PRESS RELEASE
Armenian Center for National and International Studies
75 Yerznkian Street
Yerevan 375033, Armenia
Tel: (+374 – 1) 52.87.80 or 27.48.18
Fax: (+374 – 1) 52.48.46
E-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]
Website:

April 12, 2005

ACNIS Releases Expert and Public Opinion Results on Karabagh Issue

Yerevan–The Armenian Center for National and International Studies (ACNIS)
today issued the results of both a public survey and a specialized
questionnaire on “The Karabagh Story: 17 Years in Progress” which it
conducted among 60 experts and 1900 citizens from Yerevan and all of Armenia
‘s regions.

ACNIS director of administration Karapet Kalenchian greeted the invited
guests and public participants with opening remarks. “Over 17 years the
prospect for final regulation of the Karabagh issue still seems vague. This
roundtable aims to focus on such thorny issues as the possible outcomes of
the conflict, the reasons for delaying the regulation, its failure, and
weakening of the victorious spirit as a result of diplomatic inability,”
Kalenchian underlined.

ACNIS research coordinator Stepan Safarian focused in detail on the findings
of the opinion poll. Accordingly, 11.6% of surveyed citizens and 6.7% of
experts are completely satisfied with the official information about the
Karabagh peace process. The vast majority of citizens (64.7%) and experts
(91.6) are not satisfied with it.

67.7% of the surveyed citizens and 83.3% of experts assert that the Karabagh
question is the priority issue for Armenia’s foreign and domestic policy
today. However only 11.9% of the citizens and 5% of experts are completely
satisfied with the Karabagh negotiation process, 61.9% and 71.7% are more
dissatisfied than satisfied or completely dissatisfied. To the extent the
negotiation process is deemed unsatisfactory, 51.5% of citizens and 83.3% of
experts hold accountable the Armenian authorities. 72.4% of respondent
citizens and 75% of experts think that Armenia, the Republic of Mountainous
Karabagh and Azerbaijan should take part in Karabagh negotiations, whereas
14.8% and 20% accept the dialogue between Mountainous Karabagh and
Azerbaijan without Armenia.

46.3% of citizens see the status of Mountainous Karabagh as an independent
and sovereign republic and 38% as a part of Armenia. Among the experts,
these figures are 33.4% and 30%, respectively. 50% of the polled citizens
and 73.3% of experts agree to make territorial concessions to Azerbaijan at
the expense of the security zone.

Only 24.6% of citizens and 18.3% of experts believe in the peaceful
resolution of the issue during the next 5 years. Nonetheless, 34.5% of
citizens and 43.3% of experts exclude Azerbaijan’s resumption of war against
Armenia and Mountainous Karabagh, 44.5% and 36.7% find it difficult to
answer. In the event of a new war, 71.9% of citizens and 81.7% of experts
are ready to participate to their utmost in the defense of Mountainous
Karabagh. It is noteworthy that only 24.8% and 38.8% are ready to take part
in military actions, while 41.8% and 97.9% prefer other work supporting the
war.

The second item on the day’s agenda was a presentation by ACNIS policy
analyst Alvard Barkhudarian on “What and How Much We Know about the Karabagh
Problem: Issues of PR Strategy.” “Let’s leave aside the senseless and
tiresome claims that we, Armenians, have lost the PR war, and do our utmost
to find ways to win it,” she emphasized. In her opinion, to achieve this
goal, we should distinctly define a united Armenian standpoint, be apprised
of the dynamics of Azerbaijan’s, other regional players’, and concerned
international organizations’ approaches, and find possible levers to
counteract anti-Armenian standpoints.

The formal interventions were followed by contributions by Hrant Khachatrian
of the Constitutional Right Union; Edward Antinian of the Liberal
Progressive Party; Noyan Tapan news agency political analyst Davit
Petrosian; Albert Baghdassarian of the National Democratic Union; Armen
Aghayan of the “Protection of Liberated Territories” public initiative;
Grigor Guyumjian of the Armenian Democratic Party; National Press Club
chairperson Narine Mkrtchian; Vardan Vardanian of Aib-Fe weekly; and several
others.

44.4% of respondent citizens participating in the ACNIS poll are male and
55.6% female; 11.1% are 16-20 years of age, 25.1% 21-30, 20.8% 31-40, 19.7%
41-50, 13.1% 51-60, 9.1% 61 or above. 41.2% of them have received a higher
education, 16.2% incomplete higher, 20.6% specialized secondary, 17%
secondary, and 2.7% incomplete secondary training. 53.4% are actively
employed and 21% unemployed, 8.7% are pensioners and welfare recipients, and
15.2% students. Urban residents constitute 65.5% of the citizens surveyed,
while rural residents make up 34.5%. 30.2% of all respondents hail from
Yerevan, and the rest are from outside the capital city.

