Ria Novosti, Russia
July 20 2004
RUSSIA NOT TO TAKE PART IN NATO EXERCISE IN LATVIA
RIGA, July 20. (RIA Novosti) – On July 20th, the Latvian city of
Aluksne will host the opening of the NATO international military
exercise Rescue Medcare.
This will be the year’s largest exercise, reported the Latvian
Defense Ministry’s press service. In April Latvia together with other
six East and Central European nations became a full-fledged member of
the Alliance.
According to the ministry’s spokesman Ivars Grinbergs, the
headquarters of the two-week exercise will be located in Aluksne, not
far from the Russian border.
The exercise itself will take place in the Latvian port of Liepaja,
where a naval base is stationed, the Lithuanian port of Klaipeda, in
the Estonian cities of Tallinn and Tapa and in the Bulgarian capital
of Sofia.
It will involve about 2,000 servicemen and civilians from 18
countries – Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, the USA, Germany,
Sweden, Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Croatia, Moldova,
Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Uzbekistan.
The exercise aims at “improving cooperation of armed forces with
state and non-state structures in managing critical situations,” the
press service reported.
Among other things, the participants will train methods of
anti-terrorist fight, humanitarian and medical assistance to
eliminate consequences of natural calamities.
The exercise is held as part of the NATO program Partnership for
Peace. It will be coordinated by the command of the US troops in
Europe.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

France hails Turkey reforms,says EU entry years away
By Elizabeth Pineau
PARIS, July 20 (Reuters) – France urged Turkey on Tuesday to push
ahead with economic and political reforms to bolster its bid for entry
to the European Union, but warned Ankara was still a long way from
securing full membership.
Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan emerged upbeat from a “very
positive” working lunch with French President Jacques Chirac, who
supports Ankara’s EU entry bid despite the opposition of his governing
conservative party.
EU leaders will decide in December whether to open entry talks with
Ankara. Britain, Germany, Italy and Greece have pledged strong
support for Turkey’s EU bid, with France seen as the only large EU
state still expressing reservations.
Turkish financial markets are closely watching the run-up to December,
fearful that a ‘no’ could trigger a fresh economic crisis, unseat the
government and perhaps reverse some reforms.
Chirac’s spokeswoman told reporters the French head of state believed
Turkey’s entry into the 25-nation bloc was “desirable as soon as it
actually becomes possible.”
In June, Chirac said Turkey’s EU drive was “irreversible.”
“Turkey has made considerable progress. It should continue and
intensify the implementation of democratic and economic reforms,”
Chirac’s spokeswoman quoted him as telling Erdogan.
Diplomats expect negotiations to start in 2005 but say full membership
is a decade away. Foreign Minister Michel Barnier told Europe 1 radio
Turkey would not join the EU overnight.
“The road is still long, but it is on this path and has been making
progress for some time,” he said.
GREEN LIGHT FOR TALKS
Erdogan said all Ankara wanted for now was a favourable report from
the European Commission on the start of entry talks.
A green light from EU leaders at their end-of-year summit “will not
constitute a decision on Turkey’s joining the European Union, it will
simply be a decision to start entry negotiations with Turkey,” Erdogan
said after meeting Chirac.
Earlier, he told French business leaders Turkish membership would
benefit the Union. He said he was convinced France “will give us the
greatest support” at the EU’s December summit.
Erdogan is using his three-day visit to France to woo government and
political leaders and brief them on Turkey’s progress in bringing its
laws into line with EU rules.
France’s political class is deeply divided over admitting its NATO
ally to the European Union, critics citing Turkey’s poverty and human
rights record as barriers.
Alain Juppe, a close Chirac ally and former head of the conservative
UMP party, has said the entry of a Muslim nation of 70 million would
distort the 25-nation European Union.
The opposition Socialists support Turkish membership in principle, but
party chief Francois Hollande has linked the start of entry talks to
Ankara’s recognition of the 1915 killing of Armenians as genocide.
