Author: Hunanian Jack

NEWLY ELECTED PARLIAMENT IS NOT ABLE TO WITHSTAND CHALLENGES FACED BY COUNTRY, ANM VICE-CHAIRMAN SAYS

Noyan Tapan
Jul 6, 2007

YEREVAN, JULY 6, NOYAN TAPAN. The parliament of current convocation is
not able to withstand the challenges faced by Armenia. Aram Manukian,
the Vice-Chairman of the Armenian National Movement party, expressed
such an opinion at the July 6 press conference. In his words, the
number of people "creating laws" and having a diplomatic experience in
the current parliament does not exceed 15, and more than the half of
the deputies though have been elected for several times, nevertheless,
have never pronounced a single world in the parliament. "A body, which
works by 10%, cannot play a serious role," the ANM Vice-Chairman said.

While, in his words, cooperation among Georgia, Azerbaijan and Turkey
is deepening at brisk rates in the region. Besides, in case Gabala
radiolocation station is operated by the U.S. and Russia jointly,
Azerbaijan’s international rating will rise. If the U.S. refuses
that proposal, the United States will expand its program in Poland
and Czech Republic, which will weaken the positions of Armenia’s
strategic partner, Russia.

The ANM Vice-Chairman said that the forces defeated in the
parliamentary elections have the last chance to implement a legal
power shift, as a result of which the country will be able to withstand
external and internal challenges. Its only way is to unite and to run
for the presidential elections with a common candidate. A. Manukian
said that the moment has come when the political forces have to unite
in one team, in which the common candidate "will be born."

A. Manukian does not see an alternative to the former RA President
as a common candidate. In his words, there is no other person in the
political field, who is as much experienced as Levon Ter-Petrosian,
who is predictable and will be able to unite various political forces
around himself and register his victory after the elections.

In response to the question of whether Levon Ter-Petrosian agrees
to nominate his candidature, the ANM Vice-Chairman said that no
statement has been made about his refusing to be a candidate for
presidency. In A.

Manukian’s words, for the present, the first Armenian President
is waiting for situation’s development. "Unless there are proper
conditions for his nomination, or if he refuses to be a candidate, we
will find the candidate we can support," the ANM Vice-Chairman stated.

BROTHER AND NEPHEW OF HAKOB HAKOBIAN, MP IN NATIONAL ASSEMBLY, DETAINED

Noyan Tapan
Jul 6, 2007

YEREVAN, JULY 6, NOYAN TAPAN. The collaborators of the RA Police
blowed up the gates of the houses of the brother of Hakob Hakobian
(Lady Hakob), an MP in the National Assembly, and his nephew,
broke into their houses and detained the brother of H. Hakobian:
Simon Hakobian, and the latters youngest son: Vardan Hakobian. The
eldest son of Simon Hakobian: Stephan Hakobian, managed to escape. The
policemen discovered a great amount of ammunition.

According to the information provided by the Daily "Haykakan Zhamanak"
("Armenian Time"), Simon Hakobian was kept in the police station for
2 to 3 days, and as for Vardan Hakobian, he is still detained.

According to the Daily "Haykakan Zhamanak" ("Armenian Time"), the order
of the above-mentioned operation "comes from above." Robert Kocharian,
the RA President, and Serge Sargsian, the RA Prime Minister, ordered
the law-enforcement bodies to quickly reveal the murder of Sedrak
Zatikian, the son of Vahan Zatikian, a former MP and late member of
the RPA, which was committed on June 22, 2006. It is supposed that
the associates of Hakob Hakobian are connected with this murder.

According to the Daily "Haykakan Zhamanak", these special operations
against the family of the MP began after detained Arsen Arushanian
gave evidence concerning the murder case of S. Zatikian on June 31,
when he mentioned the names of certain people among the associates
of Hakob Hakobian.

In addition to other versions, the Daily writes that the murder of
Sedrak Zatikian is connected with the councillor elections held
in the Malatia-Sebastia community on September 25, 2005, where
Simon Zatikian received a great number of votes, and the Hakobians
feared that he could quickly take the positions his late father had
enjoyed. Therefore, "the Hakobians had a problem in losing the sphere
of their influence and that is why the murder of Sedrak Zatikian was
organized," the newspaper mentions.

Parties failed to assume responsibility

04-07-2007 14:54:36 – KarabakhOpen

Masis Mayilyan, NKR presidential candidate, held an interview with the
reporter of the Web site of the Mitq Analytical Center. Below is part
of this interview on the urgent internal problems of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Mr. Mayilyan, various evaluations of the pre-election situation in NKR
are heard in Armenia. What is your opinion on the current political
situation in Artsakh? Do the Armenian political forces somehow
influence the reforms underway in the republic?

It is already obvious that the election of a new president of
Nagorno-Karabakh caused controversial reactions among the society and
the political forces. It became clear that many are not ready to solve
this crucial political problem. First of all, it was displayed in the
behavior of the parliament forces which did not name their candidates.
Apparently, the parties could not assume responsibility and decided to
act to the political plans of the executive.

The government, which is going to leave, whose constitutional function
should be providing equal opportunities for a free election, is not
ready for this situation either. In fact, the government made efforts
to mobilize the administrative resource to support one of the
candidates, who is referred to as the `common candidate’. The
atmosphere of free expression of the will of citizens underwent
unjustified information pressure. The idea of predetermined outcome of
the election is instilled in the public consciousness. I think the NKR
society does not deserve such a treatment.

There are a number of NGOs and political parties in Artsakh. How do you
assess the political activity of the NKR society and parties? Does it
affect state building and development adequately?

The political parties are underdeveloped, which is one of the factors
which slow down the political life in the country. The parties must
become independent organizations and avoid the dictate of the executive
power. We haven’t arrived at this point yet. It is not accidental that
the NGOs and the media are now performing part of the political
functions in the country. At present, these organizations have
independence and political maturity. I do not think this is the how the
things should be. It is just an effort of the society to fill in the
political vacuum. I hope the upcoming election will stimulate the
transformation of the political forces and establishment of practical
political organizations.

The world media refer to NKR as the locomotive of democracy in the
region. What will the role of Karabakh be in the South Caucasus in your
opinion?

We need not be touched by such evaluations of others. We must be such
and not be referred to as such. Today we cannot be satisfied with the
level of democracy in the country.

GEORGIA PROMOTES ITS MAN IN SOUTH OSSETIA

A1+
[01:50 pm] 30 June, 2007

"Alternative" South Ossetian leader addresses parliamentarians
in Brussels By Dmitry Avaliani in Tbilisi (CRS No. 398 28-Jun-07)
"Europe always remained a faraway dream for us, especially during the
years of grave armed confrontation," Dmitry Sanakoyev told a meeting
at the European Parliament last week.

"Georgia is returning to Europe, which has always been its natural
milieu. Together with Georgia, my homeland South Ossetia should return
to Europe, too."

This speech by Sanakoyev, the man the Georgian government has
designated the head of "the provisional administration in South
Ossetia", was the latest step in a campaign to gain legitimacy for
the newest player in a dispute over the breakaway republic that dates
back to 1990.

Sanakoyev is a former defence minister and prime minister in South
Ossetia’s unrecognised administration, but is now a firm ally of the
Georgian government, which wants to restore control over the territory.

After winning an "alternative" presidential election in South Ossetia,
Sanakoyev set himself up in opposition to Eduard Kokoity, the leader
of the breakaway region. He is based in Kurta, an ethnic Georgian
village a few kilometres down the road from the capital Tskhinvali.

On June 26, Sanakoyev attended a meeting of the Georgia-Europe
Parliamentary Cooperation Committee in Brussels, at the invitation
of committee chairs Marie-Anne Isler-Beguin, a Euro MP, and David
Bakradze, head of the Georgian parliament’s committee for European
integration. Sanakoyev addressed the parliamentarians in the Ossetian
language for 15 minutes.

Sanakoyev says he sees the Ossetians’ future as part of a united,
democratic and stable Georgia in which minority rights are protected.

"There’s only one solution – to ensure a direct dialogue between the
Georgian and Ossetian peoples, to neutralise external and internal
destructive forces and replace them with the international democratic
community’s healthy and effective support," Sanakoyev said in Brussels.

Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili appointed Sanakoyev as
head of the "interim administration" in May, and is now urging the
international community to recognise the new position.

Saakashvili recently predicted that the South Ossetia dispute was
heading for resolution, with Sanakoyev the key to a peaceful outcome.

"Kokoity’s presidency is drawing to a close, and we will solve all
the problems once and for all within a few months, showing to the
world the way interethnic conflicts should be handled," he told
journalists in Baku on June 19, after a summit of the Democracy and
Economic Development Organisation of GUAM, a grouping of regional
states including Georgia.

Saakashvili said there were no problems between the Ossetian and
Georgian peoples, and that the obstacles that existed were "created
by criminal structures".

