Al-Ahram Weekly, Egypt
July 6 2006
End of Grey Wolf
Egyptians probably did not differ over a personality as much as they
did over Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Turkish republic.
While his actions were a source of admiration for some, as Professor
Yunan Labib Rizk relates, they were the object of disapproval by
others
The Grey Wolf was the title of a book by the British writer HS
Armstrong about the famous Turkish leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk that
was translated by Al-Hilal books under the same title in July 1952.
Grey Wolf was a symbol the Turks had taken for themselves in their
early nomadic days, and it was the name some gave to Ataturk for
reviving Turkish nationalism.
Click to view caption
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk
————————————————- ——————————-
In the 1920s, Ataturk annulled the caliphate (1924) a few months
following the declaration of the republic. And thus the last of the
caliphs, Abdel-Mejid, left Istanbul at night for Switzerland.
Although the nascent Turkish republic had agreed to concede all of
what it claimed were historical rights over Egypt at the Conference
of Lausanne that had been held the previous year (1923), religious
Muslims in Egypt were saddened by the disappearance of one of the
religious constants they had lived in the shadow of since the advent
of Islam.
This was followed by cultural and political complications for
Egyptians. Among them was the ambition of King Fouad I to gain the
seat of the caliphate that had been emptied, in hope of adding a
religiously legitimising cloak to his autocratic rule in order to
confront the liberalism of the Wafd and Liberal Constitutionalists
Parties. This struggle was exemplified by the book “Islam and the
Basis of Rule” written by Sheikh Ali Abdel-Razeq, which proved that
the caliphate was not originally among the fundaments of the true
religion. This caused relations between the king and the Liberal
Constitutionalists Party to explode, and the whole matter ended with
the dissolution of the royal government led by Ahmed Ziwar Pasha. Yet
the dream of reviving the caliphate remained alive in the king’s son
Farouq. And it is surprising to learn that it continues to beguile
the dreams of some groups using religion in politics until this day,
despite more than 80 years having passed since the caliphate was
annulled in Istanbul, the capital that was moved to Ankara under the
republic.
There were also the reforms that The Grey Wolf instituted, and the
connected and effective steps towards Westernisation, through the
education and unveiling of girls, the removal of the fez and the
donning of the hat, and the use of Latin rather than Arabic letters.
The measures all had reverberations in Egypt. The education and
unveiling of girls was called for by Hoda Sharawi, and her group
began to grow following what took place in Turkey. It reached its
zenith with the visit of an Egyptian female delegation led by Sharawi
to Istanbul in 1935 to participate in an international women’s
conference, where she expressed her admiration for the rights Turkish
women had gained during the era of the republic.
After returning from the international women’s conference held in
Rome in 1923, and having removed their head coverings, Hoda Sharawi
and her two young colleagues Nabawiya Musa and Ceza Nabarawi
succeeded in becoming role models to Egyptian women, who soon
followed their example. Until the 1980s it was rare to come across a
young Egyptian woman wrapped in such clothing. But following the oil
cultural invasion and the related religious edicts considering it the
religiously legitimate clothing, Egyptian began to wear it again, and
to even be creative in doing so.
As for removing the fez and donning hats, this was the object of a
battle between a number of intellectuals calling for haste in its
implementation, led by Mahmoud Azmi, Salama Moussa and Tawfiq
El-Hakim, and those who held on to this red headgear on the basis of
it being a symbol of Egyptian nationalism. Most of this camp added a
religious nature to the fez, although we are sure where they got
these arguments. At any rate, they took off their fezzes following
the July 1952 revolution, with the army men who had come to power
already having removed their fezzes and donned caps and berets in
their place.
There was also a direct confrontation between the fez and the hat
that led to a diplomatic crisis between Cairo and Ankara. It so
happened that the Egyptian minister plenipotentiary in Turkey,
Abdel-Malak Hamza Bey, went to a celebration held in Ankara Palace
Hotel on the evening of 29 October 1932 on the occasion of the
anniversary of the declaration of the Turkish republic that was
attended by Mustafa Kemal. A surprise awaited him there, for the
conqueror Ataturk objected to the fez the minister was wearing. This
caused a diplomatic crisis between the two countries, given that
Cairo held on to its right for its representatives to wear their
national dress, and only ended after the Turkish government
apologised.
The replacement of Arabic lettering with the Latin alphabet did not
reverberate in Egypt, for the situation was different in the new
republic that spoke Turkish and wrote it in Arabic, from that of
Egypt, with its original Arabic language, Al-Azhar, the guardian of
the Arabic language, and the country’s cultural wealth in this
language. As such, the voices that called for following Turkey’s
example in this regard were weak, and gained no response worth
mention.
For all of these reasons, the persona of the Grey Wolf was always
present in the collective Egyptian conscience, and his passing away
in 1938 could not occur without the attention of Al-Ahram.
IN THE YEAR OF HIS PASSING AWAY, Al-Ahram spared no efforts in
grasping opportunities to make reference to the man and his
accomplishments. Among such efforts was a long article transmitted
from the Daily Scottish replete with admiration and appreciative
characterisations of the man. The article’s author ended with the
following words: “If the conqueror Ataturk had been destined to live
another 15 years, I believe that Turkey would have taken its place
among the great nations of the world, and would have become one of
the strongest guarantees of peace in the Mediterranean.”
Under the headline “The conqueror’s gift to his nation,” Al-Ahram
lauded the man because he had willed all of his private property in
Ankara to the Turkish nation. This included a garden and palace, both
called Marmara; a building in which a semi-official newspaper of the
Turkish government was issued; and the land adjacent to it. “The
Turkish newspapers announced the news of this precious gift from the
saviour of the nation with immense gratitude.”
This act motivated an Al-Ahram reader to write to the “old
journalist” who penned the “On the margin” column, asking his opinion
given its potential exhortation to “our leaders and our wealthy.” The
man did not disappoint his reader, and dedicated his column in the 20
May 1938 issue of Al-Ahram to this topic. He wrote, “The rich and the
wealthy and the owners of thousands of measures of land and of pounds
are neither blind nor short-sighted. They know, like you and me, that
there is something called charity, and that it is a religious duty
imposed upon all people, and upon them in particular.”
In this connection, the author of “On the margin” recorded the
changes that had taken place in the concept of charity in Europe. He
noted that after the traditional means of charity had become
incongruous with the modern age, charity had been transformed into a
part of modern civil life. “Today in Europe and America, refuges are
built for actors and actresses, singers and movie stars. They
organise pensions for injured pilots, and open homes for physically
disabled fire fighters, drivers, and practitioners of other modern
professions.” He advised his reader to review the names of charitable
institutions in Paris, London, Berlin, and Copenhagen to learn what
changes had been made in the notion of charity.
Yet the most charming of that published in Al-Ahram the year Ataturk
passed away was written by Aziz Khanki in the 9 April issue. It was a
long article that occupied most of the first page. The occasion was
the visit of the Turkish foreign minister, and the title was “The
Turks and Ataturk.” Perhaps the secret to the charm of this article
is in its first section, in which he described the man’s
achievements. Its text is copied below:
“Turkey today is not the old Turkey. The Turks today are not the
Turks of yesterday. Turkey today is the product of a new regime, a
new spirit, and a new age. From a sultanate to a republic. From
autocratic to democratic. From the authority of an individual to the
authority of the nation. From the opinion of an individual to the
consultation of the group. From the domination of the Sultan’s
personal interests to the advancement of the general public’s
interests. From a trusteeship government to a Kemalist government.
>>From political, financial, legislative, industrial and commercial
slavery to political, financial, legislative, industrial and
commercial independence. From religious to civil. From heavenly law
to positive law. From the Islamic calendar to the Gregorian calendar.
>>From Arabic names to Turkish names. From Arabic numbers to Latin
numbers. From Arabic letters to Latin letters. From a language that
is a mixture of Farsi and Turkish to a purely Turkish language. From
Arab turbans to foreigners’ hats.”
Khanki did not shrink from addressing sensitive issues in his long
introduction. He wrote that Turkey, under the rule of Ataturk, had
moved from “the veil to uncovering. From separate men’s and women’s
quarters to shared men’s and women’s quarters. From the fortune of
men equalling that of two females to the fortune of men equalling
that of women in political and civil rights. From four wives to one
wife. From Istanbul to Ankara. From a ministry and minister to an
agency and a secretary. From fakhamtilo, abhatilo, dowlatilo,
atuftilo, saadatilo, and azzatilo to bey (meaning messieurs or
mister). From widespread Ottomanism embracing the loyalty of the
Yemeni, the Hijazi, the Egyptian, the Syrian, the Armenian, the
Roman, and the Kurdish to distinct Turkism that knows nothing other
than the Turkish nation, the Turkish man, the Turkish woman, Turkish
interests and Turkish statesmen.”
Aziz Khanki described what Ataturk did for the state in the following
terms. “He led its affairs with the Turkish people and for the
Turkish people. All of its blessings were from the nation and for the
nation. Its slogan was ‘Turkey for the Turks’ and ‘The Turkish, all
the Turkish, and nothing but the Turkish.’ The Egyptians knew Turkey
in the age of the Sultan Hamid. They knew it in a state of
dissolution and deterioration. In an age of fragmentation. In a state
of weakness. Europe’s statesmen called it the ‘sick man’ and called
its ruler ‘the red Sultan’.”
The author of this article moved from this expressive introduction to
calling on Egyptians to visit the new Turkey, which they would find a
different matter from that of the old Turkey. “You will find it a
country of freedom and independence after it had been a country of
oppression and subjugation. A country of strength and prosperity
after it had been a country of weakness and poverty. A country of
construction and abundance after it had been a country of devastation
and misfortune. You will find it a country strong in its men and
women. Strong in its determination and decisiveness. Strong in its
money and wealth. And although Egypt, the Arabian Peninsula,
Palestine, Syria, Iraq, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Albania, Tripoli,
Cyprus, and Crete were stripped from the old Turkey, the new Turkey
remains five times larger and more expansive than England.”
The author of “The Turks and Ataturk” expressed his admiration for
“all the political, financial, legislative, industrial, commercial,
scientific and literary transformations that have taken place in this
expansive country over the last 15 years because the man assuming
administration of the country is an actor and not a talker. He does
the work of a year in a day, the work of a day in an hour, and the
work of an hour in an instant.”
It was not unusual for Al-Ahram and all the other Egyptian papers to
take interest in personal news about the conqueror Ataturk. Typically
such news was transmitted from European, and particularly English
newspapers. It appears that Al-Ahram did not have a special
correspondent in the Turkish capital after it was transferred to
Ankara as its correspondent remained in his original base of
Istanbul.
On 5 May, Al-Ahram transmitted from the Daily Telegraph news that a
specialised French doctor had been summoned to Ankara a few weeks
earlier to care for President Ataturk. It added that his illness
appeared to be unrelated to an earlier one, indicating that the Grey
Wolf, who was near 60 at the time, was plagued with illnesses. This
was interpreted as being due to the fact that Ataturk had “lived a
life that would tire the strongest and sturdiest of physiques.”
It seems that the Turks held onto the Eastern tradition of concealing
news of the health of their rulers. This is made clear by the intent
of the Turkish legation in Cairo to lie to Al-Ahram that “the
president enjoys perfect health and is doing lengthy exercise as is
his custom.”
As the summer months came to a close and autumn commenced, news began
to circulate again about the poor health of the Turkish president.
This time, Al-Ahram ‘s correspondent in Istanbul sent a telegram
saying that the Turkish government had issued an official statement
on 17 October stating that Kemal Ataturk, the president of the
republic, was seriously ill and suffering from a liver disease that
had become critical. It had suddenly been discovered that he was in a
state of escalating overall weakness, poor digestion and a rapid
pulse. And yet as customary with Eastern rulers, another statement
was issued in the evening stating that Ataturk’s state had improved
somewhat during the day.
There was no longer any benefit in denial, and two days later a
detailed statement was issued that confirmed the poor status of the
Grey Wolf. “The president’s life can only be saved by a miracle,” it
said. His heart rate was 108 and his breathing 30, but his
temperature was 98.4. This led the second highest statesman, Ismet
Inonu, to rush to the capital to be beside the president, especially
as the other two people eligible for the presidency, Fawzi Shekmak
and Okiar, were not competing with him because the former refused the
post and the latter was a member of parliament.
Al-Ahram grasped this opportunity to familiarise its readers with the
anticipated president Inonu. He was well known for his attachment to
England and Russia. “It is said with confidence that four ministers,
among them the prime minister and the minister of foreign affairs,
have selected him for the post.”
It seems that the Turkish president was as obstinate in his death as
he had been in life. Two days later a medical report was issued
stating that the status of Ataturk had improved greatly and that his
neurological symptoms had completely disappeared. Yet this did not
prevent reference to the fact that the Turkish constitution called
for the president of the national council to assume the presidency of
the republic if the president of the republic’s illness prolonged.
Throughout the illness of the Turkish president, many were tempted to
state that he was thinking of leaving his post over health-related
reasons. On 29 October, Al-Ahram transmitted from the Daily Express
newspaper an item stating that Ataturk was thinking of relinquishing
his post. The matter reached the extent of stating the name of his
successor, Fathi Ikyar, and that his stepping down was conditioned on
the latter holding onto the dictatorship “due to the current European
situation.”
The situation remained thus until Thursday, 10 November 1938. The
following day, Al-Ahram published a front page photograph of Ataturk
above another of his mother and one of himself and his wife, Lady
Latifa that occupied the lower half of the page. The headline was
“Ataturk is dead.”
