The Times (London)
April 21, 2006, Friday
Two countries with the same name
Have two countries with the same name ever existed in entirely
different locations at the same, or different, points of history?
Further to your previous replies (March 24, April 7), there is at
least one other example -Armenia.
Although it is now an independent country sandwiched between Iran,
Azerbaijan, Turkey and Kazakhstan, it was once much larger, with a
seaboard on the Caspian Sea, and sat beneath the Caucasian versions
of Iberia and Albania (already mentioned). In AD301 it adopted
Christianity as its state religion, more than a decade before
Christians were tolerated by Rome.
Armenia was swallowed by the Byzantines and then the Turks, and in
1064, refugees fleeing the Seljuks, created a new Armenia by the
Mediterranean, the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia. Against the odds,
this lasted about 300 years. It was propped up by Frankish crusaders
after the First Crusade and became a French crusader state, adjacent
to Antioch and Edessa. It grew to become the Kingdom of Armenia in
1198 under Leon II, a dominion on the underbelly of Turkey from the
Euphrates to what is today Gazipasa. It ended with the Marmeluk
invasion of 1375.
Randolph Simms, Exeter

Russian of Armenian origin murdered in metro
Agence France Presse — English
April 22, 2006 Saturday 6:31 PM GMT
MOSCOW, April 22 2006 — A Russian teenager of Armenian origin was
stabbed to death in the Moscow metro on Saturday in what police said
could be a racist killing, local media reported.
“During an argument one of those involved drew a knife and stabbed a
17-year-old youth of Armenian origin,” Itar-Tass news agency quoted
a police spokesman as saying.
“The attack was fatal. He died on the spot.”
Interfax news agency quoted an anonymous police source as saying
the attacker looked like a skinhead, dressed in black and with a
shaved head.
The incident took place on a platform of the Pushkinshaya metro
station in the centre of Moscow. Those involved escaped, police said.
They said they were examining all possibilities, including that of
a racist crime.
But the head of the union of Armenians in Russia Ara Abramian told
a radio station he doubted the authorities were serious in tackling
racism.
“If extremism and nationalism exist here, we ought to call things by
their name, and it is only when that happens that they’ll stop.”
Racist attacks are often treated by Russian police and courts as
simple acts of hooliganism, punishable by light sentences, and there
is a reluctance to describe them as racist.
There has been a rise in the number of such attacks, often fatal,
on foreigners in recent years and the pace has quickened in recent
months. They are often carried out by gangs of skinheads and usually
target Asians, Africans and people from the Caucasus — such as
Armenians — or Central Asia.
Four Chinese students were beaten up on Friday in Kostroma, 370
kilometres (230 miles) northeast of Moscow, Interfax quoted local
police as saying. The attacks was described as racist and those
carrying it out arrested.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Orthodox Christians greet ‘new fire’ of Easter in Jerusalem
Agence France Presse — English
April 22, 2006 Saturday 3:59 PM GMT
JERUSALEM, April 22 2006 — Thousands of Orthodox Christians converged
on Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulcher Saturday for the lighting
of the “new fire,” on the eve of Orthodox Easter.
Only minor incidents were reported in connection with the centuries-old
ceremony that is often the source of brawling and fisticuffs, and
which has even led to stampedes and deaths.
Jerusalem’s Old City, with its Christian, Muslim, Jewish and Armenian
quarters, was blocked off to vehicular traffic, and some pilgrims
fainted after being held up at Israeli security checkpoints leading
to the church.
Last year, a dozen Greek and Armenian Orthodox clergymen briefly
scuffled over who would be first to emerge from the tomb of Christ
with the ceremonial flames, said to be sent by Jesus from heaven.
“To take part in this ceremony is to see God in person and take a
spiritual bath,” said Elizabeth, an Australian in her 30s dressed
head-to-toe in black.
The church contains within its precincts what is believed to be
Calvary, the site where Jesus Christ was crucified and, only a few
meters (yards) away, the tomb where he was buried and from which he
rose again to life.
Custody of the church is shared by the Greeks and Armenians as well
as Roman Catholics, all of whom jealously guard their responsibilities
under a fragile network of agreements hammered out over the centuries.
Most of the people making their way to the church on Saturday, along
with local residents, were Russians, Greeks, Armenians and Romanians,
an AFP journalist said.
This year, the new Greek Orthodox of Jerusalem, Theophilos III,
exercised his prerogative to light the first candle from the holy
fire, inside the small marble-clad structure built over the site of
Christ’s tomb, or sepulcher, inside the church.
“This ceremony is a magical moment, a miracle, in the tomb, the fire
lights itself,” said Russian Orthodox Basil Yakimov, 52.
“You can touch the flame when it comes out of the tomb, you will not
be burnt, it comes from heaven and you have to welcome it with faith,”
said 40-year-old Frenchman Pierre.
The holy fire allegedly appears each year. It is described as a blue,
shiny light emanating from the tomb after some prayers have been said
by the patriarch.
>>From there, the candle is brought out to be greeted with joy by
the assembled throng, and its fire passed from candle to candle among
the faithful.
“May God bless you Virgin Mary,” cried dozens of young Arab Christians
as they ran out of the church bearing lit candles.
“It’s like being in a football stadium, we’re used to more
contemplation in churches,” said Henri, a Roman Catholic Frenchman
living in Tel-Aviv.
Theophilos left the sepulcher to take the fire to the Patriarchate,
accompanied by a delegation of Greek officials, and then on to to
Bethlehem, the traditional site of Jesus’ birth, only a few kilometers
(miles) south of Jerusalem.
A specially arranged flight will then take the fire to Athens, from
where it is taken by road, air and sea to illuminated every church in
Greece and some further afield to cries of “He is risen” at midnight.
In Orthodox tradition, and also widely practiced in many Western rites,
the vigil held on the night before Easter begins with a darkened
church that is illuminated by the new fire, which symbolizes the
“light of Christ” manifest in the Resurrection.

Prosecutor’s office launches probe into Armenian’s murder
ITAR-TASS News Agency
April 22, 2006 Saturday 02:44 PM EST
The Moscow metro prosecutor’s office has launched a probe into the
murder of a young man in a mass fight at the central Pushkinskaya
metro station on Saturday.
“Today at about 16:47 Moscow time a group of 12 young men gathered
on the platform of the Pushkinskaya station. They knew each other
and were waiting for one more acquaintance of theirs. At this time a
group of about six to seven people disembarked from a southeast-bound
train and attacked those standing on the platform without any reason.
As a result of the attack, a student of Moscow University of Management
received a stab wound in the chest, from which he died at the scene,”
a spokesman for the Moscow prosecutor’s office told Itar-Tass.
“All possible leads are being investigated, including a murder
motivated by ethnic hatred and strife,” the official said.
Earlier, law enforcement agencies said the victim had been born in
1989 in Armenia. Police have begun a search for the attacker.
Meanwhile, Moscow’s Armenian community said it would not let this pass.
“We will certainly convene on Monday. We gathered each time an
ethnic-motivated murder occurred and thought about mechanisms
that could prevent such incidents,” the president of the Union of
Armenians of Russia and the president of the World Armenian Congress,
Ara Abramyan, told Ekho Moskvy radio.
In his view such crimes can be possible only because authorities and
society do not respond properly to the manifestations of nationalism
and because they are left unpunished.
“The ethnicity of the killed man does not matter because this concerns
everybody. This is a problem for the whole of Russia. If there is
extremism and nationalism, we must call things by their proper names
and then such incidents may not occur again,” he said.

Moscow’s Armenian community worried by Armenian’s murder
ITAR-TASS News Agency
April 22, 2006 Saturday 01:27 PM EST
Moscow’s Armenian community said it would not neglect the murder of
an Armenian man in the centre of the city on Saturday.
“We will certainly convene on Monday. We gathered each time an
ethnic-motivated murder occurred and thought about mechanisms
that could prevent such incidents,” the president of the Union of
Armenians of Russia and the president of the World Armenian Congress,
Ara Abramyan, told Ekho Moskvy radio.
In his view such crimes can be possible only because authorities and
society do not respond properly to the manifestations of nationalism
and because they are left unpunished.
“The ethnicity of the killed man does not matter because this concerns
everybody. This is a problem for the whole of Russia. If there is
extremism and nationalism, we must call things by their proper names
and then such incidents may not occur again,” he said.
Earlier in the day, a young Amernian-born man was killed by a group of
youngsters in a fight at Moscow’s central Pushkinskaya metro station.
Seven young people, including the Armenian, started fighting each other
on the station’s platform. “During the tussle one of its participants
drew up a knife and hit a 17-year-old young man from Armenia with it
once,” a police officer told Itar-Tass.
He said, “The injury was deadly and the young man died at the
scene.” All other young people involved in the fight escaped. No one
was detained.
Police have so far refrained from comments on the possible motives
of the incident. But they did not rule out ethnic motives.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

NEWS Press
21 avril 2006
Region Provence Alpes Côte d’Azur: Inauguration du memorial du
genocide armenien le 24 avril 2006 a Marseille
Prefecture de la Region Provence Alpes Côte d’Azur
Christian Fremont, Prefet des Bouches du Rhône, Prefet de la Region
Provence Alpes Côte d’Azur participera a l’inauguration du memorial
du genocide armenien le :
Lundi 24 avril 2006 a 10h30
7 avenue du 24 avril 1915
13012 Marseille
Ce memorial est le premier monument erige a la memoire du genocide
armenien, finance en totalite par des fonds publics francais.
Le financement se repartit comme suit :
– Etat : 27.5 %
– Region PACA : 27.5 %
– Departement des Bouches du Rhône : 22.5 %
– Communaute Urbaine de Marseille Provence Marseille : 22.5 %
L’Etat via la Direction Departementale de l’Equipement des Bouches du
Rhône a par ailleurs assure la maîtrise d’ouvrage de cette
realisation.
–Boundary_(ID_zxLCy7y5fw+BdDc LfYt+UA)–

Agence France Presse
21 avril 2006 vendredi 9:31 PM GMT
Le Premier ministre canadien salue la commemoration du genocide
armenien
OTTAWA 21 avr 2006
Le Premier ministre canadien Stephen Harper a salue vendredi tous
ceux qui commemorent le genocide armenien, soulignant qu’il ne faut
“jamais oublier les lecons de l’Histoire, ni permettre a ses
inimities de nous diviser”.
“J’aimerais saluer sincèrement toutes les personnes qui marquent le
sombre anniversaire du Medz Yeghern”, a declare M. Harper.
Il a rappele que le Senat du Canada avait adopte il y a plusieurs
annees “une motion pour reconnaître cette periode en tant que premier
genocide du vingtième siècle, tandis que la Chambre des communes
adoptait une motion qui reconnaît le genocide armenien de 1915 et
condamne cet acte comme crime contre l’humanite”. “Mon parti et moi,
nous avons appuye ces resolutions et continuons de le faire
aujourd’hui”, a ajoute le Premier ministre dans une declaration.
“Je me joins a vous aujourd’hui pour me souvenir du passe tout en
vous encourageant a continuer d’honorer vos ancetres en bâtissant un
avenir brillant au Canada”, a-t-il conclu a l’adresse de ses
concitoyens d’origine armenienne.
Les massacres et deportations d’Armeniens sous l’empire Ottoman, de
1915 a 1917, ont fait 1,5 million de morts, selon les Armeniens,
entre 300.000 et 500.000, selon Ankara, qui rejette categoriquement
la qualification de genocide.
–Boundary_(ID_SjLHAQ3XkHyii69LSbY6Sw)- –

L’affaire des Pilatus boycottes par Ankara embarrasse Berne;
Le Temps, Suisse
21 avril 2006
TENSIONS. Si les autorites federales prefèrent ne pas faire de lien
avec le genocide armenien, des fonctionnaires du Ministère turc des
affaires etrangères le font. Dans la presse turque.