All 60 professionals who took part in the specialized poll are from Yerevan.
68.3% of them are male, and 31.7% female; 29% are 20-30 years of age, 23.7%
31-40, 34.5% 41-50, 9.1% 51-60, 3.7% 61-70. All of the experts surveyed have
received a higher education: 14.3% are candidates of science (PhD), 76.8%
hold a Master’s degree, and 8.9% a Bachelor’s degree. The principal
profession of 34.6% of the expert pool is journalism, 13.4% political
science, 9.6% law and physics, 3.8% history and psychology, and so on.

Founded in 1994 by Armenia’s first Minister of Foreign Affairs Raffi K.
Hovannisian and supported by a global network of contributors, ACNIS serves
as a link between innovative scholarship and the public policy challenges
facing Armenia and the Armenian people in the post-Soviet world. It also
aspires to be a catalyst for creative, strategic thinking and a wider
understanding of the new global environment. In 2005, the Center focuses
primarily on civic education, conflict resolution, and applied research on
critical domestic and foreign policy issues for the state and the nation.

For further information on the Center or the full graphics of the poll
results, call (3741) 52-87-80 or 27-48-18; fax (3741) 52-48-46; e-mail
[email protected] or [email protected]; or visit or

NATO seminar starts in Armenian capital

Mediamax news agency
12 Apr 05

YEREVAN

A two-day seminar organized by the George Marshall European Centre for
Security Studies and dedicated to the issue of drafting an Individual
Partnership Action Plan [IPAP] Armenia with NATO started in Yerevan
today.

Representatives of the Armenian foreign and defence ministries and of
other ministries and departments involved in the drafting of Armenia’s
IPAP with NATO are taking part in the seminar, Mediamax reports.

The retired German general [Deputy Director of the George Marshall
European Centre for Security Studies], Dr Horst Schamfeld, is heading
the delegation of the Marshall centre.

Turkish press 12 April 05

BBC Monitoring Service – United Kingdom
Apr 12, 2005

The following is a selection of quotes from editorials and
commentaries published in 12 April editions of Turkish newspapers
available to BBC Monitoring

Nationalism/ Turkey

Hurriyet [centre-right, largest circulation] “…Why are the things,
which were not happening while the clashes in the southeast [between
Turkish soldiers and the PKK] were most intense, happening now? Why
has Turkish nationalism, which did not turn into fanaticism at that
time, become so extreme today? …If you try to look for the answer to
this question in a ‘simple provocation’… you don’t contribute to
finding a solution to this problem. It is a pity but the political
management of Leyla Zana [former Kurdish MP] and her friends was not
very good after their release from prison. They gave us the feeling
that ‘by being encouraged by the EU, Kurds have become spoilt’.”
(Commentary by Ertugrul Ozkok)

Radikal [centre-left] “If Turkey had achieved better results during
the 17 December [2004] EU summit, perhaps today we would not be
experiencing these [nationalist and social] tensions to such an
extent. Perhaps, we would not be in a situation when people are being
forced to answer survey questions like: …’EU membership or accepting
the Armenian genocide?’ But it happened and there was a disappointment
which can trigger unrest. This disappointment also stems from
unemployment that will increase the possibility of unrest even more.”
(Commentary by Murat Yetkin)

Cumhuriyet [secular, Kemalist] “We know that in Turkey even the basic
institutions of the republic are tried to be dissolved in order to
create obstacles for globalization. Besides, nobody has yet forgotten
that the activities under the leadership of the separatist terrorist
organization [PKK- Kurdistan Workers’ Party] have deeply shaken the
country… Actually, in order to see the society strongly reacting
against this, one needed to wait for the attitude of the EU
humiliating and isolating Turkey, the USA’s policy encouraging the
separatists and finally… the government’s weakness in solving the
economic, political and social issues and its lack of resistance
against foreign demands. One could not expect that the society would
remain indifferent to attacks from so many directions.” (Commentary by
Ali Sirmen)

