AZERBAIJAN READY TO GRANT BROAD AUTONOMY TO KARABAKH – MINISTER
Interfax News Agency
Russia & CIS Military Newswire
June 19, 2006 Monday 10:41 AM MSK
Azerbaijan is ready to grant broad autonomy to the predominantly
ethnic Armenian enclave of Nagorno- Karabakh, Azeri Foreign Minister
Elmar Mammadyarov told journalists on Sunday.
“I am speaking about the highest level of autonomy for Nagorno-
Karabakh. There is such a precedent in the world. For instance,
Trieste, or Tatarstan in the neighboring Russian Federation,” he said.
Tatarstan’s Constitution envisions broad powers, including the
republic’s right to set up its own representative offices abroad,
the minister said. “There is no point in searching for any new key
to the Karabakh problem,” he said.
“All these issues should be dealt with after the Azeri population
returns to Nagorno-Karabakh. Nobody can blackmail Azeri refugees,
denying them any opportunity to return to their homeland currently
under Armenia’s occupation,” Mammadyarov said.

KOCHARIAN AND HARASZTI DISCUSSED FREE MEDIA DEVELOPMENT
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.06.2006 17:11 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Today Armenian President Robert Kocharian received
OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Miklos Haraszti. Giving a
positive estimate to the cooperation with the OSCE is various fields
Robert Kocharian noted the importance of freedom of media and stressed
that its mission includes maintenance of public order and covering
of real life of the country. At that the Armenian President remarked
that the freedom of media should be regulated in order to protect human
rights. The parties also exchanged views of the free media development,
obstacles impeding the process and the necessity of state media. In
Robert Kocharian’s words, Armenia is still in transition period and
phenomena peculiar to this period can be observed in the republic.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

PRECISE DATE OF CAUCASIAN FOUR PARLIAMENT HEADS MEETING NOT DETERMINED YET
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.06.2006 17:26 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The precise date of the meeting of the heads of
parliament of the Caucasian Four has not been fixed yet,” Georgian
Parliament Speaker Nino Burjanadze said. “I hope that the Speaker of
the Russian Federation Council as well as his counterparts from Armenia
and Azerbaijan will arrive to Tbilisi, however the precise date of the
meeting has not been determined yet,” she said. When touching upon
the Georgian-Russian parliamentary contacts, Burjanadze said “there
is wish to cooperate.” “We are glad to invite other members of the
federation Council and leadership of the RF State Duma to Tbilisi,”
she said, reported RIA Novosti.

UNRECOGNIZED REPUBLIC OF NORTHERN CYPRUS SUPPORTS BAKU IN KARABAKH ISSUE
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.06.2006 17:36 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) “will
always support Azerbaijan’s fair position on Nagorno Karabakh,” TRNC
Minister of Economy and Tourism Dervish Kemal Deniz stated in Baku June
19 during the 33rd session of Foreign Ministers of the Organization
of Islamic Conference. “The leadership and people of Azerbaijan have
always supported us in our fair struggle,” he underscored.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

RA FM: UKRAINE EXPERIENCE IN RELATIONS WITH NATO AND EU USEFUL FOR US
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.06.2006 17:55 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The experience Ukraine gained in relations with the
NATO and European Union is useful for Armenia, RA Foreign Minister
Vartan Oskanian stated at a joint news conference with his Ukrainian
counterpart Boris Tarasyuk. “Ukraine has accumulated good experience
in implementation of individual projects with the NATO and EU and we
think it will be very useful for us,” the RA FM said. For his part
Boris Tarasyuk stated that Ukraine is ready to host the Armenian
and Azerbaijani Presidents for holding talks on the Nagorno Karabakh
conflict settlement. The Armenian Minister remarked that Karabakh’s
main problem is the self-determination of the people living on the
territory.

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RECOGNITION TO BE DISCUSSED IN CZECH SENATE IN FALL
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.06.2006 18:42 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Today chairman of the RA National Assembly
standing committee on foreign relations Armen Rustamian met with
the delegation of the committee on foreign relations, defense and
security at the Czech Senate. In Rustamian’s words, the Armenian and
Czech parliaments should strengthen ties and exchange experience in
the political, economic and cultural fields. For his part, delegation
head Rostislav Slavotenik noted the importance of cooperation in legal
field as well. Committee member Jaromir Stetina remarked that 2 months
ago a conference dedicated to the Armenian Genocide was held in the
Czech Senate and voiced hope that this fall the Senate will adopt a
resolution on the Genocide recognition.
As for Turkey’s bid for the EU, the RA NA committee chairman said
the European Union is not only a geopolitical space but first of
all a system of values. In order to join the European family the
country should share the European values including the recognition
of the Armenian Genocide. “Until Turkey recognized the Armenian
Genocide there will be no guarantee the crime will not be repeated,”
Rustamian remarked. The Czech parliamentarians agreed with him noting
that the EU-Turkey talks may last 10-15 years and during this period
Turkey’s home and foreign policy should meet the European standards,
reported the RA NA press service.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

INTERNATIONAL WORKING GROUP ON SEARCH FOR MISSING VISITING KARABAKH
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.06.2006 18:51 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The International Working Group (IWG) on the Search
for the Missing People, Hostages and POWs in the Karabakh conflict
zone arrived in Nagorno Karabakh on a two-day working visit. The
IWG members met with the NKR Foreign Minister Georgy Petrosyan, the
leadership of the NKR State Committee on Missing People and Hostages,
heads of the Stepanakert Office of the International Committee of
the Red Cross, IWG coordinator in NKR Albert Voskanian informed.
In the course of the meetings the issues referring to activation of
search for the missing and burial places were discussed. The requests
of the state commissions on missing persons and hostages of Nagorno
Karabakh, Armenia and Azerbaijan were considered as well. June 20
the IWG will depart for Yerevan to proceed with the work, reported
De Facto news agency.

CANADA-ARMENIA FRIENDSHIP GROUP ESTABLISHED IN CANADA
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.06.2006 19:02 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Canada-Armenia Preliminary Friendship (CAPF)
for the 39th Parliament was established at a meeting in the House
of Commons on June 14. House of Commons and Canadian Senate members
were invited by MP Gary Goodyear (Conservative-Cambridge) to attend
the founding meeting and elect a new executive for CAPF. So far 32
members of Parliament and Senators have joined CAPF.
In his opening remarks Goodyear thanked MPs and Senators and said:
“Your presence demonstrates your support for the positive relationship
that exists between Armenia and Canada. As you know, our Prime
Minister recently officially recognized the Armenian Genocide of
1915 in Parliament. We believe that this was a positive step toward
healing the wounds of the past and paving the road for a peaceful
and prosperous relationship between Canada and Armenia.”
Arman Agopian, the Charge d’ affairs of the Embassy of Armenia, thanked
the Canadian parliamentarians for their support and commitment to
foster and enhance strong and positive bilateral relationship between
Canada and Armenia. CAPF new president invited Aris Babikian, executive
director of the Armenian National Committee of Canada (ANCC), to
relay the message of the Canadian-Armenian Community, reported Yerkir.

KOCHARIAN RECEIVES OSCE MEDIA REPRESENTATIVE
Armenpress
Jun 19 2006
YEREVAN, JUNE 19, ARMENPRESS: The OSCE Representative on Freedom of
the Media, Miklos Haraszti, who will be visiting Armenia from 19 to
21 June to collect first-hand information on the media in the country,
was received today by president Robert Kocharian.
The visit, which comes at the invitation of the Armenian Foreign
Ministry, will help assist the country in further promoting free
and pluralistic media in pursuance of its OSCE commitments, the OSCE
Yerevan office said.
President Kocharian was quoted by his press office as saying that
the diverse cooperation between Armenia and the OSCE was very
effective. Kocharian also underscored the freedom of media saying
free media has a key role in implementing civic control over the
government’s performance and presenting the country’s real state of
things. Kocharian also said the freedom of press must be regulated
in such a way as to clearly defend individuals’ rights.
Kocharian’s press office said the two men then had an exchange of
views on a variety of issues. Kocharian was also quoted as saying that
Armenia was still in transition and that in some instances features
of that period were still there.

ARMENIANS MAKE 20% OF ABKHAZIAN POPULATION
Armenpress
Jun 19 2006
YEREVAN, JUNE 19, ARMENPRESS: Though the exact number of Armenians in
Georgia’s breakaway region of Abkhazia is unknown, some estimates put
it at 60,000, which makes about 20 percent of the region’s overall
population. According to 1989 census, there were 77,000 Armenians
in Abkhazia.
Armenians live in all regions of Abkhazia, but the bulk are in
Ochamchira and Gudauta and in the capital town of Sukhumi. Their main
occupations are small businesses and agriculture. The capital city
Sukhumi has no Armenian church.
Gagik Ghazarian, who represents the Abkhazian side in the
Armenian-Russian Business Association, told a group of Armenian
journalists who traveled across Abkhazia to Sochi last week that the
community was not rich enough to build a church, though it had been
granted a permission.
He said students in 35 schools in Armenian-populated regions have
classes of Armenian language and history. Abkhazian parliament has
an Armenian deputy speaker and three Armenian members.
Many Armenians who escaped from Abkhazia in the war years are now
coming back and many of them are getting increasingly engaged in the
tourism industry.