Azeri pundit points to similarities between Karabakh, Middle East problems
Yeni Musavat, Baku
29 Nov 04

Text of unattributed report by Azerbaijani newspaper Yeni Musavat on
29 November headlined “Karabakh is becoming a tiring problem” and
subheaded “Leyla Aliyeva: The West wants to make people forget about
the problem”
It was impossible to break the deadlock in the Karabakh peace talks
this year either. The outgoing year of 2004 could be regarded as the
most passive and unsuccessful (wasted) one in the history of the
conflict settlement. The OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs do not conceal
this either.
However, some garrulous “analysts” were extremely upbeat in 2003 and
said that there would be a U-turn in the conflict settlement
immediately after the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidential elections
and after new leaders enter their offices. This was not the case. The
idea of “starting talks from scratch” suggested by [Azerbaijani
President] Ilham Aliyev to show off was a fiasco.
The only positive memorable point about the issue this year was the
Baku government’s initiative to put the issue on the agenda of the UN
General Assembly. Unfortunately, the discussions were not successful
and failed to meet our national interests. A draft resolution [on the
occupied territories of Azerbaijan] was not adopted. The vote was
postponed indefinitely. However, we learnt an expert opinion about the
importance of the initiative and the consequences it might have.
Commenting on the UN discussions, political analyst Leyla Aliyeva said
that an analysis of the recent developments had produced some negative
results.
“Watching the peace process, one can conclude that someone wants to
put the Karabakh problem on the back burner. I can also observe that
they have stopped mentioning Karabakh at conferences and
meetings. They are Europe and the USA in the first place. They want
the parties to the conflict to gradually integrate and cooperate,” she
said.
>From this standpoint, the political analyst highly assessed the
putting of the issue on the UN agenda.
“We should always keep the issue in the focus of the international
community. In particular, we should take into account the fact that
Armenians are being settled on our occupied lands. This is a very
dangerous process. Because it will be rather difficult to return those
lands after Armenians settle there. This has been the case in the
Middle East.”
Incidentally, the political analyst stressed that the same scheme and
approach were being taken both on the Nagornyy Karabakh and Middle
East problems at the moment.
“The conflict has been continuing in the Middle East for 40
years. Jews settled on the occupied territories and this has emerged
as an additional problem now. Of course, we do not need such a
problem. Therefore, the UN General Assembly discussions might be
regarded as positive. But it would be wrong to expect major and
practical results from these discussions. I do not think that they
will act as an important incentive for the peace process. This is good
tactics as a PR campaign.”
Commenting on reasons for the negative stance of leading western
states and of the US envoy [presumably, the USA’s Karabakh mediator
Steven Mann] to the Karabakh discussions in the UN, Leyla Aliyeva said
that they did not want the issue to be a subject of discussions in a
larger framework. Because they think that the sides can find a common
language within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group more
easily. They think that it would be wrong to hinder in any way the
talks based on making mutual compromises that have been under way
within the framework of the Minsk Group for a long time. The mediators
think that the discussion of the issue in the UN precisely hinders the
talks and creates tension.
From: Baghdasarian

Armenian, Iranian officials to launch gas pipeline construction on 30
November
A1+ web site
28 Nov 04
26 November: The construction of the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline will start on
30 November. A delegation led by [Armenian Prime Minister] Andranik Markaryan
will leave for Syunik Region [southern Armenia] on 29 November to attend a
ceremony of launching the construction.
On the same day, the prime minister will attend the opening of the third
power supply line between Iran and Armenia.
An Iranian delegation led by Energy Minister Habibollah Bitaraf will arrive
in Syunik region as well. The energy ministers of the two countries will meet
in Yerevan on 1 December to discuss cooperation.

Azerbaijan protests at transit of goods to Armenia via Georgia
Trend news agency
29 Nov 04
BAKU
Azerbaijan is not going to let goods into Georgia if they are
redirected to Armenia, Azerbaijan’s First Deputy Prime Minister Abbas
Abbasov told reporters on 29 November.
Abbasov said that under a number of bilateral and international
agreements Azerbaijan has signed, the country allows its territory to
be used for transit and transportation of various types of cargo on
condition that its national interests are protected. Azerbaijan’s sole
stipulation is that its territory should not be used for transit of
goods to Armenia, he said.
Abbasov said that Azerbaijan has signed agreements to that effect also
with Georgia, which has to meet its commitments. However, he said,
there are some reports that Azerbaijan’s territory is being used for
transit of fuel to Armenia. The issue was discussed with the Georgian
authorities in Tbilisi last week.
“Georgia is our friend and partner. Azerbaijan has no claims to
Georgia, but we should not let this to happen. We have demanded that
the Georgian authorities put a strict ban on the transit of goods to
Armenia via Azerbaijan,” Abbasov said. “If the process persists,
Azerbaijan will prevent any goods from entering Georgia,” he said.

Tajik secretary to attend CIS security chiefs’ session in Armenia
Asia-Plus news agency
29 Nov 04
DUSHANBE
Secretary of the Tajik Security Council Amirqul Azimov will attend a
session of the Security Council committee of secretaries of the
Collective Security Treaty Organization [CSTO] on 30 November. The
Security Council secretaries of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan will meet in Yerevan.
The secretaries are to consider the role and place of the CSTO in
counteracting international terrorism and coordinate a series of
documents aimed at increasing the CSTO’s efficiency in this sphere,
the Tajik Security Council Secretariat told Asia-Plus.
The session is expected to discuss the setting-up of a coordinating
structure of the CSTO member states on counteracting drug
trafficking. It is also to consider the preparation of a list of
terrorist organizations and the training of military cadres.

Over 140kg of drugs seized in Belarus during special operation in CIS
Belapan news agency, Minsk
29 Nov 04
Over 140 kg of drugs have been confiscated by law-enforcement bodies
in Belarus during the Kanal-2004 [Channel-2004] operation that was
held on the territory of the member states of the Collective Security
Treaty Organization (Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan
and Tajikistan), the Belarusian news agency Belapan reported on 29
November. A total of 339 crimes were registered and 334 criminal cases
were instituted in Belarus during the Kanal-2004 operation, the news
agency added. The drugs, property, funds and material values that were
confiscated in Belarus during the operation are worth about 630,000
dollars, Belapan said.