EU

Posta [tabloid] “I wonder whether the Prime Minister is aware of this?
Since the day he dropped the EU from the agenda, the group [in Turkey]
which wants to say ‘No’ [to the EU] has started speaking with a louder
voice and questioning the AKP [Justice and Development Party]
government. More interestingly, the government is in a state as if it
has decided to put the EU dossier on the shelf… 3 October [a
starting date for Turkey’s accession talks] is getting closer and we
are wasting this valuable time. This stalemate is not in the interest
of the EU at all.” (Commentary by Mehmet Ali Birand)

President’s visit to Syria

Hurriyet “Undoubtedly, this visit is untimely and unlucky… It will
not only annoy the people of Lebanon but also the Western and Arab
countries supporting the Security Council resolution. Particularly,
president [Ahmet Necdet Sezer], who very rarely travels, by his visit
to Damascus will inevitably send a signal that Syria is being
supported [by Ankara] in one way or another. It was not that hard to
develop our mutual relations and economic cooperation with Syria
without overshadowing our Middle East policy.” (Commentary by Ilter
Turkmen)

Radikal “Tomorrow, President’s [Ahmet Necdet Sezer’s] visit to Syria
will take place… Why should Sezer not go to Syria? What happened to
the idea of Turkey being a model country in the region in terms of the
development of democratic processes? How can it be a model, a mediator
without visits and meetings?… It would be better if you call this [a
demand for] being a puppet of occupation policies. Then what is asked
from Turkey can be explained easily; otherwise it is impossible to
make the issue [of reacting against the visit] become clear.”
(Commentary by Nuray Mert)

Armenian leader calls for constructive opposition

Public Television of Armenia, Yerevan
11 Apr 05

[Presenter] Not a single state structure in Armenia has ever made
territorial claims to Turkey. In our foreign policy our aim is to
achieve the international recognition of the Armenian genocide. After
achieving the goal we shall analyse the legal consequences, Armenian
President Robert Kocharyan told a meeting with students of Yerevan
State University’s economy department today.

The economists showed interest in the country’s future economic and
social development. Robert Kocharyan welcomed improvements in the tax
and custom systems and also talked about ways of resolving
shortcomings in the health, education and social spheres.

They also talked about the Karabakh problem. The president said again
that Armenia will never be the first to start war. The Armenian side
has no plans to solve the problem through war.

[Passage omitted: the president speaking about positive dynamics of
stable economic development in the republic]

Speaking about the opposition, the president said.

[Robert Kocharyan, captioned] I would like to urge our opposition
activists to rid themselves of a complex about failing to stage a
revolution. We often read in the press that our opposition is very
weak and bad. It has failed not because it is working badly but simply
because the authorities in our country are working more effectively
and better.

Revolutions mainly happen during elections and the weakness of the
authorities is then obvious. For example, in Georgia people had not
been paid pensions for years and the economic situation in Kyrgyzstan
was very similar. In these countries there was a generational change
with younger and more dynamic leaders replacing Soviet leaders. This
kind of generational change happened in Armenia twice, in 1991 and
1998. Let us look at who came to power in Georgia, Ukraine and
Kyrgyzstan several years ago. They all held responsible posts but had
resigned and joined the opposition because of their aspiration for
more active reforms.

Unfortunately, it is very painful that our opposition does not take
part in the parliament’s sessions. It could have expressed their
opinions via news conferences. But members of the opposition say
nothing. The reason is that in order to express their views on the
subject you must know what you are talking about and have some
experience.

What I said does not apply to every opposition activist.

A1plus

| 19:13:38 | 11-04-2005 | Social |

WHAT ABOUT THE REPORT BEFORE THE NATIVE PARLIAMENT?

Larissa Alaverdyan, the RA Defender of Human Rights, will leave for Geneva
on April 12 to take part in the 61st session of the UN Human Rights
Committee. The RA Ombudsman will make a report and will take part in the
discussion with the theme `The National Institutions of the Ombudsman and
the Regional Cooperation’.

Alongside with it the 16th session of the Human Rights defense regulating
international Committee is being organized. During the session the role of
the Human Rights National Institutions in the Human Rights Committee and
other UN structures will be discussed.

Issues concerning migration, national minorities and child violence are also
included in the agenda.

By the way, let us also remind you that in the NA 4-day session which
started today the report of the RA Ombudsman is included about the problem
of the Defense of Human Rights in Armenia.

PRESS RELEASE
BURBANK ANC
Contact: Tamar Krekorian
April 11, 2005
Tel: 818-729-9556

BURBANK ANC ANNOUNCES EVENTS COMMEMORATING ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

The Burbank Armenian National Committee today announced a series of
important events in April in commemoration of the 90th anniversary of
the Armenian Genocide. Tamar Krekorian, Chair of the Genocide
Remembrance Committee, said that Burbank’s commemorative events will
include educational, cultural and political aspects this year. “The
city has been an outstanding partner in working with the Burbank ANC,”
Krekorian said. “As a result, we have planned a series of events that
will offer a wide range of opportunities for residents to learn more
about the Genocide and to recognize its importance today,” Krekorian
added.

Throughout the month of April, an outstanding educational display will
be showcased in the main lobby of the Burbank Central Library. The
display includes items and books related to Armenian culture, history
and the Genocide. The display is also intended to promote awareness
of the Armenian book collection that was donated to the library
through the efforts of the Books For Burbank program of the Burbank
ANC, which was also chaired by Krekorian.

On Saturday, April 16th, the committee will present a free screening
of the Armenian Film Foundation’s award-winning documentary film about
the destruction of Kharpert, “Voices From The Lake.” The screening
will be at the Burbank Central Library Auditorium from 2-5 pm.
Through eyewitness interviews and painstaking research, this film
tells the story of the Genocide in an unforgettably personal way.
Dr. J. Michael Hagopian, the renowned Genocide historian and filmmaker
of “Voices,” will be present to speak about his two decades of
research in creating the film.

On Tuesday, April 19th, the Burbank City Council will present a
proclamation in recognition of the 90th anniversary of the Genocide.
During the meeting, the Burbank ANC will accept the City’s
proclamation and conduct a short program featuring poetry read by
local high school students. Sharon Cohen, the City’s Library
Director, will also pay tribute to the Burbank ANC for the successful
Books For Burbank program. A candlelight vigil will take place on the
front steps of Burbank City Hall after sundown.

On Saturday, April 23rd, a moving theatrical performance of two
Genocide-related one-act plays, written and directed by Aram
Kouyoumdjian, will be presented at the El Portal Forum Theatre in the
No Ho Arts District. “Delicate Lines” and “Protest” have already won
rave reviews from audiences in Northern California. Both performances
of this event are already completely sold out.

For further information about any of these events, please contact the
Burbank ANC at (818) 562-1918 or by e-mail at [email protected].

California Grandmother in Midst of Walking Record Setting 215 Miles in
19 Days

MODESTO, Calif., April 12 /PRNewswire/ — Zabel Ekmekjian of Moraga,
Calif. is taking part in a historical march from Fresno, Calif. to
Sacramento. She and more than a dozen other Armenians are walking 19
days and 215 miles in solidarity with the 1.5 million forgotten
victims of the Armenian Genocide.

“I took no measures to prepare for the walk. I didn’t change my diet
or do anything that I don’t normally do,” said Ekmekjian. “My
strength and motivation is with the Lord and with his help I am
determined to make it to Sacramento.”

Ekmekjian and her group young Armenians have already walked more than
130 miles in their first week. They walk whether it’s scorching hot
or pouring rain. They sleep in churches and eat from a lunch truck
that travels with them.

“Ninety years have passed since the Genocide and we still have not
received justice for the millions of lost lives,” said Ekmekjian.
“The least I can do is to sacrifice myself for a few weeks in an
effort to raise awareness about the Armenian Genocide and the plight
of my family.”

Ekmekjian’s father survived the Genocide but she lost many other
family members in the brutal killings between 1915 and 1923. As a
result of the forced exodus from his home Ekmekjian’s father, Garabad
Kassabian, was split apart from the rest of his family at the age of
five.

“I have no pain and with the will of God will be able to walk all the
way to Sacramento,” said Ekmekjian. “What amazes me most is the will
of the young people in our group.”

SOURCE March for Humanity

04/11/2005 23:48 ET

Armenian National Committee of Australia Inc.
The Peak Public Affairs Committee of the Armenian-Australian Community
259 Penshurst Street, P.O. Box 768, Willoughby NSW 2068
Tel: (02) 9419 8264 Fax: (02) 9411 8898
Email:[email protected]

PRESS RELEASE 12 April 2005
Contact: Dr Tro Kortian
(mob) 0412 197364

Ryde City Council unanimously passes Motion marking
90th Anniversary of Armenian Genocide

SYDNEY On April 24 of this year, on the eve of the 90th anniversary of
the ANZAC landings, Armenians the world over, including the many
thousands of Armenian-Australians living in Sydney, will commemorate
the 90th anniversary of the Armenian genocide. They will recall that,
in 1915, the Ottoman Empire set in motion a plan to exterminate the
entire Christian Armenian population living on their ancestral lands
of Eastern Anatolia, part of what is today the Republic of
Turkey. This state-sponsored program resulted in the brutal
extermination of some 1.5 million Armenian men, women and children.

This evening Ryde City Council unanimously passed the following Motion
commemorating the Armenian Genocide, moved by Clr Yedelian, the first
Australian Councillor of Armenian ancestry:

That this Council:

(1) acknowledges this year as marking the occasion of the 90th
anniversary commemoration of the Genocide of the Armenians
perpetrated by the then Ottoman Government between the years
1915-1922;

(2) joins with the Armenian community of Ryde in honouring the memory
of the 1.5 million men, women and children who died in the
first genocide of the twentieth century;

(3) recognises 24 April every year as a day of remembrance of the
Armenian genocide;

(4) condemns the genocide of the Armenians and all other acts of>
genocide committed as the ultimate act of racial, religious and
cultural intolerance;

(5) calls on the Commonwealth Government to officially condemn:

(i) the genocide of the Armenians

(ii) any attempt to deny such crimes against humanity.

In stark contrast to post-Nazi Germany which has acknowledged and
sought to atone for the crimes of the Nazi regime, successive Turkish
governments have refused to come to terms with their own history.
Instead they have maintained a morally bankrupt campaign of genocide
denial, and have benefited from all the fruits of that crime with
impunity. Modern day Turkey today, which is seeking admission into
the European Union, has recently legislated that it is a crime to
state that there was a genocide of the Armenians during World War I.

In her statement in support of the Motion, Ms Taline Soghomonian of
the Armenian National Committee of Australia (`ANCA’) said;- `There is
perhaps no more poignant evidence of the consequences of such
impunity, and the importance of commemorative motions such as the one
before this Council tonight, than the chilling statement by Hitler in
1939 as he embarked on his genocidal deeds in Europe during World War
II ` “Who remembers now the destruction of the Armenians?”‘ (The full
statement is attached below).

In a resounding, albeit belated, response to this cynical statement by
Hitler, a growing number of countries around the world and
multinational organisations, such as the European Parliament, the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the French and
Canadian Parliaments and the NSW Parliament, have commemorated and
reaffirmed the historical fact of the Armenian Genocide.

Dr Tro Kortian, President of the ANCA said `It is fitting tonight that
a city such as Ryde, which has such a large and growing constituency
of Armenian-Australians, will add its voice to this call and help to
ensure that the Armenian Genocide is never allowed to be denied or
forgotten. This is the highest tribute we can pay to the victims of
the Armenian Genocide and all other acts of genocide. I commend
Councillor Yedelian for moving this Motion and all the Ryde City
Councillors who have supported its passage. We trust that the Prime
Minister, who has his own electorate office in the City of Ryde, takes
heed of the call made to the Federal Parliament in that Motion.

Statement by the

Armenian National Committee of Australia, Inc

Dear Mayor and Councillors

As a resident of the City of Ryde, and as a member of the leading
Armenian-Australian grass-roots public affairs organisation, the
Armenian National Committee of Australia, I greatly appreciate this
opportunity to speak in support of this important Motion.

On April 24 of this year, on the eve of the 90th anniversary of the
ANZAC landings, Armenians the world over, including the many thousands
of Armenian-Australians living in the City of Ryde, will commemorate
the 90th anniversary of the Armenian genocide. They will recall that,
in 1915, the Ottoman Empire set in motion a plan to exterminate the
entire Christian Armenian population living on their ancestral lands
of Eastern Anatolia, part of what is today the Republic of
Turkey. This state-sponsored program resulted in the brutal
extermination of some 1.5 million Armenian men, women and children.

Using the cover of the First World War, the ultra-nationalist Young
Turk regime that ruled the Ottoman Empire unleashed a campaign to
uproot and destroy the Armenian population which stood in the way of
their plans to set up a `Pan-Turkic’ empire. Observers and the press
throughout the world, including here in Australia, were shocked at the
horrific stories of entire towns, villages and cities emptied of their
Armenian inhabitants. Henry Morgenthau, the American ambassador to
Turkey at the time, termed the Turkish crime against the Armenians
“race murder.” It was the destruction of an entire ancient
civilisation.

In addition to the eye-witness testimonies of the genocide survivors
and other witnesses, the national archives of the United States of
America as well as all major European states, whether friend or foe of
the then Ottoman Empire during World War I, hold substantial documents
attesting to this crime against humanity.

The Polish-Jewish legal scholar, Raphael Lemkin, who coined the term
`genocide’ and was instrumental in establishing the UN Convention on
the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, cited the
Armenian Genocide together with the Jewish Holocaust as prototypes of
this newly defined crime against humanity.

Despite this overwhelming and irrefutable evidence, and in stark
contrast to post-Nazi Germany which has acknowledged and sought to
atone for the crimes of the Nazi regime, successive Turkish
governments have refused to come to terms with their own history.
Instead they have maintained a morally bankrupt campaign of genocide
denial, and have benefited from all the fruits of that crime with
impunity.

Modern day Turkey today, which is seeking admission into the European
Union, has recently legislated that it is a crime to state that there
was a genocide of the Armenians during World War I. Those brave
Turkish citizens who have dared to speak out have faced persecution,
threats and imprisonment. In recent months, the admission in a press
interview by the famous Turkish writer Orhan Parmuk that 1 million
Armenians had in fact been killed, led to disturbing reactions such as
attacks on the writer and calls by government officials for the mass
burning of his books.

As Baroness Caroline Cox, Deputy Speaker of the House of Lords stated
in a speech in the House of Lords in 1999 ` If nations are allowed to
commit genocide with impunity, to hide their guilt in a camouflage of
lies and denials, there is a real danger that other brutal regimes
will be encouraged to attempt genocides. Unless we speak today of the
Armenian genocide and unless the Government recognises this historical
fact, we shall leave this century of unprecedented genocides with this
blot on our consciences.”

There is perhaps no more poignant evidence of the consequences of such
impunity, and the importance of commemorative motions such as the one
before this Council tonight, than the chilling statement by Hitler in
1939 as he embarked on his genocidal deeds in Europe during World War
II ` “Who remembers now the destruction of the Armenians?”

In a resounding, albeit belated, response to this cynical statement by
Hitler, a growing number of countries around the world and
multinational organisations, such as the European Parliament and the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, have commemorated and
reaffirmed the historical fact of the Armenian Genocide.

I am proud to say that the New South Wales Parliament in 1997 joined
its voice to this international chorus by multinational, national,
state or provincial and municipal legislative bodies. It is fitting
tonight that a city such as Ryde, which has such a large and growing
constituency of Armenian-Australians, will add its voice to this call
and help to ensure that the Armenian Genocide is never allowed to be
denied or forgotten. This is the highest tribute we can pay to the
victims of the Armenian Genocide and all other acts of genocide.

I commend Councillor Yedelian for moving this Motion and all the
Councillors who have supported its passage. Finally, we trust that the
Prime Minister, who has his own electorate office in the City of Ryde,
takes heed of the call made to the Federal Parliament in that Motion.

Thank you.

A1plus

| 20:21:10 | 11-04-2005 | Politics |

`ARE YOU INVITED TO THE CONFERECE?’

Today the following session of the Justice bloc took place during which,
according to Grigor Haroutyunyan, secretary of the People’s Party of
Armenia, issues about the April 13 conference `For the Sake of Democracy’
were discussed. The draft resolution to be adopted in the conference has
been discussed.

Everyone except Albert Bazeyan, leader of the Republican Party, took part in
the session. We learned from Grigor Haroutyunyan that the draft resolution
is agreed with him; simply he is busy with intra-party issues.

No other issues have been discussed in the session of the bloc. By the way,
invitations have been sent to all the oppositional parties who were in the
Baghramyan avenue on April 12, 2004, and to non-governmental organizations.
No party representing the authorities has been invited, even the Orinats
Yerkir. It is worth mentioning that both the leader and the members of the
latter had denounced the violations, but as the oppositional powers note,
before that they had converted the yard and the building of the Parliament
into a cantonment.

A1plus

| 19:49:16 | 11-04-2005 | Politics |

NATO IN THE CENTER OF ATTENTION

For the coming 2 days the issues of cooperation with NATO will be discussed
in Armenia.

A seminar will be organized on April 12-14 to support the Republic of
Armenia as it develops its NATO Individual Partnership Action Plan (IPAP).
An IPAP for a particular country outlines the general objectives and
timelines for its future activities within the framework of cooperation with
NATO.

Scholars and experts from the Marshall Center will work with representatives
of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defense, and other
ministries that will be involved in IPAP activities on the process of
developing an IPAP, and a discussion of what effects it will have on the
various ministries.

The Marshall Center delegation will be headed by Major General (retired) Dr.
Horst Schmalfeld, German Deputy Director of the George C. Marshall European
Center for Security Studies. The Marshall Center is located in
Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.