Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
Nov 17 2006
Antalya Summit starts today
[ 17 Nov. 2006 15:39 ]
Antalya Summit of the Turkish Speaking Countries has started today.
The summit is attended by Turkey’s President Ahmed Nejdet Sezer,
Azerbaijan’s Ilham Aliyev, Kazakhstan’s Nursultan Nazarbayev,
Kyrgyzstan’s Kurmanbek Bakiev.
Turkmenistan is participating in the summit at embassy level, however
Uzbekistan has no representative.
Turkish President Ahmed Nejdet Sezer opened the summit, saying this
event is the start of a new era.
“We see global changes in the world. Cooperation between Turkish
states has become inevitable. Kars-Akhalkalak-Tbilisi-Baku railway
will be a bridge joining Turkish countries,” he said.
Ahmed Nejdet Sezer said Turkey has always been together with Azerbaijan
in the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev expressed his gratitude to his
Turkish counterpart for the high-level summit.
This kind of events paves the way for new cooperation levels among
Turkish countries. We have left all difficulties behind, we have
defended our independence,” he said.
He said the Turkish states are developing very rapidly at present.
“Azerbaijan’s economy growth rate is the leading one in the world.
The economy growth rate hit 26 percent in 2005, but we forecast that
the growth will reach 34 percent this year. The stronger economy we
have, the quicker solution we can find to the problems,” he stated.
Touching upon the Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan and
displacement of over one million people from their native lands
by Armenians, Mr. Aliyev said Azerbaijan can also lay many claims
against Armenia.
“Irevan (Yerevan) khanate was the territory of Azerbaijan. But, we
don’t lay such claims. We want our lands to be liberated in a peaceful
way, however our hopes is running out. Nagorno Karabakh- a criminal
regime- has remained far from international control. They are making
various illicit drugs there, they are preparing for terrorisitc acts
there. The world countries, in particular Turkish ones should pay
attention to this problem. UN Security Council’s four resolutions
on unconditional withdrawal of Armenian troops from Azeri lands
remain unimplemented. CE resolutions haven’t yet been implemented
either. Armenia’s aggressive policy has created undesirable situation
in the region,” he said.
Mr. Aliyev also said Kars-Akhalkalak-Tbilisi-Baku railway line will
be a direct bridge between Azerbaijan and Turkey and Kazakhstan’s
joining the project is very estimable.
He also expressed his satisfaction with the activities of TURKSOY.
Ilham Aliyev expressed his support for Turkey’s accession to the EU.
“Azerbaijan is very concerned over pressures Turkey faces in the
accession process.” He stated.
Kazakhstan’s President spoke of the importance of the union of Turkish
Speaking Countries, suggesting that Higher Council of the Turkish
States should be established and Turkish 9th president Suleyman
Demirel should be the Council President.
Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiev said that economic, political and
cultural cooperation between the Turkish countries should be deepened.
Antalya Declaration will be adopted at the end of the Summit. /APA/

Turkish ultra-nationalist organizations hold one more action of
protest against the Armenian Genocide
Regnum, Russia
Nov 17 2006
The Labor Party of Turkey and a number of other Turkish organizations
have held an action of protest in front of the building of the
Consulate General of France in Istanbul with slogans “The Armenian
Genocide is an Imperialistic Lie!” and “No to French Products!”
reports Trend news agency.
The secretary general of the LPT Dogu Perincek said that “the so-called
Armenian Genocide is a fable invented by the imperialist forces,
who are trying to use it in their occupant plans.”
He said that on Nov 21 the leadership of the party is going to hold a
mass action of protest in Paris in order to urge France “not to become
a puppet in the US’ Middle East plans.” Perincek urged the leaders of
all political parties of Turkey to take part in it and also to hold
a joint press conference in Paris on Nov 21. Perincek said that the
fact that Orhan Pamuk was awarded Nobel Prize shows that Turkey is on
the threshold of dangerous events. “The Nobel Prize was a reward to
Pamuk for betrayal of Turkey’s national interests,” said Perincek. He
urged the ralliers to continue their action “until France revokes
the bill criminalizing the denial of the Armenian Genocide.”
As REGNUM reported earlier, the Labor Party of Turkey is known for
its ultra-nationalist and Kemalist position. In the Turkish Diaspora
it closely cooperates with the Nationalist Movement Party against the
international recognition of the Armenian Genocide, the Cyprian issue.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARKADY GHOUKASSIAN MET WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF ARMENIAN DIASPORA OF U. S. WESTERN COAST
DeFacto Agency, Armenia
Nov 17 2006
As it has already been reported, Arkady Ghoukassian is in the U. S.
in connection with the TV marathon targeted at fund raising for the
NKR’s further development to be held in Los Angeles November 23.
According to the information DE FACTO got at the Main Department of
Information under the NKR President, Arkady Ghoukassian met with the
representatives of the Armenian Diaspora of the U. S. Western coast.
