ArmenPress
July 8 2004
PRIME MINISTER, EU COMMISSIONER DISCUSS NEW NEIGHBORHOOD POLICY
YEREVAN, JULY 8, ARMENPRESS: Armenian prime minister Andranik
Margarian conferred today with Janez Potocnik, a junior commissioner
for a new EU member state, Slovenia, who works with the enlargement
commissioner, Guenter Verheugen. The latter is charge of the EU’s
“new neighborhood” program, which offers closer ties to some EU
neighbors. Potocnik is touring the South Caucasus countries to
emphasize the EU’s renewed interest in these three countries.
Prime minister Margarian was quoted by the government’s press
office as saying that the visit is important in the context of EU’s
New Neighborhood Policy, extended recently to the three South
Caucasian countries. Margarian reiterated Armenia’s willingness to
build its relationships with Europe based on its values and
fundamental principles, which he said stem from Armenians’ interests.
He said a special task force was set up to develop the National Plan
of Actions for implementation of Partnership and Cooperation
Agreement between Armenia and the EU.
Potocnik said: “The next steps are to consider the possibility of
setting up a so-called action plan with Armenia, Azerbaijan and
Georgia – setting the reform priorities they should address. And, on
our side, offering an approximation with the European Union.” That,
according to him, could eventually — but in the longer term — lead
very far toward a share in the internal market, for instance, or
alignment with several EU policies, like environment or energy and
transport networks.” He said the EU is prepared to assist these
countries to reform all sectors of life.
Both sides agreed also that unless the regional conflicts are
resolved no complete integration with Europe is possible, adding also
that establishment of normal relations among all the countries of
region will give a substantial boost to economy and trade
development.

ArmenPress
July 8 2004
NEW IRANIAN AMBASSADOR ARRIVES IN YEREVAN
YEREVAN, JULY 8, ARMENPRESS: The newly appointed ambassador of the
Islamic Republic of Iran to Armenia, Ali Reza Haqiqian, has arrived
today in Yerevan. He will hand over his credentials to president
Robert Kocharian in a few days and will take his new tenure.
The appointment was made upon a proposal by Iranian foreign
minister Kamal Kharrazi. Haqiqian had previously served as a foreign
ministry director-general as well as Iranian charge d’affaires to
Baghdad.
Ali Reza Haqiqian was born in 1958 in Isfahan. He received a
uiversity education and has been working with Iran’s foreign ministry
since 1981, holding various positions in Iran’s embassies in Canada,
Germany and Iraq. The new ambassador is married and is father to
three children. He is fluent in English.
From: Baghdasarian

ArmenPress
July 8 2004
COLORS OF CHILDHOOD 2 PROJECT TO ENLARGE ART WORLD OF CHILDREN

YEREVAN, JULY 8, ARMENPRESS: About 600 schools children from 180
schools, all connected with each other through Internet, presented
their pictures, sculptures, goblins and other handicraft at the
Colors of Childhood exhibition which is launched by a project with an
identical title. The best works of children posted by the project at
were presented during this one day exhibition. This is
the initiative of Youth Achievements educational organization with
the financial support of the Open Society Institute.
“The ability to present works for starting talented artists is as
important as for professional artists. Internet is a place where many
people can learn about young artists and encourage them,” project
responsible Sona Manucharian told Armenpress.
This is the second exhibition by the project Colors of Childhood.
The first was an exhibition sale the raised money of which was
provided to a number of schools.

Russia, Ex-Soviet States Rebuke Democracy Watchdog
8 July 2004
VIENNA, Austria (Reuters) – Russia and eight other ex-Soviet states accused
Europe’s biggest security and human rights watchdog Thursday of failing to
respect their sovereignty.
The 55-nation Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE),
whose activities include monitoring elections, has chided former the Soviet
states for ballots it says failed to live up to democratic standards.
“In part (the OSCE) does not respect such fundamental principles … as
non-interference in internal affairs and respect of national sovereignty,”
said a statement signed by Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.
Russia has long complained of double standards at the OSCE, which it says
criticizes human rights and democracy failings east of Vienna, where the
organization is based, but does not denounce similar shortcomings to the
west.
Of the OSCE’s 18 field activities, 12 are in the former Soviet Union.
The OSCE said Russia’s presidential election in March was well administered
but fell short of democratic standards, particularly where the state media
was concerned.
President Vladimir Putin swept to a second term with 71 percent of votes in
that election.
“It is of concern that OSCE field missions focus not on their mandated role
to help the authorities of the receiving state …, but exclusively on
monitoring human rights and democratic institutions,” the CIS statement
added.
The European Union issued a statement expressing its “serious concern” at
some of the CIS states’ comments. (Additional reporting by Richard Ayton in
Moscow)

The Times (London)
July 8, 2004, Thursday
What these ‘show trials’ are really showing us
Simon Sebag Montefiore
THIS IS the season of “show trials”, but the fallen tyrants,
arraigned before courts of law and tribunals of posterity, are not
performing as expected.
Saddam Hussein, arraigned in Baghdad, appeared appropriately
bewildered until he felt the restorative beams of centre stage and
swaggeringly challenged the jurisdiction of the court, accusing
President Bush of being the “real criminal”.
Slobodan Milosevic has gone one better -this week he claimed that his
blood pressure is so high that he is not fit to be tried at all.
Former dictators often turn out to be as manipulatively adept in
court as Marshall Hall and they can lead Western justice a merry
dance -for the very reason that our system tries desperately to give
the accused every chance to assert their innocence. These trials are
the judicial equivalent of the diplomatic confrontations between
democracies and dictatorships. In those tournaments of power,
dictatorships are well equipped to exploit the flawed qualities of
democracies whose decision-making is cumbersomely consensual and
whose public opinion eschews bloodshed. Hence it took years of brazen
Nazi aggression, of Serbian blood-letting, of Saddamist brinkmanship
before we intervened.
Yet as in democracy itself, it is the very flawed fairness of the
proceedings that makes them so worthwhile. Dictators can preen,
deliver sicknotes, and rant at the judges, but this sound and fury
merely raise the dignity of the court itself. The more they play up,
the more justice is seen to be done -and it must be seen to be done.
These trials are colloquially, and semi-ironically, called “show
trials”, but we should be more respectful of ourselves, and the
victims of these monsters. Words matter in times such as ours. These
trials are primarily to give justice to every victim, treating each
destroyed human life as cause for a trial in itself, and thus to
avoid colluding in Stalin’s macabre quip: “One death is a tragedy, a
million, a statistic.” But except for high-profile assassinations,
this is impossible with so many victims. Thus we enter the realm of
Stalinist insouciance accusing the tyrants of genocide, an indictment
of numbers so large that there is a danger that they become
meaningless or give refuge to deniers who ape Disraeli’s bon mot:
“There are lies, damn lies and statistics.”
Nevertheless we must also admit that there is much “show” in these
trials too: they must show justice to Serbia or Iraq, helping them to
rebuild and showing them the humiliation of these grotesques; they
must show other benighted places that their tyrants may be held to
account; and show us -Western electorates -that our war was just.
Justice must be seen to be done in more ways than is usual.
Despite this, they are not show trials. The original was developed in
the USSR in the late Twenties and reached its apogee with Stalin’s
three theatrical tribunals in 1936, 1937 and 1938. In these trials,
his opponents, Lenin’s celebrated lieutenants, Zinoviev and Bukharin,
admitted belonging to all-embracing criminal conspiracies. They were
sentenced to death and shot. There were plenty of credulous fools,
such as the US Ambassador Joseph E. Davies, but most Westerners
realised that these were really not trials at all but melodramatic
political passion plays.
The new Soviet archives show just how lovingly these theatricals were
supervised by their playwright-in-chief. I found notes by the
Prosecutor-General Andrei Vyshinsky showing how Stalin had dictated
his summings-up. Stalin constantly tinkered with the text, writing
that it required some “stylistic polishing”. The victims (or actors)
understood that these were plays in a new Aesopian language designed
to retell and sanctify the Bolshevik Revolution for the party and
posterity -hence Bukharin’s brilliant performance, though he wrote
pitifully to Stalin: “Koba, why do I have to die?”
Historically, we are not above holding show trials ourselves. The
trials of Charles I or of Henry VIII’s victims truly resemble
Stalinist show trials. The accusations against Anne Boleyn
-ridiculous conspiracies of witchcraft, incest, murder, treason
-exist only in the alternative universe of fatal theatre.
