ARMENIAN NATIONAL ASSEMBLY VICE-SPEAKER EXPRESSES HIS SATISFACTION
WITH ARMENIAN DELEGATION WORK AT OSCE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY SESSION

ARKA News Agency, Armenia
July 11 2006

YEREVAN, July 11. /ARKA/. Armenian National Assembly Vice-Speaker Vahan
Hovhannisyan expressed Monday his satisfaction with the work done
by Armenian delegation at OSCE Parliamentary Assembly session held
from July 3 to 8 in Brussels. In his words, the Armenian delegation
"has managed to pass all pro-Armenia and vote down all anti-Armenian
resolutions".

In particular, national self-determination issue was put on the agenda
for the first time, he said. OSCE Parliamentary Assembly welcomed
the civilized stance taken by Serbia on Montenegro’s independence
declaration. Serbia let Montenegro secede from the union with Serbia
without resorting to force. "We fixed this as a good example of a right
balance between territorial integrity and national self-determination
principles", Hovhannisyan said.

This resolution prompted fierce opposition from Azerbaiajni and
Georgian delegates.

Besides, Armenian delegates managed to vote down draft resolutions
proposed by Georgian and Azerbaijan. The resolution provisions stated
that all unsettled conflicts should be resolved by ceding disputable
territories to the countries from which they once seceded.

Azerbaijani and Georgian delegates also proposed to give approval
to a document, under which any status that Kosovo can obtain in the
future can’t serve a precedent for solving similar problems.

Hovhannisyan said only Azerbaijani, Georgian and Turkish delegations
voted in favor of these resolutions.

These three countries’ delegations proposed a number of other
resolutions. But they were blocked by Armenian side as well. Under
one of these resolutions, OSCE and other international organizations’
officials have to establish ties only with recognized authorities and
ethnic minorities of every country ought to defend its territorial
integrity. The resolution also contained condemnation of separatism
and stated that nothing can justify it.

Spanish delegation demolished the second proposed resolution saying
ethnic minorities have a right to dispute territorial integrity and
secede from the state if their rights are not properly protected.

The Vice-Speaker said that Armenian delegation blocked also another
resolution, under which Baku-Tbilisi-Jeihan oil pipeline construction
was singled out as a good example of regional cooperation in OSCE
responsibility area. M.V. -0–