Author: Khondkarian Raffi

SYSTEM OF A DOWN Mezmerize American 3/5
By Phil Miller
The Herald (Glasgow)
May 21, 2005
SYSTEM of a Down are among the most interesting of American metal
bands, and although that may be deemed faint praise, their mix of
Armenian folk melody, politically conscious lyrics, brutal Slayer-esque
riffs and hardcore-punk yelling is, at its best, a potent brew.
Their last album, Toxicity, was a marvellous racket.
Sadly, however, SOAD’s cogent muse has partially deserted them.
Mezmerize is one of two albums being released by them this year,
and the second opus, Hypnotize, could be better, but here it is only
on a handful of tracks that they hit their impressive best. Although
Sad Statue and Question? soar bombastically and rock fantastically,
and while BYOB romps with thunderous riffage, there is just too much
filler to fulfil the promise of the album’s title.

Zaman, Turkey
May 22 2005
Turkey Participates in KEI Meeting in Armenia
By Suleyman Kurt
Published: Sunday 22, 2005
zaman.com
While the debate over the so-called Armenian genocide allegations
continues between Turkey and Armenia, bureaucrats from the two
countries will discuss how to improve their economic relations at
the meeting planned at Yerevan next month, in June.
Armenia will host the yearly “Black Sea Business Days” of the Black
Sea Economic Cooperation (KEI) Trade and Development Bank, which was
founded with the leadership of Turkey, this year. Armenian President
Robert Kocaryan will give the opening speech of the meeting held
on 5-6 June. The work on what level Turkey will take part in the
meeting continue. In the case the Turkish Minister of State does not
participate in the meeting, it is stated that the Undersecretary
of The State Planning Organization (DPT) Ibrahim Canakci will
represent Turkey. The business conference was organized by the
Armenian government, Armenian banking, and business circles. At
the meeting all the representatives of KEI Trade and Development
Bank member countries’, international finance associations and
special sector representatives will also take part. Development of
regional cooperation and the potential of Armenia and the Caucasus
for investments will be discussed.
Headquartered in Selanik (Thessaloniki), the Black Sea Trade and
Development Bank began to operate on 1 June 1999. A Turk, Mustafa
Gurtin, carries on the term presidency of the bank. Turkey with Russia,
and Greece are the most powerful partners in the bank. These three
countries have 16.5 percent shares each. The share rate of Armenia,
on the other hand is 2 percent. The other KEI countries are Albania,
Azerbaijani, Bulgaria, Armenia, Georgia, Moldavia, Romania, Russia,
Turkey, Ukraine, and Greece.

Dervis Urges EU Membership and Nothing But
The New Anatolian, Turkey
May 20 2005
The New Anatolian / Istanbul — Any option other than full membership
in the European Union is unacceptable for Turkey, Kemal Dervis, new
head of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), said yesterday.
Dervis, a former Turkish parliamentarian and economy minister, made
the remarks at a conference entitled “Turkey at the Threshold of
Participation Negotiations,” held by the Bogazici University European
Studies Center students’ forum.
He criticized European conservatives for being against Turkey’s
membership due to its majority Muslim population. “The EU is a project
based on peace,” said Dervis, “not discrimination.”
Dervis stated that the strongest message that Europe could give to
the world would be to accept Turkey as a full member. “Then the EU
would be proving that war and enmity don’t last forever,” said Dervis.
Asked by a Dutch student whether Turkey’s Kemalist origins would be
an obstacle to its EU membership bid, Dervis replied that it would not.
“Turkey’s Kemalist ideology is not in conflict with EU principles,”
said Dervis. “If there were no Kemalism then we wouldn’t be discussing
EU membership today.”
British Ambassador Peter Westmacott, who also took part in the meeting,
stated that it would be a great loss for both Turkey and the EU if
Turkey didn’t become a member.
Westmacott emphasized that both Turkey and the EU should fulfill
their responsibilities on issues such as the Ocalan retrial and the
Armenian and Kurdish issues.

Azeri, Armenian presidents urge Nagorno-Karabakh earliest settlement
By Yelena Pankratyeva
ITAR-TASS News Agency
May 17, 2005 Tuesday 4:43 AM Eastern Time
MOSCOW, May 17 — Presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia have confirmed
their desire to attain a “quickest breakthrough in the Nagorno-Karabakh
settlement process,” Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday after
talks between Ilkham Aliyev and Robert Kocharyan.
According to the ministry, the meeting was held on the eve of the
Council of Europe summit in Warsaw with the participation of the
co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (Russia, the United States and
France).
