Author: Dabaghian Diana

Trend News Agency, Azerbaijan
Sept 5 2008

Turkey Misses Diplomatic `Goal’
05.09.08 18:32

Rufiz Hafizoglu ` Head of Trend News Editorial Staff for Middle East

The visit of the President of Turkey, Abdulla Gul, to Yerevan to watch
the football match between the teams of Armenia and Turkey was
reported by the Presidential Administration on 6 September.

Although the Administration declares that the visit take purely sport
character, it is emphasized that this step can open a way for the new
possibilities between two countries in the future. It is reported that
Gul’s visit to Yerevan gives hope for softening of the tense
situation, which recently appeared in Caucasus. However, the report
conceals one of the main moments. Indeed one of the main culprits of
the tension in Caucasus is precisely Armenia with its policy against
the countries of region.

One of the basic reasons, where the West and the USA turn blind eyes
on Turkey’s action as a mediator in many tense points, is the desire
to, in the future, use the `inclination’ of Ankara toward the
mediation for their political purposes. The policy pursued by the USA
brought its real benefits; Gul will leave for Yerevan to watch the
football match.

Already it is not secret that the visit will take place exactly under
dictate of Washington because Gul’s visit to Yerevan more corresponds
to the interests of Armenia and the USA. Regarding the relations
between Armenia and Turkey, Joseph Pennington, Charge’d’ Affaires of
the U.S. to Armenia, said the following: `Besides the USA, no country
so actively mediate to develop the relations between Armenia and
Turkey’.

Touching upon the present situation Armenia’s border with Turkey,
Pennington stated that opening the borders, which have been closed
since 1993, in the near future and developing free trade between the
two countries is very important.

Mentioning his attitude towards the relations of Armenia with Turkey,
the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State, Daniel Fried, said the
following: `The tense situation between the two states is advantageous
for no one. The borders between Turkey and Armenia must be opened. The
USA also supports the realization of trans-border dialogue, initiative
of studies between Armenia and Turkey, co-operation on the realization
of conferences and programs of exchange. Turkey must reconcile itself
to the dark pages of its history’.

Fried’s words give grounds to indicate that the Turkish diplomacy
shook loose before the policy, pursued by the USA, and sooner or later
Ankara will step back from its fundamental positions with regards to
Armenia.

At the same time, Armenia with the impatience expect Gul’s visit
because the Armenians were completely prepared for the visit of the
Turkish President to Yerevan.

Armenian President Sargsyan said to CNN: `One neighbour’s visit to
another neighbour is normal. The visit should not be taken as pressure
on the sides. Although no official in Armenia has presented
territorial claims for Turkey, there are structures in Turkey
believing that there is no country named Armenia. In spite of a
territorial problem between Turkey and Armenia, that is not an
obstacle to construct diplomatic relations between the two
countries. Russia, for instance, has territorial problems with China
and Japan, but they also maintain official diplomatic relations.

Sargsyan’s speech gives the ground to say that Armenian officials have
the same territorial claims for Turkey as for other countries in the
region. Through restoration of diplomatic relations with Turkey
Armenia just tries to economically strengthen to fulfil strategic
plans in future.

Taking into consideration Sargsyan’s words `recent events in Georgia
affected Armenia’s economy and a strong fuel crisis emerged in the
country,’ one can guess that establishment of diplomatic relations
with Turkey will enable Yerevan to restore its shaken economy.

First of all, restoration of Armenia’s economy requires opening of
borders and Kars-Gumri railway. Armenian administration will initially
put aside its principles for a while for the sake of country’s
economic development.

Such course of developments may generate domestic tensions in Turkey,
for Gul’s visit to Yerevan has not been taken as unambiguously in
Turkey as in Armenia. Gul’s visit may entail lost of votes of the
governing party and intensify opposition’s activity.

One of the moments worth attention is that it was Gul who criticized
15 years ago the then administration of Suleyman Demirel for Armenian
officials’ visit to Turkey.

Gul, who was then representing Rifah Party, said: `Show me a country
which meets with those who used to kill its brothers. How can one meet
in Turkey with the people who say that Kars is Armenia’s territory?’
Certainly, Armenia has not changed its policy during recent 15 years.

Turks have one proverb which has been forgotten by the Turkish
diplomacy – A soul thirsts neither for tea nor for tea-house. A soul
thirsts for a talk and tea is just a pretext. Sargsyan needs neither
football nor the match… Sargsyan needs opening of borders, and
football is just a pretext.

CHAIRMAN OF AZERBAIJANI PARLIAMENT ACCUSES INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS OF RISE IN SEPARATISM IN REGION

Trend News Agency
Sept 5 2008
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan, Baku, 5 September/ TrendNews, corr I. Alizade/ Chairman of
Azerbaijani parliament Ogtay Asadov accused international organizations
of the rise in the separatism trends in South Caucasus. "The reason
for the rise in separatism in the region is that some international
organizations do not provided a sharp response to them in time,"
Ogtay Asadov, chairman of Azerbaijani parliament said in a meeting
with the chairman of the Hungarian parliament Katalin Szili.

There is ethnic separatism in territory of three post soviet states-
Azerbaijan, Georgia and Moldova. Azerbaijan suffers separatism
in Nagorno-Karabakh, Georgia – in South Ossetia and Moldova – in
Transdniester. Georgia launched military offensive in South Ossetia on
8 August to restore its territorial integrity. As a response, Russia
carried out military intervention to Georgia’s territory. At present,
international community is making efforts to address the crisis.

"We hope that from now on international organizations including EU
and its member state Hungary will play an important role in preventing
separatism trends," added chairman of Azerbaijani parliament.

He said Azerbaijan plays a big role in providing energy security of
Europe and in realization of Nabucco gas pipeline project.

Asadov added at present there are friendly relations between Azerbaijan
and Hungary. A total of 19 documents were signed during President
Ilham Aliyev’s visit to Hungary which has served as a legal basis
for mutual relations. "Parliaments should also increase their role
in the development of inter-parliament ties".

Chairman of the Hungarian parliament Szili said her country is
interested in deepening relations with Azerbaijan.

"Besides, the economic cooperation commissions of the two countries
should put more efforts to expand trade relations," she added.

HISTORICAL GAME AT OUR FAR NEIGHBORS

Sabah
Sept 5 2008
Turkey

Armenians have just one wish for the outcome of the national game
between Turkey and Armenia tomorrow night: "Let this game be an
opportunity for the opening of gates to be able to get to know one
other better and to eliminate prejudices between the two nations."

Although everyone in Armenia is well aware of the impending game,
it has not resulted in increased tension in the country. Armenians
are hoping this game will provide the opportunity to eradicate all
forms of prejudice between the two nations.

luctant_to_fully_support_America/

Sep. 05, 2008
Dick Cheney Mistakenly Staked on Caspian

// Ilham Aliyev is in no hurry to support the Nabucco project

U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney finished his tour of the South
Caucasus, which was intended to strengthen Washington’s positions in
its struggle for Caspian energy resources. The visit he paid to
Tbilisi yesterday went smoothly as expected. However, the talks he
held in Baku Wednesday failed. According to the information of
Kommersant, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev gave his American
guest a cold welcome and sent a clear message that Baku won’t support
the idea to redirect the energy resources pipelines so that they would
omit Russia. He came to that conclusion watching the developments in
the neighboring Georgia.

Money instead of tanks

Yesterday at 11 a.m. Dick Cheney arrived from Baku in Tbilisi, where
Georgia’s Prime Minister Lado Gurgenidze. Before the meeting of the
U.S. Vice President with Georgia’s President Mikheil Saakashvili
Georgian Security Council Secretary Alexander Lomaya revealed the
talks’ agenda to Kommersant. "First, Dick Cheney wants to demonstrate
the U.S. support to Azerbaijan, Georgia and Ukraine," he said.
"Second, during the negotiations the parties will discuss the security
of communication lines that allow shipping the Caspian energy
resources to the West omitting Russia."

After the talks in the new residence of Georgia’s head-of-state,
Mikheil Saakashvili stated at the joint press-conference, "Georgia
feels the U.S. support, which is strong as never before." The
journalists had a chance to assess the strength of that support
following Dick Cheney’s address. The U.S. Vice President said that
Washington allocates $1 billion to restore the Georgian economy. "We
stand in solidarity with the people of Georgia. After your nation won
its freedom in the Rose Revolution, America came to the aid of this
courageous young democracy. We are doing so again, as you work to
overcome an invasion of your sovereign territory – and an
illegitimate, unilateral attempt to change your country’s borders by
force that has been universally condemned by the free world," the Vice
President stated. "Russia’s actions have cast grave doubt on Russia’s
intentions and on its reliability as an international partner – not
just in Georgia but across this region and indeed throughout the
international system." Besides, Dick Cheney reiterated that Washington
fully supports Georgia’s NATO ambitions. "Georgia will be in our
alliance," he claimed.

Nevertheless, according to the sources of Kommersant in the Georgian
Chancellery, the talks of Mikheil Saakashvili and Dick Cheney didn’t
go as smoothly as their press-conference did. The discussion mainly
focused on the security of the existing pipelines, which were laid in
Georgia omitting Russia, and the project of the Trans-Caspian gas
pipeline Nabucco. Dick Cheney made no secret of the fact that the U.S.
is ready to provide the security of these pipelines using political
methods only. So, Georgia won’t get military assistance from the U.S.
now.

By the way, Wednesday, U.S. State Secretary Condoleezza Rice made this
position public. "It is not yet time to look at the questions of
assistance on the military side," she stated in Washington. However,
Mikheil Saakashvili declared ready to further support American energy
projects in the region. According to the sources of Kommersant, he
promised to Dick Cheney that Tbilisi will support the Nabucco project
"whatever" in case the U.S. gets the approval of Georgia’s neighbors,
Baku, first of all.

The Baku emissary

Meanwhile, according to the information of Kommersant, Dick Cheney’s
visit to Azerbaijan he made on Wednesday turned out complete failure.
The guest of honor, who came in Baku for the first time, was met
neither by President Ilham Aliyev nor Prime Minister Artur Rasizade.
Instead, First Deputy Prime Minister Yagub Eyubov and Foreign Office
Chief Elmar Mammadyarov met Dick Cheney in the airport. As to Ilham
Aliyev, he was in no hurry to receive Mr Cheney. That’s why the U.S.
Vice President first went to a meeting with BP President in Azerbaijan
Bill Schrader and Chevron Azerbaijan top managers. Then he visited the
U.S. Embassy in Baku and held a meeting with Ambassador Anne E. Derse.
It was not earlier than in the evening that Dick Cheney went to the
residence of Azerbaijan’s President.

According to the sources of Kommersant with the Office of Azerbaijan’s
President, the talks turned out pretty tough, in spite of the fact
that Dick Cheney and Ilham Aliyev have had close ties since Mr cheney
worked with Halliburton and Mr Aliyev was SOCAR (Azerbaijan’s
state-run oil company) Vice President. They discussed the war in
Georgia and the prospects of constructing the Nabucco gas pipeline.
According to the information of Kommersant, Dick Cheney informed Ilham
Aliyev that the U.S. will support its allies in the region and intends
to promote the project of the gas pipeline omitting Russia.
Nonetheless, Ilham Aliyev sent a clear message that although he
appreciates the relations with Washington, he is not going to have a
row with Moscow. In fact it meant that under the present circumstances
Baku decided to bide its time without fostering the Nabucco project.
Kommersant interlocutors with the Presidential Office said that Dick
Cheney was irritated by the outcome of the discussion – he even
refused to attend a banquet in his honor.

Ilham Aliyev’s reluctance to support Washington quarreling with Russia
is easy to explain. Baku regrded Tbilisi’s definitively losing of
Abkhazia and South Ossetia as well as Russia’s tanks entering Georgia
as a signal to everyone in the region who is willing to join NATO.
Azerbaijan’s budget incurs great losses: because of the explosion at
the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline on August 12 – Turkey put the
blame on the Kurdistan Workers Party – and the pauses of the work of
the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline and Baku-Supsa oil pipeline,
energy carriers export from Azerbaijan in the western direction was
suspended. At the same time Baku has no claims to Russia. Moreover,
according to the information of Kommersant, Azerbaijan’s authorities
expressed their gratitude to the Russian Federation because during the
military operation and bombardments of the Georgian territory no
BTC-related facilities were destroyed.

Nevertheless, Baku can’t overhaul its stance towards the pipelines on
the territory of Georgia. Azerbaijan is said to have increased the
workload of the Baku-Novorossiysk oil pipeline. It concluded that in
the present situation it’s more secure to transport gas to Europe via
Russia, rather than Georgia and Turkey. Even more so in June Gazprom
offered to buy Azerbaijan’s gas at any volumes according to the
European pricing formula. During his visit to Baku in July Russian
President Dmitry Medvedev and Ilham Aliyev agreed to launch
negotiations concerning the matter. It seems the talks will be
accelerated, just like the pace of Baku and Moscow’s developing closer
relations.

The Russian leaders have already started work in this direction. In
the evening after the talks of Dick Cheney and Ilham Aliyev finished,
Dmitry Medvedev called Azerbaijan’s President. Sources in the Kremlin
explained to Kommersant the necessity of the telephone conversation
with Dmitry Medvedev’s desire to bring home to Ilham Aliyev, one of
the region’s most influential players, Russia’s position regarding
Georgia. Even more so Azerbaijan has a territorial dispute with
Armenia, which remains unresolved. "Armenian leader Serzh Sargsyanhas
recently visited Moscow and discussed the situation over South Ossetia
and Abkhazia during his talks with Dmitry Medvedev. The Russian
President thought it important to discuss those matters with the
Azerbaijani party as well because Baku belongs neither to SCO nor CSTO
– the organizations Russia has intensified contacts with," a source in
the Kremlin told Kommersant. In her turn, Press-Secretary of the
Russian President Natalya Timakova told Kommersant that during their
conversation the leader of Russia and Azerbaijan discussed a
possibility of a meeting in the near future.

&
Purge in Georgia’s army

A massive purge started in the Georgian army, with Mikheil Saakashvili
controlling the process personally. "After the hostilities it’s
natural that we should estimate the efficiency and effectiveness of
the military’s actions. After the assessment we’ll take all necessary
measures," said Georgian Deputy Defense Minister Batu Kutelia.
According to the information Kommersant got from Georgia’s Defense
Ministry yesterday, "Land forces artillery brigade commander Devi
Chankotadze was the one to have best distinguished himself during the
hostilities." Yesterday he was appointed Deputy Head of the Georgian
Army Staff. He succeeded Alexiy Osepaishvili, who was downgraded to
head of one of the Ministry’s minor directorates because of "a bad
organization the troops’ movement" during the war. Land brigade
commander Zurab Agladze also got promoted – he was appointed land
troops commander. His predecessor Mamuka Balakhadze was sent to
Germany for advanced training.

Besides, National Guard Commander David Aptsiauri, who was responsible
for the preparation and mobilization of reservists, was fired. In the
view of the Georgian authorities, the mobilization process was badly
organized during the war. For example, the leadership of the National
Guard was unable to provide ammunition and coordinate the activities
of the reservists, which led to numerous casualties among them.

Georgy Dvali, Tbilisi

Georgian government arrested Tsotne Gamsakhurdia

Wednesday night, son of Georgia’s first President Zviad Gamsakhurdia
Tsotne was detained by the Georgian Interior Ministry in Tbilisi
airport after he arrived from Moscow. He is accused of attempting to
stage a coup. Here the events of the autumn of 2007 are meant. At that
time the Georgian government and opposition confronted. On November 7,
2007 as the confrontation was at its peak, causing clashes between the
police and demonstrators, the Georgian Interior Ministry made public a
record of a telephone conversation between Tsotne Gamsakhurdia and his
elder brother. During the conversation Tsotne, who resided in Moscow,
reproached the leaders of the opposition that they didn’t prompt
people to take to the streets and storm governmental buildings on
November 2 during an unprecedented anti-government meeting in
Rustaveli Avenue. The authorities regarded it as an attempt to stage a
coup.

Interestingly, Tsotne Gamsakhurdia knew that a suit was brought
against him, but after the Russia-Georgian military conflict he
decided to return to his motherland. Perhaps he was encouraged by the
fact that such suits were brought against many opposition leaders, but
no one of them was arrested. For example, the Georgian Prosecutor
General’s Office instituted proceedings against Labor Party leader
Shalva Natelashvili, but didn’t arrest him. Apparently, the deciding
factor was that unlike Mr Natelashvili, Tsotne Gamsakhurdia had lived
in Moscow and returned to Tbilisi after the war. Tbilisi is sure that
the Russian government’s aim during the recent conflict was toppling
President Saakashvili.

Activists of the Svoboda (Freedom) opposition party told Kommersant,
"The Interior Ministry doesn’t let lawyers visit Tsotne Gamsakhurdia,
and that’s why we may apply to the international community."

Georgy Dvali, Tbilisi

Alexander Gabuev, Vladimir Solovyov; Rafael Mustafayev, Baku; Georgy
Dvali, Tbilisi

TURKEY TO KICK OFF ‘FOOTBALL DIPLOMACY’
Thomas Seibert

The National
Sept 5 2008
United Arab Emirates

GMT ISTANBUL // Abdullah Gul, Turkey’s president, is about to make
history by travelling to Armenia for a football match, thus becoming
the first Turkish head of state to visit the neighbour despite the
two countries’ continued disagreement over the deaths of up to 1.5
million Anatolian-Armenians almost 100 years ago.

Accepting an invitation by Serzh Sarkisian, his Armenian counterpart,
Mr Gul, who will arrive in Yerevan tomorrow to see the first contest
between Turkey and Armenia in a World Cup qualifying match, is
hoping the game will contribute to a "new climate of friendship in
the region", his office said in a statement.

In Istanbul, Alen Markaryan, a Turkish football fan of Armenian
descent, agreed. "This match could be a first step to overcoming
the coldness between the two countries," said Mr Markaryan, 42,
who heads Carsi, a fan club of Besiktas, one of Istanbul’s biggest
football clubs.

The match will be the first meeting between the top teams of the two
neighbouring countries that have no diplomatic relations and whose
common border is closed.

Mr Markaryan said he was looking forward to the beginning of a process
of reconciliation. "We all hope for the start of better relations,"
he said. He compared Turkey’s relationship to Armenia with those
to Greece, another traditional enemy with whom Ankara has begun to
build new bridges in recent years. "It was the same with Greece,
but the wall is crumbling," Mr Markaryan said.

Fatih Terim, Turkey’s national football coach, also hoped the match
could contribute to better relations between the two countries,
but said politics should be left to politicians. "If you think about
political problems and about historical accusations, you will not be
able to prepare for any match," he said.

Armenia has lifted visa restrictions for Turks to attract as many
Turkish fans as possible.

Turkey and Armenia are separated by history as well as by modern
conflicts. Armenia says up to 1.5 million Anatolian-Armenians died in
massacres and death marches that started in 1915 in the Ottoman Empire,
in what Armenians say was genocide by the Turks directed against a
Christian minority. Turkey puts the number of victims much lower and
says the deaths were caused by unrest and wartime conditions that
also killed many Muslim Turks.

The bilateral relationship became more difficult in the early 1990s,
when Turkey backed Azerbaijan in the war against Armenia over
Nagorno-Karabakh, an Armenian enclave in Azerbaijan.

Still, the two countries had to make a new start, Mr Markaryan said. "I
hope that the two peoples get rid of their prejudices," he said.

Many of the 80,000 Armenians who live in Turkey today complain about
discrimination and say they are afraid of Turkish nationalists,
especially after a young extremist shot Hrant Dink, an Armenian
journalist, in Istanbul last year.

Carsi, the fan club run by Mr Markaryan, made headlines after
the murder by expressing its solidarity with Mr Dink. "We are all
Armenians," read a sign unfolded by Carsi members in the Besiktas
stadium. The club also supported black football players who had become
victims of racial abuse.

Mr Markaryan said he saw no problems between ordinary Turks and
Armenians, but that politicians had played up the differences. He
said he was the best example for normality – an Armenian who leads
a football fan club in Turkey.

The Turkish-Armenian "football diplomacy", which has been compared
in the Turkish press to the "ping-pong diplomacy" that led to better
relations between the US and China in the 1970s, could provide a chance
to break the deadlock, but also carries political risks for Ankara.

A visit by Mr Gul to Yerevan may not go down well in Azerbaijan,
Turkey’s ally that continues to live in a state of war with Armenia
over Nagorno-Karabakh.

Mr Gul’s trip to Yerevan may also jeopardise the president’s standing
in his own country, said Can Fuat Gurlesel, the head of the Institute
for Strategic Studies, a think tank in Istanbul. "A gesture like that
will be seen positively abroad, but it will be dangerous domestically",
as Armenia had not made it clear yet that it accepts the border,
he said.

Ever since Mr Sarkisian invited Mr Gul to Yerevan, media and
politicians in Turkey have been debating if the president should go.

Many newspaper columnists, business organisations and some
pro-democracy groups had called on Mr Gul to travel to Yerevan. But
opposition politicians say the trip will send the wrong signal.

According to Mr Markaryan, who will not go to Yerevan tomorrow,
the Turkish-Armenian rapprochement should not be limited to
football. Turkey should open its border with Armenia for trade in
order to help the landlocked neighbour, he said. "Armenia is a weak
and poor country."

As for tomorrow’s match, Mr Markaryan predicted a Turkish victory,
but not a towering one. "There won’t be many goals," he said. "The
match is going to be heated."

BELARUS TO ATTEND SESSION OF CSTO SECURITY COUNCIL SECRETARIES IN YEREVAN

National Legal Internet Portal
Sept 2 2008
Belarus

State Secretary of the Security Council of the Republic of Belarus
Yury Zhadobin will take part in the 15th session of the committee
of the chiefs of the security councils of the Collective Security
Treaty Organisation (CSTO) in Yerevan, BelTA learnt from the press
centre of the State Secretariat of the Security Council of Belarus.

The session will discuss the draft documents to be submitted for a
session of the CSTO Collective Security Council which will be held
on September 5 in Moscow.

The participants of the session will exchange the opinion on the
development of the military-political situation in the zone of the
CSTO responsibility and will analyse the course of implementation
of the resolutions passed at the Minsk (2006) and Dushanbe (2007)
sessions of the CSTO Collective Security Council.

The chiefs of the delegations of the states – CSTO members are expected
to be received by President of the Republic of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan.

HISTORY IN YOUR GARDEN… THIS WEEK: GREENGAGE (PRUNUS DOMESTICA)
By Monty Don

le-1051337/History-garden–This-week-Greengage-pru nus-domestica.html
01st September 2008

In my opinion, greengages are the best of all plums. Unfortunately,
they can be tricky to grow and young trees take their time to set
fruit – but they are worth the trouble and the wait.

Greengages can be tricky to grow and young trees take their time to
set fruit

It is believed that they originated in Armenia, just to the east of
Turkey, and spread to Europe quite late, entering this country in
the early 1700s – although there are references to the greengage
before that time from travellers to Italy, where it was known as
verdocchia. The French called it Reine-Claude after Queen Claude,
wife of Francis I, whose reign overlapped that of our own Henry VIII.

We know this green-skinned plum as the greengage because, in 1724, an
English Catholic priest called John Gage, who was studying in Paris,
sent some young trees to his brother, Sir William Gage, who lived at
Hengrave Hall just outside Bury St Edmunds. But the trees lost their
labels in transit so the gardener planted them and labelled them ‘green
Gages’ after his master. The name stuck and has endured to this day.

Rezonansi, Tbilisi, Georgia
Aug 30 2008

Separatist provinces are about to become part of Russia

Mari Otarashvili

Abkhazia, South Ossetia seeking membership of military alliance

It was reported yesterday that Abkhazia is planning to join the
Russia-Belarus union. Abkhazia is effectively prepared to become a
Russian province. Russia, meanwhile, it taking some steps to safeguard
the security of the separatist republics: along with preparing to
establish military bases there, Moscow is also working to make them
part of the "collective security system".

If countries like Armenia, Belarus, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan
and Uzbekistan follow Russia’s example and recognize the independence
of Abkhazia and the so-called South Ossetia, they will have to send
their troops to the two provinces in the event of an armed
conflict. Political analyst Mamuka Areshidze has suggested, however,
that this is mere PR since these republics are actually under Russia’s
protection.

Following Russia’s decision to recognize the independence of Abkhazia
and the so-called South Ossetia on 26 August, the two provinces are
expected to from a military alliance with Moscow. Russia’s Interfax
news agency has reported that Abkhazia and the so-called South Ossetia
could become members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization
[CSTO]. According to the same source, the member-states of the
organization will discuss the possible accession of Abkhazia and the
so-called South Ossetia on 5 September.

Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and
Uzbekistan are the current members of the CSTO. If these countries
recognize the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, their
accession to the organization will only be a matter of time.

What is CSTO and how important is it for Abkhazia and the so-called
South Ossetia to join it? Rezonansi spoke to political analyst Mamuka
Areshidze about these questions.

Armenia, Belarus likely to recognize separatist republics

[Rezonansi] Are Belarus, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and
Uzbekistan to follow Russia’s example and recognize the independence
of Abkhazia and the so-called South Ossetia?

[Areshidze] Most of the residents of these countries are
pro-Russian. It is possible that such a precedent (the accession of
Abkhazia and South Ossetia to the organization) will create another
precedent. At any rate, Russia has been working for a long time now to
make this happen. Since Kazakhstan has been Russia’s ally, Moscow has
worked intensively in that country. However, Kazakhstan also has
certain ties with Georgia, which is the reason why Nazarbayev has
refrained from supporting Russia’s move.

Tajikistan has a puppet government that has only been able to retain
power through the support of the Russian armed forces. Kyrgyzstan is
under dual influence. As you know, there is a US military base
there. Russia will therefore find it quite difficult to obtain the
country’s consent. As for Uzbekistan, its leader always acts according
to the situation and hence it is possible that he will take certain
steps on Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

I am convinced that Armenia and Belarus are the two countries that are
set to support the recognition of Abkhazia’s and South Ossetia’s
independence.

[Rezonansi] What kind of an organization is the CSTO and how valuable
would its membership be for Abkhazia and the so-called South Ossetia?

[Areshidze] If these countries recognize the independence of Abkhazia
and South Ossetia, they will have a duty to ensure their
security. This means that they will have to send their troops and
armaments to Abkhazia and South Ossetia in the event of a war.

[Rezonansi] Does this mean that the membership is important?

[Areshidze] I would not say that it is important as it is more of a PR
move. Should a conflict arise, the Russian army would once again have
to be the "saviour" of the Abkhaz and the Ossetians. This is PR as
they want to show that an international organization has backed
Abkhazia and South Ossetia. They do not have the resources to aid the
Abkhaz and the Ossetians. The powerful Russia will have to protect
them but it still wants to be able to say that an international
organization has recognized the independence of the separatist
republics.

[translated from Georgian]

BINOCHE SOBS IN HEADSCARF, VALENTINO STEPS DOWN: VENICE REVIEWS
Review by Farah Nayeri

Bloomberg
Aug 29 2008

Aug. 29 (Bloomberg) — Juliette Binoche has no language problems
acting in the Iranian movie "Shirin." She never opens her mouth.

Binoche is one of 114 silent, headscarf-wearing actresses in Iranian
filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami’s movie, screened at the Venice Film
Festival. The women’s faces are shown one by one as they watch the
filmed adaptation — heard but not seen by us — of the 12th-century
epic poem "Khosrow and Shirin," about the thwarted love of a Persian
king and an Armenian princess.

Binoche, wrapped loosely in a headscarf and looking gaunt in the
grayish light, pops up briefly in the film’s first half hour, gazing
sadly at the screen. When the camera later comes back to her, tears
are streaming down her face.

Other cast members, Iranian and of all ages, also come into
intermittent focus. They smile faintly when the plot gives them
reason to, cringe when the king slays his enemy, and cry when he
marries another woman and leaves Shirin hopelessly alone.

Binoche was absent from the film’s Venice press conference. Asked
about her headscarf, Kiarostami paraphrased her as saying it was
"out of respect for those who choose to wear it, and in sympathy with
those who are obliged to."

How the production was put together is at least as intriguing
as the film itself. The set consisted of four movie- theater
seats. Each actress was told to sit and stare, for five minutes, at
a piece of paper marked with three dots, and conjure up key personal
memories. When all 114 were done emoting, Kiarostami spent six months
putting the pieces together like a puzzle, making their expressions
fit the drama.

"Shirin" is the slowest movie by Kiarostami, who is already known
for plotless musings on cinema. This is his tribute to the filmgoing
public, the fulfillment of a lifelong wish to watch the viewer
watch. The end result is a triumph of form over content, medium
over message. Still, it’s easy to be drawn into the unseen drama
and the musicality of the Persian verse — especially if you speak
Farsi. Rating: **1/2.

Valentino

Valentino Garavani was, for close to 50 years, the lone Italian in
Parisian haute couture: a gifted designer who dressed generations
of past and present royals, Hollywood stars, and high-society New
Yorkers in his signature red. His time ended last January when he
produced his final collection and bowed out, allowing the fashion
house’s new shareholders to usher in a thirtysomething substitute.

The story of Valentino’s spectacular rise and voluntary exit is
movingly told in a documentary by Vanity Fair contributor Matt
Tyrnauer, "Valentino: The Last Emperor," screened and well received
at Venice. For two years, Tyrnauer trailed Valentino and his business
partner and companion Giancarlo Giammetti as they bickered daily over
the ins and outs of their fashion empire.

Machine Following

"There was a machine following me everywhere, even when I went to the
toilet," the beige-suited couturier told reporters in Venice after
posing with model Eva Herzigova. "It bothered me, but then I accepted."

The documentary opens in his Rome atelier, where senior seamstresses
fuss over every flare and fold of a luxury fabric, stick pins in
mannequins, and storm off when all is not right. Sitting amidst them
like a king at court is Valentino himself, who has flares put in, then
taken out, then put back in. This, we discover to nostalgia-inducing
waves of Fellini film music, is the secret of his ageless chic.

As the designer unashamedly displays ill temper on camera, snapping at
Giammetti every chance he gets, we follow him around his many homes:
the splendid chateau outside Paris, the villa on Rome’s Via Appia
Antica, the chalet in Gstaad, and the T.M. Blue One, a 46-meter yacht
where Warhol’s portraits of him hang.

Elton John

We watch the pair entertain a guest list that would give any paparazzo
an epileptic fit. Gwyneth Paltrow and Elton John, among others,
arrive to toast them in their twilight moment at a magnificent party
in the chateau.

There are plenty of funny moments, starting, of course, with the
spats. "You look a little too tan," Giammetti warns the leather-faced
Valentino in a chauffeur-driven limo. When Valentino poses with his
pugs and boasts of how good they are during photo shoots, one roams
off to urinate on the parquet.

Capitalism soon sends tremors through their empire, forcing them
to sell bigger and bigger slices. Valentino and Giammetti fight to
the last, then give up, organizing a series of farewell bashes in
spectacular European settings.

First-time director Tyrnauer’s documentary lacks the finish of
others recently screened on Mike Tyson or Marlon Brando. What he
does convey is the touching relationship between the designer and his
silver-haired, behind-the-scenes guy, whose role is only now becoming
publicly known.

Giammetti himself puts it best. "To be with Valentino as a friend,
a lover, or an employee is a bit the same," he sighs. "You need a
lot of patience." Rating: ***.

NEW AMBASSADORS APPOINTED

armradio.am
29.08.2008 16:13

On August 29 Ra president Serzh Sargsyan signed a decree on appointing
Vasili Ghazaryan the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
the Republic of Armenia to the Republic of Kazakhstan (seat in Astana).

According to another presidential decree Vladimir Badalyan was
appointed the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the
Republic of Armenia to Turkmenistan.