The de facto authorities in Tskhinvali rejected this out of hand,
sticking to their line that South Ossetia seceded from Georgia in the
early Nineties and now wants fully recognised independence. They call
Sanakoyev a "puppet" who has no public backing.

The de facto foreign ministry of South Ossetia said Sanakoyev’s
visit to Brussels was part of a "propaganda operation founded on
the illusions of the Georgian leadership that the Georgian-Ossetian
conflict can be resolved by its puppets, excluding the Republic of
South Ossetia… and ignoring the will of its citizens".

The Russian foreign ministry also released a statement which ruled
out contact with Sanakoyev. "In Moscow, people understand where the
power really lies in South Ossetia, and whom the overwhelming majority
of the population really supports," it said.

Tensions have been running high in the conflict zone in the last
month. On June 27, Russian peacekeepers blocked a Georgian operation
to build a road between the villages of Nikozi and Avnevi, avoiding
several Ossetian villages. The troops placed several armoured vehicles
across the road to stop construction machinery driving past.

On the same day, residents of the Georgian village of Nikozi blocked
the main highway, demanding the restoration of their drinking water
supplies. The South Ossetian authorities in Tskhinvali had shut off
water supplies to the area after saying their own water supplies were
blocked by Tbilisi.

The water dispute has continued with recriminations and accusations –
and the occasional agreement – for several weeks.

Georgian experts are generally positive about the Sanakoyev phenomenon,
although they do not expect him to get international recognition any
time soon.

"Sanakoyev’s visit to Brussels is the right move," said political
analyst Paata Zakareishvili, a member of the opposition Republican
Party. "One point to be noted is that this visit is not any initiative
by western organisations. He just took part in the Georgia-EU dialogue
in the capacity of a member of the Georgian delegation."

Archil Gegeshidze of the Strategic and International Studies Foundation
told IWPR that the final goal must be the peaceful reintegration of
South Ossetia into Georgia.

In order to achieve this, he said, the Georgian authorities should
take three factors into account.

First of all, efforts must be made to secure local legitimacy for
Sanakoyev by ensuring that his administration has broad public support
in South Ossetia. "The support Sanakoyev currently enjoys is mainly
among the region’s Georgian population," he said. "It is essential
that his administration is recognised by the entire population. That
is a long process, which I hope will conclude successfully."

Gegeshidze said the Georgians needed to work hard to secure success for
their strategy with many different partners. "The Georgian authorities
need a serious, well-coordinated strategy of actions both within the
region and in the diplomatic arena," said Gegeshidze.

Magdalena Frichova, Caucasus project director with the International
Crisis Group, which recently produced a report entitled "Georgia’s
South Ossetia Conflict: Make Haste Slowly", sounded a more cautious
note. She told IWPR that the Georgians risked creating increased
tensions by trying to force the pace of change in the peace process.

"Georgia’s desire to change the dynamics in the conflict resolution
process by non-violent and development-oriented means is positive,
but the determination to solve the conflict on its own terms only and
perhaps too quickly could backfire and lead to a dangerous rise in
tensions – as the events over the last couple of months indicate,"
said Frichova.

"At the same time Tbilisi should consider carefully to what degree
Sanakoyev is now representative of the wider Ossetian constituency,"
she said. "Tbilisi promotes him as someone who expresses the views
of the Ossetian public, but for most Ossetians in the conflict zone,
that is not the case. For many in Tskhinvali-controlled areas, it
is not a given that Sanakoyev could genuinely be an advocate for
their interests"

"The Georgian government should engage with all actors, and negotiate
not just with those who agree with Tbilisi’s position but primarily
with those who don’t."

Dmitry Avaliani is a journalist with 24 Hours newspaper in Tbilisi
and a member of IWPR’s EU-funded Cross-Caucasus Journalism Network
project. Institute for War and Peace Reporting’s Caucasus Reporting
Service

AZG Armenian Daily #123, 30/06/2007

Humanitarian

WORLD ARMENIAN DOCTORS IN YEREVAN TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF
NATIONAL HEALTHCARE SYSTEM

More than 1500 specialists of health service from different countries:
96 from USA, 35 from Canada, 25 from Iran and Mozambique are taking
part in Second International Medical Conference in Yerevan. The first
June 28 sitting of the conference started with a press conference,
which was followed by the welcome speeches of the First Lady of
Armenia Bella Kocharian and Healthcare Minister Harutyun Kushkian.

This conference may be considered as the longest and the most
traditional conference, as its first sitting was held in 1970, in
Lebanon. According to the Head of the National Healthcare Institute
Derenik Dumanian each meeting is a guarantee of exchange of experience
and information, further meetings and cooperation. "For example,
after the previous conference an American dental clinic was opened. It
was the gift of the Armenian Doctors’ Assosiation and "Lima"
institute.

As a result of this conference, though it is the first day of it, an
apparatus of osteoporosis was given to "Mother and child’s health
protection research center", said Dumanian.

26 scientific directions are included in this conference. 500 works of
more than 1000 doctors and scientists were published in a scientific
collection. The publication of these articles will provide a progress
in the approaches of local medical sphere, as the approaches change in
the world as well, i.e. in the sphere of cardiology it’s a question
which method is more efficient surgical or conservative.

Within the frameworks of this conference each sphere of a scientific
group has an opportunity to examine the issues of that sphere
separately. This conference is very interesting for the guests, too,
as they are given an opportunity to get acquainted with the scientific
works of local scientists.

By Susanna Margarian

AGLANDJIA GYMNASIUM TO MOVE TO MELKONIAN

Financial Mirror, Cyprus
June 29 2007

Alumni satisfied with deal, but remain cautious

The New York-based Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) has
offered temporary use of the Melkonian school’s abandoned premises
in Nicosia to the Aglandjia Gymnasium for a year, with an option to
renew the free lease for a further year.

In an agreement that was signed last Wednesday between Education
Minister Akis Cleanthous and the AGBU representatives in Cyprus,
the Melkonian school will be used by 430 Aglandjia pupils until
construction work in their own school are completed.

Aglandjia gymnasium has been facing construction problems for years,
with teachers, parents and pupils repeatedly expressing their concern
over the safety of the building.

The situation reached a climax last April when two construction workers
died while working at the gymnasium. The earth collapsed around them
as they were digging a hole, burying them alive.

Parents, teachers and pupils refused to attend the school until
drastic measures had been taken to ensure their safety.

"When the Armenian representative in parliament, Vartkes Mahdessian,
was first approached by the Minister of Education on April 25, the
intention was to go ahead and provide [the grounds of the Melkonian
Educational Institute] free of charge, but the decision was up to
the administrators in New York," the Alumni Association of Cyprus
said in an announcement.

The association, the local branch of the organization that represents
some 2,200 graduates of the historic school, greeted the latest
agreement with initial satisfaction.

"It had been the intention of the Armenian community of Cyprus from
the beginning to help the government in a moment of need and provide
shelter to the schoolchildren from Aglandjia until construction work
on the foundations of their school building are completed," said the
alumni announcement.

"Although we are not yet aware of all the details surrounding the
deal, we are waiting to see what limitations or clauses, if any,
were imposed on the Cyprus government in order to be granted the use
of the abandoned school buildings," the announcement said.

"We have assurances from the Education Ministry as well as the Attorney
General’s office that the lease agreement has no bearing whatsoever
on the heritage preservation order that protects 60% of the Melkonian
estate, including the historic buildings, the founders’ villa and
mausoleum, as well as the small forest along Limassol Avenue that some
people are so desperate to cut down and sell," the Alumni concluded.

An announcement from the Ministry of Education said that the
multi-purpose sports hall as well as the school’s auditorium, "will
be made available to the AGBU and to the Armenians, during times that
will not conflict with the school’s hours."

News reports last week said that a high-ranking official from the AGBU
in New York had visited Cyprus in order to conclude the property lease,
but that the agreement had been subject to at least five alterations,
according to Phileleftheros.

AGBU President Berg Setrakian said in a statement issued in New
York after a quick stop in Cyprus, where he refrained from meeting
any members of the community or even the Armenian Representative
in parliament, that the organisation "reiterates its commitment to
the Armenian Cypriot community. The AGBU is also considering the
development of a project for the benefit of al Cypriots."

The only acknowledgement of the school’s contribution to Cyprus society
came from the Minister of Education who said that, "the Melkonian
Educational Institute, the most renowned co-educational institution of
Cypriot Armenians, has been one of the primary Diaspora institutions
of education during the post-Armenian Genocide 20th century. It was
a boarding school of high academic standard located in Nicosia."

No mention was made of the AGBU’s decision to close the school after
79 years nor any explanation was given to the reasons that led to
the closure.

