BAKU: Work Underway To Achieve Yerevan’s Acceptance Of Armenian-Turk

WORK UNDERWAY TO ACHIEVE YEREVAN’S ACCEPTANCE OF ARMENIAN-TURKISH PROTOCOLS: TURKISH FM

Trend
Jan 13 2010
Azerbaijan

Work on Yerevan’s unconditional acceptance of the Turkish-Armenian
protocols is underway, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said
during a speech at King’s College, the Haber Turk news agency reported.

Turkish and Armenian foreign ministers Ahmet Davutoglu and Edward
Nalbandian signed the Ankara-Yerevan protocols in Zurich Oct. 10.

Diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey have been broken due
to Armenia’s claims of an alleged genocide, and its occupation of
Azerbaijani lands. The border between them has been broken since 1993.

Ankara wants free vehicle movement from Baku through Karabakh,
Yerevan and Nakhchivan to Kars, he added.

Putin: Karabakh Settlement And Armenian-Turkish Reconciliation Shoul

PUTIN: KARABAKH SETTLEMENT AND ARMENIAN-TURKISH RECONCILIATION SHOULD NOT BE "TIED IN ONE PACKAGE"

PanARMENIAN.Net
14.01.2010 11:20 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkey should not link the normalization of its
relations with Armenia to further progress in international efforts
to resolve the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, Russian Prime Minister
Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday, RFE/RL reported.

Putin also reaffirmed Moscow’s support for Turkey’s dramatic
rapprochement with Armenia, his country’s main regional ally, after
talks with his visiting Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"We receive with great optimism Turkish proposals on the
normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations," he told a joint news
conference. "We very much hope all elements of shortest approaches
[to the normalization] will be used in the negotiating process and
Armenia’s leadership is also on this positive path."

Putin made clear that Moscow believes the two issues should not
be "tied in one package." "It is difficult to solve each of these
problems separately, and if one tackles them in a single package,
then prospects for their settlement will automatically become very
remote," he said. "Packaging these problems is not quite right from
the practical and strategic standpoints."

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was among foreign dignitaries
that attended the signing in Zurich last October of two protocols
envisaging the establishment of diplomatic relations between Armenia
and Turkey and the opening of their border.

The Nagorno Karabakh Republic (NKR) is a de facto independent republic
located in the South Caucasus, bordering by Azerbaijan to the north
and east, Iran to the south, and Armenia to the west.

After the Soviet Union established control over the area, in 1923
it formed the Nagorno Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO) within the
Azerbaijan SSR. In the final years of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan
launched an ethnic cleansing which resulted in the Karabakh War that
was fought from 1991 to 1994.

Since the ceasefire in 1994, most of Nagorno Karabakh and several
regions of Azerbaijan around it (the security zone) remain under the
control of Nagorno Karabakh defense army.

Armenia and Azerbaijan have since been holding peace talks mediated
by the OSCE Minsk Group.

BAKU: Turkish Political Scientist: "International Community Can Incr

TURKISH POLITICAL SCIENTIST: "INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY CAN INCREASE PRESSURE ON TURKEY AFTER RATIFICATION OF THE PROTOCOLS AT THE ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT"

APA
Jan 12 2010
Azerbaijan

Istanbul. Mayis Alizadeh – APA. "We cannot say that the Armenian
Constitutional Court’s positive opinion about the protocols signed
by Turkey creates factor of pressure on Ankara. But there will be
pressure while another factors come, because Armenians announced
that they will continue the process. The international community can
increase pressure on Turkey after ratification of the protocols at the
Armenian parliament". The most important issue is the developments
around the Nagorno Karabakh conflict", chief of the international
relations department of the Istanbul-based Culture University Mansur
Akgun told APA Turkish bureau.

He urged for steps toward solution to Nagorno Karabakh conflict for
accelerating the rapprochement. "I don’t think that Turkey will take
actions easily under current conditions because Turkey will never
take any action against Azerbaijan. EU Foreign Relations Commission
welcomed Turkey’s actions in the Caucasus. If there is any important
progress in April, Turkey can bring protocols to the parliament. If
the occupied lands are liberated and Turkish-Armenian relations are
normalized, Azerbaijan will take most benefits. If Armenia rejects
Russian influence and makes step toward the West, it will be useful
for Azerbaijan because Azerbaijan has such strong arm like oil. But
unfortunately there is no progress in this field".

Mansur Akgun said if the relations with Armenia were not normalized,
Turkey wouldn’t lose anything. "The "genocide" issue will not
create problems for Turkey further. Turkey doesn’t see Armenia as a
market because potential of Armenian people as buyers is known. It
is difficult to believe that Turkey will make concrete steps while
there are no concrete actions toward the solution of Nagorno Karabakh
problem".

Armenian Traditional Parties Held Rally Against Protocols In Beirut

ARMENIAN TRADITIONAL PARTIES HELD RALLY AGAINST PROTOCOLS IN BEIRUT

PanARMENIAN.Net
11.01.2010 19:26 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Ramkavar Liberal Party, Social Democratic Hnchak
Party, ARF Dashnaktsutyun organized protest rally on January 10 in
Beirut to deny constituency of the Armenian-Turkish Protocols.

The rally gathered spiritual leaders, government representatives,
youth, students and professional unions. MP of the Lebanese Parliament
Hakob Bagratuni, Mayor Andranik Mesrlean took part in the event,
the Armenian media in Iran reported.

The protocols aimed at normalization of bilateral ties and opening of
the common border between Armenia and Turkey were signed in Zurich
by Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian and his Turkish
counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu on October 10, 2009, after a series of
diplomatic talks held through Swiss mediation.

Avatar Screens In Yerevan (In Russian)

AVATAR SCREENS IN YEREVAN (IN RUSSIAN)

Tert.am
16:56 ~U 11.01.10

The latest blockbuster hit Avatar has made it to theatres in Yerevan.

Having marked its world premier in London on December 10, 2009,
the film reached Armenia on January 4, 2010, where it currently
screens three times daily to a full audience. Unlike options in other
countries, which allow for 3D or IMAX 3D viewing, Avatar is being
screened in 2D in Armenia. Still, the special effects are amazing and,
as some theatre-goers in Yerevan have said, it was worth the wait.

The film’s budget was around $250 million USD, an amount it has thus
gained back in worldwide sales from its opening weekend.

According to Wikipedia, Avatar is the ninth-largest opening-weekend
gross of all time, and the largest for a non-franchise, non-sequel
and original film. After 19 days in worldwide release, it became the
fastest film to reach $1 billion USD in box office receipts and the
fifth to gross more than $1 billion worldwide. Within three weeks of
its release, the film became the second highest grossing film of all
time worldwide.

The film stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver,
Michelle Rodriguez and Stephen Lang and is directed by James Cameron.

Turkey’s PM In Russia For Official Visit

TURKEY’S PM IN RUSSIA FOR OFFICIAL VISIT

Tert.am
15:23 ~U 11.01.10

Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will be in Russia for
an official visit on January 12 and 13, 2010, according to News.Az.

According to Turkish sources, the parties will discuss the state
of the region, Armenian-Turkish relations and the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict during official talks in Russia.

Including the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the meeting agenda can
positively influence the solution, deputy executive secretary of
the ruling New Azerbaijan Party (NAP), MP Mubariz Gurbanli said,
reports Azerbaijani news agency Trend News.

"Russia is a co-chair of OSCE Minsk Group, and Turkey is a member of
the Minsk Group, and a big state. Russia has enough possibilities to
influence Armenia," Gurbanli said on January 8.

