FORTHCOMING TALKS MIGHT OFFER PROGRESS FOR ACHIEVEMENT FINAL PEACE BETWEEN AZERBAIJAN, ARMENIA – AZERI STATE OFFICIAL
Author: R.Abdullayev
TREND Information, Azerbaijan
June 6 2006
The current situation in the talks in the resolution of the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh continues
representing a pressure on Armenia. I hope the further talks will
provide a necessary base for progress in the direction of achievement
of final peace between the sides. Novruz Mammadov, the head of the
Foreign Relationships Department of the Azerbaijani President’s
Apparat told journalists on 6 June, Trend reports.
During the summit “The Black Sea Forum for Dialogue and Partnership”
in Bucharest the Azerbaijani president delivered a paper which
introduced detail information on the country’s achievements in the
economic and political spheres. The head of state also touched upon
a topic on the resolution of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Mammadov also noted that the talks between the Azerbaijani and Armenian
President were held in large format with participation of the OSCE
Minsk Group co-chairs and Foreign Ministers, as well as in the forma
of tete-a-tete. “The meeting was held in two days: 3.5 hours on the
first day and over an hour on the second day.
The talks continued in tense conditions, he noted. The agreement
was achieved only on definite issues, while there does not exist
final conclusion.
The same time Mammadov said that though the concrete date of further
meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents is to still to be
defined, they are expected to be held till the end of 2006.

TURKEY EAGER TO HAVE FRIENDLY TIES WITH ALL NEIGHBORS
Today, Azerbaijan
June 6 2006
State Minister Beshir Atalay said on Monday that the government’s
policy of seeking to avoid problems with neighboring countries
included Armenia.
“As the government, our policy is, first of all, the elimination
of all problems with our neighbors,” Atalay told the Anatolia news
agency in the Romanian capital of Bucharest, where he was attending
a summit aimed at fostering cooperation in the Black Sea region.
Stating that Turkey has so far settled many of its disputes with
neighboring Syria and Greece within a reasonable framework, Atalay
said: “There are problems with Armenia due to well-known reasons. We
expect Armenia to act reasonably and wish as a neighbor to normalize
our relations with Armenia.”
The border gate between the two countries has been closed for more
than a decade. Turkey closed the gate and severed diplomatic relations
with Armenia after Armenian troops occupied the Azerbaijani territory
of Nagorno Karabakh.
Ankara now says normalization of ties depends on Armenian withdrawal
from Nagorno Karabakh as well as on progress in the resolution of
a series of bilateral disagreements, including Armenia putting an
end to its support of Armenian diaspora efforts to win international
recognition for an alleged genocide of Armenians during the latter
days of the Ottoman Empire.
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AZERBAIJANI SOLDIER WOUNDED IN ARMENIAN CEASEFIRE VIOLATION
Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
June 6 2006
Armenians broke the cease-fire in Aghdam frontline in Garabagh
yesterday wounding an Azerbaijani army soldier, APA’s Garabagh
bureau reports.
Armenian armed forces from their positions located in the occupied
Sarijali village in Aghdam fired on the opposite positions of
Azerbaijani armed forces at 21.20 yesterday. As a result, the wounded
Azerbaijani soldier, Mireliyev Elmar Shahkerem was hospitalized, he
is in better health now. The soldier was drafted from Davachi region.
The Armenian armed forces from their positions in the occupied
Yusifjanli village of Aghdam fired on the opposite positions of
Azerbaijani armed forces at 24.00 last night. Azerbaijan’s Defense
Ministry press service did not confirm this information.
It is also reported that Armenians are torching the occupied villages
of Aghdam in Asgharan direction.