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov opened the meeting on behalf
of the OSCE Minsk Group. He “urged the two presidents to give the
necessary impulse to the talks and move forward the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict settlement,” the ministry said.
French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier and co-chairman of the Minsk
Group from the United States Stephen Mann supported the Russian
foreign minister.
“After a two-hour tete-a-tete meeting between Aliyev and Kocharyan
they asked the Minsk Group co-chairs to continue consultations with
Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers on the basis of positive
results attained during this year’s discussion of the main components
of the settlement,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
“The leaders of the two states confirmed mutual desire to achieve
a quickest breakthrough in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement
process,” the ministry noted.

Armenia interested in deepening reform under EU patronage
By Ksenia Kaminskaya, Alexei Kartsev
ITAR-TASS News Agency
May 16, 2005 Monday
WARSAW, May 16 — Armenia “is interested in the deepening of reform
under the patronage of the European Union,” Robert Kocharyan, the
Armenian president, said at the summit of the Council of Europe in
Warsaw on Monday. He said, “Reform in Armenia is prompted by inner
need, not by the wish to get praise.”
“We believe in Europe without closed frontiers, without violence,
without refugees,” he said. “In this connection we see the prospects
for the settlement in Nagorno-Karabakh.”
The Armenian president remarked that the changes in Europe are of
fundamental nature. He said, “West and East Europe ceased to be
political terms and became geographic notions thanks to the changes
that have taken place in contemporary Europe.”
“United Europe is now viewed as a new unique model of state,”
Kocharyan said. This “suggests a number of questions that must
be comprehended.” “Are there geographic boundaries to integration
processed in Europe and where do they pass, how relations will be built
with the rest of the world whose representatives have other history
and other traditions,” Kocharyan asked. “The answers depend on the
European leaders participating in the Warsaw summit,” he believes.
“The summit of the Council of Europe is held in the days of the 60th
anniversary of the Victory,” Kocharyan said. “Reintegration now takes
place where the rift occurred decades ago, and it is necessary to
build a new European architecture of unity and integration,” he said.

ARMENIA’S READINESS TO WITHDRAW TROOPS FROM 7 DISTRICTS – INTERPRETATION OF JOURNALISTS
YEREVAN, MAY 19. ARMINFO. Armenia’s readiness to withdraw troops from
7 districts is just interpretation of journalists, Russian co-chair of
OSCE Minsk Group Yuri Merzlyakov says in an interview to trend news
agency commenting on Azeri FM Elmar Mamedyarov saying that Armenia
is ready to withdraw troops from 7 districts controlled by NKR.
Merzlyakov says that Mamedyarov did not make such a definite
statement. What does mean Armenia is ready? This principle was not
questioned by the Armenian side – the Armenian troops will be withdrawn
from the districts around Nagorno Karabakh. But there is yet no final
agreement on how and when this will be done, says Merzlyakov noting
that the issue of troops withdrawal is not a matter of tomorrow or
day after tomorrow.

WE WILL TAKE POWER BY FORCE”
A1plus
| 21:04:57 | 18-05-2005 | Regions |
In spite of the incidents during the meeting of New Times leader Aram
Karapetyan, today’s meeting with the deputies of the Justice bloc
took place without incidents. The policemen listened attentively
to the speeches of the oppositional delegates. But before them the
residents of Sevan represented their problems. They were well aware
of not only today’s reality but of history. {BR
One of them reminded the words of Oliver Kromvel, “We wanted to create
a society of proud people but people behave as sheep”. He said that
people will be humiliated as long as they take it.
Ofik Sahakyan complained, “My three sons fought in the Karabakh war,
are they worse than Serge? And yet all the petrol stations belong to
him”. She also said that she has studied all her life, and now she is
sitting with nothing to eat and Kocharyan is touring round the world.
Deputies Grigor Haroutyunyan, Viktor Dallakyan and Stepan Demirchyan
answered the people. Stepan Demirchyan reminded the words of Roosevelt,
“We must not be afraid of fear”. And he stated that the residents of
Sevan have overcome fear. Viktor Dallakyan announced that if there
is something to be afraid of, they will be afraid too, “I have two
children and I announce on TV that Serge Sargsyan and Robert Kocharyan
are criminals, and they I go home. They can do what they want with
me. But we are not afraid and we must struggle”.
By the way, both in Lchashen and in Sevan the deputies called
people to say “No” to the Constitutional amendments in the upcoming
referendum. And Viktor Dallakyan claimed that the referendum will turn
into a confidence referendum. He said, “We will take power by force,
by the force of you – the people”.

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
05/17/2005
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) ARF Lebanon Boycotts Beirut Elections 2) Oskanian Rejects Azeri Idea for Karabagh 3) Amnesty International Concerned about Turkish Penal Code Draft 4) Armenian, Georgian Prosecutor Generals Discuss Cooperation 5) Erdogan Complains to Council of Europe about Genocide 'Lobbying' 6) Minsk Group Content with Aliyev, Kocharian Meeting 7) Aliyev Calls for International Attention to Karabagh Conflict 8) Abkhazia Willing to House Russian Bases 1) ARF Lebanon Boycotts Beirut Elections BEIRUT--Lebanon's Armenian Revolutionary Federation Central Committee (ARF-CC) on Monday, effectively called for a boycott of the Beirut elections due to begin May 29. The ARF, which enjoys widespread support among Beirut's significant Armenian minority, held a special session to review recent, sudden developments, including the exclusion of ARF candidates from Saad Hariri's electoral list for Beirut's three constituencies in the Lebanese general election. Hariri is the son of the slain former premier Rafik Hariri. At a press conference organized by the party, ARF CC member Hovhannes Taslakian said that the list ignores those forces that hold actual political weight in Beirut. Hariri has also disregarded calls by various sectors of Lebanon's community for the adoption of a new and more equitable electoral law. In order to remedy the issue of unfair representation and to promote actual participation in the electoral process, the ARF said in its statement it would spare no efforts to seek a lawful and political resolution to reforming that law. The statement also says the party will oppose biased policy that rejects certain sides and opinions that are, in fact, based on democratic principals. As a result, the ARF has decided to boycott the Beirut elections, and called on supporters to do the same. The party hopes to send a strong message that it rejects those candidates put forth by Hariri because they represent the smallest sector of Lebanon's Armenian community--and not the majority will. Taslakian told reporters the Hariri does not want to take into consideration individuals based on their faction or party affiliation, which suggests that he does not want to deal with political parties, but individuals. 2) Oskanian Rejects Azeri Idea for Karabagh WARSAW (Armenpress)--Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian rejected on Monday Azeri president Ilham Aliyev's proposal to grant Karabagh "the highest status of autonomy." Talking to correspondents in Warsaw on the sideline of a Council of Europe summit, Oskanian said autonomy is "a stage which is over" for the Armenians of Karabagh. "They had this autonomy as part of Azerbaijan under the Soviet Union and were discriminated against by the Azerbaijani authorities," Oskanian said. He also criticized Aliyev for saying that Armenia has occupied Azerbaijan's territory. "Armenia had to intervene after Azerbaijan waged a war against the peaceful population of Karabagh in their drive towards self-determination," he said. "We are conducting talks with Azerbaijan today only because the authorities of this country strongly reject any contact with the Nagorno Karabagh authorities." He described as "positive" the meeting between the Armenian and Azeri presidents, which took place in Warsaw on May 15. Oskanian expressed hope that bilateral efforts aimed at finding a long-term solution to the Karabagh conflict would continue. 3) Amnesty International Concerned about Turkish Penal Code Draft In an action alert issued on May 13, Amnesty International expressed its deep concerns about some of the worrying provisions of the draft law in the Turkish Penal Code, much of which may be used to unnecessarily restrict fundamental human rights and which may lead to people being imprisoned for the peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of expression. One particular concern of the Penal Code has been the domain of Art 305 that would, in essence, criminalize any statements regarding the Turkish occupation of northern Cyprus or the Armenian genocide as being against the national interest of the Republic of Turkey. Amnesty International said in its statement that a new version of the Turkish Penal Code (TPC)--currently before the Turkish parliament for approval in June 2005--may be used to unnecessarily restrict the right to freedom of expression and could result in people being jailed as prisoners of conscience. It also leaves open the possibility of discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation within the law, and retains obstacles to prosecutions for torture. The new TPC has been presented as a reforming measure designed to improve human rights protection in Turkey, as it attempts to bring its laws into line with the requirements for membership of the European Union, the statement said. While the new TPC does propose many positive changes--for example, it increases the punishment for those convicted of torture--it contains numerous restrictions on fundamental rights. Provisions covering freedom of expression, which have been used in the past to prosecute people or imprison them as prisoners of conscience, remain. Article 159 of the old TPC, which criminalized acts that "insult or belittle" various state institutions, is