Author: nina hovnanian

ARMENIA ‘READY FOR WAR’ AFTER AZERBAIJAN AXE-KILLER PARDON

Star Africa

Sept 3 2012

Armenia warned Azerbaijan it was ready for war as tensions soared
Monday between the ex-Soviet foes…

Armenia warned Azerbaijan it was ready for war as tensions soared
Monday between the ex-Soviet foes after Baku pardoned and promoted
an Azerbaijani officer who axed an Armenian soldier to death.

Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev last week immediately pardoned
Ramil Safarov after he was extradited from Hungary, where he had been
serving a life sentence for the 2004 killing.

Safarov was also promoted to the rank of major, given a house and eight
years’ worth of back-pay after returning home to a hero’s welcome,
in defiance of assurances from Baku to Budapest that he would serve
out his term in Azerbaijan.

“We don’t want a war, but if we have to, we will fight and win. We are
not afraid of killers, even if they enjoy the protection of the head
of state,” Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian fumed in a statement
late on Sunday.

“They (Azerbaijanis) have been warned,” he said, calling Azerbaijan
a country where “illicit orders set free and publicly glorify every
bastard who kills people only because they are Armenians”.

Safarov hacked Armenian officer Gurgen Margarian to death at a
military academy in Budapest where the servicemen were attending
English-language courses organised by NATO.

His lawyers claimed in court that he was traumatised because some of
his relatives had been killed during Azerbaijan’s war with Armenia,
and alleged that Margarian had insulted his country.

Armenia and Azerbaijan are locked in a long-running conflict over
the disputed region of Nagorny Karabakh, where they fought a war in
the 1990s.

Armenia-backed separatists seized Nagorny Karabakh from Azerbaijan
in the war that left some 30,000 people dead.

The two sides have not signed a final peace deal since the 1994
ceasefire and there are still regular firefights along the front line.

Analysts warn the frozen conflict risks slipping again into full-scale
war.

Russia, which is part of the OSCE Minsk Group that is mediating in
negotiations to find a peaceful solution to the Karabakh conflict,
expressed “deep concern” over the extradition and pardon.

“We believe that these actions of the Azerbaijanis, as well as
the Hungarian authorities, go against the efforts agreed at an
international level primarily through the OSCE Minsk Group aimed at
reducing tension in the region,” Russian foreign ministry spokesman
Alexander Lukashevich said in a statement.

The OSCE Minsk Group said Monday its co-chairs had expressed “deep
concern and regret for the damage the pardon and any attempts to
glorify the crime had done to the peace process” at meetings with
both countries’ foreign ministers.

It stressed there was “no alternative to a peaceful settlement of
the Nagorny Karabakh conflict”.

The EU said Baku and Yerevan should refrain from exacerbating the
dispute.

In a statement, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and
Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fuele said they “are concerned by
the news” of the pardon, adding that EU officials were “in contact
with the relevant authorities”.

EU officials will “continue to follow the situation closely,” the
statement said.

“In the interest of regional stability and on-going efforts towards
reconciliation,” Ashton and Fuele said they “reiterate their call
on Azerbaijan and Armenia to exercise restraint, on the ground as
well as in public statements, in order to prevent an escalation of
the situation.”

Baku on Monday accused Yerevan of launching a wave of attacks on
eight Azerbaijani websites including those of the president and
various news portals, sometimes posting photographs of the murdered
Armenian soldier.

“The very fact of this action speaks of the powerlessness of Yerevan,
resorting to the tactics of the weak,” Azerbaijani presidential
administration official Elnur Aslanov said in a statement.

The administration also published a series of letters from citizens
praising Aliyev for pardoning the convicted killer.

“I am grateful to you for the nationwide joy you have given us by
releasing Ramil Safarov, returning him to his homeland and, most
importantly, doing justice,” wrote one of them, Zamina Aliyeva.

Yerevan on Friday cut diplomatic ties with Hungary over the pardon,
while US President Barack Obama said he was “deeply concerned” about
the incident.

Hungary summoned Azerbaijan’s ambassador on Sunday to protest at
Baku’s decision after earlier saying it had been assured Safarov
would serve out his term.

AZERI AGGRESSION WILL BE RETALIATED, KARABAKH LEADER SAYS

PanARMENIAN.Net
September 3, 2012 – 21:11 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – On September 3, Artsakh Republic President Bako
Sahakyan met with NKR Security Council to discuss the extradition
of Ramil Safarov, the criminal who decapitated the sleeping Armenian
officer to Azerbaijan and his immediate release.

In his speech, Bako Sahakyan noted that this criminal deal has
generated a deep anger amid the world spread Armenians including
that of Artsakh. According to the President, this incident reflects
the loathsome moral and political atmosphere reigning in Azerbaijan,
which is the continuation of fascist ideology and genocidal policy. It
is a blatant violation of democratic principles and human rights and
must be condemned by the civilized mankind.

Bako Sahakyan slammed this monstrous deed as a hard blow to the
negotiation process and the mediation mission of the OSCE Minsk Group
co-chair countries. The President underlined that such actions of
the adversary, his subversive aggressive behavior will be retaliated.

Within this context, the President gave corresponding instructions
to the defense and foreign ministries as well as to other interested
structures.

Issues related to economic indicators of the first 8 months of 2012
were also discussed during the meeting of the Security Council.

Primate of the Artsakh Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church
Archbishop Pargev Martirosyan and other officials were invited to
the meeting, Central Information Department at Artsakh President’s
Office said.

ARMENIA TO OPENING THE IRAQI EMBASSY

RIA Novosti
YEREVAN
09/03/2012

Iraq plans to open its embassy in Armenia, said Monday the agency
News-Armenia to the press service of Armenian Ministry of Foreign
Affairs.

This issue was addressed on August 29 at a meeting of the Armenian
ambassador in Baghdad, Mourad Mouradian, with Iraqi Vice Minister of
Foreign Affairs, Labid Abaoui. The latter said he would take care of
the next person opening the Iraqi embassy in Yerevan.

Two days earlier, M.Mouradian was received by the Deputy Prime
Minister of Iraq Nouri Chaouis Roz to discuss his visit to Armenia
in early September. The same day the Armenian Ambassador met another
Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlak discussed prospects for
bilateral cooperation.

SAFAROV’S RELEASE GIVES ARMENIA TRUMP CARD

tert.am
03.09.12

Hungary’s decision to extradite Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov has
given Armenia a trump card, according to Ruben Babayan, the artistic
director of Armenia’s Puppet Theatre.

As he told reporters on Monday, the move enabled Armenia to demonstrate
that it should not be treated on an equal footing with Azerbaijan.

“It is positive for us that the country is ruled by Ilham Aliyev. With
his unconstitutional step to pardon the assassin, the Azerbaijani
leader gave us an opportunity to say everywhere that we cannot
guarantee the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic’s autonomy within that
country’s borders,” he said.

Babayan stressed the importance of continuing the negotiations over
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement.

“It is simply necessary to participate [in the talks], submitting
different facts. As to what benefits we will derive depends upon our
political will,” he said.

He then warned against any steps that could add new countries to the
enemies Armenian.

“What has been done in relation to Hungary is enough; no need to
increase the enemies’ number. Why do we think that only we have
corrupt politicians? Hungary’s ruling party is nationalistic, which
means they are ready even to conclude a deal with the devil for the
nation’s sake,” he explained.

Babayan said he is strongly against an Interpol investigation against
Safarov.

“On the contrary, it is necessary to do everything possible to make
Safarov leave the country. I hope the president’s instruction was
not aimed at hacking the Azerbaijani sites, but rather at finding
Safarov in Armenia sometime in the future,” he noted.

M. HAKOBYAN, “OUR ARMY WILL GIVE AN ADEQUATE RESPONSE.”

Karabakh-open
03 September 2012 18:45

In the interview NKR Defense Minister Movses Hakobyan gave to
journalists at the Stepanakert memorial complex on September 2 he
also spoke of Ramil Safarov’s extradition and noted, “Our army will
give an adequate response and will endeavor best efforts for that
bastard to pay the full penalty for his crime.”

In answer to the question concerning the situation on the frontier
the defense minister informed that some tension was felt there yet
that was not a problem as the defense army controlled the situation
and gave an adequate response to the enemy.”

WHO WOULD LIKE TO HEAD SUCH A COUNTRY?
Naira Hayrumyan

Story from Lragir.am News:

Published: 16:14:59 – 03/09/2012

Armenia always comes to a situation when, perhaps, it has to look for
a person who will assume the responsibility to manage it. In any case,
it is clear that those wishing to become president of such a country
are few. Actually, it does not look odd, because the next president
of Armenia will need remarkable courage.

Perhaps, this is the reason why those, who previously pretended to this
position, change their minds now. Since not only a hard choice, but
also events like Georgia are expected in Armenia. In this situation,
Armenia’s president may be either a person enjoying absolute legitimacy
or an Armenian Saakashvili able to cut the old links, break standards,
stereotypes and show a little adventuress, and consistently build a
new system in the country.

Reforms in Armenia seem to be waiting for such a person. Everything
seems to be done on the legislative plain, everything is ready, but
there is no political will as the U.S. Ambassador John Heffern says.

No will – no reform, no reform – no investment, no investment –
no support by the West.

So we have a closed circuit: Serzh Sargsyan announced the policy
of European integration and received support from the West for the
European reforms, then he tightened the “silent anti-Russian rhetoric”
and got a little more support. But the final assurance that the West
will support unconditionally Sargsyan is not in place. And the thing
is about the political will.

What will happen if the West does not notice the will and decides not
to support Serzh Sargsyan? What the Armenian political landscape will
be. Will there be someone like Saakashvili able to cut ties with the
soviet past? May we expect surprises on the eve of the nomination of
candidates for president?

To date, unfortunately there are no prerequisites. And it is obvious
that the West will insist that Serzh Sargsyan shows more courage and
will, relating to the country’s oligarchs and external patrons.

Actually, the one is connected with the other: if it becomes harder
for Serzh Sargsyan to deal with the oligarchs, it will be responded
in Russia, and, conversely, if he toughens rhetoric with Moscow,
the position of the oligarchs in Armenia will diminish.

Otherwise Sargsyan can really remain without support, and in this case,
even the presence of the administrative machine may not work.

Therefore, his only chance is the political will. In addition,
the presence of such a will supplant his rivals in the notoriously
negative field, when they will either have to prove that the oligarchs
and the Eurasian Union is good, or just blackmail.

Or he will have to admit that he cannot become the Armenian
Saakashvili.

COORDINATION COUNCIL OF ARMENIAN ORGANIZATIONS OF FRANCE CALLS ON HUNGARIAN GOVERNMENT TO EXPLAIN MASKED BALL OF JUSTICE

arminfo
Monday, September 3, 16:48

The Coordination Council of Armenian Organizations of France (CCAF)
expresses aggravation because of Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev’s
decision to pardon Ramil Safarov extradited from Hungary, the statement
by CCAF published in “Nouvelles d’Armenie” says.

Hungary commissioning extradition of the criminal Ramil Safarov killed
with an axe Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan in the threshold of
Armenian Genocide hundredth anniversary is continuing to encourage pan
Turkish obvious annihilation and impunity policy, the statement says.

“Our French based compatriots are scheduled to demonstrate
a large-scale rally in front of the Hungary Embassy. French
Armenians will once again condemn Hungary’s decision, which violates
international law, contradicts all Council of Europe values and in
fact is a challenge directed to the Armenian nation’s right to live
freely. They are also set to demand Ramil Safarov bear full punishment
under international control…NATO should not stay indifferent to
this scandalous operation, as it was dishonoured by this unfair
decision several days before the tour of its secretary general to
the South Caucasus.

In these conditions the CCAF calls on all the democracies and first
of all France and the European Union to condemn such processes as
well as Baku which again supported and protected the worst acts of
brutality”, – the statement says.

Discussion in Arab World

Igor Muradyan

Story from Lragir.am News:

Published: 15:49:29 – 27/08/2012

The Arab states in the Arab League which spoke in one voice about the
removal of the ruling regime in Syria were too encouraged by hopes for
subsidies from Saudi, as well as strong pressure by the West. But a
problem occurred because without direct intervention of the United
States and the leading European states removal of the Alawite regime
ruling Syria will not succeed, and to which extent is it Alawite when
it gets significant support of the mostly Sunni population of the
country? How did these developments affect the national Arab interests
(at least in terms of ambitions)?

Territories populated with Kurds are increasingly separating from
Syria and Iraq, and this process is acquiring a worldwide importance.
The Shiites in Syria, Iraq and Lebanon are not weak. They are getting
stronger. The Shiite belt has not been ripped, crushed. It is more
mobilized. As soon as the Shiite states and communities face a
catastrophe, they will become more united.

There are quite credible signs of unprecedented rapprochement and
mutual interest between Iraq and Iran. Let’s not rush but there is a
lot of evidence that a sovereign Shiite state will be established in
South Iraq which will form an alliance with Iran. If fragmentation of
Syria succeeds, a state will be established in the West which will be
associated with mini-states of Shiites and Christians in Lebanon.

Even if the progress of the state of affairs stops at the level of a
new configuration, the Arab world has already sustained huge damage in
terms of geopolitical interests (if certainly the modern Arab elite
have geopolitical visions and interests).

The West is set to create a powerful and independent source of oil in
North Iraq, as well as a controlled and safe way for its
transportation to the Mediterranean Sea. In other words, for the first
time the Arab world is fragmented on an ethnic-energy basis.

The Egyptian elite should have been the first to react to these
developments because it traditionally feels responsible for the
destiny of the Arab world. The visit of the president of Egypt to
Tehran might be concerned with the problems of the Arab world rather
than bilateral relations. Cairo has understood that as a result of the
developments in Syria Egypt will remain tete-a-tete with Israel with
an uncertain behavior of Saudi Arabia and its satellites.

As French and British political scientists say, the Egyptian political
literature reflected unambiguously the interests of Arab states,
calling Turkey’s expansion and pretensions more dangerous than Iran’s
intentions. Unfortunately, the experts could not get acquainted with
the Egyptian literature and its periodicals adequately but now this
looks more interesting than the texts of authors related with
governmental and non-governmental institutes and centers of the West.

The situation in the region overlapped with highly unfavorable
internal circumstances in the United States, France, and partly the
UK. The leaders of these powers have no time to deal with the regional
problems. One may assume that not only Egypt but also other Arab
states are thinking on the next move in the game. Should they support
Kurds as a buffer on the way of Turkish and Iranian expansion? Should
they continue to rely on the U.S. and Europe for curbing Turkey and
Iran? Should they self-organize to resist foreign expansion towards
the region?

Any of these scenarios presupposes cross-cooperation with one partner
or counter-partner or another. If sooner or later a real leader
emerges in the Arab world, not one in the retro style, expectations of
occurrence of elements of Arab geopolitics may come true.

For the time being, it is understood that Saudi Arabia which lost in
Syria cannot further pretend to the role of the Arab leader. In this
case, one way or another, the Arab states may get interested in
relations with non-Arab states of neighboring regions. Only Egypt
could be such a leader which will have to cooperate with the Shiite
states and communities in the Arab world otherwise its role of leader
will be limited and incomplete. In addition, the role and stance of
Iran in the Arab world, as before, will remain stronger than those of
Turkey.

Syrian developments, apart from other results, will lead to formation
of a new balance of forces in the Near East. The West cannot ignore
this.

Agence France Presse
31 août 2012 vendredi 9:45 PM GMT

Grce d’un Azerbaïdjanais qui avait décapité un Arménien: Obama”préoccupé”

WASHINGTON 31 août 2012

Le président des Etats-Unis Barack Obama est “très préoccupé” par la
décision de l’Azerbaïdjan de gracier un soldat condamné à la prison à
vie pour avoir tué un Arménien en Hongrie, et récemment extradé par
Budapest dans son pays, a affirmé vendredi la Maison Blanche.

“Le président Obama est très préoccupé par l’annonce d’aujourd’hui
selon laquelle le président de l’Azerbaïdjan a gracié Ramil Safarov”,
a déclaré le porte-parole du Conseil de sécurité nationale (NSC),
Tommy Vietor, selon qui les Etats-Unis ont communiqué leur “déception”
à Bakou.

“Cet acte est contraire aux efforts actuels de réduire les tensions
régionales et de promouvoir la réconciliation” entre l’Azerbaïdjan et
l’Arménie, a estimé M. Vietor dans un communiqué. Il a aussi assuré
que les Etats-Unis allaient “demander une explication de la Hongrie”
sur la décision d’extrader le soldat vers l’Azerbaïdjan.

Le département d’Etat s’est également déclaré “extrêmement troublé”
par cette grce, disant “condamner toute action qui attise les
tensions régionales”.

L’Arménie a annoncé simultanément vendredi qu’elle suspendait ses
relations diplomatiques avec la Hongrie.

Condamné à la perpétuité pour le meurtre d’un officier arménien à
Budapest en 2004, Ramil Safarov, 35 ans, a été extradé vendredi vers
son pays par les autorités hongroises et gracié aussitôt par le
président azerbaïdjanais, Ilham Aliev.

En 2004, Safarov avait décapité l’officier arménien Gourgen Margarian
dans son sommeil, lors d’une formation d’anglais organisée dans une
école militaire à Budapest par l’Alliance atlantique pour des soldats
originaires des pays de l’ex-URSS.

L’Arménie et l’Azerbaïdjan se disputent depuis des années le contrôle
du Nagorny Karabakh. Rattachée à l’Azerbaïdjan pendant la période
soviétique, cette région a proclamé son indépendance, non reconnue par
la communauté internationale, après une guerre qui a fait 30.000 morts
et des centaines de milliers de réfugiés entre 1988 et 1994.

Un cessez-le-feu a été signé en 1994, mais Bakou et Erevan n’arrivent
pas à se mettre d’accord sur le statut de la région.

APA, Azerbaijan
Sept 1 2012

Azerbaijan FM: It is perplexing that U.S. government interferes in
relations of two independent states

[ 01 Sep 2012 22:29 ]

Baku. Anahanum Idoyatova – APA. “It is perplexing that the U.S.
government interferes in the relations of two independent states –
Azerbaijan and Hungary.

The transfer of Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov from Hungary to
Azerbaijan was acted in accordance with the laws of the two countries.
We also understand that the American position is connected with the
domestic political context prior to the elections in the United
States. “The head of the press -service of Azerbaijani Foreign
Ministry Elman Abdullayev told APA.

He also noted that the hysterical approach of Armenian leadership once
again demonstrates the aggressive attempts, “The Armenian leadership
directly participated in the Khojaly genocide and ethnic cleansing
perpetrated in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan. Terror became
commonplace action for the Armenian leadership. Azerbaijani
government, led by President Ilham Aliyev will continue to stand in
defense of Azerbaijani people “- said E.Abdullaev.

“Armenia or whatever country has no rights to talk with Azerbaijan in
such a tone, especially when Azerbaijan acts in full compliance with
the law” – said Elman Abdullayev.