Author: Frangulian Shushan

PALESTINIANS JOIN ISRAELIS IN BEAUTY PAGEANT
By Jonathan Saul

Reuters
09/21/05 11:08 ET

JERUSALEM, Sept 21 (Reuters) – In skimpy swimsuits and high heels,
Israeli, Palestinian and Armenian women came together in a Jewish
settlement for a beauty pageant billed by its Israeli organiser as
a bid to cross Middle East barriers.

It was staged on Tuesday night in Gilo, which Israel calls part of
Jerusalem but which is deemed a settlement under international law.

The venue — on land captured in a 1967 war and annexed in a move
only Israel recognises — failed to impress Palestinian officials and
most Palestinian women, required by Muslim piety to dress modestly,
would shun any scantily clad pageant.

Last year, eight Palestinians from nearby Bethlehem and Beit Jala in
the West Bank dropped out of a similar pageant in Gilo after receiving
death threats from Palestinian militants.

But this time, two Palestinian girls from Beit Jala, a centre of
the minority Christian community in the mainly Muslim Palestinian
population, took part along with 17 Israelis and an Armenian from
Jerusalem’s walled Old City.

The winner was an Israeli, Shira Fadida, and Mary Farah, a Palestinian
from Beit Jala, was runner-up.

“We need peace and we really need to stop killing each other,”
Farah, 19, told Reuters. “This event is not really about beauty of
the body, but a way to bring out the beauty between us (Israelis
and Palestinians).”

“I hope next year more Palestinians will take part. This is really
about forging co-existence,” said organiser Azi Nagar.

A Gilo businessman, he has promoted other projects with Palestinian
participation such as football tournaments and public discussions.

GAZA PULLOUT

Last month, Israel withdrew all settlers from the Gaza Strip and
pulled out military forces last week in a step diplomats hope will
improve the atmosphere for Middle East peace talks.

Gilo came under fire from militants from the nearby West Bank town of
Beit Jala in the early part of a Palestinian uprising that erupted
in 2000. But the area has been largely calm for three years and a
ceasefire took effect in February.

“What better place to foster peace than Gilo,” Nagar said.

But Israel continues to expand larger settlements in the West Bank,
a policy Palestinians say is destroying peace prospects.

The pageant, called “Miss Seam Line”, was named after Israel’s
controversial barrier being built inside the West Bank.

Israel bills the barrier as a security bulwark against suicide bombers
reaching its cities. Palestinians call the barrier a land grab as
it is being routed to take in settlements, particularly those around
Jerusalem, that Israel intends to keep under any future peace treaty.

“Next time, if they really want to have a beauty pageant and talk
about equality (of contestants), they should have it in a place where
Palestinians and Israelis are genuinely treated as equals and not
on occupied territory,” said Diana Buttu, an adviser to Palestinian
President Mahmoud Abbas.

“To call it a ‘seam line pageant’ seems like a bid to legitimise this
barrier. It’s not a seam line since Gilo is clearly a settlement,
where Israel is trying to create border on occupied land that should
be part of a Palestinian state.”

Israelis taking part in the beauty contest live in what they call
“seam line communities” encompassed by the barrier, including Gilo,
that are considered settlements abroad.

An Israeli Arab musical troupe, Sounds of Peace, played at the pageant
and one of its members said Israel’s handover of Gaza, which it also
captured in 1967, to Palestinian rule was a positive step towards
peace.

“Everyone must clear out their hearts. We want to live out our
days quietly,” said musician Shaban Nasser, 35, a Palestinian from
Jerusalem’s Old City.

(Writing by Jonathan Saul and Mark Heinrich)

Noyan Tapan News Agency
Sept 19 2005

A NUMBER OF WORKS BY MODERN ARMENIAN WRITERS TO BE PUBLISHED IN OTHER
LANGUAGES

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 19, NOYAN TAPAN. The literary taste was distorted
so much in the Armenian reality that it isn’t ready to perceive
neither modern world nor local serious literature. Eduard Militonian,
Head of the Publishing Agency of RA Ministry of Culture and Youth
Affairs, declared this at the September 16 press conference.
According to him, especially text-books make the Armenian reader
one-sided and he is more inclined to a historic material. In
Militonian’s opinion, that’s why the modern literature was put aside
in the Armenian reality and isn’t taken serious by the society. He
mentioned that the situation is the same in Spyurk where they only
speak and write about the Genocide. “Unfortunately, there are few
great Armenians on the map of world’s fiction,” agency’s head said.

