PACE REPORT COULD NEVER BE FAVORABLE FOR ARMENIANS
Azg/arm
28 Jan 05
But, Armenian Delegation Is Still to Be Hold Responsible
The formula adopted at the PACE on January 25 could not be favorable
for the Armenians for the simple reason that the Karabakh side won the
war. Thus, in this case, the PACE has fixed the situation. Certainly,
the formula includes many mistakes and statements unfavorable for us.
Atkinson was the first PACE MP to visit Nagorno Karabakh in 1992. He
reminded of that in his January 25 speech: “I will never forget the
Azeri bombs falling on Stepanakert, the capital.”
In 1992, the delegation led by Atkinson fixed the following: “The
latest attacks of the Azeris totally ruined villages, killed peaceful
residents, children became victims of violence in Nagorno Karabakh. We
have the impression that few weeks are left before the fall of
Karabakh, if not less time. It is obvious that genocide and exile will
follow the current events.”
Yes, these statements could be included in the PACE formula, if the
Armenian side lost the war. On the other hand, one can never approve
the activities the Armenian delegation unfolded at PACE. Our
delegation was not only split, they also used the PACE session for
their personal or party interests. Moreover, they are deprived of
mental, lingual, diplomatic and lobbyist abilities, in general.
Tigran Torosian doesn’t speak any foreign language, while the speeches
of Armen Roustamian included the idea of the Armenian Cause more than
diplomacy. The English speaking Shavarsh Kocharian was more concerned
about the human rights issues, while Karen Karapetian, “the democratic
deputy,” could not be more than a brother of an entrepreneur.
The delegation has also the second staff, including Gurgen Arsenian,
Grigor Margarian, Artashes Geghamian and Hermine Naghdalian. This
group of our delegates can be proud of the success they made in
business but they still have to work hard to achieve any success in
diplomacy. It’s worth mentioning that all the eight members of our
delegation always leave for Strasbourg, as all the expenses of their
stay are paid from the state budget.
Armenia is likely to have strategic allies, but the deputies of these
countries are mainly supporting Azerbaijan during the voting. At least
50 of the 315 PACE delegates represent the countries that are
Armenia’s strategicallies. But, on January 25 only 23 and 25
delegates voted for the two suggestions the Armenian delegation made
for Atkinson’s report.
Chairman of RA National Assembly is traveling in the capitals of
Europe for days. He and his party members highly emphasize the
importance of parliamentary diplomacy. Artur Baghdasarian managed to
be in a number of important European capitals namely Rome, Paris,
Moscow, etc. Meanwhile, the colleagues of Grizlov who considers
Armenia Russia’s outpost voted against Armenia. There are 18 Russian
delegates at PACE. Italy and France that are supposed to be Armenia’s
friends have 18 delegates each, while Greece has 7 and Cyprus 3 MPs at
PACE.
In fact, also thanks to the passiveness of RA National Assembly,
Armenia was called an aggressor, while Nagorno Karabakh was called
separatist in the PACE formula. Armenia was called an aggressor at the
NATO Parliamentary Assembly held in Venice on November 12-16, 2004 (in
“The Stability in Three South Caucasus States. 10 Years after the
Independence. The Progress and the Challenges” report).
It’s worth mentioning that Mher Shahgeldian, head of the Armenian
delegation at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, tried to hide this
report from the public, but failed. Instead, the Armenian Ambassador
to Italy appeared in an extremely unpleasant situation thanks to the
efforts to this representativeof Orinats Yerkir party. Shahgeldian was
again emphasizing the importance of parliamentary diplomacy over TV
few days ago.
By Tatoul Hakobian