CYPRUS ARMENIAN MP, BEDROS KALAYDJIAN DIES
01/09/2005
Bedros Kalaydjian, the Representative of the Armenian minority in
the Cyprus parliament, died Thursday after a long illness.
Kalaydjian, who turned 71 a week ago, served in the House of
Representatives for two terms. He was first elected in the by-election
of October 22, 1995 and at the parliamentary elections of May 26,
1996 and May 27, 2001.
Through his parliamentary duties, he often support for Armenia and
Nagorno Karabakh, while like all his predecessors often raised the
issue of Turkey’s denial of the 1915 Genocide. At home, Kalaydjian’s
main priorities were educational reform and improvement of the Nareg
elementary schools in Nicosia, Larnaca and Limassol.
He played a decisive role in the ratification and adoption by Cyprus
in 2002 of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages,
one of the first European countries to do so. The Charter anticipated
the continuation of the Melkonian Educational Institute school in
Nicosia, which the AGBU Central Board in New York decided to close
citing financial reasons.
Kalaydjian fervently opposed the decision to close the school and sell
off the land, but was unable to persuade the organisation’s leadership
of the importance of maintaining the only Armenian secondary school
in the European Union, with its unique boarding facility attracting
students from around the world. He assisted in securing a preservation
order and declaring most of the school grounds a ‘national historic
site.’
He was a founding member of the Cyprus – Armenia Friendship Association
and convinced the Cyprus government to sponsor dance, orchestral and
art groups from Armenia to visit the island.
Kalaydjian supported government decisions to maintain Armenian
monuments, including the 19th century historic cemetery near
Paphos Gate that was recently destroyed but was expected to
be restored. However, he did not live to see his dream project
materialise, the establishment of a ‘monument of gratitude’ that is
expected to be built on the Larnaca seafront to mark the arrival of
Armenian refugees and survivors of the massacres in Turkey and the
subsequent welcome offered by the people of Cyprus.
For many years he was president of the Larnaca AGBU club, on the
board of the Armenian Church Committee, chairman of the board of the
American Academy in Larnaca and Limassol and president of the Larnaca
Rotary Club.
Bedros Kalaydjian studied Business Administration at Fallowfield
College, Manchester, and headed the family business that included a
group of trading, real estate and hotel companies. After his brother’s
death ten years ago, Bedros worked hard to extend and upgrade the
Kalaydjian Rest Home they had established in Nicosia for elderly
people, adding a new floor and chapel in recent years.
He was married to Lisa Jackson and is succeeded by his son, Dickran,
and daughter, Julia, and three grandchildren.
The funeral will take place at the Sourp Stepanos (St. Stephen’s)
Armenian Church in Larnaca on Saturday, September 3, at 4pm.

MINISTER VOWS TO FOIL PLANS TO BUILD NEW RAILWAY BYPASSING ARMENIA
Mediamax news agency
30 Aug 05
Yerevan, 30 August: “Georgia and Azerbaijan have no moral right to
invest in the construction of the Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi railway,”
Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan said in Yerevan today.
The Armenian foreign minister substantiated official Yerevan’s position
on this project with the fact that “there is the Kars-Gyumri railway,
and we consider it pointless to invest limited international and
domestic financial resources in the construction of a new railway”.
Oskanyan recalled that the Kars-Gyumri railway “has not been operating
solely because of Turkey’s wrong policy”. “I would like to recall that
Armenia has expressed its readiness not to use the Kars-Gyumri railway
at the initial stage but use it only to transport goods between Turkey,
Georgia and Azerbaijan,” Oskanyan said.
The foreign minister said Armenia would oppose the construction of
the Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi railway by substantiating its approach
to the project’s international donors, in particular, the European
Union and the USA. “We have already said that it is impossible to
threaten us with this and other regional projects,” Oskanyan said.
“Even if the Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi railway is built, Armenia will
not disappear from the map. On the contrary, we shall continue our
progressive development,” the Armenian foreign minister said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARGENTINEAN FOREIGN MINISTER UPBEAT ABOUT DEVELOPING TIES WITH ARMENIA
Noyan Tapan news agency
31 Aug 05
Yerevan, 31 August: Argentinean Minister of Foreign Relations
[International Trade and Worship] Rafael Bielsa and Armenian
Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan assessed the current level of
Armenian-Argentinean relations and summed up the outcome of the
Argentinean minister’s visit at a joint briefing at Yerevan’s Zvartnots
airport before leaving for Argentina today.
The two ministers highly rated relations between Argentina and
Armenia and expressed their confidence that cooperation would
expand successfully. Bielsa described his visit to Armenia as very
productive. He told reporters that the opening of the Argentinean
embassy in Yerevan is planned as part of boosting Armenian-Argentinean
cooperation. Moreover, a candidate for the post of ambassador has
been named.
Bielsa also expressed the hope for the successful completion of
the construction of a new terminal at Zvartnots airport, which, as
is known, is being financed by an Argentinean of Armenian origin,
Eduardo Ernikyan.
From: Baghdasarian

RUSSIAN DEFENCE MINISTER BRIEFS PUTIN ON RECENT JOINT EXERCISES WITH CHINA
RTR Russia TV, Moscow
31 Aug 05
[Presenter] Defence Minister Sergey Ivanov reported to the president
today on the results of the exercises in August: Russia and CIS
countries taking part in air defence live firing in Astrakhan Region,
and the big Russian-Chinese manoeuvres. Both events concerned not
only practising cooperation between troops but also the possibility
of creating new systems of regional security.
[Correspondent] When the minister of defence told the president that
August was a hot month, he meant of course not the air temperature.
It is a long time since the ministry held this many exercises. The
president himself watched over the ships of the Northern Fleet and
Long-Range Aviation [aircraft] in the Barents Sea. Sergey Ivanov
assessed the manoeuvres in the Yellow Sea which involved 10,000 men
together with his Chinese counterpart. Pacific Fleet ships, marines
and aviation, air assault troops and even Tu-95 missile carriers were
our contribution to the Russian-Chinese exercise.
[Ivanov, shown in Putin’s office, captioned Bocharov Ruchey] The
difficulty was that both we and the Chinese had to plan the passes by
the aircraft very precisely, to the second, and direct all this. It
was all carried out successfully, and our troops learned some very
good skills, both in mobility and in using modern types and examples
of weapons and equipment.
[Putin] Are there any agreements with our Chinese partners on any
future measures [words inaudible] of a similar kind?
[Ivanov] We would like to plan [word indistinct] exercises of this
kind. It is possible that our partners in the Shanghai Cooperation
Organization [SCO] could be involved, because all these exercises
are taking place within the SCO framework.
[Correspondent] Ivanov said the results of the exercise were still
to be analyzed in detail, but the first results were definitely
positive. He gave roughly the same assessment to Combat Commonwealth
2005, a CIS air defence troops exercise at the Ashuluk range in
Astrakhan Region. Armenian, Tajik, Belarusian and Russian servicemen
carried out successful launches. This was the sixth such exercise,
but in some respects it was the first.
[Ivanov] For the first time we succeeded in setting up a joint
command post, not one for each nation, but joint. Which in fact is
the prototype for setting up a regional air defence system within
the framework of the CIS. It could be eastern European, if it is in
Belarus, or it could be Caucasian if it is in Armenia, or it could
be Central Asian, naturally with our partners in the Collective
Security Treaty.
[Correspondent] Of course, Russia is not entirely indifferent to
precisely who will be taking part in the next exercise. Tomorrow,
800 foreign citizens, mainly from the CIS, will become students at
Russian military higher education institutions. But Putin recalled
that under Russian legislation foreigners cannot be on military duty
or stand guard like Russian citizens.
[Ivanov] We have allowed it. I don’t think anything terrible will
happen.
[Putin] I don’t think so either, but we do have to observe the law,
so we will have to give this some thought and ask the [Duma] deputies.
[Correspondent] Ivanov promised that the autumn would also be hot for
the military. Russian soldiers are expected in September at an Uzbek
mountain [exercise] range, and in October in India. Ivanov emphasized
that the joint exercises are not directed against third countries,
because the principles of Russian geopolitics were stated long ago:
fighting international terrorism, and defence of Russia’s own borders
and interests.

KAZAKH LEADER SAYS SAPPER BATTALION TO STAY IN IRAQ
Interfax-Kazakhstan news agency, Almaty
1 Sep 05
Astana, 1 September: Kazakhstan does not intend to pull out its sapper
battalion from Iraq, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev has said.
“I have had to discuss repeatedly our foreign political priorities
lately. They will remain unchanged. We are using this approach indeed
to consider the continuation of our sapper battalion’s mission to
help the Iraqi people,” the president said in Astana today, opening
a regular parliament session.
“They (Kazakh peacekeepers) are there to save people’s lives though
the number of the international coalition members has been reduced
lately,” Nazarbayev said.
The Kazakh sapper battalion of 27 people has been in Iraq since August
2003 in rotation. They are mainly engaged in mine sweeping.
“In the same way, we deem it very important to be an active member of
the CSTO [Collective Security Treaty Organization comprising Armenia,
Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan] and the SCO
[Shanghai Cooperation Organization including China, Russia, Kazakhstan,
Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan] while deepening cooperation
with our closest neighbours,” the president said.
“Kazakhstan remains an active supporter of wide international
cooperation aimed at nuclear proliferation, fighting international
terrorism, religious extremism and drug trafficking and other
present-day threats,” the president noted.
“Developing cooperation with Russia, China, the USA and the European
Union is a priority direction for us,” the president said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT ADOPTS CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
Mediamax news agency
1 Sep 05
Yerevan, 1 September: The Armenian National Assembly passed the draft
constitutional reform in its second reading today. The draft law will
be put up for a nationwide referendum in November this year.
A total of 97 MPs voted for the draft with no-one opposing it and
one MP abstaining, Mediamax has said.
The opposition factions, the Justice bloc and the National Unity Party,
left the assembly hall of the parliament yesterday and did not take
part in today’s voting.
The draft constitutional amendments were prepared by the ruling
coalition and agreed with the Council of Europe Venice Commission.
The main purpose of the reforms is to ensure the equality of all
branches of power.
The constitutional reforms were one of the key points of Armenian
President Robert Kocharyan’s election programme and one of Armenia’s
basic commitments to the Council of Europe.
The Armenian president’s representative on the constitutional
amendments, Armen Arutyunyan, said today that the role of the
parliament will increase in the country if the constitutional reforms
are adopted in the referendum. Specifically, the National Assembly
will play the main role in forming the parliament and appointing
the prosecutor-general, and the president will be able to personally
adopt a decision to dismiss the prime minister.

ARMENIA AGAINST KAZAKHSTAN’S BID FOR OSCE PRESIDENCY
Mediamax news agency
31 Aug 05
Yerevan, 30 August: The Armenian Foreign Ministry is categorically
against Kazakhstan’s bid for the OSCE presidency in 2006 since
Kazakhstan’s position on the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict is not neutral,
Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan has told journalists.
He said that Armenia treated Kazakhstan’s bid for the OSCE presidency
carefully taking into account its opportunities. However, Armenia
has some reservations. Armenia will come up with its final position
in the OSCE when the issue will be discussed.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARMENIAN FM: KARABAKH SETTLEMENT MAY ONLY BE BASED ON COMPROMISES
Pan Armenian News
01.09.2005 05:10
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ “In spite no progress is registered in the course of
the talks between the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Kazan,
the Armenian party positively evaluates its outcomes,” Armenian FM
Vartan Oskanian stated. In his words, the conflict settlement may only
be based on compromises. The Armenian Minister emphasized that the
Kocharian-Aliyev meeting paves way for further talks at the level of
the FMs. “I suppose the Azeri party positively evaluates the outcomes
of the Kazan meeting as well,” the Armenian FM hoped. V. Oskanian
noted that his recurrent meeting with Azeri FM Elmar Mammadyarov is
possible soon, as well as a visit of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs
to the conflict region. At the same time he did not specify the
date of those events. The Armenian FM did not link the negotiation
process with either the coming parliamentary election in Azerbaijan
or the referendum over the Constitution in Armenia. “These processes
will take place in our countries this year and the talks have not
produced an outcome that could be registered on paper. Thus, I do not
see a direct relation in the time in this case,” he noted. It should
be noted that the Kocharian-Aliyev meeting in Kazan was devoted to
the peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict. OSCE Minsk Group
Co-Chairs, representing Russia, US and France were present at the
meeting, reported IA Regnum.

RUSSIA READY TO CONSIDER EU PROPOSALS ON “FROZEN” CIS CONFLICTS
RIA Novosti, Russia
Aug 31 2005
MOSCOW, August 31 (RIA Novosti) – Russia is ready to consider any
proposals the European Union may have on “frozen conflicts” in the
Commonwealth of Independent States, a senior diplomat said Wednesday.
Vladimir Chizhov, Russia’s permanent representative to Europe,
told a news conference that the EU was ready to discuss and help
resolve two regional conflicts in Georgia, the stand-off between
the self-proclaimed republic of Transdnestr and Moldova, and the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
“We are ready to consider any proposals be they in the political
or material sense,” Chizhov said, stressing that this idea did not
affect the format of talks on resolving the conflicts.
“All conflicts have their own formats for talks,” the Russian
representative said. “Maybe they are not ideal, but they are the best
achieved through the sufferings of the parties to these conflicts.
These are the only formats that are acceptable to all countries today.”
Chizhov said the EU should assist conflict resolution within the
framework of these formats and not through “shattering” them. He added
this position had been officially registered in a joint Russia-EU
statement adopted in 2003 in Rome.

MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF ARGENTINA IN PARLIAMENT
National Assembly of RA (press release), Armenia
Aug 31 2005
On August 30 the NA Vice President Vahan Hovhanissyan received the
delegation, being in Armenia with an official visit, headed by Rafael
Antonio Bielsa, Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and
Cults of the Republic of Argentina.The members of Armenia – Argentina
Parliamentary Friendship Group participated in the meeting.
Welcoming the guests, the NA Vice President highlighted the
strengthening of relations between the two countries, considered
necessary the development of inter-parliamentary communications,
allocating in this plan activity of parliamentary friendship groups.
Vahan Hovhanissyan highly estimated the positive position of Argentina
in the international structures during the discussion of the issues
related to Armenia, thanked for voting in the United Nations for
the benefit of Armenia in the context of the Karabakh conflict, and
also for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the Argentinean
legislative body and institutions of local self-government bodies
and for the special reference towards the issue. Armenia also is
ready to promote Argentina in various international structures. It
was noted that Argentina is the greatest country – investor in the
economy of Armenia, in this context the activity of Eduardo Eurnekian
was highlighted.
Rafael Antonio Bielsa, Minister of Foreign Affairs, International
Trade and Cults of Argentinean Republic also emphasized the
activation of mutual cooperation of the two countries, development
of inter-parliamentary ties, the cooperation in the international
structures. The importance of parliamentary diplomacy, the necessity
of activation of cooperation of parliamentary friendship groups was
noted. Minister noted that by the end of this year the embassy of the
Republic of Argentina will be opened in Armenia. Addressing to the
problem of the recognition of the Armenian Genocide, the minister
noted that one of the leading conservative newspapers of Argentina
in its editorial touched upon the problem of the recognition of the
Armenian Genocide, writing that historically the Armenian Genocide is
one of the most insufficiently discussed genocides, which, according
to the minister, is important in the process of the discussion of
the issue and recognition of the Genocide.
By the request of the guests Mr. Hovhanissyan touched upon the
constitutional amendments being underway in Armenia, presented in
detail the amendments being made in the Constitution.
Aug 31 2005
RUSSIA READY TO CONSIDER EU PROPOSALS ON “FROZEN” CIS CONFLICTS
MOSCOW, August 31 (RIA Novosti) – Russia is ready to consider any
proposals the European Union may have on “frozen conflicts” in the
Commonwealth of Independent States, a senior diplomat said Wednesday.
Vladimir Chizhov, Russia’s permanent representative to Europe,
told a news conference that the EU was ready to discuss and help
resolve two regional conflicts in Georgia, the stand-off between
the self-proclaimed republic of Transdnestr and Moldova, and the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
“We are ready to consider any proposals be they in the political
or material sense,” Chizhov said, stressing that this idea did not
affect the format of talks on resolving the conflicts.
“All conflicts have their own formats for talks,” the Russian
representative said. “Maybe they are not ideal, but they are the best
achieved through the sufferings of the parties to these conflicts.
These are the only formats that are acceptable to all countries today.”
Chizhov said the EU should assist conflict resolution within the
framework of these formats and not through “shattering” them. He added
this position had been officially registered in a joint Russia-EU
statement adopted in 2003 in Rome.