PRESIDENT OF ARMENIA TO ATTEND INFORMAL CSTO SUMMIT IN BISHKEK
armradio.am
30.07.2009 15:33
The Presidnet of Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan, will pay a working visit
to Bishkek on July 31 to participate in the non-official meeting of
the Presidents of the member states of the Collective Security Treaty
Organization (CSTO), President’s Press Office reported.
US AZERIS PROTEST AT ARMENIAN ALLEGATIONS
AzerNews Weekly
July 28 2009
Azerbaijan
The Azerbaijani-American Council (AAC) has issued a statement
protesting calls by two Armenian groups in the United States to
have the separatist regime in the Armenia-occupied Upper (Nagorno)
Garabagh region of Azerbaijan involved in ongoing peace talks between
Baku and Yerevan.
Ken Hachikian, the head of the Armenian National Committee of America
(ANCA), in a letter sent to US President Barack Obama on July 14,
complained that the countries co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group
mediating the peace process are allegedly pressuring Yerevan to accept
unilateral and dangerous concessions.
Referring to Obama`s pre-election pledge, Hachikian called for
the involvement of the self-proclaimed Upper Garabagh republic in
negotiations.
The Armenian Assembly of America issued a similar statement on July 22.
In its statement, the AAC recalled that Obama, in his pre-election
speech, had spoken about peace satisfying all sides involved, noting
that one of these sides is the Azeri community of Upper Garabagh.
The Council said it was closely following the peace process, expressing
hope that the parties to the long-standing conflict would achieve
sustainable peace in the near future.
Azerbaijan and Armenia fought a lengthy war that ended with the signing
of a cease-fire in 1994, but Armenia continues to occupy Upper Garabagh
and seven other Azerbaijani districts in defiance of international
law. Peace talks have not yet resulted in resolving the conflict.
ARMENIA INTERESTED IN DEEPENING COOPERATION WITH ITALY
armradio.am
28.07.2009 16:31
On July 28 RA Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan received the newly
appointed Ambassador of Italy to Armenia, Bruno Scapini.
Seyran Ohanyan congratulated the diplomat on assuming office and
expressed hope that the Armenian-Italian cooperation would further
reinforce during his tenure in office.
Emphasizing Armenia’s willingness to cooperate with Italy, one of the
core members of the European Union and NATO, the Defense Minister noted
that our country encourages the initiatives targeted at promoting
the cooperation with the European Union, particularly the European
Neighborhood and Eastern Partnership Programs.
Turning to the Armenian-Italian cooperation in the field of defense,
Seyran Ohanyan expressed hope that it would continue developing in
the spheres of military education, peacekeeping, military medicine
and others.
JOURNALISTS SEEK TO VISIT GARABAGH
AzerNews Weekly
July 21 2009
Azerbaijan
A group of Azeri journalists are seeking to visit Upper (Nagorno)
Garabagh, a region under Armenian occupation, according to one of
the organizers of the planned visit.
Jeyhun Musaoghlu said the initiative aims to obtain transparent
information on whether or not Azeris and Armenians will be able to
live side by side after the two countries resolve their long-standing
conflict.
"By answering the question whether or not Garabagh Armenians, who
are de jure considered citizens of Azerbaijan, will be able to live
alongside us, we will have answered the question of either peace or
war coming to the forefront."
Musaoghlu said that, to avoid any reproaches, the journalists are
looking to visit the occupied region under Azerbaijan`s patronage
and have sought permission from the Foreign Ministry. According to
Musaoghlu, the list of journalists willing to pay the visit is ready,
but they are not being named to avoid "outside pressure."
Musaoghlu added that government agencies have not yet responded to
the initiative.
The proposal comes following a recent joint visit by Azeri and
Armenian intellectuals to Upper Garabagh, which represented a public
diplomacy effort.
Upper Garabagh has been occupied by Armenia since a 1994 ceasefire
ended hostilities that killed an estimated 30,000 people and ousted
about one million Azeris from their homes. Years of peace talks have
brought few tangible results.
KHAMENEI ISSUES STRONG WARNING TO OPPOSITION
/PanARMENIAN.Net/
21.07.2009 13:20 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told
politicians Monday not to disturb the country’s security in a strong
warning to the opposition to back down after one of its top figures
called for a referendum on the government.
