INTERNATIONAL MEDIATORS URGE ARMENIA, AZERBAIJAN TO STRIKE DEAL ON NAGORNO-KARABAKH
AP Worldstream
May 24, 2006
International mediators Wednesday urged Armenia and Azerbaijan to
reach a compromise over the status of the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave.
Envoys from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s
so-called Minsk Group of mediators, which include France, Russia and
the United States, held talks Wednesday with Azerbaijani President
Ilham Aliev.
A statement said that the mediators, due to hold talks with Armenian
President Robert Kocharian on Thursday, had staged the diplomatic
mission “because of the need to promote a peaceful settlement of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.”
The statement added that “now is the time for the sides to reach
agreement on the basic principles of a settlement.”
Nagorno-Karabakh is inside Azerbaijan, but populated mostly by ethnic
Armenians, who have run it since an uneasy 1994 cease-fire ended
six years of full-scale war in which 30,000 people were killed and
1 million made refugees.
Sporadic border clashes continue to claim victims, while peace talks
have stalled.
Aliev and Kocharian in February failed to reach agreement after
two days of talks in France on how to end the conflict. Since then,
violence has risen sharply, and the two countries’ presidents have
traded increasingly bellicose statements.
The lack of final resolution over the enclave’s status has long tied
up investment in the strategic, oil-rich Caucasus region.

RUSSIA CONTINUES WITHDRAWAL OF HARDWARE FROM MILITARY BASE IN GEORGIA
RTR Russia TV, Moscow
25 May 06
A train carrying hardware left the Russian military base in Batumi
last night. A total of 50 communications and rear service vehicles
as well as engineering equipment are to be redeployed to the Russian
Defence Ministry base in Gyumri, Armenia.
Another six such trains will leave Batumi in the next few months,
the headquarters of the Joint Group of Forces in the North Caucasus
has said.
I recall that the withdrawal of military hardware from this base
began in the summer of 2005. Two assault landing ships brought to
Russia 12 tanks, 12 air defence systems and combat patrol vehicles.
Under Russian-Georgian agreements, the base in Batumi is to be closed
in 2008.

$1,097,115,610,000: 19,954,934: THE SIZE OF THE WORLD’S ACTIVE MILITARY FORCES
The Guardian – United Kingdom
May 25, 2006
And The Terror Groups They Are Fighting: World’s Active Soldiers:
World’s Defence Budget: 46% The Increase In US Combat Power By 2008
North America
60 Canada 62,100 108,850 10.9
2 US 1,546,372 2,502,574 561
Caribbean and Latin America
162 Antigua and Barbuda 170 245 0
53 Argentina 71,400 102,640 1.9
158 Bahamas 860 860 0
160 Barbados 610 1,040 0
156 Belize 1,050 1,750 0
78 Bolivia 33,000 70,100 0.1
17 Brazil 287,159 2,012,759 16.1
48 Chile 78,098 166,098 1.9
23 Colombia 207,000 396,700 4
165 Costa Rica 0 8,400 0.1
69 Cuba 49,000 114,500 1.4
90 Dominican Rep 24,500 39,500 0.2
71 Ecuador 46,500 164,770 0.7
102 El Salvador 15,500 25,400 0.1
81 Guatemala 29,200 85,900 0.1
155 Guyana 1,100 3,270 0
166 Haiti 0 0 0 *UN multinational stabilisation mission currently
in place
112 Honduras 12,000 80,000 0.1
146 Jamaica 2,830 3,783 0.1
27 Mexico 192,770 517,770 3.4
105 Nicaragua 14,000 14,000 0
167 Panama 0 11,800 0.2
120 Paraguay 10,300 189,600 0.1
46 Peru 80,000 352,000 1.1
151 Surinam 1,840 1,840 0
147 Trinidad and Tobago 2,700 2,700 0
92 Uruguay 24,000 24,920 0.2
45 Venezuela 82,300 90,300 2.1
76 Belgium 36,950 55,600 3.2
65 Bulgaria 51,000 388,000 0.7
94 Czech Rep 22,272 27,872 2.3
96 Denmark 21,180 150,880 3.2
140 Estonia 4,934 28,934 0.2
20 France 254,895 420,820 41.6
18 Germany 284,500 639,150 28.8
32 Greece 163,850 492,850 4.5
79 Hungary 32,300 88,300 1.3
163 Iceland 0 130 0.4
28 Italy 191,152 501,952 14.6
139 Latvia 5,238 16,442 0.3
107 Lithuania 13,510 34,810 0.3
157 Luxembourg 900 1,512 0.3
63 Netherlands 53,130 85,330 9.4
89 Norway 25,800 236,200 4.6
34 Poland 141,500 396,900 5.6
73 Portugal 44,900 303,530 2.3
44 Romania 97,200 281,100 2.1
98 Slovakia 20,195 20,195 0.9
136 Slovenia 6,550 36,050 0.5
33 Spain 147,255 539,6150 8.5
9 Turkey 514,850 1,045,750 8.9
22 United Kingdom 216,890 458,410 50.2
95 Albania 21,500 22,000 0.1
70 Armenia 48,160 49,160 0.2
75 Austria 39,900 39,900 2.2
55 Azerbaijan 66,740 381,740 0.6
50 Belarus 72,940 472,440 0.3
113 Bosnia-Herzegovina 11,865 11,865 0.2
97 Croatia 20,800 139,000 0.6
121 Cyprus 10,000 70,750 0.3
84 Finland 28,300 287,300 2.7
114 Georgia 11,320 23,020 0.1
119 Ireland 10,460 25,335 1
117 Macedonia 10,890 39,490 0.1
149 Malta 2,237 2,237 0
135 Moldova 6,750 76,029 0
58 Serbia and Montenegro 65,300 360,400 0.7
85 Sweden 27,600 325,200 5.2
143 Switzerland 4,300 319,300 3.8
29 Ukraine 187,600 1,272,500 2.9
5 Russia 1,027,000 21,442,000 23.7
35 Algeria 137,500 468,700 2.9
115 Bahrain 11,200 21,360 0.5
10 Egypt 468,500 1,277,500 2.5
8 Iran 545,000 935,000 6.2
21 Iraq 227,000 227,000 0
31 Israel 168,300 584,350 7.2
43 Jordan 100,500 145,500 1
101 Kuwait 15,500 45,800 4.3
52 Lebanon 72,100 85,100 0.5
49 Libya 76,000 116,000 0.6
100 Mauritania 15,870 20,870 0
25 Morocco 200,800 400,800 2.1
74 Oman 41,700 46,100 3
164 Palestinian Autonomous Areas 0 56,000 0
111 Qatar 12,400 12,400 2.2
26 Saudi Arabia 199,500 215,000 25.4
13 Syria 307,600 769,600 1.5
77 Tunisia 35,300 47,300 0.4
67 UAE 50,500 50,500 2.7
56 Yemen 66,700 137,900 0.9
40 Angola 108,400 118,400 1.2
142 Benin 4,550 7,050 0.1
127 Botswana 9,000 10,500 0.4
118 Burkino Faso 10,800 11,050 0.1
68 Burundi 50,500 81,500 0
93 Cameroon 23,100 23,100 0.2
154 Cape Verde 1,200 1,200 0
148 Central African Republic 2,550 2,550 0
80 Chad 30,350 34,850 0.1
122 Congo 10,000 12,000 0.1
59 Dem Rep of Congo 64,800 64,800 0.2
123 Djibouti 9,850 12,350 0
152 Equatorial Guinea 1,320 1,320 0
24 Eritrea 201,750 321,750 0.1
30 Ethiopia 182,500 182,500 0.3
141 Gabon 4,700 6,700 0
159 Gambia 800 800 0
134 Ghana 7,000 7,000 0
124 Guinea 9,700 19,300 0.1
125 Guinea Bissau 9,250 9,250 0
99 Ivory Coast 17,050 28,550 0.2
91 Kenya 24,120 29,120 0.3
150 Lesotho 2,000 2,000 0
104 Liberia 15,000 15,000 0
108 Madagascar 13,500 21,600 0.3
137 Malawi 5,300 6,800 0
132 Mali 7,350 15,150 0.1
168 Mauritius 0 2,000 0
116 Mozambique 11,200 11,200 0.1
126 Namibia 9,200 15,200 0.2
138 Niger 5,300 10,700 0
47 Nigeria 78,500 160,500 0.8
66 Rwanda 51,000 53,000 0.1
106 Senegal 13,620 18,620 0.1
161 Seychelles 200 450 0
109 Sierra Leone 13,000 13,000 0
169 Somalia 0 0 0 *Transitional national government has formed with
an estimated 5000 troops but only has control of northern Somalia
61 South Africa 55,750 115,750 3.8
42 Sudan 104,800 207,300 0.5
87 Tanzania 27,000 108,400 0.4
130 Togo 8,550 9,300 0
72 Uganda 45,000 46,800 0.2
103 Zambia 15,100 19,500 0
83 Zimbabwe 29,000 50,800 0.3
86 Afghanistan 27,000 27,000 0
36 Bangladesh 125,500 251,700 0.8
3 India 1,325,000 5,494,815 23.5
57 Kazakhstan 65,800 100,300 0.6
110 Kyrgyzstan 12,500 17,500 0.1
54 Nepal 69,000 131,000 0.2
7 Pakistan 619,000 921,000 3.7
38 Sri Lanka 111,000 235,500 0.7
131 Tajikistan 7,600 12,900 0.1
88 Turkmenistan 26,000 26,000 0.2
62 Uzbekistan 55,000 91,000 0.1
64 Australia 52,872 73,672 13.2
133 Brunei 7,000 11,450 0.4
12 Burma 375,500 482,750 6.2
37 Cambodia 124,300 191,300 0.1
1 China 2,255,000 7,024,000 34.9
153 East Timor 1,250 1,250 n/a
144 Fiji 3,500 9,500 0
15 Indonesia 302,000 982,000 2.6
19 Japan 260,250 316,895 40.7
4 North Korea 1,106,000 9,495,000 1.9
6 South Korea 687,700 8,692,200 23.5
82 Laos 29,100 129,100 0
39 Malaysia 110,000 430,900 3.1
129 Mongolia 8,600 152,800 0
128 New Zealand 8,660 19,460 1.4
145 Papua New Guinea 3,100 3,100 0
41 Philippines 106,000 317,500 0.9
51 Singapore 72,500 522,800 6.2
16 Taiwan 290,000 1,995,650 7.9
14 Thailand 306,600 665,300 2
11 Vietnam 455,000 5,495,000 3.2

