Ottawa: Anger as `stars’ oust Liberal hopefuls

Toronto Star
May 10 2004

Anger as `stars’ oust Liberal hopefuls
PM’s sincerity in doubt, says one Party defends

appointments

GRAHAM FRASER
NATIONAL AFFAIRS WRITER

OTTAWA—Paul Martin’s designation of a Liberal candidate in Brampton
puts in doubt his sincerity, a would-be Liberal candidate said
yesterday.

“For me, it says to me they have a very difficult time keeping
promises,” Andrew Kania told the CTV program Question Period yesterday.

Kania said he had initially been told he could not run in Brampton
Springdale.

“Mr. Karl Littler, the Ontario campaign manager, specifically said
to me I would not be allowed to succeed in that riding because I was
John Manley’s Ontario co-chair,” he said.

“I appealed to the Prime Minister, I wrote to him, and he approved
me as a candidate.”

The approval did not last long: On Saturday, the Liberal party
announced that Ruby Dhalla, a chiropractor and long-time Liberal
activist, would be the party’s candidate.

The controversy has underlined the contradiction between Prime Minister
Paul Martin’s position earlier in the year and his recent actions,
and the tension between his constant complaints about a democratic
deficit in Parliament and his desire to name star candidates of
cabinet quality.

First, Martin insisted that the selection of candidates was a local
matter and refused to intervene in the fight between his defeated
rival Sheila Copps and Transport Minister Tony Valeri.

But he or his representatives have subsequently intervened several
times to block candidates who were seeking Liberal nominations,
and appoint candidates of his choosing.

Steve MacKinnon, deputy campaign director for the Liberal party, said
that the decision to appoint candidates involved putting together a
successful team for governing.

“Dr. Dhalla is a very successful entrepreneur in the Brampton area,
runs rehabilitation clinics and is a chiropractor and a very successful
businesswoman,” he said adding she was the first Sikh woman ever to
run for the Liberal party.

The Liberals also announced that the Liberal MP for Brampton-Centre,
Sarkis Assadourian, was being named special adviser to Martin for
Near Eastern and South Caucasus affairs.

Assadourian was one of the driving forces behind the recent
parliamentary vote to acknowledge the events that happened in Turkey
in 1917-1925 as the Armenian genocide — a free vote that challenged
the position of the government, and enraged the Turkish government.

Dhalla is one of a number of Liberal candidates to have been designated
by Martin, including former NDP British Columbia premier Ujjal Dosanjh.

On Friday, Martin named Bill Cunningham, president of the Liberal
party in British Columbia, as the candidate in Burnaby-Douglas,
enraging Tony Kuo, who had publicly pleaded with Martin not to do this.

Yesterday, Kuo called it a very sad day in Canadian politics.

“It symbolized the death of democracy within the Liberal Party in
Canada,” Kuo said.

“In particular, the Prime Minister chose power over democracy.”

He said that in five ridings, where Martin has designated candidates
and short-circuited the local candidate-selection process, members
of minorities cannot run and cannot vote.

“This is not the Liberal party (that) has taken the proud traditions
from (former prime ministers Lester) Pearson to (Pierre) Trudeau to
Jean Chrétien, multiculturalism, true Liberalism, and the belief (in)
the Charter of Rights and Freedoms,” Kuo said.

“It’s a very sad day.”

MacKinnon said the power of designation has only been used in six
constituencies across Canada out of 308, and that it was done to put
together what he called “a team that we think is unprecedented in
the history of the Liberal Party of Canada.”

Host families sought for ex-Soviet teens

LANCASTER NEW ERA (LANCASTER, PA.)
May 5, 2004, Wednesday

Host families sought for ex-Soviet teens

The SHARE! High School Exchange Program is planning to bring 50 teens
from the former Soviet Union to the U.S. as exchange students in
2004-05, and is seeking host families from this region.

This will be the first time that the students will be placed with
volunteer host families in Southeastern Pennsylvania, officials the
organization said.

The students are high-achieving teens from countries such as Russia,
Ukraine, Kazahkstan, Armenia, Belarus, Azerbaijan and several others.

For more information about hosting a student from the former Soviet
Union, call Brenda Hornberger at 445-6654 or the organization’s
national office toll-free at 1-800-321-3737.

We cannot cure their bodies but we can cure their souls

Azat Artsakh – Republic of Nagorno Karabakh (NKR)
May 7, 2004

WE CANNOT CURE THEIR BODIES BUT WE CAN CURE THEIR SOULS

The union of disabled children “Zangak” was founded on May 18, by a
group of representatives of the intelligentsia. The aim of the union
is to bring together the disabled children of Artsakh, broaden the
range of their interests and favour their integration to the society
preventing their alienation from it. In the course of time the
organization also started to involve begging and homeless children,
therefore the management of the organization founded a nursery school,
in April 2001 undertook the foundation of the children’s center
“Zangak” which was granted license by the Ministry of Education,
Culture and Sport in 2003. Since its foundation the organization has
brought together here 212 children from the capital and 404 children
from the entire republic. Currently the organization works with 8-14
year-old children. According to the chairman of the organization Anna
Asatrian, including in “Zangak” homeless or begging but healthy
children they aimed at using the relationships of the healthy and ill
children to develop best human qualities in them, such as
king-heartedness and generosity in healthy children and optimism and
vitality in the disabled children. The organization is not funded by
the state and it operates on non-regular donations of businessmen from
Artsakh and abroad. According to Anna Asatrian, for the implementation
of a number of programs “Zangak” has cooperated with the NKR
Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Defence, as well as businessmen
from Artsakh and abroad. A number of programs were approved by
business circles of France and Iran. Time to time benefactors lend a
hand to “Zangak”, bring into being this or that program and leave,
whereas the organization has too many problems to be solved. Recently
the organization has had a period of difficulties. To overcome them
“Zangak” applied to the governmental and other organizations of
Karabakh. Fortunately, the director of the company Karabakh telecom
Ralf Yeirikian agreed to cooperate with “Zangak”. Visiting the
organization and getting acquainted with the working conditions he
agreed to become the permanent sponsor of “Zangak” and start funding
in April of the current year. The fact of a permanent sponsor
encouraged the management of the organization to undertake a program
for 32 disabled, homeless and insecure children included in the
center. After the improvement of the building and communal facilities
the organization will create a boarding house for 10 children from 8
to 14 years old. The personnel of the organization visited the houses
of the children whose parents had applied to them, got acquainted with
their living conditions and undertook an attempt of cooperation with
corresponding organizations dealing with children of this social
class. Besides the reconstruction of the boarding house, “Zangak”
faces many other problems. According to Anna Asatrian, the lack of
transport makes the communication with the regions difficult. Starting
from the financial hardships the employees of “Zangak” carry out
several jobs at the same time; the organization should have 17
positions, whereas it has only 7. To acquaint children with the
holidays and special days of Karabakh “Zangak” celebrates almost all
the holidays. Today we are living in a period called transition
period. It is difficult to forecast what will happen in the
future. One thing is certain that independent of the geopolitical
actualities and the economic model of development the vocation of the
human being is to aid the weak and the sick. Believe me, all the
children of “Zangak” need is kindness. We cannot cure their bodies but
we can cure their souls. So let’s give them a chance!

NVARD OHANJANIAN.

BAKU: Azeri Speaker, Turkish minister discuss Karabakh settlement

Azeri Speaker, Turkish minister discuss Karabakh settlement

ANS TV, Baku
6 May 04

[Presenter Leyla Hasanova] Turkish Labour and Social Security Minister
Murat Basesgioglu’s visit to Azerbaijan is under way. Speaker Murtuz
Alasgarov received him today.

[Correspondent, over video of meeting] Azerbaijani-Turkish friendship
has deep roots, Alasgarov said. He drew Basesgioglu’s attention to the
Nagornyy Karabakh problem. We always feel the Ankara government’s
support in the settlement of this problem, Alasgarov said. He is
confident that the Turkish-Armenian border will not be opened until
the settlement of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict. Alasgarov drew the
Turkish guest’s attention to Armenia’s negligence of resolutions by
international organizations. He accused the international
organizations of double standards with regard to this
conflict. Alasgarov spoke about the importance of sanctions against
Armenia, the aggressor.

Rely on Turkey’s support in the Nagornyy Karabakh issue, Basesgioglu
said. He said that Turkey wished the settlement of this problem within
Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity and legal norms.