Khamenei addressed "Iran’s elite" and warned them to be cautious in
the positions they take on the turmoil that has shaken the country
since the disputed presidential election on June 12.
He said that hurting Iran’s security was "the biggest vice," adding
that "anybody who drives the society toward insecurity and disorder
is a hated person in the view of the Iranian nation, whoever he is."
However, Khamenei did not mention any names.
"Elites should know that any talk, action or analysis that helps
(the enemy) is a move against the nation. We should be very careful,"
Khamenei said
"People regard with hate anyone, in any position, who wants to
move society towards insecurity," Khamenei said. "There are things
that should not be said. If we say them, we have moved against the
nation. This is now a test for the elites and failing in this test
… means falling down."
Meanwhile, Iran’s former president Mohammad Khatami called on the
authorities to hold a referendum on the legitimacy of the government
after the country’s disputed June presidential vote, Reuters reported.
ARMENIA INTERESTED IN DEVELOPING RELATIONS WITH SAUDI ARABIA
/PanARMENIAN.Net/
20.07.2009 13:48 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan met with
Saudi Arabian sheikh Mohammad Musalami to discuss bilateral relations
and implementation of investment projects.
"There are opportunities for agricultural cooperation," Mr. Musalami
said.
For his part, the Armenian PM voiced readiness to assist implementation
of joint projects.
SANCTIONS ON AIR INDUSTRY INHUMANE: PROSECUTOR GENERAL
Tehran Times
July 21 2009
TEHRAN – In a statement released on Monday, National Prosecutor
General Qorban-Ali Dorri Najafabadi denounced the sanctions against
air industry, saying it is "against humanity".
The remarks by the prosecutor general came as an Iranian passenger
plane crashed last Wednesday in northwestern Iran, killing all 153
passengers and 15 crew members.
"ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) and other
international organizations should understand that the sanctions
against air industry are a clear manifestation of attempts against
humanity," he stated.
"Despite all the efforts during the recent years to improve the
security of flights, sanctions on plane parts are still killing
passengers."
Dorri Najafabadi also asked the administration to clarify the causes
of the plane crash on Wednesday.
Increasing the security of the planes is a national demand and the
officials should make utmost effort to prevent the recurrence of such
unfortunate events, he insisted.
Caspian Airlines Flight 7908, which was en route to Yerevan, went
down 20 kilometers from the city of Qazvin about 15 minutes after
takeoff from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Airport.
The plane was a Russian-made Tupolev.
A team of eight young Iranian judokas and their two coaches were
among the victims.
Ahmad Majidi, the head of the special working group investigating
the Caspian Airlines crash, said on Sunday the bodies of 152 people
killed in the fiery plane crash have been returned to their families
CIS leaders come to Moscow for day at the races
17:1518/07/2009
MOSCOW, July 18 (RIA Novosti) – The leaders of six of the 11 CIS
countries were joined in Moscow on Saturday by the presidents of the
former Georgian republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia for an informal
trip to the races.
The annual President’s Cup horse race has become something of an event
for CIS leaders, although Russia’s strained relations with some members
of the Commonwealth of Independent States resulted in several no-shows
by the presidents of Belarus, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and
Kyrgyzstan.
The leaders of Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Moldova
did attend, with only the Tajik president not running a horse in the
race, which was won by the stallion Monomakh from the Don stables in
Rostov, southern Russia.
"We personally invited all the presidents," Russian presidential aide
Sergei Prikhodko said on Friday.
Uzbek President Islam Karimov expressed his thanks for the invitation
but said the trip would not fit into his schedule, while Turkmenistan’s
Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov declined the invitation due to a relative’s
illness.
Belarus, Ukraine and Turkmenistan have had diplomatic differences with
Russia in recent months, particularly over trade in natural gas, but
Moscow saw no drama in the absences.
Despite the removal of much political significance from the event,
President Dmitry Medvedev held meetings with Kazakh President Nursultan
Nazarbayev and Tajik leader Emomali Rakhmon. Medvedev said the latter
laid the groundwork for his upcoming trip to Tajikistan.
After the race, Medvedev met jointly over lunch with the presidents of
Azerbaijan and Armenia, Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sargsyan, to discuss the
search for a settlement to the dispute over Nagorny Karabakh, an
Armenian-populated region in Azerbaijan that has been de facto
independent since a conflict in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The Russian president has become personally engaged in the search for a
resolution to the standoff, and the sides were expected to continue
discussions started by the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders on Friday
about the fundamental principles of a settlement.
