ITAR-TASS News Agency
TASS
December 15, 2004 Wednesday 11:17 AM Eastern Time

No change in ties with Armenia over dispatch of military to Iraq

By Tigran Liloyan

YEREVAN

The speaker of the Russian State Duma lower house of parliament said
on Wednesday that a possible decision by Armenia to send military
specialists to Iraq will not change relations between the two former
Soviet republics.

“Armenia is a sovereign state, and the decisions it makes are
decisions of a sovereign state,” Boris Gryzlov told a press
conference in reply to a query concerning Armenian authorities’
intentions to send military specialists to Iraq.

According to Gryzlov, Russia’s believes that “a decision on the
carrying out of any operations in other states can be taken only by
the U.N. Security Council”. “It is only with the mandate of that
organization that international peacekeeping operations or any other
operations can be carried out,” the Duma speaker emphasized.

Armenia has voiced its readiness to send drivers, field engineers and
medics to Iraq for a post-war restoration in that country.