Author: Chakhmakhchian Vatche

North Korea sends sympathy message to Russian president over plane crash

KCNA, Pyongyang
8 May 06

Pyongyang, 8 May: Kim Yong-nam, president of the Presidium of the DPRK
[Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] Supreme People’s Assembly, on
4 May sent a message of sympathy to Russian President V.V. Putin as
regards the human losses caused by the crash of an Yerevan-Sochi
airbus of the Armenian Airline.
In the message he evinced deep sympathy with the Russian president
and, through him, with the bereaved families and expressed the belief
that the Russian leadership would heal the aftermath at an early date.

Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
May 8 2006

Azeri, Armenian ministers to table Garabagh in two weeks

Baku, May 5, AssA-Irada

Foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia Elmar Mammadyarov and
Vardan Oskanian will hold another meeting to discuss settlement of
the Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh conflict in two weeks, Armenian media
reported.
Oskanian said the meeting will take place at a meeting of the Council
of Europe Ministerial Committee in Strasbourg.
He said the discussions would center on making preparations for a
meeting of the two countries’ presidents scheduled for early next
month. He said the precise timeframe and venue for the two leaders’
meeting is not known yet.
The Azeri government has not released any information concerning a
meeting of the two presidents.
The OSCE mediators will visit the region individually, but not as a
group. Commenting on the matter, Oskanian said one should not look
for any political connotation over this, as soon afterwards they will
arrive in the region together.
Oskanian’s statement, released by Armenian Mediamax news agency, came
after his meeting with the French co-chair of the mediating OSCE
Minsk Group Bernard Fassier.*

The Washington Post
May 7, 2006 Sunday
Final Edition

Unfurling New Glory: America’s International Anthem

You say, “O say,” they say, “O zog!” “O! sagt” “O dites.” Let’s call
the whole thing a land of immigrants.

After Latino pop stars recently recorded “The Star-Spangled Banner”
in Spanish as “Nuestro Himno,” President Bush said the song should be
sung in English. But for generations the anthem has been rendered in
the voices of assorted Old Countries. Here are eight published
versions. All together now, with feeling!

English: O say, can you see, by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming?

Armenian: Usek gurnak took ter desnel vagh aikoon
Mutunshaghin ain turoshn mer woghtchoonads

Yiddish: O zog! konstu zen in likht fun sof nakht,
Vos mir hobn bagrist in demer-shayn mit freyd?

Samoan: Aue! se’i e vaai, le malama o ataata mai
Na sisi a’e ma le mimita, i le sesega mai o le vaveao

Polish: Ach! czy widac tam, patrzaj w swit bracie moj,
Dumny znak nasz co lsnil wczora gdy gasly zorza?

German: O! sagt, koennt ihr seh’n, In des Morgenroths Strahl,
Was so stolz wir im scheidenden Abendroth gruessten?

French: O dites, voyez-vous, Dans la lumière du jour
Le drapeau qu’on saluait, À la tombée de la nuit?

Spanish: Amanece, lo veis, a la luz de la aurora,
Lo que tanto aclamamos la noche al caer?

— David Montgomery

–Boundary_(ID_fyTu9+6W7nyReu1amvhc6g) —

National Post (f/k/a The Financial Post) (Canada)
May 6, 2006 Saturday
Toronto Edition

Columnist lauds Canada’s stance on Armenian genocide

OTTAWA

OTTAWA – A leading Turkish columnist gave a nod to Prime Minister
Stephen Harper and Foreign Minister Peter MacKay for recognizing the
Armenian genocide. In an article for the Istanbul daily “Radical”
journalist Muart Yetkin wrote that if economic boycott threats and
the freezing of relations with Canada are serious, why doesn’t the
Turkish Army sever its partnership with French carmaker Renault.

Furthermore, Turkey should break its relations with the United States
since 36 states recognize the Armenian Genocide. The columnist added:
“Boycott threats will not bring any significant results.” He also
wondered how far would Turkey pursue its current policy. “Will we
boycott Russia … on whom we depend for our gas supplies?” he asked.
Mr. Yetkin’s comments came in response to the Turkey’s foreign
minister’s threats against Canada and France. The French Parliament
is in the process of voting on a bill banning the denial of the
Armenian Genocide. The Turkish government’s paranoia about the
Armenian Genocide, and its denialist policy are damaging its
diplomatic relations with the international community, said Aris
Babikian, executive director of the Armenian National Committee of
Canada (ANCC). “Once again Turkey resorts to hollow threats and doom
and gloom scenarios to blackmail and scare the international
community from recognizing the Armenian Genocide,” Mr. Babikian said.
“The Turkish government should come to terms with its dark history
and reconcile with the Armenians and admit the reality of the
Armenian Genocide to the international community.”

RAMKAVAR-AZATAKAN PARTY PRESENTS ITS CONDOLENCES TO RELATIVES OF VICTIMS OF AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT

Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
May 04 2006

YEREVAN, MAY 4, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The Central Board
of the Ramkavar-Azatakan Party of Armenia presents its condolences
to the relatives of the victims of the accident of Yerevan-Sochi
A-320 plane, to RA President Robert Kocharian, to state officials,
to Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II.

This was mentioned in the report provided to Noyan Tapan from the
party’s Central Board.

GAMES OF FOURTH TOUR OF RA FOOTBALL HIGHEST LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP POSTPONED

Noyan Tapan
May 04 2006

YEREVAN, MAY 4, NOYAN TAPAN. The games of the 4th tour of RA Football
Highest League Championship that were envisaged for May 5 and 6
were postponed.

Such a decision was made by the leadership of the Armenian Football
Federation in consideration of the fact that May 5 and 6 were announced
mourning days in connection with the crash of Armavia airline’s A-320
plane. As Noyan Tapan was informed from the Press Secretariate of
the Armenian Football Federation, the Gandzasar-Ararat games fixed
for May 5 and Ulis-Shirak games fixed for May 6 will be held on May
7 at 17:00. The football-players will play with black bands on their
arms. The Kilikia-Pyunik and Banants-Mika games fixed for May 5 will
be held in the period from June 3 to June 5.

APPEALS COURT QUASHES DINK VERDICT

BÝA, Turkey
May 4 2006

Court of Appeals overrules verdict deferring 6 months jail term for
bilingual Armenian Turkish Agos newspaper editor Hrank Dink.

Journalist-writer may be retried on charges of insulting Turkish
identity.

BÝA (Ankara) – The Court of Appeals has quashed a verdict deferring
a 6 months jail sentence for Hrant Dink, editor of the bilingual
Armenian Turkish “Agos” newspaper convicted originally for “insulting
Turkish identity”.

The 9th Department of the Appeals Court on Wednesday cited
“procedural deficiencies” in the original sentence as reason to
overrule the verdict, pointing out that Dink’s remarks “The poisoned
blood that will spill from Turks will be replaced by noble blood of
the Armenians who will create Armenia” constituted the offence of
“insulting Turkish identity”.

The decision said Dink’s remarks did not fall under the scope of the
freedom of expression as defined by the European Convention on Human
Rights and disagreed with the Court of Appeals Chief Prosecutor’s
previous evaluation that a local court verdict against Dink should
be overruled on grounds that the physical and moral conditions of an
offence had not taken place.

The court also found a procedural flaw in the Sisli 2nd Court of
First Instance trial of Dink where lawyer Kemal Kerincsiz and his
colleagues were not accepted by the court as complainants as they were
not directly affected by the offence. It also cited these individuals
being paid representation fees as part of its decision to overrule
the verdict.

Following this decision the case file is to be submitted to the Court
of Appeals Chief Prosecutor’s office. If the Chief Prosecutor’s Office
does not appeal against the decision, the case will be re-sent to a
local court where Dink is to be retried. If the decision is appealed,
the case file will then be submitted for a decision to the General
Commission of the Council of State.

–Boundary_(ID_Jz2AzFbbLiSd2N7Wrzkr0w)–

AZERBAIJAN: ATTENTION TURNS TO GOVERNMENT-NGO RELATIONSHIP FOLLOWING ALIYEV’S RETURN FROM WASHINGTON
Rovshan Ismayilov

EurasiaNet, NY
May 3 2006

During his recent visit to the United States, President Ilham Aliyev
said his government would reach out to the non-governmental groups in
an attempt to hasten Azerbaijan’s democratization pace. For that pledge
to be put into practice, both the government and NGOs will have to
make adjustments in what to date has been an adversarial relationship.

Azerbaijani leaders have tended to view NGO activities warily out
of apparent suspicion that civil society initiatives are a cover
for an attempt to topple the government. Such suspicions were on
display during the parliamentary election campaign last November,
when officials took measures to hinder NGO participation in the
electoral process. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

NGO representatives continue to complain about government
restrictions. In particular, the government is keeping many groups in
legal limbo by not taking action to officially register them. “Civil
society groups, especially youth groups experience problems with
registration,” said Farda Asadov, the executive director of the
Open Society Institute-Assistance Foundation Azerbaijan. [OSI-AF is
affiliated with the New York-based Open Society Institute, which also
operates EurasiaNet].

