Author: Kanayan Tamar

SAFAROV PARDON REVIVES CALL FOR RECOGNITION: HERITAGE RESTATES THAT NKR SHOULD BE RECOGNIZED BY ARMENIA; KOCHARYAN SAYS RECOGNITION WOULD BE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE FROM HUNGARY
By Gohar Abrahamyan

ArmeniaNow
04.09.12

Former president Robert Kocharyan calls Safarov case a good chance
for Hungary to recognize NKR.

Armenian politicians believe that the recent extradition and pardon
of Azeri soldier Ramil Safarov, who had brutally murdered an Armenian
soldier in Budapest, has offered a good reason to once again raise
the issue of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic’s international recognition.

Enlarge Photo

The press service of Heritage party’s parliamentary faction reports
that on Tuesday faction secretary Zaruhi Postanjyan submitted to the
parliament a draft law on Nagorno Karabakh’s recognition, which, if
adopted, would officially recognize the NKR’s factual status, basing
it on the fact that it meets all the international law requirements
for a sovereign state.

The same day (September 4), Armenia’s second president Robert Kocharyan
made a statement on Safarov’s extradition, saying that “if Hungary’s
official response makes it clear that Azerbaijan, indeed, reneged its
vow and deceived Budapest, and that there was no criminal alliance,
then the most appropriate countermeasure on Hungary’s part might be
the NKR’s recognition”.

According to Kocharyan, there is so much hatred against Armenians
in Azerbaijan that they have forgotten all about moral limits, so
the order pardoning a murderer is the best proof of the validity of
Karabakh people’s arguments demanding independence.

Armenia’s foreign minister Edward Nalbandyan, too, has made a
statement that despite the drawback Safarov’s extradition and pardon
have had on the negotiation process of the Karabakh issue, official
Yerevan has no intention of suspending the talks, and, in general,
it is Azerbaijan that often takes steps or makes statements aimed at
hampering the negotiations.

“The international community cannot tolerate Azerbaijan’s continuing
its adventurous policy under the guise of negotiations, which would
be a serious threat to regional peace and security and is fraught
with serious dangers to international security and stability,”
said Nalbandyan.

Meanwhile, some lawmakers in Armenia blame diplomats themselves for
allowing the situation.

At a press conference on Tuesday secretary of the Armenian
Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) parliamentary faction Aghvan
Vardanyan praised the actions of President Serzh Sargsyan in the wake
of Safarov’s extradition and subsequent pardoning as determined and
based on principle, but he also said they were “clearly belated”.

“Now our foreign policy department is trying to justify itself,
saying that they had raised the alarm and got assurances that there
was no such problem, but in fact they did not work particularly
well or were not strong enough to be reckoned with. After all, those
concerns could have been raised publicly, and at that time, I think,
the government of Hungary would have acted with caution,” he said.

Stepan Safaryan, of the Heritage party, described the situation with
Safarov’s extradition and his pardon by President Ilham Aliyev as
a serious omission of Armenian diplomacy and accused the Foreign
Ministry of inaction.

“While Hungary’s Armenian community was raising the concern, our
entire political elite were on a vacation,” he charged.

As the brewing controversy attracts international attention, the
Associated Press reports that Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar
Mammadyarov spoke by telephone with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State
William Burns on Monday, during which the Azeri minister said that
the pardoning of Safarov was justified on the bases of Armenia’s
conflict with Karabakh.

Citing Mammadyarov’s press secretary, the report said the minister:
“underlined that the question of Ramil Safarov must not be looked at
outside the context of the fact of the occupation, because it is a
consequence of this Armenian aggression.”

WEAKNESS, HELPLESSNESS PROVOKE SARGSYAN’S RAMBLE STATEMENTS AGAINST AZERBAIJAN
by Elnur Aslanov

News.Az
Monday, 03 September 2012 13:21

Late last week was marked by an important event since
Azerbaijan-Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov, who was sentenced to
life in prison in Hungary on 13 April 2006, was extradited to
Azerbaijan and pardoned by the decree of President Ilham Aliyev. This
step caused an ambiguous reaction in Yerevan.

The issue of transfer of Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov to
Azerbaijan by Hungary was in line with the laws of both countries. As
for the president of Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan paid a large part of time
to this fact in his speeches and in the congratulatory message to the
puppet regime in the occupied lands of Azerbaijan in view of the
upcoming elections.

Being aware of the consistency of his state, the President of Armenia
started to threaten with the ideology of Armenianism, while justifying
the previous facts of ideal vandalism and terrorist acts, and
officially encouraging the new ones. The mask of a civilian politician
fell off uncovering the essence of the murderer. “Let them blame only
themselves after this”, this is the Sargsyan’s justification which
signalized the start of attack to all anti-Azerbaijani forces. The
phrase that would strike even the cruelest murderers. Giving thus the
start to the season of inhumanity, Sargsyan just singled out his
priorities as a head of state urging to terrorize Azerbaijani
diplomats and civilians in revenge for their own incompetence and
helplessness.

It is important to note that no matter what, Azerbaijan is not against
Armenians, it is against the ideology of Armenians in the form which
justifies ethnic cleansing, murder of civilians, women and children.

“We are doing this from time to time and we will do it if necessary” –
the phrase that President Serzh Sargsyan pronounced on 2 September
2012 echoes the statement of Defence Minister Serzh Sargsyan of 15
December 2000 on the reasons of massacres in Khojaly. Then there came
the confession of the highest degree of the barbarism of the ideology
of Armenians which thought that ‘before Khojaly Azerbaijanis believed
they can mock at us, they thought Armenians are unable to raise a hand
against civilians. We managed to break that stereotype”.

It is a bit odd to hear such blood-thirsty threats and calls for
intolerance from a head of state in the 21st century. However, we
should not forget that the shortest way to occupy an important
position in modern Armenia is to shed the blood of women and
children-I mean President Serzh Sargsyan and others brought up by this
criminal clan, for example Armenian Defence Minister Seyran Ohanyan.

Azerbaijan understands the whole essence of this Nazi ideology like no
one else since in 2003 President Robert Kocharyan used the phrases
about ‘the genetic incompatibility of Armenians and Azerbaijanis’.

Our country has been repeatedly the victim of territorial claims,
washed by the rivers of blood of innocent Azerbaijani citizens of
different ethnic backgrounds. However, with Safarov’s extradition and
clemency, all supporters of Armenianism suddenly realized that time
ceases to be a factor, standing at their side, and that it begins to
work against the invaders.

Weakness and helplessness – these two feelings, provoking Sargsyan’s
rumble phrases against our country, have so far been known only to a
mercantile ruling clan in Yerevan, that was fully aware of the failure
of the Armenian statehood. Not a single regional project goes without
Azerbaijan. While the share of the country’s economy is more than 80%
of the economy of the South Caucasus, Armenia, parting with the latest
state assets, is selling the future of its citizens.

Even having the support of both the romantic-mood diaspora and some
states, Armenia has “made” an obvious failure in the construction of
any acceptable model of a closed economy isolated from any other
appropriate models.

Today Armenia is facing a choice: either a compromise on Karabakh
conflict, or the long-standing economic stagnation and the further
worsening of living conditions for years. In this context it should be
noted that the geopolitical situation in the South Caucasus is still
far from being improved, while even minimal competitiveness of
Armenian economy is merely impossible without the full-pledged
regional cooperation. Meanwhile, Armenian assets will become a burden
for all foreign companies that have the interests in this country.

Armenian citizens should realize that the ruling regime in Armenia is
merely stealing the future of the younger generation, almost
bankrupting the country today. According to independent experts,
including Armenian representatives, the socioeconomic crisis in
Armenia and its implications can be neutralized only in conditions of
interstate regional cooperation, collaboration and integration.

Therefore, the artificial protraction of negotiation on Karabakh
conflict by Yerevan hampers regional development while paralyzing the
development of Armenia itself.

Elnur Aslanov is chief of the department for political analysis and
information of the Presidential Administration.

ARMENIAN POLITICIAN: SAFAROV’S EXTRADITION BACKED BY TURKEY, OTHER STATES

tert.am
04.09.12

Turkish ax murderer Ramil Safarov’s extradition plan was obviously
backed by several countries, including Turkey, Stepan Safaryan, the
secretary of the opposition Heritage party, told reporters on Monday.

According to him, the decision could be deemed a provocation against
Armenia and the South Caucasus region.

“The murderer’s transfer proves that what happened was a provocation
against Armenia and the region. Azerbaijan was assisted by several
countries, with Turkey being among them,” he said, without naming
the other states.

Safaryan added that the Hungarian government could not have believed
in Azerbaijan’s assertions that Safarov would continue serving his
time in his home country after being returned.

Safarov was sentenced to life in prison for hacking Armenian officer
Gurgen Margaryan to death in 2004. The verdict, passed in 2006, allowed
the possibility of parole only upon the expiry of a 30-year-period
since the passing of the sentence. But after being transferred to
Azerbaijan last week, the murderer was immediately granted a pardon
and promoted to the rank of major.

Commenting on the recent developments, the Heritage member noted
that the past years enabled Hungary to raise the price of what he
called a transaction. He said other countries too had their share of
responsibility for the decision.

As for the world powers’ reaction, Safaryan said they had better
start healing Azerbaijan instead of waring f possible harms to the
Karabak peace process.

In the meantime he called for the Armenian diplomacy’s rapid efforts.

“They have to realize that the tension is not going to linger, so it
is necessary to undertake steps within a very short period if they
really want results,” he added.

TER-TADEVOSYAN THINKS AZERBAIJAN WILL START WAR

Story from Lragir.am News:

Published: 14:53:18 – 04/09/2012

Hero of Artsakh war, Major General Arkadi Ter-Tadevosyan (Commandos)
is sure the process of Ramil Safarov’s extradition was the first
step undertaken by Azerbaijan to launch a war. He says Turkey is also
involved. An agreement was signed between Azerbaijan and Turkey on 29
October 2011 obliging Azerbaijan not to take any step on the foreign
front without Turkey’s awareness.

Ter-Tadevosyan thinks Armenia should recognize Karabakh’s
independence. He also said that Armenia is ready for a war.

ARMENIA NOT TO SUSPEND KARABAKH TALKS, MINISTER SAYS

armradio.am
04.09.2012 15:18

Azerbaijan has been glorifying Safarov’s crime ever since it was
committed, Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian said at
a joint press conference with his Argentinean counterpart Hector
Marcos Timerman.

“The international community cannot tolerate the continuation of
Azerbaijan’s policy of adventurism under the cover of negotiations,
which poses a serious threat to regional peace and security,” the
Minister added.

Although the recent developments have already exerted a negative
influence on the negotiation process, Armenia has never been attempting
to withdraw from the negotiations and frustrate the talks, Minister
Nalbandian stated, adding that it’s Azerbaijan that has been turning
down all proposals of the Minsk Group Co-Chairs.

Minister Nalbandian stressed that Turkey’s mediation in the Karabakh
talks is excluded.

ARMENIAN REPRESENTATIVE IN THE CYPRUS PARLIAMENT VARTKES MAHDESSIAN HAD A MEETING WITH THE HUNGARIAN AMBASSADOR

Nicosia – Tuesday 4 September – Armenian Representative in the Cyprus
Parliament Vartkes Mahdessian had a meeting with the Hungarian
Ambassador in Cyprus on Tuesday morning and presented him with a
protest letter on the release of Azerbaijani axe-murderer Ramil
Safarov.

Mahdessian conveyed his utter dismay and shock of the Armenian
community of Cyprus and said that Armenians all over the world from
every corner of the Diaspora, Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh were
shocked at the decision of the Hungarian government.

Organised by the Armenian youth, the community is organising a
demonstartion at the Hungarian Embassy on Wednesday 5 September
at 12:00.

Click here after 2:00 pm to view images of the demonstration.

AZERI DEFENSE MINISTRY: AZERBAIJAN HAS CAPACITY TO PROTECT RAMIL SAFAROV

arminfo
Tuesday, September 4, 19:58

Azerbaijan has the capacity for advance measures to protect the life
of its officer, Azerbaijani Defense Minister Eldar Sabiroglu said
on Tuesday

SalamNews quotes Sabiroglu as claiming that the Armenian authorities
are preparing a terrorist act against Ramil Safarov.

“Speaking of stir raised by Armenia, it no longer has any importance.

Homecoming of our officer should be regarded as a triumph of justice
and the Azerbaijani diplomacy,” Sabiroglu said.

Meanwhile, some experts are sure that Safarov’s mission is over and
the Azeri authorities will shortly get rid of him with a view to
blame the Armenians for his death.

Ramil Safarov, who brutally murdered Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan
in Budapest in 2004 and was sentenced by a Hungarian court to life
in jail, was extradited to Azerbaijan on Aug 31 and pardoned by the
Azeri President once back home.

ARKADY TER-TADEVOSYAN: KILLING SAFAROV WILL BE THE NEXT STEP OF BAKU
Lilit Muradyan

“Radiolur”
04.09.2012 18:30

Armenia must recognize the independence of Nagorno Karabakh to
avoid unwanted consequences, Artsakh Hero, Major-General Arkady
Ter-Tadevosyan told reporters today, speaking about the shameful deal
between Azerbaijan and Hungary and the steps Armenia should take.

According to Arkady Ter-Tadevosyan, this is a good opportunity for
Azerbaijan to start war. “We will win the war, although the losses
will be great,” he is convinced.

Safarov has already become a great headache for Aliyev. The latter
wants to see Safarov dead. They will next kill Safarov and accuse
Armenians of the murder, Ter-Tadevosyan said.

According to him, the Armenian authorities must immediately recognize
the independence of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic not to allow
Azerbaijan undertake another provocation against Armenia.

CASE AGAINST LIEUTENANT COLONEL VARDAN SAMVELYAN DETAINED OVER ATTEMPT TO BLOW UP HARSNAKAR RESTAURANT REFERRED TO COURT :

Panorama.am
04/09/2012

The case initiated against Armenian Lieutenant Colonel Vardan
Samvelyan, who had been detained over an attempt to blow up Harsnakar
restaurant, was referred to the Court of General Jurisdiction of
Yerevan’s Kentron and Nork-Marash administrative districts, Armenian
Defense Ministry press officer, Mary Sargsyan, told Panorama.am.

On the night of July 1, Vardan Samvelyan made an attempt to blow up
Harsnakar restaurant where military doctor Vahe Avetyan, 35, and
two of his colleagues were severely beaten by the guards of Ruben
Hayrapetyan, Harsnakar restaurant’s owner, on June 17.

Earlier, Panorama.am reported that Samvelyan wore a military uniform,
in which two grenades, cartridges and explosives were discovered.

UNION OF ARMENIANS OF RUSSIA: BY PARDONING SAFAROV AZERI AUTHORITIES THREW OUT A CHALLENGE TO WORLD COMMUNITY

ARMINFO
Tuesday, September 4, 17:50

By pardoning Ramil Safarov, an Azeri officer who has killed a sleeping
Armenian with an axe, the Azeri authorities have thrown out a challenge
to the international community and have shown it their true criminal
face, the Union of Armenians of Russia said on Tuesday.

“This has proved once again that the Nagorno-Karabakh people was
right when it said that it could no longer be part of Azerbaijan,
a country proclaiming a murderer as a national hero,” the Union said.

The Union fully supports the Armenian President’s decision to suspend
Armenia’s diplomatic relations with Hungary.

The Union has urged Russia, as Armenia’s strategic partner, to make
clear its position on the matter and to condemn Azerbaijan’s cynical
actions, which may undermine the many-year efforts of the OSCE Minsk
Group to achieve peace and stability in the South Caucasus.