Author: Maghakian Mike

Pan Armenian News
FALSE CALL ON BOMB IN GOVERNMENT BUILDING RECEIVED AT ARMENIAN PM OFFICE
23.06.2005 05:58
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The information that there is a bomb in the building of
the Armenian Government proved to be false, senior official of the
Department of Emergency Situations of Armenia, Chief of the Civil Defense
Board (CDB) Hakob Harutyunyan told journalists. In his words, 2:45 p.m.
local time a call was received at the office of the Prime Minister that a
bomb there is a bomb in the Government building. All CDB detachments were
enabled at once. After investigation they arrived at a conclusion that the
information was false. In Harutyunyan’s words, the situation is under
control now and the telephone hooligan is being searched for, Regnum news
agency reported.

FREE, FAIR AND TRANSPARENT
Azat Artsakh – Nagorno Karabakh Republic [NKR]
22 June 05

The election to the NKR National Assembly took place. Today we may say
that the election to the National Assembly was held on a high level.
Free elections in Nagorno Karabakh are another progressive step on the
way of democracy and international recognition. As the international
observers stated, the election in NKR passed without irregularities
and in conformity with the law. Particularly, at the polling station
22/41 located in the Embassy of NKR toArmenia absolutely no
irregularities were reported. According to the chair of the election
committee of the polling station Argineh Davtian, the polling station
was opened at 8.00 and closed at 20.00. By 12.00 over 98 of the 129
voters had already voted, and another 15 voted by the additional
roll. The latter werethe persons who were in Yerevan on the day of the
election for some reasons. 149 people voted in this polling station,
111 voted for the Democratic Party of Artsakh, 20 for ARF, 14 for Azat
Hayrenik Party, 1 for the Communist Party.1 person voted against all,
and 2 ballots were declared invalid. In the polling station 22/41 the
election was held under the system of proportional representation
only.
CHRISTINE MNATSAKANIAN.
22-06-2005

Turkish NGOs protest at German embassy over Armenian genocide vote
Anatolia news agency
21 Jun 05
ANKARA
The National Thinking Platform, comprised of 11 non-governmental
organizations (NGOs), left on Tuesday [21 June] a black wreath in
front of the German embassy in Turkish capital of Ankara.
The NGOs are protesting the resolution adopted by the German Federal
Parliament regarding the so-called Armenian genocide.
Speaking on behalf of the platform, Fethi Bolayir, chairman of the
Social Thinking Association, said that the adoption of this resolution
overshadowed Turkish-German relations.
Bolayir added that Turkish people had never carried out a genocide.

Voice of America News
June 19, 2005
Azerbaijan’s Opposition Rallies for Political Change
Azerbaijan’s three main opposition parties have held their second
mass protest in two weeks.
Thousands demonstrated Saturday in Baku demanding free and fair
parliamentary elections in November and President Ilham Aliyev’s
resignation.
Inspired by Ukraine’s peaceful “orange revolution” democracy
movement, an estimated 20,000 Azeri demonstrators chanted slogans in
the capital’s main square. Many wore orange clothing and waved orange
banners.
President Aliyev came to power in 2003 in an election after the death
of his father, long-time ruler Heydar Aliyev. Opponents contend the
election was rigged.
Meanwhile, Azerbaijan’s ethnic Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh region is
holding elections today to fill all 33 seats in a regional
legislature.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARMENIA WELCOMES PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS HELD IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH –
VARDAN OSKANIAN
YEREVAN, June 20. /ARKA/. Armenia welcomes the regular Parliamentary
elections held in Nagorno-Karabakh, stated Vardan Oskanian, the RA
Foreign Minister at today’s press conference in Yerevan. According to
him, “that is an important step for strengthening the democratic
institutions and traditions in NKR”. The Minister noted that the NKr
people once again displayed its political will for independent
formation of the power, which bears responsibility for the fate of NKR
and its people. He also noted that the deputies democratically elected
would contribute to the peaceful and complex settlement of the
Karabakh issue and to the solution of internal problems. “We are sure
that the deputies will be able to express the will of the people and
more actively participate in Karabakh peace process”, said Oskanian.
At that, he expressed confidence that the observer missions would
express a positive opinion on NKR elections. L.V.–0–
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Pro-government parties lead in Nagorno-Karabakh parliamentary
elections
AP Worldstream; Jun 20, 2005

Pro-government parties secured the majority of seats in parliamentary
elections in the Armenian-controlled enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh,
election officials said Monday.
The Democratic Party of Artsakh, which supports the government of
President Arkady Gukasian, received 12 out of 33 seats in legislature,
while another pro-government party, Free Motherland, got 10 seats,
said Election Commission chief Sergei Nasibian.
Nagorno-Karabakh has been under control of ethnic Armenians since a
six-year war against Azerbaijani forces ended with a 1994
cease-fire. The war killed some 30,000 people and drove a million from
their homes.

Voters go to polls in Nagorno Karabakh enclave
Tehran Times
June 20 2005
STEPANAKERT, Azerbaijan (AFP) – Voters went to parliamentary polls
Sunday in the self-proclaimed republic of Nagorno Karabakh, a mostly
ethnic Armenian enclave within Azerbaijan, amid strong opposition
from Azeri authorities.
Seven parties and 185 candidates were vying for places in Nagorno
Karabakh’s fourth parliament, with two thirds of the parliament’s 33
seats to be elected directly and one third under a proportional system.
Nagorno Karabakh’s authorities have said the vote is a chance to
prove to the world the territory’s independence.
“I voted for stability, independence and prosperity,” Nagorno
Karabakh’s leader, Arkady Gukasyan, said after casting his ballot.
It was essential, Gukasyan said earlier, that the vote come up to
European standards in order to avoid harming Nagorno Karabakh’s image
and “the process of peaceful settlement with Azerbaijan”.
But Azerbaijan, which claims the territory, said any vote in the
region would remain illegal until hundreds of thousands of Azeris
banished from Nagorno Karabakh and seven surrounding regions were
allowed to return.
“Armenia is zealous to legalize the occupation… elections and
referenda on the occupied territories must be conducted only after
the territory’s restoration to Azerbaijan,” Azerbaijan’s election
commission said in a written statement on Saturday.
Nagorno Karabakh is widely seen as propped up by Armenia, which fought
a war with Azerbaijan over the territory in 1993 and 1994 that left
an estimated 25,000 people dead and forced a million people from
their homes, three quarters of them Azeri.
On Friday, Turkey, long at odds with Armenia and a staunch supporter
of Azerbaijan, joined its ally in criticizing the poll.
No foreign governments have sent observer missions, reflecting the
territory’s unresolved status.
But as voting got under way Sunday, monitors from non-governmental
organizations reported a number of minor violations.
Supporters of Araig Horutyunyan, a candidate closely linked to Nagorno
Karabakh’s leader, “were actively proselytizing” near polling stations,
said Antranig Kasabarian, local representative of the Tufenkian
foundation, a New York-based aid group.
Earlier, Gukasyan had rounded on opposition parties, accusing them of
“insinuations” and “libel” after they accused senior Karabakh officials
of abusing their positions in order to win support.
“False rumors were circulated that the authorities sanctioned pressure
on the electorate, threatened people… this didn’t and couldn’t
happen,” Gukasyan said.
Turnout was steady, with 21.8 percent of voters casting ballots by
11:00 am (0600 GMT), according to elections chief Sergey Nasibyan,
bringing the turnout close to the 25 percent threshold for the results
to be declared valid.
The unrecognized Nagorno Karabakh Republic has a population of
145,000. It is spread over eight regions of Azerbaijan including
Karabakh itself and comprises 14 percent of Azerbaijan’s overall
territory.
Preliminary poll results are expected late Monday or early Tuesday.
The parliament is elected for a five-year term.

AzerTag, Azerbaijan
June 18 2005
AZERBAIJAN’S MP LEFT FOR STRASBURG
[June 18, 2005, 11:03:32]
On June 18, members of the Azerbaijan parliament led by head of the
permanent parliamentary delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the
Council of Europe Samad Seyidov have left for Strasburg to participate
in the PACE summer session. An assessment of Russia’s honouring of
its Council of Europe obligations and commitments and a report on
the media and terrorism which calls on journalists to refrain from
disseminating shocking terrorist images are among highlights of the
summer session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
(PACE), which takes place in Strasbourg from 20 to 24 June 2005.
Among the questions in agenda are highlights include a debate on the
current situation in Kosovo, a joint debate on the functioning of
democratic institutions in Azerbaijan , as well as a possible urgent
debate on the constitutional reform process in Armenia . A second
urgent debate has been proposed on follow-up to the Third Summit
of the Council of Europe, with a statement by the Organisation’s
Secretary General Terry Davis.
Following the recent proposal to create an “Asian Parliamentary
Assembly” on the model of PACE, Pakistan National Assembly Speaker
Chaudhry Amir Hussain and Philippines Congress Speaker Jose de Venecia
– representing the 40-member Association of Asian Parliaments for
Peace – will take the floor to elaborate on the initiative.
Other invited guest speakers include the Prime Minister of Bosnia
and Herzegovina Adnan Terzic, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop
Scheffer and EBRD President Jean Lemierre, who will take part in a
debate on the Bank’s contribution to economic development in central
and eastern Europe.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Black Sea Business Day Hosted by BSTDB
The Messenger, Georgia
June 17 2005
According to the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB), the
Black Sea regional economy is expanding, although further development
demands a more stable investment climate and a wider range of social
services for low income populations.
On June 6 BSTDB hosted Black Sea Business Day in Yerevan, Armenia.
An annual event, participants used this year’s meeting to explore
the investment potential of the Caucasus, the role of international
institutions, assistance to SME (small and medium enterprise) sector
development, and financial sector development.
According to Mustafa Gurtin, the chairman of the board of directors and
president of BSTDB, business prospects in the region are expanding. He
added, however, that the region needs to take steps toward “more
liberal agriculture,” develop intellectual property rights and improve
access to textile and other commodity markets.
He underlined that the government should act as a facilitator
that “encourages dynamism in the private sector and structures
their financial systems to make them more attractive for foreign
investments.”
In an interview with The Messenger, Gurtin highlighted that assistance
rendered to different countries does not depend on the amount of shares
owned by these countries. The priority is given to the viability of the
projects submitted by the countries – including regional cooperation
which complies with the BSTDB’s principles.
Representatives of Georgia at the conference included Philip Sigwart,
the CEO of ProCredit Bank. The bank also received a USD 5 million
loan from BSTDB in January this year and is successfully implementing
a SME assisting program in Georgia.
In an interview with The Messenger, Sigwart said the meeting was
primarily a chance to talk shop with businesses and international
donor organizations active in the Black Sea region.
He also praised the BSTDB for “offering an alternative to IFC, EBRD,
with sometimes more flexible conditions.”
As for the potential of cross-border economic development in the Black
Sea region, he said this is “very good, but many obstacles remain.”
Also attending the meeting, Georgian Deputy Minister of Finance Lasha
Gotsiridze said he supported the BSTDB’s activities in Georgia. He
added that Georgian financial organizations should further promote
cooperation with the bank.
BSTDB is an international financial institution established by Albania,
Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania,
Russia, Turkey, and Ukraine.
Next year the annual meeting will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan.
IMF, World Bank meet in Georgia Leading figures from the International
Monetary Fund and World Bank met in Tbilisi over the weekend to discuss
the current processes in these financial institutions as well as the
organizations’ work within the scope of the European Union.
Representatives of the member countries of the Netherlands Constituency
Group also participated in the meeting.
Jeroen Kremers, an IMF Executive Director who represents the interests
of the twelve Netherlands Constituency countries (including Georgia),
underlined to President of the National Bank Roman Gotsiridze the
importance of the fact that such a senior-level meeting was held
in Tbilisi.
Participants included IMF Managing Director Rodrigo de Rato, World
Bank Vice President of the Europe and Central Asia Region Shigeo
Katsu as well as governmental representatives from Israel, Romania,
Bulgaria, Ukraine, Armenia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia,
Moldova and Cyprus.
Gotsiridze reminded journalists that the Georgian government is
expecting a USD 20 million loan from the IMF by the end of the year
as part of the Poverty Reduction Program.
He said the next IMF mission delegation would arrive in Georgia in
October and that a decision would be made on allotting the loan after
the next round of monitoring.
“We hope that the economy will develop in a healthy way over the year,
that the GDP will increase by more than 8 percent, that inflation
will be a single-digit number and that macroeconomic parameters will
satisfy the IMF,” said Gotsiridze.
In April the level of 12-month inflation rose to 10.3 percent, the
highest level of inflation in over three years. However according to
statistics released last week, in May inflation fell 1.3 percent.
The Department of State Statistics reported that this was due to
decreased prices of food because of the start of the seasonal harvest,
the decreased price of fuel due to the decline of oil prices on
international markets and the strengthening of the lari in comparison
with the dollar.
Prime Minister Zurab Noghaideli, who participated in the meeting,
commented on Sunday that Georgia will receive the IMF loans “even
earlier than previously planned,” although he added that what was
most important was that “we do not depend on this assistance.”
Noghaideli said the government has already structured the parameters
for future cooperation with the World Bank.

Russia to Pay $7.13 Billion to Win Control of Gazprom (Update4)
Bloomberg
June 16 2005
June 16 (Bloomberg) — OAO Gazprom, the world’s largest natural-gas
producer, said Russia will pay 203.5 billion rubles ($7.13 billion)
to gain direct control of the company, as President Vladimir Putin
seeks greater state involvement in the nation’s energy industry.
The board of the Moscow-based company approved the government-
recommended price at a meeting today, Gazprom said in an e-mailed
statement. The 10.7 percent stake in the company will add to the
government’s current direct holding of 39.4 percent.
Gaining majority control of the company is a precondition for Putin
to deliver on a 2003 pledge to end limits on foreign ownership of
Gazprom’s domestic shares. Putin wants to lure back some of the $9.5
billion pulled from Russia last year after the dismantlement of OAO
Yukos Oil Co.
“It’s marginally on the wrong side of the line,” said Chris Weafer,
chief strategist at Moscow-based Alfa bank, in a telephone interview.
“This may compound existing concerns that many of Gazprom’s strategies
have more of a political angle than a business angle.” Alfa Bank
estimated the stake to be worth $10 billion, he said.
Russian economic growth is cooling for a second year after business
confidence suffered in 2003 and 2004 from the probe into Yukos and
its former chief executive, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who was sentenced
to nine years in prison last month. The central bank expects net
capital outflows of $7 billion this year and next amid concern about
property rights.
$2.80 a Share
The government will pay 80.04 rubles a share, or $2.80, according to
the price and number of shares listed in Gazprom’s statement. The
average price of the company’s domestic stock was 79.52 rubles in
April and May, according to Bloomberg data.
A 10.7 percent stake is worth $7.4 billion in Moscow at today’s
close, or $8.9 billion based on the company’s depositary receipts,
which account for about 10 percent of the company’s capital and are
the only way foreigners can directly trade Gazprom shares.
The local shares rose 0.6 percent today to 83.44 rubles in Moscow.
Gazprom depositary receipts, equal to 10 domestic shares, declined
0.1 percent to $35.10.
Gazprom didn’t say how or when OAO Rosneftegaz, a company set up
by the government last year, will pay for the stake. Spokesman Igor
Volobuyev referred questions pertaining to payment to the government.
Boris Fyodorov, a Gazprom director, said today the company would
receive cash for the shares by the end of this year, Interfax reported.
Loans, Then IPO
Rosneftegaz will take out loans to acquire the stake, and Russia
will later sell shares in state oil company OAO Rosneft in an initial
public offering to pay back the money, the Economy Ministry said in
a statement on May 17. Following the transactions, the Russian state
will own the majority of both Gazprom and Rosneft, all of whose shares
were transferred to Rosneftegaz.
Rosneftegaz’s board today approved the purchase and will take
possession of the shares on schedule, by June 24, the Federal Property
Agency said. Gazprom’s annual meeting is that day.
Gazprom intends to use the cash raised from the stake sale to buy
assets in Russia and abroad, focusing on the oil, gas and power
industries, Chief Executive Alexei Miller said yesterday in St.
Petersburg. He declined to comment on what assets or regions the
company is interested in.
“If there are reserves there, we are interested,” Miller said.
Sakhalin Bids
Gazprom may bid for a stake in Rosneft’s Sakhalin-1 gas field and
the Sakhalin-3 gas project, Gazprom Deputy Chief Executive Alexander
Medvedev said June 10.
Deutsche Bank AG, Europe’s third-biggest bank, in November
recommended Gazprom buy Yuganskneftegaz, OAO Surgutneftegaz, Russia’s
fourth-largest oil company, and OAO Sibneft, which is controlled by
Roman Abramovich, the Russian billionaire now living in London.
Chief Financial Officer Andrei Kruglov said Gazprom may also scale
down its plan to borrow 110 billion rubles ($3.8 billion) this year,
depending on how fast it gets cash from the sale and European gas
prices, Vedomosti reported.
Gazprom, which has borrowed 40 billion rubles so far this year,
plans to sell domestic bonds in July and won’t sell Eurobonds before
September, Kruglov told the newspaper. Asian investors, such as
Singapore’s state investment agency, are showing strong interest in
Gazprom, he said.
The company, Russia’s largest by market value, pumps enough natural
gas a year to supply 80 percent of U.S. consumption. The board,
which was scheduled to approve the stake sale yesterday, postponed
the decision until today because the government’s instructions to
its board representatives had not been signed.
Gazprom Chief Executive Alexei Miller was not present at today’s
board meeting because he travelled to Yerevan to meet with Armenian
president Robert Kocharian. He voted in writing and the board decision
was legitimate, Volobuyev said.
Morgan Stanley valued Gazprom at $78.1 billion to $92.3 billion,
Russia’s Federal Property Agency said May 30. Dresdner Kleinwort
Wasserstein put Gazprom’s worth at between $93.3 billion and $107.0
billion.