Author: Kajoyan Gevork

BUYUKANIT: "TURKISH-US MILITARY TIES WON’T BE THE SAME IF THE ARMENIAN RESOLUTION IS PASSED"

Turkish Press
Press Review
Oct 21 2007

Chief of General Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit, currently in Rome as the
official guest of his Italian counterpart Gen. Giampaolo Di Paola,
said yesterday that Turkish-US military relations wouldn’t be the
same if the resolution on the Armenian allegations is passed by the
US Congress. Touching on the recent statements of Iraqi Vice President
Tariq al-Hashimi, he said, "Hashimi says he got what he wanted (during
his trip to Ankara this week), but I don’t know what he got. Did he
go shopping? What did he do, what did he buy?"

MAYOR OF YEREVAN TO BE ELECTED BY COUNCILLOR ACCORDING TO NEW BILL

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 19, NOYAN TAPAN. The RA draft law on "Self-government
and Territorial Administration in the city of Yerevan" was approved in
the October 18 sitting of the RA Government. According to the
information provided to journalists by Gevorg Danielian, the RA
Minister of Justice, after the sitting, preference was given to
indirect elections of the mayor of Yerevan by the bill. Thus, the mayor
is elected by the councillor by a proportional system.

The Minister stated that the provision, according to which the mayor
will be considered a self-governmental body and that of the territorial
administration at the same time, has been set in the bill. Thus, he
will bear responsibility first of all before the councillor of Yerevan.
In addition to this, the mayor will have new commissions other
self-governmental bodies do not have. There will be no district
community any longer: there will be 10 administrative regions, the
borders of which coincide with those of the current communities, except
Nubarashen, which will join Erebuni, and Nork Marash, which will join
Avan. In future the councillor of Yerevan can change the number of
those regions, which, however, cannot surpass 12 and be less than 8.

Gevorg Danielian mentioned that according to the bill the city
councillor is to have 55 members, as for the number of the members of
the councillors of regions, it will depend on the number of population:
if the number makes up to 75 thousnad, that of the councillor will be
10, in case of having a population up to 100 thousand, the number of
the members of the councillor will make 12, and if the population is
more than 100 thousand, then it will make 15. The Mayor of Yerevan will
appoint the heads of the administrative regions after consulting with
the councillors. The heads of the administrative regions will support
the mayor and the councillor.

Jerusalem Post
Oct 19 2007

Gates: Armenian genocide resolution could irreparably harm US-Turkish
ties
By ASSOCIATED PRESS

Congressional passage of a resolution labeling as genocide the mass
killings of Armenians by Turks a century ago would hurt US relations
with Turkey, "perhaps beyond repair," Defense Secretary Robert Gates
said.

Gates told reporters Thursday that he has encouraged congressional
leaders not to pass the resolution. Earlier, he met at the Pentagon
with Armenian Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan. Gates said neither he
nor his guest raised the subject.

"Having worked this issue in the last Bush administration, … I
don’t think the Turks are bluffing. I think it is that meaningful to
them," Gates said. "I think there is a very real risk of perhaps not
shutting us down," but of at least restricting US access to Turkish
airspace for resupplying US troops in Iraq.

A1+

FRIENDLY ATMOSPHERE PROMOTES PARTNERSHIP
[02:23 pm] 19 October, 2007

October 19, RA President Robert Kocharian received the
delegation headed by the Co-Chair of the
Armenian-Russian Interparliamentary Cooperation
Commission, member of the Federal Assembly of Russian
Federation Nikolai Ryzhkov.

The parties highlighted the active cooperation between
the two countries. As a result of dynamic development
of bilateral relations, the parties stressed the
gradual increase of the Russian capital in Armenia and
the volume of commodity turnover. Nikolai Ryzhkov
informed the Armenian President about the activity of
the Interparliamentary Commission, noting that these
proceed in a businesslike and friendly atmosphere.

CLOSE VOTE ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE DECIDED BY ANGUISHED ‘YEAS’
Ron Kampeas

Jewish Exponent, PA
Oct 18 2007

Members of the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs ignored party
lines this week in a close vote Wednesday approving a resolution
recognizing the massacres carried out in 1915 and 1916 by Ottoman
forces against Armenians as a genocide.

But the tally among Jewish members on the committee — all of them
Democrats — was overwhelming: 7-1 in favor.

Overall, the motion passed the committee in a 27-21 vote — 19
Democrats and eight Republicans in favor, eight Democrats and 13
Republicans opposed — despite last-minute warnings from President
Bush and his top aides that the resolution could harm U.S. relations
with Turkey. Lawmakers from both parties openly anguished, with some
appearing to make up their minds only at the last minute.