The crimes of Milosevic or Saddam are much too real, so it is
irritating that we cannot stop them relishing the limelight. It is
the nature of these demi messianic egomaniacs to believe that
everything they have ever done was part of their historic mission.
They cannot help playing to posterity.So they are hard criminals to
try. Not unlike a serial killer who has been found guilty in the
tabloids, we already believe, no we already know that Saddam and
Milosevic are as guilty as sin but the challenge is to prove that
they gave direct homicidal orders. Then there is the enduring fear
that they engendered and the cosa nostra-style command structures
which make guilt hard to stick.
But dictators are often self-righteously bureaucratic, seeing no
reason not to record their atrocities. Stalin’s archives contain his
(and his henchmen) signatures on orders to kill randomly hundreds of
thousands by quota; to torture individuals; even to execute 28,000
Polish officers in 1940. But he also gave orders to kill well-known
people using a special codeword which symbolised the highest secret
power: “The Instantsiya orders…” and this was passed down the line.
Had Stalin faced trial, this would have been hard to pin down. Hitler
knew much better that he was doing wrong because his signature
virtually never appears on orders for the Final Solution.
The danger is that such trials become stand-alone spectacles that
blame all crimes on one man and neither assign the guilt correctly
nor cleanse the culture. The true success of Nuremberg was not the
death sentences but that the trial was the centrepiece of German
de-Nazification and renaissance. In Russia, true responsibility for
mass murder (beyond Stalin and Beria) has never been faced, hence the
difficulty in creating civic society: no sin, no redemption.
There are limits to what we can do. We cannot capture all the tyrants
(blood-spattered Idi Amin or Ethiopia’s diabolical Mengistu never
faced trial) but we must do what we can. Should they be shot? Such
are their crimes that it seems that only death even approaches the
appropriate level for such malice and such misery. Stalin took a
minute interest in the conduct of his victims at the intimate moment
of execution: do we diminish ourselves by playing hangmen?
If these are not show trials, we need to coin a new word for them and
their special justice. Perhaps they are not only murder trials on a
colossal scale but also “exhibition trials” conveying “hyperjustice”
to the world of 24-hour news. We risk monsters being found innocent,
showing off like Saddam, claiming sickness like Milosevic, cheating
the hangman like Goering. But these are risks well worth taking.
Those who mock these trials should know that the dictators themselves
sensed the need for them. Hitler and Stalin feared that history would
notice their murders but decided that no one would care. “After all,
who today speaks of the massacre of the Armenians?” asked Hitler,
ordering the Final Solution. “Who’s going to remember all this
riff-raff in ten or twenty years?” asked Stalin, signing death lists.
“Who now remembers the boyars Ivan the Terrible killed? No one!”
Saddam surely hoped the same about Kuwaitis, Kurds, Shias, Marsh
Arabs -“dogs” all.
At the very least, these trials are acts of remembrance;
demonstrations that leaders are responsible for their crimes; and
exhibitions of true justice (in which we must take a sort of pride
even in the failures.) But at their best, they are both a healing
tonic and tolling lesson not from history but from today, delivering
repentance, redemption and renaissance. They must offer spectacle but
never show.
Stalin: the Court of the Red Tsar by Simon Sebag Montefiore, winner
of The Times history book of the year prize, is out in paperback

The Advertiser
July 8, 2004 Thursday
Games official attacks Australia
Olympic drugs battle widens
By PAUL CARTER in Sydney
WORLD sport’s top drugs czar yesterday launched a scathing attack on
Australia’s handling of the Mark French cycling affair as evidence
emerged of doping allegations in weightlifting.
The Australian Weightlifting Federation has launched an investigation
after being told by the Australian Sports Drug Agency an unnamed
lifter had refused to take a drug test. The Court of Arbitration for
Sport is expected to hear the case next week.
Australia’s Olympic weightlifting team is due to be named tomorrow
with Caroline Pileggi and Armenian-born Sergo Chakhoyan expected to
be the only two weightlifters going to Athens.
“There is an incident that is causing us some concern which is being
looked at right now,” said AWF president Sam Coffa, who would only
identify the athlete as being an AWF member.
The average penalty for such an offence is a two-year ban. The
Australian Olympic Committee and the Australian Sports Commission are
monitoring the situation and have offered to help the federation
present its case against the athlete, who is contesting the charge.
World Anti-Doping Agency president and International Olympic
Committee member Dick Pound, meanwhile, said the ASC should make
public the results of former judge Robert Anderson’s investigation
into allegations against five Olympic cyclists.
“What’s going to happen if some of these people go to Athens as part
of your Olympic team,” Mr Pound told the ABC. “Australians are going
to wonder if they have sent athletes who are guilty of doping
offences. The rest of the world is going to say how is it that
Australia deals with all these things in secret.
ASC chief executive Mark Peters said he was disappointed at Mr
Pound’s criticisms which came only weeks after he welcomed the
Anderson investigation.
“One has to wonder what has changed in those two weeks that now has
him saying, without any supporting evidence that ‘Australia has badly
handled numerous drug inquiries’,” Mr Peters said.
Mr Pound said his organisation was considering writing to federal
Sports Minister Rod Kemp in a bid to force the release of the
Anderson investigation into world champions Graeme Brown, Jobie
Dajka, Sean Eadie, Shane Kelly and Brett Lancaster.
The investigation followed French’s allegations the five had injected
legal vitamins in his room at Del Monte, the Australian Institute of
Sport’s track cycling headquarters in Henley Beach.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARKA News Agency
July 8 2004
RA government approves Armenian-American agreement on provision of
mutual services
Yanosh Potoshnik: Expanding of EU is important for future of EU and
South Caucasus
Newly appointed Ambassador of Iran to Armenia arrives in Yerevan
RA President orders to call to account those involved in abuse on
medicine market
*********************************************************************
RA GOVERNMENT APPROVES ARMENIAN-AMERICAN AGREEMENT ON PROVISION OF
MUTUAL SERVICES
YEREVAN, July 8. /ARKA/. RA Government approved Armenian-American
agreement on provision of mutual services, RA Government press office
told ARKA.
Agreement of provision of mutual services was signed in Yerevan on
April 26, 2004. Agreement creates legal base for provision of rear
assistance on the terms of mutual refund. L.D. –0–
*********************************************************************
YANOSH POTOSHNIK: EXPANDING OF EU IS IMPORTANT FOR FUTURE OF EU AND
SOUTH CAUCASUS
YEREVAN, July 8. /ARKA/. Expanding of EU is important for future of
EU and South Caucasus, EU Commissar on Expanding Issues Yanosh
Potoshnik stated today at the lecture dedicated to the program
`Expanded Europe: New Neighbors’ in European Regional Academy.
According to him, inclusion of the region in the program opens new
opportunities of cooperation with EU.
He said that in the frames of the program European Commission experts
prepare national report on Armenia that will be ready by the end of
the year or in spring 2005. According to him, the report will cover
the level of democracy, economic condition and legal aspects.
Besides, each country must represent program of activities on
concrete programs. `It will depend on represented program what way
the country wants to pass’, Potoshnik said. The program also includes
mechanism of financial assistance that can be used only till 2007 and
now the accent is made on strengthening of political cooperation of
EU with the countries of the region. L.D. –0–
*********************************************************************
NEWLY APPOINTED AMBASSADOR OF IRAN TO ARMENIA ARRIVES IN YEREVAN
YEREVAN, July 8. /ARKA/. Newly appointed Ambassador of Iran to
Armenia Ali Reza Hakikiyan arrived today in Yerevan, RA MFA told
ARKA. After hading of credentials to the President of Armenia,
Hakikiyan will take the office.
According to IRNA, the offer of appointment of Hakikiyan on this
position was made by Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Harrazi. Before
the appointment Ali Reza Hakikiyan headed information-analytical
department of Iranian MFA and at the same time was a Charge D’Affairs
of Iran to Iraq. L.D. –0–
*********************************************************************
RA PRESIDENT ORDERS TO CALL TO ACCOUNT THOSE INVOLVED IN ABUSE ON
MEDICINE MARKET
YEREVAN, July 8. /ARKA/. The Ra President Robert Kocharian held a
working meeting today in Yerevan where the situation on medicine
market was discussed. According to the Press Service Department of RA
President, the participants discussed the issue of distribution and
storage of medical supplies, received from benevolent sources. Vahram
Barseghyan, the Head of Control service attached to the RA President,
presented the results of conducted examinations in this sphere. The
RA President gave instructions to plenipotentiary bodies to call to
account those involved in abuse on medicine market and ordered the
control service to continue the inspection of the market. The
Minister of Health was given a task to solve the issues connected
with normalization of distribution and storage of medical supplies.
L.V. -0–

Business Opportunities and Challenges: Spotlight on Armenia,
Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine
REMINDER
BISNIS
JULY 8, 2004
The Event is organized by:
The Office of the Governor, Economic Development & Tourism
U.S. Department of Commerce – BISNIS
Austin U.S. Export Assistance Center
WHEN: Wednesday, July 14, 2004
8:30 a.m. Registration
8:00-12:30 a.m. Presentations
12:30-1:30 p.m. Networking Lunch
1:30-3:30 p.m. One-on-One Meetings
WHERE: Austin Community College
5930 Middle Fiskville Rd, Room 201
Austin, Texas
FEATURED SPEAKERS:
Irina Mitchell, BISNIS Headquarters in Washington, D.C.
George Isayan, BISNIS Representative in Armenia
Asel Sulaimanova, BISNIS Representative in Kyrgyzstan
Iulian Bogasieru, BISNIS Representative in Moldova
Andryi Vorobyov, BISNIS Representative in Ukraine
Michele Smith, OPIC Investment Services Manager for Russia and the CIS
INDUSTRIES SECTORS TO BE COVERED: IT, Telecommunications, Construction, Agribusiness, Pharmaceuticals/Medical, Consumer Goods, Environmental Technologies and Banking/Finance.
COUNTRIES COVERED: Armenia, Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine

Presentations: Speakers will provide executive briefings on the business climate in their countries, and present trade and investment leads, as well as information on promising projects. A Q&A session will follow the presentations, and then an opportunity for one-on-one meetings with individual BISNIS representatives.
For more information or to register, please contact Mortada Mohammed ([email protected]; tel:512-936-0530 or Karen Parker ([email protected] ; tel: 512-916-5939)
===============================================================
REGISTER DEADLINE: July 13, 2004!
IF INTERESTED IN ONE-ON-ONE APPOINTMENTS, please circle selected country:

Armenia Kyrgyzstan Moldova Russia Ukraine
Number of people attending Names of attendees
Company: __________________________________________________________________________
Address: __________________________________________________ _________________________
Phone: _____________________ Fax: __________________ E-mail: __________________________
============================================================== =
WHAT IS BISNIS?
BISNIS (), part of the U.S. Department of Commerce,
was founded in 1992 to assist in the economic development and
transition of the countries of the former Soviet Union by helping
U.S. companies to export to and invest in the region. BISNIS has 20
representatives posted throughout Eurasia, including 11 in Russia. In
addition, BISNIS has 10 trade specialists in Washington, DC. BISNIS
mainly assists U.S. and Eurasia companies by identifying and
disseminating trade and partner leads, preparation of regional
overviews, commercial news updates, and industry reports, counseling
U.S. companies interested in entering Eurasian markets, and referrals
to U.S. government programs as well as sources of financing and other
resources. Since 1992, BISNIS has helped U.S. companies generate over
$3.5 billion of export and investment transactions. In FY03 alone,
BISNIS facilitated transactions exceeding $204 million. In 2002,
2003, and 2004, BISNIS was recognized by Forbes Magazine as “One of
the Best of the Web” for information on Eurasia. The BISNIS website
gets over 1 million hits per month.
PROGRAM SPEAKER PROFILES
· Irina Mitchell is an International Trade Specialist at BISNIS
Headquarters in Washington, D.C. She is covering Construction/Real
Estate, Transportation, Customs and Certification portfolios for all
Eurasian (a.k.a. NIS) markets. She also manages one of BISNIS core
trade facilitation programs – Trades and Tenders and the newest BISNIS
PartnerLink Eurasia initiative. Irina also covers Northwest Russia
region working closely with BISNIS representative located in
St. Petersburg, Russia as well as the country of Moldova. Irina’s
current responsibilities are a continuation of her educational
background in Civil Engineering and previous private-sector experience
in the realm of contract procurement, logistics and operations
management. She has extensive hands-on experience in importing goods
into Russia and exports to Middle East and Japan.
· Asel Sulaimanova – BISNIS Representative in the Kyrgyz Republic
Ms. Sulaimanova has worked for BISNIS in the Kyrgyz Republic since
late 2002. Before joining BISNIS, she worked both in the private
sector and for international donor institutions. Specifically, she was
Project Manager for the European Union Program “Small and Medium
Business Development” and an international consultant for several
Asian Development Bank projects in the Kyrgyz Republic. Her commercial
experience has been gained through working for several foreign
companies doing different businesses in the Kyrgyz Republic. She
graduated from Kazakh State Economic University in Economics and later
received an MBA from the Bishkek International School of Management
and Business in 1995.
· Andriy Vorobyov – BISNIS Representative in Ukraine
Andriy Vorobyov has worked for BISNIS in Kiev since October 2000. He
has a background in agriculture, having graduated from the National
Agricultural University of Ukraine. His previous work experience
includes agribusiness and food processing, and work for the Department
of Foreign Economic Relations at the Ukrainian Ministry of
Agriculture. His recent reports for BISNIS have covered the Ukrainian
Construction Sector, Trade and Project Financing in Ukraine, Customs
Procedures in Ukraine, and overviews of several Ukrainian
regions. Last year, Mr. Vorobyov accompanied a delegation of 25
Ukrainian companies to the International Builders Show in Las Vegas,
and he has organized a number of U.S. Product Literature Centers at
the largest Ukrainian trade events, including construction,
automotive, food processing, pharmaceuticals shows.
· Iulian Bogasieru – BISNIS Representative in Moldova
Iulian Bogasieru joined BISNIS in December 2000. His previous
experience includes working with the Moldovan Agency of Enterprise
Restructuring ARIA as a consultant for three years on World Bank and
European Union projects. His responsibilities were analyzing markets
and providing turnaround management consulting for Moldovan
businesses. Mr. Bogasieru graduated from the Academy of Economic
Studies, Chisinau, Moldova, with bachelor degree in foreign economic
relations. He speaks English, Russian, Romanian and Italian. Among his
achievements as BISNIS representative, he organized three catalog
shows of U.S. products in Moldova, which resulted in U.S. export
contracts.
· George Isayan – BISNIS Representative in Armenia
George Isayan has represented BISNIS in Yerevan, Armenia, since
January 1998. During 1989-1992, he worked in Armenia’s Chamber of
Commerce as the head of business information department. In 1992-1997,
Mr. Isayan worked at a private export-import company in Prague, Czech
Republic, covering the company’s financial issues. As BISNIS
representative, Mr. Isayan accompanied delegations of Armenian
companies at Comdex IT show in Las Vegas (2000), BILISIM IT show in
Istanbul (Turkey) in 2001, International Builders’ Show in Dallas,
Texas, in 1999 and 2000, and SviazExpoComm ICT show in Moscow, Russia,
in 2002, 2003, and 2004. Mr. Isayan speaks Russian, Armenian, English,
Czech, and Arabic fluently.
· Michele Smith, OPIC Investment Services Manager for Russia and the CIS
Michele R. Smith is the Investment Services Manager for Russia and the
CIS at the Overseas Private Investment corporation (OPIC) in
Washington, D.C. In this capacity Ms. Smith develops and reviews
investment opportunities across all sectors in project finance and
political risk insurance with U.S. and international businesses.
Ms. Smith is scheduled to manage OPIC’s new investment development
office in Moscow, Russia later this year.
Ms. Smith holds an MBA from Thunderbird, The Garvin School of
International Management, in Glendale, Arizona where she specialized
in international finance. Prior to this she managed business outreach
for the Port of Portland in Oregon; served as the co-director of an
international development organization in Vladivostok, Russia; and
managed housing and real estate reform projects in the Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, and Armenia. She received her BA from the College of
William and Mary, Virginia, where she majored in Economics and
International Relations.
COUNTRY OVERVIEWS
Armenia
Area: 29,800 sq. km. (11,500 sq. mi.); Population (est.): 3 million;
GDP growth rate: 13.9% (2003)
Natural resources: Copper, zinc, gold, and lead; hydroelectric power;
small amounts of gas and petroleum.