KAZAKH PREMIER TO GO TO DUSHANBE FOR CIS MEETING
Kazakhstan Today news agency website, Almaty
24 May 06
Astana, 24 May: This afternoon, Kazakh Prime Minister Daniyal Akhmetov
is to leave for Dushanbe [Tajik capital] to attend a meeting of the
CIS council of heads of government, the agency reported quoting the
government’s press service.
[Passage omitted: reported details on the CIS meeting]
At the forthcoming meeting, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan will be represented on the
level of prime minister, Russia, Uzbekistan and Ukraine on the level
of deputy prime minister, and Turkmenistan on the level of ambassador.
[Passage omitted: a meeting is planned between participants in CIS
meeting and Tajik president]

TAJIK MINISTER, RUSSIAN OFFICIAL TALK CIS PREMIERS’ SESSION AGENDA
Asia-Plus news agency website
24 May 06
Dushanbe, 24 May: The agenda of the coming session of CIS prime
ministers was discussed in Dushanbe today [24 May] during a working
meeting between Tajik Foreign Minister Talbak Nazarov and CIS Executive
Secretary Vladimir Rushaylo, a source in the Tajik Foreign Ministry
has told Asia-Plus.
We would recall that the session of the council of heads of government
of the CIS member states will take place in Dushanbe on 25 May. The
agenda includes 25 issues.
The participants will discuss a treaty on setting up an interstate fund
for humanitarian cooperation, a draft convention on border cooperation
and the work of the [CIS] interstate council for hydrometeorology.
In all, 17 documents will be signed without discussion.
[Passage omitted: known details about documents to be signed]
Also expected to be signed are a document on assigning to the Russian
state library, a federal institution, the status of the main body for
cooperation between CIS member states in the field of librarianship,
and a document on assigning to Zhukovskiy Air Force Engineering
Academy the status of the principal training centre for military
metrology specialists of the CIS member states.
The CIS heads of government will also consider [the issues related
to] conducting the next regular session of the council of CIS heads
of government, as well as [appointing] deputies of the executive
secretary and the chair of the council.
At the council’s forthcoming session in Dushanbe Azerbaijan, Armenia,
Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan will be
represented by prime ministers; Russia, Uzbekistan and Ukraine by
deputy prime ministers and Turkmenistan by its ambassador.
All the participants in the session, about 200 of them, will arrive
this afternoon. Tajik President Emomali Rahmonov is expected to receive
the heads of the delegations in the morning of 25 May, ahead of the
session of the council of heads of government of CIS member states.
This afternoon Rushaylo is also expected to meet Rahmonov. The
sides intend to discuss cooperation among CIS member countries and
integration processes within the framework of this structure.

RA GOVERNMENTAL DELEGATIION TO PARTICIPATE IN THE SITTING OF HEADS OF GOVERNMENTS OF CIS MEMBER STATES
ArmRadio.am
25.05.2006 10:30
Recurrent sitting of the Heads of Governments of CIS member states
will take place today in Dushanbe. 22 issues are included in the
agenda. The Prime Ministers will listen to a report on “The process
of accomplishment of CIS interstate programs against terrorism
and other expressions of radicalism, crime, drugs trafficking” and
“Legal consistency of CIS member states in the sphere of information
and communication.”
The Armenian delegation is headed by Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan.

AGHVAN HOVSEPYAN TO PARTICIPATE IN THE SITTING OF PROSECUTOR GENERALS OF CIS MEMBER STATES
ArmRadio.am
25.05.2006 10:45
RA Prosecutor General Aghvan Hovsepyan will participate today in the
recurrent sitting of Prosecutor Generals of CIS member states held in
Minsk. Issues related to the expansion of cooperation in the spheres
of civil rights defense, fighting interethnic crimes and terrorism
will be discussed.

MOSCOW GOVERNMENTAL DELEGATION HERE IN ARMENIA
ArmRadio.am
25.05.2006 10:50
The second sitting of the Cooperation Commission of Moscow and RA
Governments will be held today in Yerevan. The sitting will be presided
over by Head of Moscow Central Administrative Unit, Russian Co-Chair
Sergey Baydakov and Head of the Moscow Representation in Yerevan,
Armenian Co-Chair of the Commission Makar Nahapetyan.
The process of accomplishment of the decisions taken during the
previous sitting will be discussed. Reference will be made to the
further steps and programs directed at the development of cooperation
between Moscow and RA Government.
In the framework of the three-day visit the Moscow delegation will
have meetings with RA Minister of Territorial Administration Hovik
Abrahamyan and the Mayor of Yerevan Yervand Zakharyan.

DELEGATION OF THE ORTHODOX CHURCH OF FINLAND TO ARRIVE IN ARMENIA
ArmRadio.am
25.05.2006 11:00
The delegation leaded by Head of the Orthodox Church of Finland,
Archbishop of Carelia and All Finland Leo will arrive today in Armenia.
During the visit the guest will learn about the activity of the Mother
See of Holy Echmiadzin.

AN INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM TO CELEBRATE THE CHILD PROTECTION DAY WILL BE HELD IN YEREVAN
ArmRadio.am
25.05.2006 11:40
An international scientific symposium aimed at fostering a discussion
of modern practices and issues of child protection will take place
on May 29-31, 2006, 10.00-17.00, in Yerevan, at the hall of sessions
of the Armenian government building. First of its type in Armenia,
this event was organized by World Vision Armenia in cooperation with
the USAID and UNICEF.
Among the expected participants are leading specialists in the sphere
of child protection, special pedagogy and inclusive education, experts
from Russia, Georgia, Switzerland, Serbia, and other countries, as
well as representatives of Ministries, international and local NGOs,
charity foundations, educational and healthcare institutions.
The Symposium will help to bring together international and local
experiences in child protection and special education, introduce new
and effective methodologies, discuss state policies and strategies
related to child protection, and foster productive dialogue and
cooperation among different entities operating in this sphere.