Author: Jagharian Tania

Panorama.am

18:48 23/01/2007

FOUNDATION DENIES BEING PAID FOR EACH TREE

Armenia Tree Planting Project benevolent foundation
and Synopsis Company planted 400 trees in Victory Park
last November. Bella Avetisyan, public relations
coordinator of the foundation, says the foundation
also plants trees at the suggestion of non-commercial
organization and closely works with them.

According to our sources, Synopsis paid the foundation
for tree planting. Avetisyan said the company acted as
a local donor and did not pay for the trees or
rendered services. The foundation assures such cases
are very rare.

However, Gayane Markosyan, public relations
responsible of Synopsis, assures they have paid $15
per each tree and have also ensured that the trees
will be later taken care of. Markosyan refused to
announce the total sum paid referring to company
policy.

Strangely enough, the foundation also refused to
publish its annual financial report saying it is a
commercial secret. According to the law on Freedom of
Information, non-commercial organizations must publish
their annual financial reports. Mher Sadoyan,
foundation vice director said, they submit the
financial report only to their headquarters in Boston.

The foundation operates on the funds donated by our
co-nationals living abroad. For example, in 2004-2005
Gafestchyan, Hovhnanyan families, Charles G. Talanyan
family foundation, and Michael Ohanyan donated more
than $100,000 each to the foundation. The number of
donors does not limit to that.

Source: Panorama.am

Russian president warns potential for conflict in South Caucasus still high
The Associated PressPublished: January 24, 2007

International Herald Tribune, France
Jan 24 2007

SOCHI, Russia: President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday warned that
the potential for a new outbreak of fighting in the strategic South
Caucasus remained high and pledged that Moscow would work to resolve
the region’s most dangerous, outstanding conflicts – including the
dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh.

Putin and his Armenian counterpart, Robert Kocharian, met one day
after Armenia’s foreign minister and his Azerbaijani counterpart held
inconclusive talks in Moscow on the status of the mountainous territory
inside Azerbaijan that is controlled by ethnic Armenian forces.

"The potential for conflict is still very high," Putin said at a
joint news conference with Kocharian in the Black Sea port of Sochi.

A shaky cease-fire in 1994 ended six years of fighting that left
30,000 people killed and about 1 million driven from their homes and
left Karabakh and Armenian forces in control of the territory.

Gunfire breaks out regularly along the border between the two ex-Soviet
countries and in the regions near Nagorno-Karabakh.

Repeated efforts by international mediators, including Russia, France,
the United States and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe, to resolve the dispute have failed, and the lack of resolution
has tied up development in the energy-rich South Caucasus.

"We have problems with Azerbaijan on the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement.

We are conducting active negotiations," Kocharian said. "The most
important factor is that the cease-fire introduced in the region in
1994 remains effective until now. This proves the intentions of the
parties to adhere to the peaceful process within the framework of
the OSCE."

Armenia is Russia’s closest ally in the South Caucasus, and Yerevan
in recent years has turned over a substantial part of its energy
infrastructure and network to Russia companies.

Among the other South Caucasus nations, Azerbaijan is increasingly
asserting its substantial energy reserves and its independence from
Russia while Georgia is actively seeking tighter ties with NATO,
the European Union and the West.

Azerbaijan, flush with oil and gas revenues, has also markedly
increased its defense spending and warned that it has the potential
to retake Nagorno-Karabakh from ethnic Armenian forces – raising
fears of a new outbreak of fighting if no final resolution for the
territory is found.

In Baku, U.S. diplomat Matthew J. Bryza, who is helping OSCE efforts
to resolve the conflict, suggested that an agreement could be reached
this year.

"There is a possibility to reach an agreement. I don’t know when.

It’s possible this year. Everything depends on the presidents,"
Bryza told reporters at Baku airport after meeting with Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliev and other officials.

"The meetings were constructive. I have the impression that your
president and foreign minister are demonstrating a constructive
position, said Bryza, a U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state.

In Sochi, Putin and Kocharian praised bilateral relations.

"We’ve tackled everything in energy and now focus on transport and
industry," Putin was quoted by ITAR-TASS as saying. "Our bilateral
trade is growing and direct contacts between our people are on the
ascent."

"Last year was very successful in bilateral relations. We reached
agreements on very serious projects in economics and I very much
hope that this year will be that of their practical realization,"
Kocharian told Putin in televised comments.

___

Associated Press writer Aida Sultanova contributed to this report
from Baku, Azerbaijan.

ARMENIA LOST TO TURKEY

A1+
[12:28 pm] 22 January, 2007

In the last round of the qualifying phase of the futsal European
championship Armenia lost the match to Turkey 2:5. Before that
the Armenian players had lost the first to matches to Albania and
Finland. Both matches had ended 3:5.

Armenia occupied the third place in group A and disqualified from
the championship.

Kuwait News Agency, Kuwait
Jan 20 2007

Leading Turkish journalist shot dead

MIL-TURKEY-JOURNALIST
Leading Turkish journalist shot dead

ISTANBUL, Jan 19 (KUNA) — An unknown gunman killed on Friday the
editor-in-chief of the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos, Hrant Dink.

According to Turkey’s NTV, the gunmen shot Dink in front of the
paper’s office in Istanbul, and then fled the scene.

Police forces encircled the area to arrest the murderer whose age
ranged between 18-19 years. Two suspects were arrested and are
currently being questioned.

Hrant suffered fatal wounds and was pronounced dead upon arriving at
hospital.

In 2006, a Turkish Court of Appeals upheld a six month suspended
sentence against Dink on the charge of "insulting Turkish identity."
The charge resulted from an article he wrote urging Turkish-Armenians
to symbolically reject their Turkish identity. He also touched upon
the massacres against Armenians by Ottomans during 1915-1917.

Dink denied any wrongdoing in the article.

Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer said this act was disgraceful,
adding that the criminals will never reach their goal.

On his part, Turkish Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the
crime, noting that Dink was a victim of an atrocious act that carried
a number of implications.

While denouncing the crime, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry hoped the
perpetrators would be caught as soon as possible.(end) ta.

Financial Times, UK –
Jan 20 2007

Journalist killed by gunman in Istanbul
By Vincent Boland in Istanbul

Published: January 19 2007 15:22 | Last updated: January 19 2007
17:14

A prominent newspaper editor and leading figure in one of Turkey’s
most painful historical debates – the massacre of Armenians during
the collapse of the Ottoman empire – was shot dead on Friday.

Hrant Dink, 53, was shot three times in the head outside the office
of his weekly newspaper Agos in Istanbul. He died almost immediately.
His murder brought swift condemnation from the prime minister, Recep
Tayyip Erdogan, who despatched the interior and justice ministers to
the city as an investigation got under way.

Mr Dink was a Turkish citizen of Armenian descent and had played a
leading role in breaking a taboo in Turkey where debate on the fate
of the Armenians had for years been an untouchable subject. He was
widely credited with trying to bring Turks and Armenians together but
had been given a suspended prison sentence in 2005 for allegedly
insulting the Turkish state.

Armenians say the deaths of up to 1.5m Armenian citizens of the
Ottoman empire were a deliberate genocide by the empire’s rulers
beginning in 1915. Turkey denies genocide and insists that hundreds
of thousands of both Turks and Armenians died as a result of war,
famine, ethnic cleansing and disease in that turbulent period.

Mr Dink’s murder could have serious repercussions for Turkey in
Washington. Both houses of the US Congress are due to debate a motion
in the next few weeks that would recognise the Armenian massacre as
genocide. Turkey is fighting a rearguard diplomatic action to prevent
this and the White House has indicated that it would not approve such
a motion. But the atmosphere in which the debate takes place will be
clouded by Friday’s events.

There was a heavy police presence in Istanbul last night as Mr Dink’s
friends gathered outside the office of his newspaper. Mr Erdogan said
the murder was `’an attack on all of us” and appealed for calm. Two
men were under arrest last night in connection with the murder.

Mr Dink’s murder will also have a big impact domestically. It is an
election year in Turkey and all political parties are beginning to
position themselves to capture the nationalist vote, which represents
a sizeable portion of the electorate. Ultranationalists have
succeeded many times in shutting off debate on the Armenian issue
including academic debates at universities.

Most Turks are not aware of the fate of the Armenians because Turkish
school history textbooks make no reference to it. But a debate has
emerged in the past two years with Mr Dink as one of its most
prominent proponents. Yet it remains the most sensitive issue in
Turkey’s 20th century history. The republic was created from the
ruins of the Ottoman empire in 1923.

Mr Dink was known to have received many death threats in recent years
but is understood to have refused police protection.

Anatolian Times, Turkey
Jan 20 2007

Dink Was Determined To Serve For Mutual Understanding, Tolerance And
Dialogue, AAA

WASHINGTON D.C. – "Hrant Dink (editor-in-chief of bilingual
Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos) was determined to serve as a catalyst
for mutual understanding, tolerance and dialogue," Armenian Assembly
of America (AAA) said.
Releasing a statement, AAA stated, "we condemn this blatant political
assassination and mourn the loss of an exceptional human being and
civil rights advocate."

The statement stated that Hrant Dink consistently defended democratic
change in Turkey. "He will always be remembered for his strong
leadership and commitment to human rights," it added.

NA vice speaker Vahan Hovhannisian to visit US in February

19.01.2007 13:27

YEREVAN (YERKIR) – The Armenian Revolutionary Federation Eastern
Region USA will host in February 2007 the Deputy Chairperson of the
National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia and ARF Bureau Member
Vahan Hovhannissian.