EDUARD AGHAJANOV: GOVERNEMT’S PROGRAM IS NOT IN LINE WITH STATEMENS ABOUT SECOND-GENERATION REFORMS

Noyan Tapan
Jun 28, 2007

YEREVAN, JUNE 28, NOYAN TAPAN. In terms of its contents, the new
program of the Armenian government is not in line with the statements
about second-generation reforms or the creation of an economy of
new quality.

Economist Eduard Aghajanov expressed this opinion at the June 28
press conference.

According to him, it is necessary to develop the industry in order to
implement second-generation reforms, while the governmental program
lays a stress on the development of mining industry and metallurgy
only.

Only one sentence, according to which the government will keep the
IT sector in the center of attention, is dedicated to information
technologies in the government’s program. Whereas, in the words of
E. Aghajanov, countries like Irland, India, Russia to have reached
success in the hightech sector have used some tax mechanisms of
promotion, which has not been done in Armenia.

E. Aghajanov said that the program says about formation of a
knowledge-based (innovation) economy. However, for this purpose it
is necessary to allocate at least 1-1.5% of GDP to science, while
the 2007 budget allocates only 0.19% of Armenia’s GDP to science.

In the economist’s opinion, developing the inovation technologies is
the only way to make the Armenian economy competitive. Even oil-rich
Azerbaijan recently declared its intention to create a regional
innovation zone, in which Russia will participate as well. E. Aghajanov
noted that Armenia should be able to make a breakthrough in this
sphere as it is already behind the neighboring countries.

PROSECUTOR IN BAKU DEMANDS TO SENTENCE SOLDIER WHO PASSED TO KARABAKH TO 14 YEARS’ IMPRISONMENT

PanARMENIAN.Net
28.06.2007 15:25 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ A trial came to end in Azerbaijan towards a soldier
who is accused of high treason. On Thursday the prosecutor demanded a
14-year-imprisonment sentence for private Eldaniz Nuriev in the Court
for War Crimes of Azerbaijan under the chairmanship of Judge Mamedbagir
Zeynalov. The court session finished with response speeches by the
culprit and his lawyer. The court is expected to run its verdict on
June 29.

Eldaniz Nuriev is accused of violating sentry rules, desertion and high
treason. According to the indictment, "the soldier who was recruited
to the army by the commissariat of Agsu region of Azerbaijan, without
permission left the N military unit in Fizuli region of Azerbaijan,
where he was passing his military service. Soon he was taken prisoner
by Armenians. According to the indictment, E. Nuriev passed the
enemy information, which is state secret in the military sphere of
Azerbaijan.", Trend reports

But in reality private of Azeri army Eldaniz Nuriev born in 1979,
passed the Karabakh side in the night of December 31, 2006 in the
Fizuli direction of the contact line between armed forces of Nagorno
Karabakh and Azerbaijan. Soon he was taken prisoner by servicemen of
NKR Defense Army. Later he was returned to the Azeri side.

TURKISH DEMOCRACY "IN PROGRESS"
By Edmond Y. Azadian

Situation in Turkey and Armenian National Interests
AZG Armenian Daily #122,
29/06/2007

You can kill a man, but not his ideas. The Turks murdered Hrant Dink,
they destroyed him physically, yet his ideas continue haunting all
of Turkey. If, initially, there were doubts whether the crime was the
act of a fanatical individual or an organized entity, developments in
the ensuing months came to prove that the "deep state" was involved
in the assassination plot. The criminal was treated and hailed as a
national hero publicly and by the police.

During Hrant Dink’s funeral the Istanbul municipality had prepared
uniform slogans sympathetic to the victim, to demonstrate to the West
that there was a unanimous condemnation of the crime. The veneer of
hypocrisy wore out soon and there was a backlash.

Those who were chanting "We are all Hrant Dinks", "We are all
Armenians" were soon countered by the fanatical mobs chanting "We
are all Turks".

Hrant Dink’s ideas caught the imagination of the masses in Turkey
like a conflagration, and it became a daunting task for the Turkish
military to contain them.

Dink’s "Agos" weekly had become a cauldron of liberal ideas, not only
for the Armenians, but also for the Kurds and Turks in the human rights
movement. "Agos" had a wide circulation, equally read by Armenians,
Kurds and Turks.

"Agos" nurtured the ideals of Kurdish national identity and
self-determination, as it rekindled ideas of democracy and human
rights among educated Turks. He believed that by developing democratic
institutions in Turkey that country would be civilized and become an
acceptable candidate for European Union. Then Armenia could reap the
fringe benefits, by having a civilized country on its border ready to
face historic reality and recognize the genocide. Germany faced its
past, reconciled with its erstwhile enemies, especially with Britain
and France and to this day compensates Jews and Israel, because it
is a civilized nation.

