Author: Nahapetian Boris

MONTH OF TREE PLANTING, SANITARY CLEANING AND IMPROVEMENT WORKS TO BE HELD IN NKR

Noyan Tapan
Mar 09 2006

STEPANAKERT, MARCH 9, NOYAN TAPAN. A month of works of tree planting,
sanitary cleaning and improvement will be held from March 15 to
April 15, 2006 in the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh. According to the
information of the NKR Government’s Press Service, Prime Minister
Anushavan Danielian signed the decision about that. The NKR “Public
Television-Radio Company” CJSC, “Azat Artsakh” (Free Artsakh) newspaper
editorial staff, other means of mass media are instructed to widely
cover the process and results of organizing and holding the month.

ARAM SARKISIAN: “ARMENIA HAS LOST THE INFORMATION WAR WITH AZERBAIJAN”

Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
March 9 2006

“The reason why the Rambouillet negotiations on the settlement of
the Nagorno Garabagh conflict failed to reach any agreement is that
Armenia has lost the information war with Azerbaijan,” Leader of
Armenia Democratic Party, member of Justice Opposition alliance Aram
Sarkisian told.

He said that despite of compromises offered by Armenia, Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev refused to recognize the independence of
Nagorno Garabagh.

“Armenia’s stance was that if Azerbaijan recognizes the independence
of Nagorno Garabagh, Yerevan will be ready to withdraw its troops
from the territories and ensure sending the refugees back to their
native homes, and station peacekeepers in Nagorno Garabagh. However,
unlike the Ki West talks, Armenia has lost initiative regarding the
Garabagh issue. Though Azerbaijan was ready to informally recognize
Garabagh’s independence during the Ki West negotiations, there is
not such likelihood now,” Sarkisian said.

Referring to the current situation in Azerbaijan, Sarkisian said
that the situation has sharply changed to better in the country. “It
is not only because of oil revenues but also careful foreign policy
pursued in the country. Armenia’s policy of compromises is related
to this factor. It should be born in mind that Azerbaijan and Armenia
remarkably depend on foreign political forces,” the party leader said.

AZG Armenian Daily #044, 11/03/2006

World press

IRAN: “EVERYTHING IS ON THE TABLE”

The biggest pitfall in predicting the behaviour of
radical groups like the inner circle of the Bush
Administration is that you keep telling yourself that
they would never actually do whatever it is they’re
talking about. Surely they must realise that acting
like that would cause a disaster. Then they go right
ahead and do it.

“(The Iranians) must know everything is on the table
and they must understand what that means,” US
ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton told a
group of visiting British politicians last week. “We
can hit different points along the line. You only have
to take out one part of their nuclear operation to
take the whole thing down.” In other words, he was
calmly proposing an illegal attack on a sovereign
state, possibly involving nuclear weapons.

Bolton knew his words would be leaked, so maybe it was
just deliberate posturing to raise the pressure on
Iran. But on Sunday, addressing the American-Israeli
Public Affairs Committee in Washington, Bolton
repeated the threat: “The longer we wait to confront
the threat Iran poses, the harder and more intractable
it will become to solve…We must be prepared to rely
on comprehensive solutions and use all the tools at
our disposal to stop the threat….” He may really
mean it – and no one in the White House has told him
to shut up.

With the US army already mired in Iraq, the Bush
administration lacks the ground strength to invade
Iran, a far larger country, but the strategic plans
and command structure for an air-attacks-only strike
are already in place. The National Security Strategy
statement of September 2002 declared a new doctrine of
“preemptive” wars in which the US would launch
unprovoked attacks against countries that it feared
might hurt it in the future, and in January 2003 that
doctrine was elaborated into the military strategy of
“full spectrum global strike.”

The “full spectrum” referred specifically to the use
of nuclear weapons to destroy hardened targets that
ordinary weapons cannot reach. Earth-penetrating
“mini-nukes” were an integral part of Conplan 8022-02,
a presidential directive signed by Bush at the same
time that covered attacks on countries allegedly
posing an “imminent” nuclear threat in which no
American ground troops would be used. Indeed, the
responsibility for carrying out Conplan 8022 was given
to Strategic Command (Stratcom) in Omaha, a military
command that had previously dealt only with nuclear
weapons.

Last May, Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld issued an
“Interim Global Strike Alert Order” putting Stratcom
on high military readiness 24 hours a day. Logic says
there is no “imminent” danger of Iranian nuclear
weapons: last year’s US National Intelligence Estimate
put the time needed for Iran to develop such weapons
at ten years. But experience says that this
administration can talk itself into a “preemptive”
attack on a country that really does not pose any
threat at all.

So what happens if they talk themselves into
unleashing Conplan 8022 on Iran? Thousands of people
would die, of course, and the surviving 70 million
Iranians would be very cross, but how could they
strike back at the United States? Iran has no nuclear
weapons, no weapons of any sort that could reach
America. Given the huge American technological lead,
it can’t even do much damage to US forces in the Gulf
region. But it does have two powerful weapons: its
Shia faith, and oil.

Iran is currently playing a long game in Iraq,
encouraging the Shia religious parties to cooperate
with the American political project so that a
Shia-dominated government in Baghdad will turn Iraq
into a reliable ally of Iran once the Americans go
home. But if Tehran encouraged the Shia militias to
attack American troops in Iraq, US casualties would
soar. The whole American position there could become
untenable in months.

Iran would probably not try to close the Strait of
Tiran, the choke-point through which most of the
Gulf’s oil exports pass, for US forces could easily
dominate or even seize the sparsely populated Iranian
coast on the north side. But it would certainly halt
its own oil exports, currently close to 4 million
barrels a day, and in today’s tight oil market that
would likely drive the oil price up to $130-$150 a
barrel. Moreover, Tehran could keep the exports turned
off for months, since recent oil prices, already high
by historical standards, have enabled it to build up a
large cash reserve. (Iran earned $45 billion from oil
exports last year, twice the average in 2001-03.)

So a “preemptive” American attack on Iran would ignite
a general insurrection against the American presence
in Shia-dominated areas of Iraq and trigger a global
economic crisis. The use of nuclear weapons would
cross a firebreak that the world has maintained ever
since 1945, and convince most other great powers that
the United States is a rogue state that must be
contained. All this to deal with a threat that is no
more real or “imminent” than the one posed by Iraq in
2003.

No American policy-maker in his right mind would
contemplate unleashing such a disaster for so little
reason. Unfortunately, that does not guarantee that it
won’t happen.

By Gwynne Dyer

AZG Armenian Daily #044, 11/03/2006

Education

IN CONCERT WITH 2 UNIVERSITIES LYCOS-ARMENIA PREPARES
HIGHLY QUALIFIED SPECIALISTS

On March 9, 35 students participating in the classes
of Internet technologies organized by Lycos-Armenia
Company, Yerevan State University and State
Engineering University received certificates. Robert
Chaplin, executive director of Lycos-Armenia, said
during the ceremony that thanks to co-financing of DEG
(German Public Fund) Lycos opened computer rooms for
20 students in the aforesaid universities. Previous
years’ projects included optional lessons on JAVA,
JavaScript, Web Technology, OOP, MySQL PHP and Flash.
This year’s projects will enroll students with
bachelor’s degree and undergraduate later on.

The meeting participants noted that 17 students who
took part in the Lycos course already work for the
company and 20 others work at Sourcio Company.
Representatives of YSU and Engineering University
underscored the importance of these projects and
mutually beneficial cooperation with Lycos.

By Aghavni Harutyunian

LET’S GIVE NOT ONLY FLOWERS AND PERFUME

Yerkir/arm
March 10, 2006

The National Library has launched a new initiative of restoring the
old tradition of giving books as presents.

