ALIYEV MEETS WITH JAPANESE FM
AzerTag, Azerbaijan
March 9 2006
Later President Ilham Aliyev received at his temporary residence
Foreign Minister of Japan Taro Aso.
The Minister expressed confidence that President Ilham Aliyev’s first
official visit to Japan will play an important role in enhancing
cooperation between the two countries.
He said Azerbaijan is located at strategically very important region,
and that his country attaches particular significance to its relations
with Azerbaijan.
The Minister recalled the official visit to Japan by national leader
of Azerbaijan Heydar Aliyev in 1998. He said that visit marked
intensification of Azerbaijan-Japan relationship. According to him,
this visit by President Ilham Aliyev will open a new stage of bilateral
cooperation.
Mr. Aso pointed out that Japan supports territorial integrity of
Azerbaijan, and will continue to do so at various international events.
President Ilham Aliyev said important steps had been taken towards
cementing the Azerbaijan-Japan cooperation, and further improvement
of the existing relationship. He expressed his views on a number of
issues of mutual interests.
The Head of State expressed confidence that this visit will mark a
new stage of the Azerbaijan-Japan relationship, noting that numerous
meetings he had here in Japan were very successful in terms of
enhancing mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries.
President Ilham Aliyev and Foreign Minister Taro Aso touched on
Japanese companies’ close involvement in development of oil fields
in Azerbaijan, and favorable investment opportunities existing in
the country.
They also discussed the Azerbaijan’s most painful problem, the
Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Nagorny Karabakh. President Ilham
Aliyev outlined the current situation, and expressed official stance
of his country with regard to the ways of the conflict’s resolution.
***
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s official visit to Japan continues.

U.S. DEPUTY SECRETARY OF STATE TO TOUR AZERBAIJAN AND ARMENIA
Baku Today, Azerbaijan
March 9 2006
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State on Europe and Eurasia, Daniel Fried,
will visit Azerbaijan next week. The exact date of the visit is still
to be defined, the US embassy in Baku told Trend.
U.S. Ambassador Steven Mann, the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair, will
accompany the Deputy Secretary of State in this tour.
Moreover, spokesman for the US Department of State, Sean McCormak
announced that along with Azerbaijan Fried will also visit Armenia.
One of the objectives of the visit is to discuss the results of
the results of the recent meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian
presidents in Paris.

AZERBAIJAN SAYS ARMENIANS BREACH CEASEFIRE
Baku Today, Azerbaijan
March 9 2006
On March 8 and 9 the cease-fire regime on the Azerbaijani-Armenian
frontline was violated, the Azerbaijan Defense Ministry told Trend.
On 8 March the units of the Armenian armed forces dislocated in
0.8km north of Serakpikas village of Ijevan District fired from
10:40am to 10:45am the positions of the Azerbaijan National Army in
Jafarli village of Gazakh district, from the positions located in
Boganis Ayrim village of Gazakh district from 12.26pm the Azerbaijani
positions in the opposite; from the positions in 1.6km northeast of
Berdavan village of Noyamberian District from 18.50pm the Azerbaijani
positions in Kamarli village of Gazakh district.
On 9 March the units of the Armenian armed forces fired dislocated
in 1km of northeast northeast of Berkaber village of Ijevan District
fired the positions of the Azerbaijan National Army in Gizil Hajili
and Ashagi Askipara villages of Gazakh district at 02.00am.
The enemy was kept silence by a reply fire. No causalities.

STATEMENT BY OSCE ON RESULTS OF WASHINGTON CONSULTATIONS OF MG CO-CHAIRS TO BE PUBLICIZED IN VENA
Author: E.Husseynov
TREND Information, Azerbaijan
March 9 2006
The headquarters of OSCE will publicize the statement on the results
of the Washington consultations of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs
soon, the Office of OSCE Minsk Group co-chair Steven Mann, the Special
Representative for Conflicts in Eurasia of the U.S. State Department,
told Trend.
According to Office, the consultations of the OSCE Minsk Group
co-chairs on peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
took place in Washington from 7 to 8 March.
The consultations finished without adoption of statement by mediators.
Besides Mann, attending the consultations were Yuriy Merzlyakov
(Russia), Bernar Facie (France), as well as Anjey Kaspshik, the
personal representative of acting chairman of OSCE.

“TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY OF AZERBAIJAN IS NOT SUBJECT OF NEGOTIATIONS WITH ARMENIA,” ALIYEV
Author: S.Agayeva
TREND Information, Azerbaijan
March 9 2006
“The territorial integrity of Azerbaijan is not subject of the peace
negotiations with Armenia on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict,” Ilham Aliyev, the Azerbaijani President, said at the
Japanese International Relations Institute in Tokyo, Trend reports
referring to Azertaj.
According to Aliyev, the subject of the negotiations is liberation of
the occupied territories, repatriation of the victims of the ethnic
clearance and aggression, granting Nagorno-Karabakh with high status
of autonomy within Azerbaijan.
“All these must meet norms and principles of international law. We
hope for peaceful settlement of the conflict. International community
must play more active part in the solution of the conflict, which is
the largest hindrance for development of the region on the whole,”
the President stressed.
Touching upon development of oil and gas sphere, Aliyev noted that
Azerbaijan can play the role of energy source for Europe, experiencing
gas crisis and looking for alternative sources. He stated that
pipelines were being constructed to take Azerbaijani gas and oil to
the world markets.

ARAM SARKISIAN: “ARMENIA HAS LOST THE INFORMATION WAR WITH AZERBAIJAN”
Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
March 9 2006
“The reason why the Rambouillet negotiations on the settlement of
the Nagorno Garabagh conflict failed to reach any agreement is that
Armenia has lost the information war with Azerbaijan,” Leader of
Armenia Democratic Party, member of Justice Opposition alliance Aram
Sarkisian told.
He said that despite of compromises offered by Armenia, Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev refused to recognize the independence of
Nagorno Garabagh.
“Armenia’s stance was that if Azerbaijan recognizes the independence
of Nagorno Garabagh, Yerevan will be ready to withdraw its troops
from the territories and ensure sending the refugees back to their
native homes, and station peacekeepers in Nagorno Garabagh. However,
unlike the Ki West talks, Armenia has lost initiative regarding the
Garabagh issue. Though Azerbaijan was ready to informally recognize
Garabagh’s independence during the Ki West negotiations, there is
not such likelihood now,” Sarkisian said.
Referring to the current situation in Azerbaijan, Sarkisian said
that the situation has sharply changed to better in the country. “It
is not only because of oil revenues but also careful foreign policy
pursued in the country. Armenia’s policy of compromises is related
to this factor. It should be born in mind that Azerbaijan and Armenia
remarkably depend on foreign political forces,” the party leader said.

GERMAN GOVERNMENT PLEDGES SUPPORT FOR CONSERVATION FUND IN THE CAUCASUS
WWF Caucasus / Levan Pataraia
WWF International, Switzerland
March 9 2006
The Caucasus region is home to the Caucasus leopard, lynx and brown
bear.
The Caucasus region, covering some 50 million hectares, hosts an
extraordinarily high level of biodiversity.
09 Mar 2006 Berlin, Germany – German Development Minister Heidemarie
Wieczorek-Zeul has pledged ~@5 million to support the establishment
of a transboundary nature conservation fund in the southern Caucasus
region. Additional aid for the fund from international donors is
expected to see the amount rise to ~@40.
“Nature doesn’t know borders,” the minister said at the start of a
3-day ministerial conference on nature protection in the Caucasus
organized by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and
Development (BMZ), KfW development bank and WWF-Germany. “That’s why
cross-border cooperation is crucial for the national parks in the
Caucasus to be viable.”
The minister also stressed that the achievements in conservation
are the results of a continuous dialogue between NGOS, academics and
concerned governments.
The conservation fund aims to cover half the operational costs
for the most important conservation areas in this biodiversity-rich
region. The governments of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia are expected
to cover the other half. This makes the fund an integral part of the
conservation strategy, developed by WWF and KfW, in cooperation with
experts and government representatives from the region. The effort
also represents a major contribution to the United Nations Convention
on Biological Diversity by the states from the southern Caucasus.
The fund is setting new standards for nature conservation as only the
interest is to be used for project work, leaving the capital stock
intact. This will secure permanent financing of park management,
rangers and research.
“Our bank has already made positive experiences in the past with the
establishment of the Borjormi-Kharagauli-National Park in Georgia,
the first national park in the region,” said Ingrid Matthaus-Maier,
member of the KfW-group Board of Managing Directors.
“The planned trust fund is an innovative tool to secure the
sustainability of the bank’s investments in conservation.”
According to WWF, the Caucasus region – covering some 50 million
hectares and home to an extraordinarily high level of biodiversity –
belongs to the 200 most important ecoregions on this planet. Its most
prominent species are the Caucasus leopard, lynx and the brown bear.
“No state can protect the highly threatened Caucasus leopard alone,”
said WWF-Germany CEO Dr Peter Prokosch. “This is why the launch of
this regional conservation fund is so important.”
For further information: Ralph Kampwirth, Press Officer WWF-Germany
Tel: +49-162-29144-73
newsroom/index.cfm?uNewsID=63080
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