Agriculture: fruits and vegetables, wines, dairy, some livestock.
Industry: chemicals, electronic products, machinery, processed food,
synthetic rubber, and textiles.
2003 Trade: Exports-$678.1 million (81.3% to countries outside CIS):
diamonds, scrap metal, machinery and equipment, brandy, copper
ore. Export partners-Belgium 18.3%, Israel 21%, Russia 13.9%,
U.S. 8.3%, Iran 3.3%. Imports-$1.269 billion (73.6% from countries
outside the CIS): natural gas, petroleum, tobacco products,
foodstuffs, diamonds. Import partners-Russia 16.4%, Belgium 10.2%,
Israel 9.7%, Iran 5.3%, U.S. 8%.
Approximately 70 U.S.-owned firms currently do business in Armenia,
including such multinationals as Procter & Gamble, M&M-Mars, Xerox,
Dell, and IBM. Recent major U.S. investment projects include the Hotel
Armenia; the Hotel Ani; Tufenkian Holdings (carpet and furnishing
production, hotels, and construction); several subsidiaries of
U.S.-based information technology firms, including Viasphere
Technopark, an IT incubator; a Greek-owned Coca-Cola bottling plant;
petroleum exploration by the American-Armenian Exploration Company;
jewelry and textile production facilities; a large perlite mining and
processing plant; and the joint venture Jermuk, which produces one of
the more popular brands of mineral water in Armenia.
Recent BISNIS efforts have facilitated U.S. sales to Armenian private
firms of medical diagnostic equipment and construction materials
equipment, as well as the signing of an exclusive dealer contract
between Ford and an Armenia company.
***************
Kyrgyz Republic
Area: 77,181 sq. mi; Population: 5.03 million: GDP Growth Rate: 6.7% (2003)
Natural Resources: coal, oil, natural gas, antimony, gold, tungsten,
tin, mercury, uranium, zinc, lead, rare earth metals, copper, iron,
bauxite, hydropower, water resources.
Agriculture: Tobacco, cotton, wheat, vegetables and fruits, berries;
sheep, goats, cattle, wool.
Industry: small machinery (electric motors, transformers); light
industry (cotton and wool processing, textiles, food processing),
construction materials (cement, glass, slate), shoes, furniture,
mining, energy.
Trade (2002): Exports-$4485.5 million: Precious metals, minerals,
textiles, tobacco, hydropower. Partners: Switzerland 19.4%, Russia
16.2 %, United Arab Emirates 13.5 %, China 8.8%, U.S. 7.9%, Kazakhstan
7.8%. Imports: $586.7 million: oil and gas, machinery and equipment,
foodstuffs. Partners: Kazakhstan 21.5%, Russia 19.5%, Uzbekistan
10.2%, China 10%, US 8.2%, Germany 5%, Netherlands 2.8%.
Major foreign investments: Hyatt Regency Bishkek Hotel (renovation),
Metromedia International (cable TV venture), Marvel worldwide Ltd. (80
% of VLKSM Garment Factory), WimmBillDann (dairy, juices), Kumtor
(gold mining), Coca-Cola (bottling), Philips (light bulb manufacture &
equipment), Malaysian Company (semiconductor production plant)
Recent BISNIS efforts have facilitated establishment of an office in
Bishkek for a small U.S. firm seeking contracts with the U.S. airbase
in the Kyrgyz republic – the company has already won one tender and
has additional projects in the pipeline for FY04, sales of restaurant
equipment to Kyrgyzstan, assistance to a U.S. company to set up
production in the Bishkek free economic zone.
***************
Moldova
Area: 33,843 sq. km. (13,000 sq. mi.); Population: 4.4 million: GDP
real growth (Jan.-Sept. 2003): 7.0%
Natural Resources: Lignite, phosphorites, gypsum, arable land, limestone.
Agriculture: vegetables, fruits, wine and spirits, grain, sugarbeet,
sunflower seeds, meat, milk, tobacco.
Industry: Processed foods and beverages, including wine and refined
sugar; processed fruit and vegetable products, including vegetable
oil; dairy and meat products; tobacco items; metal processing and
production of machinery; textiles and clothing, shoes; furniture.
Trade (2002): Exports $644 million (of which 46% go to countries
outside the former Soviet Union): foodstuffs, wine, tobacco, textiles
and footwear, machinery, chemicals. Major export markets: Russia,
Ukraine, Italy, Romania, Germany. Import: $1,039 million (of which 61%
come from countries outside the former Soviet Union): gas, oil, coal,
steel, machinery and equipment, chemical products, textiles,
foodstuffs, automobiles, and other consumer durables. Major suppliers:
Ukraine, Russia, Romania, Germany, Italy.
U.S. companies active in Moldova include McDonalds, FoodPro
International, Food Master International, Coca-Cola, Trans Oil Invest,
Europharm, MetroMedia International, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, KPMG,
Caterpillar, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Proctor & Gamble, John Deere,
General Electric, and Apple Computer.
Recent BISNIS efforts have facilitated sales of
U.S. telecommunications equipment and medical diagnostic equipment to
Moldova, as well as assisted in the development of ties between North
Carolina and Moldova and supported efforts of OPIC and TDA to find
projects for possible financing.
***************
RUSSIA
Area: 17 million sq. km. (6.5 million sq. mi.); about 1.8 times the
size of the United States. Broad plain with low hills west of Urals;
vast coniferous forest and tundra in Siberia; uplands and mountains
(Caucasus range) along southern borders.
Cities: Capital–Moscow (pop. 8.3 million). Other cities–St. Petersburg
(4.6 million), Novosibirsk (1.4 million), Nizhniy Novgorod (1.3 million).
GDP: 7.3% during 2003 to 13.255 trillion rubles or U.S. $460
billion. (Purchasing power parity estimated at $1.27 trillion in 2002)
Natural resources: Petroleum, natural gas, timber, furs, precious and
nonferrous metals.
Agriculture: Products– Grain, sugar beets, sunflower seeds, meat,
dairy products.
Industry: complete range of mining and extractive industries producing
coal, oil, gas, chemicals, and metals; all forms of machine building
from rolling mills to high-performance aircraft and space vehicles;
shipbuilding; road and rail transportation equipment; communications
equipment; agricultural machinery, tractors, and construction
equipment; electric power generating and transmitting equipment;
medical and scientific instruments; consumer durables, textiles,
foodstuffs, handicrafts
Exports (F.O.B.): $$134.4 billion (2003 est.)
Export commodities: petroleum and petroleum products, natural gas,
wood and wood products, metals, chemicals, and a wide variety of
civilian and military manufactures
Export partners: Germany 7.5%, Italy 6.9%, Netherlands 6.7%, China
6.3%, US 6.1%, Ukraine 5.5%, Belarus 5.4%, Switzerland 5% (2002)
Import (C.I.F) $74.8 billion (2003 est.)
Import commodities: machinery and equipment, consumer goods,
medicines, meat, sugar, semifinished metal products
Import Partners: Germany 14.3%, Belarus 8.9%, Ukraine 7.1%, US 6.4%,
China 5.2%, Italy 4.8%, Kazakhstan 4.3%, France 4.1% (2002)
***************
Ukraine
Area: 603,700 square miles; Population: 48 million: GDP real growth
(2003 est.): 5.5-6.0%
Natural resources: Vast fertile lands, coal, ironstone, complex ore,
various large mineral deposits, timber
Agriculture: Products-Grain, sugar, sunflower seeds.
Industry: Types-Ferrous metals and products, coke, fertilizer,
airplanes, turbines, metallurgical equipment, diesel locomotives,
tractors.
Trade (2002): Exports-$17.95 billion: Ferrous and nonferrous metals,
mineral products, chemicals, machinery, transport equipment, grain,
and textiles. Imports-$16,97 billion: Energy, mineral fuel and oil,
machinery and parts, transportation equipment, chemicals, textiles,
and paper.
More than 300 U.S. companies are represented in Ukraine. Among the
major U.S. companies are: Apple Computer, Avon Cosmetics, Automobile
Group (Cadillac, Chevrolet, Hummer), Bechtel National, Inc., Citibank,
Colgate-Palmolive, General Electric, Kraft foods Motorola, Monsanto,
Mary Kay Ltd.
Recent BISNIS efforts have facilitated sales of U.S. machinery and
machine tools, as well as medical, printing, and telecommunications
equipment to Ukraine, as well as creation of joint projects in the
financial services sector. telecommunications equipment to Ukraine,
as well as creation of joint projects in the financial services
sector.
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e-mail: [email protected]
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

BISNIS Computers – Eurasian Standards in IT Program, 08/21 – 09/18, 2004
BISNIS
July 8, 2004
EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY FOR U.S. IT COMPANIES TO ESTABLISH DIRECT
RELATIONS WITH EURASIAN COUNTERPARTS!
Dear Colleague,
The Special American Business Internship Training (SABIT), Program at
the U.S. Department of Commerce in Washington DC, is currently seeking
U.S. Companies and Organizations interested in hosting site visits for
an upcoming SABIT Standards in Information Technology program – August
21 through September 18, 2004.
The SABIT Standards Program provides in-depth training opportunities
for groups of standards and conformity assessment experts from Eurasia
in an effort to foster understanding of U.S. standards and inspire
confidence in U.S. products and services.
The Standards in IT Program will provide 18 information technology
specialists from Eurasia one month of intensive exposure to
U.S. practices in standards development and product certification, and
offer site visits and direct interaction with U.S. computer hardware
and software manufacturers, industry associations, testing labs, as
well as local, state, and federal government agencies.
The delegation members represent national regulatory bodies, testing
laboratories, and universities as well as private IT companies from
nine countries in Eurasia. All delegates have been carefully screened
by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
SABIT is currently seeking U.S. hosts across the United States to
provide training for half- and full-day sessions in topics including
standards development, product manufacturing, software and hardware
testing, and quality control. SABIT invites all interested parties to
inquire about hosting opportunities. U.S. companies are welcome to
develop a training event or site visit that suits each host’s
needs. Suggested models include:
·Speakers/presentations at your facility (SABIT can help arrange sites
for presentations if your facility is unavailable)
·Manufacturing/testing tours
·Interactive discussion sessions with the delegates
SABIT will cover the majority of program costs for all delegates,
including round-trip airfare to the United States, all domestic
U.S. transportation, housing, insurance, per diem for meals and
incidentals, and interpreters to travel with the group. In turn,
U.S. host organizations are asked to cover all costs of the training
they provide. Delegate bios and suggested program topics are attached
to this e-mail.
Participation in SABIT offers a unique opportunity for both
U.S. companies and Eurasian delegates. Site visits offer solid,
practical experience for the Eurasian standards experts and give
U.S. businesses and organizations an unparalleled opportunity to
establish firsthand contacts for working in the markets of Eurasia.
*** This IT program will be SABIT’s final Standards Program***
To learn about the program and hosting opportunities, contact SABIT
directly – Standards Program Coordinator Melissa Jordan (Tel:
202-482-2086; E-mail: [email protected]; Web:
)
SEE BELOW FOR BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF DELEGATION MEMBERS:
SPECIAL AMERICAN BUSINESS INTERNSHIP TRAINING PROGRAM
STANDARDS IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
AUGUST 21, 2004 – SEPTEMBER 18, 2004
I. ARMENIA
1. Levon Aslanyan, Head of Discrete Molding Department
Institute for Informatics and Automation Problems
Armenian National Academy of Sciences
Yerevan, Armenia
Education: PhD in computer science and IT, MSc in mathematical
cybernetics and technical certification in computer hardware design.
Background: Department head at institute for more than 30 years. Also
executive director of IT Development Foundation of Armenia since
1999. For seven years, has served as chairman of the Information
Technologies Technical Committee for the Armenian State Department for
Standardization, Certification, and Metrology, representing Armenia
with ISO TC46 and similar bodies.
Interests: Development of partnerships with U.S. IT companies, testing
labs, and standards organizations. Localization of IT standards for
English Language Skills: Good
2. Sofa Khanjyan, Lead Specialist
National Institute of Standards and Quality
Yerevan, Armenia
Education: Economist with certification in standardization, metrology
and conformity assessment from the SARM Training Center, Yerevan.
Background: Standards developer for the Armenian government since
2001, with a private sector background in economics and investment
prior to government service. Also teaches seminars on standards issues
at the Yerevan Institute of Economics.
Interests: System of standards in the United States. Application of
standards to the IT industry.
English Language Skills: Fair
3. Tigran Potikyan, Chief Specialist
National Standards Fund Management and Information Service
National Institute of Standards and Quality
Yerevan, Armenia
Education: Lawyer with technical certification in conformity
assessment and quality systems from the SARM Training Center in
Yerevan. Currently completing additional degree in Information
Technology at Moscow State University of Economics, Statistics, and
Information Science.
Background: Formerly an attorney for the Armenian Consumer Rights
Protection Union. Since 2001, chief specialist for the National
Institute of Standards and Quality in Yerevan.
Interests: U.S. standards system and U.S. experience in standards and
certification for IT products. English Language Skills: Fair
========================================== II. AZERBAIJAN
Igor Zhitsky, E-Commerce Manager AZEL (Azerbaijan Electronics) Baku,
Azerbaijan
Education: Degree in management information systems for software and
hardware. Additional training in business management and systems
engineering.
Background: With AZEL since 1996. Started as computer service
engineer, moved to deputy head of sales, and now serves as E-commerce
manager for Azel, the leading IT company in Azerbaijan.
Interests: Expanded knowledge of U.S. IT and telecom standards. Wants
to understand business practices of successful U.S. IT
companies. Hopes to build business contacts and establish
relationships with IT manufacturers and distributors.
English Language Skills: Good
==========================================
III. BELARUS
Siarhei Sazanovich, Project Manager
Software Development Division
Algorithm
Grodno, Belarus
Education: Advanced degrees in physics and teaching. Currently getting
additional degree in English.
Background: With private firm Algorithm since 1993 as project manager,
handling server and network programs, security and localization
issues, and client consultations. Algorithm is a developer and
manufacturer of computer software. The firm also wholesales, services,
and repairs computer hardware.
Interests: Needs to understand U.S. and international standards for
developing/manufacturing software and hardware. Wants to establish
business contacts to expand U.S. products into Belarus. English
Language Skills: Good ==========================================
IV. KAZAKHSTAN
Malika Mazhrenova, Certification Group Specialist & Expert Auditor
Otan-Security, Ltd. Almaty, Kazakhstan
Education: Degree in business information systems. Extensive
certification in software, security and network administration from
Kazakh IT Academy and expert status in certification of radio
equipment, communications facilities, and information commodities.
Background: Has worked for Otan-Security as an IT standards and
certification specialist since 2000. Specialist in both hardware and
software standards and testing.
Interests: Legal aspects of certification in the United
States. Testing laboratories and testing procedures. English Language
Skills: Poor ========================================== V. RUSSIA
1. Aleksey Agapov, Chief Technical Officer NTR Lab Inc. Moscow,
Russia
Education: Masters Degree in computers and metallurgy. Background:
Chief technical officer of NTR Lab Inc. since 2000. Also acts as
volunteer advisor to FOSTAS (System Engineering Standardization and
Management Support Fund.) Prior experience as QA manager and systems
engineer for commercial bank and other private sector entities.
Interests: Certification and conformity assessment procedures, U.S. IT
standards and how they are applied in real world situations. Wants to
expand U.S. business contacts.
English Language Skills: Good
2. Marina Anshina, Vice Chairman
FOSTAS Foundation
Moscow, Russia
Education: Degree in mathematics. Extensive coursework and
certification in computer systems engineering and administration, from
1978 to present day. Currently completing “mini MBA.”
Background: Seasoned IT professional with solid engineering experience
– including one year at Union Carbide in Columbus, Ohio – and current
dual roles at CTO for Bridge Holding and Vice Chairman of the FOSTAS
Foundation in Moscow. FOSTAS is a non-profit focused on the research,
development, and maintenance of modern IT standards, methods and
techniques.
Interests: Fostering partnerships with colleague organizations in the
United States, expanding working knowledge of U.S. standards and
establishing projects or partnerships with key U.S. IT entities.
English Language Skills: Excellent
3. Irina Fomicheva, Head Engineer
All Russian Scientific and Research Institute for Standardization and
Certification in Mechanical Engineering (VNIINMASH)
Gosstandart of Russia
Moscow, Russia
Education: Multiple degrees in mechanical engineering and expert
training in certification of information technology.
Background: At VNIINMASH and Gosstandart for nearly 30 years. Since
1991, focused on IT standards development and IT product certification
and inspection.