France is home to a significant Armenian population. Pro-Armenian
groups were to demonstrate in Paris later on Tuesday against Erdogan’s
three-day visit.
Turkey’s ruling centre-right AKP party, which has its roots in
political Islam, has introduced a flurry of liberal political and
economic reforms ahead of December’s decision.
The Turkish government hopes to pass two major EU-linked laws — a
revised penal code bringing criminal law closer to EU norms and a law
easing limits on freedom of association — at a special session in
September.
07/20/04 12:18 ET

Anadolu Agency
July 20 2004
Erdogan: We Want A Date For Opening Of Accession Talks With E.U.
PARIS – Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday,
”Turkey wants a date not for full membership, but for opening of
accession talks with the European Union (EU).”
Prime Minister Erdogan, who is currently paying a state visit to
France, met members of the French Parliamentary Foreign Affairs
Commission.
During the meeting, Erdogan informed members of the commission on
historical development of the bilateral relations between Turkey and
France.
Upon a question about Turkey’s EU membership process, Prime Minister
Erdogan said, ”Turkey wants a date not for full membership, but for
opening of accession talks with the EU.”
Referring to recent developments in Iraq, Prime Minister Erdogan
said, ”Turkey has always advocated that Iraq’s territorial integrity
should be protected, and none of ethnical groups in the country
should be allowed to be dominant over another.”
Upon a question about so-called Armenian genocide, Prime Minister
Erdogan said, ”it is an issue with which historians should deal. As
politicians, we are obliged to build the future instead of discussing
such issues. Armenian diaspora has been trying to keep the so-called
Armenian genocide high on agenda. In fact, it is not beneficial for
Armenia at all. The bilateral relations between Turkey and Armenia
cannot be improved as long as such campaigns continue. If they put an
end to their campaign of defamation against Turkey, border gates
between Turkey and Armenia may be opened.”
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Sierra Sun, CA
July 20 2004
Azad McIver leaves town a lasting legacy
Renée Shadforth
Azad McIver was a small, seemingly shy woman who lived in a tiny
Gateway cottage, but her longtime friends say she had a huge giving
spirit that had a large impact on the Truckee of today.
McIver died July 13 at the age of 95. She and her siblings – Roxie
Archie and Richard Joseph, who preceded her in death – emigrated from
Turkish Armenia in the early 1900s and left a strong legacy in the
Truckee community.
McIver, considered the most soft-spoken and easygoing of her
siblings, was one of the last in a generation that formed Truckee
into what it is today.
“Azad was this remarkable spirit. She always had a giggle or a
laugh,” said Embree “Breeze” Cross, a longtime Truckee resident and
former town council member. “She always found delight in things. She
was the most delightful girl.”
Namesakes of McIver’s generation are splattered all over Truckee.
There are McIver Arena and McIver Hill, named after Azad McIver’s
late husband, Jim. And then there is the Joseph Government Center,
named after the Joseph family.
In 1949, McIver’s brother donated the land for Tahoe Forest Hospital
and the money for many of its facilities. Decades later, after her
siblings died, McIver provided more land for the hospital’s current
expansion project.
“They wanted to build more, I said ‘OK,'” McIver told the Sierra Sun
in March 2003, her words colored with the remnants of her Old Country
accent. “My brother’s wish was to build a hospital. I’d rather take
care of our people here than give it to Uncle [Sam].”
McIver saw most of her friends die in the same hospital. Others moved
from Truckee to more temperate climates.
Azad McIver outlasted most of them.
“I’ve had a lot of good friends,” she told the Sierra Sun. “Most of
them just aren’t around anymore. I come from good stock.”
From Armenia to Truckee
The imprint the Joseph (formerly Hovsepian) family left on Truckee
came after many life struggles and a lot of old-fashioned hard work.
Until her death, McIver was able to tell the stories from her youth
in the Old Country and Truckee in astonishing detail.
McIver was born in Harpoot, in Turkish Armenia, on Oct. 12, 1908 – 18
years after her brother, Dick, and four years after her sister,
Roxie.
