Author: Chakrian Hovsep

ErdoÄŸan signals political ties with Armenia

TDN Saturday, April 30, 2005

In remarks seen as a sign of policy shift, the prime minister says
study of history could run parallel to establishment of political
relations. FM Gül announces, however, there are no plans to
open up the border gate

ANKARA ` Turkish Daily News

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan was quoted as saying
yesterday that Turkey could establish political relations with
neighboring Armenia while historians study events during 1915 and 1918
in a bid to clarify whether Armenians in the Ottoman Empire were
subject to a genocide campaign.

Turkey categorically denies charges of genocide and ErdoÄŸan has
recently sent a letter to Armenian President Robert Kocharian
proposing establishment of a joint commission of historians to study
the events of the World War I years. Kocharian, however, suggested in
his reply an inter-governmental commission that would be tasked with
investigating ways to normalize relations between Turkey and Armenia.

`A political relationship can be established on the one hand, while
studies continue on the other. There is no great wall between Turkey
and Armenia,’ ErdoÄŸan told daily Milliyet in an interview.

Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül, when asked to comment upon
ErdoÄŸan’s remarks, said there were no plans at the moment to
open the border gate with Armenia.

`What the prime minister emphasized is that Turkey is good
intentioned, supports stability in its region and is open to
developing relations with its neighbors. But such things can’t be
one-sided,’ Gül told reporters in the central Anatolian city of
Kayseri. `There would definitely be an improvement if there is mutual
goodwill.’

Turkey severed its diplomatic relations with Armenia and closed its
border gate with the landlocked country in the last decade after
Armenian troops occupied the Azeri territory of
Nagorno-Karabakh. Ankara says normalization of ties depends on
Armenia’s stopping their support of genocide allegations and formally
accepting its current borders with Turkey, as well as withdrawal from
Nagorno-Karabakh.

In his letter delivered to the Turkish side earlier this week,
Kocharian said the border gate should be opened, as even countries
which are at war with each other keep their borders open.

ErdoÄŸan, however, took a cautious line, saying Armenia should
also demonstrate goodwill. `Why are you continuing efforts to get
recognition of the alleged genocide all over the world, while asking
me to open up the border? I should see a sign of goodwill,’
ErdoÄŸan said.

Armenians stepped up efforts to win international backing for their
allegations of genocide, hoping that the 90th anniversary of the
alleged genocide on April 24 would increase sympathy for their cause.

ErdoÄŸan said his government has allowed flights between Yerevan
and Istanbul in a goodwill gesture and the Culture Ministry has been
given instructions to renovate an Armenian church in eastern Anatolia
in coordination with the Armenian patriarchate of Turkey.

`These are positive messages from us. We need to get similar messages
from the other side too,’ ErdoÄŸan said.

˜EU provokes nationalism’:

The prime minister also criticized the European Union for
`intentionally provoking’ nationalism in Turkey’s Southeast, where
Kurds dominate the population. `This stirs up another kind of
nationalism,’ he said, referring to the rise in current Turkish
nationalism.

ErdoÄŸan said the EU relied on `unhealthy sources’ while making
its assessments on the issue. `I am from the Black Sea region and my
wife is an Arab from the southeastern city of Siirt ¦ If you stir
up a certain sort of nationalism, another sort of nationalism begins
to rise. This is wrong,’ he said.

AZG Armenian Daily #078, 30/04/2005

Diaspora

HRANT DINQ ACCUSED OF ‘INSULTING TURKS’

‘I Am a Turkish Citizen, but I Am No Turk’

Hrant Dinq, editor of Istanbul-based Akos Armenian newspaper, was informed
from Urfa Public Prosecutor’s Office that a suit has been instituted against
him. If the charge brought against him is proved, he will be sentenced to 3
years of imprisonment.

Dinq said in the interview to Azg that he was charged with “Insulting the
Turks.” Particularly, Dinq said that during one of the conferences in Urfa,
2002, he complained about the word combination “my heroic nation” in the
anthem of Turkey.

“I said that I am against this sentence, as it is nationalistic. Besides
Turks, Greeks, Armenians and other nations also live in Turkey. I said that
I am from a different nation and it is not easy for me to utter this word
combination,” Dinq said.

Hrant Dinq also spoke against the sentence “I am a Turk, I am honest and
hard working,” which the children pronounce in all the schools of Turkey
before each lesson. “I said during the conference that I am an Armenian, I
am no Turk, I am merely a Turkish citizen,” he said in the interview to Azg.

Hrant Dinq doesn’t think that the suit instituted against him is connected
with his activities. “It doesn’t concern the recent events. I don’t think
this is a serious suit. Certainly, I can be charged but I am not guilty,” he
said. Mr. Dinq said that he is unlikely to leave for Urfa himself to
participate in the trial. He will hire a lawyer, instead.

Particularly lately, when the talks on Turkey’s membership to EU became more
active, Dinq is being invited to many conferences, including to those held
in Europe. He is being cited in almost all the articles about the Armenian
Genocide and the Turkish-Armenian relations published in the Western press.

By Tatoul Hakobian

Georgia, Azerbaijan safe heavens for terrorists, says Russian expert

28.04.2005

YEREVAN (YERKIR) – The territory of Georgia, including the Pankisi
gorge, remain a safe heaven for Chechen and other terrorists, a
Russian special service expert has said, according to Armenpress.

General Leonid Sazhin’s statement was made in connection with the US
State Department’s report on world terrorist threats in 2004, released
Wednesday.

The Russian general has also pointed out that terrorist receive money,
weapons and new recruits not only via Georgia but also via Azerbaijan,
and that Baku has even topped Tbilisi in trafficking. He has also
noted that terrorists have their bases in Azerbaijan where they
receive medical treatment with no trouble.

Sandi Arnold and Michael Barletta, July 1999.

Center for Nonproliferation Studies,
Monterey Institute of International Studies

Overview of Reported Nuclear Trafficking Incidents Involving Turkey,*
1993-1999

Overview | Factsheet | Map | Abstracts

————————————————————-

Public reports indicate that Turkey may be a significant transshipment
route for nuclear smuggling from the former Soviet Union (FSU).
Eighteen nuclear trafficking incidents involving Turkey were reported
between 1993 and 1999. These cases include nuclear material seized in
Turkey, nuclear material interdicted en route to Turkey, and seizure
of nuclear material smuggled by Turkish nationals. These cases vary in
significance from outright frauds involving osmium and “red mercury,”
to some that reportedly involved small quantities of weapons-usable
material. However, to date none of these cases have been
authoritatively confirmed to involve highly enriched uranium or
plutonium.

Turkish officials have denied publicly that any plutonium or highly
enriched uranium has been seized in the country. According to
unconfirmed open-source reports, however, Turkish authorities seized
several grams of plutonium in Bursa, Turkey in 1998, which had been
smuggled from either Kazakhstan or Russia. In another reported
incident, police confiscated 12g of highly enriched uranium in Zurich,
Switzerland on 22 January 1996, and arrested a Turkish national who
was a member of a nuclear smuggling group based in Turkey. The suspect
said the material was destined for Libya. Four days later, Turkish
police arrested the remaining members of this alleged smuggling ring
in Yalova with 1.2kg of uranium (enrichment level not reported) in
their possession. Furthermore, Turkish, Russian, and international
wire services reported that Turkish police seized 750g of weapons-grade
uranium, which had originated in Azerbaijan, in Istanbul in 1994.
Initial press reports of seizures of “weapons-usable material” often
turn out to be inaccurate, however, and none of these reported cases
have been confirmed. Nuclear materials confiscated in Turkey were in
most instances taken to the Cekmece Nuclear Research and Training
Center in Istanbul for analysis.

Some preliminary observations can be made about these cases. First,
public reports indicate that all nuclear material smuggled via Turkey
originated in countries of the FSU. As the materials were seized,
their ultimate destination cannot be determined with confidence;
however, three cases reportedly involved material being sought by or
shipped to Iran or Libya. In no case was the reported destination the
government or any other entity in Turkey itself. Second, a number of
these incidents apparently involved “amateurs” who acquired nuclear
materials before identifying potential buyers, and who sought to
peddle material of little or no utility for fabricating nuclear
weapons. Third, the sheer number of cases indicates that Turkey may be
a significant transshipment route for clandestine efforts to buy or
sell nuclear material originating in the FSU. Turkey’s geographic
setting could make it an attractive route for such transactions.
Several countries of proliferation concern – Iran, Iraq, and Syria –
share borders with Turkey. Three countries of the FSU – Armenia,
Azerbaijan, and Georgia- likewise have borders with Turkey. In
addition, ongoing commercial exchange between Turkey and Central Asian
countries may provide opportunities for smuggling. However, the
concentration and types of incidents reported in Istanbul, and the
lack of reported incidents on Turkey’s borders with Armenia,
Azerbaijan, and Georgia, are somewhat surprising. The former offer
grounds to speculate that scam artists may seek buyers in the
“international bazaar” of Istanbul; the latter could indicate that
materials are not shipped across those international borders.

Public reports indicate that Turkish and other international
authorities thwarted each of the nuclear smuggling schemes recounted
in this study. However, other more sophisticated attempts may have
escaped detection. The possibility that proliferation-relevant nuclear
materials may be smuggled via Turkey continues to merit international
attention.

The 18 incidents are listed reverse chronological order.
CNS cannot confirm the veracity of these reports.
Click on date of incident for details and sources.
Material(s) seized Date of Incident Origin of
Material(s) Reported
Destination Location of Seizure Suspects
`A certificate for the purchase of U-235;’ 2.4kg lead container with U-235;
exact quantity of uranium in the container not reported 28 May 1999
Moldova Not reported Dounav Most, Bulgaria (Bulgarian-Turkish Border) One
Turkish national
100g enriched uranium or 5g uranium 2 Feb 1999 Azerbaijan Greece Bursa,
Turkey Four Turkish nationals
4.5kg “nonactive” solid uranium and 6g “active” plutonium 7 Sep 1998 Russia
or Ulba Metallurgy
Plant in Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan Not reported Istanbul, Turkey Four
Turkish national, three Kazakh nationals (including a Kazakh army colonel),
and one Azerbaijani national
13 cylinders of uranium marked “UPAT UKA3 M8” 1 Jul 1998 Iran Istanbul,
Turkey Van, Turkey Five Turkish nationals and one Iranian national
850g uranium dioxide 26 May 1997 Not reported Not reported Bursa, Turkey
Four individuals (nationality not reported)
osmium (quantity not reported) 1 Apr 1997 Romania Not reported Turkey Three
individuals (nationality not reported)
509g “raw” uranium 4 Mar 1997 Georgia Not reported Ipsala, Edirne, Turkey
Three Turkish nationals
17g low-enriched uranium Mar 1996 Golcuk, Kocaeli, Turkey Not reported
Antalya, Turkey Eleven individuals (nationality not reported)
20kg uranium Mar 1996 Russia Not reported Antalya, Turkey Five Turkish
nationals
1.2kg uranium or 1.128kg uranium 26 Jan 1996 Georgia Libya Yalova, Turkey
Two Turkish nationals
12g highly enriched uranium 22 Jan 1996 Georgia Libya Zurich, Switzerland
One Turkish national
1.7kg “red mercury” and 1kg “black mercury” 24 May 1995 Not reported Turkey
Constanta, Romania Two Turkish nationals and three Romanian nationals
750g weapons-grade or enriched U-238 19 Oct 1994 Baku, Azerbaijan Turkey
Istanbul, Turkey One Azerbaijani national
12kg uranium 19 Jul 1994 Unspecified country of the FSU Not reported
Istanbul, Turkey Seven Turkish nationals
uranium (quantity not reported) 22 Apr 1994 Not reported Russia Istanbul,
Turkey One Turkish national, one Azerbaijani national, and a Russian
national
4.5kg uranium 27 Nov 1993 Not reported Not reported Bursa, Turkey Three
Georgian nationals
2.5kg uranium enriched to 2.5-3.5 percent U-235 5 Oct 1993 Russia Iran
Gayrettepe, Istanbul, Turkey Four Turkish nationals and four Iranian
nationals (suspected secret service agents)
6kg enriched uranium Mar 1993 Tashkent, Uzbekistan Istanbul, Turkey Not
reported Not reported

* For sources and further details, see Sandi Arnold, “Factsheet on Reported
Nuclear Trafficking Incidents Involving Turkey, 1993-1999,” July 1999,
Center for Nonproliferation Studies, Monterey Institute of International
Studies.

—————————————————————————

Sources and Notes:

The authors sought to eliminate contradictions and clearly false
information, but cannot confirm the veracity of the reports from which
these summaries are drawn. Case selection was based upon the
following three criteria: (1) nuclear material seized in Turkey; (2)
nuclear material en-route to Turkey; or, (3) nuclear material seized
involving a Turkish national.

This chart is based on Turkish-, Russian-, and English-language
open-source reports and information in the International Nuclear
Proliferation Database and the Newly Independent States Nuclear
Trafficking Database of the Center for Nonproliferation Studies.
Access to these is only available by subscription. For subscription
information click here.

—————————————————————————-

Sandi Arnold and Michael Barletta, July 1999.
© Center for Nonproliferation Studies,
Monterey Institute of International Studies

Center for Nonproliferation Studies
460 Pierce Street, Monterey, CA 93940, USA
Telephone: +1 (831) 647-4154; Fax: +1 (831) 647-3519
E-mail: [email protected]; Web:
Copyright © 2002 Monterey Institute of International Studies. All rights
reserved.

Journal of Laws No 66

Polish News Bulletin
Apr 27, 2005

Dated 22 April 2005 – International Agreements:

– Convention No 148 of the International Labor Organization concerning
the protection of workers against occupational hazards in the
working environment due to air pollution, noise and vibration,
adopted in Geneva on 20 June 1997 and a government declaration of 20
January 2005 on its binding force

– Convention between the Government of Poland and the Government of
Armenia on avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal
evasion with respect to taxes on income and on capital, signed in
Warsaw on 14 July 1999 and a government declaration of 17 February
2005 on its binding force

– Executive program between the Government of Poland and the
Government of Georgia in the field of culture, science, education,
youth and sports for 2004 ? 2006 signed in Warsaw on 15 December
2004 and a government declaration of 28 January 2005 on its binding
force

(to be continued in next issue) Legal Translation

Agence France Presse
24 avril 2005 dimanche 11:08 AM GMT

Un millier d’Arméniens d’Ukraine défilent pour le 90e anniversaire du
génocide

LVIV (Ukraine) 24 avr 2005

Un millier de membres de la communauté arménienne d’Ukraine ont
manifesté dimanche à Lviv (ouest) pour réclamer qu’Ankara reconnaisse
comme génocide les massacres d’Arméniens de 1915, dont le 90e
anniversaire est célébré dimanche, selon un journaliste de l’AFP sur
place.

“Le fait que la Turquie cache le génocide arménien est une
falsification de l’Histoire et une désinformation de la communauté
internationale”, pouvait-on lire parmi les banderoles brandies par
les manifestants, tenant bougies et oeillets rouges à la main.

Cette manifestation intervient alors qu’à Erevan, des dizaines de
milliers de personnes ont participé à la commémoration du génocide,
fixée symboliquement au 24 avril 1915, quand, en pleine Première
guerre mondiale, les autorités turques avaient arrêté 200 leaders de
la communauté arménienne, donnant le signal de ce que l’Arménie
dénonce comme le début d’un génocide planifié.

“Nous réclamons que la Turquie et les autres pays qui n’ont pas
encore reconnu le génocide le fasse”, a déclaré Karapiet Bagratouni,
un représentant de la communauté arménienne de Lviv, qui compte 3.000
personnes.

Le cortège a été formé à la sortie d’un office religieux à l’église
arménienne de Lviv, et des prêtres arméniens marchaient en tête.

Ankara rejette catégoriquement la thèse d’un génocide, alors que les
pressions se sont accentuées pour qu’il reconnaisse le génocide: le
Parlement polonais, à l’instar de 15 autres pays, notamment
européens, vient de qualifier le massacre de génocide et un débat a
été ouvert au Parlement allemand.

A1plus

| 15:38:50 | 25-04-2005 | Politics |

LET US WAIT FOR THE PACE SESSION

Tonight it will become clear if the issue of the RA Constitutional
amendments will be heard in the PACE. In the morning the Bureau approved its
being included into the agenda, but the final decision will be made by the
PACE delegates. It will be included into the agenda in 2/3 of the delegates
vote for it.

Pan Armenian News

RUSSIA CAN START WITHDRAWAL OF TROOPS FROM GEORGIA THIS YEAR

25.04.2005 08:06

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Russia can start the withdrawal of its military bases from
Georgia this year, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated at the
press conference held upon completion of negotiations with Georgian FM
Salome Zurabishvili. `We have achieved a considerable progress and adjusted
positions on the terms’, S. Lavrov said. He also noted that the parties
agreed on stepwise withdrawal, which can be started this year already.
According to the Russian FM, it refers to the `heavy defense technology’ and
the `move of the military bases for the joint usage as anti-terror centers’.
The negotiations on the withdrawal of the Russian military bases from
Georgia have been under way since 2001. Earlier the Georgian party proposed
a 3-year term while Russia insists on 8 years. The Command of Russian troops
in Georgia includes the 12-th military base in Batumi and the 62-nd military
base in Akhalkalaki. Besides, through the Georgian territory the supply of
the 102-nd base dislocated in the Armenian town of Gyumri is being provided.

Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
April 22 2005

‘German MPs Look For Friends in Genocide’
GERMAN MPs DISCUSS ARMENIAN ISSUE

Jan SOYKOK (JTW) German MPs from across the political spectrum
discussed the Armenian issue and Turkish-Armenian relations. Turkish
Armenian researchers argue the decision has no link with the Armenian
issue but a German strategy.

Armenia says more than 1 million of its people were slaughtered
between 1915 and 1917 as the Ottoman Empire, the predecessor of
modern Turkey, was falling apart. Turkey does not accept the
allegations and says about 523,000 Turkish people were massacred by
the Armenian armed groups and most of the Armenians died due to the
communal ethnic conflicts, famine, epidemic diseases and war
circumstances. According to Turkish historians the number of
Armenians killed is about 100,000. Most of the Ottoman Armenians
joined the Russian Army against the Ottoman Armies during the First
World War in order to establish a separate Armenian State though they
were no majority in any Ottoman city. When Armenian rioted the
Istanbul Government decided to relocate the Armenians near the war
theatre to another Ottoman province (Syria). Germany was Ottoman
Turkey’s main ally in the First World War, and it is argued that
German Government advised Turks to relocate the Armenians.

“TURKEY SHOULD FACE UP THE TRUTH”

During an often impassioned debate in the German Bundestag lower
house of parliament, Friedbert Pflueger, the foreign affairs
specialist for the opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU), said:
“Turkey should face up to the truth.” However he said putting
pressure on Turkey would not lead to Ankara recognizing what had
happened. “We do not want to incriminate and we do not want to
embellish,” CDU M.P. Pflueger added.

Another member of the opposition Christian Democratic alliance
(CDU/CSU), Erwin Marschewski, said in a statement that the value
system of the European Union insisted that countries “shine a
spotlight on the dark pages of their history.” “Recognition by Turkey
of the Armenian genocide of 1915 and 1916 is important,” said
Marschewski.

Fritz Kuhn of the Greens, which form the governing coalition with
Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder’s Social Democrats, said the debate had
taken on increased importance because “we want Turkey to be an EU
member one day”.
Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is a staunch backer of Turkish EU
membership and will visit Ankara and Istanbul for talks with Turkish
political and business leaders on 3 and 4 May.

“GERMANY PLAYS A DIRTY GAME”

According to Dr. Nilgun Gulcan from Ankara-based think tank
USAK-ISRO, “Germany plays a dirty game”:

“Germany has been the only state which committed genocide during the
Second World War. The Germans slaughtered more than 5 million Jews in
Holocaust. This should be a terrible shame on Germans. Germany has
made great efforts to create similar cases to the Nazi regime’s
genocide. Thus some in Germany welcomes all genocide claims. They
want friends in genocide. So nobody would accuse the Germans as the
only genocide-makers” added Gulcan.

Davut Sahiner sees the issue as a step to prevent Turkey’s EU
membership and a CDU plan:

“I think the CDU is the main player behind the debates in German
Parliament. German Government gives a great support to Turkey’s EU
membership and the CDU does not want to see Turkey in. They did
anything possible to prevent Turkey’s EU bid. They tried anything,
but Armenian issue. This is the latest part of the game. The CDU’s
another aim is to make hostile Turkish voters and governing German
parties. Turkish voters enthusiastically supports Schroeder. If
German Governments contradict with the Turkish view in Armenian
issue, the it will undermine the Government.”

“FULL OF FACTUAL ERRORS IN BUNDESTAG RESOLUTION”

Turkey’s ambassador to Germany, Mehmet Ali Irtemcelik, has denounced
the planned Bundestag resolution as containing “countless factual
errors” and being written “in agreement with propaganda efforts of
fanatic Armenians”: “Its goal is to defame Turkish history… and
poison ties between Turkey and the European Union,” said the
ambassador.

“NO DOCUMENTS, BUT GENOCIDE ALLEGATIONS”

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan last week called the Armenian
side to establish a joint commission to discuss the historical
disputes. However the Armenian Government rejected the offer two
times. Armenian Foreign Minister Oskanian said “there is nothing to
debate”. Turkish Government also declared that all Turkish-Ottoman
archives are open to all researchers including the Armenians. The
Turkish officials further said “the Armenian, particularly the Tahnak
archives must be opened to historians as well”.

According to Yusuf Halacoglu, Head of Turkish History Society,
Armenians cannot provide any documents to prove their allegations.
Similarly Dr. Sedat Laciner, Director of ISRO, says “There are
abundant of documents which prove that there was no genocide or a
state-organized massacres in 1915. We understand more than 523,000
Turkish people were killed by the Armenian militants. All in Turkey
accept the Armenian tragedy. However the Armenians should also see
the Turkish tragedy”. According to Laciner Armenians should bring
their archive documents and discuss the matter with the Turks instead
of blackmailing Turkey in a very sensitive period (Turkey-EU
negotiations).

“Armenia should see that it will benefit a lot from an
EU-member-Turkey. Turkey could help Armenia to become wealthier and
more democratic. Turkey could be a way for Armenia to be integrated
with the West and the world. However Armenian politics has been
dominated by anti-Turkish-obsessed diaspora. The diaspora cannot
understand Armenia’s needs. They are really egoist and they just talk
about the past. Turkey and Armenia cannot establish their relations
on the historical debates but on today’s realities.”

OTTOMANS EXECUTED 63 PEOPLE FOR HARMING ARMENIANS

Nilgun Gulcan says the Ottoman Government took all the necessary
measures to protect the Armenian civilians during the Relocation
Campaign. The Ottoman government executed 63 people for attacking and
harming Armenians during the relocation days, according to a research
carried out within Turkish Prime Ministry State Archives.

Turkey is set to start EU accession talks on October 3.

JTW
22 April 2005

ARTHUR BAGHDASARYAN CALLS TO CONDEMN THE GENOCIDE

A1plus
| 18:54:50 | 22-04-2005 | Politics |

Today an exhibition of documentaries and photographs on the first
genocide of the 20th century – the Armenian Genocide – was opened
in the RA National Assembly. At the opening ceremony Speaker of
the National Assembly Arthur Baghdasaryan said that the event once
again confirmed the condemning stand of our Parliament to the crime
committed by the Turkish government regarding the Armenian nation.

At the same time this was an appeal to the parliaments of the countries
that have not recognized the Armenian genocide to recognize and
condemn the crime committed in the early 20th century.