BAKU CONSIDERS COMPARISON OF KARABAKH ISSUE WITH KOSOVO FUTURE MODEL “GROUNDLESS”
PanARMENIAN.Net
28.09.2006 15:04 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Azeri Deputy FM, Special Representative of Azeri
President on NK Araz Azimov considers linking the Nagorno Karabakh
settlement with the future model of self-determination of Kosovo
population “groundless.” “Observing and respect of territorial
integrity as a principle remains in effect. In any case, even if
there is a precedent, the principle remains a dominant one. Finally,
Armenia should know that territorial integrity of Azerbaijan will be
secured,” the Azeri Deputy FM said.
“Russian President Putin is also known for his sympathy towards using
the Kosovo future status as a precedent for solving other ethnic
conflicts, including those in post-soviet space,” Day.az writes.

EREBUNI MILITARY AIRDROME CONVEYED TO RUSSIAN AIR BASE LOCATED IN ARMENIA
PanARMENIAN.Net
28.09.2006 15:13 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ September 25-28 the sixth session of the
inter-departmental Armenian-Russian Commission on 102nd Russian
military base (RMB) located in Gyumri was held in Yerevan. Protocol
on conveying and usage of land lots of the 102nd RMB was signed by
the end of the meeting. Specifically, protocol N5 on introducing
changes to the Treaty on the Russian Military Base from March 16,
1995. The new supplement provides for allocation of lands for building
a kindergarten for families of Russian military, as well as providing
accommodation to them.
According to the protocol signed, Erebuni military airdrome is conveyed
to the RMB. Russian fighters will be located at the airdrome.
As Head of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces, colonel
general Mikayel Harutyunyan stated at a news conference in Yerevan,
Armenian-Russian military cooperation is developing successfully. “We
are going to open a new school as well,” he said.

RUSSIA GOING TO RELEASE MILITARY DETAINED IN GEORGIA AT ANY PRICE
PanARMENIAN.Net
28.09.2006 14:55 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Russian FM Sergey Lavrov stated Thursday that Russia
is going to attain release of the military detained in Georgia by
all means available.
“We demanded immediate release of our citizens and we will work firmly
to attain it by all means available,” he said. In his words, “there
is cause for the UN Security Council to engage in that issue.” Lavrov
was concerned over the incident in Georgia and called it “recurrent
provocation and demonstration of anti-Russian policy.”
We remind that Russian military and Georgian citizens suspected of
espionage were detained in Tbilisi, Batumi and other towns of the
country on Wednesday.
According to the data of the Georgian Interior Ministry, another
Russian citizen, allegedly accomplice of intelligence activities, is
hiding in the building of the Group of Russian Troops in Transcaucasia
(GRTT). The building was encircled and Georgian Defense Minister Irakly
Okurashvili promised to continue the siege, until K. Pichugin is given
away to the Georgian party. Georgian law enforcers cannot get to the
GRTT territory, as it has diplomatic immunity, reports RIA Novosti.

RUSSIAN FORTRESS IN GYUMRI BEING REMODELED INTO FESTIVAL CENTER
Armenpress
Sept 28 2006
GYUMRI, SEPTEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS: Authorities in the second-largest
town of Gyumri in north-western Armenian Shirak province hope to
accomplish remodeling of a 19-th century Russian fortress into a
modern art and culture center by 2007 November.
The fortress that was inaugurated by the Russian tsar Nikolay I
will have 1,500 seats. It will host film, theatrical and circus
festivals and also folk and modern music concerts. The fortress is
being reconstructed and remodeled by Hayk Hayrapetian, an Armenian
based in the Russian Saint Petersburg. He said to Armenpress the
center will also have a museum.
Hayrapetian said remodeling of the fortress is just half of the
idea. Later he wants to build a pagan village nearby. He says Gyumri
is perhaps the only Armenian town where one can restore an old Armenian
settlement with its everyday life and traditions. All this is expected
to make Gyumri more attractive for local and foreign tourists. The
project’s cost is about $2,2 million.

ARMENIAN TOP ARMY OFFICER BRUSHES ASIDE AZERI ALLEGATIONS
Armenpress
Sept 28 2006
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS : A top Armenian army officer has
brushed aside today Azerbaijani accusations that Armenia is violating
the terms of the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty.
Chief of staff of Armenia’s armed forces, Mikael Harutunian, told
reporters that before trying to accuse Armenia Azerbaijan should
itself observe the terms of the Treaty. He said Azerbaijan has 500
tanks, almost twice as many as it is allowed by the Treaty, also 700
artillery systems instead of 280 and 500 war cars instead of 220.
Mikael Harutunian said numerous inspections in the Armenian armed
forces revealed no violation of the limits. He said Armenia observes
strictly all its commitments stemming from the Conventional Forces
in Europe Treaty.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

FRENCH PRESIDENT JACQUES CHIRAC ARRIVES IN ARMENIA
Armenpress
Sept 28 2006
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS: The press office of the Armenian
President said today French President Jacques Chirac will pay a state
visit to Armenia from September 29 to October 1. Chirac is coming at
the invitation of his Armenian counterpart President Robert Kocharian.
Kocharian’s press office said the French delegation includes foreign
minister Phillip Douste Blazy, transport, tourism and seafaring
minister Dominique Perben, state service minister Christian Jacob
and culture and communication minister Reno Donedio de Vabre.
President Chirac will be accompanied also by a vats delegation of
French businessmen, prominent representatives of art, culture,
academic and sport communities, members of the French Armenian
community and journalists.
The official welcoming ceremony will be held at Yerevan Zvartnots
airport . Chirac and Kocharian will speak to reporters after talks
at Kocharian’s residence. The French delegation will lay flowers to
the Genocide Memorial in Yerevan to commemorate the victims of the
1915 Armenian genocide. The French President will then be welcomed
by His Holiness Karekin II, the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
President Chirac will also meet with the staff of the French embassy
in Yerevan.
Kocharian and Chirac will participate also in the official opening of
France Square in central Yerevan and will attend an open-air concert
of the famous French Armenian singer Charles Aznavour in Republic
Square. All these evens will give the start of the Year of Armenia
in France held under the motto ‘Armenia is My Friend.”

HACOBYAN’S NEXT VICTORY
A1+
[12:15 pm] 28 September, 2006
Armenian Grand Master Vladimir Hakobyan beat Evgeny Postny in the fifth
round of the International Chess Tournament which is held in Great
Britain. At present Hakobayn is in the third place with four points.
Michael Krasenko and Mateos Bartel, representatives from Poland,
head the fixture table with 4.5 points.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

AZERI MINISTER, OSCE MEDIATORS DISCUSS KARABAKH IN NEW YORK
Azartac news agency, Baku,
27 Sep 06
27 September: Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov met the
co-chairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group and the personal representative of
the OSCE chairman-in-office, Andrzej Kasprzyk, on the fringes of the
61st session of the UN General Assembly in New York on 26 September.
During the closed-door meeting that lasted two hours the sides
discussed further steps in the peace talks on the settlement of the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Nagornyy Karabakh.
Mammadyarov told Azartac that the co-chairmen had expressed their
intention to visit the region shortly. They are currently working to
break the deadlock in the negotiations. The co-chairmen are expected
to visit Helsinki this weekend to inform the European Union leaders
of the current stage of the talks.
The co-chairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group and Ambassador Andrzej
Kasprzyk met Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan in New York
on the same day.