Pilatus peine toujours a comprendre la decision du Ministère turc de
la defense de l’exclure d’un appel d’offres pour de nouveaux avions
d’entraînement. La societe, qui s’etait preparee depuis plus de quatre
ans a la possibilite de vendre des PC-21 a la Turquie, a ete ecartee
en tant qu’entreprise suisse. Ce qui laisse penser qu’Ankara aurait
pu agir ainsi dans la seule intention d’exprimer son mecontentement a
propos de l’attitude de la Suisse face au genocide armenien de 1915. Le
Conseil federal ne le reconnaît pas officiellement, mais le Conseil
national a accepte en 2003 un postulat en ce sens. Et le Grand Conseil
vaudois a, la meme annee, egalement reconnu le genocide des Armeniens.
Pour ne pas fragiliser davantage les relations entre la Suisse et
la Turquie, le Departement federal des affaires etrangères (DFAE)
prefère pour l’instant ne pas faire de lien entre les deux affaires.
Du moins, pas officiellement. Mais il a demande des explications aux
autorites turques. De son côte, Joseph Deiss, patron du departement qui
chapeaute le Secretariat d’Etat a l’economie (Seco) charge du contrôle
des exportations, a promis a Pilatus de faire la lumière sur cette
affaire lors de sa prochaine visite en Turquie. Le conseiller federal
attend toujours l’invitation d’Ankara. Son voyage turc prevu en automne
2005 avait ete annule en raison de deux enquetes penales ouvertes en
Suisse contre des intellectuels turcs pour negation du genocide.
De nouveau sur la liste noire?
Les autorites federales font profil bas mais sont bien conscientes
qu’il sera difficile de faire revenir Ankara sur sa decision.
Contrairement a Berne, le Turkish Daily News n’hesite pas a faire
le rapprochement avec la delicate question du genocide armenien. Le
journal a cite, le 28 mars dernier, un fonctionnaire du Ministère
turc des affaires etrangères qui qualifie d’irrealiste le fait de
penser qu’une societe suisse puisse participer a un programme de
defense turc. “Surtout a un moment où la dispute bilaterale a propos
du genocide armenien a profondement affecte les relations entre Berne
et Ankara”, precise le fonctionnaire sous le sceau de l’anonymat.
La Turquie dispose d’une “liste noire” de pays a partir desquels
elle refuse d’importer du materiel militaire. La Suisse y figurait
encore jusqu’en avril 2005. Un mois plus tôt, le Conseil federal
avait normalise les procedures d’exportation d’armes vers la Turquie,
se basant sur les progrès d’Ankara en matière de democratie. Aucune
exportation n’avait ete autorisee depuis 1992. L’affaire des Pilatus
laisse aujourd’hui penser que la Suisse figure a nouveau sur la fameuse
liste noire turque. Mais personne n’est en mesure de le confirmer.
Un expert militaire base a Ankara cite par le Turkish Daily News
juge “parfaitement normal” que la Suisse ait ete ecartee de l’appel
d’offres puisque quand il s’est avere que des Pilatus, en l’occurrence
des PC-7, avaient ete utilises durant la guerre Iran-Irak, l’affaire
avait provoque une polemique en Suisse.
Generalement consideres comme des avions civils, les Pilatus ne
tombent pas sous le coup de la loi sur l’exportation du materiel
de guerre. Ils peuvent en revanche etre equipes de bombes ou de
roquettes. Des Pilatus avaient ainsi defraye la chronique pour avoir
servi a bombarder des populations indigènes au Guatemala, en Angola ou
encore en Birmanie. L’expert turc insinue que le gouvernement suisse
pourrait craindre que les Pilatus puissent a nouveau etre utilises
a autre chose qu’a des fins d’entraînement, par exemple contre les
combattants du Parti des travailleurs du Kurdistan (PKK).
Toujours selon l’expert, la decision d’Ankara pourrait s’expliquer par
le fait que le Ministère turc de la defense n’ait pas voulu courir le
risque que la Suisse, hesitante, puisse au dernier moment decider de
stopper la livraison de ses PC-21. Ce scenario ne trouve aucun echo
au sein de la Berne federale.
La Suisse ecartee, les Forces aeriennes turques pourraient faire leur
choix entre Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), la societe bresilienne
Embraer et l’americaine Raytheon. Comme candidate a l’adhesion a
l’UE, il y a fort a parier que la Turquie n’aurait pas ose exclure
un avionneur europeen de son appel d’offres comme elle l’a fait
avec Pilatus.