EXPERT ON SPECIAL NEEDS RIVETS AUDIENCE AT ARMENIAN SYMPOSIUM
Source: World Vision Middle East/Eastern Europe office (MEERO)
Reuters, UK
June 6 2006
‘No matter what the severity of their disability’ every special
needs child has the right to develop to their maximum potential,
was the revolutionary message delivered by a Russian specialist to
a largely East European audience at the international symposium on
Child Protection organized by World Vision in Armenia last week.
The speech was inspiring for the 170 experts, educators, students,
directors of special needs schools and program staff presented in
cooperation with USAID and UNICEF, said Mary Ellen Chatwin, the MEER
child development and protection advisor.
‘For the officials and specialists at this conference, it was an
incredible message giving them the authority to be creative and
flexible, to think and act more humanely, coming from one of the best
references in the world,’ said Chatwin.
The address was by Nikolay N. Malofeev, a specialist in hearing and
speech disabilities. Malofeev is the Director of the Special Education
Research Institute,, Russian Academy of Education as well as Member
of the Council of Disabled Person’s Affairs under the supervision of
the President of the Russian Federation. He is a respected specialist
known in the US, said Chatwin.
Malofeev astonished everyone with a story of seeing Braille playing
cards in Switzerland, and asking why, said Chatwin. ‘We only help
kids who are blind to function, and never think of them as having
fun!’ he told the gathering.
‘The old Soviet approach was a variation on ‘arbeit macht frei’
(work brings freedom),’ said Chatwin, referring to a slogan above the
gates of the Auschwitz concentration camps during World War Two. ‘It
was all geared towards an individual’s possibility to contribute to
the society at large, especially economically.
‘The Soviet system didn’t want parents taking much time to deal with
children with disabilities. Lots of institutions kept children out
of the way and let the parents get back to work. The children were
taught ‘functional’ things like making baskets,’ she said. Malofeev
knew that system well, yet has moved ahead dramatically into modern
therapies. He told his audience to work for the child’s maximum level
of development and make children’s rights and the family the twin
cornerstones of all special needs programming.
Malofeev’s theories of total respect for children’s needs and rights
are new in Eastern Europe, and especially the former Soviet countries,
where the enduring Soviet era term of ‘defectology,’ is still used as
the name of the science of ‘special needs’, said Chatwin. He exhorted
his audience to modernize the educational approaches for children
with disabilities.
‘He was adamant about keeping children with their families and teaching
the parents techniques, training them as early as possible in ways
to create a good learning and development environment for a child
with special needs, Early detection and intervention of special need
is the key to Malofeev’s work”, said Chatwin. He is the editor of a
world-famous Russian journal, and pioneers special needs publications
on the Institute website.

BLACK SEA STATES AGREE ON STRENGTHENING REGIONAL TIES
Gulf Times, Qatar
June 6 2006
BUCHAREST: Leaders of states around the Black Sea committed during a
summit in Bucharest yesterday to work together on regional problems
such as organised crime, security, energy supplies and economic
development.
The nine states also called on the European Union to get more involved
in the region, where many countries are struggling to forge closer
ties with the West as they move away from Russia’s orbit.
“The Black Sea region now has a chance to become an attractive partner
for the main centres of economic power if it is capable of transforming
itself from a source of problems into a source of solutions for
Europe,” Romanian President Traian Basescu told the meeting.
But they made little progress in outlining an end to several
territorial disputes which stem from the messy dissolution of the
Soviet Union and cloud the prospects for stability in the region,
also known to be a major illegal trafficking area.
“We announce the launch of the Black Sea Forum for Dialogue and
Partnership, a process that will serve as a regional platform … to
define a common vision of democratic and sustainable development,”
the countries said in a declaration, which was not signed by Russia.
“The Forum will provide a framework for generating new ideas …
encouraging regional co-operation in crisis management,” said the
nine states including EU candidates Romania and Bulgaria, as well as
Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Turkey and Ukraine.
The EU, which is looking for alternative routes for energy supplies
throughout Asia, welcomed the agreement, urging regional leaders to
take action on organised crime and territorial conflicts.
“Our aim is to see a stable, democratic region here … to help
fight human trafficking, (the) transit of drugs, to prevent weapon
smuggling,” said Peter Semneby, EU special representative for Caucasus
and central Asia.
But presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan, locked in a dispute over
the Nagorno-Karabakh territory, appeared to be no closer to resolving
the conflict.
Nagorno-Karabakh is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan
but under the de facto control of ethnic Armenian separatists and
has been a scene of conflict in which about 35,000 people were killed.

SERIOUS PROGRESS NOT ACHIEVED IN TALKS OF AZERI, ARMENIAN PRESIDENTS IN BUCHAREST – AZERI FM
Author: R.Abdullayev
TREND Information, Azerbaijan
June 6 2006
It is impossible to state on the achievement of a tremendous progress
in a meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents in Bucharest
and at present there is necessity for coordinating the positions
of both conflict sides, Elmar Mammadyarov, the Azerbaijani Foreign
Minister, told journalists on 6 June.
On 6-7 June the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs will hold additional meeting
in Bucharest, which will define the necessity for next round of talks
of the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents.
“There is still hope for the peaceable resolution of the conflict
and we are eager to continue efforts in this direction,” Mammadyarov
underscored. “Work for bringing closer the positions of the conflict
is continuing. The issue on the withdrawal of the Armenian troops from
the occupied territory of Azerbaijan and repatriation of refugees is
under consideration,” the Azerbaijani FM stressed.
Moreover, Mammadyarov noted that Azerbaijan does not rule out possible
application of Triest model in the issue on economic autonomy.
“However, the issue on autonomy concerns not only the Armenia. But
also the Azerbaijani communities of the Nagorno-Karabakh,” said the
Azerbaijani Minister, noting that the issue on referendum found its
exact implication in the Constitution of Azerbaijan.
With respect to rotation of the US Ambassador Steven Mann, the OSCE
Minsk Group co-chair, Mammadyarov noted that the new diplomat was
still to be renamed and the issue will be resolved in the nearest two
months. “I can only state that the United States is really keen on
rapid resolution of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict,” Mammadyarov
underlined.

