Author: Khondkarian Raffi

OBAMA STATEMENT HAS TURKS FUMING
Thomas Seibert

The National
8/FOREIGN/704279916/-1/NEWS
April 28 2009
UAE

"The dream is over" was how one Turkish newspaper put it yesterday.

Just three weeks after hosting the US president, Barack Obama, in a
visit that many saw as the confirmation of a strong and strategic
partnership between Ankara and Washington, Turkey’s political
leaders and media are up in arms after a statement by the president
commemorating the massacres committed against Armenians in the dying
days of the Ottoman Empire in 1915.

"Turkey is not a country that can be first pampered and then deceived,"
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a speech last weekend,
in reference to the praise showered on Turkey by Mr Obama during
his visit.

When Mr Obama issued his first statement on the Armenian question as
president last week, he avoided the term "genocide" that is strongly
rejected by Turkey. But even without using the word and choosing the
Armenian term meds yeghern – great catastrophe – instead, the president
made sure everyone understood that he is convinced that a genocide took
place in 1915, as he had said during his election campaign last year.

"I have consistently stated my own view of what occurred in 1915 and my
view of that history has not changed," the president said. "My interest
remains the achievement of a full, frank and just acknowledgement of
the facts."

Mr Erdogan called the president’s statement "unacceptable" and repeated
Turkey’s position that the question of what happened in 1915 should
be left to historians.

Armenia and many international scholars say that up to 1.5 million
Armenians became victims of a genocide ordered by the Ottoman
government against the Christian minority, but Turkey rejects that
label and says that Armenians died in the course of a relocation
campaign under wartime conditions.

Turkey’s president, Abdullah Gul, criticised Mr Obama for failing
to mention that many Ottoman Muslims also lost their lives at the
time. The parliamentary speaker, Koksal Toptan, said Mr Obama’s
statement would have a "serious negative effect" on efforts to
normalise relations between Turkey and Armenia.

A cautious rapprochement between the two countries started last year
when Mr Gul became the first Turkish head of state to visit Yerevan.

Shortly before Mr Obama’s statement last week, Turkey and Armenia
said they had agreed on a road map for the normalisation of their
ties. The two neighbours have no diplomatic relations and the border
between the two countries has been closed for more than a decade.

Mr Obama said he supported efforts by Turkey and Armenia to "forge
a relationship that is peaceful, productive and prosperous".

Few observers in Turkey had expected Mr Obama to use the term genocide
after he had praised the reconciliation efforts during his visit to
Turkey earlier this month.

"There has been courageous and important dialogue among Armenians and
Turks and within Turkey itself," the president said in his statement.

But even though the president did not use the "g-word", as some Turkish
newspapers call the term genocide, the way he described the Ottomans’
actions against the Armenians was so damning for Turkey that the one
word that was missing did not really matter in the end, observers said.

"Obama did not say ‘genocide’, but it was as if he had said
it," the columnist Semih Idiz wrote in yesterday’s Milliyet
newspaper. Washington may be of the opinion that Mr Obama had
"technically" followed Turkey’s wish to avoid the term, but Ankara’s
reaction was still strong, Idiz wrote.

One reason why Turkey does not want the US to officially use the term
genocide for events that took place several years before today’s
Turkish republic was founded in 1923 is the fear that such a move
will trigger an avalanche of political consequences.

"This year Obama only went so far, next year he will say ‘genocide,’
and then all other countries will recognise it, and they will say
‘recognition by Turkey is a precondition for EU entry,’" wrote another
columnist, Ruha Mengi in the Vatan newspaper. "Then territorial and
compensation demands will come."

Mr Erdogan is already under pressure from ally Azerbaijan, a long-time
foe of Armenia, and from his opposition at home who have warned
against opening the Turkish-Armenian border without a solution of the
conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the disputed region of
Nagorny-Karabakh, an Armenian enclave in Azerbaijan.

But the anger expressed by Turkey’s leaders and media about Mr Obama’s
statement does not mean that Ankara will put talks with Armenia on
hold. Turkey’s foreign minister, Ali Babacan, acknowledged last week
that it would be difficult to reach the goal of full normalisation
in Turkish-Armenian relations.

"It is not easy, it is very complicated, but we go forward step by
step like in a game of chess."

Murat Yetkin, a columnist of the Radikal newspaper, wrote that
Mr Obama’s statement had avoided a full-scale collapse of the
process. "The ship continues to float, it has been saved from hitting
the ground."

Turkey may also draw consolation from the fact that the much-criticised
statement of Mr Obama did not fully live up to Armenian expectations
either.

"Obama’s statement made nobody happy," Yetkin wrote. "Sometimes
the common denominator of politics is not everybody’s happiness,
but everybody’s unhappiness."

AZG Armenian Daily #075, 25/04/2009

Armenian Genocide

OBAMA: ARMENIAN KILLINGS ‘GREAT ATROCITIES’

President avoids use of word ‘genocide’ in recalling 1.5 million
deaths

President Barack Obama on Friday refrained from branding the massacre
of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians in Turkey a "genocide," breaking
a campaign promise while contending his views about the 20th century
slaughter had not changed.

Marking the grim anniversary of the start of the killings, the
president referred to them as "one of the great atrocities of the 20th
century."

"I have consistently stated my own view of what occurred in 1915, and
my view of that history has not changed," Obama said. "My interest
remains the achievement of a full, frank and just acknowledgment of
the facts."

"The best way to advance that goal right now," Obama said, "is for the
Armenian and Turkish people to address the facts of the past as a part
of their efforts to move forward."

For Obama, referring to the killings as genocide could have upended
recent pledges of a closer partnership with Turkey, a vital ally in a
critical region. Steering around the word, however, put him at odds
with his own pledges to recognize the slaughter as genocide.

Obama said the Armenians who were massacred in the final days of the
Ottoman Empire "must live on in our memories." He said unresolved
history can be a heavy weight. "Reckoning with the past holds out the
powerful promise of reconciliation," he said.

"I strongly support efforts by the Turkish and Armenian people to work
through this painful history in a way that is honest, open, and
constructive," he said.

Just on Wednesday, Turkey and Armenia said they were nearing a
historic reconciliation after years of tension. The Obama
administration is trying to be careful not to disturb that agreement.

Genocide scholars widely view the event as the first genocide of the
20th century. Turkey denies that the deaths constituted genocide,
contending the toll has been inflated and that the casualties were
victims of civil war and unrest.

Diplomatic efforts underway

The announcement of progress between Turkey and Armenia appeared timed
to set the stage for Friday’s White House statement. During a trip to
Turkey this month, Obama emphasized U.S. support for the
reconciliation efforts and avoided the term genocide in a speech to
the Turkish parliament. He said in response to an inquiry, however,
that he had not changed his views on the question.

Vice President Joe Biden on Thursday spoke by phone with Armenian
President Serge Sarkisian, and a statement from Biden’s office said
the vice president told him he welcomed Wednesday’s announcement.

"The vice president applauded President Sarkisian’s leadership, and
underscored the administration’s firm support for both Armenia and
Turkey in this process," the statement said.

Turkey and Armenia have no diplomatic ties, and their border has been
closed since 1993 because of a Turkish protest of Armenia’s occupation
of land claimed by Azerbaijan.

In September, Turkish President Abdullah Gul became the first Turkish
leader to visit Armenia, where he and Sarkisian watched their
countries’ football teams play a World Cup qualifying match. The
Armenian government appears to be interested in further
talks. Armenian-American groups and supporters in Congress are focused
on passing a resolution that describes the killings as genocide and
argue that it should not undermine diplomatic efforts.

Gul said Friday in Ankara that he expected Obama to deliver a
statement that would reinforce the reconciliation talks.

"I believe that (Obama’s statement) should be one that is supportive
of our good intentioned efforts," Gul told reporters, according to
Associated Press.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT RECEIVES REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ARMENIAN OFFICE OF UNHCR

ArmenPress
April 22 2009
Armenia

President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan received today representative of
the Armenian office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
Bushra Halepota.

