Turkish Press
Dec 2 2004

History Of The E.U.

BY ULUC GURKAN

STAR- When can Turkey join the EU? The leaked draft statement
prepared by EU Term President the Netherlands doesn’t answer this
question. In addition, French daily Liberation wrote, `Turkey can’t
become an EU member before 2015 or 2020.’ The EU is giving Turkey a
process of membership negotiations lasting more than 15 years but
isn’t guaranteeing full membership. It also stated that talks might
be suspended if human rights violations continue. The approval of
two-thirds of the 25 EU countries is envisaged to decide on this
issue. The draft statement doesn’t say that Turkey should give up
full membership and accept a special status. However, it also doesn’t
guarantee that this emphasis on special status won’t be added to the
final document at the Dec. 17 EU summit at France’s behest. Actually,
what’s envisaged for Turkey doesn’t seem to be full membership. The
draft statement clearly said that free movement might be permanently
limited. Obviously, if Turkey becomes a full member, the EU will be
under some pressure, so such limitations are natural. Likewise, this
was tried for other new members. However, these limitations can’t be
valid for full members.

It’s understood that during our membership talks process, we will
face a great many difficult conditions. The most important of these
are recognizing Greek Cyprus, solving our Aegean disputes in favor of
Greece, and recognizing the so-called Armenian genocide. Turkey can’t
accept these conditions by insisting on EU membership as our only
aim. Accepting them would mean giving up being a nation. Turkey
should be a real negotiator after Dec. 17. The way to ensure this
isn’t resisting all these conditions. Turkey should implement certain
arrangements which will improve its democracy and respect for human
rights. In addition, it should begin human-oriented development.
Claims of bad treatment and torture should end and the use of
excessive force in the fight against terrorism should stop. Turkey
should take steps to bring its democracy to world standards on its
own, not at the EU’s insistence. Turkey and Turks have the power and
experience to integrate advanced democracy with our own national
values.

ArmenPress
Dec 2 2004

OSKANIAN TO MEET AZERI COLLEAGUE IN SOFIA

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS: Armenian foreign affairs minister
Vartan Oskanian will have another meeting with his Azeri counterpart
Elmar Mamedyarov on the sidelines of the annual meeting of foreign
ministers of the OSCE member countries on December 6 in Sofia,
Bulgaria.
The OSCE Minsk group cochairmen will also attend the meeting. In a
televised appearance on December 1 evening Oskanian said he and
Mamedyarov will refer to the issue of the Azerbaijani occupied
territories which the UN General Assembly is expected to discuss.

ArmenPress
Dec 2 2004

ITALIANS WANT TO RESTORE SPITAK SUGAR-REFINERY

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS: Armenian agriculture minister
David Lokian told Armenpress that an Italian delegation that is due
in Armenia on December 6 will travel also to the town of Spitak to
learn on ground whether a former sugar-refinery there can be
restored.
According to previous estimations, redeveloping the Spitak region
with new investments for sugar beets processing – producing jobs and
sugar for Armenia, was estimated to require investments in the range
of $110-135 million.
Italians also intend to found a modern joint meat processing
venture and to promote Italian technologies in Armenia. Apart from
this the government of Italy has pledged to finance through UN Food
Agricultural Organization (FAO) a major project on potato
cultivation.
The minister said also a team of Armenian businessmen and experts
engaged in wine-making will fly next February to Thailand to pass
their experience to Thai counterparts.
Also agriculture experts from the Baltic states are coming soon to
Armenia to share their experience in building border check points.
The minister said effective cooperation with the US Department of
Agriculture Yerevan office will continue next year. Cooperation
arrangements were also reached with businessmen in the United Arab
Emirates, UN and other international organizations.

ArmenPress
Dec 2 2004

YEREVAN TO HOST ROSSINI FESTIVAL

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS: The Armenian capital Yerevan will
host this weekend a music festival dedicated to prominent Italian
composer Gioacchino Rossini. Italian ambassador to Armenia, Marco
Clemente told a news conference today the festival will open with the
composer’s probably best known opera, The Barber of Seville, that
will be performed on December 4 by the students of Yerevan
Conservatory.
Another of his operas, The Italian Girl in Algiers, will be performed
by the Yerevan Puppet Theater. It will be shown also to
schoolchildren. Also some other works, including his well-known
arias, will be played. The ambassador described the upcoming festival
as “an exceptional” event. The government of Italy as well as Italian
and Armenian businessmen have helped to organize the festival

ArmenPress
Dec 2 2004

GEORGIA’S FIRST LADY VISITS CANCER CARE CENTER

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS: Georgia’s First Lady, Sandra
Roulof, who is visiting Armenia at the invitation of Mrs. Bella
Kocharian, Armenia’s First Lady, visited today the National Cancer
Care Center to learn if it could be replicated in Georgia.
Georgia’s First Lady spoke there also with a Georgian citizen, who
was operated at the center. Sandra Roulof said Georgian medical
authorities will seek the cooperation with Armenian counterparts in
order to create such a center in Georgia.
This is the second her visit to Armenia. She first came to Yerevan in
2001 when worked for the Dutch consulate. “Armenians and Georgians
live in the same region sharing a great deal of similarities and are
apt to build strong cooperation in all areas,” said the Dutch wife of
Georgia’s president.
Mrs. Bella Kocharian said she was greatly impressed by Roulof’s
loveliness and her sociability. She said Armenian doctors will gladly
share their experience with Georgian colleagues in early detection
and treatment of cancer.

noticias.info (press release), Spain
Dec 2 2004

IMF Executive Board Completes Final Review Under PRGF Arrangement for
the Republic of Armenia

/noticias.info/ The Executive Board of the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) today completed the sixth and final review of the Republic
of Armenia’s economic performance under a three-year Poverty
Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) arrangement. The completion of
this review enables Armenia to draw an amount equivalent to SDR 9.0
million (about US$13.7 million).

In completing the final review, the Executive Board also approved
Armenia’s request for a waiver of two structural performance
criteria.

At the time of the fifth review on May 3, 2004 the period of the
arrangement was extended through December 31, 2004 (see Press Release
No. 04/90). Armenia’s PRGF arrangement was initially approved with
effect from May 23, 2001 (see Press Release No. 01/25) for an amount
equivalent to SDR 69 million (about US$105.3 million). With the
completion of the sixth review, the arrangement will be fully
disbursed. The authorities have also stated their intention to begin
discussions with the IMF on a new three-year PRGF arrangement that
would support an economic program through 2008.

Following the Executive Board’s discussion of Armenia’s performance
under the current PRGF-supported program, Agustín Carstens, Deputy
Managing Director and Acting Chair, said:

“The Armenian authorities should be commended for Armenia’s strong
economic performance in recent years, in the context of satisfactory
implementation of the PRGF-supported program. Prudent monetary and
fiscal policies, external financial support, and progress with
structural reforms have contributed to double-digit economic growth,
poverty reduction, low inflation, and a sustainable debt burden.

“Looking ahead, the authorities should maintain a cautious fiscal
stance and ensure that the expenditure envelope is in line with PRSP
priorities on social and infrastructure spending. Monetary policy
should remain tight while maintaining a flexible exchange rate regime
in order to bring inflation down to the authorities’ objective of 3
percent. To facilitate further financial intermediation, reforms are
needed to enhance corporate governance in banks, streamline
collateral recovery procedures, and improve court processes.

“Notwithstanding the progress made in recent years, the authorities
need to tackle more forcefully the remaining deficiencies and reduce
discretion in tax and customs administration. This will contribute to
an improved business environment and yield higher tax revenues to
finance pro-poor spending. On the expenditure side, a balanced mix
between current and capital spending will be critical to sustain the
high trajectory of growth. This will require higher allocations to
capital expenditures in the transport, agriculture, and water
sectors. At the same time, the envisaged increases in social spending
highlight the importance of ensuring that they will be utilized
efficiently and transparently.

“The authorities should be commended for the improvement in the
energy sector in recent years. Looking ahead, the authorities need to
complete the reform agenda in this sector and step up the
implementation of reforms in the water and irrigation sectors,
including through an increase in tariffs to cost recovery levels.

“Armenia’s medium-term prospects are likely to remain favorable
provided the authorities move ahead with the implementation of the
reform agenda and redouble their efforts to improve governance,” Mr.
Castens stated.

The PRGF is the IMF’s concessional facility for low-income countries.
PRGF-supported programs are based on country-owned poverty reduction
strategies adopted in a participatory process involving civil society
and development partners, and articulated in a Poverty Reduction
Strategy Paper, or PRSP. This is intended to ensure that each
PRGF-supported program is consistent with a comprehensive framework
for macroeconomic, structural, and social policies, to foster growth
and reduction poverty. PRGF loans carry an annual interest rate of
0.5 percent, and are repayable over 10 years with a 5 ½-year grace
period on principal payments.

RIA Novosti, Russia
Dec 2 2004

ARMENIA AND IRAN DEVELOP ENERGY COOPERATION

YEREVAN, December 2 (RIA Novosti) – Armenia is interested in
strengthening its relations with Iran, Armenian President Robert
Kocharyan said at a meeting with an Iranian delegation led by Iranian
Energy Minister Habibollah Bitaraf.

The Armenian president’s press service said the construction of a gas
pipeline and high voltage power lines marked the beginning of
Armenian-Iranian business relations, which entail discussions about
other potential programs. “We are ready to do everything possible to
support the current level of cooperation,” Mr. Kocharyan said.

Mr. Bitaraf said the construction of the Iranian section of the gas
pipeline would begin in the next two months and that Iran would
increase the amount of electricity supplied to Armenia to 1,000 MW
after the construction of a third high-voltage power line.

Iran is also interested in cooperating with Armenia on hydroelectric
plants and alternative energy sources such as wind power plants and
the commissioning of the fifth generator at the Razdan thermal plant.

The construction of the Kadzharan tunnel, Iranian fuel exports to
Armenia and the potential for Armenia to use Iranian equipment in
power plant construction were also discussed.

The Iranian delegation is visiting Armenia for the start of
construction of the Armenia section of the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline,
the commissioning of the Agarak-Shinuair high voltage power line and
the signing of an agreement on another power line.

On May 13, Iran and Armenia signed an agreement on the Iran-Armenia
pipeline in Yerevan. According to the agreement, the pipeline will be
completed by January 1, 2007 and 36 billion cubic meters of gas will
be imported to Armenia over the next 20 years. Armenia will import
1.1 billion cubic meters of gas a year in exchange for supplying Iran
with electricity. The pipeline will also carry Turkmen gas through
Iran to Armenia.

Construction of the Armenian section of the pipeline began on
November 30, the same day the Agarak-Shinuair power line was
commissioned.

AzerTag, Azerbaijan
Dec 2 2004

PRESIDENT OF AZERBAIJAN ILHAM ALIYEV ACCEPTS CREDENTIALS FROM
AMBASSADOR EXTRAORDINARY AND PLENIPOTENTIARY OF UKRAINE
[December 02, 2004, 17:35:14]

On 2 December, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev
accepted credentials from newly appointed Ambassador Extraordinary
and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to Azerbaijan Anatoliy Yurchenko.

While presenting the credentials to the Head of State, Anatoliy
Yurchenko expressed gratitude for this opportunity saying `this is a
recognition of mine as Ukrainian Ambassador to the Republic of
Azerbaijan, and this is a political recognition of Ukraine in its
hard days.’

The Ambassador noted that although friendship between Azerbaijan and
Ukraine has existed at all times, it was especially developed under
big friend of Ukraine Heydar Aliyev. It was improved during his visit
to Ukraine in 1997, and sealed legally in the course of our
President’s visit to Azerbaijan in 2000, he said.

Anatoliy Yurchenko described President Ilham Aliyev’s recent visit to
Ukraine as a great political step towards development of cooperation
and partnership, as well.

He also expressed gratitude to Azerbaijan for the active support and
cooperation in the international arena, mutual understanding and
cooperation within such international and regional organizations as
the United Nations, Council of Europe, OSCE, BSEC, GUUAM and CIS.

Accepting the credentials, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev
congratulated the Ambassador on the appointment and wished him every
success in his activities. He expressed gratitude for the monument to
Heydar Aliyev erected in Kiev to perpetuate his memory. This is yet
another indication of sincere, friendly and brotherly relations
between our two nations, the Head of State said.

According to the Azerbaijani leader, especially valuable and
important for Azerbaijan was the unambiguous stance of Ukraine with
respect to the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over
Nagorno-Karabakh that President Leonid Kuchma expressed during the
joint press-conference in Kiev clearly stating `territorial integrity
of Azerbaijan shall be restored and Azerbaijan shall be released for
the occupation.’

Baku Today, Azerbaijan
Dec 2 2004

Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Armenia and Azerbaijan to Meet In
Sofia

Turan/Arminfo 03/12/2004 01:48

The Armenian and Azeri foreign ministers are to meet in Sofia soon,
Armenia’s minister Vardan Oskanyan said in interview with Public
Television of Armenia.

The meeting will take part in the framework of the Sofia conference
of the OSCE FMs Council December 5-6.

According to Oskanian, co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk group will take
part at the meeting too. “We are planning to meet to discuss the
Karabakh problem and to try to find a way to continue the talks,”
said Oskanian.

Azeris urge Europe’s football body to ban Karabakh FC from Armenian league

Ekho, Baku
1 Dec 04

Text of E. Aliyev’s report by Azerbaijani newspaper Ekho on 1 December
headlined “AFFA protests at the Karabakh team’s participation in the
Armenian championship”

The secretary-general of the Association of Football Federations of
Azerbaijan (AFFA), Fuad Asadov, has sent a letter to the UEFA chief
executive, Lars-Christer Olsson, asking the European body to
investigate the participation of FC Lernain Artsakh from Xankandi
[Stepanakert] in the Armenian championship.

The point is that according to the well-known Russian weekly magazine
Football, the team from the self-styled republic played in the second
division of the Armenian championship this year and won the right to
play in Armenia’s first division next year.

“We have addressed UEFA twice. In our letters, we alerted UEFA to the
fact that FC Lernain Artsakh is playing in the Armenian
championship. This is completely illegal because Nagornyy Karabakh is
an integral part of Azerbaijan and teams from one country cannot take
part in the championship of another. This runs counter to the
principles of UEFA and FIFA,” Fuad Asadov told Ekho.

After AFFA’s letters, UEFA addressed the Armenian football federation
which started denying the information. The secretary-general of the
Armenian federation, Armen Minasyan, whom Fuad Asadov met in
Switzerland, denied the reports as well.

“Minasyan told me: ‘Do you really think that we don’t know the laws of
international football organizations?’ However, the material published
in Football proves that the Armenians lied, which is quite typical of
them. I hope UEFA will look into the issue and ban this team from
playing in the Armenian championship,” he said.