BUSINESS ATMOSPHERE FAVORABLE IN ARMENIA, RUSSIA AND MOLDOVA
Pan Armenian News
19.09.2005 07:12
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Today in Kishinev the World Bank has issued
the outcomes of the research held in 155 countries to assess the
conditions for business created there, Transdnestrian MFA reported. The
research showed that Armenia, Russia and Moldova are leading in
the CIS, though they occupy the 46-th, 79-th and 83-rd positions in
the general list. They are followed by Kyrgyzstan (84), Kazakhstan
(86), Azerbaijan (98), Georgia (100), Belarus (106), Ukraine (124)
and Uzbekistan (138), reported IA Regnum.

RALLY AGAINST TURKEY’S ACCESSION TO EU
By Jean Eckian in France
AZG Armenian Daily #168
20/09/200
Armenian Genocide
3 October, the Armenian sharp forces of Marseilles (France) to
demonstrate to Luxembourg (10:00 am) will require the Recognition
of Genocide before Turkey begins the negotiations with European
Union. With the support of F.R.A. Daschnagtutyun, A.D.L. Ramgavar of
C.R.A.A.M. & C.D.C.A, they invite the Armenians of Europe to come to
join this movement of protest.

LANTOS BACKS ARMENIAN GENOCIDE VOTE
By Lisa Friedman, WASHINGTON BUREAU
The Daily Review, CA
Sept 17 2005
Lawmaker changes stance after accusing Turkey of not failingto support
U.S. interests
WASHINGTON – In a momentous victory for California’s sizable Armenian
communities, the House International Relations Committee voted
overwhelmingly Thursday to declare the massacre of Armenians in the
Ottoman Empire an act of genocide.
In a surprise move, Rep. Tom Lantos,
D-San Mateo, declared that after years of opposing the genocide
resolution, he now would support it. The only Holocaust survivor in
Congress and the founder of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus,
Lantos had long cited Washington’s close relationship with Ankara as
a key reason for objecting to the resolution.
The separate resolutions by Reps. Adam Schiff, D-Pasadena, and
George Radanovich, R-Fresno, still must pass several hurdles. The
State Department and House Speaker Dennis Hastert fiercely oppose
recognition of the Armenian genocide, arguing its passage would
rupture U.S.-Turkish relations. Both are expected to try to block a
full House vote.
Nevertheless, Armenians on Thursday said by voting 35-11 for Schiff’s
bill and 40-7 for Radanovich’s, the panel sent a strong message that
Congress should not equivocate when it comes to recognizing crimes
against humanity.
“If the United States does not step up and acknowledge this history
and show moral backbone and clarity on these sorts of issues, people
are going to be disappointed in us. We believe in this country because
it does the right thing,” said Armen Carapetian, spokesman for the
Armenian National Committee of America.
The panel voted after more than three hours of tense debate in which
lawmakers invoked the Holocaust, slavery, Darfur and the fate of
American Indians.
Every Californian on the panel voted for the resolutions.
In 2000, when the issue came before the same committee, Lantos told
his colleagues, “There is a long list of reasons why our NATO ally,
at this point, should not be humiliated.”
On Thursday, Lantos said that while he was “profoundly moved and
anguished by the Armenian people’s horrendous suffering,” he remained
unconvinced that the massacres they endured technically constitute
genocide.
Instead, he cited Turkey’s unwillingness to allow U.S. troops to use
its territory to launch an invasion of northern Iraq as well as the
country’s growing closeness with Syria even in the wake of former
Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri’s assassination.
“Turkey ignored our interests,” Lantos said. “Our allies must
understand that if they expect the U.S. to support matters of great
interest to them, we expect them to support the things that are
important to the United States.”
Armenians estimate that more than 1.5 million died and hundreds of
thousands of others were displaced in a planned genocide campaign from
1915 to 1923. Turkey maintains there was no systematic extermination
plan, that only about 300,000 Armenians were killed, and that Armenians
also killed thousands of Turks in the tumultuous last years of the
Ottoman Empire.
Rep. Dan Burton, D-Ind., who led the debate against the resolutions,
argued that historians disagree that evidence of genocide exists
and said the fact that Armenians today live peaceably in Turkey is
“proof that the genocide standard can not be met.”
Nursen Mazici, a Turkish visiting professor at Georgetown University
who came to watch the proceedings, said she was disappointed by the
vote and said she thinks most U.S. lawmakers don’t know the full
history of the Ottoman Empire after World War I.
“Many Armenians were killed, but at the time many Turks were killed
by Armenian terrorists. I am so sorry for them, for both sides,”
Mazici said.

ARMENIAN AND AZERI FMs ADDRESS US GENERAL ASSEMBLY SESSION
Armenpress
Sept 19, 2005
NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER 19, ARMENPRESS: Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign
minister Vartan Oskanian and Elmar Mamedyarov addressed the 60-th
session of the UN General Assembly on September 18. Armenian minister
first cited a UNDP Human Development report which ranked Armenia at 83,
far ahead of its neighbors. Oskanian said Armenia made the progress
in the face of its disadvantaged geographic location with no crude
oil reserves and no outlet to sea.
“If we had oil money we would spend it on education, social
security and nature protection,” he said, implicating Azerbaijan’s
declared plans to double its military spending next year up to
$600 million. Regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Oskanian said
Armenians there have achieved a de facto independence proving to all
that they are able to defend their independence, govern themselves,
create democratic institutions and conduct fair and transparent
elections.
According to RFE/RL, Azerbaijani foreign minister dwelt on Baku’s
official position on how the conflict should be settled, saying Armenia
must first of all pull out its troops from all controlled regions of
Azerbaijan in order to get rid of ‘aggressor’s label’ and contribute
to building of atmosphere of confidence. He then said refugees must
be allowed back to where they had lived before the conflict erupted
and that a police force, composed of Armenians and Azeris, must be
formed in Nagorno-Karabakh to ensure security. He also said Karabakh
Armenians and Azeris in Nakhichevan must be allowed free communication
with their fellows in both countries.
“In this sense the Lachin corridor must be turned into a road of
peace and used in both directions and should be controlled at the
initial stage by international peace keepers,” he said.

OSKANIAN: PEOPLE OF KARABAKH FOUGHT AND WON RIGHT OF SELF-DETERMINATION
Pan Armenian News
19.09.2005 08:30
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ September 18 Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan
Oskanian has addressed the UN Assembly General 60th session, RA Foreign
Ministry reported. The Minister spoke about the Millennium Development
Goals finding the combat against poverty and economy development
extremely important. In his speech the Minister also referred to the
regional conflicts and the course of their settlement. He has mentioned
that “in case of regional conflicts preaching of military solutions
is not only unreal but also reflects the absence of democracy, human
rights and the perception of civic society”. Speaking about the rights
of the people of Nagorno Karabakh, he underlined, “Self-determination
is the right of every person. The people of Nagorno Karabakh have
fought and won the right of self-determination. In order to win
it, they have fought the political and military aggression of a
government which was not elected by them and which tried to suppress
them by force. The fight for their rights was no their choice. Their
rights were neither abstract nor exaggerated. They wanted what most
of us have, that is the right to live in their houses on their lands
peacefully. Despite everything, they reached their aim. From that time
on they have shown their ability of governing and developing democratic
institution”. Finding the realization of Millennium Development
Goals, the Minister noted that we are responsible for the coming
generations. And our answer to ourselves and to our children must be
the united effort, united measures and united answers on the part of
United Nations. The UN can still be the answer, said Vartan Oskanian.

CRIMINALS IN LEBANON BEWARE: YOU ARE ON CANDID CAMERA
Ya Libnan, Lebanon
Sept 18 2005
Beirut, Lebanon – Police investigators are focusing on a film taken
by a security camera of a bank at the scene of the Jeitawi bombing
in Ashrafiyeh to pin down the identity of two suspects seen planting
two bags of explosives in between parked cars near a coffee shop that
took the brunt of the explosion’s impact, An Nahar reported on Sunday.
Witnesses have told the police that they saw the two bag carriers
climbing out of a private car driven by a third man. The same car
returned to pick them up and raced off after explosives were placed
on target, according to An Nahar.
Investigators hope to establish the identity of the bombers and their
car driver from the film that was taken off the security camera of
a Byblos Bank branch overlooking the scene of the blast that rocked
Jeitawi’s St. Louis alleyway five minutes before midnight.
The owner of the cafe, a Lebanese Armenian in his sixties, was killed
in the blast and a total of 28 people were injured. Police said Sunday
that only three of the wounded people remained hospitalized and the
rest were given quick first aid treatment and discharged.
Residents of the densely populated stricken street in a Christian
neighborhood of the Lebanese capital are still taking stock of the
damage caused by the explosions to their homes and businesses.
Beirut’s municipality launched a fund-raising campaign to help
residents to repair the damage.
An official statement said the first $100,000 donation came from
Sheikh Jassem Mohammed Al Bahr, reportedly a Kuwaiti citizen. The
City Council has decided to extend an initial aid of $500 to every
victim pending a survey of the damage by Lebanon’s Higher Relief Board.
It was the 8th such bombing since March 19. Anti-Syrian politicians
blamed the new attack, like the previous bombings, on Syria’s secret
service and allied Lebanese intelligence operatives. But Hezbollah,
which strongly condemned the Jeitawi blast as a terrorist act of
destabilization, publicly warned against handing down prejudgments.
The filming of the suspects is a message to future criminals that they
can no longer expect to get away so easily. The Lebanese are determined
to find out the truth about who is behind all these criminal acts in
Lebanon and bring to Justice all these criminals.
To those criminals contemplating similar actions in the future,
we may say: “Watch out! You are on Candid Camera”

RAGOSINA AND KENTIKIAN TONIGHT IN GERMANY
By Ewan Whyte
WBAN
Sept 17 2005
(SEPT 17) Two women’s matches feature on the bill for tonight’s SES
Box Gala in Ilsenburg (Germany), parts of which will be broadcast live
on the Astra satellite by D:SF (23:00-00:30 CET): the 7th fight on
the bill pits 17-year-old Susianna Kentikian (6-0 5KOs), an Armenian
now resident in Hamburg (who has won her last four fights in either
the first or second round), against Renata Vesecka of the Czech
Republic; whilst the 8th fight – a late addition to the programme –
is a sharpening-up operation for Natascha Ragosina prior to a promised
world title fight with Jacqui Frazier-Lyde.
Ragosina, who was born in Karaganda (Kazakhstan) but fights out
of Magdeburg, is matched here at super middleweight against Maria
Velichkova of Sofia (Bulgaria), who is making her professional debut.
In her last outing, in which she coped easily enough with the veteran
Valerie Mahfood of the States without ever finding the finish, Ragosina
seemed still to be suffering the after-effects of an illness that
had put her out of action for several months earlier in the year;
nonetheless, in terms of style she seemed markedly improved, having
abandoned the rather upright stance (once compared with that of Vitali
Klitschko) that had brought her the world championship as an amateur
in favour of a more fluid shoot-from-the-hip style reminiscent of
Muhammad Ali.
A strikingly beautiful 28-year-old with tremendous natural athleticism,
Ragosina won European championships in 1996 and 1998 as a kickboxer
before switching disciplines in 1999. This will be her eighth fight
as a professional; her record currently stands at 7-0 (5 KOs).
In a second women’s match, Susianna Kentikian defeated Renata Vesecka
in the fourth round by 58 seconds TKO.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

CYPRIOT FOREIGN MINISTER HOLDS MEETINGS IN NEW YORK
Cyprus News Agency, Nicosia
17 Sep 05
New York, 17 September: The question of Cyprus, the European Union
action plan for the Caucasus and the situation in the Middle East were
on the agenda of meetings Cyprus Foreign Minister Yeoryios Iacovou
had here yesterday with US Assistant Secretary of State Dan Fried, EU
Commissioner for External Affairs Benida Ferrero Waldner and Foreign
Minister of the Palestinian [National] Authority Nasser Al Kidwa.
“We talked about the Cyprus issue and reviewed recent developments in
Turkey’s accession course, as these relate to EU efforts to issue a
statement to counter a unilateral declaration by Ankara that it does
not recognize Cyprus,” the minister told CNA, responding to questions
after his meetings.
He said with the EU commissioner he talked about the action plan for
the Caucasus, following her round of talks with Armenia, Azerbaidjan
and Georgia and both agreed to confer again once Iacovou concludes
his round of talks with the same group of countries.
Iacovou also participated in a meeting of foreign ministers from the
Commonwealth to discuss financial concerns, ahead of November’s summit
in Malta.
During his meeting with the Palestinian minister, they reviewed
recent developments in the Gaza strip and the region and Iacovou
raised issues that are created within the Organization of Islamic
Conference by Ankara.
He noted that the Arab countries should display particular sensitivity
in matters of principle where resolutions of the OIC are violated.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