Georgia plays down stoppage of transit cargo in Azerbaijan
Rustavi-2 TV, Tbilisi
29 Nov 04
[Presenter] Let’s turn to the events in Georgia. Azerbaijan’s
representatives in Georgia have made their first comments about the
stoppage of Georgia-bound cargo.
Tomorrow employees of the two countries’ customs departments will
start inspecting railway wagons heading for Georgia. The Georgians
will have to prove that the neighbouring state’s produce is not being
forwarded to Armenia. A total of 712 Georgia-bound wagons are sitting
idle at the stations in Azerbaijan. [Passage omitted]
[Correspondent] Azerbaijan’s ambassador to Georgia, who had a meeting
at the Georgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs this morning, has said
that the agreements should not be violated. He was referring to the
agreement prohibiting the forwarding of transit cargo to third
countries if this harms national interests of either country.
[Ramiz Hasanov, Azerbaijan’s ambassador to Georgia, interviewed] Every
country has its own interests. Would we be infringing Georgia’s
national interests if we were supplying diesel or other produce to
Abkhazia or [South] Ossetia? I think that we would.
[Mikheil Ukleba, deputy foreign minister] Not all cargo is being
blocked. Two hundred and seventy four tank wagons, as well as
grain-loaded trains, have left for Georgia. He [presumably Hasanov]
has stressed that not a single Georgia-bound shipment will be
stopped. [Passage omitted]
[Correspondent] The Georgian Customs Department has said that Georgia,
not Armenia, is the consumer of the products made in Azerbaijan.
[Levan Jgharkava, captioned as head of directorate of the customs
control] Goods made in Azerbaijan have not been going to Azerbaijan
[should be Armenia] via Georgia because there is a separate agreement
on this. While this agreement speaks about the produce of other
countries, i.e. Turkmenistan, passing through Azerbaijan and
Georgia. [sentence as heard]
A delegation of Azerbaijan’s customs department will arrive in Georgia
tomorrow. Together with the Georgians, they will study the information
about the shipments suspended in Azerbaijan.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Azerbaijan, Georgia in talks over blocking of railway traffic
Azad Azarbaycan TV, Baku
29 Nov 04
[Presenter] The Azerbaijani ambassador to Georgia, Ramiz Hasanov, has
been invited to the Georgian Foreign Ministry over the detention of
over 900 railway wagons at the Boyuk Kasik station on the
Azerbaijani-Georgian border. While Georgian Prime Minister Zurab
Zhvania has said that the situation will not affect bilateral
relations, the Georgian Foreign Ministry has expressed its concern. In
the meantime, the release of the wagons is still in question.
[Correspondent over video of freight trains] The number of wagons
being kept on the Azerbaijani-Georgian border has already reached 975,
the deputy head of the freight processing department under the
Azerbaijani State Railway Department, Teymur Mammadov, has told
ATV. Of these, 450 wagons are loaded with diesel fuel, 396 with grain,
69 with flour, 50 with fuel oil and 12 with LPG [liquefied petroleum
gas].
The issue was discussed during meetings of the visiting representative
from the Georgian Railways Department, (?Ramaz Giorgadze), at the
State Customs Committee. Tomorrow, Azerbaijani customs officials will
leave for Georgia for negotiations, the Azerbaijani ambassador to
Georgia, Ramiz Hasanov, said.
The Azerbaijani diplomat was invited to the Georgian Foreign Ministry
today to discuss the current crisis. Answering journalists’ questions
after the meeting, the ambassador said that Baku insists on the
implementation of the agreement signed during Azerbaijani President
Ilham Aliyev’s visit to Tbilisi. The agreement stipulates that it is
unacceptable to transport by railway cargo that does not meet
Azerbaijan’s and Georgia’s interests.
[Hasanov, over phone] Under that agreement, we have the right to stop
such cargo on suspicion. And this cargo has caused
suspicion. Therefore, we have detained it to conduct an inquiry. Of
course, cargo cannot go through our territory and through the
territory of Georgia to Armenia. We suspect that this cargo might be
bound for Armenia, so we have stopped it.
[Passage omitted: Georgian Prime Minister Zurab Zhvania says the
problem should not be blown out of proportion and that some of the
cargo has already crossed the border]

UN expects Azeri government to be more involved in helping refugees
ANS TV, Baku
26 Nov 04
Presenter Natavan Babayeva Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev today
received a delegation led by UN High Commissioner for Refugees Ruud
Lubbers.
At a press conference, Lubbers said that UN resolutions are
meaningless if they are not observed.
Correspondent over video of the press conference I highly value the
programmes implemented by the Azerbaijani government to improve the
living conditions of refugees, and this is the cause for the recent
decrease in aid, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Ruud Lubbers said
at the press conference on the results of his visit to the region.
Lubbers with Azeri voice-over It is good that despite facing economic
difficulties Azerbaijan spends its profits from oil on refugees. The
international community is somewhat tired. There are two reasons for
that. First, the international community sees that Azerbaijan has
restored its economic and financial strength. We expect the government
to get more involved in this. In spite of that, we will stay in
Azerbaijan and continue our operations as a UN body and with a limited
budget.
Around 70 humanitarian organizations operate in Azerbaijan but among
them the UN office in Azerbaijan has a special role, the head of the
State Commission for Refugees and Involuntary Migrants, Ali Hasanov,
said. It is with the assistance of this body that programmes worth 66m
dollars are being implemented, he said. There is a need to continue
this cooperation, Hasanov said, because correspondent stops in
mid-sentence :
Hasanov Those territories will sooner or later be freed from
occupation. Those people will start returning. In that case we will
have to ask for and benefit from the international experience of the
UN office.
Correspondent In turn, Lubbers said that the main issue now is
achieving the political settlement of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict
and returning refugees to their land. But no matter how important
political debates are, they do not help to resolve the conflict, end
of quote. Lubbers also expressed his concern that UN resolutions are
not being implemented.
My task is to help the people who have been subjected to violence,
Lubbers said. He did not forget the 30,000 Armenians living in
Azerbaijan. The Nagornyy Karabakh conflict has worsened their
situation as well and as a humanitarian organization we would like to
help them, he said. Seeing that the idea elicited dissatisfaction from
Azerbaijani journalists, Lubbers said that he was surprised that so
many Armenians live in Azerbaijan. He also added that one may be proud
of Azerbaijan because of the 30,000 Armenians.

SECOND HIGH VOLTAGE POWER TRANSMISSION LINE LAID BETWEEN ARMENIA AND IRAN
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 29. ARMINFO. The second high voltage (220 KV) power
transmission line between Armenia and Iran is to be launched Nov 30
2004, says the director general of the High Voltage Power Transmission
Lines (HVPTL) company Sahak Abrahamyan.
The 82 km line was laid on Iran’s $8.4 mln credit. Its capacity is 200
MW. The line connects Shinuar and Agarak towns in Sunik and is
expected to redouble electricity flows between Iran and Armenia.
The general contractor is Sanir (Iran), the client HVPTL. The project
is based on the energy cooperation memorandum signed by Armenia and
Iran in July 2002. The Iranian credit is to be repaid in electricity
supplies. Dec 1 the sides are to sign a memorandum to lay the third
high voltage line.
Sanir is also the general contractor of the project to lay the
Armenian section of the Megri-Kajaran 42 km gas pipeline. The work is
to be started Nov 30 2004.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Georgia: Abkhaz war veteran group warns winner of disputed presidential poll
Apsnypress news agency, Sukhumi
29 Nov 04

Excerpt from a statement adopted at a meeting of Abkhaz war veterans
in Sukhumi on 29 November, carried by the Apsnypress news agency
Since the October 2004 presidential election an extremely complex
political situation has developed in Abkhazia. [Passage omitted: the
election was marred by irregularities]
It must be noted that not a single ethnic group voted overwhelmingly
for any of the candidates, except for the Megrelians [Georgians from
the western region of Samegrelo] and Georgians, about 85 per cent of
whom voted for one candidate [Sergey Bagapsh]. Such unanimity can only
be explained by the use of certain election and, more generally,
geopolitical methods [as received]. The identity of the authors of
these methods is apparent from what happened in the not too distant
past in Serbia, Armenia and Georgia. These Western, or, to be more
precise, American methods are aimed at undermining the influence of
Russia, America’s main rival in this part of the world.
Given the fact that the Russian Federation has been our military and
political ally in recent years, what is at stake here is not only the
presidency but the country’s future strategic course. We must be very
thorough in dealing with this issue. This course can only be changed
by citizens of Abkhazia, people who have Abkhaz passports and have
renounced the citizenship of the enemy state [Georgia] and are ready
to serve in the Abkhaz army.
In the present situation, we deem it essential that:
(a) under no circumstances should force be used and any step taken by
either side should be within a legal framework;
(b) the results of the presidential election held in the republic of
Abkhazia should be declared null and void;
(c) within 24 hours, the blockade of all state-owned installations,
including government buildings, the Abkhaz state television and radio
committee as well as all television masts, should be lifted and the
appropriate state agencies should take over the guarding of these
installations;
(d) the formation of a new central electoral commission should begin,
with due account being taken of the interests of public and political
forces;
(e) the process of issuing passports of the republic of Abkhazia
should begin;
(f) a new presidential election should be called in the republic of
Abkhazia.
We appeal to S.V. Bagapsh not to hold an illegal inauguration on 6
December. If he does not take our views into account and proceeds
with his inauguration, we, reservists and special detachment
commanders, will only obey the first president of Abkhazia,
V. Ardzinba.
[dated] 29 November 2004, Sukhumi