US MAY USE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE TO PRESSURE TURKEY IN IRAQI ISSUE
YEREVAN, JANUARY 31. ARMINFO. The US may use the Armenian Genocide as
a trump for pressuring Turkey in the issue of Iraq, says Milliyet
(Turkey).
This concern is due to the 2005 commemoration of the 90th anniversary
of the Armenian Genocide in Armenia and many countries and to the fact
that many European parliaments are considering the Armenian Genocide
recognition. Especially worrisome is the statement by a European
ambassador that Condoleeza Rice may be not very much included to
prevent initiatives for the Armenian Genocide acknowledgement unlike
the previous US state secretary and that “Washington may wish to use
the problem to pressure Turkey in the Iraqi issue.”
The Turkish FM is sensing a potential problem here. Ankara is taking
no step without considering the Armenian Genocide problem. The
Institute of Turkish History is preparing a series of articles on the
issue. Historian Betul Aslan has published a book entitled “The
Armenian Events in Erzurum” which is one more attempt to mislead the
international community. In fact Aslan is trying to prove that 50,000
Turks were killed in Erzurum and neighboring areas in 1918-1920.
Milliyet regrets that the May 2005 Vienna conference of Armenian and
Turkish historians will not take place because of Armenia’s refusal.

IRAN ADVOCATES ARMENIAN-AZERI COOPERATION
YEREVAN, JANUARY 31. ARMINFO. Iran’s Ambassador to Azerbaijan Afshar
Sumeymani has supported the statement by his counterpart to Russia
Gulam Rza Shafai that the involvement of Azerbaijan and Armenia in the
North-South transport corridor will promote Azeri-Armenian
rapprochement.
Suleymani says that the restoration of the railroad communication
between Iran and Russia via Julfa, Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic,
will play an important role for ensuring the region’s secure economic
development. Iran advocates peace and cooperation in the region and
the Kazvin-Resht-Astara section of the North-South transport corridor
will give wider transit opportunities to Azerbaijan and Armenia while
the whole project will promote the development of their transport
infrastructures.
To remind, the Yerevan (Armenia)-Julfa (Azerbaijan)-Tebriz (Iran)
railroad was stalled in 1992 because of the Karabakh conflict. In the
Soviet times it carried 5 mln tons of cargo a year.

ARMENIA SETS NO CONDITIONS FOR DIPLOMATIC TIES WITH TURKEY, DIPLOMAT SAYS
Mediamax news agency
31 Jan 05
YEREVAN
Armenian Prime Minister Andranik Markaryan met French President
Jacques Chirac, Lithuanian Prime Minister Algirdas Brazauskas and
Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul on 27-28 January during a
ceremony to mark the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the
Auschwitz concentration camp.
This was announced at a briefing today by Armenian Deputy Foreign
Minister Ruben Shugaryan, who accompanied the prime minister during
his visit to Poland.
At a brief meeting with the Turkish foreign minister, Andranik
Markaryan confirmed Armenia’s readiness to establish diplomatic
relations with Turkey without any conditions, Ruben Shugaryan said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

KARABAKH LEADER CONFIRMS ARMENIAN REFUGEES SETTLED IN AZERI LANDS
Arminfo
31 Jan 05
YEREVAN
Yesterday evening the president of Nagornyy Karabakh, Arkadiy
Gukasyan, met Emily Margarethe Haber (from Germany), head of the OSCE
fact-finding mission, and also the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, Yuriy
Merzlyakov from Russia; Steven Mann from the USA and Bernard Fassier
from France.
Gukasyan stressed the importance of the OSCE initiative to visit the
territories currently controlled by the Karabakh government, the
information department of the Karabakh president has told Arminfo. He
said Stepanakert had repeatedly appealed to the OSCE co-chairs to
carry out this kind of monitoring in order to get familiarized with
the real situation in the territories to rule out all Azerbaijani
insinuations on the issue.
Regarding the current situation in the territories which make up a
security strip for Nagornyy Karabakh to be monitored by the OSCE
mission, Gukasyan said the Karabakh government has no state programme
to settle those territories. He said that the Armenians who had been
forcibly expelled from Azerbaijan were mainly living there. The
activities of the state in those territories are limited to providing
the people with normal living conditions and establishing appropriate
controls there, he said.
Gukasyan said that the Nagornyy Karabakh authorities are ready to do
their utmost to help the mission fulfil its work and expressed the
hope that the report the mission will prepare will help create a
constructive atmosphere for resolving the Karabakh conflict
peacefully. In order to get a bigger picture of the situation,
Gukasyan suggested that the OSCE mission visit Nagornyy Karabakh’s
territories that are under the occupation of the Azerbaijani army.
In turn, Ms Haber thanked the Karabakh government for providing the
10-day-long mission with necessary conditions. She said that the
mission will make no political assessments as it is mainly technical
by nature.
Andrzej Kasprzyk, special envoy of the OSCE chairman-in-office, also
attended the meeting.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

AZERI OPPOSITION ACTIVIST ACCUSES RUSSIA, FRANCE OF PRO-ARMENIAN STAND
Yeni Musavat, Baku
29 Jan 05
Text of Kanan report by Azerbaijani newspaper Yeni Musavat on 29
January headlined “The mediators are trying to dodge responsibility”
and subheaded “Qabil Huseynli: ‘Great powers have complicated the
conception to resolve the problem'”
The French co-chairman of the OSCE Minsk Group, Bernard Fassier, made
an interesting statement during his familiarization visit to Baku. The
French diplomat said that the resolution of the conflict depends on
the governments of Azerbaijan and Armenia. Noting that the Minsk Group
can only give support to the sides in building dialogue and peace,
Fassier said on the question of the liberation of Azerbaijan’s
occupied territories in 2005: “The presidents, not the co-chairman,
can order the pull-out of troops from those territories.” Like some of
his colleagues, the diplomat also gave a hint that concessions are
expected from Azerbaijan.
The French diplomat’s statement is not the first one of this
kind. Russian co-chairman Yuriy Merzlyakov has also made similar
statements recently. The resolution passed by the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe on Nagornyy Karabakh several days
ago stressed that the resolution of the conflict by and large depends
on the parties.
Can Fassier’s statement be regarded as a sign that the Minsk Group is
disavowing its responsibility? A deputy leader of the Musavat party,
Qabil Huseynli, told us that the French and Russian representatives
put forward the proposals, which contradict Azerbaijan’s interests,
under a strange scenario.
“First, Russia makes a proposal, then France starts supporting it. The
fact that the Russian diplomat insists on Nagornyy Karabakh being
recognized as a party (to negotiations) is clearly indicative of that
country’s pro-Armenian position, whereas the new French co-chairman
says that the resolution of the problem depends on the parties.”
The countries which are directly interested in deadlocking the
Karabakh conflict are trying to insure themselves by making such
statements, he said.
“Today, the great powers have complicated the resolution of the
problem so much, allowed so many double standards and made so many
ideological and political mistakes that finding a solution has become
even more difficult. These countries refuse to accept the notions of
the occupier and of the country under occupation despite this being
the ABC of any conflict. Today, they do not want to accept the fact
that Azerbaijani territories were occupied by the Armenian armed
forces and the entity called Nagornyy Karabakh functions as part of
Armenia and under the influence of its authorities. They are still
saying that there is no separatist regime, but a national liberation
movement in Karabakh. They are openly saying that the Nagornyy
Karabakh conflict cannot be compared with Dniester, Abkhaz and other
conflicts. In other words, there are enough double standards in their
approach. In this case, there must be a mistake in the very approach
to a solution to the problem. Those states have intentionally made
mistakes in their approach to the problem. Now they are saying that
the parties themselves should find a common language.”
The expert regards the statement by the new co-chairman as a call for
Azerbaijan to make concessions.
“Armenia does not accept any concessions and faces no pressure, while
Azerbaijan is being persuaded to make concessions over the launch of
some projects and pressure. France and Russia have not recognized
Armenia as an occupying country so far. They stress the importance of
self-determination of nations when it comes to Azerbaijan, but when it
comes to other states they underline the importance of territorial
integrity. This insincerity brings the problem to deadlock.”
It is not right to implicate the OSCE Minsk Group, because the
co-chairing countries have the ultimate responsibility, he said.