AZERI PRESIDENT SAYS MILITARY SPENDING TO EQUAL ARMENIA’S ENTIRE BUDGET
Yeni Azarbaycan, Baku
17 Sep 05, p 2
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has said that the international
community should not be concerned about the increase in Azerbaijan’s
military spending as years of peace talks with Armenia have yielded
no results. Addressing a meeting at the Defence Ministry, Aliyev
said that he has set himself a task to make Azerbaijan’s military
equal to Armenia’s entire budget. He said that in 2006 the country’s
military spending will double and reach 600m dollars. The following
is an excerpt from unattributed report by Azerbaijani newspaper Yeni
Azarbaycan on 17 September headlined “The president has held a meeting
on army build-up” and subheaded “Ilham Aliyev: the Azerbaijani army’s
combat readiness deserves appreciation”.
Subheadings have been inserted editorially:
The Azerbaijani president and commander-in-chief, Ilham Aliyev,
yesterday chaired a meeting at the Defence Ministry on the development
of the army in Azerbaijan.
[Passage omitted: Defence Minister Safar Abiyev and top officers
welcomed Ilham Aliyev outside the ministry]
Addressing the meeting, Ilham Aliyev said that the army has been
developing in Azerbaijan at a high pace and very successfully. The
establishment of a proper army has brought dividends to Azerbaijan.
We are strengthening our military potential, and I am confident
that this process will also continue developing at a high pace in
the future.
[Passage omitted: about the late President Heydar Aliyev’s role in
the build-up of the army]
“Azerbaijan is living in a state of war. Our land is under occupation,
and bearing this in mind, one should pay major attention to the
army. As the commander-in-chief, I attach major importance to these
issues. It is possible to say that I deal with these issues on a
daily basis because this is the most important issue for us.”
Peace talks yield no results
President Ilham Aliyev added that Azerbaijan must restore its
territorial integrity. “We are trying to settle this issue peacefully,
through talks. However, as we know, years of talks have yielded no
results. It is possible to settle the issue in a just manner as a
whole, and I hope that we will achieve this because Azerbaijan’s
position is based on international legal norms, Nagornyy Karabakh
is an integral part of Azerbaijan and our territorial integrity is
recognized and supported by the entire world community.
Historical justice is on our side, too.”
[Passage omitted: Armenia does not comply with UN resolutions on
Karabakh; efforts of international organizations yield no results]
“At the same time, the issue remains unsettled. Despite our endless
talk about all these factors, diplomatic, economic and other political
achievements, the issue remains unsettled. What should Azerbaijan do in
this situation? Azerbaijan has conducted and expressed its peaceful
policy for many years, but the issue remains unsettled. For this
reason, it is natural that we are increasing our military potential.”
[Passage omitted: repetition]
Azerbaijan’s military spending will equal Armenia’s entire budget
President Ilham Aliyev stressed that next year’s budget will be more
than 3.5bn dollars. In this case, military spending will grow as
well. In 2004, military spending was 175m dollars, in 2005 – 300m
dollars and in 2006 it will be 600m dollars, and this is not the
final rate. As you know, my task is that our military budget should
equal Armenia’s entire budget, and maybe exceed it and it will exceed
it. We will achieve this.
President Ilham Aliyev said that Armenia and some international
organizations are concerned about this, i.e. the increase in
Azerbaijan’s military budget is the reason for their concern. The
increase in our country’s military budget is our sovereign right. On
the other hand, the sides, organizations and countries which are
playing a leading role in these organizations, should be concerned
about the fact of Azerbaijani land has been occupied for more than
10 years.
Nagornyy Karabakh is not a democracy
“I would like to speak about another issue. Armenian propaganda
has been trying to put Azerbaijan in a negative light before the
international community. They are trying to prove that there are
allegedly democratic institutions in Nagornyy Karabakh, democracy
is developing and human rights are protected there, and that in
Azerbaijan, democracy is not developing. This is a completely false
and very dangerous theory.
“First, Azerbaijan is a country which is developing at a very high
pace in terms of democratic development. Everyone admits this, and
first of all, the Azerbaijani people see this and welcome our policy.
Second, the Nagornyy Karabakh regime is an illegal establishment. It
is not recognized by anyone. A criminal regime is ruling there. For
some reason, hypocritical politicians do not pay attention to the
fact that drugs are being cultivated and trafficked, armed groups
and terrorist organizations are deployed, human rights are violated
and a totally militarized regime exists there. Nagornyy Karabakh is
presented as an alleged example of democracy in this region.
Armenians to fail hampering regional projects
“They have done their best against the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan
oil pipeline, but failed. Now they are trying to tie the
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline to the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagornyy
Karabakh conflict. This is a completely false idea. There is no link
between these issues. The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan is an international
project, it is supported by international financial institutions
and major states, it is being successfully implemented. No lobby or
Armenian organization will be able to hamper it.
“I would like to speak about another issue as well. Armenian
officials have recently started making statements against a new
regional project. You know that we support the idea of building a
railway linking Azerbaijan to Turkey, and the construction of the
Kars-Tbilisi-Baku railway is becoming a reality. We are actively
working and ready to take financial commitments to make this railway
happen in the near future. The feasibility study is being prepared,
and when it is ready, Azerbaijan will take financial commitments as
the first move.”
The head of state ridiculed the Armenians’ protests against the
allocation of funds for the construction of the Kars-Tbilisi-Baku
railway.
[Passage omitted: Ilham Aliyev said that Armenians have no moral
right to occupy Azerbaijani lands]

CHINESE POLITBURO MEMBER LUO GAN MEETS ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY OFFICIAL
Xinhua news agency, Beijing
19 Sep 05
Beijing, 19 September: Luo Gan, member of the Standing Committee of
the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Central
Committee, met here Monday with Tigran Torosyan, deputy speaker of the
National Assembly and vice-chairman of the Republican Party of Armenia.
Luo said China and Armenia have improved bilateral relations in
a comprehensive way, strengthened political trust and made their
cooperation fruitful since the two countries forged diplomatic ties
in 1992. He expressed the belief that Sino-Armenian ties would be
further enhanced with endeavours of the two sides. He appreciates
the adherence of Armenia to China’s stance on the issues of Taiwan,
Tibet and human rights.
Luo said the CCP would like to promote cooperation with all parties
in Armenia including the Armenian Republican Party in a bid to promote
an all-round and sustainable relations between the two countries.
Torosyan said Armenia attaches great importance to the relations
with China and adheres to the one-China policy. He said Armenia hopes
to further strengthen exchanges with the CCP and push forward their
cooperation in all fields.