one that Amnesty International has repeatedly called on the authorities to abolish. It reappears as Article 301 of the new TPC in the section entitled "Crimes against symbols of the state's sovereignty and the honor of its organs" (Articles 299-301). Amnesty International is concerned that this section could be used to criminalize legitimate expression of dissent and opinion. New articles have been introduced which appear to introduce restrictions to fundamental rights. Article 305 of the new TPC criminalizes "acts against the fundamental national interest." The explanation attached to the draft, when the law was first presented to Parliament, provided as examples of such crimes, "making propaganda for the withdrawal of Turkish soldiers from Cyprus or for the acceptance of a settlement in this issue detrimental to Turkey...or, contrary to historical truths, that the Armenians suffered a genocide after the First World War." Amnesty International considers that the imposition of a criminal penalty for any such statements--unless intended or likely to incite violence--would be a clear breach of international standards safeguarding freedom of expression. The law was supposed to enter into force on April 1, 2005; however, in the face of forceful objections by Turkish journalists that the TPC could be used to greatly restrict their activities and even imprison them, the government agreed to delay this until 1 June 2005 in order to make amendments. On May 3, the ruling Justice and Development [AK] party submitted its proposed changes to the draft TPC. While some small changes have been made--mainly the removal of provisions that allowed for increased sentences when breaches of the code took place in the media--most of the restrictive articles remain and have not been changed. In at least one instance, the ruling party is apparently trying to introduce even greater restrictions: for example, the proposal suggests that Article 305 should be altered to explicitly allow for the prosecution of "foreigners" as well as Turkish citizens. Article 122 of the draft, which forbids discrimination on the basis of "language, race, color, gender, political thought, philosophical belief, religion, denomination and other reasons" originally listed "sexual orientation," but this was removed from the draft at the last moment. Amnesty International is disturbed that discrimination on the basis of sexuality is not criminalized in the new law. In addition, Amnesty International said that the statute of limitations still applies in trials of people accused of torture. While the new law has extended this time limit from seven-and-a-half years to 10 years, it is common for trials of alleged torturers to be deliberately protracted and ultimately abandoned because of this provision, thereby contributing to a climate of impunity. Given the frequency with which this happens, Amnesty International considers that there should be no statute of limitations for the crime of torture. 4) Armenian, Georgian Prosecutor Generals Discuss Cooperation --Desecration of Armenian churches in Georgia to be examined YEREVAN (Yerkir)--Georgia's prosecutor general Zurab Adeiashvili said the facts about the desecration of Armenian churches and sanctuaries in Georgia will be adequately examined. During a news conference held jointly with Armenian Prosecutor General Aghvan Hovsepian, Adeiashvili announced that one such criminal case has already been launched. Hovsepian also said that Armenian law-enforcement officers face serious problems when investigating cases stolen cars--usually brought to Armenia from Georgia. He said investigations have revealed that this "business" is run mainly by residents of Georgia's breakaway region of South Ossetia. Praising his Georgian counterparts for their assistance in tracking down and apprehending Armenian criminals who flee to Georgia, Hovsepian said Armenian investigators dispatched to Georgia are given enormous support by their Georgian colleagues. Adeiashvili and his delegation arrived in Yerevan on May 16. 5) Erdogan Complains to Council of Europe about Genocide 'Lobbying' (dpa, Reuters)--Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday criticized parliamentary resolutions by European states honoring up to 1.5 million Armenians who died or were killed in massacres and deportations by Ottoman Turks during 1915-23. Speaking at the Council of Europe Summit in Warsaw, Erdogan termed the killings the "so-called Armenian genocide" and said current discussions amounted to "lobbying" which Turkey would not support. "We say that we do not appreciate any lobbying efforts that do not find their basis in documents," he said, speaking through an interpreter. "By taking action in other parliaments, this will not have positive effects on the issue." The Turkish leader also declared his country was prepared to open its archives and called on Armenia and other states to do the same to review the events of 90 years ago. "We opened our archives, one million classified documents. We ask Armenia to open its archives and we ask other countries to contribute too...If there are decisions to be taken after that, they will be taken. But not on the basis of lobbying and parliamentary decisions based on such lobbying," he said. President Robert Kocharian, who also attended the summit, called for the 1915-23 killings to be recognized as genocide. Turkish media said Erdogan had cancelled a planned meeting in Warsaw with Kocharian, which had been designed to underline Turkey's desire for better ties with Armenia, as a protest against the reference to the genocide issue. While most historians say between 1.2 and 1.5 million ethnic Armenians were killed by Muslim Turks in a bloody wave of deportations and massacres, Turkey says there were no more than 300,000 dead and that the deaths were not deliberately planned or desired. Turkey insists the events are being used as a black mark against its bid for European Union (EU) membership. Ankara is due to start membership negotiations with the bloc in October but EU officials caution that talks could last some 15 years. A number of European parliaments have adopted resolutions honoring Armenian victims and which mainly define the killings as genocide including Greece, France, Sweden, Italy, Slovakia, the Netherlands, Poland and Cyprus. Germany's parliament plans to adopt a resolution by this summer but a draft text expressly leaves out the word "genocide." German sponsors say they do not want to make life more difficult for those in Turkey seeking an open discussion of the Armenian question. 6) Minsk Group Content with Aliyev, Kocharian Meeting MOSCOW (Itar-Tass)--President Robert Kocharian and Azeri president Ilham Aliyev showed serious interest in reaching a settlement in the Karabagh conflict, co-chairmen of the OSCE Minsk group said in a statement after the meeting of the two countries' leaders in Warsaw on Tuesday. "Orders have been given to chiefs of foreign ministries of these states to continue the interaction with the co-chairmen on the basis of the positive results that have been achieved during the talks that took place last year within the framework of the Prague process in order to approach the working out of mutually acceptable proposals for settlement of the conflict," the document said. The co-chairmen of the Minsk group "are compiling a schedule of consultations with the sides for the nearest months." Kocharian and Aliyev held two-hour face-to-face talks in Warsaw, and presented "their considerations and conclusions" to the co-chairmen after their meeting. The Russian and French foreign ministers, Sergei Lavrov and Michel Barnier, spoke at the opening of the meeting and expressed on behalf of the states "support to the activity of the Minsk group and commitment to a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict." 7) Aliyev Calls for International Attention to Karabagh Conflict WARSAW (Itar-Tass)--Addressing the meeting of the Council of Europe in Warsaw on Monday, Azeri President Ilham Aliyev said that international attention to the Karabagh conflict may help resolve it. "The European Union, the Council of Europe, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe should give more attention to the problem of Nagorno-Karabagh that destabilizes the situation in the Caucasus and is an obstacle to Azerbaijan's integration into Europe," Aliyev said. "We are for a peaceful settlement of the conflict and we fulfill all the obligations we assumed when entering the Council of Europe." He said Azerbaijan "is ready for a compromise, for granting a high level of autonomy to Nagorno-Karabakh, and ensuring security of the citizens of the region." Baku and Yerevan, Aliyev believes, "may achieve progress regarding the territorial integrity of our country." "We demand the restoration of the territorial integrity," Aliyev said. "In the 21st century, it is impossible for one member-country of the Council of Europe to occupy the territory of another country." The Azeri president also noted that Baku "is heartened by the approach of the Council of Europe to the matter." Aliyev expressed his belief that it is possible to achieve a peaceful solution by the implementation of the resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe that was passed in January of this year. Aliyev noted, "The conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh led to large loss of life, to the occupation of 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, and to the violation of one of the principles of the Council of Europe--human rights." 8) Abkhazia Willing to House Russian Bases TBILISI (Itar-Tass)--Prime Minister of the self-proclaimed republic of Abkhazia Alexander Ankvab expressed readiness to house the two military bases that Moscow is pulling out from Georgia. "We are ready to accommodate the Russian military bases in Abkhazia. We have the appropriate infrastructure," Ankvab said in an interview with the Tbilisi-based Rustavi-2 television company in Moscow. He did not indicate the Abkhazian districts where the bases might be deployed or the number of the Russian personnel Abkhazia was ready to accommodate. Commenting on this statement, Georgia's State Minister for Conflicts Settlement said Abkhazia is a part of Georgia, therefore the issue of the Russian bases in Georgia is not within its capacity. "This issue is a subject of talks foremost between Moscow and Tbilisi," Khaindrava stressed. He said the wish of Sukhumi's leadership to deploy Russian military bases in Abkhazia is unrealistic, and hardly surprising amidst the "militaristic rhetoric and various exercises" held in the self-proclaimed republic in the recent months. "Regrettably, it shows that the peace process is not yet as intensive as one would wish to see," the minister said. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2005 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets.

AZG Armenian Daily #088, 17/05/2005
Interview
‘THERE WILL BE SHIFT IN ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS BUT ARMENIA WILL EASIER
COME TO TERMS WITH USA THAN TURKEY’
beginning in previous issue
– Will the correspondence contribute to the improvement of Armenian-Turkish
relations? Those letters, at last, regardless their content are official
documents.
– Correspondence is the surface of deep water of politics. I think that the
Turks will find some solution for the matter there in the depths in order to
remove one of the obstacles on their way to EU. There are still the Cyprus
issue, Kurdish and human rights issues, there are still representatives of
intelligentsia, writers behind bars. The most disgusting but never
surprising thing for me the amorality of the European states. The European
parliament took a decision in 1987 that Turkey cannot join EU bypassing the
Armenian Genocide issue. Today, not only Turkey tries to bypass the issue
but also Germany and even France signal that Genocide recognition is not a
precondition for EU accession. This means that Turkey may become member of
the European family with bloody hands.
– How do you evaluate the present state of Turkish-American relations? As
you know, their discords are vanishing.
– It couldn’t be otherwise. Though we want Turkey to lose its significance
for the US, unfortunately it is not happening. Turkey is a major political
factor especially in region where Israel-Turkey cooperation is a part of the
US policy of occupation. Without that cooperation there can be no
realization of American strategy. Turkey is a leg for the realization. That
is the reason why the two countries could come to terms despite Paul
Wolfowitz’s threats that US will recognize the Genocide. Turkey gave in, as
it was predestined, otherwise it would face serious troubles.
– Mr. Azatian, the US used to act in the South Caucasus and Middle East
through Turkey at first. Before the anti-Afghan campaign, it secured
military presence in those regions and the need in Turkey seems to be less
urgent. What will you say?
– It is in our interests. I wish the situation changed in so much that we
could stand before the US without mediators. In direct confrontation America
would take into consideration the American Armenians while taking decisions.
If only this situation were created earlier and we could implement our
complimentary policy with USA independently from Turkey. It’s obvious that
Armenia would more easily come to terms with the US than Turkey.
– How do you see the future of Armenian-Turkish relations?
– I think there will be some changes. As Erdogan’s letter suggests, Turks
will take shallow steps but I don’t think there will be fundamental
concession. The USA has secured its presence in the Caucasus. Armenia would
fall out American policy but for the weight of American Armenians. That is
the US who should play up to Armenia to cut it off Russia. It cannot
subjugate countries with bombs only. It has to adopt the policy of
gratification.
– Is there a question that I did not ask but you would like to speak of?
– Just a few things about the present condition of Armenia. Unfortunately,
both here and abroad people are strongly opposed against the state
authorities as most of the people live in poverty. The Armenian press covers
those issue, and the news travels to the Diaspora. I certainly know about
the so-called sins of the state and the state officials. But I also know
that Armenia will benefit only if there is stability and I always mention of
this in my articles. All oppositional forces I have met say, “the present
authorities pinched enough, away with them, it’s now our turn”. It will
bring nothing positive to the people’s life, and more importantly, this
situation scanty depends on what the state or individuals can do.
Unfortunately, it is the regional politics and the struggle of international
powers that seal Armenia’s fate. Though this is not a widely used expression
in Armenia, I must say that because that is the reality.
By Hakob Chakrian

ROBERT KOCHARIAN AND ILHAM ALIYEV MET IN WARSAW
Pan Armenian News
16.05.2005 02:52
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian and Azeri Presidents Robert Kocharian and
Ilham Aliyev met in Warsaw on May 15, Mediamax agency reports. Upon
completion of the meeting the leaders made no statement for the
press. First the meeting was held in presence of Sergey Lavrov,
Michel Barnier, Vartan Oskanian and Elmar Memedyarov – the Ministers
of Foreign Affairs of Russia, France, Armenia and Azerbaijan – as well
as the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs. Later Robert Kocharian and Ilham
Aliyev continued the talks in private for about 2 hours. Russian FM
Sergey Lavrov refrained from commenting on the Presidents’ meeting. “I
cannot comment on the issues which are the subject of negotiations
between the Armenian and Azeri Presidents”, he noted. According to
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedyarov, Robert Kocharian and
Ilham Aliyev discussed with the Russian and French FMs the outcomes
of the Prague process. At the same time, Elmar Mamedyarov added,
the Presidents did not consider any precise program of the Karabakh
conflict settlement. “The most complicated problems are the details. We
succeeded in achieving agreement on many questions, however there
are issues on which the positions of the states disaccord greatly”,
the Azeri FM said. He also expressed hope that the meeting of Robert
Kocharian and Ilham Aliyev “will allow re-examining the results
achieved earlier.”