Author: Kalantarian Kevo

Toronto Star,Canada
Feb 9, 2005
Egoyan struggles to make Cannes deadline
Atom Egoyan is running out of time to participate at this year’s
Cannes Film Festival, and it’s all because he can’t stop the music.
The Toronto filmmaker is in post-production for his new movie Where
the Truth Lies, a murder whodunit starring Kevin Bacon, Colin Firth
and Alison Lohman. The film was expected to be a leading contender
for Canada’s chief flag bearer at the annual Cannes fest in May.
“I’m not so sure we’re going to be ready for Cannes,” he said in an
interview yesterday. “Because there’s a lot of music involved.
There’s a ton of stuff that has to be settled in terms of
post-production. It’s tricky. It’s a much trickier post than the
other films.”
The entry deadline “is coming right up,” Egoyan said, he didn’t
specify the date, “so we have to make a decision soon.”
But even if Egoyan misses the deadline, he might still be accepted as
a late entry, which is not unknown at Cannes.
He is popular with Cannes festival selectors, who have often chosen
his films for the main competition or sidebar programs. In 1997,
Egoyan’s The Sweet Hereafter won the second-prize Grand Prix at
Cannes.
– Peter Howell

PanArmenian News
Feb 25 2005
AZERBAIJAN’S AMBASSADOR TO IRAN CRITICIZED OSCE MINSK GROUP
ACTIVITIES
25.02.2005 15:30
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ “During 13 years the OSCE Minsk Group has been
doing nothing but misleading Azerbaijanis”, Azerbaijan’s Ambassador
to Iran Abbas Ali Hasanov stated in Tehran. “We are ready to
cooperate with this group but the Co-Chairs submit proposals that are
not admissible”, Hasanov noted, The Ambassador stated that Azerbaijan
intends to return the territories “occupied by Armenia”. Presently we
do not have any political contacts with Yerevan and the only
condition for their establishment is the liberation of the seized
Azeri territories”, he stressed.

UCLA International Institute
Educating Global Citizens
U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John M. Evans, Speaks at UCLA
from left to right: Vice Provost Geoffrey Garrett, Ambassaor John M.
Evans, Prof. Richard G. Hovannisian
U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John M. Evans, Speaks at UCLA
Recently appointed U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Armenia, John
Marshall Evans, visited UCLA on February 17, 2005 to address students,
faculty, and the public in an informative talk titled “Report from
Armenia, 2005.”
His visit to campus was arranged by Professor Richard G. Hovannisian,
Armenian Educational Foundation Chair in Modern Armenian History, in
cooperation with the Armenian Students Association, the Burkle Center
for International Relations, the Center for European and Eurasian
Studies, and the departments of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures and
Slavic Languages and Literatures.
Ambassador John Evans, Archbishop Mousegh Mardirossian, Dr. Richard
Hovannisian, UCLA Chancellor Albert Carnesale
Speaking before a capacity audience in the Viewpoint Conference Room of
Ackerman Union, Ambassador Evans gave a frank assessment of his
impressions of Armenia in the six months since he presented his
credentials to the president of the Republic in September 2004. The
ambassador touched upon the challenges and opportunities facing the
Republic, which regained its independence with the collapse of the
Soviet Union in 1991 and was immediately recognized by the United
States. Major external challenges include stabilizing conditions in the
strategic Caucasus region and finding ways to improve relations with the
neighboring states of Azerbaijan and Turkey so that they will lift their
blockade of the landlocked Armenian state and accept a compromise
solution to the territorial dispute over the Nagorno-Karabagh region.
Speaking of domestic issues, the ambassador stressed U.S. encouragement
of democratic institutions, free and transparent elections,
anti-corruption measures, and a revitalized economic and financial
infrastructure. He also acknowledged the concerns of the
Armenian-American community relating to U.S. recognition of the Armenian
Genocide of 1915.
The talk was followed by a brisk discussion session, during which UCLA
students questioned the ambassador about the U.S. policies in the South
Caucasus region (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia) and matters of importance
to the Armenian people. During the exchange, Robin Phillips, Mission
Director in Armenia of the US Agency for International Development
(US/AID) outlined the financial, educational, and moral assistance
extended by the United States and reiterated the objective of advancing
democratic institutions in Armenia.
Raffi Kassabian, President of the Armenian Students Association, closed
the forum by thanking the ambassador for his report and stressing the
importance of continued dialogue.
Ambassador John Evans, Consul General of Armenia Gagik Kirakosian, Betty
Jamgotchian, Armenian Bar Association
Ambassador Evans was also accompanied by Mrs. Donna Evans, former
president of the World Affairs Council of Washington D.C., Eugenia
Sidereas of the State Department’s Armenia Desk, and Political Officer
Aaron Sherinian, who served as the liaison with Professor Hovannisian in
arranging the ambassador’s visit to UCLA.
Prior to the public lecture, Ambassador Evans and his party were guests
of honor at a luncheon in the Faculty Center attended by UCLA
administrators and faculty and representatives of Armenian community
organizations. They were welcomed by Chancellor Albert Carnesale and
greeted by Provost of the International Institute Geoffrey Garrett and
Professor Hovannisian. On this occasion, Provost Garrett presented both
Ambassador Evans and the Honorable Gagik Kirakossian, Consul General of
the Republic Armenia in Los Angeles, with Vasa sculptures designed by
UCLA Design | Media Arts Professor Vasa Mihich, an internationally known
sculptor.
Date Posted: 2/22/2005
UCLA International Institute ¢ 11343 Bunche Hall ¢ Box 951487 ¢ Los
Angeles, CA 90095-1487
Campus Mail Code: 148703 ¢ Tel: (310) 825-4921 ¢ Fax: (310)
825-4591 ¢ [email protected]
© 2005. The Regents of the University of California. All rights
reserved.

Armenia, OSCE sign agreement on eliminating stocks of rocket fuel components
AP Worldstream
Feb 23, 2005

Armenia’s top security official and the local representative of the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe signed a
memorandum of understanding on eliminating aging stocks of
environmentally harmful rocket fuel components.
The agreement signed Tuesday by OSCE representative Vladimir Pryakhin
and Serzh Sarkisian, who serves as secretary of Armenia’s National
Security Council and minister of defense, provides for the safe
recycling of 872 metric tons of the Melange rocket fuel components,
which will produce a useful byproduct, liquid fertilizer, the OSCE
said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Hellenic News of America
Feb 23 2005
ISTANBUL GREEKS SEEK JUSTICE IN LAND CLAIMS
Turkey is trying to bring its laws on minorities in tune with those
of the EU, but ethnic Greeks living in the capital say they are
victimized through unfair land expropriations.
By George Gilson – Athens News
VARTHOLOMEOS, ecumenical patriarch and archbishop of Constantinople,
is wont to call the 2,000-strong Greek community of Istanbul a “drop
in the ocean”.
Shrunken and scarred by the violent vicissitudes of Greek-Turkish
relations over the decades, that drop is now in danger of
evaporating. Despite reforms for the protection of minorities
intended to bring Turkey in line with European Union law, the leaders
of Istanbul’s Greek community are struggling for basic rights.
That includes establishing the legal grounds to claim back around 400
pieces of prime Istanbul real estate gradually confiscated by the
Turkish state since 1974. “The confiscated property was certainly
worth billions of dollars. We are talking about entire apartment
buildings and tracts of city land that produced significant
revenues,” says Vasslis Kalamaris, an attorney for the patriarchate.
Based on a 1974 supreme court decision, the Turkish state refused to
recognize titles to Greek minority properties purchased or acquired
by donation after 1936, when Turkey conducted a mandatory
registration of minority properties. “Under the Turkish legal
framework, the state would come knocking at our door and say that you
had no right to possess this land you acquired in 1944, 1959 and so
forth, because it was not registered in the list you submitted in
1936,” Kalamaris told the Athens News.
New property law
In an effort to streamline its minority rights laws with those of the
EU, which it hopes to join, Turkey enacted a law last August. “The
new law passed in August said that we can acquire new property. The
reform was a worthless gift. None of our communities or foundations
want new property. All we want is to get back what was unjustly taken
away from us,” Kalamaris underlined.
The cumbersome requirements of the law also suggest that Turkey’s
reforms do not always achieve their goal. The law required cabinet
approval for the purchase or sale of property by communities. The
August law stated: “Community foundations, regardless of whether or
not they have a charter or foundation, can acquire or dispose of real
property with the permission of the council of ministers.” A further
directive issued by the directorate of foundations in October,
reportedly on instructions from the office of then premier Bulent
Ecevit, threw even more bureaucratic red tape in the way of community
organizations seeking to acquire or sell property.