Presidential press service told Armenpress that the president of the
country highly assessed the assistance provided by UNHCR to Armenia and
said that refugees are the most vulnerable parts of our society and
in this respect the assistance of UNCHR is very important in respect
of their full integration to the society. Serzh Sargsyan expressed
assurance that the practical and effective cooperation formed between
the Armenian government and this important establishment will continue
successfully in future as well.

Representative of the Armenian office of the UNHCR Bushra Halepota
expressed gratitude to the Armenian president for his permanent
attention towards the issues of refugees. She presented the works
carried out by the office in 2008 and the programs which are expected
to be carried out in 2009. B. Halepota said she is pleased with the
adoption of law on "Refugees and Asylum Seekers" which corresponds
to European standards and noted that some of the points of the law
connected with the rights of refugees are included in a number of
curriculums of educational establishments.

ARMENIA AND TURKEY HAVE IDENTIFIED A ROAD-MAP, ABOUT WHICH THE MINISTRIES OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF BOTH COUNTRIES HAVE MADE A JOINT STATEMENT

NOYAN TAPAN
APRIL 23,2009
YEREVAN

"Turkey and Armenia, together with Switzerland as mediator, have
been working intensively with a view to normalizing their bilateral
relations and developing them in a spirit of good-neighborliness, and
mutual respect, and thus to promoting peace, security and stability
in the whole region". About this was said in the joint statement of
the Ministries of foreign affairs of the Republic of Armenia, the
Republic of Turkey and the Swiss Federal Department of foreign affairs.

"The two parties have achieved tangible progress and mutual
understanding in this process and they have agreed on a comprehensive
framework for the normalization of their bilateral relations in a
mutually satisfactory manner. In this context, a road-map has been
identified. This agreed basis provides a positive prospect for the
on-going process", was said in the joint statement.

Later, in response to media’s questions RA Foreign Ministry
Spokesperson Tigran Balayan explained that the word combination
"road map" is an accepted and used notion in diplomatic lexicon,
which means plan of steps to be undertaken.

CHOOSING ARMENIAN
TAMAR KEVONIAN

Asbarez
/2009_1
Thursday, April 23, 2009

Everyone from the taxi driver to the grocer to the high powered
financier has a story to tell. Each one with a unique perspective on
life and ideas on what it means to be Armenian.

A hundred years ago, our ancestors lived in a land that was culturally
homogenous. Their identity was a given, their home was known and their
history was second nature. They were either from Adana or Van or any
other point in between and there was no need to explain who they were.

In the ninety-four years since the Genocide we have created microcosm
around the globe of the world our grandparents knew. Hayrenagtsagan
(compatriotic) organizations exist to perpetuate the subtle aspects of
our identity. "Where is your family from?" is a common question that
goes beyond the mere geographic location of where our families found
themselves following the slaughter, but a deeper question to get to
the root of who we are by trying to pinpoint the exact location of
our familial origins.

This may seem redundant, especially now, almost two or three
generations and several continents removed from the source of our
distinctiveness but it belies a deeper question: what is the nature
of our transplanted nation? Despite the existence of the Republic of
Armenia we are a borderless nation that exists within the boundaries
of our adopted countries because wherever we are can always find
another Vanetsi (a person from Van) or Adanatsi (a person from Adana)
and instantly find common ground.

In today’s challenging world we are concerned not only with the
concerns of the politics of our host countries, the communities in
which we live, the needs of our families but also have the added
preoccupation of our tiny republic, our Armenian communities,
our history and the perpetuation of the collective future of the
Armenian Diaspora.

The challenges of being Armenian were a hot topic of debate at a
recent gathering of friends to celebrate the baptism of one of the
newest members of the Armenian community.

"I’m proud to be Armenian," stated Carlo.

"But given the choice would you want to be Armenian?" I asked.

"Absolutely," he affirmed

"Why is this an issue?" asked Raffi, playing the devil’s advocate.

"I wonder how seriously we take our cultural identity when we give
children westernized names and don’t teach them to speak or write
Armenian."

"It’s difficult for Americans to say Armenian names," was the response.

"I have that problem all the time," said Vicken and went on to describe
the various challenges he faces when spelling his last name during
the course of conducting his business.

"But if they can say %u218Schwarzenegger’ and elect him governor of
California, then they can easily say any of our names," I responded.

H. Edward Deluzain in his article entitled Name and Personal Identity
said it best, "This bestowal of name and identity is a kind of symbolic
contract between the society and the individual. The sense of personal
identity and uniqueness that a name gives us is at the heart of why
names interest us and why they are important to us as individuals
and to our society as a whole."

Our sense of identity is shaped by our names (either first or
last name) and practices such as dropping the ian, simplifying or
Anglicizing our last names or using European/American first names
may be the first step in distancing ourselves from our history.

One of the other particular challenges of being Armenian is also
learning the language. The discussion included a larger argument for
cultural responsibility encompassing the Armenian language. Hundreds
of indigenous languages die every day in today’s global world. It’s
an added burden on many parents to fight the overwhelming tide of
the local societies in which they live. Even if they start life by
speaking Armenian, children quickly switch to English once they start
school and parents find themselves responding in kind. Many don’t
bother to learn or teach their children the alphabet.

Most of us are now more proficient in English and opt to use in our
daily communications.

"Sure, I’ll answer a couple of questions," said Varoujan when asked,
in Armenian, for an interview. "Great," I said. "Is it in Armenian?" he
asked in a panic. "I can’t speak Armenian," he said in Armenian.

The Armenian language and its alphabet have been in existence for over
a millennium. Much like the Sumerian hyroglygh, which was in common
use and is the basis for any modern alphabet, it did not survive the
passage of time and completely disappeared from known history. In fact,
after its rediscovery in the 20th century, it remained unreadable
for decades.

A language may have tens of thousands of speakers but be endangered
because children are no longer learning them, and speakers are in the
process of shifting to using the national language instead of their
ethnic languages.

Some linguists, like Michael Krauss and Stephen Wurn, argue that
at least 3,000 of the world’s 6,000-7,000 languages are liable to
be lost before the year 2100. When a language dies, its speakers,
culture, art and history also die. Once that happens there is almost
no chance of reviving them.

In was inevitable that we would continue to exist after the
perpetration of the Genocide. We are a tenacious people as evidenced
by our unwillingness to give up in the face of adversity and to
thrive in unfamiliar environments. But our greatest victory is that
we continue to exist as Armenians. It is a choice our grandparents
made and it is a choice we continue to make. Our ethnic names and
our distinctive language is simply a vehicle to realize our choices.

ARMENIA, TURKEY DETERMINE ROADMAP FOR NORMALIZATION OF RELATIONS

armradio.am
23.04.2009 11:10

The Ministries of the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Turkey
and the Federal Foreign Department of Switzerland issued the following
joint statement:

"With the mediation of Switzerland, Turkey and Armenia have worked
intensively with a view of normalizing the bilateral relations and
developing those in the spirit of good-neighborliness and mutual
respect, thus promoting peace, stability and security in the whole
region.

The parties have achieved tangible progress and mutual understanding
in this process. They have come to the agreement on the comprehensive
framework of normalization of relations in a mutually satisfactory
manner. A roadmap has been determined in this context.

These agreed bases create positive perspectives for the continuation
of the process."

TURKEY CALLS BACK AMBASSADOR TO CANADA
SUZAN FRASER

AP foreign
Wednesday April 22 2009

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) Turkey recalled its ambassador to Canada, an
official said Wednesday, after government ministers there reportedly
took part in an event that labeled the Ottoman-era killings of
Armenians as genocide.

Ambassador Rafet Akgunay returned to Ankara for consultations, the
government official said on condition of anonymity because he was
not authorized to speak with journalists on the subject. He did not
say why Akgunay was recalled or for how long.

Turkey is upset, however, that Canadian officials reportedly attended
an event Monday commemorating the deaths Armenians at the end of
World War I as genocide. Hurriyet newspaper said the event in Ottawa
was reportedly organized to mark the fifth anniversary of a vote in
Canada’s parliament to recognize the killings as genocide.

It is the second time that Turkey has recalled its ambassador to Canada
over the genocide dispute. In 2006, Turkey criticized Canadian Prime
Minister Stephen Harper for remarks he made in support of recognizing
the mass killings as genocide and briefly withdrew its ambassador. It
also pulled out of a military exercise in Canada in protest.

Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks- an event widely viewed by genocide scholars as the
first genocide of the 20th century. Turkey denies that the d eaths
constituted genocide, contending the toll has been inflated and the
casualties were victims of civil war and unrest.

Lawmakers in the United States have also introduced a resolution
that would call the death genocide. If passed, the resolution could
undermine efforts by President Barack Obama’s administration to win
NATO ally Turkey’s help on key foreign policy goals.

U.S. legislators almost passed a similar resolution two years ago,
but congressional leaders did not bring it up for a vote after intense
pressure from the Bush administration.

Obama avoided the term "genocide" when he addressed Turkish lawmakers
during his visit a month ago. But he said, in response to a question,
that he had not changed his views. As a presidential candidate,
Obama said the killings amounted to genocide.

TURKEY’S SECURITY COUNCIL TO MULL OVER ARMENIA TIES

Asbarez
le=41712_4/21/2009_1
Tuesday, April 21, 2009

ANKARA (Combined Sources)–Turkey’s powerful National Security Council
(MGK), comprising top state officials and army generals, will meet
next week to discuss Turkey’s next step in its negotiations with
Armenia to establish diplomatic relations, the Turkish Today’s Zaman
Daily reported on Tuesday.

President Abdullah Gul will visit Baku shortly after the April 28
meeting to "inform the Azerbaijani administration about the decisions
Turkey has made regarding normalization with Armenia," Zaman said.

The agenda of the MGK meeting, chaired by Gul, will include a
discussion of recent developments in Iraq and the possibility of
granting an amnesty for PKK members, the normalization of relations
with Armenia and the deployment of Turkish troops in Afghanistan,
Today’s Zaman reported, citing anonymous government sources.

Until recently, media reports had said Turkey and Armenia would likely
sign soon an agreement on the gradual normalization of bilateral
relations. Talks, however, have hit a roadblock this month, following
US President Barack Obama’s visit to Turkey on April 6, where he told
the Turkish Parliament his views had not changed in reference to the
Armenian Genocide.

Analysts close to the negotiations believe Ankara’s recent push
to normalize ties with Yerevan were aimed at dissuading President
Obama from fulfilling his campaign pledge to recognize the Armenian
Genocide. Turkey repeatedly warned Obama that any recognition of
its crime against the Armenians would torpedo the talks to open the
closed borders.

Since Obama’s visit, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has
repeatedly made clear that diplomatic relations will not be established
before a Karabakh settlement. The marked shift in Turkish rhetoric is
being reported by Western and Turkish media as a response to Azeri
warnings to retaliate if borders are opened before a Karabakh deal
acceptable to Baku is signed.

According to Zaman, the agenda item on Armenia-Turkey relations will
primarily focus on Azerbaijan’s reaction to the opening of the two
countries’ border.

Zaman said the Turkish Army General Staff and the Government both
agree that Ankara should not open its border with Armenia until a
settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

J. SOLANA SAYS THE KARABAKH CONFLICT REGULATION WILL COMPLETELY CHANGE THE SITUATION IN THE REGION AND OPEN UP NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR

ArmenPress
April 20 2009
Armenia

YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS: After the Georgia-Ossian August
conflict it is clear that the military action to solve a conflict
is not an option. There is no alternative to the peaceful of the
Karabakh conflict.

In an interview to Armenpress EU High Representative for the Common
Foreign and Security Policy Mr. Javier Solana stressed that the
EU welcomes the declaration of 2 November 2008 by the Presidents
of Azerbaijan, Armenia and the Russian Federation, confirming their
commitment to a peaceful political settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict. According to him, it is now important to build upon this
new dynamic with concrete actions and determination. A solution to
the conflict would completely change the situation in the region, and
open up many new opportunities for all sides, including for Armenia.

The EU High Representative said the crisis in Georgia has shown
that unresolved conflicts can become volatile again even after many
years. It has also shown how interdependent the countries of the
South Caucasus are, and how much all suffer in case of crisis.

"This is why we fully support the renewed efforts of the OSCE Minsk
Group and remain ready to assist through confidence-building measures
and facilitating people-to-people contacts", – J. Solana said.

Referring to Armenian-Turkish relations the EU High Representative
noted: "We are therefore very happy about the recent signs of
rapprochement between Armenia and Turkey, as a basis for the
normalization of bilateral relations. We strongly encourage both
parties to continue this path and pursue constructive dialogue. There
is now a momentum that should not be lost. We support all efforts in
this regard. At the same time, it is important to maintain momentum
in seeking a peaceful settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. We
hope that negotiations could advance considerably during this year",
– J. Solana noted.

Hürriyet, ANKARA
April 18 2009

A Bird’s Eye View: Summiteering for whom?

April has been quite a hectic month for you humans, particularly for
those of you who have been summiteering. You had the G20 summit in
London, the 60th anniversary summit of NATO in Strasbourg-Kehl and the
Second Forum of the Alliance of Civilizations here in Istanbul.

As usual, the G-20 Summit ended with the adoption of a long paper that
contains the usual platitudes, but for the first time there were
concrete measures for combating the global financial crisis. The
participants at the summit agreed in principle to raise $1.1 trillion
to help save humanity from the crisis. This included a $500 billion
fund for the IMF to lend to struggling economies, $250 billion to
boost world trade, $250 billion for a new IMF overdraft facility that
countries can use and $100 billion that international development
banks can lend to the poorest countries. Now how these poorest
countries will pay back their loans is another question since their
capabilities for development are limited. The positive thing is that
stock markets started going up globally after the decisions were
announced, which of course does not change in the short term the
plight of the millions of humans who are unemployed. Still these
measures are better than nothing and could have been adopted
earlier. We hope that they are implemented before the countries that
will give the money default.

Immediately afterward, NATO celebrated its 60th anniversary summit. A
declaration on alliance security was adopted with the usual wishful
thinking. The Summit did, however, elect a new secretary-general,
Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the former prime minister of Denmark, in spite
of Turkey’s initial hesitations to agree to his candidacy. NATO also
accepted Albania and Croatia as new members. On Russia, the
declaration stated, "We stand ready to work with Russia to address the
common challenges we face." Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in
a speech in Brussels said: "NATO is not just threatening Russia. Its
new security agenda includes more and more scenarios where force could
be used, not necessarily with the sanction of the U.N. We just don’t
understand why NATO is expanding. We don’t understand why this
military infrastructure is being moved to our borders." Very good
questions that NATO refuses to address. As for the 60-year-old history
of NATO, nobody mentions NATO’s dismal human rights history during its
first 30 years. Portugal joined NATO as a dictatorship, NATO supported
the dictatorship in Greece, and the various military coups in
Turkey. So we still ponder why it was not dismantled after the Warsaw
Pact was.

Margins of the forum

So after that summit we had the Second Forum of the Alliance of
Civilizations that was held here in Istanbul. More things happened on
the margins of the forum rather than in the forum. Turkey got its
revenge by the fall of the new NATO secretary-general that resulted in
a dislocated shoulder. Obama popped in for a small reception and
consulted with the foreign ministers of Armenia and Turkey. The
president of Azerbaijan canceled his participation in the forum to
protest the rapprochement between Turkey and Armenia. The discussions
that took place within the forum were interesting, and ideas were
exchanged on how to bridge the gaps existing between humanity. How
many of these ideas will be implemented is another question. Anyhow,
more traveling opportunities are opening for the participants as the
third forum will take place next year in Brazil. Hopefully by then,
the gaps will have become smaller.

Ponder our thoughts, dear humans, for your benefit.