Eduard Militonian said that a number of programs were implemented in
the recent 4-5 years, works by modern Armenian writers were published
in other languages for the purpose of presenting the Armenian
culture, Armenian literature abroad. He informed that the anthology
of modern Armenian poets will be published in German soon and
negotiations are carried out for publishing it in Spanish and Persian
languages as well. Aghasi Ayvazian’s collected works will be also
published in English.

MOCK BATTLES MAKE FOR FAST FRIENDSHIP
by Oleg Korupai, Alexander Tikhonov

Agency WPS
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
September 16, 2005, Friday

SOURCE: Krasnaya Zvezda, September 13, 2005, pp. 1, 3

TACTICAL EXERCISE OF THE UNITED RUSSIAN-ARMENIAN ARMY GROUP IS
NEARING ITS END

Tactical exercise of the United Russian-Armenian Army Group will be
completed today. The exercise is being run at the Training Center named
after Marshal of the Soviet Union, Ivan Bagramjan, in Armavir, Armenia.

Threat of the Northern invasion gauged as real, the South takes
measures to prevent an aggression against Armenia. Readiness status
of the troops is upgraded. Establishment of Groups NN 1 and 2 of the
United Russian-Armenian Army Group is completed in accordance with the
tactical plans. With the invasion under way, the groups are supposed to
defend vital objects from enemy air raids and attacks and to contain
and destroy the enemy afterwards. Group One sends reinforcements to
the area of the Training Center in order to boost the defense in the
Yerevan direction.

This is the scenario of the Russian-Armenian tactical exercise that
will be completed today. This is the tenth joint exercise run by units
of the friendly armies. The first exercise of the series was run here,
in Armavir, in summer 1995.

As a rule, exercises are run by different units of Groups NN 1 and 2.

Group One includes units of the 102nd Military Base of the Russian
Army Group in the Caucasus in Gyumri, motorized infantry and artillery
regiments of the Armenian national army. Colonel Andrei Kholzakov,
commander of the Russian military base, commands the Group. Group Two
includes units of the 5th Army Corps of the Armed Forces of Armenia and
the motorized infantry regiment of the 102nd Military Base commanded
by Lieutenant Colonel Andrei Chernichenko.

Corps Commander Major General Valery Grigorjan commands the group.

Lieutenant General Mikhail Grigorjan commands the united group. Major
General Alexander Zinoviev, Commander of the Combat Control Team for
the Russian Troops in Armenia, is the Russian second-in-command of
the United Russian-Armenian Army Group.

The exercise in question mostly involved units of Group 1. It was
run in three stages.

Stage One included a drill of the United Group Command, Stage Two
a command exercise of Group One, and Stage Three (joint tactical
regimental exercise) involved motorized infantry regiment under Colonel
Menyakin (the 102nd Military Base) and the 545th Motorized Infantry
Regiment of the 5th Army Corps of the Armenian national army. Units
and formations of the Russian and Armenian armies fortified motorized
infantry battalions of the United Russian-Armenian Army Group involved
in this phase of the exercise.

Units directly controlled by the United Group Command drilled
cooperation (the matter concerns the 15th and 121st AF bases of
the Armed Forces of Armenia and the AF base of the 102nd Russian
Military Base).

United Army Group Commander Grigorjan says that interaction and
cooperation between units of the Russian and Armenian armies are
superb, enabling the group command to confidently tackle all and any
tasks. Grigorjan made a special emphasize on the defensive scenario
of the exercise that answered the purpose of repelling an aggression
against any participant. One of the purposes of the exercise concerned
prevention of acts of sabotage by enemy special forces operating behind
the lines of the United Russian-Armenian Army Group (specifically,
prevention of destruction of a nuclear power plant).

Russia and Armenia established diplomatic relations in 1992. Since
then, our countries have signed over 160 treaties and accords including
the Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance (August
29, 1997) and documents on Russian military presence in Armenia (Treaty
on the Legal Status of Russian Armed Forces on the Territory of the
Republic of Armenia dated August 21, 1992, Treaty on the Russian
Military Base on the Territory of the Republic of Armenia dated March
16, 1996). All these documents state that security of the two states,
collective security in the Commonwealth, and stability in the region
are the main purposes of the Russian-Armenian military cooperation.

The Agreement between the Russian Federation and the Republic of
Armenia on Joint Planning, Deployment of Troops (Forces) for the
Purposes of Mutual Security was signed in Sochi, Russia, on August
27, 2000. The National Assembly of Armenia ratified it in February
2001. The document legalizes establishment on the territory of
Armenia of the Joint Russian-Armenian Army Group comprising units
and formations of the Russian and Armenian national armies. The
Joint Russian-Armenian Army Group includes units and formations
given the task of defense under the joint command in the period of
deterioration of the military-political situation in the region and
a threat of aggression against Russia or Armenia from a foreign state
or a coalition.

The exercise that is about to be completed will not be the last in
the history of Russian-Armenian relations, according to Armenian
Defense Minister Serzh Sarkisjan. According to Sarkisjan, relations
between Yerevan and Moscow – particularly in the military-political
sphere – have advanced all through existence of a sovereign Armenian
state. Moreover, they are at the height of their potential at this
point.

Nikolai Bordyuzha, General Secretary of the CIS Collective Security
Treaty Organization, is expected to participate in evaluation of the
outcome of the exercise.

ARMENIA PARTICIPATING IN MILITARY EXERCISE IN GEORGIA

Pan Armenian News
19.09.2005 07:38

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The exercise with the participation of military
from 18 countries started in Georgia today on the military ground
of Vaziani.

Servicemen from Armenia, Albania, Bulgaria, Germany, Ukraine,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Romania, Latvia, Macedonia and the U.S. are
taking part in the maneuvers headed by Commander of the U.S. European
Command, Colonel Russell Richardson. Rescuer-medcuer-05 exercise is
held under the patronage of U.S.

within the NATO Partnership for Peace program framework. The exercise
will last till September 22, RIA Novosti reports.

CHINESE POLITBURO MEMBER LUO GAN MEETS ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY OFFICIAL

Xinhua news agency, Beijing
19 Sep 05

Beijing, 19 September: Luo Gan, member of the Standing Committee of
the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Central
Committee, met here Monday with Tigran Torosyan, deputy speaker of the
National Assembly and vice-chairman of the Republican Party of Armenia.

Luo said China and Armenia have improved bilateral relations in
a comprehensive way, strengthened political trust and made their
cooperation fruitful since the two countries forged diplomatic ties
in 1992. He expressed the belief that Sino-Armenian ties would be
further enhanced with endeavours of the two sides. He appreciates
the adherence of Armenia to China’s stance on the issues of Taiwan,
Tibet and human rights.

Luo said the CCP would like to promote cooperation with all parties
in Armenia including the Armenian Republican Party in a bid to promote
an all-round and sustainable relations between the two countries.

Torosyan said Armenia attaches great importance to the relations
with China and adheres to the one-China policy. He said Armenia hopes
to further strengthen exchanges with the CCP and push forward their
cooperation in all fields.

RA MFA PRESS SECRETARY’S STATEMENT CALLED “DIPLOMATIC MANEUVERS” IN BAKU

DeFacto, Armenia
Sept 16 2005

RA MFA press secretary Hamlet Gasparyan’s statement on Nagorno
Karabakh process “is nothing more than diplomatic maneuvers”, Head of
the International Department of the Azeri President’s Administration
Novruz Mamedov stated, Azeri Trend agency reports.

To note, Hamlet Gasparyan said Armenia’s stand had not been changed –
if Azerbaijan raised an issue referring to Nagorno Karabakh at the
UN Armenia would cease talks, so Azerbaijan would have to negotiate
with Stepanakert. RA MFA press secretary said it while commenting
on placing the issue “About the situation on Azerbaijan’s occupied
territories” on the UN General Assembly 60th sitting’s agenda.

According to Mamedov, “Armenia sees that Azerbaijan’s stand on Nagorno
Karabakh settlement is supported by the international community
and is trying to threaten Azerbaijan with suspension of talks and
negotiations with Nagorno Karabakh”.

BILL ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE TO BE DISCUSSED IN EDINBURGH

Pan Armenian News
19.09.2005 04:11

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The possible discussion of the bill on the Armenian
Genocide in the town council of Edinburgh spurred Turkish diplomatic
missions in the UK to drastic measures. Chairman of the town council,
Labor Part member Donald Anderson sent a letter to the Turkish Embassy
to inform that he has studied the documents proving the mass killings
of the Armenian people in the Ottoman Empire and that he has no doubts
that it was a genocide. Representatives of the Turkish Embassy left
London for Edinburgh to prevent the adoption of the bill on the
Armenian Genocide. Deputies of the conservative wing of the town
council also impede the adoption of the bill.

The Messenger, Georgia
Sept 15 2005

Separatist states make plea for recognition
By Anna Arzanova

A two-day conference of representatives of unrecognized separatist
republics in post-Soviet space described by an organizer as the
“Alternative CIS” got underway in Moscow on Wednesday, September 14.

Russian politicians opened the forum with criticism of Georgian
policy. “I want to draw attention to the fact that there are parallel
worlds, as in fiction. We have a world of recognized countries and
unrecognized countries,” said Director of the Russia’s Institute for
CIS Studies and member of the CIS Affairs Committee in the State Duma
Konstantin Zatulin.

He stressed that as long as these two worlds are separate, the CIS
cannot be an effective organization; “we are talking about an
alternative CIS. But the CIS itself is not well organized either.” He
also criticized NATO member states for providing Georgia with arms.

Zatulin compared the Georgian authorities to children and attempted
to draw an analogy. “Why are matches kept from children? Because
children cannot be responsible for the ensuing results,” he said.

He stated that the human rights are the most important and that “this
concept should be applied equally to people who have been living or
lived in the conflict zones as well as all the people who have never
heard about the conflicts.”

Taking part are government representatives from Abkhazia and South
Ossetia (Georgia), Transdnestria (Moldova), and Nagorni Karabakh
(Azerbaijan), in addition to political analysts, MPs of the Russian
State Duma and other politicians.

At the opening session, the participants of the conference, which was
organized by the Institute of CIS Countries, mainly discussed the
issue of laying the groundwork for international recognition of the
de facto republics and the protection of the human rights of the
people living in the conflict zones.

Deputy Head of the Russian Presidential Administration Modest Kolerov
in an interview with journalists stated that the only thing that can
impede the existence of the de facto states as real countries is
“bloody war.”

“The main thing that supports and strengthens them is peace and
reality. Those who do not want war to take place are forced to take
this fact into account,” he stated.

On September 13, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia released a
statement that addresses the decision of the Government of the Czech
Republic to hand over ammunition to Tbilisi on a free of charge
basis.

According to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, all this may
increase the temptation of Tbilisi to use force against Sokhumi and
Tskhinvali, which would seriously destabilize the situation not only
in Georgia, but throughout the Caucasus as well.

“It should also be remembered that arms might fall into the hands of
international terrorists, who will subsequently spread throughout the
region and also, not inconceivably, beyond. All of this cannot but
arouse concern,” writes the Information and Press Department of the
Ministry.

Speaking at the conference, representative of the breakaway republic
of South Ossetia in Russia Konstantin Dzugaev asked Russia to render
assistance in the military and economic spheres to South Ossetia.

He stated that if Russia does not raise the pensions and salaries it
distributes to the Tskhinvali population to equal those distributed
within Russia, the demographic situation in South Ossetia would
become aggravated. As a result, Dzugaev said, “there would be no
necessity to protect anybody.”

