ARMENIANS PROTEST AGAINST WITHDRAWAL OF RUSSIAN TROOPS FROM GEORGIA
Channel One TV, Moscow
30 May 06
[Presenter] Many believe that Russia’s presence in the Caucasus is the
best guarantee against interethnic conflicts. Several hundred people
in Yerevan today staged an action of protest against the withdrawal
of Russian troops from the Akhalkalaki base in the Georgian region
of Samtskhe-Javakheti, where quite a few Armenians live. According
to those taking part in the rally, experience shows that as soon as
Russians leave a place, Armenians leave it too.
Instances of clashes between Armenians and Meskhetian Turks
who are arriving in the region have become more frequent in
Samtskhe-Javakheti. Under an agreement reached between Moscow and
Tbilisi, the Russian servicemen will be withdrawn from the Akhalkalaki
base by the end of next year.
[Aram Karapetyan, leader of the Armenian New Times party] I think
our aim now is just to raise the issue and make it clear that serious
changes may take place in Javakheti after the Russian base moves out.
Very serious destabilizing factors may appear there because it will
be very difficult to talk about any stabilization after the base is
pulled out.

TURKISH PREMIER, US CONGRESSMEN VIEW CYPRUS, IRAN, IRAQ, ARMENIAN ISSUE, HAMAS
Anatolia news agency
30 May 06
Ankara, 30 May: “It is a must to lift unfair isolations and embargoes
imposed on [self-declared] Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
(TRNC),” said Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan when he met
the members of a US House of Representatives delegation in Ankara on
Tuesday [30 May].
Erdogan and delegation members focused on Cyprus, Iran, relations
between Israel and Palestine, Iraq and allegations regarding the
so-called Armenian genocide, during the meeting.
Erdogan said: “The TRNC is for peace and it should not be punished.
Also Greek Cypriot administration – which voted against [UN
Secretary-General Kofi] Annan plan – should not be rewarded. We expect
the United States to take new steps on this issue”.
Regarding Hamas, Erdogan said: “To assure the security is the first
thing to do to settle the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, and then,
road map should be re-activated. We support a solution based on
a two-state formula. Palestinian people should not be punished by
cutting humanitarian aid.”
Iran
“Turkey is for a fair solution,” said Erdogan regarding Iran issue.
As regards developments in Iraq, he indicated, “Kirkuk’s [northern
Iraq] status should be preserved. Deployment of joint efforts against
terrorist organization [PKK – Kurdistan Workers’ Party] is important.”
Erdogan also explained to his interlocutors Turkey’s position about
allegations regarding so-called Armenian genocide.
On the other hand, US Congressmen Roy Blunt and Steny Hoyer supported
Turkey’s suggestion to establish a commission of historians to study
the allegations (of the Armenians).
Hoyer noted that Turkey and the United States attach utmost importance
to security and stability in the Middle East and the world, adding
that elimination of terrorism is a priority for both countries.
Regarding Israeli-Palestinian dispute, Hoyer said that the United
States welcomes the message sent by Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah
Gul (to Hamas) asking it to give up terrorism and supporting two-state
solution.
Noting that statements of Hamas to destroy Israel by means of
terrorism caused uneasiness in the United States, Hoyer said that
they will not recognize Hamas as a legitimate interlocutor until it
gives up terrorism.

AZERI PRESIDENT RULES OUT CONCESSIONS TO ARMENIA
ANS TV, Baku
30 May 06
[Presenter] Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has delivered a speech
at the session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Paris. Prior to
that, the head of state had a meeting with his French counterpart,
Jacques Chirac. Now over to Paris for more detailed information.
Joining us is ANS TV’s special correspondent Zamina Aliyeva. Zamina,
good evening. Could you tells us about the main points of the
president’s speech?
[Correspondent Zamina Aliyeva by telephone] Good evening, Natavan.
The Nagornyy Karabakh problem was the main point of the president’s
speech at the spring session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. He
proved that Azerbaijan’s position on this issue was fair. The speech,
which was based on facts and arguments, was not only welcomed, it
also showed that Armenia has gone beyond the principles of NATO and
the international community. Ilham Aliyev said that the occupation of
20 per cent of Azerbaijan’s territory by Armenia and the existence
of more than 1m refugees were a big problem for the country and a
serious threat to the region.
He pointed out that Azerbaijan wants to solve the problem by means
of peace talks based on international law. He said that Azerbaijan’s
territorial integrity has been recognized by all states, except for
Armenia, and that the conflict must be settled only on the basis
of this principle. Saying that Azerbaijan is demanding that Armenia
withdraw its occupying troops from Karabakh, the president brought
to the attention of participants in the session that the report of
the OSCE fact-finding mission reflects the destruction of houses,
historical monuments and graves in the occupied territories. He said
that it was a humanitarian tragedy.
The president firmly said that Azerbaijan will never accept the
occupation of its territory and will not allow a second Armenian state
to be established on its territory. The settlement of the Nagornyy
Karabakh problem is important not only to Azerbaijan but also to the
region, end quote.
I should point out that in response to a question from the Armenian
delegation that it is not only the issue of Nagornyy Karabakh, but
Azerbaijan is also violating human rights, [changing tack] while
asking this question, a member of the Armenian delegation heard
a remark from Pierre Lelouche, chairman of the NATO Parliamentary
Assembly. Pierre Lelouche said that although [Armenian President]
Robert Kocharyan had been invited to the session, unfortunately he did
not attend it to participate in the dialogue. As for Ilham Aliyev,
he firmly told the Armenian representative that our position on the
Nagornyy Karabakh problem is not based on wishes and dreams.
The president said that we have no concessions to make to Armenia
because we have not occupied anyone’s territory and our problem is
not related to the population living in Karabakh, but to separatists.
The president said that today Karabakh has turned into a hangout for
drug trafficking and terrorism.
The Turkish delegation asked a question that supported Azerbaijan.
Asked whether he was pleased with the support of international
organizations on the Karabakh issue, the president answered that
although the Council of Europe resolution that describes Armenia as
an aggressor and the four UN resolution that demand an unconditional
withdrawal of occupiers from Azerbaijan’s occupied territories were
positive, several days ago Armenians celebrated the liberation
of Susa. There is a question – who was Susa liberated from? From
Azerbaijan? Unfortunately, international organizations have not
reacted to this issue.
[Passage omitted: Ilham Aliyev also spoke about Azerbaijan’s economic
development and the process of democratization in the country]
Another question was put to the president. This question stressed
that there were human rights abuses and political prisoners in
Azerbaijan. The president said that there were no political prisoners
in Azerbaijan and all reports about this were not true.
[Passage omitted: Ilham Aliyev’s speech was welcomed at the session]

INDIAN MEN PREVAIL OVER BULGARIA, WOMEN LOSE TO ARMENIA
PTI
Daily News & Analysis, India
May 30 2006
TURIN: The Indians had a mixed outing in the eighth round of the
37th Chess Olympiad here with the men scoring a 2.5-1.5 victory over
Bulgaria and the women suffering defeat at the hands of Armenia.
While Viswanathan Anand played out his fifth draw on the trot –
settling for peace with former world junior champion Kiril Georgiev
of Bulgaria, national champion Surya Shekhar Ganguly went down against
Alexander Delchev.
It was only thanks to a late onslaught by Krishnan Sasikiran and
Sandipan Chanda against Ivan Cheparinov and Vasily Spassov respectively
that the Indian men were able to get past unscathed.
Meanwhile, in the women’s section, Indian mainstay Koneru Humpy fumbled
against Lilit Mkrtchian and suffered her first defeat in the event as
the Indian women lost to Armenia 1-2. D Harika also went down while
the lone saving grace was Swati Ghate who won an engrossing battle
on the third board to thwart a whitewash.
At the top of the tables, the Armenian men yet again proved that
they are the frontrunners this time with a comprehensive 3-1 victory
over Cuba.
The Russian men could only manage a 2-2 draw with Czech Republic which
meant that Armenia took a two point lead over their nearest rivals. In
the women’s section, Russia drew with Czech Republic raising Ukraine’s
title hopes. The result narrowed Czechs’ lead to half a point. The
Ukrainians cruised to an easy 2-1 victory over Hungary.

CHIRAC URGES SETTLEMENT OF KARABAKH CONFLICT
Radio Free Europe, Czech rep.
May 30 2006
May 30, 2006 — French President Jacques Chirac today urged
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev to push for a peaceful settlement
of its conflict with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh.
After meeting with Aliyev, Chirac expressed support for international
mediators who last week urged all sides to compromise over the enclave,
which is inside Azerbaijan but has been controlled by ethnic Armenians
since a war in the early 1990s.
Aliyev and Armenian President Robert Kocharian have traded hostile
statements since talks between them in February in France broke down.
There has also been in increase in the number of violent incidents
along the border.
Speaking today at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Aliyev called
Karabakh “a black hole of Europe.”

ANCIENT CROSSES SMASHED WITH SLEDGEHAMMERS
Independent
New Zealand Herald, New Zealand
May 31 2006
BRUSSELS – Fears that Azerbaijan has systematically destroyed hundreds
of 500-year-old Christian artefacts have exploded into a diplomatic
row, after European Union MPs were barred from inspecting an ancient
Armenian burial site.
The predominantly Muslim country’s Government has been accused by the
International Council on Monuments and Sites of vandalism similar to
the Taleban’s demolition of the Bamiyan Buddhas in Afghanistan.
The claims centre on the fate of rare “khachkars”, stone crosses
carved with intricate floral designs, at the burial ground of Djulfa
in the Nakhichevan region of Azerbaijan, an enclave separated from
the rest of the country by Armenia.
The works – some of the most important examples of Armenian heritage
– are said to have been smashed with sledgehammers last December as
the site was concreted over.
The Azerbaijan Government, which denies the claims, is now at the
centre of a row with MEPs, some of whom it accused of a “biased and
hysterical approach”. Its ambassador to the EU also says the European
Parliament has ignored damage to Muslim sites in Armenia.
Azerbaijan refused to allow a delegation of MEPs permission to visit
the 1500-year-old Djulfa cemetery during their trip to the region
last month.
Most of original 10,000 khachkars, which date from the 15th and 16th
century, were destroyed by the early 20th century.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

HEARINGS ON ABKHAZ RAILWAY UNVEIL FEW DETAILS
Nino Khutsidze, Civil Georgia
Civil Georgia, Georgia
May 30 2006
Officials in Tbilisi are cautious about unveiling details of ongoing
negotiations, involving the Georgian, Russian, Abkhaz and Armenian
sides, regarding setting up of a consortium which will deal with
multi-million project on rehabilitation of the Abkhaz section of
Russo-Georgian railway.
Chief of the state-run Georgian Railway company Irakli Ezugbaia
informed lawmakers about the talks at a session of the Commission for
Territorial Integrity. But no details of these hearings are known as
the session was held beyond the closed doors.
Abkhaz sources reported in early May that the Georgian, Abkhaz,
Russian, and Armenian sides signed a protocol on establishing a
consortium – the Black Sea Railways – which will rehabilitate the
Abkhaz railway during the talks in Moscow on May 4. According to these
reports the consortium will be an open joint stock company where the
Abkhaz side will be represented as “a full-pledged party.”
But the Georgian officials have denied these reports.
“There are no four parties. There are only two parties – Georgian
and Russian. All the rest [the Abkhaz and Armenian sides] are only
invited to participate in the working meetings,” Irakli Ezugbaia told
Civil Georgia on May 30 after the parliamentary commission hearing.
“No decision has been made so far regarding the parties [in the
consortium], because we are still working on mechanisms of setting
up of this consortium. Final political decision will be presented
only after this [work] is over,” Ezugbaia said.
He noted that the protocol signed in Moscow on May 4 is a document
which reflects position of the sides regarding the issue.
Ezugbaia also said that no agreement has been reached so far on
how shares among the participating sides will be distributed in
the consortium.
“There are different positions among negotiating sides about this
issue,” Ezugbaia added.
He also said that the consortium will most likely be registered in
“one of the European states.”
Ezugbaia stressed that the Georgia will push participation of those
Georgian experts in rehabilitation of the railway, who are internally
displaced persons from Abkhazia.
Parliamentarians participating in the commission hearings noted after
the session that “no sufficient answers” were provided by the chief
of the Georgian Railway.
Ezugbaia said he is in charge of “the technical aspects” of the
rehabilitation of the Abkhaz railway, which will cost roughly
USD 200-300 million; hence he is not in a position to comment on
“political aspects of the issues.”
MP Shota Malashkhia, who chairs the Commission for Territorial
Integrity, said after the hearings that the issue related with the
railway consortium is too complicated and “is like a big spider web
of legal questions.”
“We can not see mechanisms of creation of this consortium; we can not
see how the control over this consortium or investments will be carried
out… All the lawmakers [attending the session] have an impression
that the issue is not fully realized,” MP Malashkhia told reporters.
If implemented, the project will revive the Trans-Caucasus Railway,
which stretched more than 2,300 kilometers during Soviet times,
connecting Armenia and Georgian Black Sea ports with central Russia;
the railway, which has been on hold since the conflict in the breakaway
region in the early 90s, operated passenger services and handled more
than 15 million tons of transit cargo per year.
According to the public opinion survey commissioned by the
International republican Institute this April 75% of 1500 surveyed
citizens thought Georgia said that restoration of the Abkhaz railway
will “better suit Georgian national interests.”

WHAT DID YOU FOR DARFUR?
By Jennifer Chestnut
Akron Jewish News
May 30 2006
In 15 years when your kids are working on school history projects
and ask what you did for the situation in Darfur, what will you tell
them? This question bubbles in my mind and has since Sunday, April 30.
In our house, as with most families with two working parents and two
small kids, Sunday is dedicated to housework, tag-team early morning
childcare, a little outside time and, if we’re lucky, getting everyone
to nap at the same time. But on April 30 we dedicated it to something
else. We-yes, all four of us, including 4-year old Seth is 4 and
9-month old Martha-loaded in the minivan and headed for Washington,
D.C. to attend the Save Darfur Rally to Stop Genocide.
The rally was moving, powerful, energizing, depressing, embarrassing
and rewarding. By now you may have read the reports about the day’s
speakers. They all made the event powerful and energizing, along with
the 15,000 people in attendance. But it was depressing to realize
the magnitude of what’s really going on in the Darfur region of
Sudan. It was depressing to see the photos of the abysmal situation
and of Sudanese people in attendance that have family there right
now. It also shamed me to realize how little I did for the atrocities
and genocides that have happened “on my watch.” What did we do about
Rwanda? Not the US, but us, me, you; did you do anything? I didn’t. I
was a thinking college student able to do something. But I did nothing.
It’s easier for me now. I work at a college and have the student
manpower and the environment to do a little more than normal. But we
owe it to ourselves, to the people of Sudan, to the memories of those
who were killed in previous genocides that we may feel connected to
(the Holocaust, Armenia, Rwanda,etc.) to do something. If nothing
else, just learn more about the situation and talk about it with
friends so they too are more aware.
Maybe we did nothing more than make ourselves feel better by attending
the Save Darfur rally. I hope not. I hope that we were counted among
the tens of thousands, so the Bush administration knows that the world
is watching. I hope that you take three minutes to do something, too.
Chestnut is the director of Hillel at Kent State University.
t.cfm?article_id=1067&cat=6
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

AZERI MPS, MGER SHAHGELDIYAN AND VLADIMIR ZHIRINOVSKI CLASHED DURING NATO PA
Today, Azerbaijan
May 30 2006
In the Parliamentary Assembly of NATO session operating in London for
Conflicts and new state organization center director Denis Summut
has dealt with Nagorno Karabakh problem and conflicts in Georgia,
in his report dedicated to conflicts in South Caucasus.
According to APA, after the report Azerbaijani delegation making a
speech expressed their attitude to the lecture. Azerbaijani delegation
member in NATO PA Gudrat Hasanguliyev made his remarks to Denis Summut
on not being reflected the information on occupied territories and
refugees related to Nagorno Karabakh conflict. He stated that more than
20 percent of Azerbaijani territories have been occupied by Armenians,
more than 1 million refugees and displaced people exist in Azerbaijan.
After that Mger Shahgaldiyan has accused Azerbaijani parliamentarian
in false information. According to his claim, Azerbaijani territories’
13 percent is under occupation, not 20, and the number of refugees
is 600 thousand not 1mln.
The statement of Mger Shahgaldiyan irritated Denis Sammut: “You have
occupied the territory of a state even 2 percent not 20, why did you
occupy? What right do you have? If this state begins to restore its
territory tomorrow again war will break out. You have mentioned that
the number of refuges is 600 thousand, is it small figures? Why should
600 thousand people live in condition of refugee?”
Russian parliamentarian Vladimir Zhirinovski said that Azerbaijan
lives in the account of Russia. According to him Azerbaijanis work in
Russia, earn money, and in this way they solve their social problems.
The Azerbaijani parliamentarian Gudrat HAsanguliyev stated that
Azerbaijnanis work in Russia, but Russia needs this working power,
and even President of Russia stated of it. Hasanguliyev said simply
Azerbaijanis serve income of financial means to the budget of this
state, and that is why their living in this country is provided.
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ALIYEV AND CHIRAC MEET IN PARIS
AzerTag, Azerbaijan
May 30 2006
Visiting France President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan met on May 30
with his French counterpart Jacques Chirac at Elysee Palace in Paris.
President Chirac congratulated the Azerbaijani leader on the Republic
Day and the Azeri oil’s reaching Ceyhan terminal, as well as described
the opening of new building for Azerbaijani embassy in Paris as an
important event.
At the meeting held in a sincere and friendly atmosphere, both
Presidents expressed satisfaction with current development of relations
between Azerbaijan and France.
They also touched upon the Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorno-Karabakh
problem, and activities of France as one of the Co-Chairs of the OSCE
Minsk group towards peaceful settlement of the conflict.