Interests: The American experience in IT standards and
certification. Wants to establish business ties with
U.S. organizations in IT standards and testing.
English Language Skills: Poor
4. Aleksey Mishin, Director
“M-city”
Ulan Ude, Buryatia, Russia
Education: Degrees in engineering and computer programming, as well as
professional training in marketing and management.
Background: Engineer-programmer with solid private- and public-sector
business management experience. Started “M-city” in 2002 as a
consulting and service company for the IT and management needs of
SMEs. Partners with the Buryat Centre of Certification and also
assists city government in preparation of plans for regional IT
projects.
Interests: Quality management systems and U.S. IT standards. Network
design and installation. Wants to build a joint venture for the
training of quality management experts in Buryatia. Hopes to establish
business contacts with IT manufacturers and distributors.
English Language Skills: Good
5. Sergey Muravyev, Department Head
Department of Computer-Aided Measurement Systems & Metrology
Tomsk Polytechnic University
Tomsk, Russia
Education: PhD in electrical measurement and software technology. MA
in computer engineering.
Background: More than 25 years experience. Along with running a
university department, teaches courses in qualimetry and measurement
information systems, and developed specialized bachelors and masters
programs in metrology, standardization, and certification.
Interests: Activities of U.S. IT manufacturers, test laboratories, and
certification centers. Wants to establish joint scientific/education
projects with U.S. partners in IT standards, certification, and
quality management and build business contacts. Looking for partners
in measurement, data acquisition, instrumentation, software
engineering, and artificial intelligence.
English Language Skills: Excellent
6. Lyudmila Peretyagina, Head of IT Department
Novgorod Standards, Metrology and Certification Centre
Velikiy Novgorod, Russia
Education: Degree in mathematics and teaching. Management certificate
in standards, metrology, and certification.
Background: Runs IT department for Novgorod Standards, Metrology and
Certification Centre, as well as lectures on the mathematics faculty
at Novgorod State University.
Interests: U.S. IT standards, exposure to new technologies.
English Language Skills: Poor
==========================================
VI. TAJIKISTAN
Eshmahmad Kurbanov, Manager, Metrology & Standards Sector
Ministry of Industry of the Republic of Tajikistan
Dushanbe, Tajikistan
Education: Degree in mechanical engineering.
Background: With Ministry of Industry since 2000, handling metrology
and certification issues. Previous private sector experience as
mechanical engineer and safety & quality assurance specialist. Member
of Tajik government strategy group for IT standardization issues
related to Tajikistan’s entry into the WTO. Sole specialist at
Ministry of Industry focused on IT standards.
Interests: Exposure to international and U.S. IT
standards. Familiarization with U.S. IT companies with aim to
encourage investment and business in Tajikistan.
English Language Skills: Poor
==========================================
VII. TURKMENISTAN
Meretmamed Shirdatov, Chief of Standardization Department
Turkmenstandartlary
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
Education: Degrees in petroleum mechanics, engineering, and social
sciences.
Background: Chief standards expert at Turkmen national standards
agency since 1999. Responsible for all questions related to
standardization in Turkmenistan, as well as international
harmonization for CIS and European standards. Represents Turkmenistan
in international standards organizations.
Interests: In-depth knowledge of U.S. IT industry – hardware and
software. U.S. IT standards. Hopes to open relationships with U.S. IT
manufacturers and build contacts with ASTM and other standards and
testing agencies.
English Language Skills: Fair
==========================================
VIII. UKRAINE
1. Anatoly Gladun, Chief of Telecommunications Department
International Research and Training Center of Information Technologies
and Systems
National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine & Ministry of Education and
Sciences of Ukraine
Kiev, Ukraine
Education: PhD in computer science (elements and devices of computer
and control systems.)
Background: More than 20 years experience in IT research and
development. Since 1997, involved in development and harmonization of
telecommunications and IT standards in Ukraine. Chairman of SC-6
subcommittee of Ukrainian technical committee on standardization
(TC-20.)
Interests: New software and network equipment, methods and equipment
for testing and certification. Wants to develop contacts with ANSI and
other standards agencies.
English Language Skills: Good
2. Oleh Velychko, Director
Scientific and Production Institute of Measurement Assurance of
Electrical & Magnetic Values
All-Ukrainian State Scientific & Production Centre for Standardization,
Metrology, Certification & Consumer Protection (Ukrmetrteststandard)
Kiev, Ukraine
Education: PhD in technology (measurement of electrical and magnetic
value) and undergraduate degree in radio engineering.
Background: Director of metrological institute. Nearly 25 years
experience in metrology. Involved in IT issues since 1992.
Interests: Metrology and international standards harmonization, new
computer technologies, and precision measurement systems and
instruments.
English Language Skills: Good
==========================================
IX. UZBEKISTAN
1. Alisher Khadjaev, Deputy General Director
Communications and Information Agency of Uzbekistan
Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Education: PhD in physics and mathematics.
Background: Ten years experience in management and R&D. Deputy general
director of Uzbek national communications and information agency since
2002. Previously worked on Uzbek president’s staff. In current role,
recommends national legislation related to IT certification,
licensing, and security.
Interests: How American standards are created and enforced. Wants to
meet growing IT and telecom firms interested in the Uzbek
market. Needs to establish relationships with research and testing
organizations.
English Language Skills: Poor
2. Abdurakhman Khundibaev, Director
“Computer-Asia” Scientific-Technology Park
Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Education: PhD in technical sciences (automatic systems of control.)
Degree in economics and mathematics.
Background: Director of IT firm “Computer-Asia.” Nine years with firm,
and nearly 15 years in IT standards issues. Firm handles software
projects for government and private sector clients and is working on
localization issues and standards for Uzbek language projects.
Interests: Methods of IT standardization in the United States. Wants
to work with standards developers to create IT standards for
Uzbekistan. Hopes to start joint ventures with U.S. firms to bring
American computer technology to the Uzbek market.
English Language Skills: Fair
=======================
For nearly ten years, SABIT has been hosting the Standards Program in
partnership with NIST. The Standards in IT program will be SABIT’s
final Standards Program session. SABIT’s other programs will
continue, but this will be our last opportunity to focus on the
serious market access issues of standards, certification/testing, and
conformity assessment. It has been SABIT’s pleasure to be able share
knowledge and build partnerships between U.S. and Eurasian businesses,
standards organizations, and testing laboratories. SABIT looks forward
to hearing from you and partnering with you on this important training
program.