The Moscow gathering was also significant for the attendance of
Abkhazian President Sergei Bagapsh and South Ossetian President Eduard
Kokoity, marking their increasing integration by Moscow into
post-Soviet international structures.
Moscow recognized the two republics shortly after its war with Georgia
last August, when Tbilisi attacked South Ossetia in an attempt to bring
it back under central control. Despite diplomatic pressure,
particularly on Belarus, only Nicaragua has joined Russia in
recognizing the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
ICELAND THROWS DOWN A POLITICAL CHALLENGE TO TURKEY
Azerbaijan Business Center
July 17 2009
Baku, Fineko/abc.az. Iceland which bankrupted during first volleys
of the global economic crisis has stooped to the proposal to become
part of the European Union.
Alting, general assembly of the Island voted for country’s joining
the EU.
33 mercantile citizens voted "for" and 28 liberty-loving vikings
voted "against". This numeral superiority can hardly be called
large. Besides, the Island will not become a EU member right now. But
the event for Europe as a whole and the EU in particular is decisive.
Icelandic Prime Minister Johanna Sigurdardottir has already called
the voting a "historical moment to have very favorable consequences
for the future of the nation". But she apparently did not think
of what a challenge the 33 mercantilists have thrown down to the
European Commission.
The point is that registration of EU membership of Iceland, an island
lying between Europe and America, while simultaneously the EU in fact
refuses Turkey located on the European territory will mean moral and
political insult to the Turkish elite that sets a goal of country’s
acceding to the EU and agrees constantly on concessions for the sake
of getting devout membership.
Acceptance of Iceland that in fact gives nothing to Europe with
simultaneous refusal to Turkey will mean violation of norms
established by the EU itself, in particular norms of equality,
tolerance, democracy.
In practice it will mean that the 70-million European, although Moslem,
country, has less rights to become part of the EU than the Christian
island lost in the Atlantic. If such a choice is made, then Georgia
with Armenia will be able to enter the EU earlier than Turkey which
realized scheme of "Islamic democracy" (on analogy with European
Christian democrats) or even earlier than secular Azerbaijan.
Iceland defied a challenge to the EU, Turkey and all the states that
have done much to enter in "single Europe". Choice in favor of Iceland
will lead inevitably to appearance of alternate blocs.
At the same time no one should be deceived that Iceland was declining
from membership in the EU for the reason of discontent with quota for
fishing and that this island is a member of NATO, Northern Council,
IMF, WB, UN and its organizations, CE and European Free Trade
Association. But the same Turkey has no less regalia and deserts in
"cold war".
"SERIOUS PROGRESS" EXPECTED AT KARABAKH TALKS IN MOSCOW
Lider TV
July 16 2009
Baku, Azerbaijan
[Presenter] Yet another meeting will be held between the Azerbaijani
and Armenian presidents in Moscow tomorrow. At the meeting they are
expected to discuss the basic principles put forward in the settlement
of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict.
Serious progress is expected to be achieved in the settlement of the
problem at this sixth meeting between the presidents.
[Correspondent over video of archive footage of meeting between
presidents] Noticeably increased diplomatic activity in the settlement
of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict and the latest cautiously optimistic
statements make it possible to say that some results may be achieved in
the Moscow talks. At least because almost all the leading world powers
are seeking close cooperation with the regional leader – Azerbaijan
– in order to secure their geopolitical and other interests in the
South Caucasus.
Against the background of these interests, the fact that the Baku
government is putting forward its own demands and demanding that it
be settled is accepted as natural.
On the other hand, Azerbaijan’s successful foreign policy has
frustrated Armenian occupiers. Armenian political experts also note
that over the past period Yerevan’s steps look pointless in the context
of the Baku government’s serious achievements in the international
arena in the Nagornyy Karabakh issue.
[Passage omitted: more quotes from Armenian, Russian experts]
Some political experts say that Russia has no other choice than
take on the settlement of the conflict in any form because if the
problem is not resolved at Moscow’s initiative, America, the European
Union, Turkey and other countries may become active in the conflict
settlement which may strike a serious blow to Russia’s international
and regional image.