And, despite the overwhelming support of Jewish committee members
for the resolution, nowhere was the anguish more palpable than in the
comments of some of these lawmakers, as they struggled to balance their
Holocaust-related sensitivity to the issue of recognizing genocide
with concern for maintaining strong ties with Turkey, a friendly
pro-American pro-Israeli Muslim beacon in a hostile neighborhood.

An 11th-Hour Plea Weighing additionally in the considerations of the
Jewish members was an 11th-hour plea from Turkey’s Jewish community,
which fears a rise of anti-Semitism should the resolution pass. Plus,
in recent weeks, Turkish spokesmen have noted the outspoken role
of some Jews and Jewish organizations in the campaign to pass the
resolution, and have suggested that relations with Israel could be
affected, although Israel has been supportive of Turkish calls to
resolve the issue through an international commission.

"This has been tough for me," said U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.),
the chairman of the committee’s Middle East subcommittee, when
announcing his vote in favor of the resolution. "I’m a big fan and
supporter of Turkey."

Ackerman looked across at four nonagenarian and centenarian survivors
of the genocide who had flown in for the hearing — two from his
district. His New York Democratic colleague, Eliot Engel, also
contemplated the women as he announced his position: "With a heavy
heart, I will vote for this resolution."

The four women sitting quietly in the cramped committee room’s second
row held the attention of the crowd, with members looking to them
when they announced their vote.

All the committee’s members weighed Turkey’s threats to downgrade its
military alliance with the United States, should the resolution pass
the full House against the powerful Armenian-American lobby and its
proven ability to swing key districts in California.

Three of the Jewish Democrats on the committee, plus the Democratic
lawmaker who sponsored the resolution, U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, are
from the Golden State. Schiff, who represents a substantial Armenian
community in his Los Angeles district, is not on the committee,
but attended the vote as an observer.

Jews in Massachusetts, which like California is home to a substantial
Armenian community, have also backed the resolution. On Monday,
two days before the hearing, the Jewish community there hosted the
Armenian pontiff, Karekin II, on a tour of Boston’s Holocaust memorial.

Turks were making their own case to the Jews through Holocaust
recognition; the same day as the Karekin tour, Turkey’s foreign
minister visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem.

‘A Critical Partner’ Two major Jewish groups — the American Jewish
Committee and the Anti-Defamation League — have recognized the
massacres as genocide, but cited concerns regarding Turkey in arguing
against the resolution.

For the seven Jews on the committee who voted for the measure, denials
of genocide had special resonance for a caucus dedicated to preserving
Holocaust remembrance.

"Genocide denial is not just the last step of a genocide, it is the
first step of the next genocide," said Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.),
who, like many others on the committee, referenced the apocryphal
story that Adolf Hitler cited the world’s neglect of the Armenians
in arguing that the mass murder of Jews would also be forgotten.

Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.), who’s grown close to the Turks in his
capacity as chair of the committee’s Europe subcommittee, was the
only Jewish member of the committee to vote against the resolution.

He noted Turkey’s role in routing supplies to U.S. forces in Iraq,
as well as its lead peacekeeping role in Afghanistan and the Balkans.

"Turkey also remains a critical partner to our ally, Israel," said
Wexler, one of the few times the Jewish state was mentioned during
the hearing.

Sherman said that the Turks would get over whatever slight they
perceived, adding that political considerations should not always be
paramount: "Who would go to the floor and say, ‘We need Ramstein Air
Force base in Germany, let’s tear down the Holocaust memorial?’ "

When the clerk announced the result — upping it from 26-21 to 27-21
when U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, a Jewish Democrat from Arizona,
rushed in to announce her "yes" vote — Armenians in the room burst
into tears.

U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Calif.), the chairman of the committee and the
only Holocaust survivor in Congress, said that he was never prouder
to serve on the committee and announced that he would soon introduce
a resolution marking the U.S.-Turkish friendship.

Ostensibly, at least, that did little to assuage Turkish anger. Last
Thursday, Turkey recalled its ambassador in Washington, Nabi Sensoy,
for "consultations" and continued to warn that passage by the full
House would undermine its relations with the United States.

Privately, pro-Turkish lobbyists were exulting; the vote was much
closer than expected. The narrowing gap meant that the resolution
might yet fail when it goes before the full House.

8/

"LORIPRODEXPO" EXHIBITION OPENED IN VANADZOR, ARMENIA

ARKA News Agency, Armenia
Oct 18 2007

YEREVAN, October 18. /ARKA/. A food exhibition, "Loriprodexpo"
has been opened in Vanadzor, Lori region, Armenia. Speaking at the
opening ceremony, Lori Vice-Governor Zohrab Torosyan said that the
goal of the exhibition is to demonstrate the region’s industrial
achievements and promotion of production.

"The exhibition will help the local businessmen to determine the
market demand," he said. A sale will be organized at the exhibition.

Torosyan pointed out that high-quality good produced in Lori are in
demand not only in Armenia, but also abroad.