“We need to look at the policy of the countries in the group. The
French co-chairman implements the instructions of his state. France
and its nationalist president Jacques Chirac blatantly support the
Armenians and Russia backs Armenia with which it has a strategic
cooperation treaty in every possible way. In other words, these
countries have made so many mistakes testifying to their pro-Armenian
position that these statements sound hypocritical.”

Caucaz
europenews
02/01/2005 06:45 Tbilisi
«When planning the recent EU enlargement, we were aware of building tensions
between those countries – the countries joining EU and the new neighbors » –
Torben Holtze [EU]
By Célia CHAUFFOUR, François GREMY in Tbilisi
On 31/01/2005
At the head of the European Commission delegation to Georgia and Armenia
since fall 2001, Torben Holtze comes back on the absence of any of the three
South-Caucasus countries in the first Action Plans implemented by the
European Union (EU), in the framework of the New Neighborhood Policy.
Moldova, Ukraine, Morocco, Tunisia, Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian
Authority will soon benefit from the first Action Plans under EU’s New
Neighborhood Policy. The South Caucasus is strikingly absent from those.
Would this mean that Europe does not really know what to do with the three
South-Caucasian countries?
The Action Plans are coming. Everything takes time. It is only two and a
half years ago that EU began to think about the role and the function of
future Member States. And at this time, there was not yet any political
desire nor any decision to invite other neighboring countries.
When planning the recent EU enlargement, we were aware of building tensions
between those countries – the countries joining EU and the new neighbors. So
we had to offer those countries also a form of integration. Indeed they are
also to become EU members.
Let’s consider the example of Norway. Obviously the situation is totally
different. But Norway is economically fully integrated in the EU. It has
also adopted most of the European legislation and integrated numerous
European committees. It even payed money into EU.
However this requires that the country has reached a development similar to
the one of other European countries. And for some countries this process
will be achieved only over time.
On the other hand, this form of integration is clearly not EU membership.
That’s why, in the framework of this integration process, the EU adopted a
specific system, the so-called New Neighborhood Policy.
Even if the New Neighborhood Policy offers to some countries a special form
of integration to the EU, it is not about future membership.
Regarding the first steps for this New Neighborhood Policy, one of the
concerned countries, Belarus, will have to wait for a transition toward a
more democratic regime. As for Russia, although it was not considered as an
ordinary neighbor, but rather as an equal to the EU, it did not want to take
part in the New Neighborhood Policy and is more enclined to become a
strategic partner for the EU.
It’s true that, in some way, the South-Caucasus countries got left out. This
happened because of a combination of several factors, but definitely it was
not we not considering them as neighboring countries. Most of EU Member
States were not satisfied with the situation within those countries.
For they were being temporarily set aside, what was the reaction of the
South-Caucasus countries?
Naturally, they protested – especially Georgia: `Aren’t we a European
neighbor country? Aren’t we going to become one after the possible
membership of Romania and Bulgaria via Black Sea, and also after Turkey’s
membership?’
We have to recall that at the beginning, Brussels didn’t wish to include the
South Caucasus countries in the New Neighborhood Policy. These three
countries exerted an important pressure, via the European Parliament which
was in favor of their request, and via some Member States. Some countries,
notably Belgium and Netherlands, regularly broached this subject during
European summits.
EU’s change of position toward them was triggered by the Roses Revolution,
but also in some way, by the elections of 2003 in Azerbaijan. In spite of
some persistent problems, these elections were considered to be fairer than
the previous ones. And under the pressure of some Member States of the
European Parliament, the EU agreed to include these three countries in the
New Neighborhood Policy.
Is the EU able to develop efficient Partnership and Cooperation agreements,
especially with Tbilisi, when most of its Member States have diverging
interest in this zone?
The Member States’ policy in South Caucasus is not that different from each
other. If you take a look at most of the European countries, you will see
that their do not have vital interests in Georgia and Armenia, with the
exception of Germany and its presence in Georgia. But despite strong
German-Georgian relations, you won’t find here massive German investments.
In this region, the large States are more especially interested in the BTC.
That’s why there are large foreign companies, such as BP. The EU also got
interested in South Caucasus for it is a transport corridor : for oil and
gas, but also for humans and goods coming from Central Asia. And this is
clearly a common position of EU and its Member States.
The EU in Georgia, reality or theory? Are the actions programs of the EU
delegation in Tbilisi implemented as you would like those to be?
In 2002, the Commission proposed to the Member States to elaborate a country
strategy paper for each one of the South-Caucasus countries. That’s when we
evaluated the situation within those countries so as to define what should
be the approach of the European Commission.
The projects that we identified together with the Georgians as the ones that
should be supported through the TACIS (Technical Assistance to the CIS
countries) program and other programs, can be divided into three fields of
action.
The first one is based upon the Partnership and Cooperation agreements. In
the framawork of those agreements, the Georgian authorities committed to
establish a democracy and a market economy. As for the European authorities,
we committed to help them to change their economic, social and
administrative structures so as to get the closest possible to the European
system.
The second field of action is the economic development, since there is still
a part of the population suffering from poverty. Thus there are social
programs in each one of those three countries, via the EU Food Security
Program, which come up to 10-15 million euros a year.
The last field of action is rule of law, human rights and elections. There
are still problems, but by signing an agreement the local authorities
committed to work toward democracy, the respect of human rights and the rule
of law.
What do you think about the Georgia of Mikhail Saakashvili?
In the middle of the 1990s, the Georgian population was starving. The
country was largely depending on humanitarian aid, alike the other
South-Caucasus countries. Then Georgia had to go through a long process.
Tbilisi notably adopted a legislation that was drafted with the help of our
consultants. But in order to change a system, you also have to change
mentalities. And this cannot be done overnight.
The EU tries to help these countries as much as possible and to establish a
legislative system near the closest possible to West-European standards.
Through training and information, mentalities are changing, and getting
gradually closer to ours. But this is not yet the case today. If the
government was to adopt the right clauses, the process could go very fast.
Do you assume that the government did not comply with EU directives?
Not all of them. One just has to look at the way privatizations are done.
And yet, I’m deeply optimistic about Georgia’s future and evolution,
otherwise I would not be here.
Translated by Marie Anderson.

Las Vegas Sun
Today: January 31, 2005 at 14:05:27 PST
Pope Cancels Audiences After Getting Flu
By VICTOR L. SIMPSON
ASSOCIATED PRESS
VATICAN CITY (AP) –
Pope John Paul II has come down with the flu, forcing him to cancel
scheduled audiences for health reasons for the first time in more than a
year, the Vatican said Monday.
The frail, 84-year-old pontiff showed symptoms of influenza during his
regular appearance at noon Sunday in his apartment window overlooking St.
Peter’s Square, and doctors advised that he cut back on his activities,
papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said.
“He has joined the more than a million Italians who have come down with the
flu,” Navarro-Valls told The Associated Press.
Asked by Vatican Radio if it was a mild case, Navarro-Valls said, “Of
course.”
Navarro-Valls expressed caution, however, about when John Paul would resume
his regular activities. “We’ll see,” he told the radio. “As always with
influenza, it is a day-to-day question.”
There appeared to be no particular alarm in the Vatican City enclave.
Officials went about business as usual while Vatican Radio was quick to
issue its reassuring report.
Despite Parkinson’s disease and crippling knee and hip ailments, John Paul
has appeared in good form in recent months. He continues to receive foreign
leaders – the president of Armenia visited the Vatican last week and the
president of the European Parliament is due Friday – as well as appear
before pilgrims and tourists twice a week.
The last time the pope skipped an audience for illness was in September
2003, when he canceled his weekly public audience because of an intestinal
ailment. The last time when he was reported to have the flu came during a
trip to his native Poland in June 1999, when he skipped a Mass in Krakow,
disappointing a crowd of 1 million people.
This has been a particularly bitter winter in Rome – the city got a rare
dusting of snow last week – and the Italian Health Ministry has recommended
flu shots, particularly for the elderly, but it was not known if John Paul
had taken one. Vatican officials refused to say, citing the pope’s right to
privacy.
The Vatican makes brief announcements when the pope is ill, but rarely
provides details on the extent of the illness or any medicine he may be
taking.
Among activities scheduled for Monday was the presentation of the Vatican’s
yearbook, which Navarro-Valls said was simply turned over to him. Also on
the schedule were meetings with several bishops and foreign officials.
John Paul’s voice was weak but he was otherwise in good form during his
appearance Sunday when he tried to release a dove out of his apartment
window as a symbol of peace. He chuckled with children who watched in
delight as the bird flew back into the room overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
The pontiff was addressing thousands of young people from an Italian
Catholic organization that had marked January as a month to promote peace.
At his public audience each Wednesday, scores of faithful are brought up to
the stage to kiss the pope’s ring or shake his hand.

K. Hovnanian’s Four Seasons Active Adult Communities Announces Best of
Senior Housing Design Awards
PRNewswire
Tuesday, January 25, 2005
CHANTILLY, Va., Jan. 25 /PRNewswire/ — The National Association of Home
Builders (NAHB) Seniors Housing Council honored the best in the senior
housing industry during the 2005 Best of Seniors Housing Awards ceremony
held Jan. 13 at the International Builders’ Show in Orlando, FL. Awards
were judged by a 14-member panel that took into consideration how each
project reflected the growing demands of an expanding Active Adult
housing market. In total, K. Hovnanian’s Four Seasons Active Adult
communities won 28 awards at this year’s ceremony, with the DC Active
Adult Division capturing 11 of those awards.
K. Hovnanian’s Four Seasons at Ashburn Village in Loudoun County, VA,
which offers elegant condominiums situated in the heart of the
master-planned Ashburn Village, was presented with five awards. It was a
Gold Winner for its design of The Chester floor plan in the For-Sale
Condominiums Unit Design (1,301 to 1,800 square feet) category and for
The Auburn II in the For Sale Condominiums Unit Design (over 2,400
square feet) category. In addition, K. Hovnanian’s Four Seasons at
Ashburn Village was a Silver Winner in the Overall Community — For-Sale
Condominiums category. The community was a Silver Winner for The Dover
in the For-Sale Condominiums Unit Design (1,801 to 2,400 square feet)
category and also was a Silver Winner in the category for Active Adult
Community Brochure.
Located near Potomac Mills mall, K. Hovnanian’s Four Seasons at Historic
Virginia has been recognized nationally as a leader in Active Adult
communities. With its tree-lined boulevards, low maintenance homes and a
21,000 square foot clubhouse, this growing community offers 800
luxurious single-family homes. The community was a Silver Winner in the
Overall Active Adult Community — Large Size category. In addition, it
was a Silver Winner for The Alderwood in the Active Adult Model Home
Merchandising (1,501 to 2,100 square feet) and it was a Gold Winner in
the Active Adult Home Design (2,101 to 2,800 square feet) category for
The Cottonwood and in the Active Adult Community Radio Commercial for
the Clubhouse Grand Opening.
Surrounded by rolling green hills and majestic views of Fauquier
County’s Blue Ridge mountains, K. Hovnanian’s Four Seasons at Vint Hill
offers 100 luxurious, low maintenance, single-family homes on wooded
home sites and is part of the master-planned Vint Hill community.
Minutes from historic Warrenton and within an hour of Washington, DC,
the community strikes a harmonious balance between country gentility and
city convenience. But, some of the best attractions are in the
community, especially within the homes themselves. The Sanibel model was
a Silver Winner in the Active Adult Model Home Merchandising (2,101 to
2,800 square feet) category.
Active Adult communities are designed for persons aged 55 or better,
either in pre-retirement or retirement, who seek a residential setting
that provides low — or no-maintenance homes, a wide variety of sports
and recreation amenities, and a location that keeps them close to
shopping, entertainment, travel options and friends and family. K.
Hovnanian’s Four Seasons captures all these elements and continues to
build nationally award- winning communities.
Source: K. Hovnanian’s Four Seasons

Elton plays Paris charity concert
BBC News
2005/01/24
Sir Elton John has performed at a special concert in Paris to raise
money for the victims of the Asian tsunami.
The British singer played to a 2,700-strong audience on Sunday at the
French capital’s Bastille opera house.
The concert was also part of an attempt to bring a broader range of
events to the famous venue.
Money raised will go to the Fondation pour l’Enfance (Foundation for
Childhood) which aims to rebuild a children’s shelter in Sri Lanka.
Sir Elton played hits from his vast back catalogue to a sell-out crowd
which included former French president Valery Giscard d’Estaing and his
wife Anne-Aymone.
The veteran pop star played piano accompaniment throughout the concert
which lasted for three hours without an interval.
Standing ovation
He told the crowd: “Throughout the years, I’ve done a lot of drugs and
alcohol. It’s true that I was a nightmare, impossible. For the last 14
years I’ve been normal. Now my drug is called David” – a reference to
David Furnish, his partner.
The crowd, who greeted each song with a standing ovation, also included
French singer Charles Aznavour and British ambassador Sir John Holmes.
Sir Elton has also teamed up with Phil Collins to record a version of
Eric Clapton’s 1991 hit Tears In Heaven to raise money for the relief fund.
A release date has yet to be set for the recording, which was organised
by Sharon Osbourne.

Vegas’ Walk of Stars comes with a price tag
Detroit Free Press (Detroit, Michigan)
January 24, 2005
To mark Las Vegas’ centennial, the Las Vegas Walk of Stars has released
the names of 100 future honorees.
Guess who was Star No. 1?
“Mr. Las Vegas” himself, Wayne Newton, given the inaugural star Oct. 26
as a tribute from his fan club.
Now here’s the catch: Each celebrity star costs $15,000, and the public
is invited to sponsor their favorite entertainer — either those on the
100 Stars list, or another deserving recipient. Those interested in
becoming sponsors can contact Las Vegas Walk of Stars at 702-655-7827.
Sponsors will be invited to participate in their honoree’s dedication
ceremony, receive a commemorative plaque and possibly meet their honoree.
Here’s who might be getting in if someone pops for the 15Gs — take a
deep breath:
The 5th Dimension, Andre Agassi, Paul Anka, Ann-Margret, Burt Bacharach,
Pearl Bailey, Count Basie, the Beatles, Harry Belafonte, Tony Bennett,
Jack Benny, Milton Berle, Joey Bishop, Ray Bolger, David Brenner, George
Burns, Lance Burton, Sam Butera, Red Buttons, Sid Caesar, Cab Calloway,
George Carlin, Johnny Carson, Charo, Roy Clark, Nat King Cole, Natalie
Cole, Perry Como, David Copperfield, Bill Cosby, Tony Curtis, Vic
Damone, Dorothy Dandridge, Rodney Dangerfield, Sammy Davis Jr., Neil
Diamond, Marlene Dietrich, Phyllis Diller, Celine Dion, Fats Domino,
Jimmy Durante, Billy Eckstine, Duke Ellington, Redd Foxx, Connie
Francis, Danny Gans, Judy Garland, Robert Goulet, Buddy Greco, Shecky
Greene, Hank Greenspun, Buddy Hackett, Bob Hope, Lena Horne, Howard
Hughes, Elton John, Shirley Jones, Kirk Kerkorian, Alan King, Gladys
Knight, Steve Lawrence & Edie Gorme, Jerry Lewis, Liberace, Rich Little,
Joe Louis, Robert Maheu, Rocky Marciano, Frank Marino, Dean Martin,
Rowan & Martin, Mary Kay Trio, the McGuire Sisters, the Mills Brothers,
Bob Newhart, Donald O’Connor, Elvis Presley, Louis Prima, Juliet Prowse,
Lou Rawls, Debbie Reynolds, Don Rickles, Joan Rivers, Kenny Rogers, Penn
& Teller, the Scintas, Neil Sedaka, Chester Sims, Frank Sinatra, Red
Skeleton, Keely Smith, Barbra Streisand, Jerry Tarkanian, the
Temptations, Danny Thomas, Mel Torme, Jerry Vale, Sarah Vaughn, Bobby
Vinton, Joe Williams and Steve Wynn.
Compiled from staff, news service and Web reports by JOHN SMYNTEK at
313-222-5169 and [email protected]. Hear him Fridays in the 7 a.m.
hour on WJR-AM (760) with Paul W. Smith.