Canada elected to UN watchdog

Canadian Press
May 4 2004

Canada elected to UN watchdog

UNITED NATIONS (CP) – Canada was one of 14 new members elected to the
United Nations human-rights watchdog for a two-year term beginning in
2005, Foreign Affairs Minister Bill Graham announced Tuesday.

Canada was one of four countries vying for the three seats available
in the western nations division. Finland and France were also
successful, defeating Spain in the vote for representation on the
world body’s 53-member Commission on Human Rights.

“The promotion and protection of human rights is a fundamental part
of Canadian foreign and domestic policies,” Graham said Tuesday in a
release after the election at the Economic and Social Council of the
UN in New York.

“The commission remains the pre-eminent intergovernmental body
charged with promoting these rights, and we know that its
effectiveness must be improved in order for it to fulfil its intended
function. Our election to the commission will allow us to maintain
our prominent role in advancing international human-rights issues.”

Canada has been a member of the commission for 24 of the last 28
years. Although not a member for the current term, Canada was
involved in negotiations on all substantive matters and co-sponsored
more than 30 resolutions, Graham said.

Canada also led on several resolutions, including texts on freedom of
expression, aboriginal issues, violence against women and impunity.

During Tuesday’s vote for the African candidates, the United States
walked out of the Economic and Social Council chamber to protest the
council’s decision minutes later to give Sudan a third term on the
commission.

U.S. Ambassador Sichan Siv called the vote an “absurdity” and accused
Sudan of massive human-rights violations and “ethnic cleansing” in
the western Darfur region before walking out.

As he was leaving, Sudan’s deputy UN ambassador, Omar Bashir Manis,
launched into a heated response, accusing American forces of engaging
in degrading treatment of Iraqi prisoners and committing “atrocities”
against innocent Iraqi civilians.

But the United States’ seat in the chamber was empty, and no American
diplomat was there to hear it.

Finland’s UN Ambassador Marjatta Rasi, the president of the 53-nation
Economic and Social Council, then noted that the slate of candidates
from Africa was uncontested, and it was approved by consensus as she
banged her gavel.

Under UN rules, regional groups decide which countries are nominated
to fill seats on UN bodies.

The African group waited until late last week to present its list of
candidates for four seats. It presented four names, guaranteeing
election for Kenya, Sudan, Guinea and Togo.

The United States scrambled to get another African nation to apply in
an effort to make it a contested race and unseat Sudan. But with so
little time it was unsuccessful, UN diplomats said, speaking on
condition of anonymity.

Siv, the U.S. ambassador to the economic council, said the United
States was “perplexed and dismayed” by the African group’s decision
to nominate Sudan, a country that he said “massacres its own African
citizens.”

He noted that at last month’s Human Rights Commission meeting in
Geneva, members expressed concern about Darfur even though they
blocked a stronger U.S. resolution that would have condemned the
Khartoum government.

Manis countered that Sudan has acknowledged the humanitarian problem
in Darfur, noting the government’s call for international help and
the recent visit by two UN teams.

“It is yet very ironic that the United States delegation, while
shedding crocodile tears over the situation in Darfur . . . is
turning a blind eye to the atrocities committed by the American
forces against the innocent civilian population in Iraq, including
women and children,” he said.

In the vote for other seats, Armenia and Romania representing Eastern
Europe and Ecuador and Mexico representing Latin America also faced
no opposition.

In the other contested race, Malaysia, Pakistan and South Korea
defeated Vietnam for the Asian division.

Last year, the United States also walked out to protest Cuba’s
re-election to the Human Rights Commission, which it called “an
outrage.” Russia, Saudi Arabia and several African countries with
poor human-rights records also won seats, and Libya chaired the
commission in 2003.

OSCE Concerned About Increasing Number of Violent Incidents in ROA

A1 Plus | 22:01:51 | 29-04-2004 | Politics |

OSCE CONCERNED ABOUT INCREASING NUMBER OF VIOLENT INCIDENTS IN ARMENIA

The OSCE Office in Yerevan is deeply concerned about the increasing number
of violent incidents, an alarming lack of progress in bringing to justice
the perpetrators and the atmosphere of intolerance in the Armenian society.

“There is a need for an urgent, efficient and fair investigation of these
cases, resulting in the prosecution of the perpetrators in accordance with
the law,” said Ambassador Vladimir Pryakhin, Head of the OSCE Office, in a
letter sent to Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian.

