Author: Jalatian Sonya

RIA OREANDA , Russia
Economic Press Review
May 7, 2004 Friday
Russia-Armenia Cooperation Issues Be Discussed in Samara
SAMARA
On May 14, 2004 the Federation Council of the RF Federal Assembly
and the National Assembly of Armenia will hold the international
conference Interregional Russia-Armenia Cooperation: State and
Prospects . It is expected that the following officials will
participate in the Conference: Sergey Mironov, the RF Federation
Council Chairman, Artur Baghdasaryan, Chairman of the National
Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, members of the RF Federation
Council, the RF State Duma and the National Assembly of Armenia. The
conference participants will consider process of implementation of
the long-term Program for economic cooperation between two states
till 2010 and touch upon the problems of coordination of legislation
of both countries. Notably, the choice of the Samara region for
conference holding is not random- at the present moment the Samara
region is in the lead among the Russian regions in the trade turnover
with Armenia and above all, almost 70 thousand Armenians live in
Samara and the Samara region.

PR Newswire (press release)
May 5 2004
Wealth and Poverty Continue to Coexist in Europe – Diouf

WASHINGTON, MONTPELIER, Vt. and ROME, May 5 /PRNewswire/ — Europe
includes some of the most advanced countries in the world as well as
others that have high levels of poverty, FAO Director-General
Dr. Jacques Diouf said today in his address to the FAO Regional
Conference for Europe.
“The level of poverty in the region, based on a poverty line of
less than $2 per day, stands at 21 percent and 5 percent of the
population are affected by food insecurity. Such levels are lower
than in most other parts of the world, but significant differences
exist among the countries,” Dr. Diouf said.
“Special attention needs to be paid to the poorest countries of
the region, especially those of southeast Europe and the Commonwealth
of Independent States, to help resolve their problems of food
insecurity and rural poverty,” Dr. Diouf said.
Factors fuelling poverty in the past 15 years include the
difficulties associated with moving from a centrally planned economy
to a market economy, declining production in agriculture and the
agrifood sector and resulting unemployment. In the Balkans, the
situation has been further exacerbated by conflict, he added.
The number of undernourished people in the countries in transition
grew from 25 to 34 million between 1993-1995 and 1999-2001, according
to FAO’s State of Food Insecurity in the World 2003. Nearly all of
the increases in undernourishment took place in the Commonwealth of
Independent States, where the number of hungry people rose from 20.6
to 28.8 million.
Agricultural production Agricultural production in the region as a
whole fell by about 0.5 percent per year between 1998 and 2003.
Agriculture accounted for 12 percent of the region’s gross domestic
product in 2001.
Agricultural exports represented 7.4 percent of total exports in
2002, for a value of $211 billion, against agricultural imports of
$222 billion. The 25 countries of the European Union account for more
than 90 percent of these figures.
The year 2003 was unfortunately not a good year for agriculture in
most countries in the region, Dr. Diouf said. Drought, frost,
flooding and other problems, such as locust and rodent infestation,
led to a sharp decline in agricultural production, especially in
Armenia, Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine.
“During the last biennium, six countries of the Balkans and
Commonwealth of Independent States received emergency assistance from
FAO to deal with crises in their agricultural sectors, for a total of
some US$15 million,” he added.
Despite these problems, Dr. Diouf said that he was confident that
a determined Europe can meet the challenges of poverty and food
insecurity.
Noting that external aid to agricultural development fell from $27
billion to as low as $10 billion during the 1990s, Dr. Diouf called on
countries to double external aid to agriculture. He said investment
in agriculture should also be increased in order to achieve progress
in reducing undernourishment.
He underlined that a fair trading policy is essential for rural
development and food security.
Agricultural technology The transfer and adoption of appropriate
technology is essential for the sustainable intensification of
agricultural systems, Dr. Diouf added.
Very important are the promotion of exchanges, the existence of
regional and global partnerships and the strengthening of linkages
between public and private research, extension, education and
communication institutions.
The Regional Conference for Europe will also discuss the
improvement of food safety.
“Improving the safety and quality of food products remains a key
objective of governments, private sector and civil society
organizations of all the countries of the region. Such improvement
will help safeguard public health, meet consumer expectations and
encourage local and international trade,” Dr Diouf said.

turkishnewsline, Turkey
April 29 2004
US’ Armenia move

The US is determined to improve its influence on Caucasus; so it has
some movements that have not been realized.
Under this framework, US’ signing a military deal with Armenia could
be evaluated as last, silent but an important move. Press reported a
little on the issue when the agreement was signed in Yerivan on April
25. Armenia Chief of General Staff declared the deal on April 26.
With this deal, for the first time US is signing a military agreement
with Armenia.
According to information on the deal, this is a military logistic
deal. The US will able to come to Armenia and it will able to remain
in the Armenian bases and he will able to benefit from the facilities
of the bases. The same conditions will be valid for the US military
forces; of course it is a detail because the Armenian forces will not
go to the US. And why should they go?
There are some special clauses that the US will pay for the services
that it benefited from in Armenia and the US will compensate the
Armenian forces, which would be deployed in Iraq. We discover that
Armenia is ready to send a military unit to Iraq to get closer to the
US. The aim is not only to be closer to the US, but also Armenia
wants to balance Azerbaijan and Georgia in Iraq, which sent troops to
the country.
This agreement that the US signed with Armenia is the last move of
the US against the Caucasus. Aiming to break Russian and Iran
influence in the Caucasus, the US had signed a very comprehensive
deal with Georgia.

Scotland on Sunday, UK
April 30 2004
Eu’s Outsiders Look in with Envy and Bitterness
“PA”
While new EU members celebrated, their left-out neighbours stood
outside the rope and watched the party today, wondering when – or if
– they will join Europe’s exclusive club of the stable and
prosperous.
An entire swathe of countries, from Belarus and Russia in the north
to Albania in southern Europe, are seeing their relative poverty and
outsider status reinforced with the eastward push of the union’s
borders at the stroke of midnight.
Some, like Croatia and Romania, have a chance to get in the next
several years. Others, burdened by shrivelled economies and
international concern about human rights, can only dream of meeting
the tough requirements for economic reform and democracy.
Ukraine’s president Leonid Kuchma, leader of one of the biggest
outsider nations, testily accused the EU of erecting a new wall to
replace the ones torn down at the end of the Cold War in the late
1980s and early 1990s.
`We regard it as historically unjust that we are outside this
system,’ he told a Warsaw conference this week. `We are not asking
for charity, we are simply announcing to Europe that there is such a
country as Ukraine.’
Kuchma’s emotional reproach was greeted with a bland thank-you from
EU enlargement commissioner Guenter Verheugen, sitting on stage a few
feet away at the European Economic Summit.
He left no doubt where Kuchma stands, however.
`For the time being, accession of the Eastern European countries –
Russia, Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine – is not on our agenda,’ Verheugen
said. `It makes no sense to make promises which are not realistic.’
The newcomers are Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic Latvia,
Lithuania, Estonia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Malta, and Cyprus. And
there’s a clear pecking order for outsiders.
The former Yugoslav republics of Croatia and Macedonia and former
Soviet satellites Romania and Bulgaria have applied for EU membership
and could start getting in as early as 2007. Turkey is awaiting a
decision on whether it will be able to start negotiations with the
EU.
In the Balkans, Serbia and Montenegro – even impoverished Albania –
have a theoretical chance to get in years down the road.
Others have no real chance for now. Russia has dismissed the prospect
of getting in, and its view of Caucasus nations such as Georgia and
Armenia as belonging in its sphere of influence may place a long-term
lid on any faint hopes there.
Then there’s isolated, authoritarian Belarus, which refused
permission for an EU enlargement ceremony in the capital Minsk and
cancelled a visit to the Warsaw economic summit by Prime Minister
Sergei Sidorsky.
Ukraine, meanwhile, has struggled economically since becoming
independent with the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991. European
officials have expressed concern about the pace of democratic
progress, most recently criticising local elections won by a
pro-presidential party this month amid accusations of widespread vote
fraud.
However, Ukraine and Belarus may be able to get more aid and sympathy
at the urging of Poland, which shares a border with both.

Pacific Stars and Stripes, Japan
May 2 2004
U.S., Armenia sign military compact
By Ward Sanderson, Stars and Stripes
European edition,
The United States recently signed a compact with Armenia making it
possible to swap or buy military supplies and services through that
country’s forces.
Armenia may ask the same of the Americans.
`It shows that we are increasing and cementing our relationship and
that Armenia is a full participant on the war on terrorism,’ said Gen.
Charles F. Wald, deputy commander of U.S. forces in Europe, in a press
statement.
In and of itself, the acquisition and cross-servicing agreement, or
ACSA, may not seem unusual. The Defense Department has negotiated 77 of
these; nearly 50 are with countries dealing with the U.S. European
Command. But the Armenia deal cemented on April 26 means that U.S.
forces can now operate with ready access to local supplies not only in
Armenia, but throughout the strategically important Caucuses region:
U.S. defense officials reached a similar agreement with Georgia two
years ago and with Azerbaijan last year.
The Caucuses region is important because the region is rich in oil and,
as beginning of the ancient Silk Road, is a doorway to the East
directly bordering Russia and Iran. And whatever the merits of having
military-to-military chumminess in that neighborhood, it also
highlights the U.S. push to have such agreements anywhere in the world
where a friendly government holds power.
The arrangements were hatched in 1979 via the Mutual Support Act, a
mechanism for the United States and other NATO members to help one
another without going through the usual contracting hoops. More
recently, Congress expanded the concept so that the U.S. government
could negotiate such arrangements with any friendly nation.
Since then, America has vigorously sought to clinch such arrangements.
`With this country and all 93 countries in our area of responsibility,
we have a responsibility to cooperate with most of them, if they’re a
friendly and willing member,’ said Lt. Col. Charles Sherwin of the
Logistics and Security Assistance Directorate at the U.S. European
Command headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany. `There are certain
agreements you’d like to have in place to work with them.’
The deals take time. The chatting up of Armenia began in March of 2002
when both the State Department and Defense Department signed off on the
idea.
`Here, two years later, we were able to conclude,’ Sherwin said. `We
can’t just go willy-nilly to negotiate these things.’
No one actually gives anything to anyone under the agreements; each
country buys, swaps or returns in kind whatever it needs from the other
military.
As for signing such deals with nations eastward, it could provide
obvious benefits for operations in Afghanistan or Iraq. And, Sherwin
said, were U.S. forces to push on to new bases in Eastern Europe, it
would advance that effort, too.
However, Lt. Col. Bill Bigelow, a spokesman for the Stuttgart
headquarters, was quick to say that the Armenian news does not equate
to a final decision to build eastern bases.
More broadly, `It enhances operability throughout the theater,’ Bigelow
said.

Business Wire
May 3 2004
“Positive/Negatives: The Unity of Film” Exhibit At Forest Lawn
–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
WHAT: “Positive/Negatives: The Unity of Film”
An exciting new exhibit at the Forest Lawn Museum
explores the art of photography through the lenses of
seven unique photographers. Their photography ranges
from landscapes and those living on skid row to obsolete
film equipment and much more.
A VIP and media reception with the photographers will
take place May 6th at 6:00 p.m. at the Forest Lawn
Museum at 1712 S. Glendale Avenue in Glendale.
Throughout the duration of the exhibit, special
activities will take place, including:
— May 9: Mother’s Day: Create a Keepsake for Mom – Kids
can make a beautiful sun catcher craft for mom! From
1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
— May 16: Meet the Artist: Jacob Demirdjian – Jacob
will lead a question-and-answer session about his
work and its significance to the Armenian community.
From 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
— May 23 and 30: Photography Workshop with Kevin
Tidmore for Adults and Children – Join Kevin for a
photography workshop. Participants will be given a
single-use camera to take their own shots.
Participants will then be able to return on May 30 to
have Kevin discuss the results. From 1:00 p.m. –
4:00 p.m.

— June 6: Ronald Dietel: Landscape Photography – From
Large Format to Digital (adults and children) – Bring
your digital camera to a hands-on workshop, which
traces the evolution of the camera and its influence
on California history. Led by photographer Ron
Dietel, participants will have an opportunity to view
Dietel’s large-format photography, currently on
display, followed by an opportunity to enhance their
own photography skills. From 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
— June 19: Father’s Day Activity: Make a Memory for Dad
– Children can make a unique and special mosaic tile
frame for Dad’s big day. From 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
— June 27: Meet the Artist: William Ortiz – Meet
William and hear about photographic manipulation as
art. From 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