Azerbaijani officials deny that the government is hampering NGO
activity. Hadi Rajabli, an MP from the ruling Yeni Azerbaijan Party and
chairman of parliament’s Social Policy Committee, maintained that the
government had corrected problems in the NGO registration process. “We
do have more than 2,000 organizations and their influence [in the
policy-making process] is confirmed by laws,” Rajabli said. “Some
organizations prepare draft laws and we discuss them in committees. But
their opinion is not necessarily the absolute truth, and it is up to
us whether we pay attention or not.”

Rashid Hajily, director of the Baku-based Media Rights Institute
(MRI), strongly disputes Rajabli’s claim about improvements in the
registration process. “The same registration difficulties exist now
as before,” Hajily said. “Authorities are very selective in the issue
of the state registration of NGOs. For example, since November 2002
we [MRI] have applied for registration more than 10 times and have
failed each time. The Ministry of Justice did not provide us with
logical reasons of their refusal.”

The registration issue will be one of the main benchmarks for
measuring Aliyev’s effort to improve government-NGO ties. Some
NGO activists remain cautious about Aliyev’s commitment. Over the
past year, the “general state of democracy in Azerbaijan has taken
a turn for the worst,” argued Hajimurad Sadaddinov, the director
of the Azerbaijan Foundation for Development of Democracy and the
Protection of Human Rights. At a May 1 appearance in New York,
sponsored by the International League for Human Rights, Sadaddinov
claimed that government manipulation prevented him from winning
during last November’s parliamentary elections. [For background see
the Eurasia Insight archive]. However, he held out hope that, in the
aftermath of his Washington visit, Aliyev will take steps to improve
the country’s civil society image. Specifically, Sadaddinov said he
expected the government to release individuals classified by human
rights groups as political prisoners.

Meanwhile, Asadov and other NGO representatives say that
non-governmental organizations can do a few things to build trust
and widen the channels of communication with the government. A top
priority for NGOs should be improving the transparency of their
operations. Given a shortage of funding in the domestic arena,
many NGOs rely heavily on foreign grants and donations. At the same
time, financial disclosure has been problematic. According to Azay
Guliyev, an MP and head of the National NGO Forum, the country’s
roughly 2,000 registered NGOs received a collective total of $2.1
million in foreign grants and donations. But Guliyev believes the
official figure drastically underestimates the real amount going to
NGOs. Part of the problem is connected with the registration issue,
as unregistered NGOs cannot issue officially recognized accounting
reports. But other NGOs, for a variety of reasons, are not as open
as they could be on the use outside funding.

Asadov said NGOs should also be more assertive in offering solutions
to existing policy dilemmas, as well as engage in coalition-building
to enhance their ability to influence policy debates. Unity would both
raise organizations’ public profiles and make NGOs more difficult for
the government to ignore. NGOs “fail to establish a dialogue with
the government in most cases due to the authorities’ reluctance to
communicate,” Asadov said.

Despite the difficulties, Asadov said there have been a few instances
of successful governmental-NGO cooperation, including the participation
of an NGO coalition in the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative
(EITI). “Now we have NGOs working together with the government in
the EITI commission, ensuring transparency of oil revenues,” Asadov
said. In general, he added, officials still seem reluctant to reach
out to NGO representatives.

A particular problem area concerns youth-oriented groups. Asadov said
many older, well-established NGO activists are reluctant to encourage
the development of a younger generation of civil society advocates.

“Due to limited funding, some organizations [NGOs] monopolize
particular spheres, preventing some youth groups from participating,”
Asadov said.

Government harassment has been a far larger obstacle to the development
of youth-oriented groups, NGO activists argue. Officials appear to
be especially suspicious of youth activists’ involvement in civil
society-related projects, in part due to the prominent roles played
by young people in Georgia’s Rose Revolution in 2003 and Ukraine’s
Orange Revolution in 2004. [For background see the Eurasia Insight
archive]. Underscoring that suspicion was the 2005 arrest of Ruslan
Bashirli, head of the Yeni Fikir youth group, on charges of conspiring
to carry out a coup attempt. Human Rights activists say Bashirli
is a political prisoner. [For background see the Eurasia Insight
archive]. Bashirli’s trial, which began in April, is closed to the
public. [For additional information see the Eurasia Insight archive].

Some youth initiatives have managed to overcome official suspicion.

For example, a Baku-based youth movement, Alumni Network, is pressing
ahead with a campaign, dubbed the Future Does Not Come on Its Own,
which strives to pressure the government into using profits from oil
and gas exports to promote education. In particular, the group wants
the government to fund 500 scholarships for deserving Azerbaijanis to
study at top-notch universities around the world. “We want Azerbaijan
to be a country of well-educated people, who will ensure the prosperity
[of the nation] when oil production declines,” said Emin Abdullayev,
an Alumni Network leader. The group has gone so far as to prepare a
draft presidential decree on the scholarship idea.

Another youth group, the American Alumni Association (AAA), has
gained prominence by promoting public debate on several issues,
including easing traffic congestion in Baku, education reform and
the allocation of oil and gas revenues for the public benefit. Ramin
Isayev, a Harvard University alumnus who currently works as a manager
of a foreign oil company in Baku, is working on a draft policy paper
concerning the utilization of energy revenue. The paper is based on
a March 18 public hearing, sponsored by the group.

“With the inflow of huge oil revenues, our country has an opportunity
to rapidly develop,” Isayev said. “However, if we do not manage oil
revenues and these opportunities in a wise manner, then we might miss
these opportunities and disappoint our current and future generations.”

“Since I am one of those few relatively more fortunate ones, who
made a successful journey from a refugee camp [He is refugee from
Armenia] to Harvard, I also feel great responsibility for making sure
that more and more people in our country are able to fulfill their
dreams – we may call this the American Dream, the Azerbaijani Dream
– the dream of a normal human being,” Isayev added. When finished,
the group hopes the policy paper can assist in a broad NGO push to
influence the government’s State Oil Fund strategy. [For background
see the Eurasia Insight archive].

Isayev, Abdullayev and other youth activists say they are driven
not by political concerns, but by a wish to ensure the long-term
prosperity of the nation. “I expect our policy paper be received
very enthusiastically by the government, since we make only economic
policy recommendations and we have no political agenda. This is a
wonderful opportunity for our creative government officials as well,
to build for the sake better future for all,” Isayev said.

Editor’s Note: Rovshan Ismayilov is a freelance journalist based in
Baku. Havilah Hoffman, a EurasiaNet editorial assistant in New York,
also contributed material to this report.

Viewpoint: Armenia’s last best chance
Raffi K. Hovannisian

_ al.php?StoryID=20060501-063914-5198r_
( ID=20060501-063914-5198r)
May 1, 2006

YEREVAN, Armenia — Yerevan-Armenia, the great regional power that
extended from sea to sea in the first century before Christ and for
ages played a central role in the history of Western Asia, has been
reduced to a land-locked rump in modern times.

Millennia of foreign conquest and domination, occupation and
genocide, have delivered to today’s world a nation that is long on
culture and civilization, but short in statecraft. The catastrophic
dispossession of the Armenian homeland by the rulers of the Ottoman
Empire; the subsequent Bolshevik-Turkish pact partitioning Armenia
and effectively tendering Karabagh, Nakhichevan and other integral
parts of the Armenian patrimony to Soviet Azerbaijan; and Armenia’s
inclusion in the Soviet empire may form the basis of an explanation,
but they do not excuse Armenia’s current smallness.

The nation’s historic losses and intermittent statelessness are only
prologue. The real story is in a failed leadership that seeks to
rationalize the steady decline of the Armenian factor in world affairs
by reference to external adversaries and geopolitical limitations.

In fact, the major constraint is the insecure myopia of a semi-feudal,
soft-authoritarian regime with a parochial mindset that makes a mockery
of Armenia’s ancient values and, in the very name of democracy,
smothers human rights, civil liberties, free speech and assembly,
and the rule of law. Of course, Armenia is not alone in this demeanor.

In the 15 years of the country’s newly rediscovered statehood,
authority has never been transferred from incumbent to challenger by
free and fair elections. They have always been forged – unfortunately
always by the administration. The sitting presidency is no exception
to this deplorable rule of illegitimate government.

For Armenia to reclaim its democratic advantage in the region, to
become a competitive contributor to peace, development and security,
and to realize its strategic credentials at an increasingly critical
crossing on the global map, it must transform itself both at home
and abroad.

Fresh Elections: In view of its series of falsified elections,
and most recently the constitutional referendum held last November,
Armenia requires an electoral transformation. Our American, European,
and other international partners have the capacity to make this happen
through the empowerment of Armenian citizen and society alike. This
is the expectation of the Armenian body public. An orchestrated theft
of votes and conscience is alien to the long-standing Armenian quest
for rights and redemption. Armenia must satisfy the highest possible
criteria for electoral legitimacy and accountable governance.

Rule of Right: The supremacy of rights with due process and an equal
application of laws needs in short order to become the foundation of
the state. From corruption and conflicts of interest to responsibility
for grave crimes and other misconduct, all citizens must face the
same standard of justice – starting from the very top and going all
the way down the hierarchy. The self-confidence of an independent
judiciary, elusive as it may seem, is pivotal on this score. Raise
their salaries and strictly hold them to the law.

International Standing: Armenia’s democratic transformation, much
like Georgia’s attempt, will find its reflection in international
affairs. The republic’s sovereignty is a supreme value and the most
meaningful means for pursuit of vital national interests. Armenia must
become a bridge of balance and understanding in the wider region,
intersecting as it does Western civilization and Eastern tradition,
the CIS and the Middle East, and the future linkage between its
southern neighbors and the trans-Atlantic hemisphere. Official Yerevan
should take its rightful place in the regional security system and,
in dialogue with NATO, the European Union, Russia, China, and other
centers, strive within the next decade to achieve security and energy
independence – or at least diversification.

Turkey: In all of history, no bilateral agreement, concord or treaty
has ever been negotiated or entered into force between the sovereign
republics of Armenia and Turkey.

A brave new discourse and enlightened statesmanship must guide
the initiative to normalize the Turkish-Armenian relationship in
a multi-track process that takes into account, not escapes, the
historical record and hammers out solutions to a comprehensive agenda
of outstanding issues, including but not limited to establishment
of diplomatic ties without preconditions; political, economic and
ultimately security-related cooperation; the restoration of rights
of the dispossessed; the guaranteed voluntary return of deportees or
their progeny to their places of origin; respect for and renovation
of the Armenian cultural heritage; and delimitation of boundaries
directly between the parties involved.

As it stands, however, Turkey continues to enforce a blockade against
Armenia, an act of war and a material breach of the pact that Turkey’s
Kemalist regime and Soviet Russia signed in 1921 and on which Ankara
relies for assertion of its eastern frontier. Without resolution
of this strategic connection – rather the absence thereof – neither
Turkey nor Armenia can ever join the EU, and no enduring settlement
will ever be found in the case of Mountainous Karabagh and its struggle
for liberty, democracy and self-determination.

Karabagh and Azerbaijan: There can be no true movement on this
regional conflict as long as a) Armenia and Azerbaijan remain in
essentially undemocratic hands and thus without civic mandate;
b) the republican entity of mountainous Karabagh, which declared
its independence according to a plebiscite held in 1991 under the
Soviet Constitution and relevant norms of international law, is
excluded from the peace process; c) Azerbaijan refuses to cease and
desist from its xenophobic rhetoric and its outrageous desecration
of Armenian religious treasures, including an entire cemetery of
medieval khachkars (cross-stones) finally and fully destroyed in
broad daylight by uniformed soldiers in Nakhichevan last December;
and d) the Turkish-Armenian divide stays intact and insurmounted.

Short of this, the consequences of the war unleashed by Azerbaijan
against Karabagh in 1988, resulting in thousands of casualties,
hundreds of thousands of refugees and scores of reciprocal expulsions
on both sides, must be approached on the humanitarian level. A
pilot program to demilitarize a local segment of the conflict zone,
allowing for the conditional return and restitution of both Armenian
and Azerbaijani refugees, might under the circumstances be the only
rational avenue for the initial cultivation of mutual confidence and
gradual reconciliation of peoples. In all events, for the long-term
development, prosperity, and equity of the region, Azerbaijan,
Karabagh, Armenia and Turkey must abide by the same supervisory
regime and terms of engagement as they relate to demilitarization,
repatriation, opening of frontiers, transportation and communication
and potential peacekeeping.

An old nation with a young state, Armenia does indeed face a
constellation of contemporary challenges, foreign and domestic,
which must be overcome creatively and fundamentally. Neither wishful
evolution nor artificial revolution will carry the day. Only a
peaceful, system-wide, citizen-driven transformation – anchored in a
correlation of the national will and international imperatives – can
shift the paradigm and provide the land of Ararat with one ultimate
opportunity to close the democratic deal, to turn swords into shared
interests, and to redefine its identity, place and promise in the
new era.

Freedom and justice in the world begin at home.

Raffi K. Hovannisian, Armenia’s first minister of foreign affairs,
is chairman of the Heritage Party and founder of the Armenian Center
for National and International Studies in Yerevan. Acknowledgement
to United Press International

“DON’T USE THE PAST AS A BLOCKADE FOR THE FUTURE”

(The exclusive interview of the President of Parliamentary Assembly of
the Council of Europe (PACE), Rene van der Linden, to Armenian
Mediamax news agency, April 2006)

– What are your expectations from the parliamentary elections to be
held in Armenia next year?

– Our Rapporteurs will visit Armenia this year and they will prepare a
report. I expect that we will have a debate in the Parliamentary
Assembly on this report next January. And then we will see what’s the
situation, what has been done, what are the shortcomings, and we will
urge the Armenian government to take their commitments and implement
them.

– Despite numerous efforts and funding provided by the international
community for the development of the regional cooperation in the South
Caucasus, little has been achieved. Do you think such cooperation is
possible before the resolution of existing conflicts?

– It remains always difficult to solve conflicts. But when I visited
the region it was clear that on both sides there was desire to settle
the Nagorno Karabakh conflict.

I am sure that in terms of young people it’s necessary to solve this
problem. To my mind there are a lot of people outside Armenia who are
pushing the Armenian government and the opposition in a certain
way. And it’s my conviction that the future for the young people in
Armenia is much more important than the feelings of Armenians outside
Armenia. And for that reason, it’s necessary to solve this problem and
we will do our utmost in creating conditions, the right
environment. It must be helpful in creating a climate of peaceful
solution.

– Do you still believe that it is possible to resolve the Nagorno
Karabakh conflict in 2006?

– I would hope so. The international community is willing to help, but
it is difficult to solve problems if the political will
lacks. Especially it’s also important that political parties,
government, opposition create climate in the whole country, in both
countries, which makes it possible for the people to accept the
solution. If you are exploiting the situation for your own electoral
advantage and if you are using this to try to get more votes in your
own country, you can’t solve this problem. You also need a climate
which makes it possible also for all recipients to accept the final
agreement on this conflict.

– What do you think about the possibility of a new war between
Azerbaijan and Armenia?

– If that could be possible, it’s impossible to have members of the
CoE which try to solve conflicts by using military force. In this
case, we have to discuss the membership of the countries in the
Council of Europe. It’s really unacceptable that any member of the CoE
shows that it’s trying to use military force to solve a conflict
between two members of the Council of Europe.

– What’s your opinion about bellicose statements frequently made by
Azerbaijani officials?

– They have to be aware that if they finally use military force, to my
mind, it’s over – the membership in CoE is over. They have to
decide. But I am sure nobody will accept this way of behavior.

– Energy security is becoming an important issue on the international
agenda. Can the Council of Europe play some role in it, especially
when it concerns relations of Russia and post-Soviet states?

– Of course, energy is one of the key issues for each economy. And
there are a lot of members of the Council of Europe, who are highly
dependent of imported energy from other countries. We are now thinking
in the CoE, how to deal with the situation. We are not an economic
organization and we don’t deal with economic issues. But as far as
energy could be an issue in the frame of stability, peace and
prosperity, it could be an element of political settlement.

– The closed border between Armenia and Turkey remains one of the most
difficult issues in the region. Don’t you think the Council of Europe
could play some role to help improve the Turkish-Armenian relations?

– The fact that both countries are members of the Council of Europe
creates an opportunity that members of Armenian and Turkish
parliaments can meet each other, come together and address the
problems from both sides. To my mind, if you live in a region and you
don’t have real open contacts, trade-economic relations, personal,
cultural relations, tourism, then you don’t serve your country for the
future. It’s impossible to build a sustainable future in the region
where you are isolated from your neighbors. So, I am sure, I said this
also when I was in Armenia, that it’s in the great interest of Armenia
to look forward and not to use the past as a blockade for the future,
and to try to find peaceful solutions.

Of course, if you want to find a solution, you will find it. But you
can never find a solution that gives you 100%. There is always a
compromise. The other side also has its arguments, and if you stick to
your arguments, to your feelings only, and you don’t try to find a
solution and take into account also the other’s position, it will be
very difficult to find a sustainable, peaceful solution, necessary to
build a prosperous future.

– Armenian officials have repeatedly expressed readiness to establish
relations and open the border with Turkey without any preconditions.

– Yes, but you know this problem has two sides. You know that if you
want to have an open border you must be sure that you have also
created conditions for open, transparent relations, also human and
personal relations, because trade and economic relations are based on
relations between human beings.