In this respect, Ambassador Pryakhin referred to the recent attack on the
Member of Parliament Victor Dallakian on 23 March, the beating of human
rights defender and Chairman of the Helsinki Association, Mickael Danielyan,
on 30 March, as well as of the well-known politician, Ashot Manucharyan on
22 April.

Ambassador Pryakhin expressed his regret that the investigation of these
incidents and of the attacks against journalists during the demonstrations
on 5 and 13 April had not progressed and no offender had yet been held
accountable.

At the same time, the Office is also concerned and follows closely the
investigation of the cases of violence, intimidation and detentions
following the recent demonstrations in Armenia.

Genocide survivors’ descendants share grief

Press Herald, ME
May 3 2004

Genocide survivors’ descendants share grief

By BETH QUIMBY, Portland Press Herald Writer

Lorry Stillman, raised in an Orthodox Jewish home, said she never
learned about the Holocaust until she was out of high school.

Gerard Kiladjian said his Armenian parents never spoke of the Armenian
genocide when he was growing up in Syria.

Michael Messerschmidt, founder of the Second Generation in Maine, a
group for children of Holocaust survivors, said it took his German
Jewish parents three decades to begin to talk about their experiences.

But all three said they have spent a good part of their lives learning
about genocide.

They spoke about its ongoing impact Sunday at the University of
Southern Maine at a program where Jews, Armenians and a Burundian
shared their experiences.

Abraham Peck, director of USM’s Academic Council for Post-Holocaust
Christian, Jewish and Islamic Studies, called the program the first
time Armenians and Jews in Maine gathered to compare their genocide
experiences. More than 1 million Armenians died at the hands of the
Turks 89 years ago and more than 6 million Jews were murdered by the
Nazis.

“The Jews and Armenians share a lot,” Peck said.

While genocide survivors who emigrated to the United States appear to
have done well, Peck said, they suffer from post-traumatic disorders
because of wounds to their souls.

“When the crime is over, the wound heals but the mind does not,” he
said.

Vigen Guroian, a professor of theology and ethics at Loyola College,
said genocide survivors respond in two ways: with anger at God, or by
clinging to religious faith.

Renee Goodwin, an Armenian-American and aide to U.S. Sen. Olympia
Snowe, said she now understands why her grandparents, who lived
upstairs from her when she was growing up, were silent on the subject
of genocide.

“It was too new, too raw,” she said.

Goodwin said it was her daughter, who never met her great-grandparents,
who started asking questions about the Armenian genocide and finally
sparked her own interest.

The Rev. Joseph Bizimana, a Tutsi from Burundi, spoke about the deaths
of more than 1 million of his people in Burundi, Rwanda and the Congo.

On April 29, 1972, when he was a boy, he watched as his parents,
brothers and sisters were slaughtered.

“All gone in front of my eyes. I was just a small boy. I could not save
them,” he said.

Then on Nov. 2, 1993, his wife and child were killed while he was away
in Kenya.

“I am a living witness. I still have scars on my body, scars on my
mind,” said Bizimana.

Messerschmidt said that when he was younger, he found it strange that
his parents never spoke of their Holocaust experiences, but he
understands now that he has children of his own.

“I don’t want to frighten them,” he said.

Staff Writer Beth Quimby can be contacted at 324-4888 or at:
[email protected]

ASBAREZ Online [04-27-2004]

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
04/27/2004
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1) April is The Cruelest Month. . . And Most Persistent for Armenian Youth
2) Turkish Consulate Protest Attracts 5,000
3) President Kocharian’s Rendezvous in Paris
4) Coalition, Opposition Talks Break Down
5) His Holiness Aram I Urges International Action to Prevent Future Genocide

1) April is The Cruelest Month. . . And Most Persistent for Armenian Youth

LOS ANGELES–Alternative Radio Host David Barsamian mesmerized an audience of
over 1,000 who packed the Homenetmen Ararat Hall on the Friday before April 24
for the “Rally Against Genocide Denial.”
Organized by the ARF Shant Student Association, Armenian Youth Federation,
the
Armenian National Committee (ANC) Professional network, along with the ANC,
the
dynamic rally proved, yet again, that the Armenian youth in the Los Angeles
area are serious in their pursuit of justice for the Armenian Genocide.
The no-nonsense Barsamian began saying that the issue of Armenian Genocide
recognition must consistently be pushed forward.

April is the cruelest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.

“And so,” said Barsamian, having quoted T.S. Elliot, “April is truly is the
cruelest month,” singling out the atrocities of the Armenian Genocide and the
number of deaths this month–thousands of Iraqis and hundreds of US
soldiers–the greatest since the US occupation of Iraq.
In addressing the issue of denial, Barsamian said that Armenians are not
victims, and should never place themselves in that role. “We are not victims,
we are not supplicates,” thus should never beg for justice. “It’s an issue of
morality and justice,” he added, that requires assertiveness in advancing an
issue that is long overdue.
The program also featured National Assembly (NA) of Armenia member and ARF NA
faction leader Levon Mkrtchian, renditions of patriotic songs, visual
presentations, and addresses by activists and political figures.

2) Turkish Consulate Protest Attracts 5,000

LOS ANGELES–About 5,000 protestors converged at the Turkish Consulate in Los
Angeles on April 24, demanding that Turkey recognize the Armenian Genocide,
and
reminding all that the Armenian youth will not relent until justice is served.
The youthful crowd of protestors picketed across two blocks of Wilshire
Blvd.,
carrying signs with slogans such as, “Genocide Unpunished is Genocide
Encouraged,” and “Turkey stop historical Revisionism.”
“The Canadian government officially recognized the Armenian Genocide earlier
this week,” said protest director Sevag Garabetian. “We are thankful for their
ability to classify truth and justice above special interests and are hopeful
that our government, here in the US, will follow suit shortly,” explained
Garabetian.
About two hours after marching on Wilshire Blvd., the protestors gathered in
front of the Turkish Consulate, where Vicken Sosikian, chairman of the
Armenian
Youth Federation (AYF) Western Region, addressed the crowd standing on top
of a
cargo truck, used as a make-shift stage.
Emphasizing that over 80% of the protestors are youth, Sosikian said that
this
generation, along with future generations of Armenian American youth, will
resolutely demand the return of Western Armenia, proper reparations, and
justice.
The annual protest, which has taken place for thirty years, proved more than
ever this year to attract all major broadcast and print media.
“The success of the protest can be credited to a committee of 10 AYF members
who carefully planned the protest for the past five months; over 100 AYF
members helped with crowd control,” said chairperson of the protest organizing
committee Marie Minassian. “The protest is one of many forms of political
activism organized by the AYF throughout the course of the year,” explained
Minassian.

3) President Kocharian’s Rendezvous in Paris

PARIS (Armenpress)–Armenian President Robert Kocharian had an hour-long
private conversation with French President Jacques Chirac on Tuesday morning,
and later briefed reporters on the focus of those talks that included
bilateral
relations and the Karabagh conflict. The two presidents also reviewed
Armenia’s
current domestic situation.
Arriving in Paris on April 25, President Kocharian attended one of Charles
Aznavour’s farewell concerts at the Palais de Congres.
The concert, the first in a series of 25 concerts, is in celebration of
Aznavour’s 80th birthday on May 22. The packed auditorium greeted the Armenian
president, while Aznavour thanked him for accepting his invitation. Aznavour
dedicated the concert to Armenia, especially to its younger generation. The
proceeds from the concert will be transferred to the Aznavour Pour L’Armenie
Foundation for charity projects in Armenia.
The delegation departed for Warsaw late Tuesday, for the World Economic
Forum,
where Kocharian is scheduled to meet, apart from Polish and Georgian
presidents, with his Azeri counterpart Ilham Aliyev.

4) Coalition, Opposition Talks Break Down

YEREVAN (RFE/RL)–Early on Tuesday, opposition leaders in Armenia halted their
talks with Armenia’s governing coalition.
On Monday, the opposition presented to the leaders of the governing
coalition,
an ultimatum that contains ten demands, including that a referendum of
confidence be held.
The talks resumed Tuesday only to end in half an hour. Opposition
representatives said they are freezing the “political consultations” because
the authorities have already rejected two of their demands by blocking all
roads leading to Yerevan and passing a law on rallies.
Parliament speaker Artur Baghdasarian said the talks were suspended by the
two
sides “so the [coalition] parties can discuss the submitted proposals.”
Holding yet another rally in Yerevan on Tuesday, opposition leaders also
attributed the move to halt talks to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council
of Europe (PACE) decision to discuss the political situation in Armenia on
Wednesday.
The Armenian parliament approved the law on rallies in the second reading
despite strong objections voiced by experts from the Council of Europe and the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. In an interim report, the
Council’s legislative watchdog, the Venice Commission, concluded that the
legislation runs counter to the European Convention on Human Rights of which
Armenia is a signatory.
In Strasbourg, meanwhile, a PACE commission monitoring Armenia’s compliance
with its membership obligations discussed a statement which will be put before
the 45-nation assembly for debate on Wednesday.

5) His Holiness Aram I Urges International Action to Prevent Future Genocide

ANTELIAS (AP)–Commemorating the early 20th century death of hundreds of
thousands of Armenians in Ottoman Turkey, the spiritual leader of about 2
million survivors and their descendants on April 23, urged international
action
to prevent future genocide.
His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of Cilicia, said the world should impose
economic sanctions, “and in extreme situations, engage in humanitarian
intervention” to stop mass killings.
“These are the most efficient ways of preventing genocide,” he told a two-day
conference organized by his church.
Speaking at the opening session of the conference on Thursday, Aram I also
announced the establishment of an International Center for Dialogue, Peace and
Human Rights, to be based at his seat in the northern Beirut suburb of
Antelias.
The International Conference on Genocide, Impunity and Justice brought
together Lebanese Cabinet ministers, lawmakers, religious leaders from other
sects, and foreign scholars and diplomats.
Speakers focused on the inadequacy of existing international criminal laws in
dealing with mass killings, which mostly go unpunished. The speakers included
UN human rights and world court officials, as well as a presidential
representative from Rwanda, where the world’s latest genocide a decade ago
killed nearly 800,000 people.

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Netherlands: Armenian community commemorates genocide

Armenian community commemorates genocide

ANP (Dutch news agency)
April 24, 2004

ASSEN (ANP) – On Saturday, hundreds of people participated in the annual
commemoration of the Armenian genocide. The commemoration took place at the
memorial in cemetery de Boskamp in Assen. Various speakers called on the
Dutch and Turkish governments to recognize the Armenian genocide.

M. Hakhverdian of the Armenian Federation called acknowledgement of the
genocide by Turkey “a basic condition for accession of the country to the
EU”. Stand-up satirist Freek de Jonge, one of the guest speakers at the
commemoration, said he was ashamed of the Dutch government’s position
regarding the genocide. As opposed to countries like Sweden, Switzerland,
Belgium and since this week also Canada, the Dutch government has hitherto
not proceeded to recognize the genocide. “What else can I say but: we feel
ashamed”, according to Freek de Jonge.

The Armenian genocide has faded from the memories of many according to De
Jonge. “The word genocide does not sound as familiar as holocaust. It still
does not have a museum.” He thus called upon the Netherlands to proceed
towards the recognition of the Armenian Genocide. “Where remains this guide
country that appears to have lost its way?”

The commemoration in Assen closed a week of actions by the Armenian
community in the Netherlands. Last Wednesday, the Federation of Armenian
Organizations in the Netherlands offered a petition to the Dutch Parliament.
The Netherlands was again called upon to recognize the Armenian genocide.
The “forgotten genocide” cost the lives of hundreds of thousands of
Armenians.

Russia to participate in Italy-France naval exercises

PRAVDA< Russia
April 21 2004

Russia to participate in Italy-France naval exercises

Russia will send a few surface ships and submarines to the joint
exercises of the Italian and French navies due in summer 2004,
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov said to reporters during his
official visit to China.

“It is not the quantity but the quality that matters, we don’t need
an armada at the exercises,” said Mr. Ivanov.

In his words, specific plans for the exercises are being discussed.

Mr. Ivanov also said that naval manoeuvres would be held in summer
within the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (including
Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan) and
the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
China, Russia, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan). Chinese army subdivisions
will take part in the exercises too. At issue are the drills
Rubezh-2004, which will train this regional group to neutralise an
illegal armed formation infiltrating the territory of one of the
parties.

Besides, ways of thwarting drug trafficking channels from Afghanistan
to the neighbouring countries will be drilled.

For the first time, aviation from the Russian military base in Kant
(Kyrgyzstan) will participate in such exercises.