NEWS OF THE PASSING AWAY of the Grey Wolf occupied expansive sections
of the Al-Ahram newspaper issued that day. In addition to the space
it covered on pages one and three, a number of long-established
writers in the newspaper commented on it, at the forefront of whom
was Ahmed El-Sawi Muhammad in his famous column “Short and sweet.”
Al-Ahram began its main article by stating that “Mustafa Kemal has
died, or say that Ataturk has died, the father of the Turkish people
and the greatest man Turkey has borne in the last century! Turkey’s
saviour from subordination has died, the kindler of the fire of its
revolution against occupation and colonialism, its battlefield leader
to the shore of deliverance. The man who placed his people in the
rank of human beings has died. The absolute ruler with never bending
will, the great reformer who took his people far on the path of
reform, has passed on.
“The great man who was able to tear up agreements, abrogate that
ratified by states, and demand respect and consideration for his
nation among states has died. The great, self-made man was able to
make from his weak nation, one with broken wings, exhausted power,
worn out, and crushed by the weight of defeat, loss and
subordination, into a strong, rising, proud nation with immense
dignity that is striding forward and looking upwards in youthfulness
and enthusiasm! He was the saviour of the homeland and the reformer
of the nation, and the name Ataturk will remain a source of pride for
all Turks.”
Al-Ahram then turned to what it called a “historical glimpse” at the
life of Mustafa Kemal, although it was much too long to be a mere
glimpse. It was a lengthy translation from which I have excerpted
some information about Ataturk not widely known, or at least not to
me.
Mustafa Kemal was born in 1880 in Thessalonika. His father, Ali Reza,
was a low-ranking civil servant in the customs department who later
resigned and turned to trade in wood. He had wanted his son to
succeed him in his commercial business, but he passed away before
realising this wish. Mustafa moved with his mother to a village near
Thessalonika where he worked as a peasant farmer and then a
sheepherder in his maternal uncle’s farm.
His life path changed when his mother took him back to Thessalonika
and enrolled him in one of its elementary schools, later the middle
school in Monastir, and then the military school in Istanbul from
which he graduated with the rank of second lieutenant. He then spent
three years in the army in the general staff school and graduated in
1905.
This biography then addressed much of that which is well known about
the Grey Wolf. He joined a covert association for resistance to the
Hamid reign and assumed the post of editor-in-chief of the newspaper
issued by this association. He participated in defending Tripoli
against the Italian invasion, and later in the Balkan wars. He also
participated in the movement of the “association of union and
advancement” that ended with compelling Sultan Abdel-Hamid to issue
the constitution in 1908. He then took part in the battles of the
Great War, in which his military talents were made apparent when he
succeeded in preventing the allied forces from landing on the
Gallipoli Islands. His unparalleled competence ñ according to
Al-Ahram ‘s expression ñ was exhibited in the battle of the
Dardanelles, in which the allied forces suffered extensive losses,
and from there in the arena of the Caucasus, where luck helped him
through the staging of the Bolshevik revolution and the withdrawal of
the Russian forces. He was then forced to travel to Carlsbad for
treatment of a liver disease when the war ended, a truce was drawn,
“and the Ottoman sultanate was torn to pieces, its freemen
dispersed.”
This was followed by the role Mustafa Kemal undertook that
characterised him as a national liberator. He succeeded in forcing
the defeat of Greek forces during the war that took place from 1921
to 1922 and in evacuating them from Turkish national territory.
During that period, Sultan Wahideddin fled from Istanbul, and on 13
August 1923, the national council unanimously elected Mustafa Kemal
Pasha as president of the country.
As for his achievements mentioned by Al-Ahram in this connection,
Ahmed El-Sawi Muhammad recounted them in the “Short and sweet” column
of that issue. They were sevenfold:
ïAnnulment of the caliphate and separation of religion and the state
ïIntroduction of Latin letters, “a model of courage in renewal and
reform”
ïAbolition of the cylindrical fur cap, the fez, the conical dervish
cap, and the turban — except for religious figures — as well as the
silk wrap, face veil, and veil, all to be replaced with the hat
“because attire creates the person”
ïAdoption and enforcement of German, Swiss and Italian laws for the
good of the country
ïAbolition of the oppression of slaves and subordination by lords.
ïClosure of Sufi hospices and feudal estates. Abolition of the noble
ranks of the Sultan. Rooting out of indolent individuals,
conspirators and overly ambitious achievers, even at the highest
ranks.
ïRaising the morale of the entire people and imbuing it with a sense
of indivisible unity in justice, freedom and equality.
Independence of his country economically and politically at the same
time, and creating what Turkey had lost 1,000 years earlier —
Turkish nationalism as an independent entity about which foreigners
have a thousand reprehensions.
Yet the interest of Egyptian public opinion in the passing away of
the Grey Wolf and his authority being transferred to his successor
Inonu was not reflected in official circles in the Egyptian capital.
This may have been because Farouq did not consider the death of the
man who had done away with the sultan’s regime and declared a
republic in Turkey an occasion to commemorate him. He sufficed with
sending a representative, Said Zulfiqar Pasha, to the Turkish
legation headquarters in Cairo to give condolences to officials
there.
This behaviour was the object of criticism from Egyptian newspapers
and expressed by the author of “Short and sweet” in the 7 December
issue of Al-Ahram. He was taken aback by this shortcoming, given that
England had sent 400 sailors and soldiers and a grand marshal, and
France had sent a delegation consisting of its foreign minister, top
commanders, and 200 soldiers. Even Greece, Turkey’s traditional
enemy, had sent its prime minister, two ministers, and 50 soldiers.
No one penned a response to the criticism of the prominent Al-Ahram
writer, and it seems that officials in the Egyptian government wanted
to close the file of the Grey Wolf. History, however, had another
opinion.
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Armenians stage-managed press conference
By Bernard Momanyi
Capital FM, Kenya
July 6 2006
A secutiry officer at the Jomo Kenyatta Airport today told the Kiruki
Inquiry, that he was instructed to stage-manage, the arrival of the
Artur brothers for a press conference, at the airport.
David Bosire says he met Artur Margaryan at the airport parking and
issued him with a security pass for the press conference in which
the media were led to believe that the two had just arrived from Dubai.
He however says Artur Sargasyan is the only one who had arrived aboard
a Kenya Airways flight but under the name Arthur Gervokyan.
“We were asked to stage manage by opening gate 6, so that the guests
can pretend they have arrived, so that they can be covered by the
press.”
Meanwhile, the airport’s protocol officer Wesley Kiptoo, says suspended
Airports Deputy MD Naomi Cidi is the one who authorised use of the
exclusive VIP lounge by the Armenians.
Kiptoo says he had not been briefed of the press conference, but upon
inquiring was told that the brothers had authority to use the lounge,
which is reserved for guests of the state, or senior government
officials.
“It was facilitated by the Kenya Airports Authority and nobody from
the Foreign Affairs office knew about it.
“Everybody who was there had airport passes, and I realised they
were people who had been cleared to hold the press conference,”
Kiptoo told the Inquiry.