— July 18: Photojournalism – Meet Patrick Liotta, whose
photographs are currently on display, and join him
for a discussion on photojournalism as both art and
presentation of fact. From 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
— July 25: Meet the Artist: Vince Gonzales – Join Vince
as he talks about his photographic inspirations. From
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
— July 31: Meditative Art: Art in a Yantra Style with
Kelly Mason – Yantra means mantra except in image not
word. In this demonstration, Kelly will use
repetitive imagery to help the viewer see beyond the
obvious core presence to benefit their entire being
physically, emotionally and spiritually. From
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
WHEN: Reception, May 6th at 6:00 p.m., Forest Lawn Museum,
Glendale
Opening Day, May 8th, from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Daily through August 1st, from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
WHERE: Forest Lawn Museum
Forest Lawn-Glendale
1712 S. Glendale Ave.
Glendale, CA 91205
COST: Free
INFO: 1-800-204-3131

WHO: All art enthusiasts
INFORMATION: “Positive/Negatives: The Unity of Film” is an exhibit
that explores the art of photography through a
collection of works by seven photographers of varying
ethnic backgrounds — Armenian, African American,
Latino, South American, and Caucasian — whose
photography will be the featured exhibit at The Forest
Lawn Museum in Forest Lawn-Glendale from May 8th through
August 1st. The photography represented in the exhibit
ranges from landscapes to people living on skid row to
obsolete film equipment and more, and adds to the
distinctive vision of the photographers.
“Positive/Negatives: The Unity of Film” is part of the
Forest Lawn Museum’s presentation of events which are
designed to bring a diverse mix of community, cultural,
and historic art and artists to the greater Los Angeles
community. The exhibit is open to the public at no
charge seven days a week from 10:00 a.m. through
5:00 p.m.
The following photographers’ work will be included in
the exhibit: Jacob Demirdjian, Kevin Tidmore, Ronald J.
Dietel, William Ortiz, Patrick Liotta, Vince Gonzales,
and Kelly Mason.

[Congressional Record: April 26, 2004 (Extensions)]
[Page E645-E646]
>From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:cr26ap04-12]

COMMEMORATING THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
______

HON. CALVIN M. DOOLEY
of california
in the house of representatives
Monday, April 26, 2004
Mr. DOOLEY of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my
colleagues in remembrance of the Armenian Genocide.
[[Page E646]]
This terrible human tragedy must not be forgotten. Like the
Holocaust, the Armenian Genocide stands as a tragic example of the
human suffering that results from hatred and intolerance.
The Ottoman Turkish Empire between 1915 and 1923 massacred one and a
half million Armenian people. More than 500,000 Armenians were exiled
from a homeland that their ancestors had occupied for more than 3,000
years. A race of people was nearly eliminated.
It would be an even greater tragedy to forget that the Armenian
Genocide ever happened. To not recognize the horror of such events
almost assures their repetition in the future. Adolf Hitler, in
preparing his genocide plans for the Jews, predicted that no one would
remember the atrocities he was about to unleash. After all, he asked,
“Who remembers the Armenians?”
Our statements today are intended to preserve the memory of the
Armenian loss, and to remind the world that the Turkish government–to
this day–refuses to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide. The truth of
this tragedy can never and should never be denied.
And we must also be mindful of the current suffering of the Armenian,
where the Armenian people are still immersed in tragedy and violence.
The unrest between Armenia and Azerbaijan continues in Nagorno-
Karabakh. Thousands of innocent people have already perished in this
dispute, and many more have been displaced and are homeless.
In the face of this difficult situation we have an opportunity for
reconciliation. Now is the time for Armenia and its neighbors to come
together and work toward building relationships that will assure
lasting peace.
Meanwhile, in America, the Armenian-American community continues to
thrive and to provide assistance and solidarity to its countrymen and
women abroad. The Armenian-American community is bound together by
strong generational and family ties, an enduring work ethic and a proud
sense of ethnic heritage. Today we recall the tragedy of their past,
not to replace blame, but to answer a fundamental question, “Who
remembers the Armenians?”
Our commemoration of the Armenian Genocide speaks directly to that,
and I answer, we do.

Times Colonist (Victoria, British Columbia)
April 25, 2004 Sunday Final Edition
Thumbs Up / Thumbs Down
THUMBS UP – To MPs who passed a motion condemning “the Armenian
genocide of 1915.” It may have ruffled a few Turkish feathers and
gone against official Canadian policy, but our elected
representatives must be able to express popular outrage, even if they
can’t change history.
THUMBS UP – To Puretracks.com for allowing Canadians to download the
theme song from Hockey Night in Canada. The playoffs have been pushed
off the Saturday night slot into the afternoon by U.S. television
moguls, but we can still pretend — it’s our game, after all.
THUMBS DOWN – To CBS television for broadcasting photos of Princess
Diana slumped in the car in which she died moments later, after
crashing in a Paris tunnel in 1997. The broadcasting of the pictures
“sickened” her family and outraged people around the world.
THUMBS UP – To German Defence Minister Peter Struck for announcing
German soldiers, male and female, heterosexual and homosexual, will
be able to sleep together in barracks on foreign missions. It’s silly
that armies, like ours, say that even married couples can’t cuddle on
missions — as if that would sap their will to fight.
THUMBS DOWN – To Monrovia Nursery in Azusa, Calif., for exporting
camellias to B.C. nurseries that are suspected of carrying a disease
which is fatal to our precious Garry oaks. And please don’t say that
when they’re all gone there’ll be no more Garry oak meadows to stand
in the way of developments.
THUMBS DOWN – To Tokyo University scientists who have found a way for
female mice to reproduce without the need for male mates. We won’t go
into the revolting details, but as a blow to the ego of males
everywhere, this takes the cheese.

Press & Sun-Bulletin, NY
April 24 2004
Guest Viewpoint: Armenians have not forgotten
BY HAROUT KERJILIAN
“If our children forget this much evil
Let the whole world condemn the Armenian people.”
— Avidis Aharonian
It has been 89 years since the first genocide of the 20th century
took place. The Ottoman Turks and the Young Turks took it upon
themselves to resolve the Armenian question by massacres,
deportations and mass killings of 1.5 million Armenian men, women and
children, including my grandparents, aunts and uncles.
My parents were survivors of this genocide. Arab Bedouins and
Christian missionaries took them in as orphans.
These crimes by humanity against humanity are recorded in archives of
governments around the world and the news media. To this day the
Turkish government denies that the genocide and atrocities took
place. It spends millions of our tax dollars in an attempt to rewrite
its history, by establishing Turkish Studies programs in U.S.
universities under the guise of cultural and educational cooperation.
These programs are nothing more than propaganda tools to try to
change history and discredit the victims and survivors of this
horrendous period.
Hitler used this genocide as a “text book” for the Holocaust. He
said, “After all, who remembers the Armenians?” (This quote appears
on the wall of the American Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C.)
Every year on April 24, Armenians around the globe commemorate and
remember the victims of this genocide and wonder why the world,
including the U.S. government, has kept quiet for so long.
The U.S. government refuses to acknowledge this genocide under the
guise of national interest and being an ally with Turkey. Last year
Congress was ready to pass House Resolution 193 to recognize the
genocide but it was taken off the agenda under pressure from the
White House and State Department.
President George W. Bush promised during his campaign that if he were
elected he would support this resolutions and work on getting it
passed. This day we call on the president to keep his word, and call
on Congress to pass the resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide
of 1915.
Unless we acknowledge the past and learn from it, history will repeat
itself. We have seen this happening in the Holocaust and in other
ethnic cleansings in places around the world.
This day, April 24, 2004, we not only remember and commemorate the
victims of this genocide, but we celebrate the survival of the
Armenian people and their accomplishments.
“Go ahead, destroy this race.
Let us say that it is again 1915;
There is war in the world.
Destroy Armenia.
See if you can do it.
Send them from their homes into
the desert.
Let them have neither bread nor
water.
Burn their houses and their
churches.
See if they will not live again.
See if they will not laugh again.
See if you can stop them from
mocking the big ideas of the
world. ”
— William Saroyan
Today, the Armenian community invites all people to a commemoration
service at the memorial park on Conklin Ave. in Binghamton, near the
South Washington Street Bridge. The service begins at 11 a.m.
Kerjilian is a Binghamton resident

Moscow Times
April 23 2004
Boy Set on Fire
MOSCOW (MT) — A 10-year-old Armenian boy was set on fire in an
apparent skinhead attack in the northern city of Kostroma this week,
a news agency reported.
A group of teenagers splashed gasoline over the boy when he left a
grocery store with an 11-year-old friend and set him on fire,
Regions.ru reported. Passersby quickly doused the fire.
The boy was hospitalized with burns to his face and hands, the report
said, without elaborating.
No suspects have been arrested.