PanARMENIAN.Net
Armenian Soldier Killed over Ceasefire Violation

29.05.2006 13:21 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ May 27 at 9.30 p.m. local time the Azeri side
commenced fire upon the Armenian emplacements in the Noemberyan
region. As RA Defense Minister’s Spokesman Seyran Shahsuvaryan told
PanARMENIAN.Net, master sergeant Levon Adamyan, 1985 year of birth,
was wounded in the chest and died on the way to hospital.

PanARMENIAN.Net
Jacques Chirac Going to Visit Armenia
29.05.2006 13:53 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ French President Jacques Chirac is going to visit
Armenia late September. As RA President’s Spokesman Victor Soghomonyan
told a PanARMENIAN.Net reporter, the matter concerns an intention
only. `I can neither confirm or refute the information. Mr. Chirac has
stated of the intention to pay a visit to Armenia. This is the only
information we possess,’ he said.

Azeri barbarism continues: Graves of Jews and Armenians being destroyed in
Azerbaijan

ArmRadio.am
29.05.2006 15:00
Graves of Jews and Armenians are being destroyed in Azerbaijan. The
article titled `The country of barbarians’ printed in `Real
Azerbaijan’ newspaper notes that the editorial office received a
letter from Sumgait residents, who report about the destruction of
Armenian and Jewish tombs.
The author of the article informs that the same happens also in Baku.
Ac cording to the author, `it is an intentional and cynical
persecution.’ `First, the barbarism at the cemetery is a serious blow
to our reputation,’ the author notes.

PanARMENIAN.Net
Armenian Internet Community Offers Kommersant Daily to Apologize for
Misinformation
29.05.2006 14:07 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ As it was reported earlier, Russian magazine
Kommersant Dengi (¹19) affixed a booklet advertising Turkey’s places
of interest. In addition the readers found a CD with a 70-minute film
about the `Turkish genocide perpetrated by Armenians’. As reported by
the Yerkramas, the newspaper of Armenians of Russia, the Armenian
Internet Community (, ,
forum.hayastan.com and others) launched a protest action and offered
all people concerned to write a letter to the magazine editorial
office with a suggestion to apologize for having spread false
information.
The numerous letters sent to the Kommersant Dengi say that `the
Armenian Diaspora of Russia is one of the biggest in the world.
Armenians have worked for Russia’s welfare for centuries. The Republic
of Armenia is Russia’s strategic partner and the two states enjoy
allied relations. An anti-Armenian action of the kind carried by
Turkey through your edition cannot but arouse discontent among the
Armenian population of Russia. We appeal to you with a request to
apologize to the readers for having spread information that does not
correspond to historical reality and offends the feelings of the heirs
of the Armenian Genocide victims. The denial of the Armenian Genocide
is actually equal to complicity in the crime.’

PanARMENIAN.Net
Armenian Parliament Speaker Confirmed Resignation

29.05.2006 14:30 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Speaker of the Armenian National Assembly Artur
Baghdassaryan has confirmed his resignation today. He stated it at a
press conference in the parliament at that refusing to reply to
reporters’ questions. Artur Baghdassaryan thanked media for joint work
and added that the further activities of Orinats Yerkir party will be
announced later.
RA NA chairman submitted his resignation May 22. The 5-day term
provided to the Speaker for confirmation of resignation has expired
today. Thus, according to item A of Article 20.2 of the RA Law on
Regulations of the National Assembly, the Speaker’s resignation is
considered accepted.
To remind, Artur Baghdassaryan announced of the intention to leave the
post of Speaker on May 12. The day before the political council of
Orinats Yerkir party headed by him decided to secede from the ruling
coalition over discrepancies on the home and foreign line, reported
Novosti-Armenia.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

PanARMENIAN.Net
Mediators Believe in Possible Agreement

Co-chairmen of the Minsk group assert that there are
grounds for optimism.
26.05.2006 GMT+04:00