“No one is against men giving flowers or expensive gifts to women,”
says Davit Sargsian, the director of the library. “But giving books
is also a good tradition. Before, we would buy books and give them
as gifts to our friends.”

He made this remark during a news conference at the National
Library. Two books were presented, both dedicated to mothers. The
first one was Levon Lachikian’s “Ode to Mothers,” which contains
poetry and stories dedicated to mothers.

The other one was “ABC of Mother Tongue” published under sponsorship
of the Armenian Apostolic Church’s Eastern US Diocese.

STOCKSELIUS: “INFORMATION ON ARMENIAN SINGER TO BE CHANGED ON OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF EUROVISION”

Today, Azerbaijan
URL:
March 13 2006

“Some changes will be made to the information on Armenian singer Andre
after the letter by the Azerbaijani Culture and Tourism Ministry,”
said Svante Stockselius, the head of the Song Contests Unit of the
European Broadcasting Union Television Department.

“The competition is not political event. Therefore, the information
placed on the official web site of Eurovision can not include political
motive,” Trend reports quoting Svante Stockselius, the head of the
Song Contests Unit of the European Broadcasting Union Television
Department, as stating by Lider TV channel.

The Azerbaijani Culture and Tourism Ministry sent a letter to the
organizers of the competition, where it noted that Nagorno Karabakh was
integral part of the Azerbaijan Republic and called on the organizers
of the competitions to clear up the mess.

It should be mentioned that the reason for dissatisfaction of
Azerbaijan was placement of the information on the web site that
Armenian singer Andre was born in “Nagorno Karabakh Republic”. It must
be regarded as disrespect to the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan
and support to the aggressive policy of Armenia, a letter says.

2006 SPRING IS IMPORTANT MILESTONE IN RESOLUTION OF NK CONFLICT – AMB MANN
Author: R.Abdullayev

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
March 13 2006

2006 spring is an important milestone in the resolution of
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Steven Mann, the US Department of State
Senior Advisor for Eurasia Steven Mann, the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair,
as stating in Baku to local television channel ATV.

“We think we will achieve considerable results in 2006,” Mann said.

During the two-day visit to Baku he is scheduled to have meetings
with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Foreign Minister Elmar
Mammadyarov.

The discussions will focus on the resolution of Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict. He is also scheduled to hold meetings with the
representatives of civil society and entrepreneurs.

Mann is accompanied by Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian
Affairs Daniel Fried will travel to Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia,
and Turkey.

On March 14-15, Assistant Secretary Fried will meet with senior
Georgian, March 15-16, Assistant Secretary Fried will hold meetings
in Yerevan with senior government officials to discuss our bilateral
relationship, democracy, and Nagorno-Karabakh. On March 16, Assistant
Secretary Fried will depart for Ankara, Turkey, and will return to
the United States on Friday, March 17.

PALLONE EXPECTS US STATE DEPARTMENT EXPLANATIONS ON REPORTS ON RECALLING EVANS

PanARMENIAN.Net
14.03.2006 19:12 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ March 10 US Congressman Frank Pallone (D-NJ),
Co-Chairman of the Armenian Issues Caucus, expressed his extreme
disappointment to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice over reports that
the U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John Marshall Evans, is being forced
from office based upon truthful and forthright statements last year
about the Armenian Genocide, reports the Armenian National Committee
of America (ANCA). In a March 10th letter, Rep. Pallone shared with
the Secretary that he is “outraged that the State Department is
recalling Ambassador Evans as retaliation for statements he made
in recognition of the Armenian Genocide.” He added that, “it is
simply wrong for the State Department to punish Ambassador Evans
for statements he made that are factually correct. Accordingly, I am
asking you for an explanation as to why Ambassador Evans was removed
from his post. . . This is the wrong message to send to the world. I
look forward to a timely response from your office.”

To note, The California Courier wrote that the U.S. Department of
State took the decision to recall John Evans from Armenia. Citing
Armenian sources the newspaper said Mr. Evans has already informed
the RA authorities of his departure. “After months of uncertainty, it
now appears that the rumors about his possible dismissal have finally
become reality. The State Department recently finalized the decision
to recall him. According to reliable Armenian governmental sources,
Amb. Evans informed high-ranking Armenian officials last week about
his departure in the coming months, pending the Senate approval
of his likely successor, Richard E. Hoagland, who is currently the
U.S. Ambassador to Tajikistan.

Knowledgeable U.S. sources in Washington have confirmed to this writer
that Amb. Evans was being recalled because of his candid remarks
on the Armenian Genocide. Last year, during a public gathering at
the University of California at Berkeley, Amb. Evans courageously
said: “I will today call it the Armenian Genocide…. I informed
myself in depth about it. I think we, the US government, owe you,
our fellow citizens, a more frank and honest way of discussing this
problem. Today, as someone who has studied it …

there’s no doubt in my mind [as to] what happened…. I think it is
unbecoming of us, as Americans, to play word games here. I believe in
calling things by their name.” Referring to the Armenian Genocide as
“the first genocide of the 20th century,” he said: “I pledge to you,
we are going to do a better job at addressing this issue.” Amb. Evans
also disclosed that he had consulted with a legal advisor at the State
Department who had confirmed that the events of 1915 were “genocide
by definition.” Within days of making these statements and after
complaints from Turkish and Azeri officials to the State Department,
Amb. Evans was ordered by his superiors to issue “a clarification”
in which he said that “misunderstandings” might have arisen as a
result of his earlier comments. He said that he had used the term
“genocide” in his “personal capacity,” the article says.

The decision on recall of an Ambassador is taken by the President of
the United States only, U.S.

Ambassador to Armenia John Evans stated at a news conference in
Yerevan. “I won’t be the Ambassador to Armenia eternally, but I have
not received any document on my recall from the U.S. President yet,”
Mr. Evans said when commenting on The California Courier report. US
State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack stated he knows nothing of
recalling US Ambassador to Armenia John Evans. “I am not aware if we
recalled anyone. I suppose John Evans still serves as Ambassador in
Yerevan,” he remarked.

HRACHYA ROSTOMIAN ELECTED RA BASKETBALL FEDERATION CHAIRMAN

Noyan Tapan
Mar 14 2006

YEREVAN, MARCH 14, NOYAN TAPAN. Hrachya Rostomian was elected new
Chairman of Basketball Republican Federation at the Federation’s
March 14 conference.

He has been in the Armenian national team for many years, he is
a trainer of the international class. H.Rostomian is a doctor by
speciality.

Gabriel Ghazarian was elected the Vice-Chairman of the Armenian
Basketball Federation, Liana Baghdasarian the Secretary
General. Chairmanship consisting of 15 persons was also elected.

To recap, Federation’s former Chairman Alik Navasardian didn’t take
part in the conference and didn’t present a statement.

RUSSIA, ARMENIA IN JOINT BID TO STAVE OFF ANOTHER EX-SOVIET REVOLUTION
By Emil Danielyan

Eurasia Daily Monitor, DC
The Jamestown Foundation
Oct 17 2005

The leaderships of Russia and Armenia have underscored their persisting
concerns about the spread of anti-government uprisings across the
former Soviet Union by holding a joint exercise of their special police
forces. The extraordinary move comes less than two months before a
tense constitutional referendum in Armenia that opposition groups will
likely use for another attempt to topple President Robert Kocharian.

The Armenian opposition, buoyed by the spectacular success of the
revolution in Georgia, already tried to do that in the spring of
2004. But its three-month campaign of nationwide street protests
fizzled out due to a lack of popular support and unprecedented
repression unleashed by Kocharian’s regime.

The police exercises took place near the southern Russian city of
Krasnodar from September 24 through October 12. As many as 1,500
officers (the bulk of them presumably Russians) reportedly practiced
quelling an anti-government demonstration in the presence of top
law-enforcement officials from the two states, including Russian
Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliev and the chief of Armenia’s Police
Service, Hayk Haruitunian. The final and most important episode of the
exercises involved about 50 imaginary protesters seizing a government
building and taking hostages after demanding payment of their back
wages and the authorities’ resignation. Special police then burst
into the building and liberated the “hostages.”

