Slovenia must learn about “so far neglected” regions as OSCE chair – paper
STA news agency
14 Jan 05
Ljubljana, 14 January: A paper suggests on Friday [14 January] that
Slovenia’s stint at the helm of the OSCE could boil down to “listening
missions”. Some of the country’s priorities indicate, however, that
its main guideline will not be silence, nodding, consensus seeking and
running the organization.
Dnevnik says that the relations between the USA and Russia are at a
freezing point after the “para-war” between the East and the West in
Ukraine’s presidential election, at least about who is to control the
region between Armenia and Kazakhstan.
The paper claims that Slovenia as the OSCE chair will not be able to
make an end to the superpowers flexing their muscles over which should
have a sway over the increasingly important geostrategical
regions. The solution lies in the Kremlin and the White House.
Slovenia has shown more decisiveness in the Kosovo issue. This zeal is
encouraged by the geographical vicinity and the fact that until
recently, Slovenia and Kosovo made part of a common state.
Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel therefore spoke with ease about Kosovo
as he met foreign reporters after outlining the priorities of
Slovenia’s presidency before the Permanent Council on Thursday.
But Dnevnik notes that the FM was at a loss when asked about the
chances for a reconciliation between Tbilisi and the breakaway
republic of Abkhazia after the presidential election re-run there. He
broke the embarrassing silence with an excuse, saying he had not
managed to study the election and that he was therefore not the right
person to answer the question.
What appeared to be an insignificant incident demonstrates the
broadness of the OSCE activity. More importantly, its shows the
chairman-in-office must have certain knowledge about a number of hot
spots, not just about the “Balkan hobby”, Dnevnik highlights.
“If Slovenia does not want the organization to be worse off as it
hands it over to Belgium in a year, its entire diplomatic network will
have to considerably improve its knowledge about the regions it has so
far neglected”.

RECEP ERDOGAN: IF ARMENIA DOES NOT ADMIT KARS TREATY FROM 1923, THEN
LET THEM NOT BE OFFENDED
YEREVAN, JANUARY 14. ARMINFO. “If Armenia does not admit the terms of
the Kars Treaty from 1923, then let them not be offended”, Prime
Minister of Turkey Recep Tayip Erdogan stated at a news conference in
Ankara concerning the results of his visit to Russia.
At the same time, he stressed that Turkey does not want to have
offended neighbors, but it aspires to regulate the problems with
Armenia, and “Armenia’s vacating the occupied territories of
Azerbaijan” must become a pre-condition here. “We have always taken
positive steps to meet Armenia halfway, in particular, we are working
towards establishment of land communication between the two countries
and organizations of private air transportation”, Erdogan mentioned.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

IN 2004 FOREIGN CITIZENS HAVE ADOPTED ABOUT 60 ARMENIAN CHILDREN
YEREVAN, JANUARY 14. ARMINFO. About 60 Armenian children have been
adopted by foreign citizens in 2004. Minister of labor and social
affairs of the Republic of Armenia Aghvan Vardanian informed,
answering a question of an ARMINFO correspondent.
According to him, during the last two years the cases of adoption of
Armenian children by foreign citizens have decreased. At the same time
the Armenian Government makes maximum efforts for that the Armenian
children were adopted foreigners – Armenians.

San Diego Union Tribune, CA
Jan 14 2005
‘Vodka Lemon’: Dry comedy via Armenia
By David Elliott
Union-Tribune Movie Critic
The red of communism has bleached from post-Soviet Armenia, and the
hills are white with dense snow. In “Vodka Lemon,” often penurious
rustics scuffle for U.S. dollars, hope for cash from relatives in the
West, and sell off heirlooms.
Hiner Saleem’s dry, wintry film is a gentle hug for Armenia as an
outpost of endurance; life is all coping. Widowed Hamo (Romen
Avinian) is in mourning and going broke, but has the time and vigor
to shyly court a lady (Lala Sarkissian) who sells vodka to
half-numbed truckers on a desolate road.
The tone is one of mildly mournful comedy, of a carpet gone
threadbare yet still richly colored. When the vendor is asked why
Vodka Lemon doesn’t taste at all like lemon, her reply is a sobering
shrug: “It’s Armenia.”

Civil Georgia, Georgia
Jan 14 2005
Armenia Hails Progress in Transport Cooperation with Georgia
A report issued by the Armenian Foreign Ministry, which overviews
the country’s foreign policy in 2004, reads that progress made in
transport cooperation with Georgia is a main achievement of last year
in the relations between the two countries, RIA Novosti news agency
reported.
The report underlines the special importance of the trilateral
agreement between Armenia, Georgia and Russia over launching a rail
ferry service between the Georgian port of Poti and Russian port of
Kavkaz, which is scheduled to start in January, 2005. The route will
replace the currently operating ferry service between Poti and the
Ukrainian port of Ilichevsk.
Armenia expects to benefit a lot from this direct link with Russia.
It is expected that the rail ferry service will reduce the price of
transportation of cargo from Armenia to Russia by 30%. Armenia also
used the Poti-Ilichevsk rail ferry service.

Media Monitors, USA
Jan 14 2005
Humiliating EU deal offers little to Turkey
by M A Shaikh
“…while the French and the Austrians, as well as others, are
virtually certain to block Turkish membership, they are not at all
hostile to the prospect of, say, Romania or Bulgaria joining,
although, as Ankara points out, these countries are even poorer than
Turkey. Their accession talks are in full swing, and they are not
subject to humiliating or obstructive objections or conditions.”
The deal recently negotiated by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish
prime minister, in Brussels on his country’s longstanding quest for
membership of the European Union is, by general agreement, unfair and
humiliating, and by no means indicates – let alone guaranteeing –
that Turkey will eventually be allowed to become a member of the EU.
All it secures for Turkey is accession talks beginning on October 3,
which could last for a decade or more- with even more humiliating
conditions attached – and still fail to lead to admission into the
EU. Yet Erdogan, whose government is often described in the West as
`Islamic-leaning’, is determined to sell this compromising and
controversial arrangement to his own sceptical people -even to the
extent of arguing publicly that they should do much more than they
have already done to prove that their country is fit to be admitted
to the EU. But despite the fact that a large number of Turks are keen
to see their country join the Union and will support his conciliatory
– some would say submissive – style, the prime minister will find it
difficult to take the majority on board.
So much has been written and broadcast on the deal struck in Brussels
on December 17 that its provisions are familiar to all Turks and most
Muslims elsewhere, and need not be repeated here in detail.
Basically, an agreement was reached to commence accession talks on
October 3, with the understanding that talks will only start once
Turkey has signed an association agreement with all EU members,
including Greek Cyprus. A much stronger demand, calling for the
diplomatic recognition of the island, was rejected by Erdogan, who
threatened to walk out of the summit. This demand was based on the
contention that Ankara could not be invited to accession talks when
it did not recognise members of the organisation it wants to join.
Greek Cyprus was admitted to the EU on May 1 last year, despite the
fact that a UN project for reuniting the Greek and Turkish parts of
the divided island was on the table at the time.
The Turkish Cypriots had accepted the UN plan; the Greek Cypriots had
rejected it. By admitting the Greek part, the EU sabotaged the UN
project; while dropping its attempt to force Ankara to recognise
Greek Cyprus directly, it seems to have succeeded in forcing it to do
so indirectly. A direct recognition would have turned the Turkish
army’s presence in Northern Cyprus into that of an occupier. It was
not, therefore, surprising that Erdogan – and the chief of the
Turkish armed forces – objected strongly to it.
But the mere acceptance of the condition that accession talks will
not begin until Ankara signs a trade-agreement with the Greek
Cypriots means that the basis of an eventual recognition has been
laid. Moreover, the fact that the EU can make the start of accession
talks conditional on such a demand, and get away with it, means that
it can make further demands – such as Ankara’s agreement that the
killing of Armenians by the Ottomans amounted to `genocide’. On
December 19, for instance, Tassos Papadopoulos, the ruler of Greek
Cyprus, repeated his warning that Turkey’s EU accession is not
guaranteed, and that Cyprus would not support it unless Ankara
recognised his government. The prospect of Turkey joining the EU was
also treated with caution by much of the European media, and
opponents – led by Nicolas Sarkozy, head of the governing UMP party
in France – continue to express reservations.
Sarkozy told French television: `Europe already has difficulty
functioning with 25 members. The more members Europe has, the less we
will be integrated, the less we will share common values and the more
fragile we will be.’ Sarkozy is said to be more hostile to admitting
Turkey than Jacques Chirac, the French president, who is on record as
having said that he is in favour of Turkey’s membership.
Interestingly, it was Chirac who began to lay down the most effective
basis for rejection of membership when he announced that he would put
French acceptance to a referendum. He must know full well that most
French voters will reject it without any hesitation, given the
opportunity. Austria, another EU member – whose population is as
hostile to Turkish membership as the French – has announced that any
decision to admit Turkey will be submitted to a referendum. According
to EU rules, every member-state has the right to veto the acceptance
of new members by referendum.
But while the French and the Austrians, as well as others, are
virtually certain to block Turkish membership, they are not at all
hostile to the prospect of, say, Romania or Bulgaria joining,
although, as Ankara points out, these countries are even poorer than
Turkey. Their accession talks are in full swing, and they are not
subject to humiliating or obstructive objections or conditions.
So it is not at all surprising that a cross-section of Turkish
society, including highly secular people and groups, have objected
strongly to the deal agreed by Erdogan, demanding, when he returned
to Ankara from Brussels, that he abandon it. The opposition parties
and Islamic groups were the most vocal in their criticism. Denis
Baykal, leader of the main opposition group, the Republican People’s
party, said that `this is not the EU we want’, perhaps hinting, like
other objectors, that he is willing to join a union that respects
Turkish culture, religion and dignity. Certainly there are many Turks
from ethnic and religious minorities, such as the Kurds and the Roman
Catholic Christians, who believe that joining a friendly EU as an
equal member can advance their interests.
Most Turks who want to join the EU, however, `want to be a part of
Europe, but with our honour and values intact,’ as a factory-worker
was quoted on December 18 in a London paper as saying. The mayor of a
Turkish town, described by the same paper as `an undiluted EU
enthusiast’, says that he is `hurt’ by the attitudes of Europeans
towards his country.
Erdogan should heed his people’s views and feelings, and stop
demeaning them and destroying their bargaining position. By siding
with them, he is likely to gain more than from ignoring them for the
sake of a process that is extremely unlikely to culminate in the end
he desires.

