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08/21/2006
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1. Lebanon ARF Meets with Prime Minister on Turkish Troop Deployment
2. 1st Century Ruins Unearthed in Karabakh
3. Gul to Visit Syria on Lebanon Peacekeeping Force
4. Plans Underway for Armenian, Azeri Foreign Ministers Meeting
5. UNHCR Praises Armenia For Its Refugee-Related Policies

1. Lebanon ARF Meets with Prime Minister on Turkish Troop Deployment

BEIRUT (Aztag)–A delegation representing the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation
Lebanon Central Committee Saturday met with Lebanese prime minister Fuad
Siniora to express its opposition to a proposed deployment of Turkish
troops as
part of a United Nations mandated peacekeeping force to southern Lebanon.
Hovig Mkhitarian and parliament member Hagop Pakradouni were part of the
delegation, which initially applauded Siniora for his leadership and posturing
during the crisis and praised his decision to dispatch the Lebanese Army units
to the border with Israel.
The delegation went on to express the Armenian community’s collective
opposition to deploying Turkish troops on Lebanese soil, explaining that when
all Armenian religious leaders collectively are opposing this process, it
should signal a community-wide consensus on the issue.
It was emphasized agreement to deploy Turkish troops in Lebanon will create
across the board dissatisfaction and outrage within the community, which has
continuously and historically supported the government.
Siniora informed the delegation that he was grappling with the reality that
there were not sufficient international forces available to fulfill the needs
of the international peacekeeping force, but stressed that he fully
comprehended the expressed position of the delegation.
The delegation emphasized that the deployment of forces to Lebanon, under any
circumstances would endanger Lebanon’s stability.
At the conclusion of the meeting, parliament member Pakradouni discussed the
details of the meeting and announced that the delegation was firm in its
opposition to the deployment of even one Turkish soldier on Lebanese soil.
"We have continually worked toward bolstering Lebanon’s stability and
security. This Turkish issue will undoubtedly create instability in Lebanon,"
explained Pakradouni.
On a related note, during a joint press conference with United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Gutierrez, Armenia’s foreign minister Vartan
Oskanian stressed that Lebanon should decide which country can or cannot
participate within the peacekeeping force on its territory. This comment was
also reiterated by the UN leader.
Continuing its lobbying efforts on this matter, Pakradouni met with the UN
representative in Lebanon Georges Nasri and presented the ARF Lebanon Central
Committee appeal to UN Secretary General Kofi Anan.
Pakradouni extensively discussed the reasoning behind the vehement opposition
by the Lebanese-Armenian community on deployment of Turkish troops in southern
Lebanon.
Nasri explained that a final decision on the matter has not been made and
pledged that he would personally convey the concerns and deliver the appeal to
the Secretary General, adding that he fully understood the mindframe behind
the
Armenian community’s posturing.
Pakradouni was joined by Mkhitarian during a meeting with Iran’s
ambassador to
Lebanon Mohammad Rida Shibani and expressed the community’s opposition to the
Iranian diplomat.
The envoy highly praised the role of the Lebanese Armenian community in the
recent crisis, especially emphasizing the leadership role the ARF had assumed
in the process. He also pledged to present a detailed report on the meeting to
the Iranian government.
On a similar front, the Armenian Democratic League (Ramkavar Party) and the
Social Democratic Hunchakian party leadership separately issued announcements
over the weekend opposing the proposed deployment of Turkish troops in
Lebanon.

2. 1st Century Ruins Unearthed in Karabakh

STEPANAKERT (Karabakh Open)–The Yerkir Society presented a report Monday
pointing to the recent discovery of ruins dating back to the First Century, BC
from the Tigran the Great Era, in the Tigranakert region, which falls within
the liberated territories around the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, near Aghdam.
In Monday’s press conference, Hamlet Petrossian the leader of the
archeological dig announced that during excavations in the region from
August 3
to 18, several important artifacts, including a gate from a fortress, a
support
wall of a stairway, a 5th Century church, pottery and other pieces that date
back to the creation of Tigranakert in the 1st century BC.
"The preliminary analysis of the artifacts point to a constant existence of
Tigranakert from 1st Century BC to 14th Century AD. The unearthed buildings
and
pottery are similar to ones in other Armenian areas, especially those in the
Ararat Valley, all of which attest to historical accounts of Armenian life in
the area," announced Vahram Gevorkyan, a board member of the Yerkir Society.
"The ruins also reinforce that the region is Armenian and that the Armenian
civilization and history was developed in that region," added Gevorkyan.
The experts emphasized that based on the available information, "this
territory must be administered only by Armenians. This should be one of the
important issues for Armenians."

3. Gul to Visit Syria on Lebanon Peacekeeping Force

ANKARA (AFP)–Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul is expected to make a
brief
visit to
Syria to discus the conflict in Lebanon, his ministry has said. A statement
Monday said he would meet Tuesday Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his
counterpart Walid al-Muallem, returning to Ankara the same day.
Gul visited Israel Sunday and was in Lebanon last Wednesday where he
discussed
possible Turkish participation in an enhanced United Nations peacekeeping
force.
Turkey is ready to contribute to such a force, as provided for by United
Nations Security Council resolution 1701, but has taken no formal decision.
Turkey will clarify its decision on joining the international peace force to
be deployed in southern Lebanon.
Gul was scheduled to brief Monday’s session of National Security Council on
his visits.
It is reported that the Government will clarify its final decision on troop
deployment after Gul’s visits and the NCS meeting. However, Ministry of
Foreign
Affairs wishes the immediate announcement of the decision on the grounds that
it might help Turkish troops assume the task that Ankara prefers.
According to the information received, the military unit that may be sent to
Lebanon would not be a combatant force. General Staff conveyed its opinion
where within the blue line is appropriate for deployment of Peacekeeping
Forces.
Israel wants Turkish troops to join the international peace force. Defense
Minister Peretz, who met with Gul, expressed the Israeli view, saying that "I
want Mr. Gul to send Turkish troops to the region."
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who said, "Turkey is a country Israel has
faith in," also stated, "Turkey is performing an important role in the region.
Hopefully, it will."
Gul also met Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Tzipi Livni in Jeruselam
yesterday.
Gul said, "Ultimately, there will be peace, but it needs to be immediate and
permanent."
Stressing that the kidnapped Israeli soldiers should be released, he also
said
to the Israeli minister, "Release the elected Palestinian representatives and
ministers you arrested."
Gul said this will create "a new climate for peace."
It has been reported that Livni made no comment on the Hamas members in
Israeli prisons. By the time Gul voiced his demand, Israeli troops arrested
Hamas MP Mahmoud al-Ramahi in Ramallah. Gul then moved to Ramallah.
Gul, during his meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, reiterated
Turkey’s support. Gul criticized the Israeli attitude by saying that no viable
resolution will be achieved by unilateral decisions and use of force.

4. Plans Underway for Armenian, Azeri Foreign Ministers Meeting

YEREVAN (Armenpress)–Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian announced at a
press conference Monday that initial discussions regarding the organization of
a meeting of the Armenian and Azeri foreign ministers are being held, adding
that the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group are specifying time and place of
the
meeting.
Oskanian also announced that the Minks Group co-chairmen had not made new
proposals to Armenia, as was announced following the August 2 meeting of the
Russian, French and US co-chairmen of the OSCE body.
Oskanian was holding a joint press conference with the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Gutierrez also said that Armenia has not
received new proposals from the co-chairs.
Gutierrez said that while the UN was not involved in the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict resolution process, the international body, nevertheless, was
interested in its peaceful resolution.
During the press conference Oskanian announced that the Armenian side had not
understood the reason for Azerbaijan to appeal to the UN regarding the
wildfires in the bordering regions with the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.
"It is necessary to find practical solutions to the issue, especially since
the personal representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk
said in his report that the fires were caused due to very hot weather. This
year the fires occurred more frequently and there have been difficulties by
Armenia to address the matter due to limited resources.," Oskanian said.
Oskanian said Karabakh officials had assured him that that the fires had been
extinguished and that there were only small fires, which do not present any
real threat to the region.
As for a recent statement by Azeri Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedyarov that
Azerbaijan has applied to Armenia with concrete suggestions for preventing the
spread of fires, Oskanian said that the Armenian side has always been willing
to cooperate but it had not received any suggestion.
"I think the Karabakh authorities will also be ready to cooperate both with
international organizations and Azeris as it is a mutual issue of interest and
by helping each other it will be possible to extinguish the fires completely,"
the minister said.

5. UNHCR Praises Armenia For Its Refugee-Related Policies

YEREVAN (RFE/RL)–The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
has
praised the efforts of the Armenian government to create conditions that
promote the integration of refugees into society.
Antonio Gutierrez, paying his first visit to the region, reiterated on Monday
that granting citizenship is the best tool for protecting refugees if the
ultimate goal of the government is to ensure their full integration into
society.
"I hope it is the ultimate goal both in Armenia and Azerbaijan," he told a
press conference in Yerevan.
Gutierrez stressed the high level of his agency’s cooperation with Armenia
and
expressed his particular satisfaction with the efforts of the country’s
authorities to create a legislative and institutional framework for immigrants
and asylum-seekers, extending special thanks to the Armenian government for
accepting refugees from Lebanon.
For his part, Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian said that the UNHCR
Office has worked in Armenia for years and has been a great help to the
Armenian government to solve different problems connected with refugees.
"Although we are a non-political agency, we are extremely interested in the
peaceful resolution of the Karabakh conflict," Gutierrez said. "We think that
the agreements that will allow displaced people to return to the places of
their former residence can become an element of mutual trust that in turn can
promote an ultimate solution to the problem in the future."
Regarding the possibility of refugees recovering their lost property or
getting compensation for that, Gutierrez said: "We think that one of the
positive things of the peaceful solution could be the restoration of property
rights on both sides. If we speak about the return of refugees, it could be
the
restoration of their ownership rights. If the return is not on the cards, then
it can be solved through compensation."
Gutierrez denied the recent Azeri press reports that quoted him as calling
the
policy of the Armenian government related to refugees a failure.
He also denied having made a series of other statements that appeared in the
Azeri press and were ascribed to him.
In particular, the Azeri media quoted Gutierrez as saying that the situation
with forcibly displaced people in Azerbaijan was the gravest in the world.
"I couldn’t have said such a thing, as it is a common knowledge that this
problem is much bigger in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sudan or Colombia than in
Azerbaijan," he said.
Gutierrez said that instead of the word ‘excellent’ he used the expression
‘more mature’ to describe the UNCHR’s relations with Azerbaijan and stressed
that he was "careful enough never to use the word ‘Armenia’ in his press
conference in Baku.
To a reporter’s question to share his impressions of the refugee camps in
Azerbaijan, Gutierrez said: "The only thing that I can tell you is that
necessary investments are being made in Azerbaijan to create new homes for
refugees. There are still people who live in very poor conditions in both
countries, but I can say for Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia that the
governments in these countries take very seriously the necessity of improving
the situation of refugees living in extreme conditions."

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