KLO CALLS ON BUDAPEST COURT TO MAKE A FAIR SENTENCE IN REGARD TO AZERI OFFICER
Author: S.Ilhamgizi
TREND Information, Azerbaijan
March 9 2006
The Budapest court’s act toward Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov is
biased, as it does not take into consideration the arguments of the
lawyers, as well as motives and reasons for the crime, Trend reports
referring to the statement by the Karabakh Liberation Organization
(KLO).
It should be mentioned that the Budapest court accepted the results of
the fourth expertise of Safarov, which alleged that the defendant was
sane during the commitment of the crime. The same time the results of
the two previous expertise acts were not taken into consideration. KLO
thinks that the sentence by the Budapest court and the refusal from
consideration of applications for defense of Safarov are attempts to
pronounce the most severe punishment in regard to him at the order
of the Armenian government.
“The Hungarian authorities were not able to stand for the pressure by
the Armenian leadership and lobby. They came out from the interests
of the political situation. KLO decidedly condemns the sentence
by the court and require changing the positions of the Hungarian
authorities, formed under the Armenian pressure. If the Budapest
court makes an unfair sentence, it will have direct impact on the
Azerbaijani-Hungarian relations,” the statement by KLO stresses.

ARMENIAN CENTRAL BANK LOWERS INTEREST RATE
RIA Novosti, Russia
March 9 2006
YEREVAN, March 9 (RIA Novosti) – The Central Bank of Armenia announced
Thursday that it was lowing interest rates from 16% to 15% per year.
The decision was taken by Central Bank Chairman Tigran Sarkisyan.
The move came after a similar cut in the interest rate on November 1
2005, from 17% to 16%, as the authorities sought to encourage private
business to expand.

WAKE FOREST SECREST SEASON CONCLUDES WITH SINGER ISABEL BAYRAKDARIAN
By Pam Barrett
March 8, 2006
WFU News Service, NC
March 9 2006
Wake Forest University’s Secrest Artists Series will conclude its
2005-2006 season with a concert featuring internationally renowned,
Armenian-Canadian soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian at 7:30 p.m. March 30
in Brendle Recital Hall.
A pre-performance talk with Richard Heard, associate professor of
music at Wake Forest, will be held at 6:40 p.m. in Scales Fine Arts
Center, Room 201, adjacent to Brendle Recital Hall. Heard will discuss
the nature of opera singing and specific pieces from Bayrakdarian’s
program.
Considered one of the foremost rising opera stars of today,
Bayrakdarian is known for capturing the hearts of audiences with what
critics call her “bell-like” coloratura (a technique of fast, high
singing with accompanying trills and embellishments) and “sparkling”
on-stage presence.
Bayrakdarian gained critical acclaim during the 2003-2004 season for
her roles as Susanna in “Le Nozze di Figaro,” Teresa in “Benvenuto
Cellini” and Leila in “Les Pecheurs de Perles.” Her voice is also
featured on the Grammy Award-winning soundtrack of “Lord of the Rings:
The Two Towers.”
This past season, Bayrakdarian was a featured performer at the opening
night gala at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. She has debuted
with the Chicago and Montreal symphonies and will participate in the
2006 Salzburg Festival in August.
Tickets are $16 general admission and $12 for non-Wake Forest students
and senior citizens. They are available through the University Theatre
Box Office at 336-758-5295.