ARMENIAN PATRIARCHY OF JERUSALEM WAITING FOR THE FORMATION OF NEW ISRAELI GOVERNMENT
PanARMENIAN.Net
14.04.2006 GMT+04:00
The new cabinet headed by Ehoud Olmert may include partners of
Armenian lobbyists.
The acting Prime-Minister of Israel Ehoud Olmert has finally been
officially appointed to the Prime Minister’s post. The appointment
was preceded by secret voting of cabinet members who unanimously
supported the suggestion to declare Prime Minister Ariel Sharon
incapable because of being in coma for already three months. “Kadima”
party, created by Sharon and headed by Olmert won in the parliamentary
election held on March 28. Currently, Olmert is engaged in forming
new government. The new allocation of political forces in Israel
cannot but attract Armenia’s attention first of all because one of the
thrones of Armenian Apostolic Church is located in the Jewish capital
– Jerusalem. The outcome of ongoing political consultations is also
very important for the development of dialogue between Armenian and
Israeli governments.
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The victory of “Kadima” in parliamentary elections
was not so convincing. This is why for the formation of parliamentary
majority Olmert needs the support of at least four political forces.
Up to now it is known for sure that the coalition will include the
left-centrist “Avoda” party and the surprise-of-elections party of
pensioners. Still undecided is the involvement “Our Home Israel”
(OHI) party which mainly unites Russian speakers, parties of “Shas”
religious orthodoxies and the left-wing “Merets” party. Let us try
to analyze government formation perspectives from the point of view
of national interests of Armenia.
Official Yerevan and the Armenian community of Israel have partners
among the members of once ruling and currently radically oppositionist
“Likoud” party.
Among such partners we may with great reserve call the name of former
Soviet dissident, ex-minister of labor Natan Sheransky who has been in
the same prison with Paruyr Hairikyan, Ashot Navasardyan and Andranik
Margaryan and bravely spoke out for the necessity of recognizing
Armenian genocide. Being on the minister’s post Sheransky did not take
any measures in that issue. Nevertheless we can suppose that being in
opposition it will be easier for him to criticize the administration’s
attempts to politicalize the issue of Armenian genocide. (Today the
official position of Israel concerning Armenian genocide is that it
should be discussed by historians and not politicians). Just before
elections I managed to interview Mr. Sheransky in Jerusalem. In the
interview on the perspectives of Armenian genocide recognition he said:
“I have been one of those who tried to raise that question. But you
have to understand that Israel still cannot make a braver step towards
recognition than the world community, particularly the USA. You should
not expect Israel’s recognition of genocide before United States.
But if the world community gives an appropriate political appraisal
to the genocide, we shall be among countries supporting that”.
Armenians have allies also in “Merets” and OHI. But those political
parties cannot exist in the same team.
The government will include either the left-oriented leader Iosy
Bailey or the head of the right-oriented Avigdor Lieberman. Founders of
“Merets” Iosy Bailey and Iosy Sarid are known as consistent fighters
for the recognition of Armenian genocide. Being in government they
have many times raised the genocide issue. “I have done and will
do everything possible to achieve Israel’s recognition of Armenian
genocide. It is a crime against humanity and there cannot be a more
horrible crime than the genocide of Armenians. Jews being victims
of hatred bear greater responsibility and have to be more attentive
to other victims. The one who turns a deaf ear to crime, actually
assists criminals”, said Sarid in April, 2005 in Yerevan.
Similar to Sarid’s is the announcement of the current head of the
party – Iosy Bailey. In 1994, being on the deputy foreign minister’s
post, in reply to the TV speech of the Turkish ambassador he said:
“Things that happened in 1915 were not war, but massacre and genocide”.
Of course, it would be extremely naïve to suppose that people with
such a way of thinking would enter the government. But the chances of
“Merets” to get ministerial positions are not so good, since it has
only 5 mandates, whereas OHI has 12. On Monday, the leaders of “Merets”
party announced that Olmert will most likely prefer Lieberman’s
team. On the second place in Lieberman’s party list (OHI) is the head
of inter-parliamentarian commission for Armenian-Israeli cooperation
Yuri Shtern who, accompanying the supreme rabbi Iona Metzger in his
visit to Yerevan, announced that he would promote recognition of
Armenian genocide. “I myself recognize the historical fact and am
sure that putting aside Turkey’s policy, it is necessary to agree
with history”, said Metzger during his visit to Tsitsernakaberd.
If OHI enters the ruling coalition, Yuri Shtern will most likely get a
“light” ministerial position. The appointment of the former Muscovite
to a ministerial post will make it easier for Armenian and Israeli
governments to find common language.
But the trouble is that currently, former Prime Minister and Foreign
Affairs and Defense Minister Shimon Peres speaks against the inclusion
of OHI in the ruling coalition. It should be noted that Olmert wants to
see Shimon Peres on the vice-premier’s post in his cabinet. Peres says:
“Either me or Lieberman’s team”. To put it shortly, the involvement
of Peres in the cabinet of ministers is extremely undesirable for
Armenia. Worsening of Armenian-Israeli relations occurred in the
period when Peres was occupying the Foreign Minster’s post. Peres
is a promoter of strong strategic partnership with Turkey and
Azerbaijan. This is why he claims that there has been no genocide of
Armenians in Turkey. “It is impossible to assert that Armenians have
suffered genocide like Jews did.
Identification of Jews with Armenians in this issue is inadmissible”,
Peres said in April, 2001.
Another threat for us is the possible involvement of the Sefard
“Shas” religious party that demands the position of Internal Affairs
Minister. This appointment cannot but alarm Armenian patriarchy of
Jerusalem since Judaic orthodoxies hold a radical position towards
the status of Jerusalem and speak out for giving a force of state
laws to Judaic canons.
This perspective alarms not only representatives of ethnic and
religious minorities of Israel, but also the Jewish intelligentsia who
are against the refusal from temporal social structure in the country.
Staying of “Kadima” party in power allows supposing that there
will not be serious changes in the relations between Tel-Aviv and
Yerevan and the former administration’s striving to build dialogue
with Armenia will continue. But the fact is that elections have to
some extent thrown back the beginning of a very important stage in
Armenian-Israeli relations.
Yet at the end of 2005 the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel was
ready to appoint an ambassador in Armenia but the change of government
did not allow the foreign ministry to do that. Armenian issues are
still dealt with by the Israeli ambassador in Georgia which means that
our country is still playing a secondary role for Israel. The political
leadership of Israel has finally made a decision on appointing an
ambassador to Armenia, whose residence however will be in Jerusalem
and not in Yerevan. The ambassador will arrive in Armenia several
times a year. “The reason for this is connected not with politics
but merely with the shortage of funds”, told me the head of Eurasian
countries department of the Israeli foreign ministry Anna Azary. It
will be possible to return to the issue of appointing an ambassador
already after the appointment of a minister and determination of
new foreign policy priorities of Ehoud Olmert’s government. Thus,
we should only wait and hope that the new minister will not decide
to revive the policy of Simon Peres whose resignation brought about
certain improvements in the relations between our countries.
“PanARMENIAN.Net” analytical department
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