Filmmaker documents impact of Hood Rubber on Watertown Armenian Hist

Wicked Local , MA
Jan 7 2010

Filmmaker documents the impact of Hood Rubber on Watertown’s Armenian history

By Jen Thomas, staff writer
Wicked Local Watertown

WATERTOWN ‘ .Inspired by stories of his grandmother’s days as a worker
at the Hood Rubber Company in Watertown, Lexington filmmaker Roger
Hagopian set out to tell the tale of the factory and the people who
worked there.

It took six years, but Hagopian, 60, has turned those stories into a
one-hour documentary part business history and part personal
chronicle.

`It’s a simultaneous history of the Armenian community in Watertown
and the Hood Rubber Company,’ Hagopian said. `It takes people through
the generations, from the 1890s to the 1920s, from the old country to
this country.’

`Destination Watertown: The Armenians of Hood Rubber’ documents the
journey of the Hood Rubber Company, started by brothers Arthur and
Frederic Hood in 1896, from a bustling shoe and boot factory to a
community staple and ends with the factory’s closing in 1969.

The factory was partially responsible for attracting a large number of
Armenians looking to escape genocide and persecution in their home
country. By the end of the 1920s, approximately 3,500 Armenians, or 10
percent of the population, were living in Watertown, and more than 500
were working at Hood Rubber.

The Hood Rubber Company was sold to B.F. Goodrich before the Great
Depression and eventually shuttered its doors as business fizzled.
Today, the only remains of the former factory is one long foundation
located behind the Watertown Mall.

`It’s sad that there’s nothing left there,’ said Hagopian. `It’s a
part of the history of the town, and nothing was preserved.’

Hagopian interviewed more than a dozen former Hood Rubber factory
workers, punctuating their recollection of the glory days of Hood
Rubber with historical photographs, advertisements and maps of the
80-building complex in East Watertown.

It’s these stories that really make the film, Hagopian said.

`I can’t imagine the project without the people,’ the filmmaker said.

>From cheerful childhood memories ‘ residents recalled waiting in line
every Wednesday to get a free pair of sneakers to test for the company
‘ to sad tales of injured workers and deplorable working conditions,
Hapogian’s movie lays out a detailed history.

At its debut screening in December, about 100 people came out to the
Free Public Library to view the film, and most were not Armenians,
Hagopian said.

Though he sold all 40 copies of the movie he’s already printed, he’s
continuing to tweak the final product and hopes to screen his movie
again in town, possibly at the Armenian Library and Museum of America
on Main Street.

Hagopian, a rug and upholstery cleaner and arts and crafts vendor by
day and freelance videographer by night, financed most of the film
himself, but he didn’t make `Destination Watertown’ to turn a profit.

`This is part of my father’s story, part of my story,’ Hagopian said.
`Hood Rubber is the reason for the establishment of the Armenian
community in Watertown. That’s the story I wanted to tell.’

Get a copy

Roger Hagopian is selling copies of his `Destination Watertown: The
Armenians of Hood Rubber’ and is always looking for more information
about the history of the Hood Rubber Company and its employees. For
more information, contact Hagopian at 781-861-7868 or
[email protected].

/watertown/town_info/history/x1820919181/Filmmaker -documents-the-impact-of-Hood-Rubber-on-Watertown- s-Armenian-history

http://www.wickedlocal.com

Jailed Azerbaijani editor faces new charges

Canadian Press
Jan 5 2010

Jailed Azerbaijani editor faces new charges as European rights court
agrees to hear his case

By Aida Sultanova (CP)

BAKU, Azerbaijan ‘ A jailed Azerbaijani newspaper editor faces new
charges as Europe’s human rights court has agreed to hear his case,
his lawyer said Tuesday.

Eynulla Fatullayev has been charged with drug possession after heroin
– which he claims was planted – was found during a search of his cell,
lawyer Isakhan Ashurov said.

The Penitentiary Service said the drugs were found Dec. 29 in the
lining of Fatullayev’s jacket and under the insole of his shoe.

Fatullayev, the founder and editor of the Russian-language weekly Real
Azerbaijan and the Azeri-language daily Everyday Azerbaijan, is
serving an 8 1/2-year sentence over an article saying the former
Soviet republic could support a U.S. attack on neighbouring Iran.

Fatullayev called the October 2007 conviction politically driven.

Advocacy groups connected the new charges to the September decision of
the European Court of Human Rights to hear Fatullayev’s case.

"Even if there is a positive decision from the European Court,
Fatullayev could face three years of imprisonment under the new
charges," the groups said in a joint statement.

The prosecution of Fatullayev and other independent journalists in the
oil-rich country has raised concerns in the West.

Fatullayev was convicted after an article published in early 2007 in
Real Azerbaijan claimed that Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliev could
support U.S. military action against Iran.

The article, written under an alias, listed sites in Azerbaijan that
could be attacked by Iran if Baku were to support Washington in the
event of military action against Iran.

The Azerbaijan government, which has cultivated close ties to
Washington, had pledged its territory would not be used for military
action against Iran, but people living along the border were nervous,
pointing to a U.S.-built radar facility and an airport near the
Iranian border that was upgraded with U.S. money.

Fatullayev has been in prison since April 2007 when he was sentenced
to 2 1/2 years on charges of disseminating false information related
to the country’s six-year war with Armenia over the territory of
Nagorno-Karabakh. His sentences are being served concurrently.

ISTANBUL: Religious minorities face no discrimination in Turkey

Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Jan 2 2010

Religious minorities face no discrimination in Turkey, says head of
religious affairs

Saturday, January 2, 2010
ANKARA – Anatolia News Agency

The head of Turkey’s Directorate of Religious Affairs said on Saturday
he did not believe that religious minorities living in Turkey faced
any problems regarding their religious services and practices or the
training and appointment of their religious leaders.

"However, if there are any problems, they should be solved," said Ali
BardakoÄ?lu, president of the Directorate of Religious Affairs, in an
exclusive interview with the Anatolia news agency.

BardakoÄ?lu also said that the issue of reopening the Halki seminary
should be solved within the context of freedom of religion.

Expressing his directorate’s support for religious freedoms,
BardakoÄ?lu said, "If we only respect those who think and believe like
us, we will turn life on earth to hell."

BardakoÄ?lu also said, everybody had the right to exercise the belief
they wanted.

"I think religious minorities in Turkey have always benefited from
these freedoms and nobody was treated contemptuously because of his or
her religion or believes," he said.

BardakoÄ?lu said that Christian and Jewish citizens living in Turkey
had equal rights; they carried out their religious practices and chose
their own religious leaders.

Muslims also had to struggle for their rights in many parts of the
world, such as the Balkans, Western Thrace and Georgia, he said.
BardakoÄ?lu said Muslims could not benefit from freedom of religion in
many regions and that such problems should be solved.

ANKARA: Blocks slow down Turkey 2009 progress in EU bid

, Turkey
Jan 1 2010

Blocks slow down Turkey 2009 progress in EU bid

Turkey’s "EU accession process" somewhat slowed down in 2009 due to
the deadlock with EU over opening of Turkish ports to Greek Cypriot
vessels.

Friday, 01 January 2010 14:45

Turkey’s "EU accession process" somewhat slowed down in 2009 due to
the deadlock with EU over opening of Turkish ports to Greek Cypriot
vessels.

The EU countries had decided in 2006 not to open 8 chapters in
accession negotiations and putting on hold the conclusion of the
remaining chapters in process on the grounds that Turkey failed to
fulfill its responsibilities stemming from the "Additional Protocol"
to the Association Agreement which stipulates Turkey to open its ports
to Greek Cypriot vessels. The EU countries asked the Commission to
follow up on the issue in its reports on 2007, 2008 and 2009.

Turkey which refused EU’s demand, said it would only open the ports
when the EU fulfilled its promises and removed the embargo on Turkish
Republic of Northern Cyprus, which voted in favour of the Annan Plan
for settlement.

The Greek Cypriot administration argued that with the 2006 decision,
the EU countries gave 2009 as deadline for Turkey to open its ports to
Greek Cypriot vessels.

EU Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn, who wrote the decision back
in 2006, said 2009 was not a deadline.

The commission, in its report published on October 14, 2009, noted
that Turkey did not fulfill its obligation to open its ports to Greek
Cypriot vessels.

In this respect, foreign ministers of EU countries who gathered on
December 7-8 for a General Affairs Council meeting in Brussels to
assess the conclusions on EU enlargement, refused the demands of Greek
Cypriot administration which pushed for new sanctions –including the
suspension of the negotiations– during the meeting, and decided to
reassess the situation in the future.

In the document adopted during the meeting, EU foreign ministers
expressed "regret" over Turkey’s refusal to open its ports to Greek
Cypriot vessels, –as stipulated by the "Additional Protocol" to the
Association Agreement– despite repeated calls.

The Greek Cypriot administration declared that it would block opening
of 6 chapters in accession negotiations with Turkey.

Though the Greek Cypriot administration announced that it would not
block the opening of the Environment chapter, it will set forth
preconditions for opening of chapters on "Free movement of Workers"
(Chapter 2), "Energy" (Chapter 15), "Judiciary and Fundamental Rights"
(Chapter 24), "Education and Culture" (Chapter 26), Foreign, Security
and Defense Policy (Chapter 31).

These chapters are already being blocked by Greek Cypriot
administration, Greece and the EU Commission.

With the opening of the Environment chapter on December 21, and the
"Taxation" chapter during the Czech EU presidency in the first half of
2009, Turkey is currently carrying out negotiations with EU on 12 of
the 33 negotiation chapters.

Considering the 8 chapters blocked by EU Commission, the 5 chapters
blocked by France and the 9 chapters blocked by Greek Cypriot
administration, (some of which overlap) only 4 or 5 chapters with
strict opening criteria remain. Given these circumstances, it seems
the pace of Turkey’s accession negotiations will inevitably further
slow down in the years to come.

"High level visits"

Frequency of high level visits by Turkish officials to EU bodies and
officials increased in 2009. Through visits to Brussels, on the level
of president, prime minister and main opposition leader, Turkey once
more reiterated its commitment to the goal of EU membership.

EU Commission’s President Jose Manuel Barroso who visited Turkey in
2009 said EU was still loyal to Turkey’s accession process despite the
statements by certain EU countries.

The signing of the intergovernmental agreement for Nabucco pipeline
project –which will reduce EU’s dependency on Russian gas– at a
ceremony on June 13, also attended by Barroso, created a strategic
opportunity for cooperation between Turkey and EU.

"Civilian constitution"

EU, started voicing its expectancy from Turkey for a civilian
constitution, more strongly.

In its "Progress Report", the EU Commission underlined that there was
growing awareness in Turkey on the need for amending the constitution,
to allow more democratization and provide more guarantees for
fundamental rights, in line with EU standards.

The EU urged Turkey to review the articles of the constitution
concerning, political parties, labour unions, and use of languages
other than Turkish and remove obstacles in way of establishment of an
ombudsmanship.

The commission criticized the government for not taking the draft
constitution prepared by scholars into its agenda, the lack of
consensus among political parties for amendment of the constitution.

The commission welcomed Turkey’s efforts to normalise its relations
with Armenia and the protocols signed to this end.

The EU welcomed Turkish government’s democratic initiative, including
measures addressing the "Kurdish issue", voicing its expectancy for
concrete measures ensuring full rights and freedom for all.

The commission which showed a rather soft reaction to the dissolution
of the Democratic Society Party (DTP) by the constitutional court said
it was unfortunate that DTP refused to distance itself from terrorist
organization PKK and condemn terrorism.

AA

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