Armenia may offer to send troops to Afghanistan instead of Iraq – paper
Azg, Yerevan
5 Nov 04
Text of Tatul Akopyan’s report in Armenian newspaper Azg on 5 November
headlined “Afghanistan a possible alternative to the Iraqi adventure”
After being re-elected president, George Bush said in his first public
speech that, with the help of its partners, the USA will continue the
fight against terrorism and will support the development of democracy
in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Armenia is one of the 30 UN member-countries that promised to help the
Americans in the restoration of Iraq; to send a group of 50 sappers,
doctors and drivers to that country, where there is an Armenian
community of roughly 30,000. The issue of sending an Armenian group
is to be discussed in the National Assembly. One thing is clear: if
parliament says “no”, it will be official Yerevan’s “no”, because
today’s National Assembly votes how [President] Robert Kocharyan and
[Defence Minister] Serzh Sarkisyan want.
Azg daily has reported many times about the possible danger for
Armenia if it sends a group to Iraq. But this is only one side of the
problem. One should take into account that abandoning the promise may
also put Armenia up against serious problems. Undoubtedly, 50 people
more or less in Iraq is not so important for the USA, when about 50
people are killed in that country daily. Today the support of
different countries in the anti-terrorist fight is more important for
Washington, especially in conditions when six of its ally states have
withdrawn their troops from Iraq, and France, Germany, Russia, Turkey
and dozens of other states did not participate in the US aggression in
Iraq or condemned it. Undoubtedly, Armenia should avoid sending a
group to Iraq, but instead of that it is obliged to offer another
service to the Americans, as well as to explain (although Americans
need no explanation) what danger Armenia will have if it joins the
Iraqi march. If it abandons sending a group to Iraq, Armenia will
undoubtedly lose more weight in the region, especially when
neighbouring Georgia and Azerbaijan are taking part in the US
coalition troops in Iraq.
For Armenia to avoid Iraq, Afghanistan may become an alternative,
which is really a den of terrorism, where the coalition forces are
continuing their fight against Al-Qa’idah and other terrorist
organizations. Would it be not justified if Armenia announced that it
is ready to send, let us say, 500 people to Afghanistan, who should
fight against Al-Qa’idah and Afghan mojahedin, against the same
terrorists and mercenaries who at one time announced jihad against the
Armenians of Karabakh?
“Azerbaijan was the first to introduce ethnic cleansing to the
territory of the Soviet Union, first to engage mercenaries and
international terrorists in its own defence… [ellipsis as published]
Ten years ago Azerbaijan used the services of the most famous
mercenaries of our region and international terrorists,” Armenian
Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan said on 29 September in his UN
speech.
Apart from Afghanistan Kosovo, where Armenia has already had its
30-strong peace-keeping team for six months, may also be an
alternative for Armenia to avoid the Iraqi adventure. The Americans
may be offered a three- or fivefold increase in our team in Kosovo.
But is it really the case that the Armenian authorities want to send a
group just to Iraq and this decision, adopted some months ago, was not
forced by any party?
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress