Author: Kajoyan Gevork

Azad Azarbaycan TV, Azerbaijan
Feb 8 2008

EUROPEAN OFFICIAL TO DISCUSS AZERI-ARMENIAN DIALOGUE ON KARABAKH

[Presenter] Head of the PACE subcommittee on Nagornyy Karabakh Lord
Russell Johnston is visiting Azerbaijan. As part of the visit, the
head of the subcommittee will meet numerous officials and leaders of
political parties and hold anexchange of opinions on a dialogue to be
held between the Azerbaijani and Armenian MPs.

[Correspondent over video of Johnston at Baku airport] The purpose of
the visit is to investigate the dialogue overthe Nagornyy Karabakh
conflict conducted between the Azerbaijani and Armenian MPs.
Johnston, who arrived in on anofficial visit to Azerbaijan last
night, said so. The European guest said that he intends to discuss
this issue with thepresident, parliament speaker and leaders of
numerous political parties.

[Johnston speaking to microphone in English with Azeri voice-over]
The purpose of my visit is to investigate thedialogue conducted with
the Armenia and its MPs over the Karabakh problem [as heard]. I am to
meet President IlhamAliyev, the parliament speaker and heads of
political parties in the country to this end.

The head of the subcommittee did not rule out that the body may hold
a conference on the conflict settlement the inthe near future.

[Johnston] Our aim is not to resolve the conflict, but simply create
healthy atmosphere for its settlement. Aconference on the conflict
resolution may be held in Strasbourg in April with the participation
of the two sides toensure that the dialogue takes place.

[Presenter] Asked about the possibility of visits by members of the
subcommittee to Karabakh, Johnston answered very briefly. I do not
think so, end of quote.

[In a separate report of the same newscast, ANS said that Johnston
was received by Speaker Oqtay Asadov today. The TVquoted Asadov as
saying that "trust of the Azerbaijani people and representatives of
the young generation in thepeaceful resolution of the conflict
reduces from day to day". Asadov reportedly urged PACE to exert
pressure onArmenia. He regretted that PACE resolution on Karabakh had
not yet been implemented; at 0924 gmt 8 Feb APA quoted thathead of
the Hope Party, MP Iqbal Agazada, as saying after the meeting with
the European official that "I felt that Johnston does not have enough
information about the Karabakh conflict since he approaches the
problem from thestandpoint of self-determination principle"]

SERGE SARGSIAN: NEGOTIATIONS WITH HEAD OF RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT PASSED IN
CONDITIONS OF COMPLETE MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 7, NOYAN TAPAN. The negotiations conducted during the
visit of the head of the Russian government to Armenia "passed in
conditions of complete mutual understanding", the Armenian prime
minister Serge Sargsian stated at the February 6 sitting of the RA
National Assembly. According to him, on the same day the sides signed 6
documents in addition to 170 ones signed previously.

"We considered the visit of the Russian prime minister as a
continuation of my visit to Moscow last autumn," he said, adding that
there was a necessity to summarize the results of the work done in this
period. S. Sargsian also said that in the opinion of the prime
ministers of the two countries, the results of cooperation in 2007 are
satisfactory: commodity turnover between Armenia and Russia grew by
over 60% to 700 mln USD. "But we also noted that there are many
reserves and we are obliged to increase this index to 1 billion dollars
in a short time," S. Sargsian stated. In his words, "the opportunities
are great", especially taking into account the fact that Armenian
Railway has been passed to Russian Railways company for concession
management. The prime minister expressed an opinion that it will allow
Armenian building materials, which are in demand in Russia, to be
competitive in this country.

AZERBAIJANI GOVERNING PARTY DOES NOT RULES OUT MILITARY SETTLEMENT OF NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT

Trend News Agency, Azerbaijan
Feb 7 2008

Azerbaijan, Baku, 7 February / Òrend corr S. Ilhamgizi / If Armenia
does not fulfil the recommendations of international community to
vacate the Azerbaijani lands, Azerbaijan will have to use its military
force, Ali Ahmadov, the Executive Secretary and the Deputy Chairman
of the governing New Azerbaijan Party (NAP), said to the journalist
on 7 February.

According to Ahmadov, peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict is the best way, but if the peaceful negotiations are
fruitless, Azerbaijan will have right to resort to any means to
liberate its lands from occupation. International organizations cannot
deprive Azerbaijan of this right.

"Azerbaijan supports the peaceful settlement of the conflict.

However, if the peaceful settlement is impossible, Azerbaijan will have
to resort to the single way to set its territory free," Ahmadov said.

"International organizations should do more than just making
recommendations. Stability in the region and solutions to the
conflicts requires the exact steps, which would make Armenia vacate
the Azerbaijani occupied territory," he said.

The conflict between the two countries of the South Caucasus began in
1988 due to the Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since
1992, the Armenian Armed Forces have occupied 20% of Azerbaijan
including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven neighbouring
districts. In 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire
agreement which ended the active hostilities. The Co-Chairs of the
OSCE Minsk Group ( Russia, France, and the US) are currently holding
the peaceful negotiations.

–Boundary_(ID_3k8uG3hKEUt6f34VH2/C rw)–

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS IN ARMENIA: ARMENIAN MIRROR SPECTATOR ENDORSES SERGE SARGSIAN

AZG Armenian Daily
06/02/2008

"Armenian Mirror Spectator that is the press organ of Democratic
Liberal Party (Ramkavars) of East America and Canada supports Serge
Sargsian’s candidacy", is written in the official announcement of
the party sent to "Azg" daily that we present below:

"On February 19, 2008, Armenia will elect its third president since
its independence of 1991.

There are nine candidates running, from the former first president
of the republic, Levon Ter-Petrosian, to the current Prime Minister,
Serge Sargsian.If Sargsian is elected, who is current President Robert
Kocharian’s, political protege that would mean the continuation of
the policies started by Kocharian? The current president was first
elected in 1998, and then re-elected in 2003.

The majority of Armenian organizations, both in Armenia and in
the diaspora, including the Armenian Mirror-Spectator, support the
candidacy of Sargsian, not because he is a perfect candidate, but
because he will continue the diplomatic success in foreign policy,
economic growth and prosperity that Armenia has enjoyed during the
10 years of Kocharian.

Among his administration’s successes are:

* Armenia is the only country in the region, even in the world,
which has positive and good relations with Iran and Russia, as well
as the US and European countries.In 2007 alone, Armenia registered an
economic growth of 13.8 percent. Exports increased by 38.7 percent,
not including diamond production.

Imports increased by 58.4 percent.In 2007, the average monthly medium
wages were 77,000 Armenian drams ($257), an increase of 20.4 percent
compared with 2006.

* Foreign investments in Armenia were $600 million in 2007. According
to official statistics, the volume of investments in the first nine
months of 2007 rose 58 percent from the year 2006. The bulk of 2007
investments were in mining, telecommunications, information technology
and aviation. The largest foreign investors were Russia ($176 million),
Lebanon ($134 million), Argentina ($25 million), the US ($21 million)
and Germany ($20 million).

* Investments in Armenia’s IT sector last year amounted to $10
million. The sector reported a 30 percent growth.

* According to preliminary figures, about 480,000 tourists visited
Armenia in 2007, spending $410 million in the country, a $110 million
increase from 2006.

* Armenia implemented the US Congress-approved Millennium Challenge
Account grant of $250 million to built infrastructures in rural
villages. Sargsian is committed in reducing the poverty in Armenia,
focusing on economic development and implementation of special programs
in various regions of Armenia. The strategy is expected to reduce
extreme poverty from the current 26.5 percent to 6 percent by 2021.

* Prime Minister Sargsian, who was formerly the nation’s defense
minister for nine years, increased the number of the Armenian Army and
in cooperation with Russia, the United States and the European Union,
acquired military hardware, including planes, tanks and technology.

* The foreign policies of Armenia have kept the Nagorno-Karabakh
Republic intact for 15 years. Former President Levon Ter-Petrosian,
who resigned in 1998 over his Karabakh policies, still persists that
Armenia does not need to keep a strong army and that Karabakh should
relinquish its territories to Azerbaijan.

* Armenia privatized the Medzamor nuclear plant and sold it to Russia,
and in 2007, signed an agreement with the United States to build a
second plant there.

Upon the completion of the second plant, Medzamor would be dismantled.

* Armenia privatized the Armenian Railways, again selling them to the
Russian giant CJSC.Again, we stress that the candidate we are endorsing
is not perfect. In fact, the election process in Armenia has not been
so perfect since it first gained independence. However, we believe that
he has the strength to continue many of the gains that Armenia has
made in a very volatile region. None of the newly-independent former
USSR states have achieved anything close to perfectly transparent
elections, but we need to believe that Armenia will realize its full
potential in the coming decade. And truth be told, we in the US cannot
be judges of fairness in elections, considering all the skullduggery
of several recent elections.