Interfax
Jan 14 2005
Tbilisi ready to welcome NATO special envoy
Tbilisi. (Interfax-AVN) – A group of NATO experts has arrived in
Tbilisi to prepare the official opening of an office of the NATO
Special Representative for the South Caucasus and Central Asia,
Nikolai Laliashvili, chief of the defense policy and European
integration department in the Georgian Defense Ministry, told
Interfax- Military News Agency Friday.
According to him, the office will open in Tbilisi in February.
“It will be in Tbilisi, but will deal with Azerbaijan and Armenia,
rather than Georgia only,” he added.
He emphasized that the NATO special representative’s appointment is
an extremely important event for his country in terms of stepping up
the interaction with the Alliance, especially in light of the
organization’s approving of the program of cooperation with Georgia
in 2004.
The decision to send liaison officers and a special representative of
NATO to Transcaucasia and Central Asia was made at the NATO 2004
summit in Istanbul.
U.S. citizen Robert Simmons, NATO Deputy Secretary General, was
appointed the Alliance’s Special Representative for the South
Caucasus and Central Asia, who is expected to visit the countries in
the region from time to time. NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop
Scheffer introduced Simmons to leaders of the countries in question
during his November visit to the South Caucasus.
The Tbilisi office will also include Romualds Razhuks, the 49-year
old advisor to the Latvian defense minister and the former vice
speaker of the Latvian Seimas, who will be the liaison officer
coordinating the activities with Simmons.
Georgia voiced its intent to join NATO during the Prague summit in
2002.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
Jan 14 2005
Armenia becoming more interested in talks – Deputy FM

2004 can be described as a more active year in terms of the
negotiating process on the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Upper
Garabagh, Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov told
journalists on Thursday. He said that during the three meetings of
the Azerbaijani and Armenian Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Robert
Kocharian and the four meetings of Foreign Ministers Elmar
Mammadyarov and Vardan Oskanian held in 2004, `views were exchanged,
which resulted in commonalities currently being discussed’.
Azimov said, however, that the approaches of the two sides are very
different and the situation is complex. At the same time, the parties
are interested in continuing the talks and consider them important
and useful, he said.
Azimov stated that `the meetings held are very important, but
`sensitive’, therefore, the sides agreed to provide the media `not
with the details but general information about them’.
Azimov emphasized that there are still a lot of differences, but said
he is confident that `the discussions will yield concrete results’.
He said that Armenia is becoming more interested in the talks.
`We hope the other side indeed has an intention to resolve the
conflict’, he said.
The Deputy Foreign Minister also pointed out that that the conflict
can be settled only within the principles of international law and
Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity.*

Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
Jan 14 2005
OSCE fact-finding mission to visit occupied territories

The OSCE Minsk Group (MG) co-chairs from Russia, United States and
France are due to arrive in Baku on January 28, Deputy Foreign
Minister Araz Azimov told a press conference on Thursday.
The MG co-chairs will visit the country as part of the OSCE
fact-finding mission which will look into the illegal settlement of
Armenians in the occupied
Azerbaijani lands. The mission will also include OSCE MG co-chairs
from
Germany, Italy, Switzerland and Finland.
Azimov said that the mission members will hold a number of meetings
with Azeri officials, after which they will tour the region. He said
that as part of preparations for the visit, the co-chairs will meet
with the other mission members in Vienna on January 21 to discuss
technical issues.
The Deputy Foreign Minister continued that `the mission should not
give any political assessments but prepare a report on the facts it
witnesses and confirms’.
The mission will visit five Azerbaijani regions – Kalbajar, Lachin,
Jabrayil, Gubadly and Zangilan, where Armenians were purposefully
settled, Azimov said.
`With regard to the two other regions, Aghdam and Fuzuli, I am not
aware of such facts’, he added.*

Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
Jan 14 2005
NGO Forum appeals to CE rapporteur

The Non-governmental Organizations (NGO) Forum has proposed to make
changes to the report prepared by the Council of Europe rapporteur on
Upper Garabagh David Atkinson to be presented to the PACE winter
session on January 25.
The Forum chairman Azai Guliyev told a recent roundtable that
although Atkinson’s report is unbiased, it does not reflect a number
of important issues. He welcomed the fact that the document confirms
Armenia as an aggressor, which perpetrated ethnic cleansing against
Azerbaijanis in Upper Garabagh and adjacent regions, and is trying to
establish a mono-ethnic state in the area, while Upper Garabagh is
controlled by separatist forces.
The appeal, signed by over 100 NGOs, was forwarded to rapporteur
Atkinson, relevant Council of Europe entities and embassies of CE
member-states in Baku.
The document suggests that the CE rapporteur’s report include
liberation of Upper Garabagh and seven neighboring regions,
immediately starting the process of returning refugees to their
homes, Armenia’s guaranteeing their security, evaluating and
compensating the financial and moral damages inflicted to Azeris who
became refugees as a result of occupation and deportation. The NGOs
also called for indicating the atrocities committed by Armenian
forces against civilians in Khojali in 1992 and legally assessing
this at the European Court and demanded Armenia to clarify the fate
of 4,852 Azerbaijanis that became captives, hostages and missing
persons in 1990-1994.*