FOREIGN POLICY PLAYS NO ROLE
Panorama.am
14:20 16/05/06
The departure of Orinats Yerkir from the ruling coalition was not
conditioned by disagreements in the foreign policy, Armenian Foreign
Minister Vartan Oskanyan told reporters today. “I think that happened
because of accumulated problems and not one,” he said.
He also said that at this point the internal political processes do
not affect Nagorno Karabakh conflict regulation.

KOCHARYAN WILL NOT LEAVE FOR PARIS
A1+
[01:04 pm] 16 May, 2006
RA President Robert Kocharyan will not participate in the session of
the NATO parliamentary symposium which will be convened on May 26 –
30 in Paris.
“The President got an invitation from chair of the NATO Parliamentary
symposium Pier Lelush but unfortunately he cannot participate in
the session as his agenda of those days will be very tense. The
OSCE Minsk group co-chairs are to visit the region at that time and
the celebrations of the republic holiday will be held on May 28,”
speaker of the President Viktor Soghomonyan informed about it the
Radio Station “Liberty.” Asked the question wether it is determined
by the current situation of interior policy he gave a negative answer.
The analytists made conclusion that Kocharian – Aliev meeting would
likely be held in Paris. According to various sources, Azeri President
Ilhalm Aliev accepted the invitation to visit Paris.
The 3 co-chairs of the Minsk group will arrive at the region from
May 25 to 30 but the exact date of their arrival in Yerevan is still
unknown according to the speaker.
By the way, the next meeting of the Armenian and Azeri Foreign
Ministers will be held in Strasburg on May 18 within the framework
of the session of the EU foreign ministers’ council.

UNION OF ARMENIANS OF RUSSIA TO TAKE PART IN NEXT PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IN ARMENIA
PanARMENIAN.Net
16.05.2006 15:06 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Union of Armenians of Russia (UAR) will take
part in the next parliamentary elections in Armenia scheduled in 2007,
UAR President Ara Abrahamyan told journalists in Armenia. “Some half
a million Armenians, who are citizens of Armenia, live in Russia,
so we cannot miss the parliamentary elections,” said Abrahamyan,
who arrived in Yerevan in the connection with the session of the
General Council of the World Armenian Congress (WAC) that he heads.
“The matter specifically concerns financial support, as we did during
the elections in 2003,” Ara Abrahamyan said. At that the UAR President
did not say which party the Union of Armenians is going to fund.
He emphasized that the mechanism of support to the party at the
elections is being specified at present, reports Novosti-Armenia.

RA PRESIDENT PRESENTS PRESENT STAGE OF SETTLEMENT PROCESS OF KARABAKH CONFLICT TO OSCE SECRETARY GENERAL
Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
May 15 2006
YEREVAN, MAY 15, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. RA President Robert
Kocharian received on May 13 Marc Perrin de Brichambaut, OSCE
Secretary General, who visited Armenia on the occasion of opening of
the “Melange” project for liquidation of the rocket fuel remained in
the territory of Armenia still from the Soviet times. The President of
the republic welcame the OSCE Secretary’s General visit and appreciated
effeciency of the cooperation with the OSCE in the sense of volume,
level and prospects. As Noyan Tapan was informed by the President’s
Press Office, the interlocutors discussed in details the developments
taking place in the OSCE region and the process of reforms of the OSCE
structure. At the guest’s request, the President presented the present
stage of the peaceful settlement process of the Karabakh conflict. He
attached importance to the circumstance that the problem settlement
takes place within the OSCE framework and a rather effective format
has been chosen. The Armenia-Turkey relations were also touched upon.

TURKISH COURT BEGINS TRIAL OF A TURK SUSPECTED OF KILLING CATHOLIC PRIEST
Armenpress
May 15 2006
YEREVAN, MAY 15, ARMENPRESS: A Turkish court in the Black Sea city of
Trabzon began Monday the trial of the 16-year old suspected killer
of Andrea Santoro- an Italian priest murdered at Santa Maria Church
in Trabzon in February.
Father Andrea Santoro, 60, had been shot twice in the back on February
5 as he knelt praying after Sunday afternoon mass in the front row of
the Santa Maria Catholic Church. The two bullets pierced his heart and
liver killing him almost instantly. A life sentence has been sought
for the 16-year-old suspected killer of the Italian priest. The
public prosecutor has charged the accused with murder with intent,
possession of an illegal fire arm and willfully endangering public
safety. For these three charges the prosecutor is seeking respectively,
a life sentence, one year, and between three to six months.
Several foreign and national journalists along with Turkish
parliamentary human rights watch commission members are attending the
hearing. The accused will be tried as a juvenile since he is under
18 years of age.
Ballistics tests have confirmed that the handgun used in the priest’s
killing belonged to the suspects father.

TURKISH LOBBY AGAINST THE BILL PENALIZING ARMENIAN GENOCIDE DENIERS
ArmRadio.am
15.05.2006 17:36
“May 18 discussion of the bill on penalizing Armenian Genocide deniers
may be cancelled or postponed,” said Hilda Tchoboyan, Head of the
European Armenian Federation, in her phone talk with “Radiolur”
correspondent.
The reason is the active Turkish lobbying. This, however, will not
put an end to the question, and in several months the issue will be
again presented to consideration.
In Hilda Tchoboyan’s words, the Armenian side is doing everything to
counter the active Turkish lobby and to make the issue a matter of
discussion. Today all Armenian organizations of France are working in
accord. These have been joined by the French organization for defense
of human rights. This is, however, not an issue of the Armenian
community in France only.

US TO URGE DEVELOPMENT BANKS TO ADJUST FOCUS
ArmRadio.am
15.05.2006 17:50
The United States in upcoming meetings with the African Development
Bank (ADB) and European Bank for Reconstruction Development (EBRD)
will urge the regional institutions to adjust their focus to best
serve the poor, says a senior official of the US Treasury Department.
Clay Lowery, Treasury assistant secretary for international affairs,
said when he meets with the EBRD, which gathers in London on May 21-22,
he will present the US view that the bank’s focus should shift away
from the countries it has assisted since its founding in 1990 to
still-poor areas of Southern Europe and the former Soviet Union –
such as Armenia, Georgia and parts of Russia.
EBRD should “graduate” countries that are now part of the European
Union – countries whose average annual income per capita has grown
to $10,000. Areas needing more help have an average annual income
per capita of $2,000, he said.

HAMLET GHUSHCHYAN ADMITTED HIS MISTAKE AND APOLOGIZED TO SAMVEL BABAYAN
Lragir.am
15 May 06
After three and half years of absence Hamlet Ghushchyan returned
to Armenia to lead AR and Hayrenik channels reorganizing into Grant
Media. Hamlet Ghushchyan said he quit a well-paid job in Moscow to
come here. Hamlet Ghushchyan says we will meet on TV in September. In
the meantime, Hamlet Ghushchyan is apologizing on May 15 to Samvel
Babayan for shooting a film about him, entitled “The Lord of Hell
and Heaven” and calling him a general.
In his one-page printed repentance and the videotape of the same thing
Hamlet Ghushchyan repeats for three times that the information the film
was based on was provided by the former NKR Attorney-General Mavrik
Ghukasyan, the tax agencies and television of NKR. The information
was “false and distorted.” “We did not have much time to think. We
did not possess facts” while working on the film, which was shot in
three days. Now Samvel Babayan has given him the record # 12200800 of
his file, which is the reality, says Hamlet Ghushchyan. Ghushchyan
who called Samvel Babayan “the lord of hell and heaven” relying on
the information provided by Mavrik Ghukasyan, now does not express
any opinion on Mavrik Ghukasyan, relying on the information provided
by Samvel Babayan, he simply blames the former official. Fortunately,
Ghushchyan does not blame the old lady, a viewer, who phoned Ghushchyan
after Samvel Babayan’s arrest and demanded explanation. Of course,
Ghushchyan does not simply apologize to Samvel Babayan. He also thanks
God that Babayan “was released from prison, and justice prevailed
to some degree,” and simultaneously honors him. Ghushchyan knows
very well that Samvel Babayan was pardoned, nonetheless, he uses the
following phrases to describe him: “Behavior of a knight. I would be
colder, more indifferent. Incredible. Humane, a behavior of a general,
a soldier. I am amazed by the qualities of this man. I did not meet
him while shooting the film. Now I have met him, three times. Every
time I discovered him anew and found out something new.” At the last
meeting, Samvel Babayan stood up, shook hands with Hamlet Ghushchyan
and said he was glad to meet him. “He is not the way he appears to
be. Believe me,” says Hamlet Ghushchyan.
Currently Ghushchyan is shooting a film about Samvel Babayan, entitled
“Insight from Aside” which will show that Samvel Babayan had 4 cars
instead of 86, his wife’s jewelry cost 50 thousand dollars instead of
3 million dollars, he had 400 head of cattle instead of 20 thousand,
etc. “There will be an honest, frank word.” Accusing Mavrik Ghukasyan
for several times, he repeats for several times that the second film
is his own initiative, he was not pressed, he will cover the expenses,
for his own conscience, as well as “for the public.” Ghushchyan did
not conduct an opinion poll; he simply supposes that the society
needs a second film. In the second film, Hamlet Ghushchyan is going
to meet Mavrik Ghukasyan and ask him reproachfully – why did you give
us wrong information?

DASHNAKTSUTIUN DEMANDS ORINATS YERKIR’S SEATS FROM KOCHARYAN
Lragir.am
15 May 06
Dashnaktsutiun is said to claim the offices of the minister of
education and culture and the governor of Gegharkunik region,
formerly occupied by members of the Orinats Yerkir Party. After
Arthur Baghdasaryan’s resignation Stepan Barseghyan, the governor of
Gegharkunik region, resigned too. The minister of education and science
Sergo Yeritsyan rejected the party like the other ministers of the
Orinats Yerkir Party, however it is not likely that he will keep the
office. Kocharyan is said to have accepted Dashnaktsutiun’s claims in
return for “something”, we could not find out what. This may be related
to taking certain steps against the Orinats Yerkir Party in the future,
however. On the other hand, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation
(Dashnaktsutiun) badly needs the educational sphere to stay in the
parliament and to maintain their status in the next parliamentary
election. The arrangement between Kocharyan and Dashnaktsutiun is
said to have been disapproved by Serge Sargsyan and the Republican
Party, however.

AZERBAIJAN KEEPS TALKING TERROR LANGUAGE TO KARABAKH
PanARMENIAN.Net
15.05.2006 15:26 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Hearings on the 15th anniversary of Koltso operation
for forced exile of Armenian population from Getashen and Martunashen
villages of Shahumyan region and Nagorno Karabakh were held at
the NKR Parliament. In NKR Speaker Ashot Gulyan’s words, Soviet
Azerbaijan authorities “organized and implemented an unprecedented
cruel military operation to exile Armenians from Nagorno Karabakh
and adjacent regions” in April-June 1991.
He also noted that Karabakh people’s struggle hampered implementation
of those plans. “Only a state structure could rebuff that policy,
which resulted in the establishment of the NKR in September 1991,”
he emphasized.
He spoke in favor of joining efforts of state structures and
competent persons to collect facts, confirming anti-Armenian policy
of Azerbaijan.
Hearing participants qualified Koltso operation as a terrorist action
by Azerbaijan. It was underscored that Azeri authorities are not only
responsible for the crimes, they also continue speaking terror language
to Nagorno Karabakh by threatening to solve Karabakh issue by force.
During Koltso operation of special destination detachments of the
Azeri Ministry of Interior, USSR Ministry of Interior troops and
detachments of the 23rd division of the Soviet Army 6030 persons from
24 villages were deported.