=====Sent by=========Chris D. Christov, International Trade Specialist for IT
Irina Mitchell, International Trade Specialist for Certification and
Standardization
BISNIS/USA Trade Center,
U.S. Department of Commerce
Tel: (202) 482 – 4655
Fax: (202) 482 – 2293
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ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
07/08/2004
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1. ARF, Lebanese Foreign Minister Discuss Turkey-Lebanon Relations 2. Work on Constitutional and Election Law Reforms Complete 3. Minsk Group Plans Regional Visit 4. EU Commissioner Discusses 'Neighborhood Policy' in Armenia 5. Armenia Works to Prevent Money Laundering, Terrorism Financing 6. Tensions Grow in Georgia, Russia Angry 7. UNDP Report Traces Rising HIV Rates in CIS Countries 8. NEWS BRIEFS 1. ARF, Lebanese Foreign Minister Discuss Turkey-Lebanon Relations BEIRUT (Aztag)--A delegation representing the ARF Central Committee (CC) of Lebanon met yesterday with Lebanon's Minister of Foreign and Emigrant Affairs, Jean Obeid, at the Foreign Ministry in Boutros Palace. The ARF delegation consisted of CC representative Hovig Mkhitarian and members Hagop Pakradouni and Barouyr Der Ghougassian. The discussions between Obeid and the ARF focused on Lebanon-Turkey relations, particularly in light of Turkish Foreign Minister Abdulla Gul's visit to Lebanon over the previous weekend and agreements that were signed between the two sides. Foreign Minister Obeid provided various clarifications regarding Gul's visit and Lebanese-Turkish relations. The ARF delegation presented its views on those topics and underscored that relations must be based on mutual respect, in an attempt to rectify the mistakes that have accumulated throughout the history of the two countries and which, to this day, influence the development of events in the region. The ARF delegation cast doubt on Turkish officials' recent statements regarding the establishment of close ties with the Arab people. The ARF representatives stressed the importance of keeping a close eye on Ankara's intent to gain political influence in the region while maintaining its strategic cooperation with Israel. Gul's visit to Lebanon was the first in 21 years for a Turkish foreign minister. The Lebanese Prime Minister and Foreign Minister visited Turkey in April and May, respectively. 2. Work on Constitutional and Election Law Reforms Complete YEREVAN (Armenpress)--Armenia on Thursday completed work on developing two packages of constitutional and election law reforms in an effort to meet its obligations before the Council of Europe (CE). The draft law on changes to election code must pass by the end of 2004, and incorporates most of the recommendations and proposals offered by the Central Election Commission (CEC), Venice Commission, and the OSCE. Amendments to Armenia's constitution will be put to a national referendum in the first half of 2005, according to the timetable set by the CE. The drafts will be translated and sent to the CE's Venice Commission to ensure the amendments conform to European standards. They will also be available to non-governmental organizations, political parties, and all interested individuals, for review later this month, and will be open to public debate. 3. Minsk Group Plans Regional Visit YEREVAN (Armenpress)--Minsk Group co-chairs will be visiting Armenia on their tour of the region that includes Azerbaijan and Mountainous Karabagh Republic. Co-chairs Yuri Merzlyakov of Russia, Stephen Mann of the United States and Henry Jackolin of France are due in Armenia's capital on July 10. The Minsk Group spearheads the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's efforts to find a political solution to the Karabagh conflict. 4. EU Commissioner Discusses 'Neighborhood Policy' in Armenia YEREVAN (RFE/RL)--Janez Potocnik, the European Union's junior commissioner on enlargement affairs, discussed with Armenian leaders on Thursday practical consequences of Armenia's inclusion in the list of countries entitled to privileged ties with the EU. After talks in Yerevan with President Robert Kocharian, Prime Minister Andranik Markarian, and other senior officials, Potocnik reiterated the EU's position that Armenia itself should decide the extent of its cooperation with the bloc under the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP). He said the EU's Executive Commission would only support and encourage Yerevan's efforts to meet European standards on free elections, human rights, and freedom of speech. The decision to extend the ENP, also known as "Wider Europe," to Armenia as well as neighboring Azerbaijan and Georgia was formally made by the EU foreign ministers on June 14. Each South Caucasus country is responsible for submitting action plans on economic and political reforms in order to receive assistance some time in 2007. Potocnik said that he will submit to the European Commission a report on Armenia by the spring of 2005, after which the two sides will begin discussing joint programs on a broad range of issues. He also reiterated the EU's insistence on the quick closure of the Medzamor nuclear plant "for safety reasons." "Our mutual agreement will allow for the decommissioning of the Medzamor nuclear plant some time in the future.," the Slovenian official said, reaffirming the EU's offer of a 100 million-euro compensation for the shutdown. EU officials in Brussels said earlier this week that during his regional tour, Potocnik will stress the bloc's willingness to take a more active approach to the regional conflicts. They said although the EU bloc will not act as a mediator it will use incentives inherent in closer ties to foster compromise. 5. Armenia Works to Prevent Money Laundering, Terrorism Financing YEREVAN (Armenpress)--A meeting on preventing money laundering and financing terrorism brought together leading Armenian decision-makers on Thursday in Yerevan. Armenia's General Prosecutor Aghvan Hovsepian joined about 30 parliamentarians and a number of government representatives at the National Workshop on Combating Money Laundering and Suppressing Financing of Terrorism to discuss international conventions related to these crimes, implementation mechanisms, and national initiatives. The workshop is part of a large-scale program launched last year by the Yerevan office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Two national workshops were organized in 2003 together with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), which resulted in a number of recommendations that are currently in the process of implementation. In opening the event, head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan Vladimir Pryakhin stressed that the actual fight can not take place within the limits of national borders. "Only close international collaboration and direct contacts between law enforcement agencies and financial institutions can provide effective means to fight this evil," he said. Pryakhin also said that the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism should be in line with fighting corruption. Armenian authorities have already ratified the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, and the Council of Europe Convention on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds from Crime. Armenian President Robert Kocharian last year endorsed the National Anti-Corruption Strategy, which incorporates a number of measures to prevent money laundering. The OSCE Office, which has been assisting the Armenian Government in the development of the strategy since 2000, is now assisting with implementation. 6. Tensions Grow in Georgia, Russia Angry TBILISI (Reuters)--Tensions grew in Georgia on Thursday after some of its soldiers were seized in the breakaway region of South Ossetia, while Russia accused Georgia's leadership of goading its wayward province into retaliation. Georgian officials also said an armed group opened fire on a Georgian peacekeeping checkpoint, wounding two soldiers and kidnapping one of them. The clashes in South Ossetia were the latest flare-up since President Mikhail Saakashvili moved to restore central control over separatist regions that seek closer ties with Russia. A police official near the region, that lies north-west of Tbilisi on the border with Russia, said about 50 Georgian Interior Ministry troops had been held. In Moscow, the Russian foreign ministry sided with the South Ossetians, blaming the Saakashvili leadership for "unlawful and provocative actions in the Georgian-Ossetia zone of conflict." "Tbilisi is ignoring the fact that a sharpening of the crisis puts the people of South Ossetia, most of whom are Russian citizens, under a serious security threat," a ministry statement said. Tensions began to flare in South Ossetia after Georgia sent troops to the internal border with the region in early June, to protect anti-smuggling checkpoints. Then, in an incident that prompted a sharp reaction from Moscow Wednesday, Georgian troops seized an arms convoy which it said was carrying rocket launchers intended for separatists. Russia said the weapons were intended for the members of its peacekeeping force. Georgian Prime Minister Zurab Zhvania, who announced the armed attack and kidnapping at a checkpoint between the villages of Tamarasheni and Kurta, accused the South Ossetian leadership of stirring up armed conflict. "We will never allow a repetition of the tragedy that we witnessed in 1991," said Zhvania. The region broke from Georgia after a war at the end of Soviet rule in 1991. Uneasy peace has reigned since, supervised by a peacekeeping force from Georgia, South Ossetia and Russia. Saakashvili, who says he is striving to end awkward relations with Russia, has secured the removal of a local strongman in another wayward region, Ajaria, which had considerable autonomy but never declared independence. Since his election early this year, Saakashvili has set his sights on restoring central control over South Ossetia and Abkhazia, a breakaway region on the Black Sea. Moscow aligns itself with the international view that both these regions are part of Georgian territory and it has never offered to take them into the Russian Federation. At the same time, it has often backed them in disputes with the Tbilisi leadership and has allowed many of their people Russian citizenship. 7. UNDP Report Traces Rising HIV Rates in CIS Countries YEREVAN (ARMENPRESS)On Wednesday, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) released the 2004 HIV/AIDS report for Eastern European and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries, titled "Reversing the Epidemic: Facts and Policy Options." Vladimir Davidyants, Chief State Sanitary Doctor of Armenia, Lise Grande, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative, Samvel Grigoryan, Head of the Republican AIDS Prevention Center and representatives of international and local organizations participated in the event, which was held at the United Nations House in Yerevan. The report presents the first comprehensive outline of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 28 countries of East and South-Eastern Europe, the Baltics and the CIS. The UN estimates that 1.8 million people in the region have HIV and that 280,000 people contracted the virus last year. Despite a comparatively low prevalence of HIV/AIDS in the region, growth rates in Estonia, Russia and Ukraine are among the world's highest. The report stresses that the HIV/AIDS crisis poses a threat to the region's economic growth, resulting in an estimated loss of at least one percent GDP growth per year. According to the report, once the number of those infected with HIV/AIDS surpasses 1% of a country's total population, it becomes extremely difficult for experts to reverse the trend. Any delays, the reports notes, in addressing the problem can be catastrophic: only twelve years ago, South Africa was facing an infection rate among the adult population that was less than one percent; now the rate is twenty times higher. According to Grande, "UNDP's report reveals that there is already an HIV crisis in the CIS. Although the situation in Armenia is not as disastrous as in some other major CIS countries, steps need to be taken now to avoid the kind of catastrophe that is affecting other countries. By working together, the government, civil society, the mass media and donors can make a difference. Through reports like the one we are releasing today, we can help raise awareness among the general public and promote responsible behavior among all people living in Armenia." Between 1988 and 2004, 279 individuals infected with HIV registered with the Armenian government. Of those affected, a vast majority are men (206 cases-77.7%). 79.2% are between the ages of 20-39. 8. NEWS BRIEFS Common Agreement with Armenia Difficult, Azeri Speaker Says BAKU (ARMENPRESS)--The Mountainous-Karabagh conflict was the focus of a Wednesday meeting between Azerbaijani parliament speaker Murtuz Alasgarov and European Union (EU) commissioner on expansion Janez Potocnik, who spent two days in Azerbaijan before coming to Armenia. Alasgarov said that he backed the resolution of the conflict based on the principles of territorial integrity. Speaking about the suggestions of international organizations that called for the Azeri side to reach common agreement with Armenia, the speaker stated, "How can Azerbaijan reach common agreement with Armenia, which is an aggressor and doesn't intend to withdraw from the occupied lands of Azerbaijan?" Alasgarov moved on to condemn the visits by some international diplomats to Mountainous-Karabagh from Armenia without the prior consent of Baku. Potocnik, in turn, noted that the successful integration of the South Caucasus region into the European Union was possible only after the peaceful solution of the Karabagh conflict. He underlined that the EU was ready to carry out rehabilitation operations in Mountainous-Karabagh after the resolution of the conflict. The EU commissioner also stressed that the EU special envoy on South Caucasus Heikki Talvitie was ready to assist the OSCE Minsk Group in settling the conflict. Iran Appoints New Ambassador to Armenia TEHRAN (ARMENPRESS)--President Seyyed Mohammad Khatami appointed Ali Reza Haqiqian as the new Iranian ambassador to the Republic of Armenia, the Information and Press Department of the Iranian Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday. The appointment was made upon a proposal by Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi. Haqiqian had previously served as a Foreign Ministry director-general as well as Iranian charge d'affaires to Baghdad. Ali Reza Haqiqian was born in Isfahan in 1958. He received a university education and has been working in Iran's Foreign Ministry since 1981, holding various positions in embassies in Canada, Germany and Iraq. The new ambassador is married and is father to three children. He speaks fluent English. World Armenian Congress Concerned with Armenian Church Destruction in Turkey MOSCOW (ARMENPRESS)--The World Armenian Congress has expressed concern over the condition of the Akhtamar Saint Cross Church--a unique monument of medieval Armenian architecture, which is situated in Turkey, on an island in Lake Van. The church was built in 915-921, says a statement of the World Armenian Congress, issued on July 7. It is currently in such a dilapidated state that "soon only ruins will be left of it." The World Armenian Congress urged the Turkish and Armenian governments to take steps without delay for restoring the Akhtamar Saint Cross Church. It also asked the two countries to work with UNESCO experts in the restoration of Armenian architectural monuments on Turkish territory. Azeri Transport Minister Accused of Cooperating with Armenians BAKU (ARMENPRESS)--On Thursday, a group of senior officials of Azerbaijan's railway department accused the country's transport minister Zia Mamedov of secretly cooperating with Armenians. Speaking at a specially convened news conference, the officials claimed that the minister "has built a mob network," which has embezzled $2.5 billion worth of public funds since 1995. As proof, they noted the decrease in the number of government-owned locomotives--from 632 to 183--since the collapse of the USSR. In one instance, a 132-car train bearing wine was sent to Russia, never to return. Locomotive parts, the group stated, were removed and sold as scrap metal. The officials also stated that, in leasing 300 cars to Russia, Azerbaijan did not receive anything in return. They went on to allege that the railway department is the sole government agency that cooperates with Armenia. The officials claimed that 300 cisterns were sold to Armenia. "Reports about these abuses were regularly sent to prosecutors and the presidential staff, but nothing was done to investigate into them," they said. They said they will ask the president to order an investigation into their allegations, which were described by Mamedov as "provocations." US Envoy in Baku Calls for Democratic Institutions in Nakhichevan BAKU (ARMENPRESS)--The US ambassador to Azerbaijan, Reno Harnish, who was recently on a visit to Nakhichevan, said "it was high time" to establish democratic institutions in the region. Harnish had discussed the issue with chairman of the local supreme council, Vasif Talibov. Harnish confirmed that he had told the Guardian newspaper that Azerbaijani law-enforcement bodies obtain 80 per cent of confessions through torture. Journalists asked the ambassador about the recent US Congressional decision to allocate $5 million to Mountainous Karabagh. Harnish stated that the aid will be used to assist refugees. He added that Azerbaijan will receive $13 dollars in assistance for refugees currently living in camps. Armenian-Spanish Relations Discussed YEREVAN (ARMENPRESS)--On July 5, the newly appointed foreign minister of Spain, M. Moratinos, received Armenian Ambassador to Spain, E. Khojanian. The sides discussed Armenian-Spanish relations and prospects for their development. They noted that recent developments, such as the new European Union policy towards the South Caucasus, create an opportune moment for the development of relations. Moratinos expressed interest in Armenia's economic and political situation and revealed his readiness to support Armenian-Spanish relations in all their forms. The Spanish minister also reconfirmed his government's readiness to receive the Armenian president on an official visit. CSTO Secretary General Calls on Georgia, Ossetia to Use no Force MOSCOW (ARMENPRESS)--Nikolai Bordyuzha, secretary general of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CTSO), composed of Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, has called on both sides of the Georgian-South Ossetian conflict to refrain from the use of force. "The situation on the Georgian-South Ossetian administrative border is threatening to snowball out of control and lead to an armed conflict, to unpredictable developments in the region," runs Bordyuzha's statement circulated in Moscow. He emphasized that all issues pertaining to Georgia's relations with South Ossetia should be solved peacefully. "Ultimatums, threats or, moreover, the use of force, including against peacekeeping divisions deployed there, can have the most negative consequences for the situation in the Caucasus," the statement says. "We are calling on the conflicting sides to refrain from the use of force and to find, through a political dialogue, a constructive decision meeting the interests of security and stability in the region," the document runs. Meanwhile, Georgian State Security Minister Vano Merabishvili said that Georgia has averted a new armed conflict in South Ossetia. "We had the information that Eduard Kokoity--president of the self-proclaimed republic--planned to organize provocations on July 7 and 8, but what happened was more than we had expected. However, despite the repeated armed clashes, we have managed to avoid bloodshed and new confrontation between the Georgians and the Ossetians," Merabishvili said at a live briefing in Georgia. "Kokoity is ready for war, he has weapons and medicines but Georgia is not going to fight against the Ossetians," he continued. In his words, "the Russian Federation's official position on the Tskhinvali district does not coincide with Kokoity's plans, therefore he has nothing to do but organize provocations." The Georgian minister told reporters that all Georgian military subdivisions had been ordered not to use weapons. "This is why Ossetian armed formations managed to take up to 50 of our servicemen hostage," Merabishvili noted. Kocharian Condoles the Death of Austrian President YEREVAN (ARMENPRESS)--Armenian President Robert Kocharian sent a condolence message to Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel, after the death of president Thomas Klestil. The Austrian president suffered a heart attack earlier this week and died shortly after. "I recall my meetings with president Klestil with warmth. His contributions to development of Austrian-Armenian relations are esteemed highly in Armenia. I extend by deepest condolences to the people of Austria and ask to extend them also to members of his family at this sad moment," Kocharian's message reads. Klestil's heart stopped on Monday as he was being flown by helicopter to Vienna's General Hospital after being found unconscious. Klestil, who had in 1996 suffered from a severe case of pneumonia, was recently having serious lung problems. The presidency will be transferred to Heinz Fischer, who won elections earlier this year. While the post is mostly ceremonial, Austria's president serves as the country's commander in chief, and is bestowed with the power to reject cabinet nominations. Klestil, a career diplomat who earlier served as Austria's ambassador to the US and to the UN, is widely credited with restoring Austria's credibility following the controversial administration of Kurt Waldheim, who had served in the military during WWII. On a trip to Israel during his first term, Klestil expressed sympathy with victims of the Holocaust in a speech to the Knesset, while referencing Austria's role in the atrocities.. It was one of the numerous times he spoke out against Nazi horrors and his country's role in them. Indian Singer Performs for Vanadzor Residents VANADZOR (ARMENPRESS)--Indian pop singer Ila Aruni performed at the Vanadzor culture palace named after Charles Aznavour. The singer was introduced on stage by Indian Ambassador to Armenia Deepak Vohra. In addition to renditions of Indian songs, Aruni, who is also an actress, dancer and playwright, delighted the audience by briefly singing in Armenian. 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