EURO MPS SLAM TURKEY ON HUMAN RIGHTS, DROP GENOCIDE CLAUSE
Deutsche Presse-Agentur
September 27, 2006 Wednesday 1:45 PM EST
DPA POLITICS EU Diplomacy Turkey ROUNDUP: Euro MPs slam Turkey on
human rights, drop genocide clause Adds quotes, details on Cyprus
issue Brussels/Strasbourg
European lawmakers on Wednesday approved a critical report on
Turkey’s progress towards European Union membership but dropped a
clause calling for Ankara to
recognize the Armenian genocide before Turkey can join the bloc.
However, Euro MPs said that although recognition of the genocide
was not a precondition for EU accession, “it is indispensable for a
country on the road to membership to come to terms with and recognize
its past.”
Freedom of expression, minority religion rights and the Cyprus issue
are the key areas where improvement is necessary, Euro lawmakers said
in the report. It was adopted by 429 votes in favour to 71 against
with 125 abstentions.
Leading EU lawmakers said that the Parliament missed its chance to
press Ankara for a solution to the thorny Cyprus issue.
The EU has often warned of a “train crash” in Turkey’s EU negotiations
if it continued to fully implement the Ankara Protocol under which
Turkey agreed to extend its customs union with the EU to Cyprus and
to open its ports to Greek Cypriot ships and planes.
“The European Parliament has taken two steps forward and one step
back in its approach towards the controversial issue of Turkish EU
membership,” British Liberal Euro MP Andrew Duff, vice president of
the EP delegation for relations with Turkey, said after the vote.
“The EU still needs to fulfil its commitment to ending the isolation
of the Turkish Cypriot community,” he added.
Euro MPs warned Turkey once again that current membership talks with
the bloc are “open-ended” and that Ankara’s entry into the 25-nation
club is by no means guaranteed.
The report, drawn up by Dutch conservative MEP Camiel Eurlings,
also slams Ankara on a deteriorating human rights record and a slow-
down in reforms.
“It is important that the reforms be given impetus from within the
country by the authorities themselves and are not merely the result
of pressure from outside Turkey,” EU lawmakers stressed.
Referring to growing public unease at the EU’s eastward expansion,
the report highlights that the bloc’s “capacity to absorb Turkey while
maintaining the momentum of integration is an important consideration.”
Euro MPs also urged Turkey to bring its penal code in line with
European standards for freedom of expression.
They said that Ankara must abolish clauses such as article 301 under
which insulting the state and its institutions is considered an
offence which could lead to a sentence of three years in prison.
In addition, Euro MPs criticised Turkey for not respecting women’s
rights and for the strong influence of the military in public life.
EU lawmakers in the past have never vetoed any accession bid.
However, the parliament’s biggest and most influential conservative
group favours a so-called “privileged partnership” with Turkey.
The bloc’s Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn on Tuesday pressed
Ankara for “a more resolute reform process”, adding that he was
getting tired of having to repeat himself on human rights issues.
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso earlier this week
put a damper on the hopes of Croatia, Turkey and others of joining the
bloc, saying that the EU had to resolve the status of its embattled
constitution before it could accept any more new members.
The commission last week said it would release on November 8 a regular
assessment on whether Turkey had made progress in reforms to qualify
for EU membership.
The EU’s executive is also expected to suggest in its report what
the bloc should do if Ankara misses the EU’s December 2006 deadline
on Cyprus.
Turkey began negotiations aimed at EU membership last year. Talks
are expected to take up to 15 years.

TURKEY TO REJECT TOUGHER CONDITIONS FOR EU MEMBERSHIP – PM
AFX International Focus
September 27, 2006 Wednesday 12:17 PM GMT
ISTANBUL (AFX) – Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said any extra
conditions for Turkey’s European Union entry would be ‘unacceptable’
as he pledged that Ankara would stick to the path of democratic reform.
Erdogan was speaking after EU officials signalled that enlargement
may slow down after they opened the door for Bulgaria and Romania
in January.
‘We do not ask for privileges from the EU, but putting forward
new criteria is unacceptable for us,’ Erdogan told a conference
in Istanbul.
‘You cannot change the rules halfway through the match,’ he said.
‘The game has started and the rules are there.’
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said further
enlargement should be frozen until EU members decide on reforms to
streamline decision-making, referring to a gridlock over the bungled
EU constitution.
Turkey is also irked by attempts by some European Parliament members
to require Ankara to recognize as genocide the massacres of Armenians
under the Ottoman Empire as a condition for EU membership.
‘Our (accession) talks will be tough and will take long time. We are
determined to work closely with the EU… to ensure that they are
successfully completed,’ Erdogan said.
‘Turkey’s reform process is continuing and there will be no going
back on that,’ he added.
The European Commission will issue on November 8 a key report on
Turkey’s progress towards membership, which is widely expected to
be critical.
Turkey is under fire for failing to ensure freedom of speech and its
rejection to open its sea and air ports to EU member Cyprus, whose
internationally recognized Greek Cypriot government Ankara refuses
to endorse.
Its accession talks, which started last October, have already met with
serious European opposition amid concerns over its sizeable population,
relatively weak economy and predominantly Muslim faith.
Erdogan argued that Turkey’s accession would be of ‘vital importance’
to prove that different cultures and religions can co-habitat and
called on EU members to keep that in mind when making their decisions
about the country.
Turkey is not expected to be ready for membership until at least 2015.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress