RIA news agency, Moscow, in Russian
10 Mar 04
Russian agency details crimes of ethnic gangs in Moscow

Moscow, 10 March: According to the department for fighting organized
crime, about 4,300 crimes uncovered in Moscow in 2003 were committed
by people from the North Caucasus and Transcaucasus. This was said by
the head of the operative-investigative unit of the Moscow department
for fighting organized crime, Col (Police) Andrey Bolshakov, at a
news conference on Wednesday [10 March].
Crimes committed by these people are mainly of latent nature and the
victims are, as a rule, people of the same ethnic group, or those who
live in Moscow and who are involved in illegal business dealing,
Bolshakov said.
He said that completed investigations (of the cases already submitted
to courts) showed that ethnic criminal gangs committed 295 crimes of
various degree of seriousness last year. A total of 255 of the crimes
are of economic nature, including 250 frauds.
A total of 136 cases have been instituted against leaders of criminal
gangs, including 12 cases against so-called “godfathers”.
Bolshakov said that the largest ethnic criminal group acting in
Moscow is the Azerbaijani one. They are involved in extortion and
kidnapping, mainly of people from the Azerbaijani diaspora, and they
commit crimes on the consumer market.
According to the colonel, the most influential ethnic criminal group
is Armenian. The group is involved in contract killings, gambling and
extortion.
He said that the Georgian-Abkhaz criminal group is one of the
earliest ones in Moscow, it has the greatest number of godfathers and
its members are primarily involved in car thefts and extortion.
Speaking about the Ingush criminal group Bolshakov said that its
representatives are mainly linked to embezzlement in the credit and
finance sphere.
The most odious group is the Chechen criminal group which is mainly
built on clan principles and which is the most closely-knit in
nature. These people are involved in embezzlement, kidnapping as well
as in controlling the arms and drugs trade, Bolshakov said.

Public Television of Armenia, Yerevan, in Armenian
9 Mar 04
Armenian regions hit by floods
[Presenter] Prime Minister Andranik Markaryan today told President
Robert Kocharyan about measures which are being taken to liquidate
the consequences of the recent natural disaster. Various regions of
Armenia were flooded as a result of a sharp change in temperature and
very hot weather, which is unusual this time of the year. The floods
and strong winds damaged mainly Tavush Region. One person died. At
the present moment commissions were set up in regions to assess the
damage. They will submit proposals on how to assist the families
affected by the floods. The power, water and communications systems,
which have been damaged by the floods, are now being repaired.
[Passage omitted: recap of the above]
[Correspondent] As a result of strong winds in Tavush Region the
roofs of houses and buildings were damaged and villages were left
without electricity. The floods and strong winds have badly damaged
Tavush, Gegarkunik, Kotayk, Aragatsotn and Shirak regions. More than
100 houses and a bridge were destroyed in Aparan.
The regions were left without electricity and communications and with
polluted drinking water. The disaster caused damage to the capital’s
economy. The level of water in Razdan river rose by almost 2.5
meters.
The mayor ordered a special commission be set up to assess the
damage. The deputy mayor of Yerevan, Vano Vardanyan, said that roads,
green areas, constructions and bridges were damaged. He noted that
the commission will assess whether any more damage was done. The
damage will be assessed within the next five days and the government
will be told about the results.
Tereza Kasyan, Aylur.

Azad Azarbaycan TV, Baku, in Azeri
9 Mar 04
Azerbaijan, Armenia reach broadcasting accord

[Presenter] The Azerbaijani Communications and Information Technology
Ministry has taken an important step to prevent the broadcast of
Armenian TV stations in Azerbaijan. The Armenian TV stations, which
conduct anti-Azerbaijani propaganda in western districts of
Azerbaijan, have agreed to stop their broadcasts.
[Correspondent] Starting from today [9 March], Armenian TV will stop
its illegal broadcasts in Qazax. Agstafa and Tovuz districts. The
Azerbaijani and Armenian ministries of communications signed a
protocol on this during talks in Moscow which were mediated by
Russia. Under the protocol Armenia will stop broadcasting on
Azerbaijan’s channels No 22, 23 and 27.
However, this will not stop completely Armenian TV stations’ invasion
of Azerbaijan. Since the talks concerned only broadcasts from
Armenia, the use of the radio transmitting station in Susa was not
discussed, Qulam Abdullayev, senior expert of the communications
ministry, has said.
[Qulam Abdullayev] The station in Susa is internationally listed as
Azerbaijan’s. Hence, we only demanded that measures related to
Armenia-based stations be taken. We did not discuss Nagornyy Karabakh
with them at all.
[Correspondent] Whether the protocol is abided by, will be verified
through monitoring. Should Armenia breach the terms of the agreement,
the issue will first be raised in a meeting of the regional
communications body, and later, with the International
Telecommunications Union [ITU].
Incidentally, another complaint may be lodged in the ITU regarding
Iranian TV stations. In order to avert this, Iran’s TV channels have
to stop illegal broadcast in Azerbaijan.
[Abdullayev] Iran is not a member of the regional communications
body, but it is a member of the ITU. Iran has submitted its list to
the ITU and this issue will be raised with the ITU.
[Correspondent] Abdullayev said that Azerbaijan will conduct talks
with Iran. The Azerbaijani ministry intends to purchase new and
powerful equipment to completely resolve the issue. The ministry will
soon submit to the government a state programme it has drafted to
raise funds for this.

Aravot, Yerevan, in Armenian
10 Mar 04 p 3
Armenian aide lambasts Georgian way of fighting corruption
The Armenian president’s adviser, Bagrat Yesayan, who is engaged in
drawing up an anti-corruption policy, criticizes methods of fighting
corruption in Georgia.
[Aravot correspondent] One may fight corruption in the same way as
Armenia is doing it now, i.e. to plan and organize hearings; or in
the same way as Georgia is doing it: to institute proceedings and
arrest those officials whose abuses and bribery are evident. Why do
you prefer only the “Armenian” option for fighting corruption, i.e.
the organization of discussions?
[Bagrat Yesayan] First, there are not only two types of the fight
against corruption, there are many options. But there is a principle
accepted by the Council of Europe that the fight against corruption
should be comprehensive and include preventive measures,
investigation and punishment. I think that in Armenia, the fight
should mainly be comprehensive and should take place in these three
directions.
[Correspondent] Does it mean that you think that only the punitive
direction has been accepted in Georgia? A representative of the
Armenian Revolutionary Federation – Dashnaktsutyun [ARFD] said that a
country cannot be built in such a way. Why?
[Yesayan] Because I think that by taking only punitive measures, we
shall miss the first two very important options for the fight.
Corruption is a public disease and if we fight only the consequences
of the disease without taking preventive measures, we shall not
achieve any success in that case. And not only Armenia understands
this, it is a long-standing practice accepted in European countries,
and the Council of Europe has established this in its 20 principles.
[Correspondent] Don’t you think that punishing people for corruption,
as is the case in Georgia, will be the best preventive measure for
officials?
[Yesayan] I don’t think so.
[Passage omitted: Various punitive measures in different countries,
including in the Soviet Union]
And I am sure that if Georgia follows the same direction, taking only
punitive measures, they will not be able to overcome bribery as the
system will not change, only people will be replaced.
[Correspondent] Doesn’t your approach contradict the position of
Dashnaktsutyun, which, as part of the authorities, named a number of
former officials during a meeting, accused them of abuses and
demanded that they should answer and be punished?
[Yesayan] No, there is no contradiction. This is the Dashnaks’
approach. I am not aware of the names named during the meeting as I
was not in Armenia at the time. I do not know the context of the
statement, but I suppose that they spoke about political
responsibility. Ask the party about this.
[Passage omitted: Yesayan speaks of his functions as a presidential
adviser]

ANS TV, Baku, in Azeri
10 Mar 04
Mediators’ passivity may cause Karabakh deadlock – Azeri official
The passivity of the mediators in settling the Nagornyy Karabakh
conflict may lead to deadlock in the talks, the Azerbaijani deputy
foreign minister and the president’s special representative for the
Karabakh conflict, Araz Azimov, has said.
The conflicting sides continue to stick to their previous positions,
he added. Azerbaijan is not going to give up on its principled
position. Azerbaijan is ready for compromises only within the
framework of international law, end quote.
Azimov said that Azerbaijan is ready to discuss the conflict
settlement and the status of Karabakh’s Armenian community on
condition that sovereignty and territorial integrity are preserved.
At the same time, he said that Azerbaijan has repeatedly put forward
proposals, but Armenia has rejected them. Azimov added that the last
proposal of this kind was a proposal that was discussed by the
European Parliament early this year and envisaged the opening of the
railway between Azerbaijan and Armenia in exchange for five of the
occupied [Azerbaijani] districts.
Azimov said that the Azerbaijani government was against politicizing
the Budapest incident between an Azerbaijani and an Armenian officer.
Azimov believes that the accusations against the Azerbaijani
serviceman of killing the Armenian officer will influence the talks.
He added that the Budapest incident should not have a direct impact
on the talks. This will depend on the sides’ wish to make use of this
issue. At the same time, Azimov said that unlike Azerbaijan, Armenia
has been trying to form a negative opinion about the incident by
making a fuss at the international level. In my opinion, it is
precisely Armenia that is trying to influence the conflict settlement
and is making use of this incident.

Mediamax news agency, Yerevan, in English
10 Mar 04
Armenian leader calls for repair of roads with Georgia

YEREVAN
Today Armenian President Robert Kocharyan received in Yerevan Georgian
ambassador Nikoloz Nikolozishvili, who is finishing his diplomatic
mission in Yerevan and has already been appointed as the Georgian
president’s representative in the region of Samtskhe-Javakheti
inhabited mostly by ethnic Armenians.
At the meeting, Robert Kocharyan and the ambassador stated the
importance of Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili’s official visit
to Armenia to start on 12 March, the presidential press service told
Mediamax today.
The sides also discussed the situation in the region of
Samtskhe-Javakheti. Nikolozishvili told the Armenian president that
he had already been to the region and considered his priority task to
pay more attention to socio-economic problems of its population.
In this respect, Robert Kocharyan stated the importance of repairing
the highway connecting Samtskhe-Javakheti with Armenia.

Trend news agency, Baku, in Russian
10 Mar 04
Azeri, Armenian ministers to meet OSCE mediators in late March –
Russian envoy
BAKU
Trend correspondent E. Huseynov: The Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign
ministers will meet the co-chairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group on the
Nagornyy Karabakh settlement in late March, the Russian ambassador to
Azerbaijan, Nikolay Ryabov, has told Trend news agency. He did not
name the venue for the meeting, but said that the discussions would be
held in a European country.
Ryabov also commented on a recent statement by the [Russian]
president’s special representative for the Nagornyy Karabakh
settlement [and first deputy foreign minister], Vyacheslav Trubnikov,
that the conflict had reached deadlock. “This was said somewhat
emotionally and hastily. The search for a mutually acceptable agenda
is under way,” Ryabov said. The forthcoming meeting of the foreign
ministers and the co-chairmen is to elaborate the agenda of a
peaceful settlement to the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, he added.

Space TV, Baku, in Azeri
10 Mar 04
Azeri officer suspected of killing Armenian to serve time at home –
lawyer

[Presenter] Ramil Safarov’s interpreter has finally spoken out and
informed the Azerbaijani public about the latest news. We present you
with a telephone conversation with the interpreter as follows:
[A female voice on the phone] He is in a normal state and is being
held in normal conditions. He is treated well by everyone.
[Passage omitted: Personal belongings can be sent to Safarov in
prison]
[Presenter] Lawyer Adil Ismayilov, who has returned after visiting
Safarov [who is suspected of killing an Armenian officer], says that
to all appearances, Safarov will serve a prison term in Baku.
[Correspondent over video of news conference] To recap, the incident
occurred at about 0500 [0100 gmt] on 19 February.
[Passage omitted: Reported details of incident]
Ismayilov did not answer a number of questions to preserve the
secrecy of an investigation. He only said that the incident had
occurred because of the Armenian officer’s unethical behaviour. As
for the future stages of the process, Ismayilov said that the trial
could have been held in Azerbaijan in accordance with a European
convention. But it is impossible to hold the trial in Azerbaijan as
most of the witnesses are in Budapest. The investigation is expected
to finish by the end of this month. As for the lawyer appointed by
the Azerbaijani side, Ismayilov said that the lawyer has already been
named. His name is Elcin Usubov, a member of the Board of Lawyers.
[Ismayilov] The Azerbaijani lawyer can meet Safarov and take part in
the investigation only with the prosecutor’s preliminary consent.
[Correspondent] Ismayilov believes that the key issue now is to prove
the reason for the incident. That’s why, it is necessary to furnish
the trial and Budapest television with facts about the Xocali tragedy
[1992 massacre of Azeris in Karabakh] and other Azerbaijani lands
under occupation because the Armenians have already started an active
propaganda campaign in this sphere. The Armenians have managed to
broadcast two programmes of this kind on Hungarian TV in the last 15
days. Ismayilov is confident that although Safarov will be sentenced
in Hungary, he will serve his prison term in Azerbaijan. This is not
our demand, but a requirement of international law.
Mircavad Rahimov and Rasad Bagirov, Space.

Mediamax news agency, Yerevan, in Russian
10 Mar 04
Armenian leader urges nationwide fight against corruption

YEREVAN
Armenian President Robert Kocharyan expressed his regret today that
“the fight against corruption in our country is not nationwide”, the
Armenian president said at a meeting with Yerevan State University
students today, according to a Mediamax correspondent.
Kocharyan said that for an efficient fight against corruption, it is
necessary to regulate all the functions of the state. “For example,
in Armenia, four years ago, it was impossible to have a commercial
company registered without a bribe. Moreover, it took about a month.
Now it takes only two days to have a company registered and nobody
can dare to demand a bribe,” the Armenian president said.
Robert Kocharyan cited the energy system as another example, he said
that “it used to be one of the most corrupt spheres in Armenia”. “The
privatization of the Armenian grids has led to a considerable drop in
the level of corruption in this sector,” the president said.
“We have the necessary political will that enables us to reduce the
volume of corruption every year. The elimination of corruption
demands daily laborious efforts, and this is not a problem that can
be resolved very quickly by chanting big slogans,” Kocharyan said.

Associated Press
March 10 2004
One person killed, hundreds flooded as snow melts in Armenia

Melting snows and strong winds in Armenia flooded hundreds of homes
and caused one death, officials said Wednesday.
One man was killed in the city of Idzhevan because of a tree felled
by the strong winds that buffeted the Caucasus nation, the Emergency
Situations Ministry said. Hundreds of homes were flooded across the
country, and the harsh weather also affected the capital Yerevan.
Winds blew roofs off houses, downing power lines and starting forest
fires. Exact damage figures weren’t known.
The weather calmed by later Wednesday.