Azeri spiritual leader, European Commission chief discuss Karabakh

ANS TV, Baku
17 Sep 04

[Presenter] European Commission President Romano Prodi, who is on
a visit to Baku, has started his official meetings. He visited the
Martyrs’ Avenue and the grave of [Azerbaijani ex-President] Heydar
Aliyev this morning. Then he met the chairman of the Board of Muslims
of the Caucasus, Sheikh ul-Islam Haci Allahsukur Pasazada.

[Correspondent, over video of the meeting] European Commission
President Romano Prodi held his first official meeting with the
chairman of the Board of Muslims of the Caucasus, Sheikh ul-Islam
Haci Allahsukur Pasazada. The heads of the Orthodox and Catholic
churches and the leader of the Jewish community of Azerbaijan also
attended the meeting. The spiritual leader mainly spoke about the
Nagornyy Karabakh problem. He said that Armenia wants to show that
the war with Azerbaijan was a religious one.

[Pasazada, speaking at the meeting] We can prove this. If you want to,
we can show you crosses drawn on the bodies of Azeri captives after
their death. By destroying Muslim graves, shrines and mosques they
wanted to turn this conflict into a religious one.

[Correspondent] However, we sat at a negotiating table with many
spiritual leaders, including the Russian patriarch. We proved that
there were no religious reasons for that war, it was not a religious
war, the sheikh said. He said that Armenia claimed that the Azeris
do not want to live alongside the Armenians. And we all know that
25,000 Armenians live in Azerbaijan today. However, there isn’t a
single Azeri in Armenia, end of quote.

In turn, European Commission President Romano Prodi said that he came
to Azerbaijan to discuss new proposals for promoting cooperation.

[Prodi, in English with Azeri voice-over] The European community
is open to your public not only in terms of the economy but also
politics. For this reason, it is important that representatives of
various confessions took part in this dialogue. We know that there
are many conflicts in this region. We can help you resolve them.

[Correspondent] Prodi cited as an example conflicts between France and
Germany and said that their relationship later improved. He noted that
Azerbaijan and Armenia should implement their commitments to the UN and
other international organizations in line with the documents signed.

Ceyhun Asgarov, Sehrac Azadoglu, ANS.

Georgian lawmakers say Russian double standards in Caucasus helped cause Beslan tragedy
ED JOHNSON

AP Worldstream
Sep 17, 2004

Senior Georgian lawmakers said Thursday that Russia’s failure to
bring stability to the Caucasus, and the Kremlin’s “double standards”
in dealing with separatists there, had contributed to the Beslan
school massacre.

Nino Burdzhanadze, Georgia’s parliament speaker, said the man blamed
for the bloody school siege, Chechen rebel warlord Shamil Basayev,
enjoyed Kremlin support more than a decade ago when he fought Georgian
troops in the breakaway province of Abkhazia.

“What happened in Beslan unfortunately is a reason of double standards
which Russia used every time,” she told journalists during a visit to
London. “You should punish killers and terrorists just immediately. If
you use terrorists, if you use persons like Basayev, one day he will
turn his guns against you … What happened in Beslan was the fault
of Russia, it is absolutely clear,” she added, speaking English.

The school hostage taking, which resulted in more than 330 deaths,
“demonstrated that Russia’s policy to northern Caucasus needs very
fundamental changes and amendments,” said lawmaker David Bakradze. He
urged European countries and the United States to become more active
in the region.

The Caucasus refers to the portion of southern Russia that includes
Chechnya and North Ossetia, where the school attack took place,
as well as the former Soviet republics of Georgia, Armenia and
Azerbaijan. South Ossetia is part of Georgia, while North Ossetia is
a Russian region just across the border.

The lawmakers, who met with British Foreign Office Minister Bill
Rammell, said they were very concerned by Moscow’s threats to strike
at terrorist bases outside Russia’s borders. Russia has repeatedly
complained that Chechen insurgents use Georgia’s rugged Pankisi Gorge
to hide and regroup.

“We are very troubled with those statements,” said Bakradze. “We are
afraid very much that this very idea of fighting against terror could
be used for slightly different purposes by Russian military … This
unpredictability of Russia and absence of democracy in Russia worries
us very much because militaries can make almost any decision that
they want and nobody will be punished.”

