Baku Today, Azerbaijan
June 28 2004
Azeri Soldier Killed by Armenian Rifle Shot
A soldier of the Azerbaijani army was killed by an Armenian rifle
shot in the Aghdam District area of the frontline on Monday, ANS
reported.
The Press Office of Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Defense could not be
reached to comment on the incident.
ANS reported that the soldier, Elnur Quliyev, was fatally shot to his
breast during an Armenian assault. It was the late Quliyev’s ninth
month in the military service.
Aghdam is one of Azerbaijan’s administrative districts occupied by
Armenia in 1991-94 war. Along with Aghdam, Armenian troops invaded
and took control of Azerbaijan’s Lachin, Kelbajar, Fuzuli, Jebrail,
Qubadli, Zengilan as well as Nagorno-Karabakh regions during the war.
A cease-fire agreement signed in May 1994 between the two countries
is frequently violated in the line of contact that separates
Azerbaijan from its occupied territories.
Peace negotiations mediated by the Minsk Group of the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe since 1994 have failed to
bring a lasting settlement to the conflict.

EUbusiness, UK
June 28 2004
Troubled neighbors Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey pledge cooperation
Under pressure by NATO and the European Union, Armenia, Azerbaijan
and Turkey pledged on Monday to seek to resolve their tangled
disputes through trilateral meetings.
The foreign ministers of the three troubled neighbors, Vardan
Oskanian of Armenia, Elmar Mamedyarov of Azerbaijan and Abdullah Gul
of Turkey met on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Istanbul.
Emphasizing that both NATO and the EU were keen to stabilize the
conflict-torn Caucasian region, Gul told reporters after the meeting
that they had discussed “ways and means of cooperating to achieve
stability through constructive means.”
He said he and his counterparts had agreed to hold further trilateral
meetings later in the year.
“We need to shape a new strategic vision for the Caucasus so that we
can keep pace with the developments around us,” Oskanian said,
referring to the enlargement of the EU and NATO.
Mamedyarov added: “We will try to do our best to bring peace and
stability to the region.”
Armenia and Azerbaijan are divided by a long-standing territorial
dispute over the enclave of Nagorny-Karabakh, for which they fought
in the early 1990s.
A close ally of Azerbaijan, Turkey has declined to establish
diplomatic ties with Armenia and remains bitter at Yerevan’s efforts
to secure international condemnation of the killings of Armenians
under the Ottoman Empire during World War I as “genocide.”
Ankara is under pressure by the EU, which it seeks to join, to
re-open its border with Armenia, which it closed in 1993 in a show of
solidarity with Baku.
Oskanian told reporters he had discussed the issue with Gul in a
bilateral meeting earlier in the day.
He said he was “very satisfied,” with the meeting, but added that it
would be premature to expect an immediate re-opening of the border.

CORRECTING and REPLACING Joint Press Announcement by the Government of
the Republic of Armenia, Hellenic Telecommunications Organization and
Armenia Telephone Company – ARMENTEL
ATHENS, Greece–(BUSINESS WIRE)–06/28/2004–Please replace the
release with the following corrected version due to multiple
revisions.
The corrected release reads:
JOINT PRESS ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA,
HELLENIC TELECOMMUNICATIONS ORGANIZATION AND ARMENIA TELEPHONE COMPANY
– ARMENTEL
The Government of the Republic of Armenia, Hellenic Telecommunications
Organization SA (NYSE:_OTE_ (aol://4785:OTE/) ) (ASE:_HTO_
(aol://4785:HTO/) ) and Armenia Telephone Company (ARMENTEL), jointly
announce the commencement of negotiations with a view to settling all
outstanding disputes between the parties. The Government of the
Republic of Armenia has made a decision to suspend the amendment of
License No. 60 issued to Armentel, until 28 September 2004 to
facilitate the conduct of the negotiations. The amendment of License
No. 60 relates to the granting of a second mobile telephony license
in Armenia
About OTE
OTE is a provider of public, fixed switch domestic and international
telephony services in Greece. With local, long distance and
international communications services in addition to mobile telephony,
Internet services, and high-speed data communications, OTE provides
consumers and businesses the ability to communicate globally through
its extensive network infrastructure. In addition, OTE has a number of
International investments in the South East European region and
addresses a potential customer base of 60 million people.
Listed on the Athens Stock Exchange, the company trades under the
ticker HTO as well as on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker
OTE. In the U.S., OTE’s American Depository Receipts (ADR’s)
represents 1/2 ordinary share.
Additional Information is also available on
Forward-looking statement
Any statements contained in this document that are not historical
facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All forward-looking
statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. The
factors that could affect the Company’s future financial results are
discussed more fully in the Company’s filings with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including the
Company’s Annual Report on Form 20-F for 2002 filed with the SEC on
June 30, 2003. OTE assumes no obligation to update information in this
release.
CONTACT:OTE Dimitris Tzelepis Head of Investor Relations, OTE Group
Tel: +30 210 611 1574 email: [email protected] or Kostas Bratsikas
Investor Relations Tel: +30 210 611 1428 email: [email protected] or
Taylor Rafferty London: +44 20 7936 0400 New York: +1 212-889-4350
email: [email protected]
SOURCE: OTE
06/28/2004 09:06 EASTERN

Azer Tag, Azerbaijan State Info Agency
June 28 2004
PRESIDENT OF AZERBAIJAN ILHAM ALIYEV WITH PRESIDENT OF TURKEY AHMET
NECDET SEZER MEET IN PRIVATE
[June 28, 2004, 15:31:31]
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of Turkey Ahmet
Necdet Sezer met in private at the Istanbul `Hayat’ hotel on 28 June.
The Turkish President expressed satisfaction with the participation
of his Azerbaijani counterpart in the NATO summit and especially
stressed the importance of such meetings. Mr. Ahmet Necdet Sezer
pointed out that the steadily expanding Turkey-Azerbaijan relations
are developing both in political and economic spheres in line with
the two countries’ interests. He also shared his views on the
Northern Cyprus related problems.
Having expressed his gratitude to the Turkish President for the warm
meeting, President Ilham Aliyev emphasized that it was great honor to
him to stay in Istanbul in the framework of the NATO Summit, and
pointed to the high level organization of the event. The Head of
Azerbaijan also State touched upon development of bilateral relations
between the two countries. He noted in particular that construction
of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline is going on as scheduled, and
the timely finishing of the project would considerably benefit booth
sides.
The parties also mentioned benefits from implementation of the oil
strategy initiated by nationwide leader of the Azerbaijani people
Heydar Aliyev, and his invaluable merits in bringing
Turkey-Azerbaijan relationship up to the existing level.
In addition, the Presidents exchanged views on international and
regional issues of mutual interest including peaceful settlement of
the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh. In this
connection, President of Turkey Ahmet Necdet Sezer reaffirmed his
country’s consistent and constant support for Azerbaijan’s stance in
the matter.

UNITED ARMENIAN FUND
1101 N. Pacific Avenue # 301
Glendale, CA 91202
Tel: 818.241.8900
Fax: 818.241.6900
For Immediate Release
28 June 2004
Contact: 818.241.8900
UAF’s 129th Airlift Delivers $1 Million of Aid to Armenia
Glendale, CA – The United Armenian Fund’s 129th airlift arrived in Yerevan
on June 26, delivering $1 million of humanitarian assistance.
The UAF itself collected $262,000 of medicines and medical supplies for this
flight, most of which were donated by AmeriCares ($138,000) and the Catholic
Medical Mission Board ($123,000).
Other organizations which contributed goods for this airlift were: Armenian
Eyecare Project ($351,000); Armenian Missionary Association of America
($78,000); Dr. Mary Alani/Focus Armenia ($62,000); Medical Outreach for
Armenians ($53,000); Foundation Semra ($30,000); Armenian American Medical
Association of California and Knights of Vartan – Sevan Tahlij ($24,000);
Armenian Canadian Medical Association ($22,000); and Nork Marash Medical
Center ($14,000).
Also contributing to this airlift were: Dr. Robert Garabedian of California
($12,000); Arabkir United Children’s Charity Foundation ($11,000); Harut
Chantikian of New Jersey ($11,000); E. Cherian/George Washington University
($11,000); and Dr. Elizabeth Weller of Pennsylvania ($10,000).
Since its inception in 1989, the UAF has sent $385 million of humanitarian
assistance to Armenia on board 129 airlifts and 1,064 sea containers.
The UAF is the collective effort of the Armenian Assembly of America, the
Armenian General Benevolent Union, the Armenian Missionary Association of
America, the Armenian Relief Society, the Diocese of the Armenian Church of
America, the Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America and the
Lincy Foundation.
For more information, contact the UAF office at 1101 North Pacific Avenue,
Suite 301, Glendale, CA 91202 or call (818) 241-8900.

Armenian foreign minister arrives in Turkey for NATO summit
Anatolia news agency, Ankara
28 Jun 04

Istanbul: Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan has arrived in
Istanbul to attend the NATO summit being hosted by Turkey.
The visiting foreign minister was received at Ataturk Airport by
Turkish Foreign Ministry officials. Ali Coskun, minister of industry
and trade, saw the visiting minister off when the latter left the
airport in an official vehicle.

Armenian minister happy with NATO-sponsored conference in Baku
Arminfo
28 Jun 04
YEREVAN
Armenian Defence Minister Serzh Sarkisyan is happy with the
participation of Armenian officers in the Cooperative Best Effort 2004
planning conference in Baku.
“Naturally I am happy with the fact that the Defence Ministry was
represented at that event,” the minister told journalists
yesterday. He said it had already been decided that seven Armenian
officers would take part in the exercises.
“Our stance has not changed. We will definitely take part and in
fairness to the Azerbaijani authorities, they took necessary steps to
ensure the 100-per-cent security of the officers who took part in the
exercises [conference],” the minister said.
He added that the Azerbaijani side and NATO guarantee the security of
the officers who will take part in the exercises.
Let us remind you that Col Murad Isakhanyan and Senior Lieutenant Aram
Ovanesyan attended the planning conference. Baku will host NATO’s
exercises on 14-26 September.
[A separate Arminfo report quoted the minister as telling the
journalists that “we will all benefit from any events aimed at making
the world and the region in particular more secure”].

Armenian president calls for closer ties with Iran
IRNA news agency, Tehran
28 Jun 04

Yerevan, 28 June: Armenian President Robert Kocharyan in the meeting
with Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Farhad Koleyni on Monday [28 June]
called for expansion of Tehran-Yerevan ties.
During the meeting which took place at the end of Koleyni’s tenure,
the two sides discussed mutual cooperation in political, security and
economic fields aiming to restore stability to the region.
Kocharyan called for further Tehran-Yerevan cooperation compared to
the past and stressed the necessity of steady development of the
region.
He assessed the upcoming visit of President Mohammad Khatami to
Armenia as a “turning point” in bilateral ties and a step towards
bolstering mutual relations. He hoped that Khatami’s visit would bear
fruitful results.
President Khatami is schedule to pay an official visit to Armenia in
September.

I am proud to have fought for Karabakh, Armenian president says
Public Television of Armenia, Yerevan
28 Jun 04

If Nagornyy Karabakh takes part in peace talks as a third party, this
would give an impetus to the negotiations, Armenian President Robert
Kocharyan said at a press conference at the Council of Europe on 23
June. Kocharyan put the blame for starting the Karabakh war on
Azerbaijan and said he was proud to have fought in this war. The
Armenian president also urged Turkey to put aside sensitive issues and
to establish relations based on a pragmatic approach. The following is
the text of the news conference as broadcast by Armenian Public TV on
28 June; subheadings have been inserted editorially:
[Estelle Steiner, captioned, in English] Ladies and Gentlemen! Welcome
to this afternoon’s press conference with Mr Robert Kocharyan,
president of the Republic of Armenia.
[Robert Kocharyan, captioned, in Russian] I would not like to waste
time on an introductory speech and would want to spend more time on
the interactive part of our meeting.
Karabakh’s independence valid
[Questioner in Russian] Afat Yaqubova, Azerbaijani Lider TV. Mr
Kocharyan, Mr President, on what kind of international basis did
Nagornyy Karabakh hold a referendum and declare its independence? As
we all know, the Soviet republics were recognized within the borders
with which they entered the Soviet Union. Is there any document, an
international document? And did Azerbaijanis, who in 1988 constituted
30 per cent of the population of Nagornyy Karabakh, take part in this
referendum? Thank you.
[Robert Kocharyan] By the way, the Armenians of Baku, Sumqayit and
Ganca did not take part in the referendum on Azerbaijan’s independence
either. But this does not mean that Azerbaijan gained its independence
illegally. Regarding the law which you asked about, I just regret that
you do not know that. Because there was a law which was in force in
the Soviet Union on the withdrawal of Soviet republics. This law very
clearly outlined the rights of autonomous republics within those
republics. There was such a law which was adopted in 1988-89, or maybe
earlier. You can look at this law and you will see that the referendum
had a valid legal basis. The legal basis of the existence of the
Nagornyy Karabakh Republic [NKR] is undeniable today. This inspires
confidence that this is a just case which corresponds to all
international norms.
[Afat Yaqubova] Then you also recognize the Dniester region, Abkhazia
and Chechnya as independent, weren’t they also autonomous?
[Robert Kocharyan] You know, I am not a specialist on these conflicts
and do not think there is a need to generalize all these conflicts and
compare them. Each conflict has its own history as has every
state. Drawing parallels is absolutely not right. There are conflicts
which are similar in general. There are conflicts which are completely
different. Therefore, this generalization would be incorrect. I am
interested in Karabakh as a problem and in its settlement.
Azerbaijan to blame for Karabakh war
[Afat Yaqubova] My second question is do you think that after you made
accusations against Azerbaijan in your speech here in the Assembly
[the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe] you can sit at
the negotiating table, hold peace talks and hope to receive
satisfactory answers from the Azerbaijani side?
[Robert Kocharyan] I would suggest that you just have a look at all
the speeches of the former and current Azerbaijani presidents, the
tone of those speeches, opinions voiced about Armenia and ask the
Azerbaijani president the same question.
[Second questioner in French] Armenia, which claims to be a victim of
injustice, has been occupying 20 per cent of Azerbaijan’s territory
for 10 years and has driven Azerbaijanis from their land [sentence
interrupted to allow Kocharyan to speak] –
[Robert Kocharyan] First of all, how did this all start? Why did the
hostilities start in Nagornyy Karabakh? The scheme is very simple – a
referendum was held in Nagornyy Karabakh and a war started to seize
the territories which are believed in Azerbaijan to belong to them,
and naturally there was a response. What we have today is the result
of the war which neither we nor the Karabakh people started. It is
naive to think that 140,000-150,000 Karabakh Armenians could be the
initiators of the hostilities against Azerbaijan. It was not like
that. You started with confidence that the issue would be resolved in
your favour, taking into consideration your larger numbers and
resources. The result was what we have now. As for who bears
responsibility, you should look for those responsible in your country,
not in Karabakh or Armenia. This is the reality. I know this not by
hearsay, I was there, in Karabakh, all the time and I know very well
how this all happened. So, the end of your question was about
responsibility, I am simply redirecting it.
Armenian-Turkish relations
[Questioner in French] Mr President, I would like to ask three
questions. Just now you spoke about the problem of the border with
Turkey; is there a border problem between Armenia and Turkey, that’s
the first question? You also said that you would like to have dialogue
with Turkey, how is it possible to have a dialogue when you talk about
genocide, while Turkey rejects this term? And the third question,
about the NATO summit in Istanbul: why are you not taking part?
[Robert Kocharyan] The first part of your question is particularly
interesting. Is there a border problem? There is no such problem at
all since this border is locked and it is closed not by us but by the
Turkish side. If you can call it a problem, of course, there is the
problem of closed borders which I think is simply not normal.
The second question is also interesting. How is it possible to
cooperate with Armenia if Armenia speaks about genocide? Do you mean
we should not speak about genocide? Let us then persuade the Jews not
to speak about the Holocaust. Therefore, our approach is very
clear. There is a practical policy and this practical policy and
discussions of the issues connected with our past should be held on
different planes. You know, it is we who should set the recognition of
the genocide as a precondition for establishing relations with
Turkey. It is we who incurred losses. We have managed to pass over
this barrier, which was not easy for us. We say – we are ready to
cooperate without preconditions. But everything is upside down. I do
not think that there is a common sense. I think there is emotional
perception of the situation which should be transformed into sound
pragmatism.
As concerns my participation in Istanbul, I am indeed not
participating in the NATO summit simply because we have no diplomatic
relations with Turkey, although I took part in the OSCE summit. Our
foreign minister is taking part in the summit. The question is not
about our relations with NATO. Our relations with NATO are developing
normally. I do not think it is correct for the Armenian president to
participate in a summit in a country with which there are no
diplomatic relations, with which the borders are closed. Bearing in
mind the current situation and the level of our relations, I think the
most effective approach is to put aside the problems which are
perceived emotionally by either side, to discuss them in a different
way, to establish real contacts, to develop trade, to make this border
breathe and not to be perceived by the other side as a wall between
our countries. This is a sensitive issue. Many in Armenia disregard
this border. But we do not set the reconsideration of the border issue
as a precondition for our relations. Let us put aside this all and, I
will repeat, start building our relations on a very pragmatic basis.
Proud to have fought for Karabakh
[Third questioner in Russian] The Azerbaijani bureau of Radio Liberty,
Fuad Qulubayli. My question is you said in the Parliamentary Assembly
that you are proud of the fact that you took part in the hostilities
in Karabakh and you are proud of the results of these hostilities. Is
it not strange for the pres ident of a democratic country to
acknowledge these separatist actions against a neighbouring country,
another sovereign country? Thank you.
[Robert Kocharyan] You know, I can enumerate many presidents of very
democratic countries who took part in wars and hostilities, who are
proud of this and people appreciate them for this. Therefore, I think
that in this context your argument is not convincing. I really lived
through the most difficult times and shouldered the responsibility, I
was not a rank-and-file fighter, but occupied very serious posts in
Karabakh. I am really proud of this part of my biography.
Karabakh should take part in talks
[Fourth questioner in Russian] Zulfiyya Aliyeva, Azadliq newspaper,
Azerbaijan. Mr Kocharyan, I think you lied to the Council of Europe
when you said here that autonomous republics also became independent
after the collapse of the Soviet Union, because after the collapse of
the former Soviet Union, it was not autonomous republics but
individual republics, including Azerbaijan, Armenia and other
countries, that became independent.
My question is, i.e. one question to you and another to [Armenian
Foreign Minister Vardan] Oskanyan, the world community has not so far
recognized independence of Nagornyy Karabakh, but you said here that
Nagornyy Karabakh is an independent state. Could this mean that you
ignore the opinion of the international community?
[Robert Kocharyan] I really regret that you are not aware of that very
law which was in force at that time, on the basis of which Karabakh
gained its legal independence. On the other hand, independence is a
category which does not need to be confirmed somewhere or to be
approved. There are countries which struggled for many years for their
independence and finally gained it. In modern history, there is East
Timor, for many years many people did not believe, there is Eritrea,
we can cite lots of other examples. If you look at the map of Europe,
of the former Soviet Union you will see what happened, how many new
states there are today on this political map. I can give even more
examples. You should not think that if today the NKR has not been
recognized, this means that it will never be recognized.
[Zulfiyya Aliyeva] You did not answer the question. Does this mean
that you ignore the opinion of the international community?
[Robert Kocharyan] You know, I did not answer this question because it
was put incorrectly. We would have ignored it if we were not taking an
active part in the settlement. We are taking an active part in the
settlement and, moreover, we said yes to the mediators’ latest two
proposals, but Azerbaijan said no. Does this mean that Azerbaijan
ignores the international community if it said no to the mediators’
proposals? We do not give such qualifications.
I think that Karabakh must be a party to the talks. This could really
give an impetus to the talks. Do you know why Azerbaijan rejects this?
You think that Karabakh’s participation would mean indirect
recognition of Nagornyy Karabakh’s independence. This complex is
hindering this process all the time. Get rid of it. It exists all the
same, it does not matter whether you want this or not, the NKR
exists. If it takes part in the negotiations, if there are direct
contacts, it will be easier to find a solution for those districts,
for the refugees and other very complicated and sensitive issues. Get
rid of this complex. Good-bye.

Azerbaijani soldier killed near disputed Nagorno-Karabakh territory
AP Online
Jun 28, 2004

An Azerbaijani soldier stationed near the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh
territory was killed by gunfire that appeared to come from
Armenian-held positions, Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry said Monday.
Private Elnur Aliyev died from a gunshot wound to his chest Sunday
evening in Agdam, which borders Nagorno-Karabakh, defense officials
said. The soldier, who was born in 1985, was buried Monday.
Azerbaijan and forces backed by Armenia fought a 1988-94 war over
Nagorno-Karabakh, a largely ethnic Armenian enclave inside
Azerbaijan. More than 30,000 people were killed and a million driven
from their homes during the conflict.
The Armenian-backed forces won control of Nagorno-Karabakh and seized
some surrounding Azerbaijani lands. Despite a cease-fire, the two
countries continue to face off across a heavily fortified no man’s
land, and shooting occasionally erupts.
At least four soldiers have been killed since the beginning of this
year, Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry said. Three civilians have also
died.
Meanwhile, Azerbaijani authorities also reported that a 60-year-old
farmer was seriously wounded when his harvester struck a land mine on
Saturday. Eleven Azerbaijan citizens have been killed by land mines
this year, and nine injured, authorities said Monday.