Author: Jabejian Elizabeth

ARMENIA COULD BE HURT BY RUSSIAN SANCTIONS TOO
By M. Alkhazashvili (Translated by Diana Dundua)

The Messenger, Georgia
Oct 17 2006

Russian sanctions targeted to hurt Georgia might also damage a
strategic partner of Russia- Armenia.

According to Armenian analysts, the Georgian-Russian confrontation
will create problems for the delivery of natural gas to Armenia. It’s
highly probable that as of January 2007, Russia will increase (some
analysts predict even double) the price of natural gas for Georgia.

It is likely Georgia will try to recuperate some of this money by
increasing the transit price of the gas to Armenia, leading to a
price increase for them as well.

The paper Rezonansi reports that Yerevan predicts that Georgia will
increase the transit price of 1000 cubic metres of gas from USD 30
to USD 75. The Georgian Energy Minister declines to discuss the issue.

Georgia increased the transit price to Armenia in 2006 from USD 10
to USD 30, when Russia increased the cost of natural gas to Georgia.

According to Armenian analysts, one of the biggest threats to the
country’s energy security is the Baku-Erzurum natural gas pipeline
(also known as the South Caucasus pipeline). If this pipeline becomes
fully operational, Armenia talks about the possibility of the pipeline
from Russian serving Georgia and then Armenia closing completely.

Some Armenian analysts believe that after receiving the Shah-Deniz
natural gas (through the South Caucasus pipeline) Georgia might not
need Russian natural gas any more. But this is highly unlikely in
the near future as the Baku-Erzurum natural gas pipeline will not
likely be able to satisfy Georgia’s needs right away, and furthermore,
Azerbaijan itself still relies on Russia for some four million cubic
meters of gas annually.

Yerevan optimistically awaits construction of the Iran-Armenia natural
gas pipeline which will be controlled by Russia’s Gazprom.

According to Russian analysts, after this pipeline comes on stream,
Armenia will no longer have natural gas problems. The pipeline should
come on stream within two years and its power will be 1.2 billion
cubic metres annually.

This pipeline worries some in Georgia, who point out that the gas
currently coming from Russia could be easily turned off without
affecting Armenia, making the possibility of ‘terrorist attacks’
of the kind that happened last winter much more likely.

LES TURCS APPELES A CALMER LEUR BOYCOTT DES PRODUITS FRANCAIS
Bouchet Anne

Paris-Normandie
16 octobre 2006 lundi

Les consommateurs turcs etaient invites hier a temperer leur reaction
contre la France après le vote d’une loi sur le genocide armenien.

Après de premières vives reactions au texte adopte jeudi en première
lecture a l’Assemblee nationale francaise punissant la negation du
genocide armenien, l’ambiance en Turquie etait hier un peu plus pour
une approche rationnelle quant aux represailles contre les produits
francais.

Il faut très bien fixer la dose du boycott des biens francais, a estime
le vice-president de la puissante Union des chambres de commerce et
bourses de Turquie (TOBB), H seyin z lmez. Il ne faut pas exagerer
dans la reaction, a-t-il dit, exhortant les consommateurs a agir avec
raison, selon l’agence Anatolie.

Le president du Conseil des chambres de commerce et d’industrie Nafi
G ral s’est fait l’echo de ces propos en appelant les Turcs a agir
plutôt avec la tte que le cÏur: Pour protester contre la France,
le boycott n’est peut-tre pas une decision logique mais sentimentale.

8,2 milliards d’euros

Les dirigeants turcs ont prevenu la France d’une crise dans les
relations et de represailles economiques qui pourrait se traduire par
l’exclusion des firmes francaises des contrats publics. La Turquie
est un gros marche pour la France. Les echanges se sont chiffres l’an
dernier a 8,2 milliards d’euros.

Pour ne pas contrarier sa candidature a l’Union europeenne, Ankara
n’imposera sans doute pas un boycott officiel mais de nombreux appels
au boycottage des marques francaises ont ete lances.

Le gouvernement turc du premier ministre Recep Tayyip Erdogan est
jusqu’a present reste evasif sur la nature de la riposte commerciale
qu’il a menace de mettre en Ïuvre.

L’Union des consommateurs de Turquie a de son côte exhorte les Turcs a
bouder les stations essence de Total en Turquie, un appel apparemment
suivi a Istanbul, première metropole turque, selon les journaux.

Dans une reaction plus violente, le proprietaire d’un supermarche de
Nigde (sud) a br le les produits francais qu’il a enleve des etagères,
selon Anatolie.

Visite ministerielle annulee

Une reunion du comite de gestion de l’organisme officiel pour les
achats d’armement est prevu demain a Ankara et le sort d’Eurocopter
qui est en lice pour un contrat de 52helicoptères militaires et
civiles pourrait tre connu.

En riposte au vote francais, Ali Babacan, le ministre de l’Economie
et negociateur en chef turc a UE, envisagerait d’annuler une visite
prevue a Paris a la mi-novembre, affirment les journaux.

Le texte controverse doit encore tre soumis aux senateurs, puis aux
deputes en seconde lecture, avant d’tre definitivement adopte. Les
massacres et deportations d’Armeniens entre1915 et1917 dans l’Empire
ottoman ont fait plus de 1,5 million de morts selon les Armeniens,
250.000a 500.000 selon la Turquie, qui recuse categoriquement la
notion de genocide.

–Boundary_(ID_zVFr/gIGUlBz4h7qBHVVkw)- –

TURK ACADEMIC RETURNS FRENCH MEDAL OVER GENOCIDE LAW

Reuters, UK
Oct 16 2006

ANKARA, Oct 16 (Reuters) – The man in charge of Turkish higher
education on Monday returned to France a prestigious medal in protest
over a French bill making it a crime to deny Armenian genocide by
Ottoman Turks during World War One.

The gesture by Erdogan Tezic, chairman of the strictly secular body
that oversees Turkish universities, marks the latest Turkish protest
at the French lower house of parliament’s vote in favour of the bill
on Thursday.

Turkey denies any genocide, saying the Armenians were victims of
a partisan war that also claimed many Muslim Turkish lives. Turkey
accuses Armenians of also carrying out massacres while siding with
invading Russian troops.

"Although the draft has not become law, with my letter, I return
one of France’s highest state decorations, ‘Commandeur de la Legion
d’Honneur’… as I won’t be able to wear it as this issue (Armenian
genocide) has become French state policy," Tezic said in a letter to
President Jacques Chirac.

Tezic was awarded the Legion d’Honneur medal in 2004 by Chirac,
becoming the first and only Turk to hold it, the powerful Higher
Education Board said. As former head of the prestigious French-language
university in Istanbul, Tezic received the award for services to
French culture.

The bill still needs approval from the upper house — the Senate —
and the French president, who has indicated he does not support the
proposal. France is home to Europe’s largest Armenian diaspora.

PRIME MINISTER ANDRANIK MARGARYAN LEAVING FOR FRANCE ON A WORKING VISIT

Public Radio, Armenia
Oct 16 2006

RA Prime Minister, Chairman of the Sate Commission coordinating the
preparation of the Year of Armenia in France Andranik Margaryan will
leave for France on a three-day working visit to participate in the
events dedicated to the events dedicated to the 15th anniversary
of Armenia’s independence and the symbolic opening of the year of
Armenia in France.

The delegation headed by RA Prime minister comprises RA Minister
of Finance and Economy Vardan Khachatryan, Armenian Ambassador
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to France Edvard Nalbandyan, MPs,
Lori and Gegharkunik Marzpets, First Deputy Mayor of Yerevan Kamo
Areyan, Deputy Minister of Culture and Youth Affairs Arthur Poghosyan,
Executive Director of the "Pan-Armenian International Youth Center"
Fund Armen Sinanyan, senior officials of RA Government and Ministry
of Foreign Affairs. Heads of self-government bodies have also been
included in the delegation. In the framework of the working visit
on October 17 A Prime Minister Andranik Margayan and members of the
Armenian delegation will participate in the decentralized cooperation
conference of sister cities of Armenia and France to be held in the
French Senate.

October 18 Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan is due to deliver a
speech at the festive ceremony dedicated to the national holiday of
Armenia and the symbolic launch of the Year of Armenia in France.

FRENCH JOURNALISTS IN ISTANBUL CONDEMNED ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BILL

PanARMENIAN.Net
16.10.2006 13:53 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Thirty-three French journalists, who came to Istanbul
to see famous photographer Goksin Sipahioglu’s exhibition, condemned
France for the adoption of the Armenian Genocide bill. "France
made a historical mistake. We hope it will take step back," said
Le Monde and Le Figaro reporters. According to French Ambassador
to Turkey Paul Poudade, it is too early to say that the bill will
be adopted. "There is a long procedure ahead of it. I don’t think
that it will be adopted. It is an unnecessary law. The government is
absolutely against the bill," he said, reported zaman.com.

Deutsche Presse-Agentur, Germany
October 12, 2006 Thursday 5:20 PM EST

Lebanon’s Armenians protest against Turkish UN force

DPA POLITICS France Diplomacy Turkey Lebanon Lebanon’s Armenians
protest against Turkish UN force Beirut
Thousands of Lebanese Armenians protested Thursday
in downtown Beirut against Turkish troops participating in a UN

peacekeeping force to supervise a fragile UN-brokered ceasefire
between Hezbollah and Israel.

The protest, headed by Armenian political and religious leaders,
took place two days after seven Turkish officers arrived in Beirut.

The crowd held high banners denouncing the presence of Turkish
troops as "an insult to the 140,000 Armenians living in Lebanon" and
proclaiming: "Genocide and massacre: Turkey’s definition of peace."

Turkey is to deploy some 700 soldiers in Lebanon, including troops
aboard naval ships.
Oct 1206 1720 GMT

Zaman Online, Turkey
Oct 13 2006

Armenian Bill’s Passage Depends on Government
By Ali Ihsan Aydin, Paris
Friday, October 13, 2006
zaman.com

Although the French parliament has approved a bill making it a crime
to deny the mass killings of Armenians in Turkey during World War I,
the Senate will also have to ratify it before the bill becomes law.

But for it to become an item on the agenda of the Senate, the bill
must be approved by the government, which seems very unlikely as
President Jacques Chirac does not look favorably on the bill.

If the present government refuses to endorse the bill, Francois
Holland, secretary-general of the opposition Socialist Party, has
vowed to make the bill a law in 2007 if they are in power.

Meanwhile, Armenians are pressing for the bill to make it to the
Senate before the legislative period ends.

There are three ways a bill that has passed in the French parliament
can appear on the agenda of the Senate.

The first is if the government approves and sends it to the Senate.

The second is if the Presidential Board of the Senate calls for a
motion.

First Opportunity on Nov.8

The Socialist Party will make a request for the bill to be on the
agenda of the Nov.8 meeting of the board.

But since the party in power occupies the majority of the chairs in
the Senate Board, the government must also endorse the bill.

The third way to make a bill an agenda item is by demanding an
emergency debate.

This demand can only be made by the Commission of Legal Affairs,
which is at the receiving end of the bill.

Parallel to the majority arithmetic of the Senate, the government
party has the final say in commissions, making it a difficult task
for the bill to become an agenda item in the upcoming term.

Armenians Focus on Elections

Patrik Devedjian, an Armenian-origin deputy who spoke to Zaman, said
that it was difficult for the bill to become law during the present
legislative period and could be postponed until next year.

The French Assembly will finish its work early in February because of
the presidential and general elections to be held in the spring.

Alexis Govdjian, president of the Council of Armenian Associations,
noted that they would make attempts in the upcoming days to put the
bill on the agenda of the Senate before the elections.

Referring to the genocide law passed in 2001, he promised to exert as
much effort on this bill.

The bill needs to be endorsed by the Senate without any amendments.

If a motion for a change regarding the text is made, it will be sent
back to the parliament.

The president, the final authority, can send the bill to the
Constitutional Court or the parliament if necessary.

After the endorsement by the Senate, the president of the parliament,
along with 60 senators apart from the president, can submit the bill
to the Constitutional Court.

Azeri Press Agency
Oct 13 2006

Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry issues official statement on French
parliament’s decision

[ 13 Oct. 2006 10:17 ]

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan has issued a statement
concerning the French parliament’s decision on a bill which would
make genocide denial punishable, Ministry Press Service told APA.

`It is with great surprise and concern that we followed development
of deliberations of the French Parliament’s lower house and ensuing
vote on the legislation to make denial of so-called `Armenian
genocide’, illegal in France. Unfortunately, Armenia and its diaspora
continue to play a very destructive role in the ongoing developments
in the region, instead of contributing to peace and stability.
With full understanding that this initiative needs to be ratified by
the Senate, we urge the French Parliament to apply a more careful,
impartial, and balanced approach.
Taking note of the French Government’s position of disagreement with
this legislative act, we are hopeful that the French Senate will
block this negative trend in full compliance with international
community’s proclaimed interest in re-establishment of security,
stability and mutual confidence climate in this strategically
important region of Europe,’ says the statement.
The French parliament has yesterday adopted a bill making it a crime
to deny that Armenians suffered so-called `genocide’ at the hands of
the Turks. /APA/

The Daily Star, Lebanon
Oct 13 2006

Turks rip French MPs for passing bill on Armenian genocide

Compiled by Daily Star staff
Friday, October 13, 2006

Turkey threatened unspecified measures against France Thursday after
the French Parliament passed a bill making it a crime to deny that
Turks committed genocide against Armenians during World War I. In
Ankara, angry protesters pelted the French Embassy with eggs, others
laid a black wreath at the gate of the French Consulate in Istanbul
and unions called for a trade boycott.