At age 6, McIver fled her homeland under her 10-year-old sister’s
wing during the Armenian massacre. They left Turkey on foot, walking
through the Syrian desert to Aleppo, Syria. The girls were placed in
an orphanage staffed by British and French missionaries who kept them
from starving to death.
After contacting their Uncle Mgurdich in Andover, Mass., the sisters
purchased third-class boat tickets and came to the United States on
July 4, 1920.
“I cried – what a beautiful place with beautiful people,” Azad
recalled about her experience coming to America. “It was strange. All
I knew before was Turks, and they wanted to kill us.”
At 16, Azad’s sister, Roxie, married and moved to Worchester, Mass.
Soon after, the newlyweds and Azad moved to Chicago.
In 1922, Dick Joseph – who moved to the States in 1906 and to Truckee
in 1917 – advertised for his sisters in an Armenian newspaper
published in Fresno, Calif. Someone in Chicago brought the ad to the
sisters’ attention, and McIver and Archie met their brother in
Truckee later that year.
A legacy of her own
Although McIver always maintained she donated money to fulfill the
wishes of her brother, who passed away in 1986, McIver created quite
a legacy of her own, said Bob Tilton, who started the Tahoe Forest
Hospital Foundation in 1987.
“Dick did a lot for the community, but Azad carried the banner after
his death,” Tilton said. “Every single expansion the hospital has
ever done, Azad either took part in fund-raising or donated money.”
Tilton, 58, grew up in the Truckee-North Tahoe area and knew the
Joseph family well. He went to Azad once a year to seek a donation
for the hospital, even when her older sister was the one handling the
family’s business.
“[McIver] definitely felt compelled to help the hospital. She always
told me the hospital was vital to building a strong community,”
Tilton said.
In addition to what she gave to Tahoe Forest Hospital, McIver became
a founding member of the Truckee Tahoe Community Foundation in 1999.
The Joseph family also donated to the University of Nevada, Reno
Foundation and Shriners Hospital, among other causes.
Modest living
A photographer and barber by trade, Dick Joseph made his money as a
businessman. He owned Manstyle Barbers, a cigar store and the Pastime
Club in downtown Truckee.
As a young adult, Azad worked at the Pastime, which was a popular
local hangout and speakeasy at the time. Azad met many interesting
people while working at the restaurant, including her late husband,
Jim McIver, a local blacksmith, dairyman and car salesman who
delivered mail to Tahoe City. Azad and Jim McIver were married in
Reno on Aug. 10, 1944.
In 1935, Richard Joseph purchased the land between Gateway and Donner
Lake from the Union Ice Company. The family built the Gateway Motel
in 1939, near the present site of Safeway,
McIver lived modestly in one of the former rental cottages in Gateway
for decades. The walls of her home were plastered with photos
depicting Truckee at a different time.
“They had a lot of money, but you’d never know it,” Tilton said of
the Joseph family. “They traveled a lot, but they didn’t dress fancy.
Dick would be dressed in his old coat. Azad would be dressed in her
old coat.”
Responsibility for community
When Truckee became a town in 1993, Archie and McIver asked
then-Mayor Kathleen Eagan and council member Breeze Cross to come to
their Gateway home. Cross had no idea why at the time.
“They called us over, and they’d heard the town didn’t have any
money, since it was new,” Cross recalls. “They said ‘It’s terrible
that the town doesn’t have any money, so here’s a check for $25,000.’
We were amazed. It was so touching.”
Archie and McIver were known to pop into a public meeting every now
and then when an important decision was going to be made. They wanted
to know about the decisions made in their community, Tilton said.
“That’s the way our community used to be – we helped each other. We
had to,” Tilton said. “Any decision you made affected someone you
know personally.”
In 1997, Archie – McIver’s sister and lifelong companion – passed
away in the Tahoe Forest Hospital long-term care center. Since Archie
handled most of the family’s business, there was some concern about
McIver, the shy sister, carrying the family torch.