After the EU refused to open accession talks with Turkey last
December, the law was revised in January, doing away with the need to
obtain cabinet approval to buy or sell property belonging to minority
foundations. But it is still necessary to obtain approval of both the
local directorate of foundations and the headquarters in Ankara.
But the real issue for the Istanbul Greeks remains the return of
confiscated property. Although the new law passed in January does not
specifically establish a right to reclaim confiscated property,
Kalamaris believes it provides sufficient grounds to legally
challenge in the courts past judicial rulings by which valuable real
estate was confiscated. Moreover, those properties acquired by the
Greek minority after 1936 and not previously registered in the land
registry can now be legally registered with proof of ownership like
rental agreements or utility bills.
“The Greek Balouki Hospital suffered most from this situation. They
have had 136 pieces of valuable real estate confiscated by the
state,” Kalamaris said.
Another key property is a huge real estate parcel that once housed an
orphanage on the posh resort island of Prinkipos off Istanbul, and
was owned by the patriarchate. This land was also expropriated by the
state, which blocked an effort by the church to develop the prime
property as a hotel unit. The patriarchate’s case against the state
is still under review in the Turkish Council of State.
But the problem is not exclusive to the Greeks, as the Armenian
community has faced a similar predicament on a much smaller scale.
Diram Bakar, a lawyer for the community, told the Athens News that he
was successful in reversing a handful of expropriations through legal
challenges in court.
Over several weeks until the February 8 deadline for registering all
property, a small group of Istanbul Greeks worked for hours on end
compiling the full record of title to hundreds of pieces of property
owned by dozens of Greek community foundations. These were submitted
to both the land registry and the directorate of foundations in
compliance with the new law. The registered properties are the legacy
of a once vibrant community of wealthy merchants and businessmen
numbering over 150,000 just half a century ago.
No equality for Istanbul Greeks
Although they are Turkish citizens, the Greeks of Istanbul complain
that they do not enjoy equality in the eyes of the law. Greek
Orthodox foundations are placed under the category of “foreign
foundations”, even though the Greek minority is comprised of
native-born Turkish citizens whose ancestors have lived in the
country for centuries.
Article 37 of the Treaty of Lausanne, which still largely determines
the rights of Istanbul’s Greek minority, stipulates that no Turkish
domestic law can limit the treaty rights of the Greek community,
including that of self-administration. But the Turkish state
frequently finds formal pretexts to dissolve the governing boards of
Greek community foundations, opening the way for the judicial
expropriation of the property of minority communities.
The majority of Greek-owned property is still in Greek hands – some
$10 billion worth – but there are fears that the process of
expropriation will soon target these properties as well.
Greek foreign ministry spokesman Panos Beglitis told the Athens News
that the revised EU accession partnership for Turkey, due to be
submitted at the end of March, will set forth a clear obligation for
Ankara to respect the property rights of the Greek minority –
including the right to reclaim properties arbitrarily expropriated by
the state over the last three decades.
“The EU Commission’s evaluation report last October refers to
religious foundations and their rights. It stresses Turkey’s
shortcomings and requests a change in the legal framework to address
that. We underlined this problem leading up to Copenhagen and will do
so again for the revised accession partnership. This will certainly
be a condition Turkey must fulfill,” Beglitis said.

ARKA News Agency
Feb 22 2005
NA Speaker interferes in spheres outside his competence: RA Premier
Armenian President discuss with Armenian Transport and Communication
Minister issues of rehabilitation of roads
PACE resolution on Nagorno Karabakh also contains positive accents,
NKR Foreign Minister believes
Sergei Karaganov: Russia should pursue more active policy in
Transcaucasia, in particular, in Armenia
*********************************************************************
NA SPEAKER INTERFERES IN SPHERES OUTSIDE HIS COMPETENCE: RA PREMIER
YEREVAN, February 22. /ARKA/. Speaker of the RA National Assembly
Artur Baghdasaryan is interfering in spheres that are outside his
competence, RA Premier Andranik Margaryan stated in his interview to
the Armenian `Haykakan Zhamaknak’ newspaper. According to him, the
matter concerns the councils formed under the Speaker, which,
according to the NA Regulations, is not within the Speaker’s
competence. The RA Premier pointed out that the NA Speaker can deal
with existing problems through parliamentary committees, as well as
by means of the institution of hearings. I have instructed all the
executive power bodies not to answer the papers of the councils
formed by the Speaker of the National Assembly and not to take part
in their work,’ Margaryan said. He added that he `never interfere[s]
in the sphere of activities the law defines as that of the
legislative body and its leadership.’ P.T. -0–
*********************************************************************
ARMENIAN PRESIDENT DISCUSS WITH ARMENIAN TRANSPORT AND COMMUNICATION
MINISTER ISSUES OF REHABILITATION OF ROADS
YEREVAN, February 22. /ARKA/. Today Armenian President Robert
Kocharian discussed with Armenian Transport and Communication
Minister Andranik Manukyan the issues of rehabilitation of roads of
Armenia. As Armenian President Press Service Head told ARKA, during
the meeting the officials considered program of the WB on road
construction presented to financing of the WB and the US Millennium
Challenges as well as issues related to expected loan by the Japanese
Bank for Cooperation and Development. They also discussed the issues
concerning the construction of a new section of Kapan-Meghri highway
that will be the second road linking Iran with Armenia and will be
more advanced per a number of technical and economic parameters
compared to the existing road. Particularly if the existing road
allows performing cargo operations of auto vehicle with tonnage of 80
tons. The construction of the road for which AMD 6.6b was allocated
from the state budget will start in April 2005 and will be completed
next year. Armenian President instructed Minister to take under
control works for the construction of the new road, mentioning that
`it must meet quality standards and be put into operation according
to et schedule’. ($1 – AMD 472.57). T.M. -0-
*********************************************************************
PACE RESOLUTION ON NAGORNO KARABAKH ALSO CONTAINS POSITIVE ACCENTS,
NKR FOREIGN MINISTER BELIEVES
YEREVAN, February 22. /ARKA/. Resolution of the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe on Nagorno Karabakh contains
positive accents as well as Nagorno Karabakh Foreign Minister Arman
Melikyan said. In his words, the positive thing is a new approach
contained in PACE’s call on the Azerbaijani authorities on the
beginning of negotiations with the NKR authorities. `This to some
extent confirms that our opposition is right when stating that format
of bilateral negotiations may be productive’, he said. Melikyan
stressed that the NKR side also must demonstrate the readiness to
participate in the negotiations and to discuss the approaches that
will secure peace in perspective.
Report on Nagorno Karabakh prepared by David Atkinson, representative
of PACE was heard in PACE on January 25, 2005. T.M. -0–
*********************************************************************
SERGEI KARAGANOV: RUSSIA SHOULD PURSUE MORE ACTIVE POLICY IN
TRANSCAUCASIA, IN PARTICULAR, IN ARMENIA
MOSCOW, February 22. /ARKA/. Russia should pursue more active policy
in Transcaucasia, in particular, in Armenia, as Sergei Karaganov,
President of the RF Foreign and Defence Policy Council, Deputy
Director of the Europe Institute told ARKA. `Russia, unfortunately,
hasn’t constituted its interests yet, so we pursue not enough active
policy not only in respect of Armenia but also in respect of many
Russian regions’, he said. According to the political scientist, some
projects, such as restoration of railway communication, will solve
many problems for Armenia, Georgia and finally for the stability of
Transcaucasia. A.H. -0–

Armenia’s economy advances, official says
By Vanessa Colón
The Fresno Bee
(Updated Saturday, February 19, 2005, 7:36 AM)
Armenia is on the move to a better economy, but more work needs to
be done, said the U.S. ambassador to Armenia.
Members of the Armenian community in Fresno took in the good news
Friday, but some of them wondered whether the United States could do
more to help the nation prosper.
John Evans, U.S. ambassador to the republic of Armenia, made an evening
stop at the Holy Trinity Armenian Apostolic Church. The U.S. Embassy
in Armenia and the offices of Armenian Technology Group Inc. in Fresno
coordinated his visit.
“The main problem is persistent poverty. … [but] the rate of poverty
is coming down,” Evans said.
“First of all, we are trying to bring a measure of security and
stability in that nation. Secondly, we are trying by every possible
means to build up the economy.” Many Armenians say they are thankful
for the economic assistance the United States gives to Armenia, but
some of them want more change. They say Armenia can’t prosper as much
because of an economic blockade from neighboring nations.
“The U.S. provides economic assistance to Armenia. … You do see
good economic development, but in the countryside you do see poverty,”
said Varoujan Der Simonian, executive director of the nonprofit group
Armenian Technology Group Inc. in Fresno.
“Overall, it’s in need of help,”
In fiscal 2004, an estimated $89.7 million was budgeted for assistance
programs in Armenia.
Der Simonian hopes the Bush administration doesn’t make cuts in
financial help to Armenia.
The nation, which borders Turkey, was part of the former Soviet
Union. With the collapse of the Soviet Union and a debilitating
economy, many fled to Russia and others emigrated to the United States
and Western Europe.
Part of the financial strain includes an economic blockade by
Azerbaijan and Turkey. The country was hit with an earthquake in 1988
that killed more than 25,000 people.
“The sooner the blockade is lifted, the better,” Der Simonian said.
Some Armenians say part of the economic difficulty includes the
Armenian diaspora.
More than one million of Armenia’s roughly 3 million residents left
the nation when it gained its independence in 1991. Many left their
nation between 1915 and 1923 when the Ottoman Turks executed 1.5
million Armenians. The modern republic of Turkey evolved from the
Ottoman Empire.
Several people at the church have taken trips to Armenia and have
seen the changes.
“It’s improved but has not improved as much as we wanted to,” said
Hygo Ohannessian, chairwoman of the Armenian National Committee of
Central California.
Ohannessian said: “It was one of the top-producing countries in the
Soviet Union during the Soviet era.”
The reporter can be reached at [email protected] or (559) 441-6313.
–Boundary_(ID_qlkQB/xeZytFBromt9EDeA)–

GIVING THE GIFT OF MUSIC
By Glenn Lovell
San Jose Mercury News
Feb 19 2005
Mercury News
Nahum Guzik leafed through a stack of e-mail printouts, looking for
the one about the Armenian baby and the 1989 earthquake.
“It’s tear-jerking story, but it’s true,” he said. “The hospital in
ruins . . . the baby frozen, dead. . . . But then, when they bring
her home, she begins to cry.”
Now, thanks to the 70-year-old Russian emigre — founder of Guzik
Technical Enterprises in Mountain View and possibly Silicon Valley’s
least-known arts benefactor — that earthquake survivor is studying
piano in Vienna. She is one of hundreds of young Russian and Armenian
musicians whose training and, in some cases, international tours
have been made possible by more than $500,000 in gifts from Guzik’s
foundation.
“No, I don’t meet all the winners,” said Guzik, a small, wiry man with
a deliciously droll sense of humor. “But that’s fine, I don’t need to
be remembered. I just give the scholarship winners a start. If they
are successful, if I draw them out of obscurity, I am grateful. My
job is done.”
Last year’s seven Guzik Foundation artists, ranging in age from 13 to
22, will perform Wednesday at the Herbst Theatre in San Francisco,
and Thursday and Friday at the Florence Gould Theater at the Palace
of the Legion of Honor. Wednesday’s and Friday’s programs also will
feature the Moscow Chamber Orchestra. Winners Alexandre Bouzlov,
a cellist, and Haik Kazazyan, a violinist, will then make their
Carnegie Hall debuts in a Feb. 28 concert underwritten (for $90,000)
by the foundation.
“Haik has just signed with a big-concert agency, and Alexandre is
on his way to a major concert career,” said Constantine Orbelian,
the music director of the Moscow Chamber Orchestra, who, with Guzik’s
pianist cousin Svetlana Gorzhevskaya, oversees the open auditions in
Moscow and St. Petersburg in Russia, and in Erevan, Armenia.
Gifts big and small
Since it was established in 2001, the foundation has awarded
scholarships to 350 young musicians. Recipients receive anywhere from
a $100-a-month stipend to study at local conservatories to a $50,000
career grant for major concerts. Next year, the foundation plans to
mount a music festival at the Louvre Museum in Paris.
“Why do I give money? Because I think it’s a good thing to do, and I
love music,” explained Guzak, who still puts in a 50-hour work week
at Guzik Technical Enterprises, which makes test equipment for the
hard-disc-drive industry, including Hitachi GST. The Mountain View
plant reflects Guzik’s notoriously spare lifestyle — bare walls,
concrete floors, discount furniture. “I’m a slob,” he apologized,
laughing. “But the walls are clean.”
Road to Bay Area
Guzik (“button” in Polish) was born in Odessa in Ukraine but during
World War II fled with his family to the Urals, then Moscow. In 1972,
he emigrated to Israel. Ten months later, he arrived in the Bay Area.
He founded Guzik Technical Enterprises in 1982 and, in the years
since, has donated millions to cancer and stem-cell research. In 1996,
he received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor for his philanthropic
endeavors. He is not married and has a grown daughter at college.
While he has yet to return to Russia or his native Ukraine — “I
have some bad memories, but mostly good ones” — he has many Russian
friends in the Bay Area and an affinity for Russian culture. His
favorite composer: Dmitri Shostakovich.
“I know Russia, and I know the country is not in great economical
shape, so young talent is neglected, schools in disrepair,” he said.
“Russia used to produce a lot of great musicians, and doesn’t now.
So I try to participate to help.”
`I was never musical’
Asked whether Guzik’s largess stems from some unrealized childhood
dream to play great music, Orbelian said his boss is a brilliant
inventor-businessman with “an internal need for music.”
“Sure, my mother wanted me to play piano — I’m a Jewish kid,” Guzik
said, laughing. “I escaped it. I never was musical.”
Which is why he defers to Orbelian and cousin Gorzhevskaya’s
scholarship choices.
“I like the music: It fills up the vacuum emotionally. But I cannot
tell what’s good or bad, or judge their musical abilities. At same
time I am not bad judge of human qualities. You cannot run a small
company without that.”
Though he has no plans to retire, and appears healthy enough, Guzik
describes himself as a workaholic diabetic who started smoking again
10 years ago. “When I croak,” he said matter-of-factly, “whatever
I own will go to the foundation. What people will do with it, God
knows. But I hope they will follow what I started.”

EFFECTS OF TRANSITION IN EDUCATION SECTOR ADDRESSED BY NEW UNDP PROJECT
ArmenPress
Feb 18 2005
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS: Armenian Ministry of Education
and Science and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP)
launched today the Strengthening Policy Development Capacities of the
Ministry of Education and Science project. Minister Sergo Yeritsyan
and UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Lise
Grande signed a Memorandum marking the official start of the project.
A UNDP press release said the first component of the project will
include a survey and analysis of the country’s labor market and
forecasts of labor requirements through 2015. Under the second
component, a Concept Paper will be developed and policy
recommendations made on reforming state management of science. The
recommendations will aim at making the sector sustainable and
efficient and responsive to the Armenian economy. The recommendations
will also aim at ensuring that Armenian science remains highly
competitive in the world and at the cutting edge of new technologies.
This innovative project supports other reforms in the education
sector aimed at addressing the impact of the transition and ensuring
links between employers and the country’s education and training
system. Recognizing that standards have declined and that the
excessive supply of graduates has contributed to unemployment, acted
as a break on wage rates and led to continuing brain drain, the
Government and international organizations are working together to
reform the sector. Through UNDP’s project, efforts will be made to
ensure that instruction is targeted at the labor market and that
vacancies are filled by candidates with practical knowledge and
skills.
Ms. Grande noted in her speech: “This project is a concrete
indication of UNDP’s commitment toward helping Armenia to build an
open, modern and knowledge-based economy that is able to compete
globally and attract investments. Education and science are critical
sectors not only for the economy, but also for the social and
cultural development of any country. And for a country like Armenia,
with highly valuable human capital, sustaining positive traditions is
the key to real success.”
The half-year project is co-financed by the Government of Armenia
and UNDP.

KASPRZYK TO DRAW REPORT ON SITUATION AT KARABAKH AND AZERI ARMED FORCES CONTACT LINE
PanArmenian News
Feb 17 2005
17.02.2005 13:55
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs have addressed the
OSCE Chairman-in-Office a request for the structure special mission
to draw a report on the situation at the contact line between the
armed forces of Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan. It was reported by
the Office of Special Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office
Andrzej Kasprzyk in Tbilisi. As reported by the source, the Co-Chairs
are seriously concerned over the periodical breaks of the cease-fire
regime at the front line lately. “The situation is clear and simple:
the cease-fire agreement is being broken and this should be cut
short. The tension at the front causes the concern of the countries
co-chairing the Minsk Group. This also prejudices the OSCE mediation
activities,” A. Kasprzyk office reported.