"We have considered measures in every field. We will activate them
seriously and soberly," Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul told reporters.

"Our indignation is great – both on the official level and among the
people," he added.

Gul said the Turkish Parliament will hold a special session Tuesday
to assess the situation.

The French bill – which foresees up to one year in prison and a fine
of up to 45,000 euros ($57,000) for anyone who denies that the
1915-1917 massacres of Armenians under Ottoman rule was genocide –
still needs the approval of the Senate and the president to take
effect. The French government did not support the motion and promised
on Thursday to oppose it when it gets to the Senate, but Turkey said
the damage had already been done.

Ankara warned before the vote that French companies would be barred
from major tenders, including a project for a nuclear power plant
whose tender process is expected to start soon.

"Turkish-French relations… took a heavy blow today through the
irresponsible initiatives of some short-sighted French politicians,
based on unfounded allegations," a Foreign Ministry statement said.

"With this draft law, France is unfortunately losing its privileged
status with the Turkish people," it said.

"We hope France will come back from this dead-end," Gul said. "No one
should expect that Turkey will forget this as it did in 2001," he
said, referring to a first French resolution recognizing the killings
as genocide.

Ankara also said the draft impeded free debate on a historical
subject and flouted provisions protecting freedom of expression in
the European Convention of Human Rights.

Pointing at mounting European Union pressure on Ankara to ensure
freedom of speech after several Turkish intellectuals were put on
trial for contesting the official line on the Armenian issue, Gul
said: "From now on, France will never describe itself as the homeland
of freedoms.

"It will never be proud of being the country where ideas are freely
expressed," he added. "This shame will really be a grave one for
them."

Ankara sees the bill as a political gesture to France’s large
Armenian community ahead of presidential elections next year.

Many also see it as a blow below the belt by opponents of Turkey’s EU
membership that will tarnish the country’s image in Europe and fan
anti-Western feeling among Turks.

Echoing that sentiment, Turkish Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc said
that the French move reflected a "hostile attitude" toward Turkey.

"It is a shameful decision. This is a hostile attitude against the
Turkish nation … It is unacceptable," Arinc was quoted as saying by
Turkey’s official Anatolia news agency.

Members of a trade union laid a black wreath outside the French
Embassy in Ankara and at least one egg was hurled into the mission’s
garden before police seized a bag full of eggs the protesters had
brought, Anatolia reported.

Some business and consumer groups called for a boycott of French
goods.

"Each week, we will announce a French brand [to boycott] and the
boycott list will grow," said Baris Deniz, the head of the Consumers’
Union.

"French companies must be definitely sidelined from major public
tenders, particularly in the transport, energy and defense industry
sectors," Omer Bolat, chairman of Islamist-leaning business group
MUSIAD, told Anatolia.

But Turkish Economy Minister Ali Babacan said that his country does
not plan to boycott French products.

"As the government of Turkey, we will not be leading, we are not
going to organize such events," Babacan said.

"But on the other hand, if in some segments of the society, some
civil actions, will do things in that line, it is up to our people,"
he said.

Bilateral trade between Turkey and France totaled $10 billion in
2005. – Agencies

EU RECEIVES LAST WARNING FROM ANKARA ON FRENCH GENOCIDE BILL

Focus News, Bulgaria
Oct 12 2006

Ankara. The agenda in Ankara is focused on the debates and the voting
at the French parliament today on the Armenian genocide bill, online
edition of Turkish newspaper Sabah reads.

The messages sent to the European capitals stress on the thesis that
‘the Turkish people will take this as an enemy act’. It is also
stressed that ‘this initiative on the part of France, which is one
of EU’s locomotives, will further reduce the trust of the Turkish
community in the bloc and this will become the reason for the EU to
lose Turkey’.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry implied that if the bill is adopted the
dissatisfaction and criticism in Turkey ‘might come out of hand’.

Diplomatic sources point out that the reaction towards France will
be defined one step at a time depending on how the situation develops.

If the bill is adopted at first all the contacts between the two
countries will be severed and the bilateral relations will be reduced
to a ‘minimal level’.

Among the measures that ‘will be taken in time’ will be France’s
non-admission to take part in the bid on the construction of the
first nuclear power plant in Turkey, Sabah notes.