The regular visit of OSCE Minsk group co-chairmen has
come to the end. This visit can hardly be called
regular due to a number of specific differences from
the previous visits of mediators in Yerevan and Baku.
Firstly, this time the co-chairmen arrived in full
staff which has not been the case of at least half a
year. After the unsuccessful meeting of the two
presidents in Ramboulliet, mediators arrived in
Yerevan and Baku individually. Early in 2006 Bernard
Fassier twice came to Armenia and Azerbaijan. Steven
Mann has also visited Aliev and Kocharyan. As for the
Russian mediator Yuri Merzlyakov, he looked to be
keeping away. The joint visit of cochairmen confirms
that co-chairman states are again in the same team.
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Another unprecedented circumstance
is that this time co-chairmen were joined by
high-ranking representatives of foreign policy
structures of countries, involved in the mediatorial
mission – Russian deputy foreign minister Grigory
Karasin, US State Secretary’s assistant Daniel Fried
and the political issues director of French Foreign
Ministry Stanislas d’Labule.
Last year the co-chairmen were twice accompanied in
regional visits by the former deputy foreign minister
of Russia Vyacheslav Trubnikov. The stately delegation
staff is first of all aimed at demonstrating
seriousness of the peacemakers’ intensions. This can
also be proved by the mediators’ announcements made
after their meetings with Aliev and Kocharyan. `The
joint mission is an extraordinary undertaking. It
should be taken as an evidence of seriousness of our
approach towards conflict regulation and of our common
conviction that we are on a stage when mutually
beneficial agreement is reachable’; it is said in two
similar documents.
The third peculiarity of the visit is that this time
co-chairmen limited themselves to visiting Baku and
Yerevan and did not consider it expedient to get
acquainted with the position of official Stepanakert.
There would not be anything special here if not a
singe detail: according to the Baku `Trend’
information agency, before the start of negotiations
with the Azeri foreign minister Elmar Mamedyarov,
delegation members had a working meeting with the
deputy foreign minister of Azerbaijan Araz Azimov. But
for some reason the meeting was also participated by
Nizami Bakhmanov who is called in Baku the `leader of
Azeri community of Nagorno-Karabakh’. Did mediators
know that Bakhmanov was going to wait for them in
Azimov’s office or it was unexpected for them?
Unfortunately journalists present at the briefing of
mediators in Yerevan could not ask them about that.
The same source also reports about the existence of
agreements concerning a number of meetings of the US
State Secretary’s assistance Daniel Fried in the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Administration of
the President of Azerbaijan. It may be assumed that
the matter concerns separate meetings, without the
participation of diplomats from Russia and France.
What did Fried discuss with the representatives of
Aliev’s administration? This question gaining special
significance in the context of the quite noteworthy
article in Baku published `Express’ newspaper.
Referring to informed sources in Washington, the
author of the article asserts that `Pentagon has
applied to the US Congress with a request to assign 43
million dollars for the reconstruction of four
military aerodromes in Azerbaijan and creation of
anti-missile defense and radio-electronic intelligence
systems’. If it turns out that this sensational news
has at least anything with reality it will become the
first symptom testifying to the existence of certain
principal agreements between George Bush and Ilham
Aliev. It is worth reminding that late in April Ilham
Aliev was `called’ to Washington for discussing
Azerbaijan’s position in case of military actions
against Iran. If Aliev really promised Bush to provide
military base for attacking Iran, it is clear that he
will be counting on the White House’s `services’ in
Karabakh issue. In any case, the existence of
agreements between Washington and Baku concerning
Azerbaijan’s participation in anti-Iranian coalition
will have a negative impact on the regulation process
of Karabakh conflict. Nevertheless, it is still a big
question – is it worth relying on the sources of
`Express’ newspaper? Though the sensational
information published in the paper have not yet been
denied by anyone.
«PanARMENIAN.Net» analytical department

Paper says Armenian officials “nervous” ahead of next Karabakh talks
Aykakan Zhamanak, Yerevan
27 May 06

Excerpt from Anna Akopyan report by Armenian newspaper Aykakan
Zhamanak on 27 May “To sign or not to sign”
It has become known from reliable sources that the OSCE Minsk Group
co-chairs expect [Presidents] Robert Kocharyan and Ilham Aliyev to
sign a document on the Karabakh settlement during their meeting in
Bucharest on 4-6 June. All the developments of the last one month and
a half prove that in Bucharest the world community will force the two
presidents either to sign a peace agreement or an intermediary
agreement.
[Passage omitted: more of the same]
No doubt unlike before the USA would like to see the Karabakh conflict
solved.
No doubt that Russia is not secretly fighting against the settlement
initiatives. The participation of Russian Deputy Foreign Minister
Grigoriy Karasin in the recent trip by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs
to the region showed that Russia will not be against Kocharyan and
Aliyev signing the peace agreement in Bucharest. But is that really
going to happen?
Let us note that Azerbaijan sent positive “messages” in this regard
yesterday. In particular, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar
Mammadyarov, who is used to making harsh statements, changed his style
yesterday. He spoke about the need to reach a compromise and finally
specify the status of Karabakh. He even spoke about the NKR
constitution.
[Passage omitted: some excerpts from Mammadyarov’s statement,
speculates on reasons for such a change]
Unlike the Azerbaijani leaders, their Armenian counterparts have not
been spreading any kind of “messages” or assessments. The most recent
statement by the Armenian side was made by the press secretary for the
Foreign Ministry that “agreement can be reached only if Azerbaijan
recognizes the right of the Karabakh people to
self-determination”. And if we accept that the Nagornyy Karabakh
Republic’s intermediary high status is the same as the right to
self-determination, and on the other hand to accept that speaking
about the constitution Mammadyarov meant just this intermediary high
status, it turns out that the document may be signed.
But unlike before it is now difficult to answer the question as to
whether Robert Kocharyan and Ilham Aliyev will sign the document. We
can only note that, according to our information, appropriate
officials of Armenia are feeling rather tense and nervous ahead of
their Bucharest visit.

A1+
ARMENIA TOPS THE LIST
[12:17 pm] 29 May, 2006
The Armenian national chess team plays successfully in the World
Chess Olympiad in Turin and has good chances of becoming champion for
the first time.
In the third round the Armenian Grand Masters beat the team of the
Netherlands 3:1 which was in the second place before that. Levon
Aronyan and Gabriel Sargsyan celebrated wins, and Vladimir Hakobyan
and Karen Asryan tied.
By the way, in the 6th round the Netherlands had beaten the main
rivals of Armenia, the team of Russia which in its turn beat Belarus
in this round 3:1.
In the 8th round our Grand Masters will play with the team of Cuba
which has 19.5 points.

A1+
FISHING PROHIBITED ON PAPER ONLY
[01:04 pm] 29 May, 2006
The markets of the Gegharqounik region as well as the community of
village Nor Getashen still continue selling whitefish. Although by the
order of the RA Ministry of Ecology it is prohibited to catch
whitefish in 2006, still fishing does not stop in Sevan.
Mainly small fish is sold in the markets: weighing 50-150 grams and
costing 100 AMD each. In answer to our inquiries the Ecology
administration of the Gegharqounik region said that the national park
`Sevan’ and the RA Ministry of Ecology are responsible for prohibiting
fishing.
So, in contrast to the previous years no control has been exercised in
the lake.
TV Company `Qyavar’ of Gavar

A1+
PACE SESSION IN MOSCOW
[04:07 pm] 29 May, 2006
The cultural diversity of Northern Caucasus will be one of the issues
of the agenda of the PACE session. In the session which will take
place in Moscow today the Chechnya issue will most probably not be
discussed. PACE President Rene van der Linden and RF Foreign Minister
Sergey Lavrov will participate in the session. The latter presides
over the CE Ministers’ Committee.
The report about Northern Caucasus will be the first `peaceful’ report
in the PACE. According to author of the report Ann Braser it has
nothing to do with the defense of human rights, the issue of refugees
and the humanitarian situation. Ass Braser visited the region last
September. The PACE reporter thinks that education and culture can
have their contribution to the balancing of situation in Northern
Caucasus.