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03/22/2005
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1) ARF Representatives Meet with Georgian Envoy
2) Ambassador Resigns as US-Turkey Relations Sour
3) Azeri President Warns of War if Peaceful Negotiations Stalemate
4) Tbilisi Church Dispute Clouds Georgian-Armenian Ties
5) US Doesn’t Consider Turkey a Strategic Ally
1) ARF Representatives Meet with Georgian Envoy
YEREVAN (Yerkir)–Armenian Revolutionary Revolution (ARF) representatives met
on Tuesday with Revaz Gochechiladze, the newly appointed Georgian
Ambassador to
Armenia, reported the ARF press service.
ARF Armenia Supreme Body representative Armen Rustamian and the
organization’s
National Assembly faction leader Levon Mkrtchian voiced concern about
statements by Giorgi Gachechiladze, purportedly an advisor to the Georgian
president. In an interview to the Georgian newspaper Rao-Rao, Gachechiladze
made preposterous statements about Javakhk Armenians, the Armenian genocide,
and the Armenian Revolutionary Federation.
The ARF representatives reiterated the party’s position to assist Georgian
authorities in resolving the socio-economic, educational, and political issues
of Javakhk Armenians. They also expressed concern about attempts to turn
Armenian churches in Georgia into Georgian ones.
Ambassador Gochechiladze stressed that Gachechiladze’s statements do not
represent those of the Georgian government, and are partly a result of his
ignorance. He stressed that ARF’s views and concerns have already been
conveyed
to Georgian officials.
Gachechiladze accused the ARF of pursuing the “break up” of Georgia.
In a powerful response to Gachechiladze, the ARF released a statement last
Friday that read, in part: “The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is pursuing
the protection of the rights of the Armenians of Javakhk within Georgia…
Statements such as those made by the Georgian president’s advisor may only
foment disturbance in the Caucasus.”
2) Ambassador Resigns as US-Turkey Relations Sour
ISN SECURITY WATCH–The US ambassador to Turkey, Erik Edelman, has resigned
from his position at a time when a series of incidents have led to a
souring of
US-Turkish relations.
In a statement to the press, Edelman said his resignation was not related to
the current problems facing US-Turkish relations, saying that his move was
prompted by private reasons. But Turkish media had been stepping up their
criticism of Edelman for months.
During a visit to Turkey in February, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
reportedly instructed Edelman to do more to calm perceived anti-Americanism in
the Turkish media. She was greeted with massive anti-US demonstrations.
Many Turks are deeply suspicious over US intentions in northern Iraq, where
Kurds control an autonomous area. Turkey fears that Iraqi Kurds could push for
independence, which could inspire Kurds in Turkey to step up their own
separatist activities. Kurdish rebels have been battling the Turkish army
since
1984. Some 37,000 have been killed in the conflict.
Edelman had come under serious criticism from major Turkish newspapers, and
one Turkish website claimed to have collected 5,000 signatures calling for him
to be expelled from the country. Edelman arrived in Turkey in August 2003,
only
months after the US-led invasion of Iraq.
In March 2003, the Turkish parliament had rejected a US request to stage
troops in Turkey for a second front against Iraq, straining relations between
the two countries. Relations continued to sour when the US military detained
Turkish special forces troops in northern Iran in July that year, accusing
them
of plotting to assassinate a Kurdish official in the Iraqi city of Kirkuk.
Relations were further undermined at the weekend by comments from US
Secretary
of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, who said that Turkey had allowed the insurgency in
Iraq to “flourish” by blocking US efforts to get into Iraq from the north in
2003.
The issue of Syria’s occupation of Lebanon has also led to further rifts
between the NATO allies. Washington expressed dissatisfaction over Turkey’s
failure to urge a Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon, as other US allies had done.
US diplomats led by Edelman also criticized Turkish President Ahmet Necdet
Sezer’s announcement that he would visit Damascus in an official capacity in
April.
Edelman had urged Turkey to join the international community’s call for Syria
to quit Lebanon, but said in the end the decision was Turkey’s alone. Local
media jumped on his remarks, describing them as interfering in the country’s
internal affairs and prompting some politicians to label him a persona non
grata.
Still, some Turkish media have suggested that Edelman’s resignation had
nothing to do with souring US-Turkish relations, saying instead that the US
ambassador had resigned to assume a high-ranking post at the US Defense
Department or the National Security Council.
Regardless of the reasons behind Edelman’s resignation, his departure
comes at
a time when the US is losing footing with its NATO ally and when the Turkish
public is becoming increasingly disillusioned with US foreign policy. In a
public poll conducted by the International Strategic Research
Organization’s in
February, less then 1 per cent of 1’200 Turkish citizens questioned said they
supported US President George Bush’s foreign policy, while 91 per cent said
they disapproved.
3) Azeri President Warns of War if Peaceful Negotiations Stalemate
BAKU (RIA Novosti)–Speaking to a crowd during the Azeri National Holiday
Novruz on March 22, President Ilham Aliyev warned that an Azeri-Armenian war
may start any day.
“A war can break off any instant as there is no peace agreement between us.
There is only a ceasefire, and ceasefire is a very delicate matter. There are
violations of the arrangement. They run counter to our interests~Eas you all
know, the achievements we have made do not force us to break the ceasefire.”
President Aliyev emphasized that Azerbaijan is anxious to see the Karabagh
conflict peacefully settled. “Azerbaijan’s cause is just. We want to restore
our territorial integrity on the basis of principles of international law and
we shall achieve it. Let nobody has doubt of it. Simply, we want to solve
it in
the peaceful way, by negotiations. We hope that this way of negotiations will
lead to settlement of the question. It cannot be otherwise.”
Reiterating that the potential of peace talks has not run low yet, Aliyev
said
he does not doubt that a fair solution will be achieved and that “territorial
integrity of Azerbaijan will be restored and more than one million of our
refugees will return to their homelands.”
Aliyev concluded, “Norms of international law should be main principles for
each country. Azerbaijan did not occupy the lands of any other country. We do
not want lands of others countries. However, we shall not give to anybody our
lands. If we cannot achieve it in the peace way, a new position will be
created, and in this case Azerbaijan will resort to other variants.”
4) Tbilisi Church Dispute Clouds Georgian-Armenian Ties
(RFE/RL)–Senior clerics from the Armenian Apostolic Church will travel to
Tbilisi early next month to try to resolve an increasingly bitter dispute over
the ownership of a local 15th century church which threatens to sour
Georgian-Armenian relations.
The delegation, headed by Archbishop Pargev Martirosian of Mountainous
Karabagh Republic, will meet with the leadership of the Georgian Orthodox
Church over its alleged attempts to take over one of Tbilisi’s oldest Armenian
churches known as Norashen. The dispute, already discussed by the governments
of the two neighboring countries, comes amid what the Armenian clergy sees
as a
systematic destruction of Armenian monuments in Georgia.
The Armenian Church’s diocese in Georgia has been crying foul since “fake
tombstones” with Georgian inscriptions were placed in Norashen’s courtyard in
central Tbilisi at the orders of a Georgian priest late last year. Although
the
Georgian Church disavowed the priest’s actions, the diocese leaders fear that
it is preparing ground for Norashen’s takeover.
“The Armenian Diocese in Georgia hopes that the upcoming negotiations will
settle the outstanding problems, including the one connected to Norashen, the
appropriation of which continues as of now,” read its statement released on
Tuesday.
Tbilisi has for centuries had a large Armenian community. Its economic and
political heyday was during the final decades of the Russian Empire when the
city had mostly Armenian mayors and was considered the cultural center of the
Caucasian Armenians.
“At the end of the 19th century, Tbilisi counted 29 active Armenian Churches,
today a mere two are left,” said the statement. “Eight Armenian Churches have
undergone appropriation efforts and were turned into Georgian ones. In
addition, frescos, khachkars (traditional Armenian stone crosses) and all
Armenian references have systematically been destroyed. The fate of five
churches, including Norashen, currently lies in the hands of the Georgian
patriarchate.”
“The destruction and appropriation process of the Armenian spiritual and
ecclesiastical heritage continues throughout Georgia. Many historians already
refer to it as a genocide of the Armenian cultural heritage in Georgia,” the
diocese charged.
Armenian officials raised the issue with Georgia’s Prime Minister Zurab
Noghaideli during his recent visit to Yerevan. Noghaideli said after the talks
that the two sides agreed to let the two churches try to sort out the dispute
before deciding whether they should intervene.
The two governments could also be forced to deal with fresh tension mounting
in Georgia’s Armenian-populated Javakhk region. Thousands of local residents
took to the streets last week to protest against Tbilisi’s latest demands for
the withdrawal of Russian troops based in the regional town of Akhalkalak.
Georgia’s Imedi TV reported that another rally is scheduled in Akhalkalak for
March 31.
The Russian military base is the single largest employer in the economically
depressed area and the Javakhk Armenians say the Georgian government must
create alternative jobs before demanding its closure. Many Georgians, however,
feel that the local population is manipulated by Russia which is reluctant to
end its military presence in Georgia.
5) US Doesn’t Consider Turkey a Strategic Ally
ISTANBUL (Marmara/CSM)The United States no longer considers Turkey a strategic
ally, according to a report released recently by the “Eurasia Group,” which
was
publicized by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld during a television
appearance.
Rumsfeld justified the war in Iraq, but added that several obstacles were
created due to Turkey’s refusal to cooperate with the US. The defense
secretary
said if Turkey allowed American troops to enter Iraq from the north, the
situation would have been much different, holding Turkey directly responsible
for a series of failures in the Iraq operations.
In just a little over a weekend, the relations between the US and one of its
major allies in the Middle East region have gone from bad to worse.
On Friday, the Turkish government said it supported the plans of the Turkish
president to visit Syria in early April, despite the US warning that he should
not go. On Saturday, the US ambassador to Turkey resigned, following a
tumultuous two-year appointment. And on Sunday, US Defense Secretary Donald
Rumsfeld said that by “blocking” US efforts to get into Iraq from the north
two
years ago, Turkey had allowed the insurgency there to “flourish.”
Earlier in the week, US Ambassador to Turkey Eric Edelman called on Turkey to
“join an international coalition concerning Syria.” But Mr. Edelman’s comments
were not well-received in the Turkish press, which opined that he was
trying to
force Sezer not to go, and “meddling in Turkish domestic politics.” One
columnist accused him of acting “more like a colonial governor than an
ambassador.” A well-known Turkish newspaper reportedly collected several
thousand signatures calling for Edelman to be expelled from the country.
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