas prices
for Armenia had put some strain on bilateral relations, Pavlov said
the move was part of Russian efforts to put the gas market on a
free-market basis.
In January, Russia doubled the price for natural gas supplies to
Armenia from $54 per 1,000 cubic meters to $110.
The move has stirred heated debate in Armenia, whose struggling
economy is heavily dependent on Russian gas, and prompted some
political groups to demand a review of relations with Moscow.
Pavlov hailed bilateral contacts within the Collective Security Treaty
Organization (CSTO), a regional security body founded in 2002 that
also includes Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan.
The organization, which some experts say was created to prevent NATO’s
further eastward expansion and keep some CIS countries under Russia’s
military protection, has a Collective Rapid Reaction Force with 1,500
military personnel deployed in Central Asia.
Pavlov also said that Russia remained Armenia’s main trade partner,
and in 2005 bilateral trade hiked 40%.
URL:
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARMENIA, TAJIKISTAN AND KYRGYZSTAN REBUILD AIR-DEFENSE NETWORKS
Akipress , Kyrgyzstan
April 3 2006
– A deputy commander of the CIS Integrated Air Defense System said
Friday that in the past decade the air defense networks of Armenia,
Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan had been restored from scratch.
“During this time, air defense networks have been effectively revived
in the Republic of Armenia, and much has been done in this respect
in the Republic of Tajikistan and the Republic of Kyrgyzstan,” Lt. Gen.
Aitech Bizhev said, referring to the Commonwealth of Independent
States, the loose alliance that replaced the Soviet Union.
He said that the Belarusian air defense network was by far the
most operationally effective, one of the most powerful in Europe,
adding that Kazakhstan was implementing a comprehensive air defense
modernization program, which could become a major factor in ensuring
strategic stability in Central Asia.
The CIS Integrated Air Defense System is comprised of Armenia, Belarus,
Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
Uzbekistan, and Ukraine. Georgia recently pulled out of the CIS
Defense Ministers Council, but is still formally part of the air
defense system.
Over the past decade, more than 100 joint war games and military
exercises have been conducted with up to 60 various aircraft and
other high-tech equipment used in each exercise.
The Agreement on the Creation of the CIS Integrated Air Defense System
was signed by 10 CIS states on February 10, 1995.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ANCIENT CHRISTIAN SECT PRAYS FOR TURKEY TO JOIN EU
By Gareth Jones
Reuters, UK
April 3 2006
MARDIN, Turkey (Reuters) — Like most Turkish men, Gabriel Oktay
Cilli likes to drink tea with his mates and go to soccer matches.
However, one detail marks him out sharply in this overwhelmingly
Muslim country: every Sunday he goes to church.
On the wall of his jewellery shop, next to the more familiar portrait
of modern Turkey’s founder Kemal Ataturk whose image decorates stores,
restaurants and offices throughout the country, hangs a picture of
Jesus Christ and his disciples.
Cilli belongs to one of Turkey’s most ancient communities, the Syriac
Christians, who still speak a form of Aramaic, the language spoken
by Jesus. In Turkey they number barely 20,000, down from 250,000 when
Ataturk founded the republic in 1923.
The 20th century was hard on the Syriacs, bringing religious
persecution and economic hardship, but Cilli is confident about his
future in a democratic Turkey that aims to join the European Union.
He has no plans to follow relatives into exile.
“I plan to stay here, this is my home. If we all left, who would look
after our churches and monasteries?” he said in his shop in Mardin,
a town in southeastern Turkey near Syria.
“Twenty years ago, life was quite difficult but now I have no
problems. Things are changing, thanks partly to the EU,” he said,
serving home-made red wine rather than the customary tea offered
to visitors.
A fresh wave of Syriacs emigrated as recently as the 1980s and 1990s
as fighting raged in their historic homeland between Turkish security
forces and Kurdish separatists. Kurds are the biggest ethnic group
in the region.
The violence fell sharply after the 1999 capture of Abdullah Ocalan,
leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), and the
government eased language and cultural restrictions on its minorities
as part of EU-linked reforms.
WE HAVE PEACE NOW
“Some Syriacs are even coming back here now. Up to 50 families have
returned in the last few years,” said Cilli.
At his residence in the ancient, ochre-coloured monastery of
Deyrulzafaran — which means the Saffron Monastery in Arabic — Saliba
Ozmen, metropolitan (bishop) of Mardin, was also cautiously optimistic.
“We have peace now, we can draw breath,” the bearded, Oxford-educated
clergyman told Reuters.
He is worried that his fifth century monastery will receive fewer
visitors this year because of the conflict in Iraq and tension between
the Muslim world and the West triggered by Danish cartoons depicting
the Prophet Mohammad.
The monastery receives more than 100,000 visitors a year, most of
them Turks. Britain’s Prince Charles and Turkey’s President Ahmet
Necdet Sezer are among recent visitors.
Any increase in tensions between Muslims and the West puts non-Muslim
minorities in countries such as Turkey in a delicate position,
although Ozmen said the cartoon crisis passed quietly for the 3,000
Syriacs in the southeast region.
“We were a little nervous. People blamed Christians generally for
the cartoons, but here in Turkey the crisis was less acute than in
the Arab world,” said Ozmen.
Turkish authorities acted sensitively, for example ensuring that
protests against the cartoons in Mardin were held in the Muslim,
not the Christian, part of town, church members said.
“We need to overcome prejudice between religions…Muslims and
Christians alike, we are all citizens of Turkey. We too pay our
taxes and do our military service. The most important thing for us
is freedom and trust,” Ozmen said.
RIGHTS RESTRICTED
Ozmen said the worldwide community of Syriacs, also known as Jacobite
Christians, now numbers up to 15 million, three million of them in
India where they trace their roots to the decades after Christ’s
crucifixion.
Since the collapse of the relatively tolerant Ottoman Empire, Turkey’s
Syriacs have seemed vulnerable and beleaguered.
They are not an officially designated minority in Turkey like the
Greeks or Armenians and so have no special protection for rights such
as private education under the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne’s provisions
for non-Muslim minorities.
Turkey’s Syriacs — who include up to 15,000 people in Istanbul —
attend state schools where teaching is in Turkish and where they can
learn about Islam.
They can be taught about their own language and religion only
informally outside school hours by priests, monks and nuns. About 20
boys live and study at Deyrulzafaran.
Would-be priests have to study in Damascus, home to the Syriac
patriarch, head of their church, or in the West.
There are other problems, too. Isa Gulten, a teacher of Aramaic, says
local Kurds are taking land that still legally belongs to Syriacs
residing abroad.
“The state turns a blind eye to this. It should be protecting the
rights of minorities more vigorously,” he said.
However, the overall picture is one of live-and-let-live.
Cilli said Christians and Muslims in Mardin celebrated each other’s
religious festivals. Christians would offer painted eggs at Easter
while Muslims would invite them to eat lamb during the Islamic Feast
of the Sacrifice.
Ozmen’s monastery is due to receive 600,000 euros ($726,900) from
the European Commission for major renovation work.
“As a religious minority we look to the EU. But it is important for
Turkey too, as a bridge between East and West, to preserve its ethnic
and cultural mosaic,” he said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress