YEREVAN PRESS CLUB WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
JANUARY 21-27, 2005
HIGHLIGHTS:
“PRESS CLUB” ON AIR AGAIN
“STABILITY” PROTESTING AGAINST “ARAVOT”
THE HOMELESS OF YEREVAN AS SEEN BY PHOTO AND TV CAMERAS
MEDIA BOYCOTTS AND THE PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE ARRESTED THE CHIEF ARMENIAN ARYAN
COMPETITION FOR FILLING IN VACANCIES IN THE COUNCIL OF PUBLIC TV AND RADIO
COMPANY
“SHOGHAKAT’ RESUMED BROADCASTS
“PRESS CLUB” ON AIR AGAIN
On January 24 on the evening air of the Second Armenian TV Channel the
first “Press Club” show in 2005 was issued. The cycle is organized by
Yerevan Press Club under a homonymous project, supported by the OSI Network
Media Program.
The subject for the discussion of leading media and journalistic
associations of Armenia was the response of press to the statements made by
the Assistant US Secretary of State for Europe and Eurasia Elizabeth Jones
during a DVC on January 13 between Washington, Bratislava, Moscow and Rome.
In particular, the vast public response was caused by the answer of
Elizabeth Jones to the question of Russian “Moscow Times” daily on
unrecognized entities, including Mountainous Karabagh. By prognosis of the
“Press Club” participants, the central subject in Armenian media this week
will be the discussion of the report on Mountainous Karabagh, developed by
the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe rapporteur David
Atkinson and to be presented at the PACE session on January 25.
“STABILITY” PROTESTING AGAINST “ARAVOT”
On January 21 a small group representing the youth wing of “Stability”
political union held a protest action by the House of Press in Yerevan,
where various media editorial offices are located. The reason for the action
was the comment of “Aravot” daily to the statement of Assistant US Secretary
of State for Europe and Eurasia Elizabeth Jones (see above). “Aravot” daily
itself described its response as a joke. The representatives of the youth
wing of “Stability” qualified it as “treason”. In the issue of January 22
the Chief Editor of “Aravot” Aram Abrahamian noted that “young people were
unable to explain” to the correspondent of the daily, “what exactly can be
interpreted as treason”, “some people did not even know what their action
was directed against”. In the opinion of the Chief Editor, there was no need
in this action as such: “The doors of “Aravot” are open for everyone, and
these guys can simply come to the office and talk to the Editor or any of
our staff members. Moreover, they have an opportunity to publish their point
of view in “Aravot”, unless it contains rude or insulting expressions,
directed at anybody.” But in this case, as Aram Abrahamian stressed,
“apparently the “stability supporters” had to have an action”.
THE HOMELESS OF YEREVAN AS SEEN BY PHOTO AND TV CAMERAS
On January 27 at “Narekatsi” Arts Institute an action “The Right to Life”
was held. The exhibition of works by photographer Onik Grigorian that opened
there and the first night of “Nameless Tombs” documentary spoke about the
homeless of Yerevan. The documentary was produced jointly by “Yerkir-Media”
TV company and “Investigative Journalists” NGO. After the demonstration of
the film the representatives of media and NGOs discussed the problems of
people that found themselves in the street. Within the action the book by
Onik Grigorian “Armenia: Poverty, Transition and Democracy” was presented,
too. The book is published by Gomidas Institute (based in Princeton and
London).
MEDIA BOYCOTTS AND THE PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE ARRESTED THE CHIEF ARMENIAN ARYAN
A number of Armenian media announced an information boycott to the Chairman
of “Union of Armenian Aryans” party Armen Avetisian. The reason for the
boycott were the insulting statements made by the leader of Armenian Aryans
during the press-conference of January 19, given by public union “Against
the Numeration of People”. According to “Arminfo” news agency, Armen
Avetisian “made an inadequate response” to the question of journalists about
the public promise made (but never fulfilled) about revealing the list
allegedly held of state officials who are homosexual. “I refuse to answer
the provoking questions of the sexually perverted journalists and will only
answer questions regarding to social cards and individual data”, the head of
Armenian Aryans said in particular, after which some media representatives
left the press-conference.
On the same day, January 19, “Arminfo” announced its information boycott to
the events of “Union of Armenian Aryans”. On January 21 “Aravot” daily
stated its joining the action. In the issue of January 22 “Aravot” reported
that the boycott of “statements and activities of a person, unable to behave
properly with journalists” was joined by “Ayb-Feh” weekly, web
site and “Taregir” Internet publication.
The statements and activities of Armen Avetisian were of interest to the law
enforcement bodies of Armenia, too. On January 25 the Public Relations and
Information Department of the RA General Prosecutor’s Office informed about
the arrest of the Chairman of “Union of Armenian Aryans”. The press release
of the General Prosecutor’s Office noted that Armen Avetisian “in his
articles published in press, TV and other public speeches, at
press-conferences has repeatedly made assessments that were humiliating,
discrediting and insulting for representatives of Jewish nationality,
disseminated disreputing opinions, thus inciting national hatred and
hostility towards them”. Proceeding from the facts gathered, on January 21
the Yerevan Prosecutor’s Office instituted criminal proceedings and on
January 24 it charged Armen Avetisian by item 1, part 2, Article 226 of the
Criminal Code (“Inciting national racial or religious hostility”). On the
same day, January 24, Avetisian was arrested.
It should also be noted that “Union of Armenian Aryans”, headed by
Avetisian, was mentioned in the Report on Global Anti-Semitism in 2004,
released by the US Department of State on January 5. The section on Armenia
of the report, among other cases of anti-Semitism, tells about the calls of
the party “for the country to be “purified” of Jews and Yezidis”. In the
same report the owner, the head of “ALM” media holding Tigran Karapetian was
also mentioned – as he “frequently made anti-Semitic remarks on the air”.
COMPETITION FOR FILLING IN VACANCIES IN THE COUNCIL OF PUBLIC TV AND RADIO
COMPANY
On January 20 the RA President Robert Kocharian signed a decree to hold a
competition for filling in the vacancies in the Council of Public Television
and Radio Company of Armenia. The competition commission included: the
Chairman – Alexan Harutiunian (Chairman of the Council of Public TV and
Radio Company); Secretary – Irina Ghulinian (Deputy Head of Public Relations
and Media Department of the RA President’s Administration); commission
members – Ruben Satian (Chief Editor of “Novoye Vremya” newspaper), Artem
Sargsian (Chief Editor of “Armenia” TV company) and Aram Safarian (Deputy
Director of the Second Armenian TV Channel). Armenian citizens, who are
reputable and competent experts in journalism, law, broadcast management,
science, culture and arts, having higher education and fluent in Armenian
language, can take part in the competition. The deadline for the
applications is on February 1, 2005.
Competition for filling in vacancies in the Council of Public TV and Radio
Company was announced due to expiration of a four-year term of service of
two Council members on January 19, 2005 – Henrik Hovhannisian and Stepan
Poghosian.
A similar competition will be held in Armenia for the first time and is
conditioned by the amendments to the RA Law “On Television and Radio”,
adopted on December 3, 2003 by the National Assembly. According to the
changes, the formation of the broadcast regulatory bodies (the PTRC Council
and the National Commission on Television and Radio) must be made by
competition. However, the members will still be appointed by the President
of the country – nowadays from among the competition winners.
“SHOGHAKAT’ RESUMED BROADCASTS
Since January 24 “Shoghakat” TV company resumed its broadcasts. The break in
the air lasted for a week (since January 17) and was due to technical
re-equipment of the channel.
When reprinting or using the information above, reference to the Yerevan
Press Club is required.
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Editor of YPC Newsletter – Elina POGHOSBEKIAN
____________________________________________
Yerevan Press Club
9B, Ghazar Parpetsi str.
375007, Yerevan, Armenia
Tel.: (+ 374 1) 53 00 67; 53 35 41; 53 76 62
Fax: (+374 1) 53 56 61
E-mail: [email protected]
Web Site:

Baghdad Art Gallery Offers Some Hope
By HAMZA HENDAWI
.c The Associated Press
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) – Automatic fire rattled a short distance away as
Qasim al-Sabti and a group of friends gathered around a makeshift fire
in an outdoor cafe on a cold January morning to debate Iraq’s
election.
What caught the men’s attention, however, wasn’t the gunfire, but what
al-Sabti said next.
“I am going to vote for Ayad Allawi,” al-Sabti, a prominent Sunni
Arab painter, casually declared. That caused disapproving looks from
some sitting around the logs burning in a metal tray at the cafe of
Baghdad’s famous Hewar Art gallery.
His support for Iraq’s Shiite prime minister, however, did not lead to
any violence or hate-filled arguments. Instead, in this gallery that
serves as a gathering place for Baghdad’s artistic and intellectual
elite, the statement kicked off a debate on the country’s Sunday
elections that went on for nearly two hours.
No one yelled, everyone remained friendly and no one sought to openly
challenge al-Sabti’s choice of Allawi.
Sunday’s vote has taken on a dangerous racial and religious slant
because of the likelihood it will lead to a new era of political
domination by Iraq’s Shiite majority and a loss of power long held by
minority Sunni Arabs.
A Sunni-led insurgency is stepping up attacks to derail the vote,
targeting Shiites, electoral workers and polling centers.
Against this backdrop, al-Sabti and his friends offer a ray of hope
that Iraqis – a mix of religious and racial groups – can live together
in peace. At Hewar, Arabic for dialogue, they prove it every day when
many others are fast losing faith.
“We speak about the election every day. It is like the biscuits we
eat with our tea,” said al-Sabti.
“Sometimes, voices are raised, and that’s when I intervene,” said
al-Sabit, who has an uncanny ability to improvise rhymed verse, and
often inserts a funny line. “But, I swear to you by God Almighty,
it’s a healthy exchange.”
Al-Sabti’s friends are painters, poets, actors, sculptors and
critics. They come from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds from all
parts of Iraq – the Kurdish north, the mainly Sunni Arab center and
the mostly Shiite south. There are Christians and ethnic Turks among
them, too.
Their vision of Iraq contrasts sharply with the sectarian incitement
posted on the Internet by Sunni militant groups, with the views of
Shiite extremists or with the calls to boycott the vote from Sunni
clerics.
They speak with pride and confidence of the bonds that keep Iraqis
together – tens of thousands of cross-ethnic and cross-religious
marriages – and of the large and influential tribes that include both
Shiite and Sunni clans.
Politicians, including some in Allawi’s Cabinet, have warned that
growing sectarian tensions and a Sunni Arab vote boycott could plunge
Iraq into civil war.
But al-Sabti, who is married to a Shiite Muslim, passionately
disagrees.
“This thing about Shiites and Sunnis is purely political,” he said.
“Politicians are exploiting it. When I went to ask for my wife’s hand
in marriage from her family, they did not ask me whether I was a
Shiite or a Sunni.”
Sculptor Ali Risan, a Shiite member of the group, is similarly open,
saying with bravado that he doesn’t care who gets to be the next
president of Iraq. “He can be a Muslim, a Christian or a Yazidi “
referring to a small religious sect.
Another member of the circle, Sunni Arab painter Salam Omar, says he
is against boycotting the vote. A native of the town of Ana in Anbar
province, where the insurgency and opposition to the vote is fiercest,
he has lived outside Iraq most of the past decade.
“The election offers us a chance to protect our rights. It’s better
than losing everything by not voting at all,” he said.
Some might see such views as overly optimistic, given the examples of
past conflicts such as the 1990s Balkan wars, when extremists
prevailed, managing to silence a moderate majority
And it is certainly true that Sunday’s elections have failed to
inspire some Iraqis. Wissam Zakho, an Armenian Christian painter from
Mosul, Iraq’s third largest city, says he has not yet decided whether
to vote.
“It’s all a mystery to me. I don’t have to vote, do I?” asked the
slender Zakho as he showed a visitor one of his watercolor works, a
scene of a stream and its banks.
Al-Sabti, who quit Saddam Hussein’s Baath party to protest the 1990
invasion of Kuwait, created Hewar in Waziriyah, a mixed Baghdad
neighborhood, in 1994 to give Iraq’s artistic community a meeting
place. Saddam’s ouster nearly two years ago resulted in international
fame, when the gallery showed sculptures depicting Iraqi suffering and
the perceived cruelty of the U.S. military.
But al-Sabti says it is the chance to talk openly and with warmth that
sets Hewar apart.
“This place is like Iraq in the 1960s,” he says. “It was such a
romantic time, even in Iraq. Everyone now tries to resurrect the
spirit of the 1960s. In Hewar, we succeeded.”
01/27/05 02:48 EST

First checks distributed from insurance settlement for Armenians killed by
Turks
.c The Associated Press
AP Photos NYR101-2
NEW YORK AP) – Five Armenian charities received checks for $333,333
(euro254,744) each Wednesday as part of an insurance settlement with
descendants of Armenians massacred 90 years ago by the Turks.
The checks are part of a $20 million (euro15.28 million) settlement
with New York Life Insurance Co., which issued 2,300 policies to
Armenians in Turkey before 1915 that were never paid, according to
plaintiffs’ attorney Brian Kabateck.
Armenians contend that 1.5 million people were executed between 1915
and 1919 by Turkish authorities who accused them of helping the
invading Russian army during World War I. Turkey rejects the genocide
claim and says Armenians were killed in civil unrest during the
collapse of the Ottoman Empire. France and Russia are among countries
that have declared the killings genocide, but the United States has
not.
The agreement set aside at least $11 million (euro8.41 million) for
descendants, $3 million (euro2.29 million) for charities and $2
million (euro1.53 million) for administrative costs. Four charities in
Los Angeles will receive the rest of the $3 million (euro2.29
million).
Descendants of the policy holders have until March 16 to file claims.
The settlement, approved last year by a federal judge in Los Angeles,
is believed to be the first involving the events of the era.
On the Net:
01/26/05 17:03 EST

AzerNews, Azerbaijan
Jan 27 2005
Khatami states support for Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity

President Ilham Aliyev’s long-awaited visit to Tehran represents a
particular importance in terms of regional security and major
economic projects between the two countries. Iranian President
Mohammad Khatami said
in his meeting with Aliyev on Monday that Iran is interested in
expanding ties with Azerbaijan in all areas. He said the Azerbaijani
President is one of the few officials whose visit is closely followed
by the Iranian media and public.
“I have been looking forward to this visit and this finally came
true”, President Aliyev said in reply. He gave a high assessment to
the Azerbaijan-Iran relations and voiced confidence that the
documents to be signed will be beneficial.
Aliyev told a press conference following the meeting that bilateral
relations are developing rapidly and their current level meets the
two countries’ interests. He also pointed out that there is a
potential to further strengthen the ties in an efficient manner.
Khatami said with regard to the Upper Garabagh conflict that Iran
supports Azerbaijan’s stance.
“Our position is clear and Iran is one of the very few countries that
support Azerbaijan’s position. We support a conflict resolution not
by force but through talks and diplomacy.”
Khatami also said Iran is ready to cooperate with the conflicting
sides in resolving the Garabagh problem.
In reply to a question about reasons for Iran’s expressing a firm
position on the Palestine issue but not on the Garabagh problem,
Khatami said he condemns occupation by any country.
“Israel has completely occupied the Palestine territory . However,
unlike Israel, Armenia has not occupied a large portion of
Azerbaijan’ land.”
President Aliyev’s Tuesday meetings with the chairman of the Iranian
Islamic Council Assembly Haddad Adil and chairman of the State
Advisory Council, Iran’s former President Alakbar Hashimi Rafsanjani
focused on the Upper Garabagh conflict.
“Azerbaijan’s biggest problem is the Armenian aggression,” said
President Aliyev, expressing his disappointment with the fact that
peace talks have been fruitless so far.
The President also voiced his satisfaction with the approach of
regional countries, including Iran, to the conflict settlement issue.
He said, however, that “regional countries should be more actively
involved in the conflict resolution.” Afterwards, President Aliyev
had a meeting with Iran’s high religious leader Ali Khamnei, who
remarkably spoke Azeri.
Khamnei stated that certain countries are opposed to the
Iran-Azerbaijan friendship.
“We will always be friendly neighboring countries regardless of what
happens around the world.”
President Aliyev said that Azerbaijan, as a sovereign country,
pursues an independent policy. Developing relations with Iran meets
Azerbaijan’s interests and no force may impede this, he said.
On the same day, President Aliyev visited the Khodro automobile
plant. The leadership of the plant, which produces small and large
buses along with Mercedes and Peugeot cars, presented a ‘Samand’ car
to the Azerbaijani President.
Aliyev also met with Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani and
visited the Azerbaijani embassy in Iran.
On Wednesday, the President will hold another meeting with Khatami to
be followed by signing of about 10 documents covering the political,
economic, transport, energy and cultural fields.
A $1 million grant to be allocated by Iran will be spent on building
the Shahtakhti-Poldashti bridge over the Araz River in the Nakhchivan
Autonomous Republic. Iran also plans to allot $4 million in loans for
the construction of the Astara-Baku highway.
President Aliyev will wrap up his visit to Iran after visiting
Azerbaijan’s Chief Consulate in Tabriz.

Press Release
Armenian Professionals Network of Western Diocese
3325 North Glenoaks Blvd.
Burbank,CA 91504
Contact: Vahe Ashjian
Tell.818-558-7474
Fax.818-558-6333
[email protected]
APN hosts Armenian Chamber of Commerce
On Thursday, January 20th, 2005 the Armenian Professionals Network
(APN) hosted an event in honor of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry
of the Republic of Armenia, presided by His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan
Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese and attended by Council
member Frank Quintero. The event was APN’s first of the year, and
introduced the newly formed Chamber tothe community. Mr. Arture
Zabounian, Vice-Chairman of APN serves as Master of Ceremonies.
Several representatives of the Chamber spoke about their work and
goals, as well as possibilities for local businesspersons. The
speakers included: Grant Dagstanyan (Director), as well as Mr. Parsegh
Kartalian and Mr. Khatchig Khoudikian (advisors of the chamber). Other
members of the Chamber of Commerce also took the podium, including
Mr. Adrin Nazarian, government relations consultant; and Miss Annette
Vartanian, executive director of the Armenian-American Chamber of
Commerce. The event was extremely successful in introducing to those
present the many facets of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the
Republic of Armenia, including its missions, history and activities.
Present during the event were also several individuals running for
different government positions: Mrs. Laura Vartanian, Mr. Vahe
Hovanessian, Mr. Chahe Keureglian, and Mr. Vrej Agajanian. At the
close of the event Mr. Vahe Ashjian, Chair of APN informed the
attendees of the role of APN within the community and introduced the
Executive committee of APN. In his address His Eminence Archbishop
Hovnan Derderian welcomed Mr. Frank Quintero as a member of APN and
thanked him for his unwavering support of the organization. The
Primate also commended the diligence of APN, congratulated them on
making their first event of the year a success, and wished them luck
as they commence upon another year. The eventwas sponsored by
Mrs. Nelly Dagstanyan (Quiznos located at 902 North Vermont Avenue,
Los Angeles)

Azer Tag, Azerbaijan
Jan 26 2005
PACE RESOLUTION IN SPOTLIGHT OF TURKISH MEDIA
[January 26, 2005, 20:05:07]
On January 25, in Strasbourg, at the winter session of Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe, passed discussions around the
report prepared by the British rapporteur of this Organization,
deputy David Atkinson in connection with the Armenia-Azerbaijan,
Nagorny Karabakh conflict, and was adopted relevant resolution that
is widely covered by the Turkish mass media. All news agencies and
newspapers of the friendly and brotherly country, informing the
readers about the PACE resolution, regard this event as a historic
step and success of the Azerbaijan diplomacy.
The Turkish journalists and political analysts have especially
emphasized that the European politics for the first time have named
Armenia a state-aggressor, and the Armenian community of Nagorny
Karabakh – separatist forces. Deputies of PACE have unequivocally
regarded occupation of one of the member-countries of this
international organization, territories of other country as an
inadmissible fact, have demanded from Armenia to withdraw the armed
forces from the occupied Azerbaijani lands, have called the OSCE
Minsk Group for greater activity.
In opinion of political analysts of Turkey, this resolution will play
a positive role in peace settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan,
Nagorny Karabakh conflict.

Agence France Presse
Jan 26 2005
Azerbaijan cheered by PACE resolution on Nagorno-Karabakh
AFP: 1/26/2005
BAKU, Jan 26 (AFP) – A strongly-worded resolution on Nagorno-Karabakh
from the Council of Europe will help lead to a settlement of the
decade-old dispute over the territory between Azerbaijan and Armenia,
Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev said Wednesday.
“This doesn`t mean that our territories will be freed immediately,
however it is an important political step towards their being freed,”
Aliyev said in televised remarks, referring to the resolution passed
Tuesday by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
(PACE).
In some of the strongest language it has used to describe the 1990s
Nagorno-Karabakh war, the assembly said the conflict led to
“large-scale ethnic expulsion and the creation of mono-ethnic areas
which resemble the terrible concept of ethnic cleansing.”
An ethnic Armenian enclave that had a 25 percent Azeri population
before the conflict, Nagorno-Karabakh was the object of a war between
Armenia and Azerbaijan until 1994 when the active phase of the
conflict ended with Armenia in control of the territory inside
Azerbaijan`s borders.
It resulted in an uneasy truce with about a dozen soldiers along the
ceasefire line still killed each year by sniper fire and mines.
A 19-year-old Azeri soldier, Elhan Feizullayev, died along the
Azeri-Armenian ceasefire line Wednesday, Azerbaijan`s ANS television
reported.
“The resolution`s approval is a great victory for Azerbaijan. This
document has partially satisfied Azerbaijan`s interests… look at
Armenia`s reaction and you will see how it was defied,” Aliyev said.
In Yerevan, Armenia`s foreign ministry said the resolution was not
drafted objectively because of interference by the head of PACE`s
legislative committee, a citizen of Armenia`s other long-time
adversary, Turkey.
“Nevertheless we support the reaffirmation of a host of principles
which in particular affirm that independence and secession may only
be achieved through a lawful and peaceful process based on democratic
support by the inhabitants of that territory,” the foreign ministry
said its statement.
Azerbaijan`s foreign ministry hailed the PACE resolution.
“Azerbaijan has always considered the actions of Armenia to be a
typical example of ethnic cleansing… . Although the resolution does
not reflect this in a categorical way, it is still positive,” an
Azeri foreign ministry spokesman told AFP.
The PACE resolution urged the parties concerned to comply with UN
Security Council resolutions by refraining from any armed hostilities
and “by withdrawing military forces from any occupied territories”.
Azerbaijan`s foreign ministry said it viewed the passage of the PACE
non-binding resolution as a sign of the international community`s
keen interest in a resolution of the Karabakh conflict.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Zaman, Turkey
Jan 26 2005
‘Armenian Minister not Based in Reality’
By Ali Pektas
The Director of Ataturk University’s Turkey-Armenia Relations
Research Institute, Assistant Professor Erol Kurkcuoglu, said he did
not find the statement by Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanyan
that was published in Zaman yesterday regarding their recognition of
the Kars Agreement to be in earnest.
According to Kurkcuoglu, Armenia has followed hostile policies
against Turkey so far and said Armenia should prove it recognizes the
Kars Agreement by withdrawing from the occupied Azerbaijani
territories and making necessary amendments to the constitution. Some
eastern Turkish provinces such as Erzurum, Kars, Agri, Igdi, Ardahan,
and Van are still called West Armenia in the constitution, said
Kurkcuoglu, and this should be corrected. He also said that Armenians
must withdraw immediately from the territory of Karabag (Karabakh)
from which 1.5 million Azerbaijanis had to emigrate. “If Armenia
recognizes the Kars Agreement, it has to give up the so-called
genocide claims,” Kurkcuoglu said. The Director also clarified that
Armenians killed 519,000 civilians in Eastern Anatolia between 1914
and 1919 contrary to their claims and said they have been inviting
Armenian scientists to their panels and symposiums, but that they
decline to attend.
Erzurum
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

AzerTag, Azerbaijan
Jan 26 2005
OFFICIAL VISIT OF AZERBAIJAN PRESIDENT ILHAM ALIYEV TO IRAN
MEETING OF PRESIDENT OF AZERBAIJAN ILHAM ALIYEV WITH PRESIDENT OF
IRAN SEYED MOHAMMAD KHATAMI
[January 26, 2005, 15:36:37]
On January 26, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev
staying on an official visit in the Islamic Republic of Iran met with
President of the country Seyed Mohammad Khatami.
The Azerbaijani leader described the visit as very successful and
fruitful from the standpoint of development of cooperation between
Azerbaijan and Iran.
The parties pointed out that the issues discussed during the meetings
held in the course of the visit fully correspond to the national
interests of the two countries. The stated with confidence that
strengthening of the Azerbaijan-Iran friendship and cooperation would
promote peace and stability in the region, as well as bring the
cooperation in political, economic, humanitarian and other fields to
a qualitatively new level.
It was also noted that there was a favorable conditions and legal
basis to deepen bilateral links in all spheres and realize mutually
beneficial projects.
The two leaders also touched up the Armenia-Azerbaijan,
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, stated the necessity of respecting
principles reflected in the documents adopted by the United Nations
and other international organizations with respect to this problem.
The Iranian President reaffirmed that his country’s stance is that
the conflict must be resolved on the base of territorial integrity
and inviolability of the borders of the Azerbaijan Republic.

Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
Jan 26 2005
USAID to Cut Allocations To Azerbaijan
The US Agency for International Development (USAID) plans to allocate
less funds to Azerbaijan than Georgia and Armenia in 2005, the
National NGO Forum president Azay Guliyev told journalists.
USAID will disburse $48 million to Georgia, $43 million to Armenia
and $18 million to Azerbaijan this year, Guliyev said.
`Such distribution of allocations is unfair, considering that
Azerbaijan’s population and territory are greater and the country has
over a million refugees and displaced persons.’
Guliyev said that grants allocated by international donor
organizations are the only source of funds for local NGOs. He also
noted that several NGOs have suspended their activity due to the
large number of such organizations, increasing competition among them
in grant projects and dwindling donor programs.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress