Author: Jalatian Sonya

E-GOVERNMENT INTRODUCTION IN ARMENIA TO BE STARTED FROM FOREIGN
MINISTRY

YEREVAN, JANUARY 25. ARMINFO. A pilot project of e-government is being
carried out in Armenia’s Foreign Ministry under the EU IT. Am program,
says the program director Antony Jagus.

The project will be finished in a year. If successful this model will
be applied to the whole Armenian Government. The project envisions
creating a modern computer network, installing necessary equipment,
retraining FM employees. The best example of e-government in FM is the
issuance of e-visas. The next step is e-certificate of no previous
conviction for those seeking jobs abroad. This phase is to be carried
out together with Justice Ministry. For this purpose the computer
networks of the two ministries will be united. The FM’s experience
will be applied to the whole government structure. Officials from
different ministries are now being trained in England under the
program.

Jagus says that the Armenian authorities are actively promoting the
e-government introduction into the executive power. He hopes that the
demonstration of the pilot project results will stimulate the whole
process.

The other bloc of the IT.Am program envisions technically modernizing
the European Regional Institute of Information Technologies of
Armenia, creating a modern academic network and drafting a flexible IT
education program there to allow to train necessary e-government
specialists. This education system will timely react to changes on the
market and will be open for novelties in the sphere. The two blocs of
the program cost a total of 1.2 mln EUR.

POPE CONSECRATES STATUE OF GREGORY ILLUMINATOR

VATICAN, January 21 (Noyan Tapan). According to the “Regnum” News
Agency, Pope John Paul II, the Head of the Roman-Catholic Church,
opened and consecrated the statue of Holy Gregory Illuminator (Grigor
Lusavorich), the first Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church,
erected in Vatican on the outside niche of the Cathedral of St. Peter.

In connection with the 1700th anniversary of the adoption of the
Christianity in Armenia as a state religion, Patriarch of the Armenian
Catholic Church Nerses Petros XIX turned to the Pope with a request to
erect the monument to the first Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic
Church. The pontific satisfied the request of the Patriarch, and the
5.7-meter and 26-ton marble statue was erected. Khachik Ghazanchian, a
French sculptor of Armenian origin, is the author of the monument. In
2000, in Vatican Pope John Paul II gave Catholicos of All Armenians
Karekin II the relics of the Holy Gregory Illuminator, which are now
in the new Cathedral in Yerevan.

Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
Jan 22 2005

FM Dismisses Reports on Meeting of Azeri, Armenian Presidents

Foreign Minster Elmar Mammadyarov, in an interview with ANS TV,
dismissed the reports saying that Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents
Ilham Aliyev and Robert Kocharian are expected to meet in Warsaw,
Poland in May.

He said, however, that the two countries’ foreign ministers will meet
in late February-early March and everything will depend on this
meeting.

The reports released earlier quoted the Council of Europe (CE)
Committee on Foreign Relations as saying that the next meeting of the
two presidents, initiated by the OSCE Minsk Group, would allegedly
take place on May 16 as part of the third summit of leaders of CE
member states.

ARKA News Agency, Armenia
Jan 20 2005

Cost of tickets for transit flights of Austrian Airlines from Armenia
thru Vienna decreased by $27

4th national exhibition `Our Home’ will take place on Feb 25-27 in
Yerevan

January 23 will be celebrated in all Armenian churches as
commemoration of victims of tragic events in Baku in 1990

Constituent congress of Armenia-Our Home newly established party of
NKR held in Stepanakert

RA President meets with Ambassador of Italy to Armenia

Public organizations of Armenia sign memorandum on cooperation on
fight against traficking and illegal migration

6 criminals wanted by police CIS countries are on the territory of
Armenia

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COST OF TICKETS FOR TRANSIT FLIGHTS OF AUSTRIAN AIRLINES FROM ARMENIA
THRU VIENNA DECREASED BY $27

YEREVAN, January 20. /ARKA/. Cost of tickets for transit flights of
Austrian Airlines from Armenia thru Vienna decreased by $27, Austrian
Airlines told ARKA. It became possible in account of provision of
benefits by the company for transit flights thru Vienna. Since Jan
17, 2005 AA compensate more than 50% of the cost of the transit thru
Vienna, if earlier the amount of transit payments was 14.17 Euros,
now it makes 8 Euros. Besides the company also decreased all
additional payment for fuel.
According to General Commercial Director of Austrian Airlines Joseph
Burger, transit flights thru Vienna are the key ones in world network
of air flights.
Austrian Airlines was founded in 1957. Authorized capital of the
company makes 3.4 billion Austrian shillings (about $226 million).
The owners are Austrian Privatization Agency (39.7% of shares), Free
Flow (30.6%), Austrian Syndicate (18.2%), SairLines (10%) and Air
France (1.5%). Air park of the company makes 90 planes. AA office in
Yerevan opened in Jan 2001 and first flight in Vienna was made on
March 26, 2001. L.D. –0 –

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4TH NATIONAL EXHIBITION `OUR HOME’ WILL TAKE PLACE ON FEB 25-27 IN
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, January 20. /ARKA/. 4th national exhibition `Our Home’ will
take place on Feb 25-27 in Yerevan, Expomedia Center told ARKA. The
exhibition covers more than 1000 square meters of area. According to
marketing research, about 60% of companies are regular participants
of the exhibition `Our Home’. The goal of the exhibition is to gather
together the companies occupied in project-construction, repairs
works, interior-exterior, design of dwelling and office areas. After
the end of the exhibition all participants will receive official
diplomas and the winners will receive prizes.
The exhibition will take place in support of Yerevan City
Administration, RA Ministry of Urban Development and Trade-Industrial
Chamber. L.D. -0 –

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JANUARY 23 WILL BE CELEBRATED IN ALL ARMENIAN CHURCHES AS
COMMEMORATION OF VICTIMS OF TRAGIC EVENTS IN BAKU IN 1990

YEREVAN, January 20. /ARKA/. January 23 will be celebrated in all
Armenian churches as commemoration of victims of tragic events in
Baku in 1990, St. Echmiadzin press service told ARKA.
In Jan 1990 Armenian massacre in Baku received organized and mass
character. Concrete number of murdered is still not defined. L.D. -0 –

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CONSTITUENT CONGRESS OF ARMENIA-OUR HOME NEWLY ESTABLISHED PARTY OF
NKR HELD IN STEPANAKERT

STEPANAKERT, January 20. /ÀÐÊÀ/. The constituent congress of
`Armenia-Our Home’ newly established party of NKR was held in
Stepanakert. According to Ararat Petrosyan, the member of the
initiative group, upon the development and implementation of the
scheduled objectives and tasks, the new party follows a number of
basic principles, in particular, the unity of Armenia and Nagorno
Karabakh, with consideration of all-human values and ideas, Armenian
national and state interests, etc. The objectives of the new party
are the political recognition of NKR as a subject of international
law, historically, judicially and politically justified renaming of
the country to Armenian state of Artsakh, economic, language and
cultural re-development of the territories liberated during the
Karabakh war, establishment of a social and legal state, constant
strengthening of Armenian Armed Forces and improvement of NKR
population’s welfare. L.V.-0–

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RA PRESIDENT MEETS WITH AMBASSADOR OF ITALY TO ARMENIA

YEREVAN, January 20. /ARKA/. The RA President Robert Kocharian met
today with Marco Clementi, the Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Ambassador of Italy to Armenia. As the Press Service of RA President
told ARKA agency, the parties discussed the details of the
forthcoming visit of Robert Kocharian to Italy. The President
emphasized the traditional friendship of Italy and Armenia and the
promising perspectives for economic cooperation, in particular, in
SME area. The visit of Kocharian to Italy is scheduled for the end of
January, 2005. L.V.-0 –

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PUBLIC ORGANIZATIONS OF ARMENIA SIGN MEMORANDUM ON COOPERATION ON
FIGHT AGAINST TRAFICKING AND ILLEGAL MIGRATION

YEREVAN, January 20. /ARKA/. Public organizations of Armenia signed
memorandum on cooperation on fight against traficking and illegal
migration, Coordinator of UNDP Program on Fight Against Traficking
Rafael Gyulnazarian stated today. According to him, special accent
will be made on conduction of preventive activities: organizations
will cooperate in the sphere of assistance to development of policy
and legislation, awareness of society on traficking problems,
provision of assistnace to victims of traficking, development of
mechanisms on their return and reintegration. He added that the plan
of activities for the next year is already created.
Memorandum signed by such organizations as Fund for Human Rights
Protection after Sakharov, Fund of Maternity, Armenian Sociological
Association, Armenian Red Cross, Armenian Caritas, Center for Women
Rights. L.D. -0 –

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6 CRIMINALS WANTED BY POLICE CIS COUNTRIES ARE ON THE TERRITORY OF
ARMENIA

YEREVAN, January 20. /ARKA/. Currently, 6 criminals wanted by the
police of CIS countries are on the territory of Armenia, according to
the Deputy General Prosecutor Mnatsakan Sargsyan. He noted that
preventive punishment in the form of arrest was applied in relation
to them. `We have sent a corresponding inquiry with the information
that they were revealed and are currently in Armenia ‘, said
Sargsyan. He also noted that four of the wanted are Armenian citizens
and Armenia would not extradite them to Russia. Their criminal cases
have already been requested by Armenian law enforcement bodies. The
cases of other two arrested criminals are currently being discussed.
One of them illegally obtained Ukrainian citizenship and the other
committed a murder in Kazakhstan. Sargsyan mentioned that the basic
cooperation in this area is carried out with Russia, as majority of
Armenians live there. He assured that in other CIS countries, in
particular, in Belarus, Armenian citizens do not have any problems
with law enforcement bodies. L.V..-0 –

Felix Aprahamian

The Daily Telegraph/UK
(Filed: 20/01/2005)

Felix Aprahamian, who has died aged 90, was a self-taught musical
polyglot who became known to a wide public through his thoughtful,
erudite and sparkling criticism.

He was a specialist in the organ repertoire, reportedly owning the
largest private collection of work for the instrument, and a champion
of French music. But above all he was an enthusiast who would travel
far and wide to hear little-known talent, even when he was not
required to write a review.

As a teenager, he visited Delius at Grez-sur-Loing, and on the same
trip sat alongside the elderly Widor in the organ loft. He never
parted company froma musician without first collecting an autograph,
and kept extensive and exquisitely crafted diaries narrating his
musical encounters. They were all impeccably filed, as was his
extensive correspondence with, among others, Messiaen.

Aprahamian became secretary of the Organ Music Society in 1931, at the
age of 17, and during the Second World War worked as concert director
for the London Philharmonic. In 1948, he was appointed deputy music
critic to Ernest Newman at the Sunday Times, which for the next 41
years was his mouthpiece, his writing bringing unfailing pleasure to
his readers. He became an unofficial assistant to Sir Thomas Beecham
(who was much taken with Aprahamian’s knowledge of Delius), organised
concerts for the Free French in London and worked for United Music,
largely promoting French composers.

Aprahamian invariably added a splash of colour to the newspaper
office, returning from a Saturday night concert in his black opera
cloak with its scarlet satin lining, his white tie and monocle to
write up his review for the late edition. His neatly trimmed goatee
beard never had a hair out of place, andhis waistline was never far
from generous. For many years he chose to stand at the BBC Proms
concerts rather than occupy a seat.

In 1976 Aprahamian was one of the first people in the country to
invest in a set of headphones with a battery-operated radio hidden in
the band over the head. He purchased it in Japan for £19, and was
thrilled by the clear definition – and not just from the BBC. “I’ve
even picked up news of disturbances in this very road and nudes in the
telephone box in Duke’s Avenue,” he said when interviewed at home at
Muswell Hill about overhearing police messages. On occasions he would
point out to visitors a tree across the street from his front door
where Poulenc, suddenly caught short, had once answered a call of
nature.

Felix Aprahamian was born in London on June 5 1914, the son of an
Armenian carpet dealer. At the age of five he moved with his parents
to the house where he was to live for the rest of his life. He
attended Tollington High School, but was all too easily distracted by
music; his only other formal educationwas at a working men’s
college. He took organ lessons locally, becoming a master of the
instrument and counting among his friends another outstanding
organist, William Lloyd Webber, father of Andrew and Julian.

His father used his contacts to find his son work in the City, but in
vain; Felix spent much of his time at concerts. In 1944 he was
instrumental in organising the first performance of Tippett’s Child of
Our Time.

Aprahamian was a tireless translator, writer and editor, producing
programme notes that were always widely appreciated. He edited several
books, including two anthologies of Ernest Newman’s writings (1956 and
1958) and a collection of weekly appreciations from the Listener
(1967). His reviews for Gramophone were widely read, but he struggled
to meet his deadlines and was dropped after 11 years.

His career on the Sunday Times ended after the paper printed his
review of a concert conducted by Gennadi Rozhdestvensky when the
conductor had, in fact, been too unwell to attend. Not that failing to
attend a concert had always been a problem: his first review (for the
Daily Express) was, he admitted, of an event he had missed.

Aprahamian championed younger musicians, and was always happy to sit
on juries and be a member of a panel selecting and encouraging
performers starting out on their careers. On one occasion in 1957 he
helped to judge a competition for members of the public to try their
hand as music critics, with prizes of 25 and 10 guineas offered by
Harold Holt Ltd.

Among his numerous other interests, he led the campaign to save the
Alexandra Palace organ, was a fearsome gourmet and regularly tended
his exquisite Japanese floodlit garden. He was an ardent Proustian and
kept a magnificentdisplay of tropical fish.

Asked a direct question, he would generally proffer a direct answer.
Questioned once about whether the music of Peter Maxwell-Davies and
Harrison Birtwistle would last, he replied, to the approval of Bernard
Levin: “Frankly, no.” He turned down the offer of an OBE in 1987, but
in 1996 accepted the appointment of Officer de l’Ordre des Arts et des
Lettres for his promotion of French culture. His 80th birthday was
marked in 1994 by a concert of predominantlyFrench music given at a
packed Wigmore Hall by the Nash Ensemble. On that occasion he was
presented with a portrait of himself by the artist June Mendoza.

Latterly he was president of the Delius Society, and was delighted
when a work by the composer was chosen by the Tyneside Metro system to
be played over its public address system as a deterrent to vandals.

Felix Aprahamian died on January 15. He was unmarried.

Agence France Presse
19 janvier 2005 mercredi 8:45 AM GMT

La société turque commence à s’interroger sur la question arménienne
(PAPIER D’ANGLE)

ISTANBUL

Alors qu’à Istanbul une exposition consacrée à la vie quotidienne des
Arméniens en Anatolie au début du XXe siècle bat des records
d’entrées, la société turque commence à s’interroger sur la question
arménienne, occultée pendant 90 ans par l’histoire officielle.

Inaugurée le 8 janvier, l’exposition “Mon cher frère” a accueilli
quelque 6.000 visiteurs en une dizaine de jours selon ses
organisateurs, un record pour une galerie stambouliote.

A travers 500 cartes postales d’époque, “Mon cher frère” s’efforce de
démontrer, chiffres à l’appui et ville par ville, l’omniprésence des
communautés arméniennes sur le territoire ottoman et leur rôle dans
la société.

“En Turquie, l’histoire a toujours été enseignée par rapport au seul
peuple turc, comme s’il n’y avait jamais eu que lui sur ce
territoire. Quand on parle des Arméniens, ils ne sont pas décrits
comme une partie intégrante de la société mais comme une source de
problèmes”, explique Osman Koker, directeur de l’exposition.

“C’est pour remplir ce vide, parce que j’ai une fille de 11 ans qui
reçoit ce genre d’éducation à l’école que j’ai décidé de publier un
livre et de monter une exposition”, poursuit cet historien devenu
éditeur.

“Sans cette prise de conscience, il restera impossible de discuter
des événements de 1915”, ajoute-t-il, en référence aux massacres
d’Arméniens commis entre 1915 et 1917 par les armées ottomanes.

Convaincu des interrogations croissantes de la société turque sur son
propre passé, M. Koker n’en estime pas moins qu’un changement de
mentalités prendra du temps. “Une majorité du public, surtout en
province, considère encore le simple mot d’Arménien comme une
insulte”, estime-t-il.

Même si une poignée d’universitaires et d’historiens amateurs ont
entrepris de revisiter l’histoire turque, on ne brise pas aisément un
tabou profondément installé dans les esprits par 90 ans d’histoire
officielle.

“Jusqu’en 1980, les manuels scolaires turcs ne parlaient tout
simplement pas des massacres d’Arméniens”, résume Fabio Salomoni,
auteur d’un mémoire sur le système scolaire turc.

“Avec les premières reconnaissances du “génocide” par des Etats
occidentaux et la multiplication des attentats de l’Asala (une
organisation terroriste arménienne), un paragraphe a ensuite été
ajouté excluant toute responsabilité turque dans la mort des
Arméniens, expliquée par un contexte de guerre et les rigueurs
climatiques”, poursuit-il.

Si la Turquie reconnaît la réalité des massacres, elle récuse le
terme de “génocide” et les chiffres de 1,2 à 1,3 million de morts
avancés les Arméniens, estimant le nombre de victimes à 250.000 ou
300.000.

Le Premier ministre turc Recep Tayyip Erdogan a certes inauguré début
décembre -peu avant le sommet européen de Bruxelles, qui a donné une
date à Ankara pour le début de négociations d’adhésion à l’Union
européenne- un musée arménien à Istanbul, mais il n’est pas question
de revenir sur les dogmes en vigueur.

Plusieurs officines subventionnées par l’Etat continuent ainsi de
mener des recherches censées démontrer que s’il y a eu génocide,
celui-ci a plutôt été perpétré par les Arméniens contre les Turcs.

“On ne peut pas parler de changement profond au niveau étatique”,
commente Tarin Karakasli, du journal arménien Agos. “L’évolution a
lieu dans l’élite intellectuelle, qui commence à discuter ouvertement
du sujet, à encourager la publication d’ouvrages alternatifs”.

La jeune femme se félicite du rôle joué par l’UE, qui “contribue à
briser le tabou arménien” en encourageant la démocratisation de la
Turquie, mais déplore la position de la France, souhaitant faire de
la reconnaissance du “génocide” un préalable à l’adhésion turque.

“Ces pressions ne servent à rien, la question ne pourra se résoudre
que par des dynamiques internes”, estime-t-elle.

“La population turque n’a pas encore pleinement conscience du
problème; dans ce contexte, imposer une solution ne peut que susciter
des réactions hostiles”, renchérit Etyen Mahcupyan, Arménien
d’Istanbul et chroniqueur du quotidien Zaman.

Deccan Herald, India
Jan 17 2005

Will this baby be left in the cold?

Animal rights activists organised a signature campaign at the Mahatma
Gandhi statue on M G Road on Sunday opposing shifting of Veda to
Armenia.

BY DIPTI NAIR
DH NEWS SERVICE, BANGALORE:

Never look a gift horse in the mouth, it is said. The authorities at
Yerevan zoo in Armenia in West Asia are probably doing the same after
the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) announced six months ago that it
was gifting them an elephant as a `goodwill gesture’.

As Veda, a six-year-old female elephant at Bannerghatta Biological
Park, awaits her fate, animal lovers, especially children,
participated in a `Let’s walk for Veda’ campaign. Veda was supposed
to be airlifted from Bannerghatta to Armenia in December, but her
departure was postponed till February because of the extreme cold
conditions there.

According to Sharath Babu of People for Animals, `The move is in
total disregard of animal welfare, legal provisions and government
policies ensuring protection to captive animals.’ Adds Suparna
Ganguly of Cupa, `We contacted the former director of Yerevan zoo,
and she maintained that conditions there are not suitable for
elephants.’

The animal activists also maintained that they are in touch with
several NGOs in Armenia who have provided information regarding the
unsuitable conditions awaiting Veda. `The enclosure meant for Veda is
less than 10,000 sq ft and the winter shed is less than 2,500 sq ft
which is totally inadequate to house an elephant,’ says Sharath.

The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) had instructed that the elephant be
directly airlifted from Bannerghatta. Says Ram Mohan Ray, Karnataka
chief wildlife warden, `We got the orders from the Centre and there’s
nothing much we can do. Of course, we requested them to make
necessary arrangements for her comfort.’

Besides the prospect of facing the harsh winter, with temperature
dropping from 4 to 14 degrees for four to six months, Veda also faces
separation from her herd. At present, Veda is part of a herd living
with her mother and grandmother. The separation, when it happens,
will be extremely painful considering female elephants rarely ever
leave their herd.

And, though the powers that be claim that she will be joining a male
elephant in Armenia (which was earlier gifted to erstwhile Soviet
Union), activists are sceptical about a union.

Jordan Times
Friday-Saturday, January 14-15, 2005

Bisharat progresses to the 2nd round at World Cup tournament
By Maram Sweis

AMMAN – Equestrian Ibrahim Bisharat progressed to the second round of
competitions in the World Cup tournament at the Sharjah Equestrian and
Racing Club on Wednesday, bringing him closer to qualifying for the 2006
World Cup which will be held in Las Vegas, USA.
The Jordanian missed his initial shot for Grand Prix qualifications after
his horse, Qwinto, fault by refusal prior to a jump in the first leg of the
tournament in Abu Dhabi. The mishap resulted in four faults and lost points
that counted towards qualifying for the championships.

After receiving no faults atop his other horse Ghazal, Bisharat, who was in
third place, advanced to a decisive stage at the Sharjah event, or stage two
of the tournament.

Saudi Prince Abdullah Ben Mehtab Ben Abdul Aziz came in first place, while
Qatar’s Ali Rumaihi took second place in the tournament.

Bisharat, who competed in the 2004 Olympics in Athens, is among 210 riders
representing countries from the Middle East and Europe – Qatar, Bahrain,
Saudi Arabia, Oman, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Kuwait, United Kingdom, Germany,
Netherlands, Armenia, Bulgaria and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Another Jordanian taking part in the tournament is Aya Nasif, who competed
against 25 other young equestrians. She is placed 15th in the juniors
category, with eight faults.

The 5th Sharjah International Showjumping Championship is held under the
patronage of Sheikh Sultan Ben Mohammad Al Qassimi, member of the supreme
council and ruler of Sharjah, and organised by the Emirates Equestrian and
Racing Federation, along with the Federation Equestre Internationale.

Upcoming World Cup qualifying tournaments will take place in Ajman, UAE,
from Jan. 19-21, Doha, Qatar, Feb. 6-13, and Manama, Bahrain, Feb. 23-25.

Friday-Saturday, January 14-15, 2005

PanArmenian News
Jan 14 2005

30 ARMENIANS BROUGHT ACTION AGAINST AZERBAIJAN

14.01.2005 16:24

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ 30 Armenian citizens, the refugees from the
Shahumian region of NKR and Khanlar region of Azerbaijan appealed to
the European Court for receiving contribution from Baku. At present
the letters are being discussed in Strasbourg. The court is likely to
examine the issue within 2 or 3 years. To remind, the residents of
the Shahumian region of NKR, occupied by the Azeri army in 1992 with
the assistance of bribed Russian generals, were deported from their
domicile while Azeris settled in their houses. To note, this
settlement policy was set by the Azerbaijani government. The
residents of the Khanlar region were mostly deported by 1991, during
the “ring” operation carried out by the soviet army and the Azeri
OMON.

Milliyet, Turkey
Jan 13 2005

Cooperation With Russia
BYEGM: 1/13/2005
BY SAMI KOHEN

MILLIYET- Leaders’ official visits to other countries rarely yield
concrete, immediate results. Taking certain decisions to strengthen
economic ties and opening a Turkish Trade Center in the middle of
Moscow are among the positive results of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan’s visit this week to Russia. The actual successes of the
visit are the steps taken towards strategic partnership. During
meetings in Moscow, both sides showed a new stance not only over
bilateral relations, but also regional issues. Russia’s stance on the
Cyprus issue and Turkey’s relations with the EU are concrete examples
of this. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s statements about Cyprus
signalled a move away from Russia’s support for the Greek Cypriot
administration. Russia has now agreed to support UN Secretary-General
Kofi Annan’s plan and will also help lift the blockade on the Turkish
Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). This is a truly important shift
in Moscow’s Cyprus policy in favor of Turkey. Similarly, Putin stated
that he was glad about Turkey’s integration with the EU, which is
another important development. During his visit to Ankara last month,
Putin warned that such integration posed a serious obstacle to
Turkish-Russian relations. Now, instead, he says it will open new
horizons.

Putin’s statements on Armenia also signal possible strategic
cooperation between Ankara and Moscow on regional problems.
Concerning the Upper Karabagh issue, Putin said that Russia might
serve as a mediator and even a guarantor and that he would help
Turkey to forge friendly relations with Armenia. Erdogan doesn’t want
strained relations with Turkey’s neighbors and thinks that our policy
in the region is geared towards solutions. Of course Yerevan should
make positive signals towards this end, then Turkey will be able to
normalize relations. During the meetings in Moscow, it’s significant
that the Armenian issue was also on the agenda. Ankara has stipulated
up to now that firstly Yerevan should withdraw from the Azerbaijani
territory it’s occupying and solve its disputes with Baku in order
for Turkey to normalize its relations with Armenia. The reasons for
this stance can be understood easily. However, Turkey was unable to
play a mediator role because of this. Now Russia seems ready to step
in. However, if Turkey can establish a good dialogue with Yerevan, it
can help create a consensus between the parties and push claims of a
so-called Armenian genocide from the agenda. Now the Armenian
diaspora is about to try to take the initiative over the 90th
anniversary of the `genocide.’ It’s time for Ankara to step forward
now with a bold stance. This can be done in cooperation with Russia,
in light of Putin’s statements.