“Recognize these republics. With this step not only will vitally
important problems be solved, but important human values such as
justice will be upheld and protected. We have been living for fifteen
years in bad conditions and have been defending the pro-Russian
choice,” Dzugaev stated at the forum.

Dzugaev went on to praise the Ossetian people by saying that they are
a most diligent people and are unwaveringly devoted to the Ossetian
government.

A representative of the Abkhaz de facto republic Igor Akhba described
Abkhazia is an independent state with its own political and economic
structures.

A1+

| 19:32:38 | 16-09-2005 | Politics |

HISTORICAL CHANCE FOR KARABAKH

`The EU defends the steps towards the development of the negotiation process
about the settlement of the Karabakh conflict between Armenia and
Azerbaijan’, announced the EU special representative to Southern Caucasus
Heikki Talvitie in Baku.

He mentioned that the settlement of the conflict is possible only by the
efforts of the parties underlining that `No one from abroad can solve the
problem’.

According to eh EU special representative, the Kazan meeting of Ilham Aliev
and Robert Kocharyan `gives us the possibility to mark that there is
historical chance for the Nagorno Karabakh conflict to be settled and it
must be made use of’.

Armenpress

Economic Culture and Science Regional Sports

POLITICAL

16 September

STATEMENT OF ARMENIAN PRIME MINISTER ANDRANIK MARGARIAN AT HIGH-LEVEL
PLENARY MEETING OF UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY’S 60TH SESSION
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 16, ARMENPRESS: Armenian Prime Minister Andranik
Margarian made speech at the 60th session of the UN General Assembly.
“Mr. President,
Secretary-General,
Excellencies,
Mr. President,
First, allow me, to congratulate You on Your election as President of the
60th session of the UN General Assembly. It is five years now that the Heads
of States and Governments adopted the Millennium Declaration thus assuming
responsibility to reach the development goals as outlined in the
Declaration. By joining the Declaration Armenia included the development
goals in its long-term strategic programs. By the decision of the Government
and with the assistance of international organizations Armenia adopted a
Poverty Reduction Strategy Program in August 2003.
It envisages measures aimed at implementation of MDGs and is in
compliance with the strategic development of the country. The Program
reflects our national distinctive features and enjoys the full support of
civil society and international organizations.
Mr. President,
Terrorism remains the biggest scourge facing humanity. The terrorist acts of
September 11, 2001 in the United States, then in Beslan, Madrid, London and
other parts of the world testify that states should unite their efforts to
commonly address this evil. Armenia strongly condemns terrorism and all its
manifestations. We commend measures undertaken by the Secretary-General
aimed at prevention of possible acts of genocide in the future. In this
connection I would like to underline the importance of inclusion in the
Outcome Document of the High-Level Meeting the concept of responsibility to
protect populations against genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and
crimes against humanity.
The international community should redouble its efforts to prevent
possible genocides. Armenians, as a nation that survived the first genocide
of the 20-th century, know well the horrible consequences of the policy of
genocide.
Mr. President,
One of the guarantees for security and stability in our region is peaceful
settlement of regional conflicts. Armenia remains committed to the peaceful
resolution of the Nagorno-Karabagh conflict. The people of Nagorno Karabagh
used its right to self-determination in accordance with the principles of
international law, just as some countries present at this session have
recently done. We are confident that only in conditions of mutual respect,
in an atmosphere of tolerance and with the will to recognize historic truth
can we secure peaceful and good-neighborly coexistence in our region.
We attach special attention to regional cooperation to encourage mutual
confidence. Unfortunately, this process is impeded by the blockade imposed
on Armenia, as well as by unwillingness of some countries of our region to
engage in such cooperation.
Mr. President,
Armenia supports the efforts aimed at reforming the United Nations and,
in particular, at enhancement of the role of the General Assembly, creation
of the Human Rights Council, and especially at increasing the effectiveness
of the working methods of the Security Council. We are confident that the
reformed United Nations Organization will be in a position to successfully
address today’s ever-increasing challenges. Thank you.”