Encadre: “Oui, nous sommes otages d’une affaire politique”
Par Valerie de Graffenried
Oscar Schwenk, patron de l’avionneur nidwaldien Pilatus, s’exprime
prudemment sur le boycott d’Ankara. Pour sa societe, decrocher le
contrat des forces aeriennes turques permettrait d’empocher près
d’un demi-milliard de francs. Le Temps: Vous considerez la decision
turque comme une mesure de retorsion suite a la polemique entre Berne
et Ankara concernant le genocide armenien. Vous sentez-vous donc
“otages” d’une affaire strictement politique? Oscar Schwenk: Oui.
Pilatus n’a jamais ete touche par une telle affaire auparavant. –
Qu’attendez-vous maintenant des departements de Joseph Deiss et
de Micheline Calmy-Rey? – Le conseiller federal Joseph Deiss, le
Secretariat d’Etat a l’economie (Seco) et l’ambassade (de Suisse
a Ankara, ndlr) sont deja actifs depuis plusieurs mois dans cette
affaire.
– Que representait pour vous ce contrat de 500 millions de francs?-
Chaque appel d’offres des forces aeriennes d’un pays pour des avions
d’entraînement suscite une forte concurrence entre les differentes
societes en mesure de repondre a l’offre. Le fait qu’il ne nous soit,
dans ce cas, pas permis de deposer une offre est discutable. Il
semble que la Turquie, extremement fâchee de l’attitude politique de
la Suisse, ait choisi une mesure de retorsion qui, comme entreprise
suisse, nous frappe lourdement.
– Pilatus a par le passe dû faire face a plusieurs polemiques.
Comment auriez-vous pu garantir, en cas de contrat avec la Turquie,
que vos avions ne soient pas utilises a des fins militaires, contre la
minorite kurde par exemple? – Lorsque nous exportons nos produits,
nous tenons compte de l’ordonnance et de la loi federale sur le
contrôle des biens. La Turquie fait partie des Etats mentionnes dans
l’annexe 4 de l’ordonnance sur le contrôle des biens qui prevoit que
des avions d’entrainement peuvent etre livres a la Turquie.
–Boundary_(ID_t0lpGeBJWYliwy7c1PlekA)–

Indian students continue protest over death of compatriot in Armenia
Arminfo
22 Apr 06
Yerevan, 22 April: Indian students today continued the protest rally
on Republic Square which they started on 20 April in connection with
the tragic death of a 20-year student, Prashanta [Sandi] Anchali.
They demanded the resignation of the rector of Yerevan Medical
University, Goar Kalyan, and his deputies.
This time the reason for the students’ dissatisfaction was Kalyan’s
interview to the Armenian newspaper Aykakan Zhamanak, in which,
speaking about the Indian people, she said: “This is a mendacious
and gipsy nation.”
Moreover, the students are also outraged by interviews of the Medical
University leadership in which they said that during their meeting with
the rector, Indian students cocked a snook at her. In the meantime,
the students maintain that Kalyan herself cocked a snook at them in
response to their demand for her resignation.
[Passage omitted: reported details]

Karabakh aims to draw up “acceptable” settlement principles – MP
Aravot, Yerevan
20 Apr 06
The purpose of the Karabakh hearings organized by the parliament of
the Nagornyy Karabakh republic (NKR) is to agree on conflict settlement
principles acceptable to the NKR, the head of the parliament’s foreign
relations commission, Vagram Atanesyan, has said.
“Our purpose is to unify positions existing in the parliament on
principles which are acceptable for us to move the Karabakh negotiating
process forward,” Atanesyan said in an interview with the Armenian
newspaper Aravot on 20 April.
He said that the Karabakh parliament will not ask Armenia to give up
its place in the talks with Azerbaijan in favour of the NKR. “I do
not think that at present we should prompt Armenia at the level of
the NKR parliament. We shall present our position,” he said.
He went on to say that the parliament will issue a statement following
the hearings, but denied the parliament’s plans to influence the
negotiating process.