The message of hope given by Sargsian is therefore preferable to the
symphony of doom played by Ter-Petrosian, a man who had once lost hope
and preferred to leave his office rather than galvanize his citizens".

PRESIDENT ILHAM ALIYEV: AZERBAIJAN WILL MOBILIZE ALL LEVERS TO RELEASE OCCUPIED LANDS

Azeri Press Agency
Feb 5 2008
Azerbaijan

"If Nagorno Karabakh conflict is not solved and Azerbaijani lands
are not released, we will not cooperate with Armenia," Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev today said a presentation ceremony of the prize
"Person of the Year " organized by ANS Independent Broadcasting and
Media Company and Chingiz Mustafayev Foundation.

"Azerbaijan will mobilize all levers to release occupied lands,"
he said. President stated that serious attention was paid to army
formation and noted that year by year increase of military budget,
establishment of Defense Industry Ministry, start up of production
are important for future plans.

He said that they are obliged to carry out peace negotiations and
explained it with hopes.

"Azerbaijan should be a strong state. The conflict can be solved
in favor of Azerbaijan by the help of strong military potential and
strong economy," he said.

SEPARATIST REGIME IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH PREVENTS ARMENIANS TO TAKE PART IN AZERBAIJANI ELECTIONS: CEC SECRETARY

Trend News Agency
Feb 5 2008
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan, Baku, 4 February / corr. Trend S. Ilhamgizi/ The current
regime in the occupied Azerbaijani lands does not allow the Armenians
living there to take part in the elections to be held in Azerbaijan.

Natig Mammadov, the secretary of the Central Election Commission
(CEC) of Azerbaijan said on 4 February.

The regular presidential elections will bed held in Azerbaijan on
October 2008. The process of the determining of the electoral rolls in
Azerbaijan began on 1 January and will last till 30 May. The names of
internally displaced people from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan
are also being determined and their names are included in the unified
roll of electors. According to Mammadov, the Azerbaijani citizens of
Armenia origin living in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh also wish to
take part in the elections and appeals are made to CEC in this regard.

"The same cases occurred in the previous elections, they (Armenians
of Nagorno-Karabakh) appealed to us by mail, electronic mail, and by
the telephone that they want to exercise their right to vote.

Unfortunately, due to the separatist regime the Azerbaijani citizens
of Armenian origin are deprived of their rights to vote," the CEC
secretary said.

The constituencies are set up in the occupied territories including
Karabakh (Kankendi) where votes are held during the elections.

Armenia has occupied 20% of the territories of Azerbaijan,
Nagono-Karabakh and 7 surrounding regions. The territory is out of
the control of Azerbaijan and Azerbaijani residents living in the
occupied land were internally displaced.

Azeri intelligence services should work in Russia "to clarify important issues" – Azeri political analyst

Russia & CIS Military Newswire
February 4, 2008 Monday 11:46 AM MSK

An Azeri political analyst believes Russian intelligence services
are actively working in Azerbaijan and urges Baku to act similarly
in Russia.

"Although Azerbaijan has gotten out of Moscow’s control, Russian
intelligence services are permanently working here. They are
primarily interested to know about the development of Azeri-American
relations and about prospects of Azerbaijan’s accession to NATO and the
deployment of NATO bases in this country’s territory," Vafa Guluzade,
a prominent political analyst and former state foreign policy advisor,
told Interfax-AVN.

"Intelligence warfare is continuing, and we should derive lessons
from the latest cases," he said.

Azeri media had earlier reported that Azerbaijan’s former envoy to
the UN Eldar Guliyev had collaborated with Russian special services.

Media also reported about a pending trial of employees of the Baku
airport’s security service and National Security Ministry officers
charged with passing information collected using special equipment
unlawfully installed at the airport’s VIP hall to Russian special
services.

"There is nothing surprising in that Russian intelligence services
are working in Azerbaijan," Guluzade said.

He called for checking airports, railway stations, post offices,
and other strategic facilities to identify possible agents of foreign
special services.

Guluzade also suggested that Azeri special services should work in
Russia "to clarify certain issues important to Azerbaijan."

"We need to know nuances of Russia’s attitude toward the problem
of Nagorno-Karabakh, Russia’s contacts with Armenia regarding this
problem, and so on," he said.

Guliyev, who is currently the executive director of the All-Russian
Azerbaijan Congress, denied charges that he spied for Russia while
serving as Azerbaijan’s ambassador to the UN in a Friday interview
with Interfax.

In commenting on media reports saying that former Russian master
spy in New York Sergei Tretyakov, who defected to the U.S. in 2000,
named Guliyev among people spying for Russian intelligence services,
Guliyev branded these statements as "unproven fabrications."

The CIS countries agreed back in 1992 not to pursue intelligence
activities in each other’s territories. Official representatives
of intelligence services of CIS countries working in other CIS
member-states are responsible for arranging interaction between these
countries’ special services to ensure collective security, prevent
international terrorist activities, and combat drug trafficking.

OPENING OF NEW BUILDING OF EUROPEAN COMMISSION DELEGATION TO TAKE PLACE ON FEBRUARY 5 IN YEREVAN

Noyan Tapan
Feb 4, 2008

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, NOYAN TAPAN. The opening of the new building
of the European Commission delegation in Armenia will take place
on February 5 with the participation of Benita Ferrero-Waldner, the
European Commissioner for External Relations and European Neighborhood
Policy, and RA Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian. During the ceremony,
Benita Ferrero-Waldner will also introduce the new head of the
delegation of European Commission in Armenia.

The Commissioner with Dimitrij Rupel, the Foreign Minister of Slovenia,
and Ambassador Peter Semneby, the EU Special Representative for
the South Caucasus, will take part in the regional visit of the EU
Ministers’ Troika to Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Armenia on February 4-6.

The day before the visit Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner said: "A year
after the approval of our Actions Plan the relations between EU and
the South Caucasus deepen for even more. This is my third visit to
the region, and I expect to have discussions on implementation of the
Action Plans of the European Neighborhood Policy, energy security,
regional issues, including frozen conflicts, as well as international
issues."

GEORGIA HAS FIRST WOMAN PROSECUTOR AMONG FORMER SOVIET NATIONS

ARMENPRESS
Jan 31, 2008

TBILISI, JANUARY 31, ARMENPRESS: With 144 votes to 0 the parliament
of the former Soviet republic of Georgia has approved today Eka
Tkeshelashvili, a thirty-year-old ex-justice minister, as new
prosecutor-general.

Tkeshelashvili, the first-ever female in former Soviet republic, to
become prosecutor-general, has replaced Zurab Adeishvili. Adeishvili,
a highly influential figure in president Saakashvili’s inner circle,
will now become chief of the presidential administration.

Tkeshelashvili served as minister of justice since September,
2007 and was a chairperson of the government’s inter-agency group
which was set up to act as a rapid reaction mechanism to violations
during the election campaign and on the polling day on the January
5 presidential election.

She holds a diploma in international law from Tbilisi State University
and an LLM from the University of Notre Dame in the United States.

Georgian media quoted Saakashvili as saying last week that the decision
on replacing Adeishvili with Tkeshelashvili was done to "humanize"
the office.

"This change is not simply a staff reshuffle. It shows the need to
revise many approaches, and while preserving good tendencies, the
need to humanize this field. We need closer contact with the public,"
Saakashvili said.

RA FOREIGN MINISTER RECEIVES AMBASSADOR OF ISRAEL

Noyan Tapan
Jan 31, 2008

YEREVAN, JANUARY 31, NOYAN TAPAN. Bilateral, as well as regional
issues were discussed at the January 29 meeting of RA Foreign Minister
Vardan Oskanian with Ehud Gol, the Ambassador of Israel to Armenia,
and Israel Meiami, the Deputy Director of the Eurasian Department of
Israel’s Foreign Ministry. The interlocutors expressed satisfaction
with the level of cooperation between Armenia and Israel mentioning
that there is a great potential for deepening the cooperation in
different spheres.

The Ambassador touched upon the programs implemented with the Armenian
Ministries of Agriculture and Health. He also attached importance to
organization of regular meetings of parliamentary friendship groups.

As Noyan Tapan was informed by the RA Foreign Ministry Press and
Information Department, then the interlocutors exchanged thoughts
about international developments. The process of settlement of the
Israeli-Palestine conflict and the prospects of the negotiations
process of Nagorno Karabakh settlement were discussed.