Russia and Georgia have had a tense relationship since the breakup
of the Soviet Union, and Georgia has moved to boost its ties with
the European Union and the United States to offset the influence of
its giant neighbor.

Tensions have flared over the fate of Georgia’s separatist regions of
Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which have enjoyed de facto independence
since breaking away in armed conflicts in the early 1990s. Both have
strong ties to Russia, which Georgia has accused of interference as
Tbilisi seeks to return them to the fold.

The lawmakers repeated President Mikhail Saakashvili’s calls for an
international conference to ease tension in South Ossetia. Russia
wields powerful influence in South Ossetia, where most residents have
been given Russian passports and many want the region to become part
of Russia.

They said Western support was essential to efforts to unite their
fractured country and said European allies could play an important
role in convincing Moscow that a stronger Georgia was not a threat
to Russia.

“We want cooperation with Russia. We have a huge common interest
which is stability in the Caucasus. Russia still acts with a Cold
War mentality in the Caucasus,” said Bakradze, who is chairman of the
parliament’s committee on European integration. He pointed to Moscow’s
unhappiness when the United States deployed between 80 to 100 military
trainers to Georgia to help it cope with fighters in Pankisi Gorge.

“If Georgia is strong we can guarantee security of the southern flank
of Russia,” Bakradze added.

The lawmakers said they wanted Georgia to become an associate member
of the European Union within three years.

THE MEETING OF NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

Azat Artsakh – Nagorno Karabakh Republic (NKR)
17 Sept 04

On September 15 the first plenary meeting of the 9th session of the NKR
National Assembly took place. In his address the speaker of the
National Assembly Oleg Yessayan condemned the terrorist action in
Beslan and expressed condolence in the name of the parliament for the
tragic consequences of the monstrous crime. The members of parliament
kept a minute of silence in honour of the innocent victims of the
tragedy. The meeting confirmed the program of legislative activities
of the ninth session consisting of 24 points. It was mentioned
that new bills undertaken by the government might be added to the
program, mostly connected with the upcoming budget discussions. Before
confirming the agenda of the session the parliament met the suggestion
of member of parliament Edward Aghabekian to withdraw his undertaking
â^À^ÜOn amendments to the NKR law on privatization of the state
propertyâ^À^Ý. As a procedure question the meeting confirmed the
staff of the NA temporary counting commission: members of parliament
Souren Sarghissian (chairman of the commission), Artur Sarghissian
(secretary of the commission) and Albert Hambardzoumian. The first
point on the agenda was the question of choosing a chairman of the
permanent committee of social matters. It was stated that starting
from the legislative act according to which the same person cannot
assume two posts simultaneously the chairman of the commission Edward
Aghabekian who was elected head of the town community of Stepanakert
at the recent elections to municipalities presented an application for
releasing him from the former post. The speaker of the NA congratulated
Edward Aghabekian for being elected mayor of Stepanakert, thanked
him for effective organization of the activity of the committee
and wished further success in his new office. The leader of the NA
faction of Democratic Liberal Union, Janna Galstian suggested the
candidacy of member of parliament Vasili Atajanian. There were no
other suggestions. Close secret balloting was held and the majority
voted for Vasili Abgari Atanessian. According to the agenda the meeting
discussed a number of documents of vital importance. The NKR minister
of finance and economy Spartak Tevossian presented the government
report on budget execution in the first semester of 2004. The
deputy chairman of the NA permanent committee of finance, budget
and economic management Souren Sarghissian presented the positive
conclusion of the committee. According to the government report,
against the owned receipts of 1771100.0 thousand AM drams provided
by the state budget the actual receipts totaled 2628319.6 thousand
drams which is 148.4 per cent of the planned rate. Against the actual
receipts of the same period last year the actual receipts increased
by 1243428.2 thousand drams, the growth totaled 89.8 per cent. The
parliament discussed also the bill â^À^ÜOn Lottery Gamesâ^À^Ý. It was
mentioned that this bill is a novelty in our country and although
there are no corresponding agencies in the republic involved in
this type of activity, the document will be an attempt to fill the
gap. The bills on amendments to the â^À^ÜLaw on state pensionsâ^À^Ý
and â^À^ÜLaw on social security of parentless children â^À^Ý were
offered for discussion by the minister of social security Lenston
Ghulian. He mentioned that the first bill provides increasing the
size of the pensions of parentless children five times the basic
pension reaching it to 15 thousand drams from January 1, 2005. The
second maintains the privileged order of providing housing area to
parentless children. Both the laws were adopted. At the second reading
of the bill â^À^ÜOn amendments to the law on the repressedâ^À^Ý the
author of the undertaking Levon Hayrian presented a report. Mentioning
that in the past months no new suggestions were made on the project,
the chairman of the permanent committee on state and legal questions
Youri Hayrapetian addressed the members of parliament to pass the
project as a final law. The law was adopted. Then the briefing with
the participation of the government and prime minister Anoushavan
Danielian was held. The questions set forth by members of parliament
Ararat Petrossian, Artur Mosiyan and Kamo Barseghian referred to
the problems of privatization of state property, the fate of the
liberated territories, struggle against the wild animals dangerous
for the village population. After the first plenary meeting of the
ninth session of the NKR National Assembly at the suggestion of the
faction of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation behind closed doors
the members of parliament exchanged viewpoints on the statements of
the Chief of the NKR Defence Army Headquarters Major-General Movses
Hakobian published in Armenian press.

AA. 17-09-2004

EUROPEAN COMMISSION HEAD VISITS GEORGIA

Kavkasia-Press news agency, Tbilisi
17 Sep 04

Tbilisi, 17 September: European Commission President Romano Prodi will
pay an official visit to Georgia on 17-18 September. The head of the
European Commission mission to Georgia and Armenia, (?Torben Holtze),
said at a news briefing today that the visit would last 24 hours and
would be quite busy.

Romano Prodi will meet Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili,
Prime Minister Zurab Zhvania, Parliament Chair Nino Burjanadze and
other officials.

(Passage omitted: known facts about Prodi)

Armenian Assembly of America
122 C Street, NW, Suite 350
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: [email protected]
Web:
 
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 17, 2004
CONTACT: David Zenian
E-mail: [email protected]

ASSEMBLY JOINS U.N. CONFERENCE ON MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Washington, DC – The Armenian Assembly participated in a U.N. conference in
New York last week, co-sponsoring a special workshop that focused on
strategies to empower women from different cultures, including Armenia.

The workshop, within the framework of the 57th Annual U.N. Department of
Public Information and Non-Governmental Organizations (DPI/NGO), was
entitled “Empowering Women Worldwide: Implications for Gender Equity,” and
attended by more than 100 international NGO representatives.

Dr. Nicole Vartanian, one of the four panelists who was sponsored by the
Armenian Assembly, is a former U.S. Fulbright Scholar in Armenia, where she
taught and worked on issues relating to civic education and education
policy. She currently serves as a senior research associate at the U.S.
Department of Education.

Dr. Vartanian opened her presentation with a concise background on Armenia
and spoke about issues involving education trends, gender inequity in
Armenia’s labor force, Armenian NGO action to address some of the existing
difficulties.

She said the Armenian Assembly’s NGO office in Yerevan was closely involved
with a number of locally established NGOs in Armenia in working on gender
issues with the aim of promoting women’s participation in Armenia’s
political process, economic development, conflict resolution as well as
safeguarding women from domestic violence.

“I was very privileged to have this opportunity to bring issues facing women
in Armenia today to this important United Nations conference. The Assembly’s
U.N. and Armenia NGO offices play an important role in this process, and I
am proud to be part of the effort,” Ms. Vartanian said.

The Seminar was the latest in a string of similar U.N. forums on issues like
women in the media, eradication of poverty and women’s role and behavior in
the aftermath of earthquakes in which the Assembly has actively
participated.

“With the Assembly’s active and continued participation in these United
Nations forums, we are promoting Armenia’s priorities. These initiatives are
also of great importance and interest to the Armenian-American community at
large,” Assembly Executive Director Ross Vartian said.

The Assembly recently expanded its representation at the United Nations as a
non-government organization in a Special Consultative Status with the UN’s
Economic and Social Affairs Council (ECOSOC). Zara Ingilizian, Christina
Lehmejian-Karaszewski and Meldia Yesayan have joined Diane Paravazian as
Assembly representatives on a volunteer basis. Research & Information
Associate Emil Sanamyan serves as the Assembly’s primary representative to
the U.N., providing overall program direction.