ARMENIANS PROTEST HATE KILLINGS IN RUSSIAN CAPITAL
MosNews, Russia
June 6 2006
Several dozen protesters rallied outside the Russian Embassy in Yerevan
on Monday, protesting a series of attacks on ethnic Armenians in Russia
by skinheads and racist nationalists, The Associated Press reports.
The demonstration, organized by rights activists, came just 10 days
after a group of apparent skinheads stabbed a teenager on a train
outside of Moscow – the sixth such fatal attack on ethnic Armenians
in or around Moscow this year.
Avetik Ishkhanian, head of the Helsinki Committee of Yerevan, said
protesters were calling on government authorities to condemn the
Moscow attacks.
Russia has seen a marked rise in xenophobia and hate crimes in recent
years, with a series of attacks on dark-skinned migrants, foreigners
and Jews. Rights groups say authorities do little or nothing to combat
the crimes.
According to the Moscow-based Sova human rights center, last year
31 murders and 382 assaults had racist motivations. So far in 2006,
14 people have been killed in xenophobic attacks.

FOOTBALL TEAM OF SAN MARINO ARRIVED IN YEREVAN
ArmRadio.am
07.06.2006 13:56
Under 21 football team of San Marino arrived in Yerevan. On June 9
it will meet the Armenian team in the response match of the first
qualification round of the European Championship.
Trainer of San Marino team Romer Kazadie brought 18 players:
1. Matia Bianki
2. Jiovanni Boniny
3. Marco Kazadei
4. Alberto Chelly
5. Enrico Chibelly
6. Marco Dominikony
7. Alex Gasperson
8. Nicola Jenjini
9. Alesandro Gwidy
10. Matheo Vitaolly
11. Andreas Morony
12. Marco Palacci
13. Matheo Rossy
14. Stefano Gasperony
15. Mikele Rastelly
16. Matheo Vally
17. Davidie Ranokiny
18. Fabio Magaluzo

ALIYEV, KOCHARIAN AGAIN MAKE NO HEADWAY IN NK DISPUTE
The New Anatolian
June 6 2006
Armenian President Robert Kocharian and his Azerbaijani counterpart
Ilham Aliyev failed on Sunday to make progress towards a solution to
the decades-long Nagorno-Karabakh dispute.
A face-to-face meeting between Kocharian and Aliyev was held just
before the Black Sea Dialogue and Partnership Forum which started in
Bucharest, Romania yesterday.
Romanian President Traian Basescu also met with the two presidents
separately on Sunday to discuss how to find a solution to the divided
enclave, Basescu’s office said in a statement.
Talks between Kocharian and Aliyev in France in February ended in
failure as well, despite international mediators’ efforts to help
the leaders finalize the enclave’s status.
Nagorno-Karabakh is inside Azerbaijan, but populated mostly by ethnic
Armenians who have run it since an uneasy 1994 cease-fire ended six
years of full-scale war. Sporadic border clashes have grown more
frequent since the breakdown of talks. The lack of a resolution has
hindered development throughout the strategic region.
While Armenians want Nagorno-Karabakh to be independent or annexed to
Armenia, Azerbaijan opposes the idea of giving any territory from the
divided enclave to Armenia, but warmed to the idea of an autonomous,
but not totally independent, status for the region.
The Nagorno-Karabakh dispute between Azerbaijan and Armenia has also
created a rift in relations between Ankara and Yerevan.
It was reported last week that secret talks between Turkey and Armenia,
launched after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan wrote a letter to
Armenian President Kocharian suggesting that they set up two committees
to discuss political issues and the Armenian genocide allegations,
have failed to make any headway coming out of their third round. The
latest round reportedly failed after Ankara found Yerevan’s response
to its suggestions “watered down,” sources said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

RA LAW ON LOBBYIST ACTIVITY – A SOURCE OF CORRUPTION RISK
ArmRadio.am
07.06.2006 14:30
What does RA Law on Lobbyist Activity envisage: expansion or
restriction of opportunities for defense of society’s interests? The
Law has been already approved by NA Standing Committee on State
and Legal Issues and will be discussed during the coming four-day
sitting. About 100 NGOs are confident that the Law is an obstacle to
public participation and a source of corruption risk.
Adoption of the Law is part of the Poverty Reduction Strategy
Paper. NGO representatives, however, are not confident that it will
help overcome poverty in our country.
In reality, the Law on Lobbyist Activity is a mechanism of interests,
which should allow this or that group of the society defend its
rights. It should guarantee the link between voters and legislators,
but the bill does not envisage this connection. NGO representatives are
concerned that the Law will be disputed by financial organizations:
any NGO is weak, it possesses no additional sources of financing to
defend its rights through a lobbyist.
Legal adviser of “Internews” agency David Sandukhchyan considers
that the Law on Lobbyist Activity is characterized with non-distinct
objectives and sharp legislative shortcomings. The approaches and
methods are suspicious and non-democratic.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress