GLOOM OVER KARABAKH PEACE PROCESS
Institute for War and Peace Reporting, UK
Aug 3, 2006
Revelations about the latest peace deal leave the conflicting parties
still far apart.
By Elshad Guliev in Baku, Karine Ohanian in Stepanakert and Tatul
Hakobian in Yerevan
All sides remain pessimistic about the peace process in Nagorny
Karabakh, despite a visit by the newly-appointed American negotiator
to the region intended to breathe new life into negotiations.
Matthew Bryza – who was appointed as the United States co-chair of
the OSCE’s Minsk Group on Karabakh in June – has visited Karabakh,
Armenia and Azerbaijan during the past week. He said little in public
following his meetings, but some saw his trip as a sign Washington, at
least, is determined to move the process along despite recent setbacks.
He arrived unaccompanied by his French and Russian co-chairs on the
Minsk Group, a month after the three had delivered an unusually blunt
report to the OSCE, which presides over negotiations on the Karabakh
dispute, signalling that the current peace process had stalled.
The co-chairs said they had “reached the limits of our creativity”
and put the onus on the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan to
carry the peace process forward. “We remain ready to assist,”
said the statement. “As mediators, however, we cannot make the
difficult decisions for the parties. We think the parties would
be well-served at this point by allowing their publics to engage
in a robust discussion of the many viewpoints on these issues.”
Before arriving in the region, Bryza broke with precedent by giving
an unusually frank interview to Radio Liberty in which he revealed
details of a peace agreement that the two sides had been discussing
over the past two years. The two presidents, Ilham Aliev and Robert
Kocharian, rejected the deal in two meetings this year.
Under discussion has been a phased withdrawal of Armenian forces from
the Azerbaijani territories around Nagorny Karabakh, a referendum on
the status of Karabakh itself, and the deployment of a peacekeeping
force.
In their report to the OSCE, the negotiators issued a stark warning
of what was at stake if the process collapses and the deal is
not accepted, “Ultimately, it is the two sides that will be held
accountable by their peoples and by the international community if
their actions lead to war and not peace.”
Many commentators said that these statements expressed a hitherto
unseen level of exasperation from the trio.
“It is possible to see this new emphasis constitutes a form of pressure
on the presidents,” Gerard Libaridian, Armenia’s negotiator on the
Karabakh issue under former president Levon Ter-Petrosian, and now
professor of history at the University of Michigan, told IWPR by email.
But Libaridian doubted that this pressure was having an effect. “It
will require more than the discomfort these statements have caused
these presidents for the latter to make the necessary concessions.
The main energy is emanating from Mathew Bryza, it seems to me,
who is not new to the process,” he said.
For their part, the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders are, as ever,
striking very different positions in public.
The day before he met Bryza, Aliev told a cabinet meeting that he
still adhered to the principles of a phased solution for the dispute.
But he added that the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan is not
up for discussion, “not today, not tomorrow, never and under no
circumstances.”
Akif Nagi, head of the radical pro-war Karabakh Liberation
Organisation, struck a more aggressive note, saying Azerbaijan should
now cease contact with the Minsk Group. “The main aim of Matthew
Bryza’s visit to Azerbaijan is an attempt to force a peace deal on us
which really does not meet our interests,” he said. There has been
anxiety in Azerbaijan about the idea of a referendum on the status of
Nagorny Karabakh. But Mubariz Ahmedoglu, director of the Centre for
Political Technologies and Innovations, told IWPR that Azerbaijanis
should take heart from the fact that “the co-chairmen are not saying
that it ought to take place only on the territory of Nagorny Karabakh”
– a process that would almost certainly lead to the Armenian-majority
population of Karabakh voting to secede from Azerbaijan.
Earlier, during Bryza’s visit to Armenia, foreign minister Vardan
Oskanian put the blame on Baku for the breakdown of the peace process,
saying Armenia had agreed to the two-and-a-half page document under
discussion and that it should still be the basis for talks.
“This is not an ideal document, but if Azerbaijan agrees to the
arguments advanced in it, then I think that on this basis we can
move towards settling the issue and trying to convince our people,
which at the current time is the only way of settling the issue,”
Oskanian told IWPR
Other Armenians say that the process is flawed because the Armenians
of Karabakh, the disputed territory itself, are not participating
directly, as the government in Baku insists on negotiating only with
the government in Yerevan.
“There will be no progress until the unrecognised but legitimate
authorities of the Nagorny Karabakh Republic take part in the talks as
a full member,” Aram Sarkisian, leader of the opposition Democratic
Party told IWPR. “The Armenian side represented by Robert Kocharian
does not have the right to sign any agreement.”
Bryza heard these arguments from Karabakh Armenian officials when he
visited the territory last week.
After meeting Bryza, Karabakh’s foreign minister Giorgy Petrosian also
expressed doubts about the latest plan. He said, “The proposals made
by the co-chairs foresee as a first stage, compromises being made
by the Nagorny Karabakh Republic, which could have serious negative
implications for the security of the republic and its population,
as they do not contain sufficient guarantees that military action
would not resume in the conflict zone.”
Libaridian identified five obstacles blocking progress to a final
peace settlement, more than 12 years after the conflict was halted
by a ceasefire.
First, he said, domestic concerns of both leaders have led to a
“deficit in political capital” which leaves both presidents having
to accept compromises and sell them to their peoples. Second, there
was a belief on both sides that time is on their side that hardened
positions. Third, he argued, the absence of the Karabakh Armenians
from the negotiating table “has resulted in the inability of the
mediators to explore fully some of the available options”.
For Libaridian, the fourth problem is one of accountability, “The
parties to the conflict have devised elaborate escape mechanisms to
derail the process every time it reaches a critical point, without
any perceived risk.”
Finally, he said, the mediators did not “share a common vision for
the region” and their different interests were “pulling in opposite
directions” and undermining the conditions whereby the conflict could
be solved.
Elshad Guliev is a freelance journalist in Baku and Karine Ohanian is
a freelance journalist in Nagorny Karabakh. Tatul Hakobian works for
Public Radio in Armenia. Shahin Rzayev in Baku and Thomas de Waal in
London contributed to this report.

ARKADI GUKASYAN: “WE RECOGNIZE AZERBAIJAN’S RIGHTS REGARDING NAGORNO
KARABAKH STATUS AND READY TO DISCUSS THE ISSUE”
Today, Azerbaijan
Aug 3, 2006
“Arkadi Gukasyan told me that he recognizes Azerbaijan’s rights
regarding the status of Nagorno Karabakh and they are ready to discuss
it,” the Helsinki civil Assembly Azerbaijan National Committee chair
Arzu Abdullayeva told.
According to her, the separatist regime leader Arkadi Gukasyan accused
the Azerbaijani press for its war propaganda, and official Baku for
not taking concrete stance.
“In this situation I can’t say to Nagorno Karabakh Armenians that
“Azerbaijanis are your friends”. He also added he doesn’t agree to
use Aland model in solving the Nagorno Karabakh problem justifying
his opinion by Azerbaijan’s not being Finland.”
As APA reports, Ms.Abdullayeva also said, Gukasyan claimed that the
arsons were not committed by Armenians, but Azerbaijanis are carrying
out bogus propaganda.
“But nobody would set fire to their own grain fields. On the other
hand, the OSCE representatives have already monitored the area,”
Gukasyan also expressed his concern over the violation of the
cease-fire.
“During the war we had contacts with Azeri counterparts. But today we
do not have it. That’s the reason of the breaking of the cease-fire.”
URL:

GLOBAL GOLD TO ACQUIRE 100% OF TUKHMANUK MINE IN ARMENIA AHEAD OF
SCHEDULE AND COMMENCES PRODUCTION — GOVERNMENT APPROVES MINING PLAN
MacReport (press release), NY
Aug 3, 2006
GREENWICH, CT–Aug 2, 2006 — Global Gold Corporation (OTC BB:GBGD.OB
– News) () today announced the planned
acquisition of the remaining 49% of Mego-Gold, LLC, the company
holding the licenses to the Tukhmanuk mine and exploration areas in
Armenia. According to the August 1, 2005 acquisition agreement,
Global Gold Mining, LLC acquired a 51% interest for $1.5 million and
was to pay another $2 million by August 1, 2007; the agreement,
amended as of July 19, 2006, allows for the acquisition of the
remaining 49% in exchange for $1 million and 500,000 shares of Global
Gold Corporation’s stock.
The Tukhmanuk property consists of over 4,100 hectares in the Aparan
region. The property hosts numerous quartz veins with gold and
polymetallic mineralization. The presence of the mineralized zones
suggested by the existing maps have been confirmed by field mapping
in the 1st quarter of this year and detailed mapping is ongoing to
define and surface sample the mineralized zones to 1:10,000 scale.
Historical GKZ (State Committee on Reserves) records in the P1, C1
and C2 categories indicate a target of 12.1 million tonnes of
mineralization, averaging 6.74 g/t gold and 30.79 g/t silver,
including 2.6 million oz/gold and 11.9 million oz./silver. Global
Gold is updating the categories of this mineralization.
The existing gravity concentration plant has been serviced and
upgraded to full capacity with the addition of a new drive motor for
the second mill and additional tails recirculation line to attempt to
improve recovery. A fully functional sample preparation facility has
been installed with western standard equipment including AAS (Atomic
Absorption Spectrometry) analysis capability for plant and grade
control samples.
Two Caterpillar 325 excavators, a Caterpillar D9R bulldozer, 2 x 20
tonne GRAZ trucks and a grader have recently been purchased for use
in addition to equipment previously purchased for the open pit mining
of the oxide zone above the Armenian approved C1/C2 category
mineralization. A mining plan has been submitted and approved by the
relevant Armenian Governmental authorities for the mining and
processing of an expected 150,000 tonnes of oxide material over a 2
year period. Production has commenced, and full plant commissioning
is anticipated in October.
Drilling of the C1/C2 category mineralization is also in progress
with a program of 10,000 meters planned to confirm the resource and
carry out western standard reserve/resource estimation at year end;
2,500m of drilling have been completed to date. The terms of the
amended acquisition agreement for Mego-Gold provide for the payment
of the $1 million and delivery of 500,000 shares of Global Gold
Corporation on or before August 19, 2006 and also contain a
contingency allowing the sellers to sell back the 500,000 shares on
or before September 15, 2007 for a payment of $1 million if Global
Gold Corporation stock is not traded at or above $2.50 at any time
between July 1, 2007 and August 31, 2007.
To date, Global Gold has focused its activities at Tukhmanuk,
Hankavan and surrounding areas in the North Central Armenian belt. At
Hankavan, a drill program is underway to follow up on the 2005 drill
program. Global Gold is also conducting exploration at Getik in
Northern Armenia and holds joint venture interests with Iberian
Resources at the southern Armenian Marjan and Litchkvaz projects.
Global Gold Corporation also owns a twenty percent participation
right in any new exploration undertaken in Armenia by Sterlite Gold
Limited or its successors.
To the extent that statements in this press release are not strictly
historical, including statements as to revenue projections, business
strategy, outlook, objectives, future milestones, plans, intentions,
goals, future financial conditions, future collaboration agreements,
the success of the Company’s development, events conditioned on
stockholder or other approval, or otherwise as to future events, such
statements are forward-looking, and are made pursuant to the safe
harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. The forward-looking statements contained in this release are
subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual
results to differ materially from the statements made. Former Soviet
country estimations are presented for historical reporting and to
provide a basis for assessing Global Gold’s choices for its business
activities and not to be understood as indicating the existence of
reserves or resources.
Global Gold Corporation is an international gold mining, development
and exploration company with mining properties in Chile and Armenia.
Global Gold Corporation is located at 45 East Putnam Avenue,
Greenwich, CT 06830. The main phone number is 203-422-2300. More
information can be found at
Contact:
Drury J. Gallagher
Chairman
[email protected]

RUSSIAN AND FRENCH CO-CHAIRS OF OSCE MINSK GROUP
CAN BE REPLACED – AZERI DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER
TREND, Azerbaijan
Aug 3, 2006
Azerbaijan passed its position to US co-chairman of OSCE Mink Group
Mathew Bryza regarding the settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,
said Araz Azimov, President’s special representative o Nagorno-Karabakh
and deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan, Trend reports with reference
to ATV channel.
Azimov said following the replacement of US co-chair Russian and
French co-chairs may get replaced as well. “From this point of view
Bryza’s visit to the region opens some prospects”, Azeri official said.