But friends say she blossomed and continued to give in the Joseph
family spirit.
“Truckee was their family and they always made us part of their
family,” Tilton said of the Josephs. “The whole family just took it
on as their responsibility, and Azad carried that legacy.”

ITAR-TASS News Agency
TASS
July 20, 2004 Tuesday 8:30 AM Eastern Time
Armyansky Pereulok magazine chief editor’s murder investigated
MOSCOW
The investigation of the murder of the editor-in-chief of the
Armyansky Pereulok magazine Pailak Peloyan has been undertaken by the
permanently acting investigative brigade of the Southwestern district
of the Russian capital, sources in the Moscow Prosecutor’s Office told
Itar-Tass on Tuesday.
Criminal proceedings have been instituted in connection with the
murder of the journalist.
The reporter’s body was found near an overpass at the 43rd kilometre
of the Moscow ring road last Saturday.
“Forensic experts concluded that the journalist died of a
craniocerebral injury and knife wound,” the sources said.
“The investigators are currently considering several versions of the
crime, including a robbery and the version related to the professional
activities of Armyansky Pereulok’s editor-in-chief,” the Prosecutor’s
Office official said.
However, the Armenian Embassy in Moscow told Itar-Tass the Armyansky
Pereulok magazine had been published before 2001.
Founded by poet and prose writer Levon Oganesyan, the magazine was
covering the life of the Armenian community in the Russian capital and
Armenian-Russian relations.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Prime-Tass English-language Business Newswire
July 20, 2004
Gazprom official says Iran-Armenia pipeline to cost $140 mln
YEREVAN, July 20 (Prime-Tass) — The construction of the natural gas
pipeline from Iran to Armenia will cost U.S. USD 140 million,
Gazprom’s Deputy Chairman Alexander Ryazanov told a briefing Tuesday,
after meeting Armenian President Robert Kocharyan.
Gazprom has completed its inspection of the existing part of the
pipeline that runs through Georgia, which may break even in nine
years, Ryazanov said.
“If the parties to this project can attract the funding, then there
should be no problem with the construction of this pipeline,”
Ryazanov added.
But he said that the funding may take the form of government loans or
Gazprom’s own funds.
“The pipeline that runs through Georgia is in a poor technical state
and is badly in need of major repairs”, Ryazanov said.
He ruled out natural gas transit across Armenia, saying that “Armenia
is not a transit country, but a gas consumer.”
Armenia and Iran signed a 20-year agreement on supplies of Iranian
natural gas to Armenia on May 13. Iran is expected to supply 36
billion cubic meters of natural gas to Armenia in exchange for
electric power in the period. It is not clear when the construction
of the pipeline will begin. End

Prime-Tass English-language Business Newswire
July 20, 2004
ArmRosgazprom to increase gas supplies to Armenia 16.6% in 2004
YEREVAN, July 20 (Prime-Tass) — Russian-Armenian joint venture
ArmRosgazprom plans to supply 1.4 billion cubic meters of natural gas
to Armenia in 2004, up from 1.2 billion cubic meters in 2003, but
down from the initially planned 1.6 billion cubic meters, the
company’s press service reported Tuesday.
This change is due to relatively low natural gas consumption in the
Armenian energy sector.
In January-April Russian natural gas monopoly Gazprom supplied 513.9
million cubic meters of natural gas to Armenia.
In 2004 ArmRosgazprom expects to invest 8.273 billion Armenian drams,
including 6.126 billion drams to expand the gas distribution network.
In 2004-2007 ArmRosgazprom plans to invest about 50 billion Armenian
drams.
ArmRosgazprom, the sole natural gas supplier to Armenia, was set up
in 1997 by Gazprom with a 45% stake, Russia-based international gas
trader Itera with 10% and Armenia’s Energy Ministry with 45%. (522.37
Armenian drams – U.S. USD 1) End

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH(LONDON)
July 20, 2004, Tuesday
Short raises hopes of return to form
By Malcolm Pein
NIGEL Short grabbed an early lead in the Sanjin Hotel Cup at Taiyuan
in China after taking full advantage of two games with the white
pieces in the first two rounds.