A reception was organized in honor of the NKR President. RA Consul
General in Los Angeles Armen Liloyan also participated in the event.
Arkady Ghoukassian met with a famous philanthropist Albert Boyajian,
an active participant of the TV marathons held in the U. S Arkady
Avanesian, Americans for Artsakh Organization’s President Zaven
Khanjian and the U. S. Western coast Armenian Jewelers Association
Chair Levon Shant Khaytaian. In the course of the talks the
interlocutors considered the issues referring to the perspectives of
the implementation of various projects in the sphere of economy,
education and culture in Artsakh.

Chicago Maroon, IL
Nov 17 2006
Atom Egoyan introduces jarring and strikingly personal new film at
Doc
By Rob Weisenberger
Friday, November 17th, 2006
Atom Egoyan really is having trouble with the auto focus. The Academy
Award-nominated director, whose film, Citadel, held its American
premier on campus last Thursday as part of the Chicago Presidential
Fellows in the Arts Series, is still “working things out” with his new
handheld camera. But it’s worth bearing with him as he documents his
wife’s first return to Lebanon since the civil war 28 years ago in a
travel journal addressed to his then 10-year-old son. “This trip was
full of events and details you’ll never remember when you’re old enough
to watch this,” Egoyan explains in his voice-over; this trip “would
change our lives… and have an effect on yours.” This highly personal
journal-at times playful and didactic-is, as a gift from father to
son, a remembrance of one journey and a guide to every future one. We,
the viewers packing Max Palevsky Cinema last Thursday, had the rare
privilege of seeing a film never intended to be shown publicly in the
company of Egoyan and the film’s star, his award-winning actress-wife,
Arsinee Khanjian. We were simply along for the ride.
And the ride was often a bumpy one: The film’s opening shot is framed
by the windshield of a car careening around the suburbs of Beirut.
The land is lush and bathed in light. The soundtrack is woven from the
soothing strains of Lebanese folk music and the incessant chatter
of Egoyan’s animated wife, while the camera aimed on her face.
Arsinee’s memories of her childhood before the war come flooding
back: Some things have changed, others remain “exactly the same.” The
Cairo-born, Canadian-raised director of Armenian descent tries to
commit his wife’s ebullient homecoming to home video.
The crucial dynamics of the couple-husband and wife, artist and
subject-are as touching as they are comedic. Egoyan, as a bystander
in the film points out, must “love [Arsinee] very much, because he is
always filming her.” In what will prove to be an essential admission,
he concedes early in the film: “It’s possible that the extraordinary
detail of stories and memories you’re encountering are a result of the
peculiar alchemy that exists between your mother and I. After all,
I’ve got the camera and she’s the subject.” Egoyan’s constant and
loving pokes at his wife’s little idiosyncrasies add comic relief and
only boost the director’s ethos. When Arsinee’s endless ruminations
lapse into inanity, he quips: “You’re a very deep thinker.” At another
moment, when she forgets the Arab word for “democracy,” he prods her
mercilessly, reflecting at length in his voice-over on whether the
incident displays a failing in Arsinee’s long-unused Arabic vocabulary
or one in Lebanon’s pseudo-democratic system. Egoyan favors the second
explanation, launching into a criticism of Lebanon’s inflexible and
anachronistic system of representation.
It is Egoyan’s paternal instinct that inspires these sorts of
explanations. Besides confessing a father’s occasional difficulty at
answering his son’s innocent but incisive questions, Egoyan tries to
contextualize everything for his son’s benefit. Whenever he prefaces an
observation with “what you need to know is …” or when he frequently
admonishes his son to “think about this,” either a concrete lesson
on Lebanese culture or a sweeping, cosmological reflection is about
to follow. One of the more lurid history lessons that his son “needs
to know” is on the massacre of alleged Palestinian sympathizers by
Christians during the Lebanese civil war. Despite the perpetrators’
background in humanism and the Bible, Egoyan explains, these ghastly
acts were made possible because the victims weren’t seen as human.
Egoyan is a helpful, and perhaps even too helpful, guide: Where a
viewer might normally need to draw his own inferences, he pronounces
truths at every turn. “Boundaries are taken seriously in Lebanon,”
he states portentously, and “things in this city are never what they
seem.” Egoyan’s voice is, however, remarkably personal and ingenuous.
He speaks “as someone from the West,” and filters and augments his
impressions through juxtaposition with the poetry of Keats and Shelley,
as well as his own childhood experience, when his father read him
the work of the Lebanese artist and writer Khalil Gibran, who advised
parents that their children “came from,” but did not belong to them,
and needed to have thoughts of their own. This sentiment guides
Egoyan’s labor of love as a sort of paternal primer before his son
sets off into the world.
Egoyan, a relentlessly self-conscious narrator and guide (he films
himself in a mirror early on), ruminates endlessly on his own role
in the project (“maybe that’s all I am-a poacher making a souvenir”)
offers some useful insight on his role as a filmmaker. Calvino,
as Egoyan explains, wrote, “The person who considers everything
not photographed lost as if it never existed. Therefore in order
to ever really live, you must photograph as much as you can. And
to photograph as much as you can, you must either live in the most
photographable way possible or consider photographable every moment
of your life. The first course leads to stupidity, and the second
course leads to madness.”
Yet it is at this point that Egoyan’s film changes drastically:
Nothing we had seen thus far would prepare us for what was about to
happen next. With the same heavy-handed build-up of suspense I used to
transition from the last sentence to this one, Egoyan also build’s to
the film’s climax: the Citadel, “where everything would change; from
where things would never be the same.” Here a spoiler warning should
be issued. For the sake of space, we can say in essence that Egoyan,
the loving father and ingenuous narrator who had brought us this far,
now pulls the wool over our eyes.
On a tour of the ancient ruins of the Citadel, Egoyan demonizes his
tour guide by his camerawork and commentary. “Why did your mother
trust him?” he asks. “I had a strange feeling about him from the
moment we met.” By fabricating a story based loosely on reality,
Egoyan paints his benign young guide as a ruthless accomplice to
a repressive regime. We feel slightly duped after having swallowed
Egoyan’s ploy whole.
“That’s what’s absurd,” Egoyan admits after revealing this fabricated
plot turn, added to an otherwise mostly truthful film. “That I could
take these images of our guide, a completely innocent man, and make
you believe that he’s a monster, and that something terrible is about
to happen.” What’s more, though, Egoyan and his wife had no plans to
give the film this twist at the outset; the two began spontaneously,
when given the opportunity, to improvise and dramatize the scenario,
creating suspense and drama where there hadn’t really been any.
The lesson to Egoyan’s son about his parents that follows is as
instructive on this evening, when we meet the filmmaker and his
wife, as the film’s broader lesson. First, we learn that Egoyan and
Arsinee do reside “between stupidity and madness,” in a world where
everything is to be made photographable. “You have to remember who
your parents are,” Egoyan reminds his son. “I make images; your mother
acts in them.”
The second, broader lesson of a touching film, heightened rather than
marred by Egoyan’s stunt, speaks to how contingent an image can be.
“There are hundreds of stories in this street,” Egoyan concludes, “and
this is the only one you happen to be watching.” Yet if photography
is only a matter of “capturing” rather than “creating” images, as
he considers, then how we present these images, how we show them,
and how they are seen is also crucial. It means no less than how we
see and treat others.
There were, of course, hundreds of other stories residing in that
one Lebanese street, but it would be hard to believe that there were
many ones much better than what we just “happened to be watching”
on Thursday. And it wasn’t even intended for us.

Turkish Daily News, Turkey
Nov 17 2006
Turkey to light Greek Aegean islands
Friday, November 17, 2006
Greece wants to buy electricity from Turkey because of a supply
shortage on some of its Aegean islands. Turkey will also resume its
importation of Bulgarian electricity, which was halted in 2003
BEGUM GURSOY
ANKARA
Turkey is preparing to export electricity to some Greek islands and
also to resume importing electricity from Bulgaria after a stoppage
lasting almost three years.
Despite the disagreement on the Cyprus issue, Turkey has already
started negotiations for trade in electricity with Greece. The Greek
side is reported to have informed Turkey that there was a supply
shortage in the Greek islands located close to the Turkish coast.
Greece has told Turkey that this need could be met by importing
electricity from the Turkish mainland.
The bilateral talks indicate that the island of Rhodes will have
priority and that other Greek islands lying close to the Turkish
coast will be provided with electricity transmitted from Turkey.
Turkey will become a full member of the Union for the Coordination of
Transmission of Electricity (UCTE) in 2007 and thus will standardize
its electric system with Europe and start trading electricity with
other countries.
Bulgarian electricity to arrive in 2007:
State-owned Turkish Electricity Trading Company (TETAŞ), operating
under the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, will manage the
resumption of electricity imports from Bulgaria.
Turkey imported 4 billion kilowatts of electricity from Bulgaria
between 2000 and 2003 after an intergovernmental agreement signed in
1998. While Turkey was paying 3.7 cents per kilowatt, Turkey halted
the imports on April 21, 2003 on the basis that the Bulgarian side
was not honoring its contractual obligations.
According to the energy deal, the Bulgarian side was to select
Turkish contractors to build its hydroelectric power plant and highway
projects. However, Turkey asserted that the Bulgarian side was not
complying with this commitment.
Top officials from both countries have been reviewing the issue and
trying to find a compromise. The agreement under negotiation calls for
resuming imports of Bulgarian electricity in 2007, yet the two sides
continue to debate the price, with TETAŞ reported to oppose any
wholesale price above 5.7 cents per kilowatt.
Meanwhile, Turkey’s expected membership in UCTE will give it more
options for electricity trading with other countries as Turkey will
be connected to the European electricity transmission system through
Bulgaria and Greece.
Turkey’s electric grid will become harmonized with the European one
so that a supply shortage in Turkey can be met by transmissions from
the European system’s back-up power supply.
UCTE membership will also provide advantages to the private sector,
enabling power generators here to find customers in Europe once the
harmonization is finalized.
Regional electricity trade to develop:
Turkey now has interconnected lines with Azerbaijan, Armenia,
Bulgaria, Romania, Iran, Iraq and Syria. On the other hand, UCTE is
a coordinating body for developing and managing the European electric
transmission system.
This organization now has 23 communication companies as members.
Member countries are Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belgium,
Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro, the Czech Republic, Germany, Denmark,
Spain, France, Greece, Croatia, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Macedonia,
the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and the Slovak
Republic.
Apart from these, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia have been connected to
the European system through Gibraltar. Electricity trade with these
countries is expected to develop after Turkey finalizes its technical
harmonization to the UCTE system.

NATO, France downplay impact of Turkish military decision
Turkish Daily News, Turkey
Nov 17 2006
ANKARA – TDN with wire dispatches
Both NATO and the French capital have remained calm over a decision
by the Turkish military to freeze military ties with France in
a growing diplomatic row, saying the decision would not have an
immediate impact on the two courtiers’ cooperation with NATO or on
the existing cooperation between Turkey and France, particularly in
NATO-led overseas operations.
French Defense Ministry spokesman Jean-Francois Bureau said yesterday
that France believes that existing cooperation with Turkey will
continue. Specifically, he mentioned operations in the Balkans and
in Afghanistan. “There is a relationship of work and cooperation in
these operational commitments with Turkey that are extremely important
and which, in our eyes, will continue,” he said.
Turkish Land Forces Commander Gen. İlker Başbug announced
the suspension of military relations with France late Wednesday
in retaliation for a French parliamentary bill criminalizing any
denial of the alleged genocide of Armenians at the hands of the
Ottoman Empire. Başbug was speaking to reporters at a reception
in Ankara on the occasion of the 23rd anniversary of the founding of
the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (KKTC).
“Relations with France in the military field have been suspended,”
Başbug said. Asked whether there were any cancelations of
military visits, he replied, “There are no high-level visits between
the two countries.”
Bureau noted that the suspension was announced by a military commander,
not Turkey’s civilian government. “Until now, the announcement has
not had any practical or concrete effect,” he said, although he added
that there could be some in the future. He also noted that military
relations have recovered in recent years from a previous chill in 2001,
when France passed a law recognizing the Armenian killings as genocide.
In Brussels, NATO officials said the alliance’s operations would
not be affected by the Turkish army’s decision. “It’s a bilateral
issue. It won’t affect their relations at NATO,” an official said.
Both French and Turkish troops were operating in Kabul, he added.
“They’re there today,” he stressed.
French and Turkish troops operate side by side in the Afghan capital,
under the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF),
combating a fierce insurgency by the Taliban.
Turkey has warned that bilateral ties will suffer a great blow if
France adopts the controversial bill, which foresees one year in jail
for anyone who denies that Armenians were subjected to genocide.
The bill was passed in the French National Assembly last month but
still needs the approval of the Senate and the president to take
effect.
“This doesn’t concern NATO,” a diplomat at NATO said. “We don’t foresee
any difficulties in the NATO sphere. There won’t be any impact on
the functioning of the Alliance.”
Top military officers from NATO and partner nations were completing
two days of talks in Brussels yesterday, two weeks ahead of a NATO
summit in Riga to shape and inform military advice for the North
Atlantic Council.

AzerTag, Azerbaijan
Nov 17 2006
CHAIRMAN OF CAUCASIAN MUSLIMS’ OFFICE MEETS WITH CHAIRMAN OF SAUDI
ARABIA’S GENERAL ORGANIZATION FOR SOCIAL INSURANCE
[November 17, 2006, 12:26:23]
Chairman of the Caucasian Muslims’ Office, Sheikh ul-Islam
Allahshukur Pashazade met with visiting Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s
General Organization for Social Insurance Suliman Al-Humaid and his
accompanying delegation.
Allahshukur Pashazade welcomed the level of cooperation between
Azerbaijan and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
He said Azerbaijan was the first former Soviet republic to join the
Organization of the Islamic Conference.
Mr. Pashazade noted Islam strengthened in Azerbaijan after his country
regained its independence.
Chairman of the Caucasian Muslims’ Office recalled the meeting between
the nationwide leader of the Azerbaijani people Heydar Aliyev and
Saudi Arabia’s late King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud, adding it marked
a new era in the bilateral ties between the two countries.
Allahshukur Pashazade expressed his gratitude to Saudi Arabia for
supporting Azerbaijan’s efforts towards peaceful solution to its
conflict with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh.
Suliman Al-Humaid conveyed to Sheikh ul-Islam Allahshukur Pashazade
sincere greetings from the King of Saudi Arabia Abdullah bin Abdulaziz
al-Saud.
The Saudi guest said his country views Azerbaijan as a fraternal
country and welcomes the fact Azerbaijan has managed to preserve its
religious values and traditions in face of difficult period.
Mr. Al-Humaid described Azerbaijan as one of the region’s leading
countries.
Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Azerbaijan Ali Hasan Jafar and Ambassador
of Azerbaijan to Saudi Arabia Tofiq Abdullayev were also present at
the meeting.

Good enough to eat: Georgia hosts international food exhibition
By Christina Tashkevich
The Messenger, Georgia
Nov 17 2006
Twenty-nine companies working in the food industry from Georgia,
Armenia, Poland and Azerbaijan gathered at the Sheraton Metekhi Palace
hotel on Thursday to display everything from pickles to beer.
The organisers of the 3rd food exhibition-the British exhibition
company ITE Group PLC and its partner in Georgia ITECA Kavkasia-stress
the importance of the event for Georgia, which has great potential
in the agricultural sector.
“The interest of foreign companies in gaining positions on the
Georgian market is not accidental. This exhibition has already become
a tradition, and seems to be the mediator in the establishment of
business contacts and in drawing investments,” the organisers said
Thursday.
The general director of Armenian company Echmiadzin Cannery, Zareh
Sargsyan, says that his company plans to gain a foothold in the
Georgian food market.
“Armenian tomato paste was famous in the Soviet Union, and we want
to refresh these memories,” he told The Messenger.
The company produces a broad range of canned products including
tomatoes, pickles, and jams and has already exported several containers
of its products for the Georgian market. It hopes to export more in
the future.
Polish company DGS, which produces various types of seals for
the food and pharmaceutical industries, is also interested in the
Georgian market. “We thought it’s an excellent chance for us to
present our products to the right market here in Georgia. You are
a very well-known producer of wine, so we are here ready to work,”
the company’s technical sales support manager Anna Napiorkowska told
the paper.
Italian company Zanetti Spa can offer Georgian customers the many
different types of cheese it produces. “We export to 50 countries,
why not to Georgia?” the company representative said.
Georgian companies at the exhibition included drinks manufacturers
Natakhtari, Bagrationi 1882 and Kazbegi.
The exhibition will last until November 18, on display are food
products, alcohol and soft drinks, ingredients and food supplements,
packaging equipment, restaurant and bar equipment.

ARMENIAN REPORTER
PO Box 129
Paramus, New Jersey 07652
Tel: 1-201-226-1995
Fax: 1-201-226-1660
Web:
Email: [email protected]
November 18, 2006
1. EU signs “Neighborhood Action Plan” agreements with Armenia,
Azerbaijan , Georgia
2. Heirs of Armenian Genocide victims to receive almost $8 million
from New York Life settlement
3. Armenian soldier wounded in Iraq; Defense Minister Sargsyan in
Baghdad
4. Vimpel set to buy ArmenTel from Greeks; promises to relinquish
ArmenTel’s controversial monopolies
5. “Armenian Reporter” opens D.C. bureau; Emil Sanamyan is Washington
Editor
6. Editorial: Thankfully
************************************** *************************************
1. EU signs “Neighborhood Action Plan” agreements with Armenia,
Azerbaijan , Georgia
Yerevan–On November 14 in Brussels, the European Union and Armenia
signed a European Neighborhood Policy Action Plan. Under the plan,
the EU will provide Armenia with aid, better trade relations, and
greater political cooperation; Armenia, in turn, will adopt political
and economic reforms. Similar plans were signed with Azerbaijan and
Georgia on the same day.
The EU is expected to spend an average of 25 million Euros ($32
million) on the Armenia program each year for the first five years of
the agreement.
The EU high commissioner for foreign and security policy, Javier
Solana, told RFE/RL that the EU’s contribution increases if the
recipient government “does things properly.” Otherwise, “cooperation
with the government will diminish.”
Mr. Solana added, “This is the same political technology that was
applied to countries that later became EU members, sector by sector,
chapter by chapter in a very well-organized fashion that we have
tremendous experience in.”
Signing the accord on behalf of Armenia was Foreign Minister Vartan
Oskanian. Welcoming the plan’s insistence on political and economic
reforms, Mr. Oskanian noted that Armenia’s “development depends not
on natural resources but human resources; and therefore, we have to
provide the necessary conditions to develop that resource.”
The Foreign Ministry announced that in the process of implementation
of the plan, ” Armenia’s social, political and economic systems will
begin to resemble European systems.” Further, the plan allows for
Armenia–and the two neighboring republics–to penetrate EU’s
internal markets.
**************************************** ***********************************
2. Heirs of Armenian Genocide victims to receive almost $8 million
from New York Life settlement
Los Angeles–Settlement checks totaling $7,954,362 will be
distributed this week to more than 2,500 descendents of those killed
during the Armenian Genocide of 1915. These checks resulted from the
multi-million-dollar settlement reached in a class action lawsuit
brought against New York Life Insurance Company.
The lawsuit, originally filed in November 1999, stemmed from New York
Life’s nonpayment of life insurance benefits for those who died in
the Armenian Genocide. These payments, together with the $3 million
dollars already distributed to various Armenian charitable
organizations, puts an end to an historic and groundbreaking case
which was able to right a 90-year-old injustice.
“Ten years ago, compensating these Armenians was a mere dream,” said
Vartkes Yeghiayan, one of the lead attorneys who represented the
Armenian heirs and who originally conceived of this case 20 years
ago. “This settlement was a small measure of justice for the
Armenians.”
The Settlement Board, the body created by the Federal District Court
to handle the distribution of the settlement, reviewed 5,692 claims
and found that 2,515 of them could be traced to Armenians who had
purchased life insurance policies from New York Life prior to 1915.
Letters will be mailed to all claimants, with checks included for all
claimants that were awarded compensation. Of the nearly $8 million in
checks, Armenians in Armenia will receive the most, roughly $3.7
million, followed by Armenians in the United States who will receive
almost $2.7 million. Armenians in France occupy the third place and
will receive a total of $656,413. In all, Armenians in 26 countries
will receive compensation.
For questions about the settlement, contact the Settlement Board at
(213) 327-0740.
*************************************** ************************************
3. Armenian soldier wounded in Iraq; Defense Minister Sargsyan in
Baghdad
Yerevan-Senior Lieutenant Georgi Nalbandian, 25, a member of the
Armenian regiment in Iraq, was seriously wounded in an attack on
November 11. He was transported to a U.S. military hospital in
Germany for treatment. Two other soldiers, one from Poland, the other
from Slovakia, were killed in the attack. Mr. Nalbandian’s right leg
was amputated.
In a news release, the U.S. embassy in Yerevan expressed “its deepest
concern” for the soldier and thanked him and his Armenian colleagues
“for their vital role in the international coalition fighting the
global war on terror.”
The attack occurred while the soldiers were returning from a mission
to defuse mines, the Armenian Defense Ministry announced. The bomb
exploded near the town of Al Kut in Wasit province as a multinational
convoy was returning to base.
Armenian troops, now in their fourth rotation, have been deployed to
Iraq since January 2005. The contingent of 46 soldiers includes truck
drivers, bomb detonation experts, physicians, and officers. They
carry out only humanitarian operations.
Meanwhile, Armenia’s defense minister Serge Sargsyan began a
previously scheduled trip to Iraq to visit the Armenian soldiers and
meet his Iraqi counterpart. Mr. Sargsyan has asked the National
Assembly to prolong the service commitment of the Armenian detachment
in Iraq. “Armenia cannot only be a security consumer. It ought to
have its modest but consistent contribution to the world security
processes,” Mr. Sargsyan told reporters. “As time shows, our officers
and soldiers are on an important and difficult mission, but it is
first of all Armenia that needs this mission, and by their duty our
soldiers once again confirm that Armenia is a full-fledged state.”
A sixth rotation of Armenian troops left for Kosovo this week.
After recovering, Mr. Nalbandian, the wounded soldier, is expected to
return to Armenia to continue his military service.
**************************************** ***********************************
4. Vimpel set to buy ArmenTel from Greeks; promises to relinquish
ArmenTel’s controversial monopolies
YEREVAN–In what may be the largest business transaction in Armenia’s
history, the Russian mobile operator Vimpel Communications is buying
a 90 percent stake in Armenia Telephone Company (ArmenTel) from the
Hellenic Telecommunications Organization for 341.9 million Euros
($436.3 million) plus about 40 million Euros in debt.
The Armenian government’s Public Services Regulatory Commission
approved the sale on November 14.
ArmenTel holds a monopoly on landlines in Armenia, for which it has
about 600,000 subscribers. It holds about 40 percent of the mobile
market with about 400,000 mobile subscribers. It also holds a
monopoly on Internet data transmission.
Vimpel says it will relinquish the monopolies ArmenTel holds within a
year. It says it will compete by increasing the quality and variety
of ArmenTel’s services. It is expected to make a $100 million
investment in Armenia in 2007.
Vahe Yacoubian, a Los Angeles attorney representing the Armenian
government in its dealings with ArmenTel, says that Vimpel has
offered to give up the Internet data transmission monopoly
immediately.
“Both sides are interested in completing this process as soon as
possible as VimpelCom itself states that they think that an open
market is better for their company’s business and profits,” Yaghubian
said, according to RFE/RL.
Vimpel operates phone services in Russia and Kazakhstan. It has
recently acquired cellular operators in Ukraine, Tajikistan,
Uzbekistan, and Georgia.
Whereas the main Russian investors in Armenia have in the past been
state companies, Vimpel is publicly traded. The largest shareholder,
at 33 percent, is Altimo, part of Mikail Fridman’s Alfa holding
company, which is publicly traded in the U.S. A Norwegian company,
Telenor, is the second-largest shareholder at 27 percent.
Another Russian company that took part in the tender and for months
claimed to have won it has closer ties to the Russian state.
****************************************** *********************************
5. “Armenian Reporter” opens D.C. bureau; Emil Sanamyan is Washington
Editor
Yerevan–The “Armenian Reporter” has established a bureau in the
nation’s capital, announced Vincent Lima, the newsweekly’s editor.
Emil Sanamyan has been appointed Washington editor of the “Armenian
Reporter” and will lead the bureau.
“Our community recognizes that what goes on in Washington is
important for Armenia, Artsakh, and Armenian-Americans,” Mr. Lima
said. “True to our calling as an independent newspaper, we are doing
what we must in order to bring our readers first-hand accounts of
these goings on.”
The “Reporter”‘s Washington Bureau will follow developments of
interest in the administration and Congress, at the Armenian Embassy
and Nagorno-Karabakh office, and in Washington think tanks. It will
also report on the activities of Armenian lobbying and advocacy
groups and on Armenians in Washington–officials, staffers, visitors,
and interns.
“I am truly delighted to join the Reporter staff,” Mr. Sanamyan said.
“This is a unique and exciting opportunity to contribute to the
understanding of the United States’ policymaking, particularly as it
relates to Armenian concerns.”
“Emil Sanamyan is a great resource for our readers. He is not afraid
to pick up the phone, call a source, and get to the bottom of
things,” said Chris Zakian, managing editor of the “Reporter.” “And
he knows whom to call. As a researcher and analyst, he has been
following news, attending talks, reading reports, and networking in
Washington for years.”
A graduate of the University of Arizona, Mr. Sanamyan has studied,
worked, and lived in Washington since 1998. While attending the
George Washington University’s Elliott School of International
Affairs, he served as assistant to the Representative of the
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic in the United States. Since 2000 and until
recently, he was Research and Information Associate at the Armenian
Assembly of America.
Mr. Sanamyan and his wife Oksana make their home in Rosslyn, VA.
********************************************* ******************************
6. Editorial: Thankfully
It is the week before Thanksgiving, and we are counting our
blessings.
Armenia celebrated the fifteenth anniversary of its independence this
year, a joyous milestone. And it is the fifteenth anniversary too of
the overwhelming vote of the people of Karabagh in favor of
independence.
Armenia has a long way to go, of course. But we can be grateful for
the progress that has been made over the past year. The economy has
attracted increased investments; there are thousands of new jobs.
This progress is reflected in double-digit growth in the gross
domestic product, coupled with low inflation.
The progress will continue–in the economy as well as in the
political and
social arenas.
Only this week Armenia and the European Union signed a European
Neighborhood Policy Action Plan. The plan helps Armenia implement
political and economic reforms, while lifting trade barriers and
investing perhaps 125 million euros ($160 million) in the country
over the next five years.
This April Armenia and the United States signed the Millennium
Challenge Compact, which invests a much-needed $237 million in
Armenia’s rural infrastructure.
Both programs come with strings attached: Armenia must fulfill
commitments to political, economic, and social reforms. But these
strings are not encumbrances; they insist simply on the
implementation of commitments Armenia has chosen to make. These
commitments are in line with our collective desire to see a more
democratic, more transparent, more prosperous, and peaceful country.
* * *
Meanwhile, we have seen Armenian issues take an ever-higher
international profile over the past year. In April, PBS broadcast a
documentary on the Armenian Genocide. The broadcast got the attention
of major newspapers thanks to our collective response to an
ill-advised decision of the network brass. The decision was to
balance out the well-balanced documentary with a panel discussion
that gave legitimacy to falsifiers of the historical record.
The Genocide stayed in the news, grabbing headlines again in late
September when President Jacques Chirac announced that France
considered recognition of the Genocide a precondition for Turkey’s
accession to the European Union. EU officials who were trying to get
Turkey to meet other agreed-upon preconditions condemned the
announcement. But the French opposition agreed with the president on
this one–making the precondition very real.
Armenians and the Armenian Genocide grabbed headlines again in
October when Orhan Pamuk–one of the growing circle of Turkish
intellectuals at odd with the national chauvinism of his country’s
old elite–won the Nobel Prize for Literature. The same day, the
French National Assembly voted in favor of a bill that would
criminalize denial of the Genocide.
The publication with much fanfare this week of Taner Akcam’s book, A
Shameful Act, is a further step in the right direction.
* * *
The year has also been replete with cultural happenings: concerts,
dance performances, plays, photo exhibits, films, novels, radio
shows, and so much more have made it a joy to be part of the Armenian
community.
Our gratitude is not simply for the events, but for the people who
make them possible. The events reflect an enormous investment of
time, energy, talent, and money by activists, by scholars, by
artists, by engaged philanthropists, by government officials and
pressure groups alike.
We say, “Thank you,” and we say, “Let’s carry on.”
* * *
If it’s Thanksgiving, it’s time for the Armenia Fund Telethon. It’s
time for an extravaganza of live entertainment from some of the most
popular Armenian talent around. It’s time for engaging hosts. It’s
time to see the work your donations last year have made possible.
It’s time to watch online ( ) or tune in. And it’s
definitely time to call in.
********************************************* ******************************
Direct your inquiries to [email protected]
(c) 2006 CS Media Enterprises LLC. All Rights Reserved

CYPRUS DHKO LEADER MEETS GREEK LEADERSHIP
Athens News Agency, Greece
Nov 15 2006
The new leader of Cyprus ruling Democratic Party (DHKO) Marios Karoyian
held talks with Greece’s state and political leadership during a
lightning visit to Athens on Wednesday, before he returns to Cyprus
on Thursday for local government elections taking place there.
The round of meetings began with talks held with Foreign Minister Dora
Bakoyannis, while he was later received by President of the Republic
Karolos Papoulias.
Papoulias congratulated Karoyian on his recent election as head of
Diko and asked him to convey his regards to Cyprus President Tassos
Papadopoulos and Cypriot Foreign Minister George Lillikas on his
return to Cyprus.
In his meeting with Bakoyannis, they discussed Turkey’s European
prospects, the Cyprus issue and the Finnish EU presidency’s proposal
for ending problems caused by Turkey’s refusal to fully implement the
EU-Turkey customs union protocol and open its ports and airports to
Cyprus ships and planes.
Karoyian said his talks with Bakoyannis had been “warm, friendly and
substantive” and that the two sides shared “common assessments and
objectives and common synergies in terms of carrying out the plans
of the two governments [Greek and Cypriot]”.
In comments on the anniversary since the illegal Turkish occupation
regime in northern Cyprus was first established, Karoyian said that his
party condemned the “illegal formation in the occupied territories,
which was an entity subject to Turkey” and noted that its existence
was a “provocation for the international community”.
The new leader of the Diko party also met Parliament President Anna
Psarouda-Benaki, who again expressed her congratulations on his
election and her best wishes for his term as party leader.
This was followed by a meeting with ruling New Democracy’s Central
Committee Secretary Lefteris Zagoritis to discuss cooperation between
the two parties and exchange views on the Cyprus issue and the European
Commission’s progress report on Turkey issued a week earlier.
In a New Democracy party announcement after the meeting, Zagoritis
stressed the party’s support for Turkey’s European orientation
while noting that Turkey had an obligation to respect the values and
principles of the European Union and to fully adopt and implement
the criteria and terms it had been set for accession.
After meeting main opposition PASOK party leader George Papandreou,
Karoyian said they had the same views and positions with regard to
the Cyprus government’s objectives and handling of issues and that
Papandreou had undertaken to intensify general efforts to influence
decision-making centres that also determine assessment of Turkey’s
accession course, so that Turkey would finally realise that it must
behave like a modern, European country and be able to fulfill its
obligations.
Papandreou said they had discussed the EU progress report on Turkey,
and stressed that Turkey had to comply with the terms and its
obligations toward the EU, including EU member-state Cyprus.
“This is necessary and I believe that there will be the required
assessment of this course at the Summit meeting in December,”
Papandreou added.
PASOK’s leader also commented on the anniversary of the pseudo-state,
recognised only by Turkey, stressing that the day was a reminder that
the Cyprus problem was one of occupation and of occupation forces,
which should not exist in Europe today.
He called on Karoyian to “wage our battle together with the Cypriot
people, with you, for a just solution to the Cyprus issue”.
Karoyian was elected as party leader on October 24 with the
backing of the party’s old guard, who had set up Diko three decades
earlier. At 45, he became the third and youngest party leader from
an extraordinary conference where he was challenged only by deputy
leader Nicos Cleanthous. Cyprus President Tassos Papadopoulos had
stepped down as party chief in August.
Karoyian, an Armenian Cypriot who rose up the ranks of the party
founded by the late Spyros Kyprianou, father of European Health and
Consumer Affairs Commissioner Markos Kyprianou, won by a surprisingly
wide margin of 62.6 per cent of the party’s voters over 37.4 per cent
for Cleanthous.