Hrant Dink was a sincere fighter for democracy in Turkey. He tried to
push Turkey to the threshold of the 21st century, but the reactionaries
won for the time being and the ruling religious party is looking back
to the medieval past to establish a system based on the Sharia law
in this day and age.

For the Turkish military he opened too many cans of worms, challenging
its capacity to contain. He had to be eliminated before he went too
far. But they could not kill his ideas.

The Turks have been conducting a very sophisticated policy of playing
the charade of democracy on the face, while allowing the military to
call the shots.

The West and especially the major US media play up the charade by
inviting the other Moslem countries to emulate the Turkish model.

As the AK party, like its predecessor led by Erbakan, began flexing
its muscles, the military tightened its grip on the government.

Also a powerful backlash came to intimidate the minorities, and
especially Armenians. Bomb threats against Armenian churches and
schools, a vicious media campaign and continued government harassment
have created an atmosphere of fear and terror, so much so that some
Armenians in Turkey have begun to blame the victim himself, Hrant Dink,
questioning whether it was right for him to awaken the sleeping beast.

Prime Minister Erdogan, after giving some lip service to the European
critics of the Turkish Penal Law 301, continues to use it against
any perceived enemy to stifle freedom of speech.

It was not enough that Hrant Dink was murdered and his newspaper’s
staff harassed, now the next victim is Hrant’s son Arat, who has been
taken to the court.

On June 14, Hrant Dink’s son Arat was taken to the court as the
successor of his father at Agos, which in its July 2006 edition had
reproduced an interview by Hrant to a news agency. Arat and three
other journalists were charged with "insulting Turkish identity"
under Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code.

The Istanbul prosecutor’s office requested six months prison sentence
for Arat Dink. The three other Agos journalists charged are Sarkis
Seropyan, Aydin Engin and Karin Karakashli. A prosecution was also
initiated against Erdal Dogal, one of the Dink family lawyers.

Reading "Wall Street Journal" one is under the impression that Turkey
has come a long way in instituting democratic reforms. These legal
harassments do not seem to figure out in those statements.

Continuing to prosecute and persecute "Agos" means fighting Hrant
Dink beyond his grave.

As long as Article 301 of the Penal Code is in force, Turkey cannot
make any progress towards democracy.

On the other hand, not a single property confiscated from the Armenian
and Greek minorities has been returned, not withstanding of the laws
that the Turkish parliament adopts or discusses ad nauseam.

The Turkish military is presented as the guardian of secularism in
Turkey. but who has elected the Turkish military for that role? Every
time any popularly elected government tries to exercise its democratic
right to govern, the self appointed military junta steps in and
topples that government. And this system is praised in certain news
media in this country as a role model of democracy to be emulated by
other Moslem countries.

Unfortunately, hypocrisy cannot be eliminated completely from
diplomacy, but if a certain measure of balance is stricken, there is
hope for democracy.

PULL-OUT OF RUSSIAN TROOPS TO DEVELOP COMPETITION – ARMENIAN POLITICIAN

Arminfo
25 Jun 07

Yerevan, 25 June: "After the necessary, in our view, withdrawal of the
Russian military bases from the Armenian territory, a real economic
competition of powers will begin here and Armenians will only win
from this," a member of the political council of the Dashinq Party,
Gnel Glechyan, has told Arminfo.

He said that simultaneously with the withdrawal of the Russian
military bases, it will be necessary to state that Armenia is not
going to join NATO and deploy any foreign armed formations on its
territory at all. Given this, geopolitical players will only be able
to develop an economic competition in the region and make investments.

"It is obvious that they have their own interests in the region, and
we are unable to bring them together. The ongoing conflicts around
the whole South Caucasus and the conflicts yet to occur are a vivid
proof of this," Glechyan said.

He also noted that speaking about the necessity of the pull-out
of military bases from Armenia, Dashinq Party is not making any
anti-Russian steps.

Glechyan thinks that all countries in the region must exclude foreign
military presence in their territories, including on the border
with Russia.

Answering the question how this is possible in the condition when
Georgia intends to enter the Euro-Atlantic alliance, Glechyan said that
our neighbours lead this policy because "we have turned Armenia into
a monster, we keep troops here and say: dear powers, please compete,
moreover – in the military sphere".