Last year and early this year Short had a tremendous run of form
which took his rating over 2700, but poor performances in the French
and Bosnian leagues and at the Sarajevo Super Tournament were
followed by a disastrous exit from the Fide World Championship
Knock-Out at Tripoli, when he put a rook en prise after outplaying
the Polish Grandmaster Michal Krasenkow.
The tournament in China may well herald a change in fortunes for the
England number two, although he was certainly lucky to win his first
game against Xu Jun. However, round two saw a typically heavyweight
positional victory over Smbat Lputian of Armenia (see below).
With one round to play of the 111th Scottish Championship at New
Douglas Park in Hamilton, defending champion and Scottish number one
GM Jonathan Rowson joined the guest player IM Jacob Aagaard in the
lead.
Rowson reached 6.5/8 with victory over Douglas Bryson while Aagaard
had a solid draw with Steve Mannion and looks to be coasting towards
the GM norm of 7/9.
White’s strategy in the Winawer is always to open lines for the
bishop pair and Short gradually manages to achieve this.
The line 7.h4 9.h5 and 10.h6 seems to transgress most opening
principles, but Black’s main weakness is on the dark squares and
White does have control of the kingside with his bishops and so pawn
to h6 undermines Black further on the dark squares. Sometimes the Rh1
comes to h4 and then swings across. Black’s fatal error was to allow
24.a6!
Short lost a very drastic game on the black side of the Winawer as a
junior to John Littlewood when he allowed the same thrust with his
king castled on the queenside.
Lputian’s 11Ng8!? was an attempt to improve on the main line of
110-0-0 12.Bd3 which was Short-Psakhis, Isle of Man 1999. 14Nxe5
15.Bc3!; 22a6 was unclear. 30Qc6 31.Bf4+ Nxf4 32.Qxf4+ Qc7 33.Qxc7+
Rxc7 34.Rxh4 is strong and if 32f5 33.Ra3.
Near the end 34a5 35.Ra6 wins. Of course not 37.Bxe1 Qxb1; but the
queen sacrifice cleans up. In the final position 40Nxd4 41.Ra6
N. Short – S. Lputian
Sanjin Hotel Cup Taiyuan (2)
French Defence
Winawer Variation
1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 Nc3 Bb4 4 e5 c5 5 a3 Bxc3+ 6 bxc3 Ne7 7 h4 Qa5 8
Bd2 Nbc6 9 h5 Bd7 10 h6 gxh6 11 Nf3 Ng8!? 12 c4! Qc7 13 cxd5 exd5 14
dxc5 0-0-0 15 Be2 Bg4 16 Kf1 h5 17 Rb1 f6 18 e6 Nge7 19 Ne1! Ne5 20
Nd3 N7g6 21 a4 Rhe8 22 a5 Rxe6? 23 f3 Bf5 24 a6! Nxd3 25 axb7+ Kb8 26
Bxd3 Bxd3+ 27 cxd3 h4 28 d4 Rde8 29 Rb2 R8e7 30 Qc1 a6 31 Rh3 Re8 32
f4 Ne7 33 Qb1 Nc6 34 f5 Re4 35 Rb6 Qd7 36 Rxa6 Qxf5+ 37 Rf3 Re1+ 38
Qxe1 Rxe1+ 39 Bxe1 Qd7 40 Rxf6 1-0
Lputian
e p p p p b p Y p p c * p a p 6 p p n c p p p n p o p p p p p p p b p
p p 8 X p
Short
Final position after 40.Rxf6

Agence France Presse — English
July 20, 2004 Tuesday 4:09 PM Eastern Time
Chirac backs Turkey’s EU entry in talks with Erdogan
by HUGH SCHOFIELD
PARIS
French President Jacques Chirac on Tuesday reaffirmed his support for
Turkey’s eventual membership of the European Union during talks with
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
That was a political victory for Erdogan, but the prime minister was
irked at a news conference by questions whether Turkey intended to
apologize for the alleged genocide of Armenians under the Ottoman
empire in 1915.
