Author: Jilavian Emma

ANCA CHAIRMAN URGES OBAMA TO REVERSE COURSE

irman-urges-obama-to-reverse-course/
May 18th, 2009

WASHINGTON-The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Chairman
Ken Hachikian urged President Barack Obama on Monday to "act quickly"
to correct a "disturbing" course his administration has chosen to
take on Armenian American issues.

In a May 18th letter to the White House, Hachikian addressed both the
President’s decision not to honor his repeated promises to recognize
the Armenian Genocide, as well as his recent proposal to cut aid to
Armenia by 38% even as he increases overall foreign aid spending and
the level of assistance he seeks to the regions of Europe, Eurasia,
and South/Central Asia.

"You failed to honor your commitment to lift our nation’s response
to genocide to the level of our shared American values, choosing,
instead, to allow America’s willingness to respond forcefully to this
horrific crime to remain hostage to Turkish threats and intimidation,"
Hachikian said in the letter.

Hachikian called on the President to "act quickly" to correct the
"disturbing" stand by "immediately condemning and commemorating"
the Armenian Genocide and by "working publicly toward the adoption
of the Armenian Genocide Resolution before the U.S. Congress."

Obama’s failure to keep his promise continues the "morally flawed
policy of allowing Turkey to veto our stand on human rights,"
Hachikian said, adding that Obama’s decision effectively allowed
Turkey to continue imposing a "gag" rule on U.S. recognition of the
Armenian Genocide.

"Your broken pledge represents both a grave offense to Armenian
Americans and a disservice to all Americans who understand that our
nation’s leadership in confronting genocide should never be reduced
to a political issue that can be traded away, retreated from under
pressure, or used to advance a political agenda, of any kind,"
Hachikian said.

Turkey had made no secret of its hopes to use its current rapprochement
with Armenia to deter an official US recognition of the Armenian
Genocide. But according to Hachikian, the ongoing dialogue between
Armenia and Turkey should have no bearing on the President’s
willingness to speak the truth about the Armenian Genocide.

"Our stand against all instances of genocide should be unconditional,"
he said in the letter.

Hachikian also relayed the Armenian-American community’s disappointment
at the administration’s recent cut in aid to Armenia. "The Armenian
American community is also troubled that, despite your pledge to
maintain aid to Armenia and to foster her growth and development, you
have called for a 38% cut in economic aid to Armenia," Hachikian said.

The President’s request represents "the sharpest cut, by a significant
margin, among all the recipient nations of Europe, Eurasia, and South
and Central Asia," Hachikian added, noting that the cut comes as the
administration seeks an overall 9 percent escalation in international
affairs spending.

Obama’s budget request for foreign aid also included a request to
increase military aid to Azerbaijan, a move that will breach military
aid parity between in favor of Baku and tilt the regional military
balance and send a dangerous signal to Azerbaijani leaders "who have
made no secret of their intent to use force of arms to settle the
Nagorno Karabakh issue," Hachikian said.

A PDF version of Hachikian’s letter can be found at:
Obama_0509.pdf

The full text of the ANCA letter is provided below:

May 18, 2009 The Honorable Barack Obama President of the United States
The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20500
Dear Mr. President:

I am writing on behalf of the Armenian National Committee of America
to voice the Armenian American community’s profound disappointment
with your decision not to honor your pledge to recognize the Armenian
Genocide.

In breaking your clearly stated and unambiguous commitment, you
bitterly disappointed all those who believed in your solemn word to
change a flawed U.S. policy on the Armenian Genocide, a policy that
you yourself, in a letter you sent to your constituents last year,
sharply criticized as "inexcusable." More broadly, you failed to honor
your commitment to lift our nation’s response to genocide to the level
of our shared American values, choosing, instead, to allow America’s
willingness to respond forcefully to this horrific crime to remain
hostage to Turkish threats and intimidation. This failure continues
the morally flawed policy of allowing Turkey to veto our stand on
human rights by effectively imposing a "gag" rule on U.S. recognition
of the Armenian Genocide.

Your broken pledge represents both a grave offense to Armenian
Americans and a disservice to all Americans who understand that our
nation’s leadership in confronting genocide should never be reduced
to a political issue that can be traded away, retreated from under
pressure, or used to advance a political agenda, of any kind.

The ongoing dialogue between Armenia and Turkey should have no bearing
on your willingness to speak the truth about the Armenian Genocide;
our stand against all instances of genocide should be unconditional.

What is so particularly disturbing about your reversal is that,
in the course of your service in the United States Senate and your
candidacy for the Presidency, you articulated a thorough knowledge
of the facts of the Armenian Genocide, a firm grasp of the practical
geo-political implications of proper American recognition of this
atrocity, a comprehensive view of the value of Turkey’s relationship
to the United States, and a clear understanding of the profound moral
issues at stake in the condemnation and commemoration of this crime
against humanity. Nothing has changed since you gave your word except
your failure to uphold it.

I respectfully call upon you to act quickly to correct your stand
on the Armenian Genocide by properly and immediately condemning and
commemorating this crime, and by working publicly toward the adoption
of the Armenian Genocide Resolution before the U.S. Congress.

The Armenian American community is also troubled that, despite
your pledge to maintain aid to Armenia and to foster her growth
and development, you have called for a 38% cut in economic aid to
Armenia. This represents the sharpest cut, by a significant margin,
among all the recipient nations of Europe, Eurasia, and South
and Central Asia, and takes place with the context of substantial
proposed increases to each of these three regions and a roughly 9%
overall escalation in international affairs spending.

The singling out of Armenia, which has sent troops to Iraq and Kosovo,
appears set to contribute to our operations in Afghanistan, and hosted
the first NATO exercise in the region following the Russia-Georgia
war, for such a dramatic cut, even as it endures dual Turkish and
Azerbaijani blockades and an acute economic crisis, is profoundly
troubling to our community. Compounding this disappointment was
your decision to breach the Armenia-Azerbaijan military aid parity
agreement in favor of Baku, a move that tilts the regional military
balance and sends a dangerous signal to Azerbaijani leaders who have
made no secret of their intent to use force of arms to settle the
Nagorno Karabagh issue.

I appreciate your attention to the concerns of the Armenian American
community and remain hopeful that you will, consistent with your
campaign commitments, revise the course your Administration has
chosen on issues of special concern to Armenia Americans. We would,
of course, welcome the opportunity to meet with you to discuss these
matters personally and in greater detail.

Sincerely, Kenneth V. Hachikian Chairman

PRESIDENT OF CROATIA TO VISIT ARMENIA MAY 21-23

armradio.am
19.05.2009 14:28

The newly appointed Ambassador of Croatia to Armenia, Vesna Cvetkovic
Kurelec, presented her credentials to the President of Armenia,
Serzh Sargsyan.

The President congratulated the Ambassador on assuming office and
expressed hope that her experience and knowledge would contribute to
the further development of cooperation between the two countries.

Noting that Armenia is interested in the deepening of friendly
relations with Croatia, President Sargsyan said the visit of the
Croatian President to Armenia from May 21 to 23, undoubtedly,
evidences the willingness of both parties to expand and deepen the
bilateral agenda.

The parties agreed that the visit would serve as a serious impulse for
the intensification of the political dialogue and mutually beneficial
cooperation in different spheres.

>From the perspective of development of economic ties, Serzh Sargsyan
prioritized the formation of a necessary legal field.

The interlocutors referred to the possible cooperation between
Armenia and Croatia within the framework of the EU initiative,
i.e. the Eastern Partnership and the Black Sea Program.

President Serzh Sargsyan hailed Croatia’s balanced position on issues
of the region within different international structures.

Ambassador Vesna Cvetkovic Kurelec said her country supported the
peaceful resolution of the Karabakh conflict and backed the efforts
of the OSCE Minsk Group.

FACE-TO-FACE TALK BETWEEN ARMENIAN PRESIDENT AND VICE-PREMIER OF RUSSIA

ArmInfo
2009-05-16 11:55:00

ArmInfo. Today a face-to-face talk took place between Armenian
President Serzh Sargsyan and vice-premier of Russia Sergey Ivanov.

As press-service of the president told ArmInfo, over the talk the
president expressed hope that Ivanov’s visit will promote extension
of the Armenian-russian strategical partnership. They fixed with
pleasure the present high level of strategical partnership and
political dialogue between the two states. Sargsyan and Ivanov
highly appreciated dynamic development of the trade and economical
cooperation between the two states as well as in the humanitarian
sphere. They also touched on cooperation in the sphere of transport,
telecommunication, energy and other spheres.

In Armenian-Turkish reconciliation preconditions are ruled out
16.05.2009 19:43 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On May 16 Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan met
vice prime minister of Russia Sergey Ivanov, who was on a working
visit in Yerevan. During the meeting Armenian president expressed
confidence, that the visit of a high-ranking official will give an
additional impetus to broadening of Armenian-Russian strategic and
partnership relations. Officials emphasized the high level of
strategic relations and political dialog between Armenia and Russia,
which is testified by new programs and initiatives in a number of
fields.
Serzh Sargsyan and Sergey Ivanov highly estimated the pace of
development of trade and economic relationship and cooperation in
humanitarian sphere. Collaboration in economy, transport, energy,
communication and other spheres were discussed. Serzh Sargsyan and
Sergey Ivanov touched upon the settlement of Nagorno Karabakh
conflict, regional and international problems.
Armenia’s president stressed again, that preconditions are ruled out
in regard to normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations. Serzh
Sargsyan affirmed Armenia’s readiness to normalize relations with
Turkey without preconditions and in the fringes of reached
agreements. Armenia’s president emphasized, that efforts of Turkish
side to interfere with the settlement of Nagorno Karabakh process can
have only negatively impact on negotiation process over Nagorno
Karabakh, RA press office reports.

WHETHER PARTIES WILL FORM COALITION PRIOR TO ELECTIONS

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
15.05.2009 17:28 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Head of Republican party Arayik Hovhannisyan has
today told a press conference that their party is very seriously
preparing for upcoming elections of Mayor and Aldermen’s Council of
Yerevan. "Republican is experienced in governing separate districts of
Yerevan, as can be seen in the party’s list. That’s why, our principal
goal is to ensure swift transition to a new electoral model," RPA
representative said.

Mr. Hovhanisyan considers upcoming elections an administrative
event. That’s why, the party’s pre-election program aims to provide
solution to such problems as repairing yards, planting greenery and
developing sports and culture.

When asked by a PanARMENIAN.Net correspondent about possibility of
forming coalition prior to elections, Hovhannisyan noted that law
allows parties to take such measures no less than 10 days before
elections. "There are currently no discussions over the issue. The
party lists registered in RA Central Election Commission remain
unchanged," he said.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT TAKES PART IN OPENING OF ARMENIAN-RUSSIAN AIR-BLOWN BITUMEN COMPANY

ArmInfo
2009-05-15 18:09:00

ArmInfo. President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan has taken part in the
opening of Armenian-Russian air-blown road and construction bitumen
company in the village of Surenavan, Ararat region.

Minister of Territorial Administration and Vice Premier of Armenia
Armen Gevorgyan and Vice Premier of Russia Sergey Ivanov cut a
red ribbon.

Sargsyan also took part in planting of trees in the yard of the
new plant.

ORHAN PAMUK’S NOVEL IN ARMENIA

Hurriyet
May 15 2009
Turkey

ISTANBUL – Nobel laureate Turkish author Orhan Pamuk is introduced to
his readers in Armenia. Pamuk’s first novel ‘Kar’ (Snow) has become
the first novel to be translated into Armenian in the history of
Armenian Republic.

The first and only Nobel laureate author of Turkish literature, Orhan
Pamuk, has been introduced to the people of Armenia via his novel
"Kar" (Snow), which was translated into Armenian by the Hamazgayin
(National) Education and Culture Association in Yerevan. It is the
first time in Armenian history that Turkish literature has been
translated into Armenian.

Daily Agos editor-in-chief Hrant Dink, who was fatally shot Jan. 19,
2007, came up with the idea of translating Pamuk’s novels, notably
"Kar," into Armenian a short time before his death.

"We are very pleased to bring together Armenian readers and the work
of a Nobel laureate author," said Hamazgayin Education and Culture
Association Chairwoman Lilit Kalstyan. She said intercommunal dialog
would develop with cultural exchange.

"Pamuk honestly for the first time gave a voice to the pains
experienced by Armenian society," she said and invited Pamuk to Armenia
through the Hurriyet Daily News & Economic Review. "We will get in
touch with the publishing house within a short time. It will be our
pleasure to host such a great Turkish author in Armenia." Interpreter
Hagop Sogomanyan, whose book has been translated into Armenian from
Russian, said: "Nobody has depicted Turkey in such a nice and epic
language. The novel points out the dark sides of a snow white country."

First in the history of Armenian literature According to data provided
by the Yerevan State University’s Turkish Studies Department, the last
time literature was translated from Turkish to Armenian was during the
Soviet Union. The works of masters of Turkish literature YaÅ~_ar Kemal,
Aziz Nesin and Sabahattin Ali were translated into Armenian during
that time. Pamuk is the first author whose work has been translated
into Armenian since Armenia’s independence. The special interest in
Pamuk comes from his statement, "One million Armenians and 30,000
Kurds have been killed in Turkey," before receiving the Nobel Prize.

Yerevan State University Turkish Studies Department Chairman Professor
Alexander Safaryan said mutual translations in Turkish and Armenian
literature carried great importance for establishing dialog between
the publics. Safaryan said three years ago academic Murat Belge
and Osman Kavala, the founding partner of one of Turkey’s leading
publishing houses, Ä°letiÅ~_im Publishing House, decided to establish
a joint commission. "The commission was expected to translate works
in Turkish and Armenian literature but the idea could not be realized
because of financial problems."

Yerevan State University Philology expert Dr. Rupen Hovhannesi
Melkonyan, who is working on his first doctoral thesis about
Turkish literature, said: "The story of the novel takes place in
the southeastern city of Kars. Its theme is around Armenia and its
culture. That is why the book appeals to us. Also, it will be a
pleasure for us to read a Nobel laureate author in Armenian."

Ara Galoyan, a journalist at weekly Armenian 168 Jam (168 Hours)
newspaper, said he was very excited about the translation of
the book. "Pamuk bravely tells about the bitter experiences of
Armenians. It is very important to share our pain," he said.

About the novel

"Kar" (Snow) was published in Turkish in 2002 and in English in
2004. The story encapsulates many of modern Turkey’s political and
cultural tensions and successfully combines humor, social commentary,
mysticism and a deep sympathy with its characters. In the novel,
a poet named Ka returns to Turkey after a 12-year political exile in
Germany. A friend in Istanbul who works for a newspaper suggests that
he to go to Kars for an interview. Under heavy snowfall, Ka tries to
get to know Kars.

HARD TO LOVE, IMPOSSIBLE TO IGNORE
by Lubos Palata

Transitions Online
nguage=1&IdPublication=4&NrIssue=321&N rSection=4&NrArticle=20580
May 15 2009
Czech Republic

Weighed down with provisos and limitations, a coalition of the EU’s
eastern neighbors just barely gets off the ground.

PRAGUE | The sea water that washes up on the shores of Baku is not the
cleanest. The globs of oil on the surface of the Caspian Sea serve as
an unmistakable sign that the drilling rigs on the horizon are still
working. But even as the sea is suffering due to this re-discovery
of oil wealth, the city of Baku on the coast is changing at an
incredible pace, transforming itself from a post-Soviet metropolis
into a Western-style capital.

Iran is just a couple of dozen kilometers away, and the city’s
population consists almost entirely of Muslims and a Russian minority
(following the expulsion and flight of the Armenians who used to live
here). However, you will not find any women wearing burkhas or hijab,
the mosques are hidden in the middle of housing developments, and
beer is sold everywhere (and tastes at least as good if not better
than what you could get in Poland or Ukraine).

Even the summer residence of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev is not
an Asian-style domicile. Although the 10-meter crystal chandelier
in the middle of the entrance hallway looks grandiose, the edifice
is otherwise a proportionately elegant residence and there is very
little to criticize in terms of architectural design. And so, despite
the fact that this city is on the same longitude as Tehran and Basra,
you get the feeling that this place, on the banks of the Caspian Sea,
is still part of Europe.

The enthusiasm over Baku, however, tends to get dampened by voices
such as that of one participant in a recent seminar on the region for
journalists held at the Thalia Hotel in Prague: "Why does everyone
always talk about (Belarusian President) Alyaksandr Lukashenka and
call him the last dictator in Europe, and no one ever talks about
Ilham Aliev, about his falsified election, or about that fact that
journalists are imprisoned in Azerbaijan?"

ALIEV Jiri Schneider of the Prague Institute for Security Studies
offers a fair response, saying, "The reason Lukashenka is seen as a
dictator and Aliev is not is oil. If oil were discovered in Belarus,
Lukashenka would be in good favor with the West just like Aliev."

The seminar for journalists was just one of the events planned for
what was conceived as a grand summit in Prague on 6 May to launch the
European Union’s Eastern Partnership. The summit was supposed to have
been the high point of the Czech Republic’s six-month presidency of
the EU.

All of that changed when Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek’s government
failed to survive a vote of confidence at the end of March, after
euroskeptic President Vaclav Klaus and the jealous opposition
refused to allow it to stay in power until the end of the country’s
EU presidency in June. Topolanek managed to hold on just long enough
to chair the Eastern Partnership summit. He was removed from power
only hours afterward when Klaus named a new caretaker cabinet headed
by Jan Fischer, the chairman of the Czech Statistical Office.

The political capital that Topolanek had built up for himself at
the head of the EU was seriously damaged by the collapse of his
government. Fischer, however, has no political capital to speak of
in terms of the EU, thanks to his position as a nonpartisan prime
minister at the head of a caretaker cabinet that has the sole purpose
of shepherding the country to elections expected in October. In that
sense, Fischer had little authority with which to lead the summit. The
same goes for Klaus, who, as an unrepentant opponent of the Lisbon
Agreement, is completely isolated in the EU.

While the Eastern Partnership was conceived by the Poles and Swedes
rather than the Czechs, the government in Prague quickly adopted the
project as its own, as did the EU’s other new members. There is a
certain logic to that – all the new members from the post-communist
region, except the Czech Republic, share borders with the eastern
countries included in the partnership. And if the EU will not be
enlarging farther eastward over the next few years (since such a
move is being blocked both by large member states such as France
and Italy, as well as by the fact that the institutional reforms
symbolized by the Lisbon Agreement have not been completed), then the
EU’s easternmost members would like at least to have a stable region
along their eastern borders.

LOOKING SOUTH, LOOKING EAST

Polish and Czech diplomats agree that, had the EU’s Mediterranean
Union project not been launched last summer by French President
Nicolas Sarkozy at a summit in Paris, the Eastern Partnership most
likely would never have seen the light of day. The Mediterranean
Union gave the supporters of an eastern dimension for the EU many
arguments in favor of their vision. Just as there are millions of
Tunisian, Algerian, Moroccan, Syrian, and Lebanese people living
and working in France, hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians live in
Poland and the Czech Republic, hundreds of thousands of Moldovans have
Romanian passports, and a visitor to Krakow will find more Georgian
restaurants than McDonald’s or KFC outlets. And just as many people
in the Mediterranean region can communicate in French, the people of
the new EU members can still communicate with one another in Russian.

In that sense, of course, the question arises as to why Russia is
not a participant in the Eastern Partnership. Russia has its own
agreement with the EU known as the "strategic partnership." Until the
establishment of the Eastern Partnership, Russia was considered to be
the privileged partner of the post-Soviet world (and in the eyes of a
large number of EU members, particularly the "old" members, it still
is). Today, Moscow’s dominant position, which is based on Russia’s
importance to the EU as a commercial partner and energy exporter,
has been undermined by the Eastern Partnership.

Naturally, Russia has been aware of this from the beginning and it
has tried to prevent the creation of an EU partnership involving the
countries that lie between it and the EU. These efforts by Russian
diplomats were stymied by their country’s invasion of Georgia last
year and the subsequent occupation and annexation of the breakaway
regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. This was a rude awakening for
the EU, particularly for its "pro-Russian" member states, France and
Germany. A sobering-up followed as it became evident that Russia was
not going to fulfill the peace agreements concluded under the patronage
of the EU and had instead basically added Abkhazia and South Ossetia
to its own territory, stationed an extensive military force in both
territories, and continued in its efforts to undermine Georgia and
subvert Tbilisi’s pro-Western president, Mikheil Saakashvili.

Such policies have robbed Moscow of any moral right to have a say
in the creation of the Eastern Partnership. The EU’s chief external
affairs representative, Javier Solana, simply told Russian Foreign
Minister Sergei Lavrov that the "project is not aimed against Russia."

In any case, Russia actually turned out to be less of a problem for
the project than its expected participants from among the "European"
countries of the post-Soviet region. These countries are, to a great
extent, economically weak, unstable, and not really democratic. In many
cases, they have border disputes with one another or other countries,
marked occasionally by fragile cease-fires or even full-on states
of war.

If we leave out Georgia and its problems with Russia, we can look at
Armenia and Azerbaijan. Since its military victory over Azerbaijan
in the early 1990s, Armenia has occupied about one-quarter of its
neighbor’s territory.

We can move on to examine Moldova, where for 20 years the breakaway
Republic of Transnistria has existed on the eastern edge of the country
with the financial support of Russia and under the control of former
Soviet generals and KGB officers who are mostly ethnically Russian.

Ukraine is not affected by such problems for the moment, but most
observers agree that they could arise at any time on the country’s
Crimean peninsula, where Russia’s Black Sea fleet is stationed and
where Russia has been distributing passports to the ethnic Russian
population, just as it has done in Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

The situation is just as problematic when it comes to democracy and
human rights. Most of the countries in the Eastern Partnership could be
viewed as, at best, partial or illiberal democracies, with the possible
exceptions of Ukraine and Georgia after their "color revolutions."

The EU’s attention was, somewhat unfairly, focused on "last dictator"
Lukashenka and on whether to invite him to the foundational summit of
the partnership in May. While Lukashenka did make some conciliatory
gestures by releasing some of the opposition activists he held as
political prisoners, his regime continued to violate basic human rights
in many ways. Nevertheless, he did receive an invitation to attend
the summit in Prague, although Czech diplomats continued to insist
that it was an invitation for Belarus rather than for Lukahenska. In
the end, though, Lukashenka did not come to Prague, an outcome that
was agreed to in advance, according to diplomatic sources.

Another no-show at the Prague summit was Moldovan President Vladimir
Voronin, who a few weeks before the meeting had cracked down on
opposition demonstrators in Chisinau following what were likely
manipulated parliamentary elections. Nor did Ukrainian Prime Minister
Yulia Tymoshenko show up, due to her protracted dispute with President
Viktor Yushchenko.

Two relatively controversial leaders did, however, show up. While
Lukashenka’s potential participation was the subject of many debates,
no one questioned the participation of Armenian President Serzh
Sargsyan, who was responsible for a violent crackdown on opposition
demonstrations last year, or Azerbaijan’s Aliev, who staged a
referendum essentially to confirm a lifetime term as president.

"Yes it’s a crisis region. Of course, we could wait for the ideal
situation, but that might never happen," said Hungarian Foreign
Minister Peter Balazs, whose country was also a big supporter of
the partnership.

"Only with a firm political will and commitment on both sides will the
Eastern Partnership attain its goals, which are political association
and economic integration. More investment into mutual stability and
prosperity is needed. This will bring quick returns in the form
of political and economic advantages and it will lead to greater
stability and security for both the EU and our eastern partners,"
said European Commission head Jose Manuel Barroso in a statement five
months before the summit.

There is one more argument. "How much worse are the Northern African
regimes, where elections amount to just playing at democracy, than the
Caucasus or Moldova? In what way is the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh,
an enclave wholly within Azerbaijan but occupied by ethnic Armenians,
worse than that between Israel and Syria?" asked one Czech diplomat,
comparing the countries of the Mediterranean Union to those of the
Eastern Partnership.

TRUNCATED SUMMIT

The fact remains that while Sarkozy’s summit in Paris last year did
not feature the complete EU, this year’s Prague summit was attended by
only a fraction of the key EU members, and some countries did attend
in a less than dignified manner. Sarkozy did not show up, nor did
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi or Spanish Prime Minister
Jose Luis Zapatero. That was to be expected. The Czech organizers
were most irked by the absence of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown,
since London was viewed as a key ally of the new members in terms of
the eastern strategy.

An entirely scandalous approach was taken by Austria, whose chancellor,
Werner Faymann, excused himself from the meeting because of a cold,
and the country was represented at the ambassadorial level. "It’s
sad that they didn’t understand the importance of this project,"
said Aleksandr Vondra, former deputy prime minister for European
Affairs in Topolanek’s government.

Czech commentators attributed the poor attendance at the summit to the
Czech government crisis. Other EU events held in the Czech Republic
since the collapse of the Topolanek government have also been skipped
by the important EU leaders. But the Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza
recently offered a more rational explanation. The newspaper argued
that the "fashionable fascination with the East is coming to an end"
and that the recognition that the EU should be engaged with the East
following the Georgian war was a "temporary affair."

The main result of the summit, then, is that it even took place and
that the Eastern Partnership program, for which 600 million euros
were found in the Brussels budget, got off to a start. Nevertheless,
the concluding declaration -which contained words about common values
and support for those values but which also, at the insistence of the
"old" EU members, did not contain even the faintest hint that the
countries to the east might one day become EU members or that travel
visas would be lifted – is more of a disappointment. That is, it is
more of a disappointment for the supporters of the Eastern Partnership
within the EU. "The Georgians, for instance, take a pragmatic view of
the whole thing. The program has been launched, the money allotted,
and it’s a great opportunity, mainly for the nonprofit sector and
pro-democracy activists – an opportunity that might be the last one
for a long time," added one highly placed Czech diplomat.

"Hard to Love, Impossible to Ignore"

Lubos Palata is a journalist for the Czech daily Lidove
noviny. Translated by Victor Gomez.

AZERBAIJANI GENERAL PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE AND INTERIOR MINISTRY ISSUE JOINT STATEMENT: FARDA GADIROV’S LINKS WITH ARMENIAN ARE INVESTIGATED

APA
May 15 2009
Azerbaijan

Baku – APA. Press services of Azerbaijani General Prosecutor’s Office
and Interior Ministry issued joint statement on the event took place
in Azerbaijan State Oil Academy on April 30.

Interior Ministry’s press service told APA that the
investigative-operational group consisting of officers of General
Prosecutor’s Office and Interior Ministry established for the
investigation of criminal case on the fact of killing or attempting
to the lives of innocent people at the Azerbaijan State Oil Academy
continued taking appropriate measures.

Faculty and staff of State Oil Academy, who witnessed the tragedy,
including driver and passengers of the a bus, by which Farda Gadirov
came to Baku from Georgia, persons he contacted during his stay in
Baku, residents of the building he lived as well as the persons worked
in facilities nearby were questioned. Moreover, phone conversations of
those supposed to be involved in the crime were analyzed, searches were
conducted in their apartments and other necessary measures were taken.

Video snapshots registered when Farda Gadirov left home for the State
Oil Academy on the day he committed the crime are analyzed as well.

Besides, members of the investigative-operational group have been
sent to Russian Federation and Georgia to investigate the contacts
of Farda Gadirov as he live in those countries.

As a result of measures taken jointly with Georgian law-enforcement
bodies, various documents belonging to Farda Gadirov, receipt of the
pistol he used in the crime, 14 bullets, two cartridge clips, knife,
gloves and three photos were found and taken from Farda Gadirov’s
house in Dashtepe village.

"24 fevralya 2009 q. Qadirov Farda Odinokiy VolkÂ" and Â"U menya
kajdıy Å~_aq smert. 10 noyabrya 2008 q. Qadirov Farda" words were
written on the backside of the photos.

Notes with different telephone numbers, 15 videocassettes with words
"Have a look at telephone came and you will know who I am" in Russian,
"There is no love for me, but the hate only, I’m coming to Baku, I
will shoot everyone I meet irrespective of their ages, I will not give
up to police, I will experience pleasure in killing" words written
in his phone, wolf mask as well as views reflecting his firing from
the pistol were found and taken.

As a result of measures taken jointly with Georgian law-enforcement
bodies, it was cleared that Farda Gadirov returned from Russian
Federation to Dashtepe village in October, 2008 and he regularly
telephoned and met Georgian citizen Grigoryan Sergey Yegorovich, 48,
with Armenian origin and bought "Makarov" pistol (500 lary) and 100
bullets (200 lary) together with him.

Sergey Grigoryan’s links with this crime as well as the legality
of the pistol are investigated. At the same time, the State Border
Service investigates transport of gun from Georgia to Azerbaijan.

It should be noted that as the parents and relatives of Farda Gadirov
did not accept his body, it was buried as unknown.

Despite law-enforcement bodies provided detailed and comprehensive
information about the crime committed at the State Oil Academy,
unfortunately some pro-opposition political party representatives
and their press agencies attempt to take advantages from this tragic
event for their political purposes.

They spread various false information in different schools and
universities and try to aggravate socio-political situation in the
country.

However, all these kinds of attempts directed to the violation of
public-order will be prevented and special measures will be taken
against the organizers and participants of these actions.

Investigative-operational group continues taking appropriate measures.

TURKEY’S PRIME MINISTER TO OPEN BORDER WITH ARMENIA AFTER PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
15.05.2009 13:10 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Azeri political scientist Zardusht Alizade believes
that the prime minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan only temporarily
give up opening of the Armenian border in order to win the forthcoming
parliamentary elections. This was reported by the "News Azerbaijan"
information agency. According to the political scientist, thanks to
Azerbaijan’s efforts, Turkish opposition managed to turn the Nagorno
Karabakh issue into domestic policy issue for Turkey. "Therefore by
his recent statements related to obligatory linkage of the opening of
the Armenian-Turkish border with tangible moves in Nagorno Karbakh
settlement Erdogan removed that issue from the agenda and disarmed
opposition," Z.Alizade said.

Zadusht Alizade is certain, that after Turkish prime minister has won
the parliamentary elections, he will forget about Nagorno Karabakh
and will get down to execution of already de facto trade economic
relations between Armenia and Turkey.