A reception in the honor of Mr. Hovhannissian will be held on February
11, 2007 during which the Deputy Chairperson of the National Assembly
will discuss the progress in the Republic of Armenia, current
developments, the challenges it faces and how to overcome them through
the joint efforts of the entire Armenian nation.

A1+

THOSE EVICTED FROM BAKU HAVE NO PLACE IN THE HOMELAND EITHER
[08:48 pm] 19 January, 2007

The eyewitnesses of the famous tragic events in Baku in 1990, as well
as the representatives of a number of organizations held a march to
Tsitsernakaberd today in order to pay a tribute of respect to the
innocent victims.

According to Arman Meliqyan, first foreign advisor of the NKR
President, about 500 thousand Armenians have been evicted from
Baku. 400 thousand of them have found refuge in Armenia and Karabakh;
the rest have left mainly for Russia. According to official data, over
20 thousand Armenians lived in Baku in Soviet times.

According to Mr. Meliqyan, today’s march testifies to the fact that
the refugees still claim their rights. «They have sent letters to the
Presidents of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Karabakh representing their
demands, particularly partial compensation in the form of settlement
in Karabakh. I think this is a realistic plan», Mr. Meliqyan said.

The former residents of Baku spoke about their problems. 67-year-old
Seda Gasparyan told about how she worked in the Russian military base,
`We could not leave the house. I have seen people beaten up many
times. Many of my Turkish neighbors helped us, brought us food and
other goods. I have even made a list of those people who left for
Moscow, and then Armenia’.

But even in the homeland the problems were not solved. `If in Baku I
had friends and neighbors who helped me. But here I’m totally alone
and homeless’.

Seda Gasparyan was evicted from the house where she lived for 12 years
as she wasn’t registered there. She has turned to the court 35 times,
but all in vain. Today she has no permanent shelter and lives in the
houses of neighbors, friends or relatives.

NOT ARMENIA BUT AZERBAIJAN VIOLATES "AGREEMENT ON LIMITATION OF CONVENTIONAL ARMAMENTS IN EUROPE," FORMER RA DEFENCE MINISTER SAYS

Noyan Tapan
Jan 18 2007

YEREVAN, JANUARY 18, NOYAN TAPAN. The "Agreement On Violation of
Conventional Armaments in Europe" envisages that any country being
agreement’s participant has the right and possibility to check another
country-participant.

Lieutenant-General Vagharshak Haroutiunian, former RA Defence Minister,
declared this in his interview to NT correspondent, commenting
upon recent statements of Azerbaijani officials. In his words, the
agreement signed within the framework of OSCE envisages holding of
annual obligatory inspections of agreement’s country-participants.

In particular, he meant the statement of Zahid Oruj, member of
Azerbaijani parliamentary Commission on Security and Defence, according
to which Azerbaijan is going to raise a question on creating a special
inspection within the framework of NATO and OSCE for investigating and
preventing facts of increasing armaments by Armenia, which violates
the "Agreement On Limitation of Conventional Armaments in Europe."

V.Haroutiunian considers that it is Azerbaijan that violates the
agreement and the Armenian Defence Ministry has repeatedly declared
this. In particular, in his words, Azerbaijan has violated and
continues to violate the agreement on two out of five parameters:
on quotas on tanks and armoured cars.

To recap, the "Agreement On Limitation of Conventional Armaments in
Europe" was signed by Soviet Union in 1990. Subsequently, as a result
of collapse of the USSR, the agreement was adapted to new conditions,
according to which quotas for heavy armament (the countries cannot have
more than 220 tanks, 220 armoured cars and 150 artillery systems) and
aviation (no more than 100 fighting planes and 50 fighting helicopters)
are established in the armed forces of Armenia and Azerbaijan.

BUSH’ WILL BE OPPOSED TO THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BILL

Sabah, Turkey
Jan 17 2007

The US ambassador Wilson stated: "the government will do its best in
order not to pass the Armenian genocide bill to the Congress.

President Bush will be opposed to the bill, just like Clinton."

‘Bush will be opposed to the Armenian bill’

The US ambassador in Ankara, Wilson, commented on the so-called
Armenian genocide causing tension between Turkey and the USA:
"I can not know the result of the draft; but Bush will be strongly
against it."

The US ambassador in Ankara, Wilson, commented on the so-called
Armenian genocide causing tension between Turkey and the USA: "I can
not know the result of the draft; but Bush will be strongly against
it." Wilson responded to the claims that the F-16 fleet sent to
İncirlik after three years targets Iran as "a routine practice."

The US ambassador Wilson: "the government will do its best in order
not to pass the Armenian genocide bill to the Congress. President
Bush will be opposed to the bill just like Clinton."