According to Armenian press reports, participants in the exercises
simulated several violent methods of crowd dispersal dating back
to Soviet times. PanArmenian.net, a pro-government online news
service, reported that they also tested their shooting skills and
familiarized themselves with “rules for the use of firearms” and
“technical equipment” against those who challenge the authorities in
Moscow and Yerevan. “Russian and Armenian special forces are ready
to fulfill the tasks they are set,” Nurgaliev declared afterwards.

The presence of Russia’s and Armenia’s top policemen at the
drills attests to the great importance attached to them by the
two governments. They both have watched with alarm the wave of
ex-Soviet revolutions that set precedents for regime change through
the expression of popular will. Armenia is widely regarded as one of
the potential venues for the next such revolution, a prospect that
sets pulses racing in Moscow, Yerevan, and a number of other former
Soviet capitals.

“The Russian authorities have been having nervous breakdowns because
of the revolutions that took place in post-Soviet countries,” the
Yerevan daily Haykakan Zhamanak commented on October 12. “They are
holding joint exercises with Armenian special forces because there
has already been an attempt at revolution in Armenia and Russia fears
that it could be repeated.”

Apart from helping their Armenian counterparts, Russian security forces
also have something to learn from them. On the night of April 12-13,
2004, Armenian special police backed by interior troops brutally
broke up a peaceful demonstration near the presidential palace in
Yerevan that marked the climax of the last opposition offensive
against Kocharian. Scores of protesters were beaten up and arrested
by security forces armed with truncheons, stun grenades, and even
electric-shock equipment. “The excessive use of police force” was
strongly condemned at the time by Human Rights Watch.

The obvious purpose of the government-sanctioned violence was not
only to disperse the crowd of less than 3,000 people but also to
discourage as many Armenians as possible from attending further
anti-Kocharian rallies. Security forces also severely beat up
virtually all photojournalists that were present at the scene. One
of those journalists, who required hospitalization, insists that
Hovannes Varian, a police general who led the operation, personally
confiscated his camera before ordering subordinates to attack him.

Incidentally, Varian was among the Armenian law-enforcement officials
who monitored the Krasnodar exercises. Also in attendance was Ashot
Gizirian, the equally notorious head of a feared police unit that
is supposed to combat organized crime and terrorism, rather than
opposition activity.

The brutish police chiefs may again be called into action next month.

Armenians will go to the polls on November 27 to vote on a package
of constitutional amendments drafted by Kocharian and his governing
coalition. The draft amendments, endorsed by Europe and the United
States, are aimed at curtailing the sweeping constitutional powers
enjoyed by the Armenian president. But Armenia’s main opposition
forces dismiss the proposed changes as cosmetic and have pledged to
scuttle their passage. Opposition leaders have repeatedly pledged to
turn the referendum into a vote of no confidence in Kocharian.

“November 27 will be our day,” the most radical of them, Aram
Sarkisian, said in a recent newspaper interview.

With the Armenian public remaining apathetic about constitutional
reform, the ruling regime is widely expected to at least try to
falsify the referendum results. However, the kind of crude vote
rigging to which the authorities resorted in the last presidential and
parliamentary elections could give the opposition a powerful weapon
to spark a mass pro-democracy movement. Kocharian and his entourage
cannot fail to understand this. The Krasnodar exercises illustrate
the extent of their worries.

Aravot, another paper critical of the Armenian leadership, reported on
October 12 that the Armenian police are holding negotiations with the
Interior Ministry of Belarus over the purchase of anti-riot equipment
such as clubs, tear gas, razor wire, and even rubber bullets.

(Haykakan Zhamanak, October 12; Aravot, October 12;
, October 11; Human Rights Watch statement, April
17, 2004)