The Nation, Kenya
July 7 2006
State House cited over Arturs’ staged arrival
Story by LUCAS BARASA and MUGUMO MUNENE
Publication Date: 7/7/2006
The truth behind the amazing airport Press conference that saw the
Artur brothers presented as VIPs and genuine foreign investors has
been revealed at last.
Mr Naphtali Sawe from the Kenya Airports Authority displays the
security passes irregularly issued to the Armenian brothers. He was
giving evidence during the public hearing of the Kiruki Commission of
Inquiry at KICC in Nairobi yesterday. Photo by Joan Pereruan
The whole thing was a piece of fiction, carefully stage-managed by a
group of people that included someone claiming to be from State
House. In fact the two Armenians had been in Kenya all along, but a
cunning accomplice told a security official that he worked at State
House and so persuaded him to fake the arrival of the brothers’
arrival in the country.
The official went along with the ruse to pretend the two had had just
flown into Jomo Kenyatta International Airport from Dubai, and he
opened the doors at one of the arrival gates ~V Gate 6 ~V to allow the
brothers to slip through, then re-emerge as Press cameras recorded
their sudden appearance.
The brothers, accompanied by Nairobi lawyer Fred Ngatia and a Mr
Aloise Omita, then made their way to the Government’s own VIP lounge
where they held their Press conference, telling of their wish to
invest in Kenya.
Permission for the conference, on March 13, this year, had been given
the previous evening by the airport’s deputy managing director, Ms
Naomi Cidi, who had telephoned security staff and told them to expect
some important passengers and to arrange security passes for the two
brothers, their entourage and the journalists who were hand-picked to
attend the conference.
Meanwhile, Mr Bosire was left behind to lock the doors of Gate 6, the
Kiruki Commission was told yesterday.
The impostor, who had claimed to be from State House, was identified
to the commission investigating the Armenians’ activities as a Mr
Julius Maina.
Mr Bosire told the inquiry a man had walked up to him and his
immediate boss, Mr Moses Wanyonyi, and introduced himself as Mr
Julius Maina of State House.
Mr Wanyonyi had in turn been called earlier by his immediate boss and
told that Ms Cidi had wanted a Press conference arranged for certain
guests.
At the time, both Mr Maina and Mr Omita had permanent security access
passes to all airports that would allow them into the aircraft
parking lots and lounges for a year.
It is not clear what business they had at the airport that would have
gained them such high level clearance.
On the day the passes were issued, Mr Maina had declared on the
application forms that he worked as a financial consultant for a
company called Inter-Alliance International Ltd.
The inquiry’s assisting counsel Dorcas Oduor, while leading Mr Bosire
in his evidence-in-chief, asked: Do you really know where he comes
from or who he works for?
Bosire: Not at the moment.
Oduor: Can you identify him today?
Bosire: I had never seen him before.
Oduor: We cannot find him either. The company Inter-Alliance Ltd,
according to the Registrar of Companies, is not registered and that
number belongs to another company. How do we find him?
Bosire: I can’t trace him. I saw him that morning. I had never seen
him before and I have never seen him again.
Oduor: What about Mr Omita?
Bosire: I have never seen him again.
Mr Bosire then told the commission the waiting party, which included
the brothers, was anxious about the arrival of a Kenya Airways flight
expected that morning from Dubai and which had been delayed by about
two hours.
Once he learnt the flight was delayed, Mr Maina spoke into his
cellphone and a short while later turned to Mr Bosire and told him
that the matter would be handled by Mr Omita.
Mr Omita then became frantic, searching for a place where he could
print a document. Finally he turned to Mr Bosire and told him they
would do it in Ms Cidi’s office. The two then rushed off to KAA
headquarters, some distance from the airport, where Mr Omita had his
document printed while Mr Bosire waited outside. On their return to a
first class lounge at international arrivals, Mr Omita was told the
awaited guest had already arrived.
At this point, he and Mr Wanyonyi, the duty security manager,
instructed Mr Bosire to open one of the arrival gates so the
passengers’ arrival could be stage-managed for the Press.
The details emerged on the seventh day of the public inquiry by the
commission appointed by President Kibaki to investigate the brothers.
Asked why he had agreed to stage-manage an arrival, Mr Bosire
responded: “I thought it was usual, official and a sensitive issue
that was not to be revealed to everyone.”
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

The Nation, Kenya
July 7 2006
House teams demand public sessions in probe on Armenians
Story by BERNARD NAMUNANE
Publication Date: 7/7/2006
The joint parliamentary committee on the Artur brothers’ saga wants
its proceedings to be held in public.
The two committees have also written to National Assembly Speaker
Francis ole Kaparo seeking to be allowed to summon Narc activist Mary
Wambui, her daughter, Ms Winnie Wangui and businessmen Kamlesh Pattni
and Raju Sanghani.
Mr Kaparo had earlier ruled that the committees on Administration of
Justice and Legal Affairs (led by Mr Paul Muite) and National
Security and Local Authorities (led by Ramadhan Kajembe) could only
question ministers whose ministries were adversely mentioned in
connection with Mr Artur Margaryan and Artur Sargsyan. The two have
since been deported.
If the committees’ wishes are granted, they will conduct their
proceedings in a similar manner to the Kiruki Commission of Inquiry,
now sitting at KICC in Nairobi.
Said Mr Muite and Mr Kajembe: “Given the public interest in the
Armenian brothers’ saga and the fact that the commission of inquiry
is conducting public hearings, it is only fair that the deliberations
of the joint committee be open to the public.”
They cited Mr Kaparo’s ruling on the Parliamentary Select Committee
on the Constitution, then chaired by Mr Raila Odinga, as a case in
point to justify their application.
“The authorisation and subsequent public hearings by the PSC now
constitute part of the practice and procedures of the House and its
committees,” they argued.
The aim can be attained by a motion moved on the floor of the House
but the Speaker’s decision could quicken the quest for public
hearings, they said.
“Mr Speaker’s authorisation would expedite the matter so that the
public hearings can commence without having to wait for the House to
debate the motion,” says the letter in part.
The committees’ sittings, which started on Monday, have been
overwhelmed by the Shedrach Kiruki commission because they are held
in camera.
Standing Orders, which MPs are now reviewing, prohibit committees
from conducting their affairs in public.
In his ruling last Tuesday, Mr Kaparo gave the committee the go-ahead
to investigate the Artur brothers’ saga following objections from
Justice minister Martha Karua.
But as he reasserted the role of Parliament in auditing the
activities of the Executive, the Speaker restricted their inquiry to
ministers and civil servants serving their line ministries.
It meant that the committee will not question Ms Wambui, Ms Wangui,
Mr Pattni and Mr Sanghani as they had earlier planned.
In the letter, they also protested at the Speaker’s decision to
restrict the scope of their investigations. Referring to Section 14
of the National Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act, they argued
that the power to decide the people to be summoned lies with the
committee, and not the Speaker or the Clerk to the National Assembly.
“Our interpretation of the section is that the decision of who is to
be summoned is that of the committee, and not the Clerk or Mr Speaker
neither of who is mentioned in this subsection,” they stated.
They agreed with Mr Kaparo that Section 15(1) of the Act grants the
duty to send summons to the Clerk, under the Speaker’s direction.
“This section is procedural or administrative,” they stated.

State House official named in Arturs’ fake press conference
By Biketi Kikechi and Patrick Mathangani
The Standard, Kenya
July 7 2006
The alleged Government link in the Arturs saga emerged on Thursday
after an inquiry heard that on the day the two held a press conference
at the Kenyatta International Airport VIP lounge, a companion
identified himself to airport officers as a State House official.
In yet another day of astonishing disclosures, a security official at
the airport gave a step-by-step account of the stage-managed press
conference and how it was made to appear like Artur Sargasyan had
just jetted into the country.
Security officers organised for the gold-bedecked brothers to swagger
through Gate Six and use the VIP lounge to dupe journalists that they
were high flying investors.
The story, which unfolded like a chapter from a Western thriller,
was the highlight of Thursday’s proceedings at the Kiruki Commission
of Inquiry into the activities of the two alleged brothers who have
since been deported for causing a security breach at the airport.
Press conference
A security officer, Mr David Bosire Michiemo, owned up by telling
the commission that he helped open the Gate Six air bridge for the
guests, who had been sitting at a lounge waiting for the KQ flight
from Dubai to touch down even as journalists waited for the plane
carrying the newsmaker.
The two, whose identity remains shadowy, claimed to be fabulously
rich brothers based in Dubai and that the President of Armenia was
their uncle. They used the press conference to rebut earlier claims
by Lang’ata MP Raila Odinga that they were Russian mercenaries who
took part in the commando-style raid on the Standard Group premises
on March 2.
The bogus brothers claimed that Raila and MP Kalonzo Musyoka requested
them to play a role in the no- confidence vote against the proposed
new constitution last year.
The local media gave the press conference big treatment but raised
pertinent issues concerning the event, its planning and information
that Sargasyan’s name was not on the manifest of the flight he
purported to have arrived on.
During Thursday’s proceedings, the commission wanted to know the
identity of Messrs Julius Mwangi Maina and Alphonce Omita.
Passes for journalists
Assisting Counsel Ms Dorcas Oduor asked Bosire if he knew Maina and
Omita because they cannot be traced although they were allegedly
associates of the Artur brothers.
“We cannot find him (Maina). How do we find him?” asked Oduor,
but Bosire said he does not know him because they only met once at
the airport.
The commission was told that Maina went to the security office at
5.20am on March 13, and introduced himself to duty officer Mr Moses
Wanyonyi and Bosire as Mr Julius Maina from State House.
Wanyonyi who also appeared at the commission on Thursday, said he
received a call from his boss, Mr Stanley Mutungi, who instructed
him to have 10 passes ready for journalists the following day.
“He further told me that the instructions were from the Deputy Managing
Director Ms Naomi Cidi,” said Wanyonyi.
Wanyonyi, 51, who has since voluntarily retired from Kenya Airports
Authority, said he handed over the passes to Maina and asked Bosire
to guide him.
Kenya Airways flight delayed
Bosire accompanied Maina to a Mercedes Benz car at the Airport
manager’s car park. Maina asked Bosire to escort one of the occupants
in the car, whom he later got to learn was Artur Margaryan, and a
woman to the first class lounge.
Maina asked Bosire to give the woman a pass as they went through
Unit Two while Margaryan and Maina used their own all-areas-permanent
airport passes. They went to the Duty Free Shops lounge, where they
were later joined by lawyer Fred Ngatia and Omita.
Ngatia and Omita had been waiting at the NAS cafeteria, from where
Maina and Bosire led them to join Margaryan and the woman. Bosire said
the Kenya Airways flight KQ311 that they were waiting for delayed
and Maina left after introducing him to Omita, who then took charge
and asked Bosire to accompany him to meet the waiting journalists.
Bosire said Ngatia briefly talked to the journalists before guiding
them to a different lounge for tea. Omita then frantically started
seeking for a place where he could type a document but none was open
at the time.
Stage-managed arrival
He then went to Cidi’s office in the company of Bosire, where he
printed a document from a diskette.
Cidi’s Secretary Judith Chepkor confirmed that Omita, whom she had met
earlier at the office, consulted Cidi and later printed the document
for him. “Omita told Wanyonyi to stage-manage the ‘arrival’ so that
reporters could cover the event,” said Bosire.
Wanyonyi allegedly told Bosire to look for the security officer to
open Air Bridge Gate Number 06 so that the ‘guests’ could walk in to
be covered as they arrived.
The TV cameras zoomed in as the brothers swaggered through the gate
and to the VIP lounge that had since been made available for their use.
On Thursday, Cidi’s secretary corroborated the allegation that
Margaryan and Sargaryan went to Cidi’s office, from where they were
escorted to the passes office.
Officers in the passes office have said Cidi instructed them to issue
the passes on February 10 and June 8.

The Nation, Kenya
July 8 2006
Rogue pair stirred city hotel
Story by MUGUMO MUNENE and LUCAS BARASA
Publication Date: 2006/07/08
The rogue Armenian brothers stirred the showcase Panari Sky Centre,
brandishing police identifications, totting a gun and shoving away
astonished guards only a day before they were deported.
Lawyer Gibson Kamau Kuria cross-examines a witness yesterday. He is
appearing for Narc activist Mary Wambui’s daughter Winnie Wangui.
Photo by Fredrick Omondi
They had arrived in separate vehicles bearing foreign number plates
at the five-star hotel and entertainment complex off Mombasa Road,
hours before they caused more commotion at the JKIA.
The details emerged as Ms Winnie Wangui, daughter of businesswoman and
political activist Mary Wambui – whom President Kibaki has clarified
are not members of his family – sent a lawyer, Dr Gibson Kamau Kuria,
to represent her before the Kiruki Commission.
One of the brothers, Mr Artur Margaryan, has publicly declared his
love for Ms Wangui, who is also listed as a director of one of his
companies.
The Commissions of Inquiry Act provides that anyone likely to be
mentioned in bad light in the course of an inquiry is informed of
the general nature of evidence in advance, giving them a choice to
call witnesses, personally testify, or send a lawyer to represent them.
The law also gives such a commission powers of a High Court to summon
witnesses who become critical to the investigation they undertake.
Ms Wangui, an assistant secretary at the Ministry of Water, is among
11 government officials, including policemen, suspended from the
civil service after the two were spirited out of the country.
And as he took the witness stand, the Panari Sky Centre security
manager Daniel Owiya yesterday recounted to a hushed commission
the ordeal the hotel’s hapless guards underwent in the hands of the
foreigners he described as “usually rough”. And this, at a centre that
would ordinarily attract even the world’s very rich. It overlooks the
Nairobi National Park, and is a state-of-the-art architectural work
comprising of the hotel, a huge shopping mall, ice-skating rink,
cinema theatres and a host of food courts catering for the varied
exotic tastes.
The hotel boasts 136 rooms tastefully done, with unique antiques
adorning the walls. The rooms include standard, deluxe, superior and
a presidential suite – the Royal Jade Suite.
One of the most unique facilities available at the Panari Hotel is
the ice-skating rink, the only one in East and Central Africa since
the one that used to be operated by the Hall Thermotank at Jamhuri
Park Showground closed down more than 30 years ago.
The first to arrive at the centre on June 8 at 3.30pm was Mr Artur
Sargsyan – the shorter pale one – who proceeded to a restaurant on
the second floor without incident.
An hour later, Mr Margaryan arrived in the company of a man and a
woman, with bodyguards in a Kenyan registered Volvo in tow.
Drama unfolded the moment Mr Margaryan discovered that the parking lot
directly in front of the hotel was reserved, upon which he alighted
from his vehicle and removed the Reserved Parking barriers.
The guards attempted to direct him to another parking lot, but they
were simply shoved aside by menacing bodyguards as their boss swaggered
into the hotel and proceeded to the lifts.
A lift arrived from the basement, but as soon as the doors slid open,
Mr Margaryan and his bodyguards ejected its bewildered occupants and
went in by themselves to the second floor to meet his brother.
Mr Owiya said the security guards immediately alerted him of the
unusual incident and he had to plead with the brothers to return to
the parking lot and remove their vehicle.

The Nation, Kenya
July 8 2006
Winnie sends lawyer to represent her
Story by LUCAS BARASA and MUGUMO MUNENE
Publication Date: 2006/07/08
Narc activist Mary Wambui’s daughter, Winnie Wangui, has sent a
lawyer to represent her in the Kiruki commission on the Artur
brothers.
Dr Gibson Kamau Kuria, who was a prominent figure in the Goldenberg
Inquiry, however yesterday also appeared to fight a case for State
House and suspended Kenya Airports Authority boss Naomi Cidi while
cross-examining a witness.
Last week, the commission had directed that lawyers appearing for
various clients to restrict themselves to the issues touching on
those who hired them as opposed to enjoying unlimited
cross-examination.
The commission did not, however, refer Dr Kuria, who appeared for the
first time yesterday, to the ruling.
Dr Kuria’s adds to five the number of lawyers representing various
institutions and individuals at the Kiruki Commission. They include
Ms Jane Ondieki for suspended CID director Joseph Kamau, former
director of public prosecutions Philip Murgor for the Kenya National
Commission on Human Rights, Mr Ashitiva Mandale, for Ms Cidi and Mr
Mugambi Imanyara, for businessman Kamlesh Pattni.
Dr Kuria’s appearance means that Ms Wangui has been warned by the
commission that she should expect to be mentioned in bad light. She
may also choose to appear in person to rebut negative evidence as the
commission strives to unravel the Armenian brothers’ saga. Leading
counsel Dorcas Oduor said she had been served with adverse notice
warranting her representation.
One of the Artur brothers Margaryan – had confessed falling in love
with Ms Wangui and had appeared publicly with her a number of times
before his June 9 deportation.
Ms Wangui has also been linked to Kensington Holdings, associated
with the Artur brothers.
She has never denied media reports linking her to the company. The
State House has in the past released a statement seeking to distance
her from President Kibaki.
The statement said that her second name was Wangui, not Mwai.
Yesterday, Dr Kuria, who also applied for the commission to supply
him with all witnesses statements implicating Ms Wangui before they
appeared before the team to enable his client prepare her defence
adequately.
It was a case of the boot on the other foot. While at the Goldenberg
commission serving as assisting counsel, Dr Kuria often engaged in
heated exchanges with lawyers representing various clients who wished
to have witness statements supplied in advance.
Yesterday, Ms Oduor offered that the general nature of evidence
adverse to various people would be supplied but argued that actual
statements would prejudice the inquiry.
Mr Kiruki said his was an investigative commission and not a trial
and assured all those mentioned adversely of fair treatment.
Kuria: I wish to apply for leave to appear for Winnie Wangui who is a
concerned person within the meaning of the Commission of Inquiry Act.
I know from the commission’s rules where a person has been mentioned
adversely, he or she is entitled to be represented.
Kiruki: You are welcome.
Kuria: Much obliged.
Oduor: We also want to confirm that we did send adverse notice to his
client.
Kuria: Your honour, I wish to apply for an order that I be supplied
in advance with statements that touch my client. The reason is that
the Commission of Inquiry Act observes rules of natural justice that
makes it quite clear that a person must present himself or herself.
For my client to defend herself she would like to have in advance
copies of statements so that she can adequately prepare.
Oduor: I wish to reply. I do agree that the commission had undertaken
to observe the rules of natural justice but I also like to indicate
that under our rules, our obligation is to notify the person being
mentioned adversely that that person is likely to be adversely
mentioned during the proceedings of this commission. Secondly, we are
required to give the general nature of the evidence. An application
to have in advance statements about the witnesses that touches on
somebody’s client may not be practical for two reasons. It will
depend on whether or not we have that statement, secondly, it will
depend on nature of evidence.
Lawyers Mandale and Ondieki also complained that the commission did
not give them statements provided by witnesses in advance so that
their clients could adequately prepare to rebut the evidence. Mr
Mandale said his complaints have been futile.
A video clip of Mr Margaryan and Mr Artur Sargsyan when they stage
managed a press conference at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport was
also played yesterday.
The clip, from a local TV station, captured KAA security officer
David Bosire opening the doors at one of the arrival gates to allow
the brothers slip through, then re-emerge as press cameras recorded
their sudden appearance.
During the conference, the Armenians said they knew Mwingi North MP
Kalonzo Musyoka and Langata’s Raila Odinga and that they had
transacted business with them.
They said they had given the LDP leaders money to bring down the
Kibaki administration and denied being hit-men for hire.
Mr Bosire however had a difficult time explaining why he agreed to
stage-manage the Arturs purported arrival from Dubai and allowing the
conference to be held at government VIP lounge and not the Kenya Duty
Free Shop as had earlier been indicated.
Mr Bosire stood his ground that it was Ms Cidi who authorised the
conference and rejected Dr Kuria’s demands that he apologises for
saying so.
Dr Kuria further asked him why he did not verify claims by a Mr
Julius Maina, who helped arrange the conference, that he was from
State House. Mr Bosire said he did not investigate whether Mr Maina
was from State House because he had a KAA pass.
Dr Kuria accused Mr Bosire of lying to the commission adding he might
have allowed the Artur brothers to hold conference at VIP for fear of
journalists.
Ms Oduor took issue with Dr Kuria for making Mr Bosire repeat
evidence given before the commission on Thursday saying the lawyer
should concentrate on issues touching on Wangui.
Dr Kuria however said he had to look into every aspect of the
proceedings.