Chairman of the RA Chamber of Commerce and Industry Martin Sargsyan
pointed out that the exhibition is scaled up year by year.

"Businessmen realize that the exhibition is an opportunity for
establishing business contacts on both the domestic and foreign
markets. Armenia’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry will always
support businessmen in their work," he said.

During the ceremony, M. Sargsyan awarded diplomas to Governor of the
Lori region Aram Kocharyan and Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and
Industry of the Lori region Samvel Najaryan for their contribution
to business development in the region and the organization of the
exhibition. The "Loriprodexpo" annual exhibition has been organized
since 1998.

PRESS RELEASE
"Hayastan" All-Armenian Fund
Governmental Building 3, Yerevan, RA
Contact: Anush Babayan
Tel: 3741 52 09 40
Fax: 3741 52 37 95
E-mail: [email protected]
Web:

The Armenia Fund Benefactor Visits Ditavan Community

Yerevan, 19 October, 2007. On October 16 The Armenia Fund Executive Director
Vahe Aghabegians accompanied by the Rural Development Program staff and
Armen Ekserciyan (Argentina) made a working trip to the Khashtarak cluster’s
Ditavan community. Mr. Ekserciyan is interested in sponsoring the
infrastructure component of the Rural Development Program in Ditavan.

In Ditavan, the working group had a meeting with the mayor and community
members. They also visited the school and village households. The aim was to
hear a maximum amount of different voices, discuss and determine the
infrastructural priorities for the people of Ditavan. The community shares
the basic infrastructural problems with all the other border villages: no
road, no gas, no water, etc.

While the opinions varied on the second project to be undertaken in the
community, the primary concern for the villagers was the absence of natural
gas. With the winter fast approaching, the villagers will once again face
the challenge of heating their homes and the school with wood which is
equally labor demanding and damaging for the surroundings.

Thus, the building of a three kilometer gas pipeline to the village was
singled out as the initial infrastructural project in the village. At the
same time, both Mr. Aghabegians and Mr. Ekserciyan underlined that the
development or renovation of one single branch of infrastructure is not a
universal remedy for the villagers’ problems. The solution lies in parallel
infrastructural and economic development. Only that approach can guarantee
the long term impact of the program.

"We need to work together to find the solution. We need to see the bigger
picture, where every improvement fits organically into the general idea of
the development of the village and the region as whole", said Mr.
Aghabegians.

"This is a difficult task and a task that only the community members can
accomplish. On our part, we will do everything we can to help you succeed",
said Mr. Ekserciyan.

Next day, Mr. Ekserciyan visited the Alishan LTD food processing plant,
which is contributing to the economic development component of the Program
by providing a ready market for the produce grown in the Khashtarak cluster
villages. Mr. Ekserciyan and Alishan LTD’s Serjik Movsisian talked about the
coordination of economic facilitation and infrastructure development
projects.

###

Hayastan All-Armenian Fund
Public Relations Department

TURKISH PARLIAMENTARIANS PASS CROSS-BORDER MEASURE

PanARMENIAN.Net
17.10.2007 19:36 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkish lawmakers called on Wednesday for a military
operation in northern Iraq to crush Kurdish rebels hiding there as
Iraqi leaders stepped up a diplomatic offensive to avert any attack.

Parliament was scheduled later on Wednesday to pass a motion providing
the legal basis for a cross-border incursion that the United States,
Turkey’s NATO ally, fears would destabilize the most peaceful part
of Iraq and potentially the wider region.

"Turkey must eliminate this threat to its military, economic and
diplomatic interests," opposition lawmaker Sukru Elekdag told
parliament, pledging his party’s support for the motion, Reuters
reports.

IRAQ HINTS AT JOINT OPERATION AGAINST PKK FIGHTERS
Mark Tran and agencies

Guardian Unlimited
Wednesday October 17, 2007

Iraq was today reported to have raised the prospect of a joint
operation to stop Kurdish rebels from mounting raids against Turkey
from Iraqi territory.

The news came as Nuri al-Maliki’s government sought to head off a
Turkish military incursion that could destabilise Iraq’s northern
Kurdish region.

"Give us another chance – if necessary, let’s conduct a joint
operation," the CNN Turk television channel Mr Maliki as saying
during a phone conversation with Recep Tayyip Erdogan, his Turkish
counterpart.

Mr Maliki’s reported offer came as the Turkish parliament began
debating a motion that would authorise Turkish forces to cross into
northern Iraq in pursuit of fighters from the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers party (PKK).

Earlier, Mr Maliki affirmed Iraq’s commitment to stop Kurdish
rebels from mounting attacks on Turkey from inside its borders. His
announcement followed a meeting of a government crisis committee set
up in an attempt to address the tensions with Turkey.

Turkish military authorities have been pressing for an attack against
PKK fighters based in northern Iraq. In recent weeks, rebels have
killed more than a dozen Turkish soldiers, sparking public pressure
for tough action.

Speaking in London, the Iraqi deputy prime minister, Barham Salih,
urged Turkey not to violate international law and Iraq’s sovereignty.

"There would be serious implications for Iraq and Turkey, and
[intervention] will not help anyone," he said. "We have ways and
means to resolve the situation."

The Nato secretary general, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, also urged restraint
in a telephone call to the Turkish president, Abdullah Gul.

"He [Mr Scheffer] expressed his view that all parties should exercise
the greatest possible restraint, particularly in this time of great
tension," the Nato spokesman James Appathurai said in Brussels.

Mr Maliki yesterday sent the Iraqi vice president, Tariq al-Hashemi,
to Ankara for urgent talks amid fears an attack would destabilise one
of the few areas of Iraq to have largely been spared the sectarian
violence that has plagued the rest of the country.

Iraq restated its commitment to an anti-terrorism deal it signed
with Turkey last month, which saw both countries agree to take all
necessary measures – including financial and intelligence steps –
against the PKK and other militant groups.

The US and EU have been putting heavy pressure on Turkey to not launch
an attack. The crisis has been complicated by Turkish frustration
with the US over moves in Congress to declare the 1915 killing of up
to 1.5 million Armenians by Turks as genocide.

As well as straining ties with the EU and US, military action could
also hurt the Turkish economy, which has recovered strongly from a
crisis in 2001.

ARE THESE D.C. CLOWNS GOING TO SERVE US?
By Paul Campbell

Chillicothe Gazette, OH
Oct 16 2007

Tis the season for gremlins, ghosts, skeletons, trick or treating,
haunted houses, ghoulish masks, jack-o-lanterns and scary revelers
yelling "Boo" at every door. All these Halloween trappings are designed
to scare us. And, sometime they do.

If you really want to have the bejabbers scared out of you, you might
want to check out the article in the Gazette recently entitled, Social
Security hits wave of Boomers. This piece will cause you borderline
panic, especially if you are on Social Security and are a Medicare
beneficiary. Folks, if something isn’t done … and soon …

the future doesn’t look good at all, and even though both of these
programs may not go broke and run into bankruptcy in our lifetimes,
the baby boomers, born in the mid 1940’s who are turning retirement
age will certainly find the Mother Hubbard’s pantry will be bare. In
2019 Medicare’s hospital fund will be broke; and, by 2041 the Social
Security Trust fund will be bankrupt. Not a pretty thought.

If you read my occasional opinions the Gazette is nice enough to
publish, you already know that I am not what one would call a big fan
of our federal government. The federal government’s administration
of Social Security and Medicare are, perhaps, the two most classic
examples of Congress’ total mismanagement and bastardization of
federal programs.

Let’s see, Social Security was introduced back about 1936. Medicare was
put into effect about 1966. That means Social Security has been around
for 71 years; Medicare for 41 years. Wouldn’t you think that would be
enough time for those ninnies in Washington to begin to understand,
from time to time, these two programs would need some tweaking? That
occasionally they should take a look at how these programs were
operating and, where necessary, make appropriate adjustments to
insure that they would continue in perpetuity? Not only did these
incompetent politicians not insure the proper administration of these
two significant programs, they crippled them by indiscriminately
borrowing … and borrowing … and borrowing from these funds with
no thought, plan or arrangement whereby that borrowed money would be
put back into the funds.

In more recent years our federal government do nothings have done
just that: Nothing. Typical of D.C. politicians, they are paralyzed
into inaction because the problems with Social Security and Medicare
have grown to magnitudes that our political leaders find themselves
unable to even address the mounting problems in these programs, much
less come up with some amicable, workable solution. Wanna bet that,
if it was their retirement program and their health plan that was in
jeopardy, the fix would have been in a long, long time ago.

The vastness of the problem is reflected in the work of economists,
actuaries and other experts who estimate $50 trillion in future
financial obligations over the next 75 years. Hey, you guys and gals
in Congress, do you think a $50 trillion project is big enough to get
your attention so that you can at last pay some heed to the problem
and maybe even take a stab or two at solving it?

Instead of addressing serious, critical, meaningful issues in
Washington, what are these do-nothings worried about lately? Would
you believe they are all embroiled in a huge bro-ha-ha about some
dunderhead congressman proposing that Congress officially recognize
some massacre of Armenians by the Turkish Ottoman Empire as a genocide
– and get this – the Ottoman Empire ruled that area of the world for
about 600 years from 1299 until the early 1900s. Thats even before
Social Security and Medicare.

I would be willing to kick in my fair share to send all these
politicians to a course on how to prioritize work in the order of
importance. Maybe, then, we could get these clowns to do something
right for a change, if they ever are going to do anything at all.

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