Erdogan said membership of the EU “does not imply the recognition of
an Armenian genocide” and suggested this was a matter best left to
historians.
However, the French Socialist party says such recognition is
necessary, even if it supports Turkey’s entry into the EU. Turkey was
particularly irritated in 2001 when the French National Assembly
formally recognized that genocide had taken place.
According to a Chirac aide, the president said that “Turkey’s
integration into the EU is welcome as soon as it becomes possible…
Turkey has made considerable progress. It must continue and intensify
the implementation of democratic and economic reforms.”
Erdogan on Wednesday wraps up three-day visit to France to lobby for
support ahead of a crucial decision by EU heads of government in
December whether to grant Turkey the right to accession talks.
Chirac has previously said he believes the path to Turkish membership
is “irreversible,” but he is at odds with many in his own Union for a
Popular Movement (UMP) party and the public who believe the
predominantly Muslim and Asian country has no place in the club of
25.
Speaking to reporters after his lunch with Chirac, Erdogan appeared
keen to reassure a dubious French population, saying that any
decision “would not be on Turkish membership of the EU, but on the
beginning of negotiations on membership.”
He later thanked the president for his “constructive approach” and
positive attititude concerning the prospective Turkish EU membership.
Earlier French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier warned that even if
the talks are given the go-ahead Turkey’s accession would not be
automatic.
“We have to tell the truth. It is not tomorrow that Turkey will be
entering the EU. The road ahead is still long. It has been on this
road for some time preparing itself and making progress,” he told
Europe 1 radio.
The governing majority was not united on the issue. Francois Bayrou,
the leader of Chirac’s coalition partner, the Union for French
Democracy, reiterated his opposition to Turkey’s EU bid, saying that
allowing the bloc to take in “countries that belong to other
continents and other cultures” would create “a weak Europe that will
be incapable of taking action.”
Erdogan met early Tuesday with French business leaders and urged them
to use their weight to argue Turkey’s case for entry. France’s
business elite sides with Ankara, seeing the country as a major
economic opportunity.
“I am convinced that French economic circles can make a contribution
to the diplomatic process, and we await it,” he said.
The debate over Turkey’s right to join the EU has been particularly
robust in France, where there is strong opposition both from those
who fear its implications for immigration and Europe’s cultural
heritage, and those who say it will mean the end of their vision for
a politically integrated continent.
The nationalist leader Philippe de Villiers on Tuesday condemned
Erdogan’s visit and what he described as Chirac’s “determination” to
see Turkey join the EU. He said he would ensure Turkey’s membership
is at the “heart of the debate” ahead of next year’s planned
referendum on the EU constitution.
Meanwhile Chirac’s office confirmed that negotiations to sell mid-
and long-range Airbus passenger aircraft to Turkish Airlines were in
their final stages.

The Frontrunner
July 20, 2004 Tuesday
Republicans Vow To Kill Amendment Recognizing Armenian Genocide
The Hill (7/20, Kaplan) reports House GOP leaders “are vowing to kill
a controversial amendment that chastises a key US ally following a
successful Democratic maneuver to pass the bill late last week.” The
Hill adds, “Rep.
Adam Schiff’s (D-Calif.) amendment would deny Turkey the use of US
foreign aid money to lobby against the Armenian genocide resolution
sponsored by GOP Rep. George Radanovich (Calif.). If enacted,
Radanovich’s resolution would be the first time Congress formally
marked the deaths of 1.5 million Armenians between 1915 and 1923.”
Radanovich told The Hill: “I think [the amendment] was a good way to
keep Armenian genocide in front of people,” adding that his bill will
never be passed because “of the force of the Turkish lobby.”
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress