Author: Chakrian Hovsep

CIS SECURITY CHIEF ARRIVES IN KYRGYZ CAPITAL

ITAR-TASS news agency, Moscow
29 Mar 04

Secretary-General of the CSTO (Collective Security Treaty
Organization; members are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan and Russia) Nikolay Bordyuzha arrived in Bishkek today to
hold talks with the leadership of Kyrgyzstan, an ITAR-TASS
correspondent has been told at the Kyrgyz Foreign Ministry.

He is expected to meet President Askar Akayev, Security Council
Secretary Misir Ashirkulov and the heads of the country’s
power-wielding agencies.

The stepping up of collaboration between the CSTO member states to
ensure security is expected to be discussed during the talks.

Another purpose of the CSTO secretary-general’s visit is to discuss
the agenda of the forthcoming session of the Security Treaty Council
scheduled to be held in Kazakhstan this summer.

It is expected that after Bishkek, Bordyuzha will pay a visit to
Astana.

ARKA News Agency
March 29 2004

New Editor in Chief of Azat Artsakh daily appointed

RA President signs decree on awarding honorary titles to theater
artists

*********************************************************************

NEW EDITOR IN CHIEF OF AZAT ARTSAKH DAILY APPOINTED

STEPANAKERT. March 29. /ARKA/. Marsel Petrosyan was appointed as new
Editor in Chief of Karabakh daily Azat Artsakh. As reported by the
Special Correspondent of ARKA in NKR from Stepanakert with the
reference to the NKR National Assembly Press Department, prior to the
appointment the New Editor in Chief was Editor in Chief of army daily
Martik. The former Editor of Azat Artsakh Haykaz Ghahriyan was
discharged from his position according to his own request in
connection with his going to other job. T.M. -0-

*********************************************************************

RA PRESIDENT SIGNS DECREE ON AWARDING HONORARY TITLES TO THEATER
ARTISTS

YEREVAN. March 29. /ARKA/. ARKA President Robert Kocharian signed a
decree on awarding honorary titles for contribution into the theater
art on occasion of the International Theater Day. As the RA President
Press Department told ARKA, honorary titles were awarded to 13
theater artists. Congratulating the theatre artists on occasion of
the International Day of Theater, he said that `theater’s role in
public life is enormous, as well as for raising the national
consciousness’. `We consider that restoration and development of
these traditions for creation a new face of Armenia is important’,
Kocharian mentioned. T.M. -0–

ChronWatch.com
March 28 2004

Gun Control, Dianne Feinstein, and the ”Assault Weapons” Ban

by Howard Nemerov
~~o~~

`The Senators and Representatives shall … in all Cases, except
Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest
during their Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses,
and in going to and returning from the same; and for any Speech or
Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other
Place.’ – U.S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 6, Clause 1.

It’s Okay to Lie in Congress

The preceding excerpt from the Constitution is our origin of
what is called legislative immunity. It means that if Diane
Feinstein prefers to lie while carrying out her job as Senator, we
cannot hold her liable. Furthermore, if her dishonest comments are
quoted by the New York Times, it is given an aura of authority. If
other newspapers use quotes from the New York Times, often called the
paper of record, in their own articles, pretty soon it becomes gospel
truth, because you can read it just about anywhere.

Diane Feinstein sent this in response to a request she uphold
the Constitution that protects her from arrest for using her position
to lie about firearms.

”Thank you for writing to me about the Assault Weapons Ban.
I appreciate hearing from you on this matter and welcome the
opportunity to respond.

”In 1994, Congress passed the Omnibus Crime Bill, which was
signed into law. One provision of this bill banned the manufacture,
transfer, or possession of semi-automatic assault weapons for a
preliminary period of ten years. Since 1994, it has become even
clearer through chilling examples, such as the 1999 shootings at
Columbine High School in Colorado and at the Jewish Community Center
in Los Angeles, that military-style assault weapons are a danger on
our streets and to our children. Semi-automatic assault weapons
which fire up to 250 rounds of ammunition within seconds and without
warning are weapons of war that do not belong on the streets of our
communities.”

She combines the terms ”semi-automatic” and ”assault
weapons” together. True assault weapons, meaning military-grade
firearms, are fully automatic, and have been outlawed for civilians
since the National Firearms Act of 1934. In practice, the law
focuses on guns which have cosmetic similarities to fully automatic
military weapons. The term is so vague that the Fresno, California,
District Attorney sued the state attorney general over the confusing
state assault weapons ban. (1) ”Assault weapons” is becoming so
general a term that most semi-automatic handguns are included.

Let’s look at what she doesn’t say about the Columbine
killers. The two murderers broke 19 existing laws, including using
straw purchasers to buy guns for minors, manufacturing and possessing
explosive devices, and manufacturing a sawed-off shotgun. (2)

She assumes that the two mass murderers would have been
stymied by lack of available firearms and not seek out the black
market. She also assumes they would not focus their efforts into
making and installing more effective explosive devices, which would
have raised the death toll.

The Jewish Community Center murderer had also violated
existing gun laws, being a felon on parole. As such, it was illegal
to possess a firearm. (3)

The next Big Lie is ”semi-automatic assault weapons which
fire up to 250 rounds of ammunition within seconds.” Only fully
automatic weapons are capable this type of dispersal. Fully
automatic weapons, not available to civilians, are rarely used in
crime. (4)

Feinstein also ignores other pertinent facts:

Between 1977 and 1997, states with citizen-friendly Right to
Carry (Shall Issue) laws averaged 25 fewer multiple victim murders
than states that did not trust their tax-paying citizens the right of
self-defense in public. (5)

In states without Shall Issue laws, there have been 15 school
shootings between 1977 and 1995, but only one in Shall Issue states.
The five school shootings in 1997-1998 occurred after the 1995
Gun-Free Zones law banned firearms within 1,000 feet of schools. (6)

These omissions highlight the manner in which gun control
advocates seek to slant the discussion by omitting the costs of gun
control laws, and ignoring the benefits of trained, law-abiding
citizens exercising their Second Amendment rights for self-defense
and community protection.

Feinstein: ”Unless acted upon by the United States Congress
and President Bush, the assault weapons ban will expire, as
scheduled, in September 2004. On May 5, 2003 I introduced a bill, S.
1034, which would reauthorize the assault weapons ban for another ten
years. The success of this bill depends on support from the House,
the Senate, and the administration. President Bush and Attorney
General Ashcroft have both publicly stated their support for an
extension of the ban, and I intend to hold them to their promise.
Please know that I will keep your thoughts in mind as I continue to
fight for this important legislation.”

Feinstein has warned us: call and write your Congressional
representatives and tell them to stop any renewal or expansion of the
1994 Assault Weapons ban.

Gun Control Means Confiscation

”If I could have gotten 51 votes in the Senate of the United
States for an outright ban, picking up every one of them, Mr. and
Mrs. America, turn ’em all in, I would have done it.” – Senator
Dianne Feinstein, CBS-TV’s 60 Minutes, February 5, 1995.

Feinstein wants us to believe mass murderers would be stopped
if law-abiding gun owners were disarmed. If gun-banners wanted only
some ”reasonable steps” to insure that people were protected from
accidental gun death and gun violence, why are they still asking for
more gun control after 20,000 gun laws? They cite new ”loopholes”
that allow criminals access to firearms. (7, 8) They justify it with
the mantra ”If it saves one life, it’s worth it.” But they never
factor in the costs of not owning a gun for personal protection, nor
the lives saved because a physically weaker woman shot and killed the
man who was stalking her with intent to kill, or the children who
still have a mother. (9)

Nor do they talk about the costs to society when civilian
firearms are confiscated, such as what is happening in Britain. (10)

Nor do they mention that no study has concluded that the 1994
Assault Weapons ban (17) or that gun control laws reduced crime. (18)

So why do they continue wanting more gun control?

Confiscation Leads to Mass Murder

It is curious that law-abiding gun owners are considered
guilty without any evidence showing their culpability in crime, but
national governments, with ample evidence to the contrary, are still
assumed to be the most able protectors of the people.

Rudolph J. Rummel, professor emeritus of the University of
Hawaii and author of numerous books on the depredations of
governments, has a web site (13) packed with data covering what he
calls democide: ”The murder of any person or people by a government,
including genocide, politicide, and mass murder.” (14)

Following are some facts relating to governments which
disarmed their people as a prelude to democide.

”The Soviet Union appears the greatest mega-murderer of all,
apparently killing near 61,000,000 people. Stalin himself is
responsible for almost 43,000,000 of these.’ (15)

”In sum the communists probably have murdered something like
110,000,000, or near two-thirds of all those killed by all
governments, quasi-governments, and guerrillas from 1900 to 1987.
(15)

Professor Rummel estimates over 35 million people were
slaughtered by the Chinese Communists. (16)

”By genocide, the murder of hostages, reprisal raids, forced
labor, ‘euthanasia,’ starvation, exposure, medical experiments, and
terror bombing, and in the concentration and death camps, the Nazis
murdered from 15,003,000 to 31,595,000 people…Among them 1,000,000
were children under eighteen years of age. And none of these
monstrous figures even include civilian and military combat or
war-deaths.” (17)

What Hitler, Mao, and Stalin all have in common is civilian
disarmament. They banned the people’s guns first. Then, in their
arrogance and self-righteousness, they began to remove the
”undesirables.” These are only the most heinous examples.
Professor Rummel documents the democide of over 170 million civilians
in the 20th century, a common thread being civilian disarmament.

Via email interview, Professor Rummel reported a variation of
confiscation: ”For the Khmer Rouge, there was no general gun
confiscation, but anyone found with one was murdered on the spot.”
Khmer Rouge killed ”only” 2 million. (18)

”[Include] Turkey’s genocide of the Armenians and Greeks.
Weapons were seized beforehand as part of the step-by-step
implementation of what the Young Turks planned in the highest
councils.” During the WWI era, Turkey murdered 1.5 million of its
Armenian citizens. (18)

Conclusion

Every despot had a ”reasonable” explanation for their power
grab. Communism was supposed to free the little people from the
depredations of nobility and industrialists. It ended up merely
changing terms, from serf to proletariat, murdering over 100 million
along the way. Hitler wanted to create a superior human race. He
ended up being instrumental in causing the deaths of tens of
millions.

We are now faced with a reality check. There is no proof that
civilian disarmament reduces crime. On the other hand, civilian
disarmament is proven to lead to increased crime and genocide. Given
the nature of those who seek to gather power unto themselves, there
is no third option.

It is time for you to choose.

Footnotes

(1) Fresno official sues the state over ban on assault weapons,
Sean Scully, The Washington Times, November 5, 2001.
;ArticleID011105-28385456

(2) High School Shooters Broke 19 Laws, Professor J.D. Crouch,
April 29, 2000.

(3) Furrow pleads guilty to shootings, will avoid death penalty,
get life without parole. CNN.com, January 24, 2001.

(4) Full Auto Weapons, GunCite.
au.html

(5) The Bias Against Guns, page 106, John Lott, 2003.

(6) Gun Facts Version 3.3, page 15. Guy Smith, 2003.
Go to and select the format you prefer.

(7) The Gun Show Loophole, Americans for Gun Safety.

(8) Flashbunny.org provides instructional Flash video on the
fantasy of the Gun Show Loophole.

(9) A Clarksdale man was shot to death by a 12-year-old girl
Saturday night as he allegedly attacked the girl’s mother, police
said. Jeff Piselli, Clarksdale Press Register, April 30, 2001.
;BRD38&PAG=461&dept_id=230617&rfi=6

(10) Gun Crime Rockets 35 Percent. Bob Roberts,
UK Mirror, January 10, 2003.
;method=full& siteid=50143

(11) Impacts of the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban:
1994-1996. National Institute of Justice, March 1999.

(12) First Reports Evaluating the Effectiveness
of Strategies for Preventing Violence: Firearms Laws, CDC
Publication, November, 2002

(13)

(14)

(15)

(16) China’s Bloody Century By R.J. Rummel

(17) DEMOCIDE: NAZI GENOCIDE AND MASS MURDER by
R.J. Rummel

(18)

~~o~~

Howard Nemerov is a Bay Area freelance writer who receives e-mail at:
[email protected].

__________________________________
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Yahoo! Finance Tax Center – File online. File on time.

Top official says USA not to set up military bases in Azerbaijan

ANS TV, Baku
27 Mar 04

[Presenter Leyla Hasanova] Before leaving Baku, US Deputy Secretary of
State Richard Armitage held a news conference at [Baku’s] Heydar
Aliyev airport.

[Correspondent] Proposals for the settlement of the Nagornyy Karabakh
conflict should be expected not from the top, i.e. the OSCE Minsk
Group, but from lower ranks, i.e. the conflicting sides, since the
Minsk Group is only a mediator, US Deputy Secretary of State Richard
Armitage has told a news conference in Baku. He noted that the
Karabakh conflict was a complicated problem and expressed his hope for
its speedy resolution.

The need for opening the Armenian-Turkish border was also discussed at
meetings in Baku. Incidentally, in Yerevan, Mr Armitage pointed out
the expediency of opening the Armenian-Turkish border.

At his meeting in Baku, however, President Ilham Aliyev told him that
the opening of the borders could drag out the settlement of the
conflict.

They also discussed freedom of the press at the meeting with the
president. Mr Armitage told the head of state about the need for
independent press in Azerbaijan and a public TV that is going to be
set up. The head of state agreed with him, saying that the public TV
would be independent.

At meetings with the opposition, Armitage touched on issues related to
freedom of the press and territorial integrity. Speaking about the
situation with human rights following the 15-16 October events
[post-election disturbances], Armitage said the US State Department
had expressed its view on this in a report which said that the human
rights situation in Azerbaijan was not desirable and could be
improved. We hope that this situation will improve, end of quote.

Armitage said that the USA was not going to set up a military base in
Azerbaijan and the Baku meetings had not discussed these issues. We
are not interested in bases and do not have such intentions, end of
quote.

Ali Ahmadov and Ramil Huseynov, ANS.

United Press International
March 22, 2004 Monday 13:11 PM Eastern Time

UPI Hears …

WASHINGTON, March 22 (UPI)

Insider notes from United Press International for March 22,

2004

An increasing issue for the Pentagon as it extends its global
military presence is its “Status of Forces Agreement” (SOFA) with the
host country. SOFA agreements are frequently seen as shielding U.S.
servicemen committing criminal acts from local justice, as the
agreements provide for trial by the U.S. military rather than local
jurisdictions. Japan, host to U.S. forces since 1945, is particularly
concerned about modifying its SOFA agreement with Washington. SOFA
currently does not require the United States to hand over military
suspects alleged to have committed crimes until Japanese prosecutors
indict them. The two countries are expected shortly to agree to a
compromise allowing U.S. officials to attend interrogations of U.S.
military personnel suspected of such serious crimes as murder or
rape. Washington and Tokyo are expected to resume official
negotiations later this month and formally agree on changes in
implementing SOFA.

As Turkey holds its breath over its possible accession to European
Union membership, the EU is casting its eyes even further afield. The
EU’s special envoy on South Caucasus, Heike Talvitie, told a meeting
of Azerbaijan’s permanent parliamentary commission on human rights in
Baku that a special project was being developed to admit Georgia,
Azerbaijan and Armenia to the EU and that the dates and condition for
admission of the three countries will be made public after the
project is developed. In broadening the EU’s contacts with the
country’s political opposition, Talvitie met with MP Ali Karimli,
chairman of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan, Musavat Party
leader Isa Gambar and Etibar Mammadov, chairman of the Party for
National Independence of Azerbaijan. Before flying to Yerevan,
Talvitie stressed that he would make every effort to settle the Upper
Karabakh conflict and take advantage of all opportunities to reach
peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

One of the few certainties in the wake of Israel’s “targeted
assassination” of Hamas spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin is that
in the short-term the Middle East is likely to become an even more
dangerous place as Hamas militants seek to avenge their fallen
leader. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s counter-terrorism adviser Avi
Arditi has underlined that the Israeli government’s recent travel
advisory warning citizens against visiting Sinai is based on hard
intelligence and not just general information. Among other areas
Israeli travel advisories warn Israelis to avoid visiting are
Istanbul, Bangkok, northern India, and Philippine islands that have
been the site of Muslim insurgent activity. Insurance companies use
travel advisory lists to determine whether to issue life insurance
policies to travelers putting themselves in harm’s way. All the
countries covered by the Israeli advisory — Egypt, Turkey, Thailand,
India and the Philippines — are heavily dependent on tourism
revenues, and inclusion in advisories frequently has a devastating
economic impact.

Qatar’s feisty satellite television channel al-Jazeera has annoyed
governments from Washington to Baghdad, with Riyadh recently claiming
that their broadcasts incite terrorism. Now Saudi Arabian Imam
Al-Hushan has taken the Western route, suing the channel in the
courts over a documentary that a film crew shot in his mosque in
Asir. The Western reporters in the broadcast version of the film
described the mosque as a base for terrorism, adding that four of the
9/11 suspects regularly attended prayer services there. Al-Hushan
claims that the broadcast ruined the mosque’s reputation, and is
seeking unspecified damages. Perhaps the filmmakers were onto
something; Asir province abuts Yemen, ancestral homeland of Osama bin
Laden, while nearly one-third of the Guantanamo detainees are Saudi
or Yemeni.

It might just be coincidence, but as U.S. troops prepare for
Operation Mountain Storm in Afghanistan, Russian and Tajik troops
across the border today began three days of joint command and staff
exercises in southern Tajikistan. The exercises are designed to
improve the country’s ability to interdict the flow of terrorists the
border. Motor-rifle regiments of the Russian 201st division and the
Tajik Armed Forces will be practicing joint maneuvers with armored
vehicles and attack aircraft. Chief of the army staff of the Volga
region-Urals Military District Col. Gen. Nikolai Tkachev and Maj.
Gen. Abdulnazar Abulasanov, commander of Tajikistan’s land forces are
overseeing the exercises. In case any Taliban or al-Qaida fighters
still in Afghanistan miss the point, joint artillery exercises will
be held at the Mumirak range along the southern Tajik-Afghan border
on March 24.

ARKA News Agency
March 22 2004

RA President Robert Kocharian released prosecutors of several Yerevan
communities from taking positions

Conversebank (Armenia) expands branches’ network

Command-staff exercises of RA Armed Forces to take place at all
territory of Armenia on March 23-27

*********************************************************************

RA PRESIDENT ROBERT KOCHARIAN RELEASED PROSECUTORS OF SEVERAL YEREVAN
COMMUNITIES FROM TAKING POSITIONS

YEREVAN, March 22. /ARKA/. RA President Robert Kocharian released
prosecutors of several Yerevan communities from taking positions.
According to President’s Press Office, Prosecutor of Erebuni and
Nubarashen communities Mikael Badirian, Presecutor of Shengavit
community Alexander Garbian, Presecutor of Avana and Nor-Nork
communities Armen Sardarian and Prosecutor of Achapniak and
Davidashen communities Ovanes Stepanian were released from the
positions. L.D. –0–

*********************************************************************

CONVERSEBANK (ARMENIA) EXPANDS BRANCHES’ NETWORK

YEREVAN, March 22. /ARKA/. Conversebank (Armenia) expands its
branches’ network, marketing department of the bank told ARKA. By
June it is planned to open branches in several cities of the
republic, namely in Charentsavan, Sevan, Oktemberian, Metsamor,
Hrazdan. According to preliminary decision, new branches will deal
with such banking operations as opening and servicing of accounts,
transfer of assets, currency operation, servicing of plastic cards,
provision of credits in gage of gold and others. The goal of
expanding in regions is to make bank’s services more comfortable and
accessible for the clients living in the regions.
Conversebank was registered on Dec 20, 1993. The bank was renamed
into Conversebank CJSC on Apr 26 1997. The bank got its license #87
on Oct 31 1996. Total capital of the bank as of Dec. 31, 2003
amounted to AMD – 3 375,4m. The bank’s assets totalled 25 254,1 m,
balance profit to AMD 1861.2 mln. In 2003 the bank generated a profit
in the sum of AMD 488.1 mln. (1 USD -1AMD 562.38). L.D. -0 –

*********************************************************************

COMMAND-STAFF EXERCISES OF RA ARMED FORCES TO TAKE PLACE AT ALL
TERRITORY OF ARMENIA ON MARCH 23-27

YEREVAN, March 22. /ARKA/. Command-staff exercises of RA Armed Forces
will take place at all territory of Armenia on March 23-27. The
information was placed at the official site of RA Ministry of
Defense. The exercises will include technical, rear and medical
units. L.D. –0–

The Gazette (Montreal, Quebec)
March 17, 2004 Wednesday Final Edition

Hockey is hurling on ice

by PAT HICKEY

Happy St. Patrick’s Day to all my Irish friends and the rest of you
who wish you were Irish on this finest of days.

I’d like to take this opportunity to enter the current debate over
the origins of hockey and declare that

no matter where the game started, it was Irishmen who got the ball
rolling, or was it the puck sliding?

In the past month, Nova Scotia and Virginia have staked claims as the
birthplace of hockey. In each case, these bids have been supported by
paintings from the early 19th century. And in both cases, we see
players with curved sticks playing what can only be described as a
game of hurling on ice. This is particularly evident in the Virginia
painting, which was done by John O’Toole, an Irish-American folk
artist. For the uninitiated, hurling is a uniquely Irish sport that
is renowned more for its violence than its skill. And if that doesn’t
describe hockey, what does?

Rich tradition: While we’re on a St. Patrick’s Day theme, it’s
appropriate to note the Irish contribution to North American sport.
Tommy Gorman and Ambrose O’Brien were among the founders of the NHL.
The Canadiens dynasties of the ’50s included all-star goalie Gerry
McNeil and Dickie Moore and the current roster features Michael Ryder
and Jim Dowd. King Clancy, Frank McGee, Joe Malone, Cy Denneny, Red
Kelly and Teeder Kennedy are among the Hall of Fame members who can
claim Irish ancestry.

Heavyweight champs Gene Tunney and Jack Dempsey were Irish and so is
John McEnroe, who can be found in the dictionary under Irish temper.
And if you’re looking for an all-Irish NBA team, how about Bill
Walton, Kevin McHale, Dick McGuire, Easy Ed Macauley and John
Stockton with Lenny Wilkens as coach?

The Fighting French? And then, of course, we have the Fighting Irish
of Notre Dame, although we’ve always felt the name didn’t quite fit
the reality.

The school is called Notre Dame because it was founded by Pere Edmond
Sorin. He was a member of the French congregation Sacre-Coeur that
continues to run the school to this day, and is also active here in
Quebec. I know a little something about the school’s history because
Sorin was a friend of my great-grandfather, the first Patrick
Valentine Hickey. Sorin recognized my great-grandfather’s
achievements as a journalist and publisher by awarding him the
Laetare Medal, which is presented annually to an outstanding Catholic
layman. The family took great pride in this award until it was
presented to John F. Kennedy, who gave new meaning to the word
layman.

I’ve always been puzzled why a school founded by French priests
became the Fighting Irish. True, three of the famed Four Horsemen –
Don Miller, Elmer Layden and Jim Crowley – were Irish and so was
legendary coach Frank Leahy.

But Norwegian-American Knute Rockne and Greek receiver Gus Dorais put
the school on the map; Armenian Ara Parseghian presided over the
team’s most recent success and the team’s stars over the years have
been named Bertelli, Hornung, Lujack, Ishmail and Montana.

One of my favourite stories about the Irish mystique surrounding
Notre Dame goes back to the 1970s, when Tom Clements led the Ottawa
Rough Riders to a Grey Cup championship. During the party following
the game, a tipsy Montreal columnist threw his arms around Clements
and said how great it was to see an Irishman lead the Riders to the
championship.

An embarrassed Clements thanked the writer, but went on to explain
that his ancestors came to the United States from Italy and changed
their name before Clements became one of the Fighting Irish.

The Times
March 16, 2004

Chess
Raymond Keene

Petrosian Remembered

With the Petrosian Memorial tournament in full swing I propose to give this
week a selection of games demonstrating the unique talent of the Armenian
world champion.

White: Boris Spassky
Black: Tigran Petrosian
World Championship
Moscow 1969
Queen’s Indian Defence

1 d4 Nf6 c4 e6 3 Nf3 b6 4 a3 Bb7 5 Nc3 d5 6 e3 Nbd7 7 cxd5 exd5 8 Be2 Bd6 9
b4 0-0 10 0-0 a6 11 Qb3 Qe7 12 Rbl Ne4

Petrosian has handled the opening skilfully and WHite has been prevented from
taking the initiative.

13 a4 Ndf6 14 b5 Nxc3 15 Qxc3 Ne4 16 Qc2 Rfc8 17 Bb2 c6 18 bxc6 19 Qb3 Qd7 20
Ra1 b5 21 a5

This move is a mistake, depriving Spassky of any meaningful strategic play.

21 … Bb7 22 Ne5 Qd8 23 Rfdl Qh4 24 g3 Qe7 25 f3 Ng5 26 h4

These clumsy pawn advances merely serve to weaken the white kingside.

26 … Ne6 27 f4 f6 28 Nf3 Nd8 29 Kf2 Nf7 30 Nd2 Rc4

If White ever captures this rook, the resultant opening of the long diagonal
(after … dxc4) will be fatal.

31 Qd3 Re8 32 Bf3 Bb4 33 Ba3 Bxa3 34 Rxa3 Nd6 35 Re1 f5 36 Raa1 Ne4+ 37 Bxe4
fxe4 38 Qbl Qd7 39 Ra2 Rec8 40 Nxc4

Spassky cannot resist the temptation any longer. However, the black bishop
and pawns now overwhelm White. Better chances for survival were offered by 40
Nb3.

40 … dxc4 41 d5 bxd5 42 Rd1

This position is extremely difficult for White. Black threatens to invade on
the kindside with his queen and also to advance the queenside pawns. Coping
with all these threats proves to be an impossible job.

42 … c3 43 Rc2 Qh3 44 Rg1 Qg4 45 Kg2 Qf3+ 46 Kh2 Qxc3 47 f5 Qc5 48 Rfl b4
49 f6 b3 50 rcf2 c2 51 Qcl e3 52 f7+ Kf8 53 Rf5 b2 54 Qxb2 clQ 55 Qxg7+ Kxg7
56 Rg5+ White resigns.

Baku Today, Azerbaijan
March 10 2004

Azeri officer in Budapest gets lawyer

Hungarian lawyer Peter Zalay will defend Azerbaijani officer Ramil
Safarov, who has been arrested in Budapest on charges of murdering
Armenian officer, Turan News Agency said.

10/03/2004 14:45
Baku Today

Azeri lawyer Adil Ismayilov, who met with Zalay in Budapest said, in
a TV interview, Zalay quite a responsible lawyer ,however, he said,
one cannot be confident about the positive outcome of the case for
the Azeri officer beforehand.

Ismayilov, who visited Safarov on March 4 said, the Azeri officer has
been charged with article 166 of Hungarian criminal code which
stipulates for from between 10 – 15 years of imprisonment to life
imprisonment.

IranMania
March 11 2004

Armenia seeks broader cooperation

MOSCOW, March 10 (Iran Daily) — The Head of Armenia’s Presidential
Office and Chairman of Iran-Armenia Economic Commission Artashes
Toumanian reiterated the need to bolster cooperation between the two
states, IRNA reported.

Speaking to the visiting Governor General of Ardebil province Javad
Najafi-Azar and his delegation in Yerevan, Toumanian called for
closer ties in various fields, particularly agriculture and
industries.

Turning to the role of the joint economic commission in broadening
ties, he noted that Armenia’s president and other high-ranking
Iranian and Armenian officials have focused on developing economic
collaboration, in particular at the provincial level.

“Given the significance of expanding ties to both sides, it is
inevitable for Iran and Armenia to undertake joint projects in
various sectors including industries, agriculture, trade, foodstuff,
engineering services and tap existing potentials for the purpose,” he
added.

Toumanian also called for broader cooperation between Armenia and
Ardebil province, given the latter’s diversity of industrial and
trade potentials.

For his part, Najafi-Azar referred to the potentials of Ardebil
province and called for bolstering bilateral relations, given the
capabilities available in industrial, commercial, tourist,
agricultural sectors as well as exchange of technical and scientific
expertise.