Kiruki: Dr Kuria, I know that you are disadvantaged because you were
not here yesterday. I think the leading counsel is concerned because
the witness is going back to the evidence that he gave yesterday.
Kuria: There is a very important issue of principle involved here.
This witness yesterday said that this person (Maina) came from State
House from my cross-examination of this morning he says he never
established this. Is the commission interested in the truth or it is
interested in the statement that was given yesterday. That applies
with equal force and the next question I’m asking, Mr Bosire can you
explain to the commission how the venue of the press conference was
changed from the duty free to the VIP lounge.
Bosire: Immediately we left the Kenya Airports Authority
headquarters, I met Mr Wanyonyi (Mr Bosire’s former security boss)
and other people. There were around three people outside the lounge
and we were with Mr Omita. Mr Omita asked Mr Wanyonyi to stage-manage
the arrival of the guests because as we came back we found the flight
had touched down and guest had left the aircraft and were in the
Kenya Duty Free lounge. Mr Omita asked Mr Wanyonyi to stage manage
opening of the gates so that the press can cover the arrival. Then Mr
Wanyonyi instructed me to look for the man who had the keys for the
gate. I looked for the man and came and opened the gate. As you saw
in the video I led them inside and they came out as I was left
behind.
Kuria: You heard with your own ears Mr Omita asking Mr Wanyonyi to
stage manage the press conference.
Bosire: Yes, my lords.
Kuria: Did you think that that was correct as a security officer?
Bosire: No.
Kuria: Did you tell any other officer that there was a plan to
stage-manage the conference?
Bosire: I was with my boss.
Kuria: You didn’t consider it wise to talk to a higher boss than Mr
Wanyonyi.
Bosire: When you are dealing with a sensitive issue you don’t go on
speculating information and you have your own boss who could brief
the seniors.
Later, Mr Daniel Owiya, security manager at Panari Sky Centre was led
in his examination in chief by assisting counsel Warui Mungai.
Below are excerpts.
Mungai: What are your duties?
Owiya: Am in charge of the entire security, both internal and
contracted.
Mungai: What happened on June 8 this year?
Owiya: I reported on duty at around 9.30 and I got a brief of what
had happened the previous night. All was well until about 3.30pm when
our of our guards alerted me that a sensitive guest by the name Artur
Sargsyan had arrived. I was on my third floor office. The guards
recognised him. The rule is that if a VIP or sensitive guests or even
repeat clients come, they have to alert me.
Mungai: Where does Sargsyan fall?
Owiya: We had met his group before and we had some commotion with
them and we had to mark them. We do that so that when they come
again, we alert our bosses.
Mungai: You were told that they had arrived?
Owiya: At 3.30pm, the first foreign registered vehicle came in. The
registration was UAE 1227, and the make was Toyota. They told me that
Mr Artur was the one who had come in with the vehicle. They had been
issued with pass number 020. I asked the doorman if he was aware what
direction the man went. I was informed that the client had gone to
the second floor where we have the food court, the ice skate, the
cinema halls, the casino and the restaurant. I went to the Al Persia
Restaurant, the North American one and found Mr Sargsyan there.
Mungai: What happened then?
Owiya: I went back to my duties and confirmed that I had seen the
person they had spoken of. At around 4.20 pm, I was alerted that
another vehicle had come in. I went down and confirmed that Artur
Margaryan had come in driving UAE 1276, followed by what looked like
a Volvo. The other vehicle had people known to us as their security
people. We recorded the numbers in our register and we gave disks to
them. When they left the main gate, they went to the front parking,
which is always reserved. When the guard attempted to show them where
to park, Margaryan and the bodyguard came out of the vehicles and
removed the parking notices. They then proceeded to park. They pushed
off our bodyguards and went upstairs.
Mungai: Did you get the information at that particular time?
Owiya: I got it after they had already gone upstairs. We have
instructed our guards that they should not fight with clients. We let
them do whatever and then talk to them. From the parking they went to
the ground floor to take the lift. The lift came from the basement.
Margaryan and his bodyguard removed the occupants by force. They then
took the lift to the second floor.
The guard and the people who were removed from the lift followed
them. The guard alerted me and I went to the second floor restaurant
to talk to them. There was a table occupied by the bodyguards – the
two black guys. The next table was where Sargsyan and Margaryan, a
man and a lady were sitting. I said hello to the first bodyguard and
told him they had taken a parking reserved for other VIPs. As I was
talking to him, the other bodyguard stood up. Before they spoke
again, Margaryan stood up and asked; what is it? I told them that one
of the parking slots they had taken by force had been reserved for
VIPs and if they could go and remove their vehicle. Sargsyan took the
key and along with one bodyguard, we took the stair case to the
parking. There was a GK Land Rover parked next to the gate. It is
used by the GSU patrolling that road. I don’t know how he noticed
them but then Sargsyan asked, “who are these people?” At that time,
two officers came out of that vehicle but I waved at them and stopped
them. I told Sargsyan that those were government officers. Then he
asked me; “you want to know who I am?” He removed a police
identification card, showing that he’s a police officer.
Mungai: Were you able to see any other details?
Owiya: No. He’s a very rough man. They are very rough people. He just
flashed it. As we were walking, the bodyguard ask me; those are
policemen? I said yes. He also flashed his card and I was able to
read that he was an Inspector of Police. When I sought to look
closer, he told me, “no, no, no, it’s not important.”
The bodyguard also showed me a pistol. I told him that the place is
secured by people who were armed just like he was but I told him that
I didn’t believe that he was a policeman.
Mungai: Did you talk to the officers who were approaching?
Owiya: I stopped them because I thought the guards had alerted them
but this was not our first day with these people. I went back to the
building and reported to the management what had happened and that I
had sorted it out.
Mungai: Were you told anything else about those men?
Owiya: They left at about 6.30pm. When they were leaving, the guard
on the second floor alerted me. I went downstairs and saw them go to
their vehicles. I followed them. Margaryan then turned and said; I’m
surprised that someone is here to challenge me. The Land Rover was
still around because I had asked the GSU officer to wait, in case of
eventualities. They went off into Mombasa road.

Akhalkalaki or Gyumri?
by Emil Danielyan
Transitions Online, Czech Republic
July 6 2006
6 July 2006
Armenia is irked by a proposal for a new cross-Caucasus railroad that
would bypass the landlocked and blockaded country. From EurasiaNet.
Plans for the construction of a major railway linking Turkey to
Azerbaijan via Georgia are prompting mounting concern in Armenia.
Officials in Yerevan, fearing the completion of the railway would
further isolate Armenia, have pressured Georgia to pull out of the
multimillion-dollar project. The railway also is facing objections
from the United States and the European Union.
Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey revealed their intention to pursue
the railway project in May 2005 during the ceremonial opening of the
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline. The presidents of the three
nations said the rail link, estimated to cost roughly $400 million,
would promote regional economic integration and create a new transport
corridor between Europe and Central Asia.
The project essentially boils down to laying an almost
100-kilometer-long rail track between the eastern Turkish city
of Kars and the southern Georgian town of Akhalkalaki. Armenian
officials insist that the project makes no economic sense, pointing
to the existing railroad running from Kars to the northern Armenian
city of Gyumri and on to the two other South Caucasus countries. The
Kars-Gyumri link has stood idle for over a decade due to the continuing
Turkish economic blockade of Armenia.
The Armenian government argues that that Turkey, Georgia, and
Azerbaijan should make use of this Gyumri hub instead of spending
hundreds of millions of dollars on building a new one. As an incentive,
Yerevan has indicated that it would make the Gyumri hub available
without insisting that Turkey lift its economic blockade. “Armenia is
ready to let Turkey, Georgia, and Azerbaijan use the existing railway
line on Armenian territory without Armenia’s participation,” Armenian
Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian reiterated during an official visit
to Tbilisi on 27 June.
The issue was high on the agenda of Oskanian’s talks with Georgia’s
President Mikheil Saakashvili and Foreign Minister Gela Bezhuashvili.
A statement issued by the Armenian Foreign Ministry said Oskanian
“stressed the economic and political importance of the operation of the
Kars-Gyumri-Tbilisi rail line.” Armenian officials took little comfort
in Bezhuashvili’s public assurances that the Turkish-Georgian-Azeri
project is “purely commercial.” They fear that the new railway
would deepen Armenia’s economic isolation. Aggressive statements
made recently by Azeri officials, including President Ilham Aliev,
have helped fuel worries in Armenia.
The landlocked country has already been left out of regional
energy projects such as the BTC pipeline, due to the unresolved
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Influential Armenian lobbying groups in the United States have joined
Yerevan in trying to thwart the project. They were instrumental in
securing a U.S. congressional committee’s 15 June vote to endorse an
amendment that would prohibit the U.S. Export-Import Bank from funding
the railway’s construction. “With this amendment, we are sending a
message to the governments of Turkey and Azerbaijan that continually
excluding Armenia in regional projects fosters instability,” said
U.S. Representative Joseph Crowley, a member of the Democratic Party
from New York who is the measure’s main sponsor.
The amendment is expected to be considered by the full House of
Representatives later this year. Similar legislation is pending
in the U.S. Senate, and the Bush administration has not voiced
objections to either bill. The ambassador-designates to Armenia
and Azerbaijan assured pro-Armenian U.S. legislators during recent
congressional hearings that Washington is against the construction
of the Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi railroad. Without Export-Import
Bank backing, U.S. companies would likely be reluctant to invest in
the project.
The European Union seems to take a similar view. “A railway project
that is not including Armenia will not get our financial support,”
the EU’s external relations commissioner, Benita Ferrero-Waldner,
said in Yerevan last February.
Turkey and Azerbaijan appear undaunted by U.S. and EU expressions of
displeasure. Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul discussed the issue
with Aliev during a late June visit to Baku. The Turkish Daily News
newspaper quoted Gul as telling the Azeri leader on 20 June that
“Armenia can also join these projects if it wants.” However, the
Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman, Namik Tan, clarified the next
day that this could happen only after a resolution of the Karabakh
dispute. The Karabakh peace process is currently stalemated.
Tan also downplayed the significance of likely U.S. funding
restrictions. “I think the three countries have enough funds. We can
finance [the railway’s construction] in one way or another,” he said.
Baku had hoped to begin work on the railway later this year and
have it completed by 2008. But with Turkey, Georgia, and Azerbaijan
having yet to agree on the sources of funding, this time frame seems
unrealistic. Furthermore, the Georgian government is having what Gul
reportedly described as “serious hesitations.” This might explain why
a planned meeting of the transport ministers of the three states, which
had been planned for late June, has been postponed until late July.
The director general of Georgia’s state-run rail network, Irakli
Ezugbaya, publicly questioned earlier in June a feasibility study that
was conducted and released by a Turkish company recently. The Caucasus
Press news agency quoted him as saying that the study failed to predict
the anticipated volume of cargo traffic along the would-be railway.

Armenian President Pleased with Iran’s Progress
Fars News Agency, Iran
July 6 2006
TEHRAN (Fars News Agency)- Armenian President Robert Kocharian said
in a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki here
Wednesday evening that he was proud and pleased to witness Iran’s
progress and achievements in different fields.
A statement released by the Foreign Ministry’s Information and Press
Bureau said that during the meeting, Kocharian called for promotion
of Tehran-Yerevan ties and said the two countries’ close cultural and
historical bonds as well as common interests have paved the ground
for expansion of mutual ties.
The Armenian president praised the achievements of the Islamic Republic
of Iran in various fields.
He expressed the hope that continuing consultations between the two
countries’ officials would further strengthen ties, encourage opening
of joint ventures and raise the volume of trade exchanges.
For his part, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki turned to
prospects of Tehran-Yerevan ties, and said that the two countries
have numerous potentials to open up new areas of cooperation.
He said, “Holding joint commission sessions and more consultations
will help open new opportunities for cooperation in line with their
mutual interests.”
Mottaki stressed the need for the implementation of agreements already
inked by the two countries.
“We are hopeful the two sides will be able to implement projects that
have been sidelined by adopting effective strategies.” President
Kocharian arrived in Tehran at the head of a high- ranking
politico-economic delegation for a two-day official visit Wednesday
morning.
Elsewhere in another meeting also attended by Iranian President here
on Wednesday evening, Iranian and Armenian officials signed up seven
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in the fields of energy, economic and
industrial infrastructures, legal and cultural heritage cooperation.

ARMENIAN, IRANIAN PRESIDENTS SEEK WIDE-RANGING COOPERATION BETWEEN TWO COUNTRIES
ARKA News Agency, Armenia
July 6 2006
YEREVAN, July 6. /ARKA/. Armenian and Iranian Presidents, Robert
Kocharyan and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad seek a wide-ranging cooperation
between the two countries.
IRNA, Iranian state news agency, reports referring to presidential
press service that the Presidents said it in Iran on Wednesday during
the first round of talks between Armenian and Iranian delegations
headed by the Presidents.
Kocharyan said that over 90 documents on cooperation are signed
between Iran and Armenia. He thinks the programs outlined in the
documents should be put into reality as soon as possible.
He also expressed Armenia’s interest in widening mutually beneficial
cooperation with Iran in energy, electric energy and transport areas.
Armenian President invited his Iranian counterpart to Armenia and
the invitation was accepted with gratitude.
Ahmadinejad, in his turn, expressed appreciation of Iranian-Armenian
partnership and stressed the necessity of deepening relationship and
using both countries’ capacity to its full extent.
He expressed Teheran’s interest in cooperating with Armenia in
transport, culture, sport, tourism and other areas putting a special
emphasis on partnership in energy sector.
The news agency says the Presidents are expected to sign a number
of documents on cooperation as part of Kocharyan’s two-day visit to
Iran. M.V. -0–