Author: Boshkezenian Garik

AZG Armenian Daily #035,
26/02/2005

Exhibition

‘I DIDN’T THINK OF THE SIN WHEN PAINTING’

The theme of Adam and Eve has been widely used by artists of every times and
every nation. The exhibition entitled “Adam and Eve” opened in the “Bacchus”
art gallery aimed to represent the story of the first human beings from
quite a different viewpoint. Adam and Eve are represented in a unique way,
embodying eternal love or treason. 40 Armenian artists exhibited 85 pieces.
The majority of these pieces is created recently, especially for the
exhibition. Noushik Mikaelian, deputy director of “Bacchus ” art gallery,
stated that Adam and Eve committed the first sin, influencing the
development of the humanity. But one shouldn’t forget that they were the
first human beings of the world and were quite unaware of the norms of
morality. “Today, there are so many sins that we decided to concentrate at
Adam and Eve again and tried to begin everything again,” Noushik Mikaelian
said. The exhibition hall was decorated with apples. The initiators of the
exhibition said that they wanted to create a small paradise in the
exhibition hall and see who will again be tempted and try the fruit of
wisdom. One of the visitors couldn’t stand the temptation and tasted the
apple, but this time without Eve. Samvel Movsisian depicted Adam and Eve on
the same layer. “They can’t be separated,” the painter said. While Zaruhi
Manucharian represented the story of Adam and Eve as a love story. “When
painting, I didn’t think of the sin. Their love is more important,” she
said.

By Arevik Badalian

ArmenPress
Feb 25 2005

GERMAN CDU TO DEMAND TURKEY ACKNOWLEDGE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 25, ARMENPRESS: Germany’s main opposition
parties, which oppose Turkey’s bid to join the European Union, plan
to submit a motion to parliament calling on Turkey to acknowledge
responsibility for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Armenians
in 1915, Bloomberg reported.
The Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian sister party, the
Christian Social Union, said the Turkish government arrested the
Armenian political elite in Istanbul in 1915, marking the start of
mass deportations and murders in which as many as 1.5 million
Armenians are estimated to have died.
The Turkish government’s refusal to accept responsibility for the
crimes committed 90 years ago “stands in contrast to the idea of
reconciliation that spearheads the shared values of the European
Union, which Turkey aims to join,” said the draft motion, a copy of
which was e-mailed to Bloomberg News.
CDU leader Angela Merkel and CSU head Edmund Stoiber have called
for Turkey to be allowed a “privileged partnership” with the
25-nation bloc. EU leaders including German Chancellor Gerhard
Schroeder agreed two months ago that Turkey should start membership
talks in October this year.
Turkey’s Hurriyet newspaper today called the motion an attempt by
Merkel to block the country from joining the EU. The CDU leader has
said Turkey isn’t European enough in terms of its culture and history
to join the union.
“It isn’t true that we want to bar Turkey from EU entry with this
proposal, but still we think it’s important to honor the memory of
the Armenian victims,” the CDU’s Christoph Bergner, one of the
legislators who signed the motion, said in a telephone interview.
Germany has a part in the crimes because the government at the
time didn’t act to prevent the killings in spite of detailed evidence
documented by German ambassadors in Turkey, Bergner said.
Not all CDU lawmakers back the motion.
“I reject this proposal and didn’t vote for it,” said Volker
Ruehe, the chairman of the all-party parliamentary foreign- affairs
committee, in an interview. “I think it will be modified eventually.
We’ve no right to thrust this demand” on Turkey. The Turkish
government denies accusations of genocide over the deaths. It says
the Armenians were killed during civil conflicts in which many Turks
also died.

Russian FM heads to Armenia for official visit

Bahrain News Agency
February 16, 2005 Wednesday 8:44 AM EST

Manama, February 16 — Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is due
in Armenia Wednesday on a two day official visit aimed at boosting
bilateral ties and means to end the disputed Nagorno Karabakh region
between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Armenian news agency added today that Lavrov will meet with Armenian
President Robert Kocharian, his Armenian counterpart Vartan Oskanyan
and other senior officials.

The Russian official paid a similar visit to Azerbaijan last week and
discussed the Nagorno Karabakh region issue with Azerbaijani officials.

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
—————————————— —-

PRESS AND INFORMATION DEPARTMENT
375010 Telephone: +3741. 544041 ext 202
Fax: +3741. .562543
Email: [email protected]:

PRESS RELEASE

February 16, 2005

Foreign Ministry’s Press Secretary Hamlet Gasparian Comments on Azimov’s
Statement to REGNUM News Agency

Question: In his interview to Azeri ATV, Azerbaijan’s deputy foreign
minister A. Azimov announced that “The government of Azerbaijan rules
out any chance of discussions about a corridor between Armenia and
Nagorno Karabagh”. If this is the position of Baku, how can we ensure
that one of our main negotiation points, i.e. exclusion of Nagorno
Karabagh’s enclave status, be met? On the other hand, does this mean
that Azerbaijan’s communication routes with Nakhichevan and Armenia’s
communication routes with Nagorno Karabagh are discussed within the
same negotiations framework?

Answer: It is true that the Azeri party has recently been coming
up with various far-fetched schemes, often voiced by Araz Azimov,
intended to complicate and confuse the issues on the negotiations
agenda. In this specific case, they are probably concerned by
preliminary findings of the fact-finding mission, already covered
by the media. These findings by no means suit Azerbaijan’s claims,
hence their attempts to throw in all kinds of unrealistic speculations.

While this and other misleading statements by the Azeri party should
not be taken too seriously, they may still cause confusion among our
society. Therefore, it is worth mentioning that Nakhichevan, which
does not have any communications problems to start with, cannot be
viewed within the same framework with Nagorno Karabagh. Nakhichevan’s
communications with its neighbor states are not constrained in any
way. The issue is about Nagorno Karabagh and the consequences of the
conflict, and in this sense the status of Lachin corridor cannot be
juxtaposed to any other such issue.

Reuters, UK
Feb 11 2005

NEWSMAKER – U.N. envoy in Iraq scandal larger-than-life figure
Fri Feb 11, 2005 08:34 AM ET

By Evelyn Leopold

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Veteran U.N. official Benon Sevan,
embroiled in the Iraq oil-for-food-scandal, is a larger-than-life
figure who calls himself the most “politically incorrect person in
the U.N.”

Sevan, a Cypriot of Armenian descent, was chosen to direct the $67
billion program after a distinguished 40-year career with the world
body in which he was involved in some of the most intractable, and
often dangerous, world crises.

Sevan, 67, a big man with white hair and dark eyebrows, is admired by
colleagues for an ability to solve problems fast, his blunt retorts
and a store of anecdotes for all occasions, told in rapid-fire
heavily accented English.

“He has a heart as big as a cathedral” said one veteran U.N.
official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

All that made the sharp criticism against him this month by a
U.N.-appointed independent committee all the more painful for the
U.N. employees who knew him in the many jobs he held.

Sevan is accused by an investigation headed by Paul Volcker, the
former U.S. Federal Reserve chairman, of steering an oil contract to
a small Panama-registered trading firm in what the report called “a
grave and continuing conflict of interest.”

The inquiry, still investigating how Saddam Hussein subverted the
U.N. program, is also probing whether Sevan benefited personally from
the trade, which netted the firm involved $1.5 million.

Sevan, who had retired but is on a $1 year contract while the inquiry
continues, denies the allegations, saying he never “took a penny” and
was made a scapegoat in the anti-U.N. political climate in
Washington.

“I think I’m not the only who was shocked by what we read in the
report,” U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said. “He has been here
working with many of us for quite a time and we had not expected
anything of the sort.”

Raised by an aunt in Cyprus, Sevan, who is married and has one
daughter, studied ancient Greek philosophy at New York’s Columbia
University before joining the United Nations in 1965.

In his long U.N. career he served in Afghanistan, Angola, Burundi,
Kosovo, Rwanda, Somalia and Lebanon and in myriad jobs at U.N.
headquarters in New York, including security coordinator and Security
Council administrator.

SURVIVED BOMBING
In Iraq, he narrowly survived the bombing of U.N. headquarters in
August 2003, leaving the office of Brazilian Sergio Vieira de Mello,
the mission chief, to smoke a cigar minutes before the blast, which
killed 22 people.

It was left to Sevan to recite Vieira de Mello’s dying words —
“Don’t pull the mission out” — as his body was carried aboard a
Brazilian presidential plane at Baghdad airport for his last journey
home.

Sevan’s 1988-92 term in Afghanistan included the pullout of Russian
troops in 1989. He persuaded Najibullah, president of the
Soviet-backed government, to step down in exchange for safe exit out
of the country.

But Sevan was turned back by soldiers when he tried to take the
former president to the airport. Najibullah sought refuge in the U.N.
compound for four years until the Taliban broke in and hanged him
from a lamppost.

Sevan was named by Annan in October 1997 to run the oil-for-food
program under which Iraq, squeezed by international sanctions imposed
for its 1990 invasion of Kuwait, was allowed to sell oil to buy goods
for its people.

“He was considered tough and unsentimental and knew the political
game,” said one envoy. Key Security Council members, like the United
States, went along with the appointment.

“People took it as a given he would do his duty,” said Samir Sanbar,
a retired U.N. assistant secretary-general.

But Sanbar said the scandal was a great disappointment for those who
had devoted their lives to the world body. “The only thing the U.N.
has is its credibility. What else do we have?”

PRESS OFFICE
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Contact: Jake Goshert, Coordinator of Information Services
Tel: (212) 686-0710 Ext. 60; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:

February 9, 2005
___________________

REAWAKENING THE VARTANANTZ SPIRIT FOR THE ARMENIA OF OUR DREAMS

Each day, as he pauses to admire the beauty and majesty of St. Vartan
Armenian Cathedral on Second Avenue and 34th Street, Garnik Nanagoulian,
executive director of the Fund for Armenian Relief (FAR), sees the
legacy of General Vartan Mamigonian and his valiant soldiers. The
Armenian house of worship, standing proudly in the middle of one of the
most powerful centers of the world, is a testament to the Vartanantz
spirit in every Armenian, passed down through generations, to persevere
through challenges and rebuild.

It was this desire to revive the Vartanantz spirit that Mr. Nanagoulian
hoped to express to the more than 200 faithful who gathered at New York
City’s St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral on Thursday, February 3, 2005, to
mark Sts. Vartanantz Day.

In his keynote address for the Sts. Vartanantz Day dinner organized by
the Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern) with the
participation of the Knights and Daughters of Vartan Mid-Atlantic
Region, Mr. Nanagoulian highlighted the historic opportunity Armenians
have today to create the Armenia of their dreams, the Armenia that 28
generations of Armenian ancestors have prayed for. Now is the time, he
said, to get involved in nation-building, in laying the foundations of
the country.

“In the battle of Avarayr in the 5th century, the spirit of Vartan could
express itself only in two ways — live or die. In the end, the
Armenians chose to die rather than give up their holy rights, the
essence of their identity. Today the spirit of Vartan could be
expressed in many ways,” said Mr. Nanagoulian who witnesses the
accomplishments of the spirit of Vartan within FAR’s donor community on
a daily basis.

SPEAKING ABOUT FAR

Founded in response to the 1988 earthquake, FAR is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
organization that provides short-term emergency relief and implements
long-term programs for the economic growth and social development of
Armenia. It helps the most vulnerable segments of the population –
children and the elderly – and prepares the youth and professionals to
drive the country’s new democratic state.

With almost 30 programs to be implemented in 2005, FAR’s activities
include a wide range of projects, from operating soup kitchens and
summer camps to providing educational scholarships and scientific grants
to building irrigation systems and university halls.

FAR is recognized within the Diaspora for repeatedly proving that goals
can be accomplished lawfully, transparently and reliably. The
organization’s donor community believes in FAR and is proud of its
association. The people of Armenia also believe in FAR. When they hear
that FAR will be implementing a project, they know it will be done.
This trusted reputation, both in the Diaspora and in the Homeland, is
built on 16 years of serving a cumulative 10 million people through more
than 130 relief and development programs in Armenia and Karabagh.
Having partnered with U.S. Government agencies, like USAID and USDA, and
many international nonprofits, FAR has channeled more than $250 million
in humanitarian assistance to Armenia.

Headquartered in New York, FAR has three offices in Armenia and Karabagh
and more than 150 full-time employees. FAR has an outstanding track
record, successfully completing every project undertaken. Relying on
its time-tested operational framework to effectively and efficiently
execute programs throughout the country, including regional and national
projects, FAR is recognized for accomplishing goals on time and within
budget. This successful project track record reflects FAR’s standard of
excellence in execution. Today, it is the preeminent relief and
development organization operating in Armenia.

CAST YOUR VOTE FOR ARMENIA TODAY

Mr. Nanagoulian underscored the need for a long-term commitment to build
the ideal nation — “being in it for the long haul in Armenia.” Helping
our brothers and sisters in the struggling Homeland “would be in the
spirit of Vartanantz, because it is there, in Armenia, where our future
is. Because it is there, where our roots are. Because this is the land
of Vartan. This is the land I’ve come from. This is the land we have ALL
come from,” he said.

By focusing on the common culture, faith, and history, Mr. Nanagoulian
likened all Armenians, whether from the Diaspora or the Homeland, to
family. He indicated that this shared heritage is a deep connection
that bolsters the pride of each Armenian. “And as an Armenian family,
we have a duty to help the members of our family in the struggling
Homeland. It is a duty, an obligation. An obligation as a choice, a
choice you make for the people you love.”

Through FAR’s work, the Diaspora contributes to giving hope and creating
opportunities for the people of Armenia. This attention demonstrates
that each individual life means something and that in the Armenia of our
dreams, in a society that is free, productive, consensual, and human,
every human being counts.

Mr. Nanagoulian announced, “we at FAR, realize how fortunate we are to
have a unique chance in our lifetime to see and know an independent
Armenia. This is our chance. It is time to cast our vote for the future
of all Armenians drawing the lessons from our past. In fact, it is the
only vote we have as Armenians, here, in Diaspora.” He continued, “by
giving our time, donating money, volunteering our services – we cast our
vote for the future of Armenia, for our future, for the future of
generations of Armenians to come. And maybe our descendants will
celebrate us as warmheartedly in the future as we today celebrate St.
Vartan and his valiant warriors.”

(To read Mr. Nanagoulian’s remarks, please see the News and Events
section of FAR’s website, )

ST. VARTAN’S EXAMPLE

“All across the world, Armenians gather on this day to remember and
celebrate St. Vartan,” said Garo Sekdorian, Knights of Vartan
Mid-Atlantic Interlodge Grand District Representative on behalf of
Edward Korkoian, Avak Sbarabed. In 451 A.D., General Vartan Mamigonian
set an example by fighting for his holy rights during a battle against
the Persian army, which was intent on converting the Armenian Christians
to paganism by force. Although not victorious on that day, St. Vartan
inspired Armenians to defend their faith for 30 years until the Persians
submitted and allowed the Armenians to be Christian.

In his remarks to the crowd in the Haik and Alice Kavookjian Auditorium,
Archbishop Yeghishe Gizirian, former Pontifical Legate and Primate of
the Armenian Church of Great Britain, said that every February brings us
the celebration of St. Vartan and the battle of Avarayr. It is a
momentous occasion markings his battle to protect Armenia and our
Christian faith said the Archbishop. “This celebration is the
providence of our Church.”

“The Persian Empire, the Ottoman Empire – they have come and gone,”
proclaimed Raffi Nakashian, Mid-Atlantic Interlodge Chairman, who served
as the Master of Ceremonies for the Vartanantz Day Program, “yet the
Armenians, we are still here. We must be doing something right!”

CELEBRATION OF VARTAN

Three local Armenian schools performed at the Sts. Vartanantz Day dinner
in New York: the Hovananian Day School’s fourth grade and after-school
program students, led by Anahid Garmirian and Sylva Mesrobyan; the Holy
Martyrs Day School’s fourth, fifth and sixth graders, led by Anahid
Boghossian, Janet Marcarian, and Sophie Kerbeykian; and the St.
Illuminator’s School’s fourth, fifth and sixth grade students, led by
Zemroukhd Markarian and accompanied on the piano by Yn. Marina
Shitilian. The children presented a series of songs, dances and poetry
recitations telling the story of St. Vartan’s faith and determination,
and the fight for Armenia and Artsakh, the Armenian name for Karabagh.

The dinner came following a special Divine Liturgy celebrated by Fr.
Daniel Karadjian, with the participation of St. Nersess seminarians and
St. Vartan Cathedral deacons.

The 2004 Vartanantz Day Commemoration Committee was co-chaired by Raffi
Nakashian and Ceran Kasarjian, with Fr. Mardiros Chevian, dean of St.
Vartan Cathedral, acting in an advisory position. The members of the
committee were: Hagop Yagliyan, Garo Dursunian, Manug Aydin, Vatche
Aslanian, Tanya Bukucuyan, Arpi Candan, and Kathryn Kurkjian.

ACYOA Juniors from the Holy Martyrs Armenian Church in Bayside, Queens
were instrumental in ensuring a smooth dinner program. “It has become a
tradition for them to be involved in Sts. Vartanantz Day now,” said
Elizabeth Reed, director of the ACYOA Juniors of Holy Martyrs in
Bayside, of the group helping on Thursday night.

— 2/9/04

E-mail photos available by request. Photos also viewable on the Eastern
Diocese’s website,

PHOTO CAPTION (1): Garnik Nanagoulian, Executive Director of the Fund
for Armenian Relief, speaks to the more than 200 people who attended the
Sts. Vartanantz Day dinner hosted by the Diocese of the Armenian Church
of America (Eastern) and the Mid-Atlantic Region of the Knights and
Daughters of Vartan.

PHOTO CAPTION (2): Faithful of all ages attended the special Divine
Liturgy on Thursday, February 3, 2004, celebrated by Fr. Daniel
Karadjian.

PHOTO CAPTION (3): Students in the Hovnanian Day School fourth grade
and after-school program take to the stage to perform during the 2004
Sts. Vartanantz Day program organized by the Eastern Diocese.

PHOTO CAPTION (4): During their performances on Thursday, February 3,
2004, the students of the Holy Martyrs Day School and St. Illuminator’s
School presented a program of songs and poetry recitation that were both
patriotic and reflective of the Armenian Christian faith.

# # #

Post-Gillette: Will the life sciences pick up the
slack?

EXCLUSIVE REPORTS

Boston Business Journal (Boston, MA)
February 4, 2005

By Mark Hollmer, Journal Staff

While the Boston region risks losing more than a
thousand jobs following the sale of the venerable
Gillette Co. to Procter & Gamble Co., the state’s
health care and life sciences sectors offer a partial
silver lining.

Some of the region’s major hospitals and biotechnology
companies plan to add or fill nearly 2,700 combined
jobs over the coming year, based on informal Boston
Business Journal estimates.

Some insiders say the net job growth will at least
lessen the pain generated by Gillette’s loss and the
region’s recent financial services consolidations,
revealing that health care and life sciences are
rising to the task.

“It is … a consciousness-raising event, that
presents … opportunities for all of us leaders in
the business community and leaders in the public arena
to become specifically focused on the opportunities
that present themselves in and around biotechnology,
specifically, and life sciences in general,” said
Thomas Finneran, the new president of the
Massachusetts Biotechnology Council and former
longtime House speaker.

Others point out that jobs gains in health and life
sciences, however welcome, don’t diminish the fact
that executives and employees of a consumer-products
company such as Gillette can’t necessarily transfer
their skills to the new sectors posting “help wanted”
signs.

“What happens to the 1,800 people in the (Gillette)
executive office? They’re probably not going to move
into positions created in health care/life sciences,”
said Richard Lord, president and CEO of Associated
Industries of Massachusetts.

With the New England Economic Project projecting the
creation of 43,000 jobs in Massachusetts through 2005,
many of those jobs could come from life sciences and
health care. However, many of those jobs will be
focused on research and development and won’t likely
lead to many local manufacturing jobs here, said
Noubar Afeyan, managing partner at Flagship Ventures
in Cambridge and a senior lecturer at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School
of Management.

Genzyme Corp. in Cambridge, which employs 4,990 people
in Massachusetts, said in December that it had 300
regional job openings and plans to fill between 300
and 500 new and vacant positions. The Novartis
Institutes for BioMedical Research Inc., which brought
900 jobs to Cambridge last year, plans to add about
200 more in 2005. Boston Scientific Corp. in Natick
employs 2,073 people in Massachusetts and added 384
people regionally in 2004. The medical device giant
plans to fill 183 positions here in 2005 and
potentially more, according to a spokesperson.

Even such smaller companies as Transkaryotic Therapies
Inc. in Cambridge, which employs 380 people, hired 60
people in 2004. TKT will hire 20 more through the
first part of this year as it focuses on gaining
regulatory approvals for two of its compounds.
AstraZeneca, which employs 1,203 people at its Waltham
research facility, also plans to hire locally this
year for sales, research and development and
operations positions.

Massachusetts General Hospital said in December it
would add 725 clinical care and research jobs to its
18,127-person work force in 2005. Beth Israel
Deaconess Medical Center said it plans to add 350
clinical care employees to its 6,700-person work
force, and Children’s Hospital Boston said it would
boost its 7,200-person staff over the next year by 250
people. Brigham and Women’s Hospital is aiming to fill
at least 120 vacant nursing positions alone.

Biopharmaceutical employment in Massachusetts reached
21,400 people in 2003 and will continue to grow as the
industry expands, according to the Milken Institute,
which recently compiled a report looking at
biopharmaceutical industry contributions domestically.

Health care employment in Massachusetts varies by
sector, but hospitals show the most growth. Hospitals
employed 156,100 people in December 2003, and the
number jumped by 1,500 by December 2004, according to
data from the state Division of Unemployment Career
Services.

Mark Hollmer can be reached at
[email protected]

ACCORDING TO ARABIAN HISTORIANS, ARMENIAN GENOCIDE IS BLACK PAGE OF XX CENTURY

Azg/arm
9 Feb 05

On the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide,
The Institute of Oriental Studies at RA National Academy of
Sciences published the book by professor Nikolai Hovhanissian. The
book is entitled “The Armenian Genocide Highlighted by the Arabian
Historians.” It is published by state assistance and by the decree
of the State Committee for the Arrangements Dedicated to the 90th
Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. The author dedicated his work
to the memory of all the victims of the Armenian Genocide in 1915, “to
all the young Armenian girls that couldnâ~@~Yt become brides and all
the young Armenian boys that didnâ~@~Yt become men,” as well as “to
all the generous Arabs that were kind enough to reach a helping hand
to the Armenians in the hard days of 1915 on their way to Golgotha.”

The book thoroughly represents the researches of the Arabian historians
on the reasons and the essence of the Armenian Genocide, as well as the
methods and mechanisms of its implementation. The author emphasized
the importance of the fact that the Arabian historians began using
the term “Armenocide” (elimination of the Armenians). They stated
that the Armenian Genocide was the dark page of the XX century. At
the same time, the Arabian historians say that the Ottoman Empire
is a country of massacres carried out not only against Armenians but
also against Arabs, Greeks, Assyrians, Slavonian nations, as well as
against other non-Turkish minor nations that lived there.

The author pays special attention to the facts of rendering help to
the Armenians by Arabs in the years of the Genocide.

By Ruzan Poghosian

–Boundary_(ID_R5zQznAgu6/v/PMBhEe4rw)–

TURKEY APPEARS IN DEADLOCK

Azg/arm
9 Feb 05

They Want to Characterize Battle in Khojalu as Genocide

Bjulent Arinc, speaker of Turkish National Assembly, pays an
official visit to Baku. He met with Mortuz Aleskerov, Speaker of
Azeri Meli Mejlis, on February 7. The sides touched upon the issue
of â~@~Xthe massacresâ~@~Y carried out by the Armenians against
the Azeris. According to the February 8 issue of the Turkish Radical
newspaper, Aleskerov characterized the battle in Khojalu that took
place in 1992 as a genocide carried out by the Armenians and demanded
from Arinc that the Turkish National Assembly should take a relevant
decision.

According to Sabah, in response, Arinc assured that “the Turkish
parliamentarians will include the issue of the genocide in
the agenda in the course of February 26 sitting, on the day of
the massacre.” Meanwhile, the Azeri parliamentarians suggested
Arinc to establish “a museum of victims” combining the efforts of
Azerbaijan and Turkey. Arinc stated that Turkey will participate in
this initiative. He also condemned Armenia for occupying over 20%
of Azerbaijan.

Combining their efforts, Turkey and Azerbaijan try to hinder the
settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict and the recognition of the
Armenian Genocide. Even if Azerbaijan characterizes the battles
in Khojalu as â~@~Xgenocideâ~@~Y, it will not help to achieve
the desired results in the process of Nagorno Karabakh conflict
settlement. If Azerbaijan and Turkey try to set off the issue of
Khojalu battles against the recognition of the Armenian Genocide,
it will become clear for the international community that Turkey is
in deadlock.

Azerbaijan fails to convince even the Turkish-speaking states of
the Middle East that the battles in Khojalu were a genocide. But,
even if Turkey and Azerbaijan manage to convince them in this issue
they will not be able to deny that the recognition of the Armenian
Genocide by the international community is unavoidable. So, it will
become for the Turkish-speaking states also that Turkey is at a loss.

By Hakob Chakrian

–Boundary_(ID_gdi1rIvOG53fvDID5FolhA)–

Armenian president goes on short break

Mediamax news agency
7 Feb 05

Yerevan, 7 February: Armenian President Robert Kocharyan went on a
short break on 7 February which he will spend on the territory of
the republic, the presidential press service told Mediamax news agency.

Usually Robert Kocharyan spends his winter holidays in the skiing
resort of Tsakhkadzor [near Yerevan].