The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide
organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian
issues. It is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

NR#2004-085

Armenian Assembly of America
122 C Street, NW, Suite 350
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: [email protected]
Web:

PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 17, 2004
CONTACT: Christine Kojoian
E-mail: [email protected]

CONGRESSMAN SMITH JOINS ARMENIAN CAUCUS

Seattle, WA – At the urging of Armenian Assembly activists, Congressman
Adam Smith (D-WA) on September 13 joined the Congressional Caucus
on Armenian Issues, bringing the total Caucus membership to 140.
Smith, who announced his decision during an Assembly-led meeting in
Tacoma, WA, will become the second lawmaker from the state to serve
on the Caucus.

“I enjoyed our conversation and the opportunity to meet with some
of the various members of the local Armenian community,” said
Smith, who serves on the House International Relations Committee.
“The information you shared was very useful and I look forward to
the opportunity to learn more about the issues affecting this part
of the world.”

Assembly Western Office Chairman Richard Mushegain said he welcomes
Smith’s membership to the Caucus and commended activists for raising
the issue with him as well and others.

“Assembly activists, in meetings across the country, have successfully
utilized the congressional summer recess to articulate the community’s
concerns and encourage membership to the Armenian Caucus,” said
Mushegain. “We look forward to working with Congressman Smith and
his colleagues in securing trade benefits and U.S. assistance that
are so critical to Armenia and Nagorno Karbakh’s ongoing development.”

The district meeting, led by Western Office Director Lena Kaimian,
included Reverend Father Yeghia Isayan of the Armenian Apostolic
Church-Seattle, Affiliate Zareh Kevorkian and activists Razmik
Keutelian and Sonya Tanielian. Later that day, the group also met
with Congressman Norman Dicks’ (D-WA) District Director Tom Luce.
Talks centered on U.S. aid to Armenia, the Azeri war rhetoric and the
U.S.-Armenia trade bill. Through Luce, activists also urged Dicks to
join the Armenian Caucus.

Prior to the congressional meetings, Assembly Board of Directors
Member Lisa Kalustian joined Kaimian for a community briefing at the
Armenian Apostolic Church-Seattle. Kalustian and Kaimian discussed the
Assembly’s legislative agenda, providing a status report on the Foreign
Operations bill as well as the trade measure. Kaimian also discussed
the Assembly’s Washington and Yerevan internship programs, explaining
the opportunities available for college students of Armenian descent.

“The Assembly extends it thanks to Church officials for providing
a venue for our event,” said Kalustian. “We also thank community
members for their participation and interest in the Assembly.”

The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based
nationwide organization promoting public understanding and awareness of
Armenian issues. It is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

NR#2004-084

Photograph available on the Assembly’s Web site at the following link:

,%20Lena,%20A
ctivists%209

Caption: (L to R) Reverend Father Yeghia Isayan of the Armenian
Apostolic Church-Seattle, Assembly Affiliate Member Zareh Kevorkian,
Congressman Adam Smith (D-WA), activists Sonya Tanielian and Razmik
Keutelian and Assembly Western Office Director Lena Kaimian in Tacoma,
WA on September 13.

Poll Finds Public Distrust In Armenian Anti-Graft Plan
By Armen Zakarian 17/09/2004 10:26

Radio Free Europe, Czech Republic
September 17 2004

Armenians remain overwhelmingly skeptical about the success of their
government’s declared fight against corruption with almost half of
them believing that it itself is the biggest obstacle to the rule of
law, according to a new poll made public on Thursday.

The survey conducted by the Armenian Center for National and
International Studies (ACNIS), a private think-tank, shows that nearly
two thirds of about 2,000 people interviewed across the country
are not familiar with an anti-corruption strategy unveiled by the
authorities last year. Only 5 percent of them are confident that it
will be successfully implemented, ACNIS pollsters said. Forty-nine
percent said they would subscribe to the view that “a corrupt regime
can not fight against itself.” Others attributed the perceived lack
of results in the stated anti-graft crusade to government incompetence
and pervasive influence of business “oligarchs.”

The authorities’ anti-corruption plan approved by Western donors
is a set of largely legislative measures designed to curb illegal
practices such as bribery and nepotism. A special body headed by Prime
Minister Andranik Markarian was formed earlier this year to oversee
its implementation. The Council on Combating Corruption in turn set
up a “monitoring commission.”

The success of the council’s stated mission was called into question
in June by a senior representative of the Berlin-based watchdog
Transparency International. He said the body is likely to be
ineffectual because it is not independent.

According to the ACNIS survey, the most common popular perception
of the problem’s root causes is a political one, with 42.8 percent
saying that Armenia’s rulers lack legitimacy because they did not
come to power as a result of democratic elections. “In a country
that has disputed elections many people agree that the government
gives privileges and other rewards to those who helped them come to
power,” Stepan Safarian, a leading ACNIS analyst, told journalists,
presenting the survey results.

More than a third of those polled said they were offered bribes in
return for voting for particular candidates in last year’s presidential
and parliamentary elections. Most claimed to have refused to accept
the illegal payments.

Votes bribes are one the most frequent forms of Armenia’s chronic
electoral fraud which marred the 2003 elections criticized as
undemocratic by international observers.

The poll also suggests that nearly half of Armenians bribe government
officials at least once a year. The bulk of those who admitted doing
so said their kickbacks were meant to ensure fair and lawful treatment
by government bodies. Health care institutions, the judiciary and
the military were singled out by most respondents as the most corrupt
structures in Armenia.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

EU: European Commission President Talks To RFE/RL On Relations With South Caucasus
By Ahto Lobjakas 17/09/2004 10:42

Radio Free Europe, Czech Republic
September 17 2004

The president of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, today begins
a tour of the South Caucasus. In an interview with RFE/RL, Prodi says
he will travel to the three capitals offering closer ties and aid —
but no membership perspective.

Prodi also rules out direct EU involvement in managing the region’s
conflicts, although he indicates the bloc is leaning on Russia to
play a constructive role. RFE/RL spoke with Prodi on the eve of his
departure. Brussels, 16 September 2004 (RFE/RL) — All three South
Caucasus capitals in recent months have asked the EU a simple question
— is the bloc’s door still open?

EU leaders are struggling to find a simple answer.

The official policy — Prodi told RFE/RL this week — is to avoid
talk of doors altogether.

He has a clear message to Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia that might
be paraphrased as “do not look a gift horse in the mouth.”

Instead of focusing on membership, he says, the three should take
advantage of what the EU is already offering — including a special
“neighborhood” policy that could pave the way for more investment
and economic opportunity.

“We must give [the three South Caucasus countries] this message:
‘Europe is a big market. In the future, when you’re building your
economy, you can export to Europe — and indeed not only energy.
Europe is [also] a big investor. It is enormous…the biggest economic
[actor] in the world and [it] is not far from the three countries.’ So,
we are ready to invest. We must prepare a climate in the three
countries. And then in our aid we always help to build infrastructure
linking the three countries or helping [train] customs officials to
facilitate trade and the movement of people, etc.,” Prodi said.

Concerning eventual EU membership, Prodi says this is not possible as
long as the borders of Europe remain unclear. Prodi acknowledges the
EU’s basic treaties promise membership to all “European” countries.
But, he says, Europe’s borders are not fixed and change with time.

He adds that now — just after the EU has added some 10 new members —
is a bad time to fix the borders. He says the European public must
be sent a message that Europe is not enlarging every day.

“But this does not mean that these three countries do not belong to
Europe. They don’t belong now, and it is not planned that they belong
in the ‘European Europe.’ But the doctrine of the neighborhood policy
that we worked on so long and so deeply is [there] to build links of
friendship and cooperation, strong links with countries, which for
the foreseeable are not members of the [European] Union,” Prodi said.

Prodi does not exclude the possibility that the border of Europe may
in 2015 run between Turkey on the one hand and Georgia and Armenia
on the other. He hastens to caution that the EU has yet to decide
whether to open accession talks with Turkey — the commission is due
to make its recommendation on 6 October. But he points out that once
talks begin, they do so “with the perspective of closing them.”

Prodi also directs his comments to Russia. He says Russia is a key
partner and an important player when it comes to the future of the
South Caucasus.

He avoids comment on recent Russian statements indicating the
possibility of pre-emptive strikes on terrorist targets outside its
own borders. But he does say that Russia, in his opinion, is not
interested in destabilizing the region.

“I think that now Russia is interested in promoting stability and
security in the area. This is what I think, and I know that the
Russians are wise, they have no interest to enlarge any conflict,”
Prodi said.

Prodi suggests that the EU — as a “strong, independent” friend of
Russia — can help in resolving what he calls the “frozen conflicts”
of the South Caucasus. But he rules out any EU military presence in
the region, at least for the time being.

Prodi says force is not an option for any of the problems of any of
the three countries. This is particularly true of Georgia and its
troubles with North Ossetia and Abkhazia. Prodi refuses to directly
indicate whether Tbilisi’s use of massive force would jeopardize its
blossoming ties with the EU.

He also observes that Georgia has in recent history used “intelligent
force” — this is a veiled reference to the largely peacefully resolved
conflict with Adjara.

Prodi says the EU engages in no favoritism among the three countries,
although Georgia is, so far, alone among the three to have benefited
from an international donors’ conference which netted a many million
dollar windfall.

Prodi promises the EU will be an “honest broker” among the three
countries.

“Globally, Georgia receives more money. But if you analyze European
policy, it has been very honest between the three countries. I am
not happy that the amount of resources has not been enough for the
terribly big needs of the countries, but I want to have a balanced
strategy,” Prodi said.

He says no donor conferences are planned for Armenia or Azerbaijan
at this stage.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Police seek public’s aid in finding missing man
By Daily News

Los Angeles Daily News, CA
September 17 2004

GLENDALE — Detectives on Thursday were seeking the public’s help
in locating Grigor “Vrej” Adamyan for questioning in the 2003
disappearance of 33-year-old Martin Pogosian.

Pogosian, a medical clinic manager, was last seen in Los Angeles
on Jan. 23, 2003, at 3:30 p.m. after leaving a business meeting
in Glendale.

“He was in a dispute over the telephone and went downtown to handle
that,” said Sgt. Steven Davey of the Glendale Police Department. “He
was missing after that.”

Police believe Adamyan had some sort of dealings with the victim.

Pogosian’s family had last talked to him by cell phone Jan. 24, 2003,
a few hours before a large kidnap-ransom request was delivered to an
unknown Armenian in Los Angeles. The family has helped police identify
business associates and friends. He is described as a family man who
always was in contact with his family.

The Glendale Police Department’s Special Investigation Unit has
developed new leads in the case and is asking for the community’s help.

Anyone with information is asked to call Davey at (818) 548-6485.

Glendale News Press
LATimes.com
September 17 2004

Officials seek help in finding man

Police look for help in disappearance of man who was last seen more
than a year ago in Glendale.

By Jackson Bell, News-Press

NORTHEAST GLENDALE – Glendale investigators are asking the public to
help find Grigor “Vrej” Adamyan, a man they believe could help them
track down a missing Downey man who was last seen in Glendale more
than a year ago.

A few months ago, police received additional leads in the long-running
investigation of Martin Pogosian’s disappearance that pointed them
toward Adamyan, Sgt. Steve Davey said, adding that Adamyan, who is
a 52-year-old male of average height and weight, is believed to have
business ties to Pogosian.

“We’ve got new information that Adamyan has some knowledge of either
where [Pogosian] is or what happened to him,” Davey said, adding that
he could not release details because the investigation is ongoing.

Pogosian, a manager of a medical clinic in Los Angeles, was last seen
Jan. 23, 2003, leaving a business meeting at a strip mall in the
1200 block of South Glendale Avenue. He had a dispute while on the
phone and then drove to downtown Los Angeles, where he disappeared,
Davey said. At the time, Pogosian was 33.

Pogosian’s family spoke with him by cellphone the next day, a few
hours before a “large” kidnap ransom was delivered to an unknown
Armenian man in Los Angeles, police said.

On Jan. 31, Pogosian’s white 2001 Range Rover was found near Andover
Drive and Glenoaks Boulevard in Burbank.

“Foul play might be a possibility, but we don’t know,” Davey said.
“He could possibly be dead.”

Glendale Police is part of a multi-agency taskforce investigating the
case. Other agencies include the Los Angeles Police and Los Angeles
County Sheriff’s departments, and the FBI.

Pogosian is Armenian; is 5-feet-9; weighs 180 pounds; and has brown
hair and eyes.

Anyone who has information can call Glendale Police at 548-4840.
Anonymous tips can be made by calling Crime Stoppers at 507-7867.