Category: News

NKR President Gukasyan, OSCE envoy discuss conflict settlement
Noyan Tapan news agency
23 Sep 04
YEREVAN
The president of the Nagornyy Karabakh Republic [NKR], Arkadiy
Gukasyan, received the special envoy of the OSCE chairman-in-office
for the Nagornyy Karabakh issue, Filip Dimitrov, on 23 September at
the representative office of the NKR in Armenia.
The head of the information department of the NKR president told Noyan
Tapan news agency that during the meeting, the sides discussed the
settlement of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict and possible steps in
this context.
Filip Dimitrov stressed that the OSCE chairman-in-office is interested
in a peaceful settlement to the conflict and spoke about the need to
speed up the process.
The NKR president specially noted the importance of the status and
security of Nagornyy Karabakh. Arkadiy Gukasyan expressed his
confidence that it is impossible to settle the conflict without taking
into account the interests of the NKR people.
At the end of the meeting, the NKR president confirmed that the
Karabakh side is ready to resolve the existing problems through a
dialogue.
The meeting was also attended by the NKR foreign minister, Ashot
Gulyan, and the personal representative of the OSCE
chairman-in-office, Andrzej Kasprzyk.

Kazakhstan: Experts discuss ways of preventing bioterrorism
Kazakhstanskaya Pravda
22 Sep 04 p 6
A Kazakh seminar on biological security has spoken about the need to
step up security at laboratories in Central Asia and the Caucasus
where strains of dangerous diseases are kept. Raymond Zilinskas from
the US Centre of Nonproliferation Studies said there was a threat of
anthrax spreading on the Kazakh side of the Island of Vozrozhdeniye in
the Aral Sea where there was a biological weapons test facility in
Soviet times. The following is the text of Olga Malakhova’s report
entitled “Down with bioterrorism” and published in the Kazakh
newspaper Kazakhstanskaya Pravda on 22 September; subheadings inserted
editorially:
The recent return of SARS may be connected with the fact that during a
study its virus was taken out of a laboratory, where poor specialists
were working. Insecure laboratories is one of three reasons for the
spreading of very dangerous infection. Natural breeding grounds are
still the main cause of disease spreading. However, specialists say
that bioterrorism is the most dangerous way because it is much more
difficult to fight this type of WMD.
Not myth but real danger
This is not a myth but quite a real danger, said the participants in a
seminar on biological security in Central Asia and the Caucasus, which
ended in Almaty yesterday [21 September]. The protection of many
institutions that have collections of dangerous bacteria, to put it
mildly leaves much to be desired. Specialists from medical services
and scientific institutes from Central Asia and the Caucasus complain
that the level of security at laboratories and museums where strains
are kept, and the training of specialists and the material bases are
far from international standards. The financing of many remains at
1960s levels, guards are not armed and there is a lack of
transport. The plague-proof clothing that is often shown on TV seems
an anachronism, but even this clothing has not been provided to
everyone, a representative from Armenia said.
Against this background, our institutions with their equipment and
security are in a better situation. True, a strange man recently tried
to enter the laboratory of the Kazakh Scientific Centre of Quarantine
and Zoonosis Infections. However, his attempt was thwarted thanks to
good security. Modern equipment, security and a secure fence have
appeared thanks to aid from the USA. The USA can also support various
projects connected with the study and rehabilitation of the territory
on the Island of Vozrozhdeniye in the Aral Sea, where there was a
biological weapons test facility in Soviet times.
Former biological facility poses threat
“The island needs to be studied by scientists and rehabilitated,”
Raymond Zilinskas, director of the chemical and biological weapons
nonproliferation programme at the US Centre of Nonproliferation
Studies [the Monterey Institute of International Studies], told a
Kazakhstanskaya Pravda newspaper correspondent. “There is no threat
of anthrax spreading from the Uzbek part of the island. American and
Uzbek specialists took care of this: they have reburied and
disinfected the area where biological weapons used to be kept.
However, there is still a threat, the representative of the Monterey
Institute of International Studies believes, and he expresses concern
that the Russian side has not provided information on what pathogens
were used in experiments. This information would help Kazakh
scientists determine the level of danger and measures for
rehabilitation. The difficulty is that it is unknown which pathogens
are natural and which are artificial man-made ones.
Strains of anthrax may remain on the island for a long time and infect
any living creature. Oil exploration and extraction work that is
planned to be carried out on the island pose a special
threat. Pollutants containing deadly strains may emerge during
geological exploration works, explosions and other activities.
Raymond Zilinskas hopes that the problem of clearing the territory of
the former biological weapons test facility will be resolved in two or
three years with the help of the American side.
Kazakhstan can train specialists
The seminar, which was organized by the Monterey Institute [of
International Studies] and the M. Aykimbayev Kazakh Scientific Centre
of Quarantine and Zoonosis Infections, discussed ways of making
specialists’ work safe for themselves and preventing very dangerous
diseases from being stolen and spread. It is necessary to create a
joint model for controlling biological materials and bring closer
legislation on export control.
Kazakhstan has created a network of sanitary and quarantine stations,
and a programme to improve them is being implemented. There is a plan
to set up a regional centre at the Kazakh scientific centre to train
specialists from Central Asia and the Caucasus. Many scientists from
these regions studied here. The centre has trained over 30,000
specialists for various republics [of the former Soviet Union] and
countries since 1948. A World Health Organization [WHO]
representative, May Chu, believes that the Kazakh Centre of Quarantine
and Zoonosis Infections has a modern scientific basis and intellectual
potential. Its six specialists underwent training on international
standards on biosecurity. The WHO will further continue supporting
the programme to train specialists.

Friday Review: ScreenReview: FILM RELEASES: Steve Rose on stunning tale of
warring Chinese states, plus the rest of the week’s films
The Guardian – United Kingdom
Sep 24, 2004
STEVE ROSE

Hero
4/5
Dir: Zhang Yimou
With: Jet Li, Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Maggie Cheung, Zhang Ziyi, Chen
Daoming
99 mins, cert 12A
This Chinese epic may owe its existence to Crouching Tiger, Hidden
Dragon (which was essentially an American-Chinese epic), but it
betters that film on most counts. In contrast to Hollywood’s recent,
sprawling attempts at majestic action movies, everything seems to be
in tune with everything else here, all governed by a rigid formal
structure. Set during the “warring states” period before the entity of
China had been created, the action is framed around a meeting between
the Qin emperor (Chen Daoming) and an assassin named Nameless (Jet
Li). We see in flashback how Nameless eliminated the emperor’s most
feared enemies, Broken Sword, Sky and Flying Snow. But the King doubts
him, and offers a different explanation of events. And so they trade
stories like a chess game, writing China’s history in the process.
Each segment is colour-coded, so the dominant colour is red in the
first story, blue in the next and so on – a clever device that
preserves simplicity and allows the art department to pull out all the
stops. Hero really is one of the best-looking films ever made – a
combination of stunning landscapes, graceful duels and rigorous
compositions, all topped off with the cream of Chinese acting
talent. If there’s one flaw, it’s that the formal stateliness stifles
any sympathy we might have for these characters, who spend a fair
amount of time dying tragically. More intriguing is the overt theme of
Chinese unification, by no means a redundant topic. Where director
Zhang was once banned from making films in China, now he’s firmly at
the centre of the establishment, and essentially delivers an argument
in favour of tyranny. But there are sly hints of subversion. The
heroism of the title is open to ambiguity, and at one point the film’s
recurring motif, the pro-unification phrase “all under heaven”, is
literally written in the sand.
Red Lights
4/5
Dir: Cedric Kahn
With: Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Carole Bouquet, Vincent Deniard,
Charline Paul
105 mins, cert 15
After the excellent Roberto Succo, here’s another smooth,
sophisticated, real-world thriller from Cedric Kahn. Again the
transgression of the criminal is a theme, but this time it’s conflated
with the rules of the road, which proves to be an extremely rich
combination. And there’s something rather brilliant about a movie in
which the supposed hero gets increasingly plastered.
We’ve lost track of how much Antoine (Jean-Pierre Darroussin) has had
to drink before he and his wife (Carole Bouquet) have even left
Paris. Their car is one of the millions heading south for the summer
holidays, but Antoine doesn’t want to be one of the herd. His decision
to take a “short cut”, followed by a few bar stops, prompts his wife
to abandon him. Antoine then picks up a surly hitcher, whom he pretty
much knows to be the escaped fugitive mentioned on the radio. Antoine
sees his passenger as a soulmate, a fellow rebel. “You don’t give a
shit about their laws!” he proclaims. The fugitive, by contrast is
keen for Antoine to do exactly that. The story runs out of gas a
little when it leaves the road, but on the whole its marvellously
gripping, with a good few surprises up its sleeve.
Cellular
3/5
Dir: David R. Ellis
With: Kim Basinger, Chris Evans, William H Macy, Eric Christian Olsen,
Jessica Bie
l94 mins, cert 15
Most recent thrillers would have fallen apart completely had someone
possessed a mobile phone. This is the solution: a high-concept,
breakneck dash through the many features of the new Nokia 6600. The
hero, whose real name is unfortunately Chris Evans, receives a random
call from the hysterical Kim Basinger, who has been kidnapped. From
then on, it’s up to Evans and his Nokia to save the day. There are
some genuinely funny moments, but the writers are eventually defeated
by their hi-tech remit, and resort to an off-the-shelf shoot-out
ending.
Save the Green Planet!
3/5
Dir: Jeong Jun-hwan
With: Shin Ha-kyun, Baek Yun-shik, Hwang Jeong-min, Lee Jae-yong
118 mins, cert 18
A bizarre Korean sci-fi movie that’s so inventively demented, it’s
hard to dislike. It’s the unpredictable story of a loner named Lee
(Shin Ha-kyun), who attempts to save the earth by kidnapping a
pharmaceuticals executive whom he believes to be an alien. So,
naturally, he shaves off his prisoner’s hair, applies antihistamine
cream to his feet, then tortures him with electricity. Even David Icke
would blanch at Lee’s apocalyptic conspiracy theory, but we’re
successfully kept guessing about his sanity until the very
end. Technically accomplished, manically acted and extremely violent,
it’s constantly on the verge of collapsing into complete nonsense, but
never actually does.
Vodka Lemon
3/5
Dir: Hiner Saleem
With: Romen Avinian, Lala Sarkissian, Ivan Franek, Armen Marutyan
84 mins, cert PG
Another dry, droll, almost dialogue-free drama from an obscure corner
of Europe, to file alongside the work of Georgia’s Otar Iosseliani and
Finland’s Aki Kaurismaki. This is set in rural Armenia, which appears
to be a desolate post-Soviet country where the only commodity is vodka
and the national pastime is sitting outside on chairs, despite the
freezing temperature. It’s a bright, empty, snowbound landscape in
which any man-made object looks surreal – a hospital bed, a piano,
even the graveyard where two widowed survivors form a tentative,
courteous romance. Nothing new, you might say, but this establishes
its own distinctive rhythm, and puts its country on the map.
She Hate Me
2/5
Dir: Spike Lee
With: Anthony Mackie, Kerry Washington, Ellen Barkin, Monica Bellucci,
Jim Brown
138 mins, cert 15
Spike Lee seems to have a backlog of issues he’s steamed up about. So
here he attempts tackle them all at once: the corruption of corporate
America; the persecution of marginalised peoples; the tyranny of the
heterosexual nuclear family; black homophobia; even the fate of the
security guard who exposed the Watergate scandal. The result is one of
the oddest films he’s ever made. The hero (Mackie) is a sacked
corporate whistleblower who finds a lucrative new line of work
impregnating lesbians, including his ex-girlfriend, her girlfriend,
and the daughter of a mafia crime boss. With a star-filled cast,
animated interludes, and a hugely improbably storyline, there’s rarely
a dull moment, but you’re constantly wondering what Lee is really
trying to say. At least he’s trying to say something.
Switchblade Romance
2/5
Dir: Alexandre Aja
With: Cecile De France, Maiwenn Le Besco, Philippe Nahon, Franck
Khalfoun
91 mins, cert 18
This presents itself as an edgy new French horror movie, but it’s
essentially a derivative old-school horror movie – with a twist that
only leaves you feeling even more cheated. It starts with urbanites
Alex (Maiwenn le Besco) and Marie (Cecile de France) coming to stay at
Marie’s family in their isolated farmhouse. But after a bloody
slaughter on the first night, courtesy of a random redneck, they’re
the only two left. What follows is less a game of suspense than a
drawn-out game of hide-and-seek, with the requisite false alarms and
idiotic decisions. Almost everybody needs killing at least twice
before they stay dead, and there’s some questionable gender
stereotyping to boot. If nothing else, though, it’s a warning against
selling axes in service stations.
Spivs
1/5
Dir: Colin Teague
With: Ken Stott, Kate Ashfield, Nick Moran, Jack Dee94 mins, cert 15
No! It’s back! The Brit gangster comedy rears its empty, Brylcreemed
head again. It’s all here: smart suits, split screens, short cons and
Nick Moran – until spiv-in-chief Ken Stott discovers a lorry load of
illegal immigrants. Then it lurches clumsily into an issue drama, as
he takes two eastern European urchins under his wing. The presence of
comics like Jack Dee and Paul Kaye only reinforces the impression that
these are two incompatible genres struggling to coexist. It’s like
Lock, Stock meets In This World.
The Punisher
1/5
Dir: Jonathan Hensleigh
With: Tom Jane, John Travolta, Will Patton, Laura Harring, Ben
Foster124 mins, cert 18
This lunk-headed action movie feels like something you’d have found on
video-store shelves in the mid-1980s, and passed over in favour of
something better, like Commando or Cobra. It’s the same old formula: a
gym-pumped brute of a hero (Tom Jane); a distastefully high body
count; and lots of big explosions. For John Travolta, it looks like
Pulp Fiction never happened.
The Ister
3/5
Dirs: David Barison, Daniel Ross
189 mins, no cert
Few films this, or any other, year will be such an unashamedly
intellectual long haul. Part travelogue up the Danube from mouth to
source, part meditation on writings by Martin Heidegger, this
three-hour documentary is not for the faint-hearted. The title is
borrowed from a poem by 17th-century German Friedrich Holderlin (Ister
being the Danube’s classical Greek name), that in turn gave rise to a
series of lectures Heidegger gave at the height of the second world
war. Heidegger, of course, is forever tainted by his enthusiastic
embrace of Nazism; here, with considerable rigour, a series of French
philosophers attempt to grapple with his thought. Another
controversial figure, film-maker Hans-Jurgen Syberberg, of Hitler: A
Film from Germany fame, weighs in for a few minutes at the end.

Film: Vodka Lemon (PG) Hiner Saleem ii888
The Independent – United Kingdom
Sep 24, 2004
Reviewed by Robert Hanks

An Armenian-French production from the “Isn’t life a terrible thing”
school, set in a remote, snowbound Kurdish village, where the collapse
of Communism has left much of the population without jobs or money,
and the main pastimes are visiting the graves of loved ones and
drinking something called “vodka lemon”. Hamo (Romen Avinian), an
elderly widower, begins a gentle courtship of Nina (Lala Sarkissian),
a widow, whom he meets every day on the bus; but these vestiges of a
plot are crowded out by would-be bittersweet, whimsical tableaux of
local eccentricities and fortitude in the face of despair – an elderly
man is towed through the snow on his steel bed; a man on horseback
gallops through the picture every 10 minutes or so; and, at the end,
Hamo and Nina sit at her piano, playing a tune as the instrument rolls
down the road. Lovely mountain scenery, but that doesn’t make up for
the self-indulgence.

VAHAN HOVHANNISYAN UNHAPPY ABOUT TERRI DAVIS REPORT
A1 Plus
24-09-2004
Vahan Hovhannisyan, one of Dashnaktsutyun party leaders, speaking
Friday in National Press Club voiced his discontent with views of the
CE reporter on Nagorno Karabakh Terri Davis.
`His latest report is composed by oil companies. It doesn’treflect the
CE point of view’, Hovhannisyan said.
The Dashnak expressed his concern about the fact that the CE
new-appointed reporter is British too. `I fear him to be guided by his
predecessor’s report’, he said.
Journalists asked what American Steven Mann, OSCE Minsk Group’s
co-chair, said in his interview with BBC radio station, in which he
accused Armenia of taking too isolating stance in the region
integration process and deterringitself from roads and oil pipelines
construction.
`Nothing new’, the answer was.

TOROSSIAN DISAPPROVES DAVIS’ REPORT
Azat Artsakh – Nagorno Karabakh Republic (NKR)
24 Sept 04
Last week the problem of Karabakh conflict was discussed not only in
Astana but also in Paris. Here during the September 13-15 session of
the PACE Political Commission British parliamentarian David Atkinson
was appointed reporter on Nagorni Karabakh. His predecessor Terry
Davis was elected general secretaryof the Council of Europe in summer
and during the session last week Terry Davis presented his
document. The discussion of the document was postponed because of the
election of Davis. The delegation of Armenia headed by the vice
speaker of the RA National Assembly Tigran Torossian has already
returned to Yerevan. meeting with journalists Mr. Torossian resented
the details of the report of the former PACE reporter on Nagorni
Karabakh Terry Davis, which, according to him, contains unfavourable
statements for the Armenian party. `If there is something bad about
the report than for Armenia and Azerbaijan, such as thepoint about
ethnic cleansing’, which is, according to Tigran Torossian,
unacceptable for the Karabakh conflict. There are no unfavourable
statements for Armenia only, according to Tigran Torossian, `but there
is a positive pointfor Armenia and Nagorni Karabakh’ in which the PACE
calls the Azerbaijani authorities to establish relationships with the
political forces of Karabakh and discuss the future status of Nagorni
Karabakh, which caused discontentment in Azerbaijan. According to the
head of the Armenian delegation in Paris, even if there are
unfavourable points in Davis’ report, these will not produce any
consequences because the report does not have a legal force. By the
way, the author of the report mentioned that he was presenting the
report of a parliamentarian appointed a reporter, therefore it should
not be perceived as an opinion ofthe general secretary. The report has
no legal force and after being presented to the commission it was sent
to the archives. `Perhaps the document has ahistorical and cognitive
value and is valuable in the sense that we must plan our later works
with the consideration that similar opinions may be formed,’ said
Tigran Torossian during the press conference. According to him, `it
was not discussed and did not become a document of the commission,
that is to say it is the opinion of a member of parliament.’ And in
order to avoid similar incorrect opinions and achieve a reflection of
the real picture in the new report, inhis address in Paris Tigran
Torossian suggested the new reporter visiting the region before
preparing the report, getting acquainted with the situation, as wellas
meeting with the cochairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group, organizing a
round table on the settlement of the Karabakh problem with the
participation of Nagorni Karabakh by all means. `At the same time, in
my address I suggestedorganizing meetings of the reporter with the
representatives of Nagorni Karabakh, the representatives of Armenia
and Azerbaijan, the cochairmen of the Minsk Group.’ The latter is
very important because, unfortunately, in the suggestions of Mr.
Davis certain problems occurred in reference to the Minsk
Group. According to Torossian, his suggestion was endorsed by Terry
Davis and newly appointed reporter Atkinson. By the way, the latter
will present his document at the January session of the PACE. The
British delegate will obviously not manage to get a complete idea of
Nagorni Karabakh and the conflict without assistance. Tigran Torossian
said that hopefully through active collaboration with the British
delegate it will be possible to achieve a document which will reflect
the reality and will differ from the former, including the positive
ideas of Davis and excluding mistakes.
CHRISTINE MNATSAKANIAN.
24-09-2004

Russia Charges 3 in Twin Plane Bombings
.c The Associated Press
MOSCOW (AP) – Prosecutors charged three people Friday in connection
with last month’s bombings of two Russian airliners, the Interfax news
agency reported.
The two planes blew up almost simultaneously on the night of Aug. 24,
killing 90 people.
It was the start of a series of deadly terrorist attacks blamed on
Chechen rebels that killed nearly 440 people, including the school
siege in the southern city of Beslan.
Police Capt. Mikhail Artamonov, arrested earlier this month, was
charged with negligence that led to fatalities, Interfax said, quoting
prosecutors. Artamonov is accused of releasing the two women
suspected of carrying bombs onto the planes without inspecting their
belongings.
Two patrolmen had turned the women over to him, presumably because of
their Chechen ethnicity, which often results in extra police checks.
After being let go, the women allegedly obtained tickets from a ticket
scalper at Moscow’s Domodedovo airport, Prosecutor General Vladimir
Ustinov said earlier this month. The scalper then gave part of the
money he received from the women – equivalent to $34 – to an airline
employee to get them on the planes, Ustinov said.
The airline employee, Nikolai Korenkov, and the ticket scalper, Armen
Arutyunian, were arrested earlier this month. Both were charged Friday
with complicity in terrorism, Interfax said.
09/24/04 15:34 EDT

Zaman, Turkey
Sept 24 2004
EU Process will not Stand any more Mistakes
SELCUK GULTASLI
The last 15 days have been really exciting for us in Turkey. All of
Europe took Turkey’s future membership under the microscope because
of the “adultery” [issue]. Many things were said.
Christian Democrats, Armenians, and Greeks were madly pleased. This
debate showed the real face of Turkey, they said, and Europe was
barely saved.
Turkey on the other hand tried to decipher the profound diplomatic
secret code in Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s insistence [on
the adultery issue]. In the end, the issue was resolved with European
Union (EU) Enlargement Commissioner Gunter Verheugen’s statement, “No
more obstacles before Turkey.” Perhaps Turkey’s 45 years of hope were
saved in the nick of the time.
By looking at positive and negative aspects of the last 15 days, we
should draw a road map for ourselves over the next three months.
Let’s try to see this crisis from a positive angle. Even if, as it is
written in the Financial Times the other day, Erdogan jeopardized the
biggest strategic objective of the country simply to test his
personal authority, he prevented the EU from imposing other
conditions with a single strategy. Therefore, the requirements were
clarified in order for the progress report to come out “clean” and no
more gray areas remain. Because of the adultery issue, the camps for
and against Turkey crystallized more. Those who could not speak
before now had the chance to show themselves by taking on the
“adultery” issue. We have seen our enemies and friends once more and
now can better identify friend and foe. With this crisis, we have
seen that regardless of how well Turkey does its homework, little
things will be made to turn into bigger issues; the tolerance that
has been shown to some [EU] candidates will not be shown to Ankara;
Turkey will crash if it trembles, and the biggest friends of Turkey
will start to sway in the moments of such crisis. Ankara saw once
more that it has to take these realities into consideration and play
its role before the EU.
The most negative side of the crisis is that the reliability of
Erdogan, who has been regarded as the most “reformist” politician
according to some after Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and to others after
Turgut Ozal, was harmed.
His easily taking a step back in Brussels reinforced Erdogan’s former
style of politics. For a while it seemed as if he had adopted a
political path from the past. Even if the crisis ends, its harm
continues. Since November 3 [2002], the Justice and Development Party
(AKP) had never let Turkey be looked down upon until it let the
initiative to EU in the subject of reforms that made Ankara a
candidate take a hit once again with this crisis. The “adultery”
discussion paved the way for the anti-Turkey campaigns to begin
early.
We will discuss for a long time whether this debate stemmed from the
personal ambitions of Erdogan or appeared out of profound and subtle
tactical calculations; however, the most important lesson to be
learnt is that Turkey must tread carefully, knowing that the upcoming
three months will be very sensitive and unlikely to stand another
crisis.
As The Times wrote, enemies should be served equipment while the EU
has started to dig the trenches for the toughest fights through
Turkey.

UCLA International Institute, CA
Sept 24 2004
Recent PhDs in Middle East Studies
Twenty-one students have completed PhDs in Middle East studies in the
past three years, in the departments of Art History, Comparative
Literature, Ethnomusicology, History, Near Eastern Languages and
Cultures, Political Science and the Islamic Studies Program.
Diane James
Avner Ben Zaken (History, 2004), `The Angelus Novus of Early Modern
Science: The Past, the East and the Circulation of Post-Copernican
Astronomy in the Eastern Mediterranean, 1560-1660.’ Avner is
conducting postgraduate research as a Junior Fellow (2004-06) in the
Harvard Society of Fellows.
Sandra Campbell (Islamic Studies, 2003), `Telling Memories: The
Zubayrids in Islamic Historical Memory.’
Cynthia Skvorec Colburn (Art History, 2003), “The Art of Interaction:
Distance and Social Status in Prepalatial Crete.” Cynthia is Visiting
Professor of Art History, Pepperdine University, Malibu.
Jacob Dahl (NELC, 2003), “The Ruling Family of Ur III Umma: A
Prosopographical Analysis of a Provincial Elite Family in Southern
Iraq ca. 2100-2000 BC.” Jacob was awarded a fellowship by the Centre
National de la Recherche Scientifique for postgraduate research at
the Musée du Louvre in Paris.
Lynn Swartz Dodd (NELC, 2002), “The Ancient Past in the Ancient
Present: Cultural Identity in Gurgum during the Late Bronze Age-Early
Iron Age Transition in North Syria.” Lynn is Visiting Assistant
Professor in the School of Religion and Curator of the Archaeological
Research Collection at the University of Southern California.
Howard Eissenstat (History, 2004), `Imagining a New Nation: Range of
Discourse in the Development of Turkish Nationalism, 1920-1945.’
Howard is Assistant Professor of Middle Eastern History in the
Department of History, University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point.
Roger Good (NELC, 2003), `The Septuagint’s Translation of the Hebrew
Verbal System in Chronicles.’
Karen Gumberg (Comparative Literature, 2004), `Poetics of Place:
Unraveling Home and Exile in Jewish Literature from Israel and the
United States.’ Karen is Assistant Professor of Hebrew Literature in
the Department of Middle Eastern Studies, University of Texas at
Austin.
Kathleen Hood (Ethnomusicology, 2002), “Music and Memory in a Global
Age: Wedding Songs of the Syrian Druzes.”
George Kooshian (History, 2002), “The Armenian Immigrant Community of
California, 1880-1935.” George teaches English as a Second Language
in the Los Angeles Unified School District.
Fred Mabie (NELC, 2004), `Ancient Near Eastern Scribes and the
Mark(s) They Left: A Catalog and Analysis of Scribal Auxiliary Marks
in the Amarna Corpus and in the Cuneiform Alphabetic Texts of Ugarit
and Ras Ibn Hani.’ Fred is an Assistant Professor at Biola University
in La Mirada, California.
Afshin Marashi (History, 2003), “Nationalizing Iran: Culture, Power,
and the State, 1870-1941.” Afshin is Assistant Professor of History,
California State University, Sacramento.
Kerry Muhlestein (NELC, 2003), `Violence in the Service of Order: The
Religious Framework for Sanctioned Killing in Ancient Egypt.’ Kerry
is Assistant Professor of Religion and History, Brigham Young
University, Hawaii.
Firoozeh Papan-Matin (NELC, 2004), `Death, Vision and the Self in
`Ayn al-Qudat Hamadhania.’ Firoozeh teaches Iranian Studies in the
Department of Religious Studies, University of California, Santa
Barbara.
Nahid Pirnazar (NELC, 2003), `The Place of the Fifteenth-Century
Judeo-Persian Religious Epic Emrani’s Fathnameh in Iranian Literary
Traditions.’
Heidi Rutz (Islamic Studies, 2003), “Orders from God? The
Implications of Ethno-religious Discourse and Transnational Networks
on Group Mobilization and Violence.” Heidi is an Assistant Professor
in the US Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island.
Sonia Tamar Seeman (Ethnomusicology, 2002), “You’re Roman: Music and
Identity in Turkish Roman Communities.” Sonia is a Postdoctoral
Faculty Fellow in Ethnomusicology at the University of California,
Santa Barbara, and performs with the UCSB Middle East Ensemble.
David Simonowitz (Islamic Studies, 2004), `On the Cutting Edges of
Dhu’l-Fiqar: Authority and the Discourse of Architecture in the
Musta`li-Tayyibi and Nizari Communities.’
Abdulkader Sinno (Political Science, 2002), “Organizing to Win: How
Organizational Structure Affects the Outcome of Strategic Interaction
in Politicized Group Conflicts.” Abdulkader is Assistant Professor of
Political Science and Middle Eastern Studies at Indiana University in
Bloomington.
Julie Taylor (Political Science, 2004), `Prophet Sharing: Strategic
Interaction between Islamic Clerics and Middle Eastern Regimes.’
Julie is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Near Eastern
Studies, Princeton University.
Hussam Timani (Islamic Studies, 2002), “The Khawarij in Modern
Islamic Historiography.” Hussam teaches Middle East History at
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Anadolu Agency
Sept 24 2004
Gul: We Have No Plan B About EU
NEW YORK – “The government does not have `plan B` in case it fails
to win a date from the European Union (EU) for start of entry
talks,“ Turkish Foreign Minister & Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah
Gul said on Friday.
Gul addressed the Turkish-American Business Forum in New York.
Asked if the Turkish government has `plan B` in case the EU makes a
negative decision about Turkey in December, Gul said, “we have no
such plan. We have reached the end of our forty-year work. We have no
energy to prepare such a plan after current stage. Turkey`s EU target
has not come out with dream or desire. We should be realistic. We
wrote down the criteria required for it one by one. We crossed out an
article we have completed. Now that we see that the things we should
fulfill lessened. Besides, the European leaders know the consequences
and negative impacts of a negative political decision after all the
conditions are met.“
Stating that end of 2004 would be recorded as an important turning
point in Turkey`s history, Gul said, “Turkey and EU will start talks
on full membership. No obstacle remained in front of it. The same
conditions should be imposed on Turkey as other members.“
Gul said, “I can say that political criteria are met in Turkey.
There has been very significant developments in economic conditions.
There is no more obstacle to start negotiations. European leaders
know this very well. All those changes will be reflected in the
commission report. A political decision will be made and negotiations
will start without losing time. This will be the start of a new
period in Turkey.“
Gul stated that there was a realistic, rational and resolved
government in Turkey.
Stating that Turkish community in the United States should be
strengthened, Gul said, “the more strength you gain here, the more
you will be beneficial to Turkey.“
Gul said there has been a transformation in Turkey, and stressed that
this transformation is not only in political area but also in
economy, culture, arts, and social life.
Emphasizing that confidence was provided in economy, Gul said on the
one hand inflation rate was dropped, and on the other hand economic
growth was around 13-14 percent. “This is an economic miracle,“ Gul
said.
Replying to a question, Gul said one of the most significant policies
of the government was improvement of relations with neighboring
countries.
“Security problems should be solved for economic development. With
this objective, the region should turn into a secure region. This can
only be provided with positive relations,“ Gul pointed out.
“The government set up sincere relations with whole Islam and Arab
world. There has been incredible increases in our trade as a result
of this. This was reflected in political atmosphere. Positive
relations are also very important for global peace. Islam countries
closely follow reforms in Turkey. I believe that the reforms will
have positive effects on those countries,“ Gul underlined.
Replying to another question, Gul said he was against use of nuclear
energy as weapon, and stated that, “we suggest this to Iran in a
friendly manner. We want the region to be purified from nuclear
weapons.“
Gul said Turkey`s relations improved with its neighbors in the
Caucasus, stating that Armenia should withdraw from the Azerbaijani
territories for normalization of relations. “Both Armenia and
Azerbaijan want Turkey to be active for resolution of this problem,“
Gul said, stating that Turkey exerted efforts for resolution of this
problem.