Commenting Mr Bryza’s statement saying ‘status of Nagorno-Karabakh
shall be determined by its people, including those left homes in 1988’,
Azimov said people living in there shall be treated as ‘population’,
not ‘nation’. “We think Azeri and Armenian community alike shall
be accounted for in this process”, said Azimov. The question of
Nagorno-Karabakh status, he added, shall be considered just in a view
of returning occupied grounds to Azerbaijan.

ARMENIAN STUDENT CREATES LIFE IN THE UNITED STATES
BYU Newsnet, UT
Aug 3, 2006
By Elizabeth Watts – 3 Aug 2006
Vahe Babayan loves gettin into his work. In his second semester in
the BYU Bookstore framing department he mostly enjoys working with
the customers and his fun boss.Hearing students grumble about the
walk to campus from home or distant parking lots is not uncommon, but
Vahe Babayan was grateful to be able to walk from University Avenue
to Utah Valley State College without fear of being arrested.
“For three days I walked to UVSC, where I was going to school at that
time, and then I would walk home after class,” said Babayan, an
Armenian BYU student who spent years in Russia. “All I knew was that
I lived by the mountains, so I walked toward them to find the house I
was staying at until I got used to the area.”
After growing up in a country where he was not always free to go
where he wanted to go; this long walk was refreshing to
Babayanbecause it meant he had more freedom.
Over the past 25 years of his life, times have not always been easy,
but Babayan learned from his experiences and is grateful for what he
has been given. His gratitude toward the U.S. continues to grow from
experiences and the life perspective he has developed from them.
“Life is a beautiful thing. You don’t have to be beautiful to live
life,” Babayan said, “What eyes you see life with depends on you.”
After receiving his I-20 visa to allow him to attend school in the
U.S., Babayan moved here on Jan. 3, 2004 – a date he will always
remember because it was a major day in his life when many
opportunities were opened to him.
He said the U.S is a great country and he would like to work with the
government after finishing school in order to allow others to have
the freedoms he has experienced. He is very passionate about the U.S.
and the freedoms he has been given while being here.
“Great people came to the U.S. and created what it is now,” Babayan
said. “I am appreciative that people like me can come here to create
my own life and I will do what ever I can to defend it.
Babayan is originally from Yerevan, Armenia. However, at age 15 he
moved to Moscow to attend school and play soccer.
Moscow gave Babayan a greater opportunity to gain an education and
provided better living standards, but it also had its difficulties.
In Moscow there is a lot of prejudice resulting from conflicts
between Russia and other countries. Babayan said the police in Moscow
would think he was a terrorist because of his darker skin. The legal
system has some corruption there and he was arrested at least twice a
week for suspicions the police had.
“To avoid being arrested, I would try to be home before dark and knew
the areas the police would always be at,” Babayan said.
Babayan was first introduced to The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints after his father met missionaries for the church on
the street in Moscow and invited them to his house. Babayan was
baptized into the church along with his mother and brother when he
was 17.
Babayan later served in the Romania Moldova Mission for the church.
While he was on his mission, he formed relationships with many of his
close friends now at BYU who influenced him to come to the U.S.
BYU student Ryan Divine met Babayan in Moldova where they served
together. Divine said Babayan did not speak English and had just
started serving his mission, so he did not speak Romanian well
either. They did not have a common language to speak to each other,
but they bonded from the start.
In order to communicate they would use hand gestures and show each
other pictures of what they were talking about.
An experience Divine remembers from the mission was on a preparation
day during lunch when they were playing soccer. Divine watched as
Babayan walked away from the soccer game to talk with two young boys
and give them the three oranges they had for their lunch.
Babayan said when he saw the boys he remembered being young and not
having much. He felt that he could relate with the boys.
Finding oranges in Moldova was hard and they were expensive. He knew
the boys had not had an orange before, so he wanted them to be able
to have the oranges.
Divine said he was able to learn from Babayan’s actions and told
other missionaries playing soccer with him, “We will learn more from
him than we will ever be able to teach him.”
Coming from a different culture helps Babayan to stick out in Provo.
Everyone around where he lives knows him. Divine said the reason for
his popularity is that Babayan is a fun person to be with, but he is
also refreshing to be around, since he has a different view point of
the world.
A friend and past roommate of Babayan has known him for two years,
and said he feels it a pleasure to know him.
“He leaves an impression and is infectious,” said BYU student Shane
Mount. “Vahe would do anything for someone who needs help, but will
not ask anything of you.”
When moving into the apartment, there were not enough beds for
everyone. Babayan put his bed in Mount’s room before he moved in and
made himself a bed on the floor that he slept on for the rest of the
year. Mount said Babayan refused to take the bed back.
“Vahe has such a good example of integrity and everyone should get to
know him, everyone,” Mount said. “He is that good of a guy.”
From: Baghdasarian

GDP GROWTH RATE IN CIS REPORTED
RosBusinessConsulting, Russia
Aug 3, 2006
RBC, 03.08.2006, Moscow 19:00:06.The average GDP growth rate of the
CIS countries was 6.5 percent in January-June 2006 compared to the
same period in 2005, the Interstate Statistical Committee of the CIS
reports. Azerbaijan and Armenia showed the highest GDP growth rates
of 36.3 percent and 11.9 percent respectively. The GDP growth rate
in Belarus reached 10.1 percent, Tajikistan’s growth rate was 7.1
percent, Russia’s growth rate amounted to 6 percent while Ukraine
saw a 5-percent growth and Kyrgyzstan’s GDP rose by 3.1 percent.

BOLTON-BACKING SENATOR BLOCKS ANOTHER AMBASSADOR
Raw Story, MA
Aug 3, 2006
RAW STORY
Published: Thursday August 3, 2006
A Republican senator who has called on Democrats to give President
Bush’s controversial pick for UN Ambassador John Bolton an up or
down vote is now voting to block the nomination of another ambassador
picked by President Bush, RAW STORY has learned.
Senator Norm Coleman of Minnesota announced his intention to vote
against recommending confirmation of Richard Hoagland to be President
Bush’s ambassador to Armenia. Coleman intends to block the nominee
because he refused to term Turkey’s early 20th century of Armenians
living in the country a ‘genocide.’ Coleman declared in an interview
with the Associated Press “My problem isn’t with Hoagland…I continue
to be troubled by our policy that refuses to recognize what was a
historical reality.”
The article goes on to explain that the US will not call Turkey’s
killing of Armenians in the early 1900s an act of genocide, a position
Hoagland hewed to during his confirmation hearing in June.
Senator Coleman has been a loud voice in favor of Ambassador John
Bolton’s confirmation by a Senate vote. In one statement on Tuesday,
Coleman declared that “Blocking the nomination of Ambassador Bolton
is a case study in partisan excess….We must have an up or down vote
on Ambassador Bolton in the Senate.”
During Bolton’s confirmation hearing last month, he also said “if
you really look at the opposition at times to this nomination…it’s
opposition to U.S. policy.” He then added “But I think what we do
fundamentally agree with is the belief that the president has the
right to have his voice and his representation, somebody he trusts,
representing us at the United Nations.”

ANIMALS FLOWED FROM AZERBAIJAN’S OCCUPIED TERRITORIES HAVE NO DANGEROUS ILLNESSES
TREND, Azerbaijan
Aug 3, 2006
The State Veterinary Service under the Ministry of Agriculture of
Azerbaijan announced the final results of the laboratory examinations
held on base on the specimens taken from the territories of Tartar,
Agdam and Beylagan to define the danger level of animals flowing from
Azerbaijan’s territories occupied by Armenians in result of fires.
The investigations didn’t show any dangerous illnesses, Trend reports
with reference to the State Service.
The specimens were taken by the specialists of the state service.
Besides, during the observations, the epidemic and epizootic
situation of the territories located on border with Armenia was also
investigated. The specialists of the Health Ministry also participated
in the taken measures.

CALIFORNIA LEADING THE HUMAN RIGHTS CHARGE – AGAIN
California Progress Report, California
Aug 3, 2006
By Assemblymember Jerome Horton
The United Nations has called it the greatest humanitarian crisis in
the world. The United States calls it genocide. For the first time
in world history, the term “genocide” is being applied to an ongoing
tragedy rather than an event in our history books.
More than two and a half years into the crisis, the western Sudanese
region of Darfur is acknowledged to be a humanitarian and human rights
crisis of the first order with as many as 500 people – overwhelmingly
civilians – dying every month. The situation continues to deteriorate
as the international community fails to protect innocent civilians
or influence the Sudanese government to do so themselves.
The need for action has never been greater. It is estimated that since
the beginning of the conflict up to 400,000 people have been killed
and 2.5 million have been displaced from their homes by the government
militia, the “janjaweed”. Currently, 25% of Sudanese children do not
live past the age of five.
Since being placed on the “Terror Watch” list by the Clinton
Administration, the Sudanese government has been supplying us with
information on terrorist activity within their own country, despite
the fact that this information is often outdated and “cherry-picked”
for minimal importance. It is because of these ties that we continue
to avoid confronting Sudan on the issue of genocide. How can President
Bush say that “we cannot ignore” their suffering and then feed the
very beast responsible for their destruction? How can he allow these
fruitless ties to the Sudan take precedent over the lives of the
millions suffering in Darfur? Because steps are not being taken on
the federal level, California must take a lead to prevent this tragedy
from escalating any further.
This year, I, along with Assemblymember Paul Koretz, have introduced
a bill in the State Assembly, AB 2941 (Koretz), to address this
atrocity. This bill would require two of the nation’s biggest pension
systems, CalPERS and CalSTRS, to begin a targeted divestment of
holdings in companies that continue to do business with a government
that slaughters, rapes, starves and displaces their own people. One
would think that after the Holocaust and the genocides in Armenia,
Rwanda, and that of California’s Indian population, we would not
stand idly by while people suffer from such inhumane treatment.
AB 2941 will affect the revenue that the Khartoum government
receives. The Khartoum government has used the funds it receives to
purchase Russian MIGs which have been used in the attacks in Darfur
and to arm the brutal Janjaweed militia. The Darfurians receive no
benefits from the central government, but more significantly, their
destruction is enabled by the wealth of the Khartoum government.
AB 2941 will be heard on Tuesday, August 8th in the Senate Judiciary
Committee. That same day the Sacramento Committee on Conscience
will be holding its 2nd Annual Call to Conscience: Darfur, a rally
in support of the bill. Speakers will include myself, Assemblyman
Jerome Horton, and Assemblymembers Paul Koretz and Joe Coto, as well
as representatives from groups sponsoring the bill, including the
California State Conference of the NAACP.
We in California are in a unique position to affect the direction of
the entire country on yet another important social goal. Although other
states have chosen to divest, none of these states have the holdings
in Sudan that we do, and consequently none of these states could
have an impact as powerful as ours could be. The federal government
is wrestling with the question of how to act, but they have been
reluctant to act due to foreign policy allegiances. It is up to the
states themselves to lead the charge, and while it may be too late
to begin the divestment charge, it is not too late for us to lead it.
Assemblyman Jerome E. Horton was elected in November 2000 to represent
the 51st District. He is the Chair of the Assembly Governmental
Organization Committee.

VASILI ISTRATOV: CO-CHAIRS ARE DOING ALL THEY CAN TO MAKE THE PARTIES REACH AGREEMENT
Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
Aug 3, 2006
New Russian ambassador to Azerbaijan Vasili Istratov today visited
the Honor Alley in the capital Baku today.
He laid garlands on the tombs of the then President Heydar Aliyev,
his spouse Zarifa Aliyeva and great composer Bulbul. Then he visited
the Martyrs’ Alley. APA reports the ambassador sharing his first
impressions on the Azerbaijani capital with journalists said he
approved this city. “I liked this city very much. I am sure we’ll
have efficient cooperation with the brotherly Azerbaijani people in
all spheres. I am very pleased for my appointment as ambassador to
Azerbaijan and will take up my duties soon. I arrived in your country
just yesterday. I’ll present my credentials to President Ilham Aliyev
soon and assume office after that,” Mr.Istratov said. Assessing the
role of Russia as co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group in settlement of the
Nagorno Garabagh conflict, the ambassador said the co-chairing states
do not deal with this issue separately. “The co-chairs are mediating
together and doing all they can do to achieve peace agreement between
the parties to the conflict,” he underlined./APA/