Author: Karakhanian Suren

Chinese-Armenian relations to enter new stage: Hu

Xinhua, China
Sept 27 2004

2004-09-27 23:32:12

BEIJING, Sept. 27 (Xinhuanet) — China is ready to make joint efforts
with Armenia to raise bilateral relations to a new level, said Chinese
President Hu Jintao here Monday.

Hu made the remark in talks with visiting Armenian President Robert
Sedrakovich Kocharyan, who is on his first state visit to China
as president.

Hu vowed to increase political trust, saying China and Armenia should
carry out multi-channel and multi-layer exchanges, keep up political
and diplomatic consultations and strengthen communication in such
international organizations as the United Nations.

The two countries should find new ways to expand trade by taking
advantage of their trade cooperation committee, said Hu, adding
that China encourages Chinese companies to step up cooperation with
Armenia and to increase their investment in Armenia’s infrastructural
construction.

Hu also advocated further exchanges and cooperation between thetwo
countries in the fields of culture, education, science and technology,
health and tourism.

Agreeing with the Chinese president, Kocharyan said Armenia
expects deepening bilateral relations with China, since the growing
relationship is of great significance to Armenia.

China has accumulated much experience in the process of developing
its market economy and practicing opening-up policy, which provides
a vital opportunity for trade cooperation, said Kocharyan.

Armenia recognizes China’s full market economy status, hoping the
two sides strengthen cooperation in such fields as energy, chemical
industry, agriculture and technology, said Kocharyan. Thetwo sides
could take proper measures to help the entrepreneurs enhance exchange
and understanding to expand cooperation.

Hu said China and Armenia have treated each other with mutual respect
and equality since they forged diplomatic ties 12 years ago.

Hu said he appreciated Armenia’s diplomatic policy that puts priority
on relations with China, one of the earliest countries torecognize
Armenia as an independent nation, and expressed thanks for Armenia’s
firm support in controversial areas such as Taiwan and Tibet.

Kocharyan said the two countries have seen sound economic development
and have taken similar stances on international issueswith no
political problems.

Kocharyan said Armenia would continue to adhere to “One-China Policy”
and support China’s reunification.

After the talks, the two heads of states signed a joint statement
and attended a signing ceremony for three cooperative agreements,
including an agreement on economic and technical cooperation.

Religion at heart of debate over Turkey’s EU bid

By Ayla Jean Yackley

ISTANBUL, Sept 23 (Reuters) – The chime of St. Anthony’s church bells
mingles with the mosque’s call to prayer in the heart of old Istanbul,
but it is a mere echo of the medley of religions that once prospered
in Turkey’s greatest city.

“There are many churches, but few Christians left to fill them. We are
all but dead and gone,” said an elderly man after finishing his
prayers in the neo-Gothic Franciscan church.

Nominally 99 percent Muslim, this nation of 70 million is also home to
tiny communities of Christians, Jews and others.

Freedom of religion is enshrined in the constitution. The fiercely
secular Turkish Republic, born from the ashes of the Ottoman Empire in
1923, was founded on a pro-Western path and rejects the religious rule
governing some Muslim countries.

Yet religion is at the crux of the debate over whether a Muslim EU
candidate belongs in mainly Christian Europe.

While Islam is not an official barrier to EU entry, breaches of
religious freedom will likely be included in the European Commission’s
Oct. 6 progress report on Turkey’s reform efforts.

“The EU is looking at religious rights. Steps have been taken, but
there is not enough progress,” said one EU diplomat.

At the turn of the last century, Istanbul’s non-Muslims outnumbered
Muslims in the multi-ethnic Ottoman Empire.

In the upheaval of World War One and the ensuing War of Independence,
hundreds of thousands of Armenians were killed and a million people
deported in a population exchange with Greece.

Others have fled only recently. Syriac Orthodox, who speak a form of
Aramaic, the language of Christ, abandoned their homeland in
southeastern Turkey in the 1990s amid separatist violence. A handful
have moved back but observers say they have little incentive to return
to the poor, deeply Muslim region.

“If Turkey is to join the EU, it ought to see (religious minorities)
as a cultural treasure,” said Andrew Palmer at SOAS in London. “The
government should be saying ‘Turkey is proud to have the Syriac
community in its midst, and we are doing everything to keep them there
and this ancient culture alive’.”

Syriacs and others do not have the official minority status of
Armenians, Jews and Greek Orthodox. For all, ownership rights are
unclear, making even simple repairs to buildings difficult.

Less than 3,000 Greeks remain, but the ecumenical patriarch is still
based here. The patriarchate sees the re-opening of the Halki
seminary, shut in the 1970s, as vital to its future.

Evangelical Christians, mostly converts from Islam, complain of
harassment by police who raid homes where they gather to study the
Bible. Some have been detained for proselytising.

ISLAM ALSO RESTRICTED

Experts estimate just four percent of Turks are Islamic radicals, but
keeping fundamentalism at bay means some religious expression among
Muslims must be controlled, secularists argue.

Devout women in the Islamic-style headscarf cannot attend university,
preventing many from entering professional life.

The state strictly regulates worship at the country’s 75,000
mosques. Imams are trained by the state, and the weekly sermon is
scripted at the religious affairs directorate in Ankara.

The staunchly secular military regularly purges officers, without
redress, who are suspected of Islamist leanings.

Rights groups say non-Sunni Muslims face official bias. Up to a fifth
of Turks are Alevi, a sect with loose ties to Shi’ism in which men and
women worship together and prayer includes dance and poetry.

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s remark last year that “Alevism is not
a religion” has fed the claim of discrimination.

EU diplomats, while disappointed over a lack of dramatic progress,
acknowledge maintaining Turkey’s own brand of secularism as it expands
rights is a delicate balancing act.

09/23/04 04:52 ET

Over 15 tonnes of narcotics seized in operation in former Soviet republics

RIA news agency, Moscow
23 Sep 04

Over 15 tonnes of narcotic substances have been confiscated during the
Kanal-2004 operation by the law-enforcement bodies of the countries
belonging to the Collective Security Treaty Organization, RIA-Novosti
learnt from the public relations centre of the Russian Federal Service
for Control over the Trafficking of Narcotics and Psychotropic
Substances on Thursday [23 September]. The operation took place from
14 to 19 September. The CSTO member states include Russia, Armenia,
Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

Over 2,700 kg of drugs were taken out of illegal circulation during
the operation, including 131 kg of heroin, over 2,200 kg of marijuana
and 52 kg of opium, the agency said.

The agency said over 1,400 crimes linked to drugs circulation were
uncovered during the operation, and over 1,200 criminal investigations
were launched.

OFFICE OF THE NAGORNO KARABAKH REPUBLIC IN THE USA
122 C Street, NW, Suite 360, Washington, D.C. 20001
Tel: (202) 347-5166
Fax: (202) 347-5168
E-mail: [email protected]
Web site:

PRESS RELEASE
September 23, 2004

NKR ISSUES PROMOTIONAL BROCHURE TO SUPPORT TALENTED CHILDREN OF ARTSAKH

WASHINGTON, DC – The Office of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic in the United
States today announced the release of a unique brochure, featuring quality
photographs of pristine landscapes, beautiful architecture and faces of
Artsakh. Printed in France, this high-quality brochure also contains
information on Artsakh, in both English and French.

Proceeds from this project will benefit talented children of Artsakh through
scholarships and grants to participate in international competitions.
Currently, these gifted students are deprived of any other source of
financial aid. They need your support to receive the education and
international exposure necessary to fully develop their potential, and
contribute to building a better future for our Homeland.

Already in circulation in Europe, the brochure will also raise awareness
about Artsakh and promote tourism to this ancient Armenian land.

The brochure is priced at $10.00, which includes the shipment within the
continental U.S. Five dollars from the sale of every brochure will benefit
talented children of Artsakh. The rest will cover production expenses.

To order your copy of the brochure, please send a check payable to the NKR
Office with a note `NK Brochure.’ Provide your full name, mailing address
and telephone number.

We also call on organizations and individuals to become distributors.
Discount rates are available.

The Office of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic in the United States is based in
Washington, DC and works with the U.S. government, academia and the public
representing the official policies and interests of the Nagorno Karabakh
Republic.

* * *
Photos: quality electronic images of the brochure can be requested by
sending an email to [email protected]

This material is distributed by the Office of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic
in the USA on behalf of the Government of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic. The
NKR Office is registered with the U.S. Government under the Foreign Agent
Registration Act. Additional information is available at the Department of
Justice, Washington, D.C.

Turkiye
Sept 22 2004

PRODI SPOKESMAN DENIES ARMENIAN BORDER CONDITION FOR TURKEY’S EU BID

The European Union Commission yesterday adamantly denied rumors that
the re-opening of the Turkish-Armenian border would be added as a
precondition to beginning Ankara’s EU membership discussions. Marco
Vignudelli, the spokesman for commission head Romano Prodi, said that
Prodi had said nothing that would lead one to believe that such a
condition would be placed on Turkey, calling such claims
categorically false. Vignudelli further stressed that the border
issue could only be resolved by dialogue between the two countries.
/Turkiye/

Armenia set to expand ties with NATO, foreign minister says

Mediamax news agency
22 Sep 04

YEREVAN

Despite the fact that Armenian-NATO relations have been boosted, “the
issue of joining the alliance is not on the agenda of the day”,
Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan said in Yerevan today.

The minister added that Armenia had set the task of “deepening and
expanding relations with NATO to the maximum extent possible”.

Kansas City infoZine, MO
Sept 20 2004

Discover Armenian Kufta

Monday, September 20, 2004 :: posted by infoZine Staff :: views
by Dana Jacobi – Armenian cooking is probably unknown to you, but
sample it and you’ll discover it is surprisingly familiar. This is
because dishes from this landlocked, often war-torn country are full
of well-known Mediterranean, Near Eastern and Middle Eastern flavors.
The flavors reflect the influences of neighboring Turkey, the
Caucasus Mountains of Georgia and the Persian food of northern Iran.

American Institute for Cancer Research – In Armenian dishes, you will
recognize yogurt, bulgur, chickpeas, tahini and rice. Also, the
liberal use of vibrant fresh herbs, including parsley, mint and
cilantro, and the spicy and warm flavors from cumin, cinnamon and the
hot red peppers popular in eastern Turkey. Like the Turks and Greeks,
Armenians like lemon to brighten the flavor of their dishes, but they
use green beans, tomatoes and bell peppers more often. Still, while
using many of these same ingredients, Armenian cooks put them
together in their own way.

I first discovered their boldly flavored cooking from Armenian
friends who invited me home to feast on dishes made by their
grandparents, most of whom arrived in the U.S. in the early part of
the last century to escape violent persecutions and upheavals.

Unless you live in an area with an Armenian community, there are few
Armenian restaurants where you can experience this complexly flavored
cooking. You could rely on recipes from the Internet and from
informative cookbooks, including The Armenian Table, by Victoria
Jenanyan Wise. Like other Armenian-Americans, she delights in
teaching how to make her family’s favorite dishes, using ingredients
found in most supermarkets these days.

Featured Recipe: Chickpea Kufte with Walnut Filling

Kufta, “meatballs” that blend bulgur with vegetables or meat, are an
Armenian specialty. These, made of chickpeas, have a nut filling.
They make a meatless dish that is festive, substantial and satisfying
enough to please meat eaters, too.

“Something Different” is written for the American Institute for
Cancer Research (AICR) by Dana Jacobi, author of The Joy of Soy and
recipe creator for AICR’s Stopping Cancer Before It Starts.

CENN – SEPTEMBER 15, 2004 DAILY DIGEST
Table of Contents:
1. BTC Oil Pipeline Construction Goes within Schedule
2. BTC Main Pumping Station Built on Sangachal Terminal
3. Georgia to Collaborate with Iran in Tourism Sector
4. Russian Energy Chief Laments Georgian “Aggression”
5. 24th International Ornithological Congress

1. BTC OIL PIPELINE CONSTRUCTION GOES WITHIN SCHEDULE

Source: State Telegraph Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan, AzerTag,
September 14, 2004

Construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline to be completed in
first half 2005, goes within the schedule, and over 75 % of works have
been already completed.

1695 km of pipeline is prepared for laying, 1583 km – for welding, 1487
km dug for ditch, 875 km of pipe laid, AzerTAj correspondent learnt from
Company’s press-service.

2. BTC MAIN PUMPING STATION BUILT ON SANGACHAL TERMINAL

Source: State Telegraph Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan, AzerTag,
September 14, 2004

85% of construction works were completed in the main pumping station of
Sangachal terminal, envisaged for Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan export oil
pipeline.

Building of pumping cover at 14 m height and the first three main pumps
for oil export in “Central Azeri” part of this station have been already
constructed, another two pumps will be delivered to the terminal late
2004, AzerTAj correspondent learnt from press-service of BP company.

Assemblage of steel construction is going on.

3. GEORGIA TO COLLABORATE WITH IRAN IN TOURISM SECTOR

Source: State Telegraph Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan, AzerTag,
September 14, 2004

Chairman of the State Department of Georgia for resorts and tourism Saba
Kinknadze stated that Iran shows interest in tourism sector of Georgia,
AzerTAj correspondent reported. According to Mr. Kinknadze, Georgian
delegation will visit Iran on September 24, 2004 and learn the
experience of this country in developing culture and historical tourism.

4. RUSSIAN ENERGY CHIEF LAMENTS GEORGIAN “AGGRESSION”

Source: RAO’s website, September 14, 2004, #174 (0698)

The head of RAO-UES in Georgia Andrei Rappaport says that he is no
longer comfortable in Georgia owing to the “aggression” of the Georgian
government.

RAO-UES owns Telasi, the energy company which distributes electricity in
Tbilisi, but Rappaport, who is a deputy head of the Russian company and
head of its activities in Georgia, says that he is opposed to further
investment in the Georgian energy sector owing to the current situation.

“In Armenia, they are very kind to us. If there is any problem it is
solved at once,” Rappaport said in a wide-ranging interview with the
Russian paper Gazeta concerning the company’s activities. The interview
was also published on RAO-UES’s website.

“I cannot say that we are broadening exports in Georgia, we are just
stabilizing the situation,” Rappaport said

He added that income from RAO-UES’s Armenian utility is about USD 80
million but only USD 15 million in Georgia. “They have problem paying
money in Georgia and Georgia has about 53 million lari in debts. We also
have problems with local authorities, there is some aggression toward
us, but it is unclear what the cause of it is since Georgia is eager to
welcome new investors in the country,” Rappaport said.

“As I have declared at my last negotiations with Georgian authorities, I
am not feeling very comfortable, so I am not planning any serious
investment in Georgia. Our position is based on business logic – if you
want energy pay for it, and if there is not any money to pay, then
good-bye,” he told Gazeta.

Last summer, RAO-UES took over the Telasi electric company from the
American firm AES.

As for specific examples of aggression, Rappaport said, “for instance
the tax police tries to block our account numbers of the company. The
situation is as follows. The budget owes us about GEL 5 million for the
import of energy but we also have to pay to the budget the amount of 3
million lari for tax payments.”

“We will not pay taxes until Georgia will pay us what they own.
Moreover, some authorities of the Georgian government try to revise the
negotiations that was signed before. We have already paid all debts in
the amount of 40 million dollars and we are going to appeal to the court
of London,” Rappaport said.

Analysts forecast that Rappaport’s statements could reflect major
problems within the Georgian energy sector, as he is chairman of the
supervisory boards of both the biggest electricity company Telasi and
the joint Georgian-Russian company Sakrusenergo.

Furthermore, he is the only person entrusted by Russian electricity
companies to resolve difficulties in Georgia; and intended this week to
hold negotiations with the Georgian government regarding Georgia’s debts
to Russia, although later he postponed his meeting and now intends to
meet the representatives of Georgia during the CIS Summit in Astana,
Kazakhstan.

Part of this debt is due to rehabilitation work carried out on
high-voltage lines in Abkhazia in 2000. The Ministry of Energy agreed
that the work would be partly financed by Sakrusenergo, which
contributed USD 180,000, and partly by the Abkhaz Energy Company
ChernomorEnergo, which received USD 600,000 from the Russian Energy
Ministry towards the project of rehabilitating the lines that connected
Enguri and Sochi.

The head of Sakrusenergo Gia Maisuradze told Georgian television that
“the Georgian side agreed during negotiations with the Abkhaz side to
help to restore the electricity lines that were destroyed during the
war. The then-Minister of Energy David Mirtskhulava issued a decree and
I was obliged to follow it, though these lines did not belong to the
company.”

This restored line is now a subject of controversy, as it is believed by
Georgia that it is being used to illegally move electricity from Georgia
to Abkhazia.

“The energy that is used by Abkhazia is equal to the energy that is used
by nearly the whole of Georgia. Then the Abkhaz sell this energy in
Russia and afterwards we buy the same energy back at much higher
prices,” the president Mikheil Saakashvili told members of the Abkhaz
Supreme Council on Friday.

As reports Rustavi-2, a General Prosecutor’s Office investigation found
that much of the energy produced by Enguri Hydroelectric station was
being moved to Russia through Abkhazia, after which Georgia was buying
it back at higher prices.

The investigation found that several intermediary firms, headed by
Georgian and Russian officials, were exploiting this difference in price
to make very high profits. Among these companies, the most famous is
Winfield, which was founded in 2000 (the year the Georgian government
contributed to rehabilitating the electricity lines in Abkhazia) and is
headed by Ilia Kutidze, who now lives in Moscow where he works for
RAO-UES.

Meanwhile, there are unconfirmed reports on Rustavi-2 that the director
of Sakrusenergo Maisuardze may be dismissed from his post when Rappaport
next visits Tbilisi, and replaced by former Premier of Tbilisi Gia
Sheradze.

5. 24TH INTERNATIONAL ORNITHOLOGICAL CONGRESS

13. – 19. August 2006
Hamburg, Germany

For the more detailed information about 24th International
Ornithological Congress please visit:

Libération , France
9 septembre 2004

Mardirossian, des suites dans les idées;
Classique. Le pianiste arménien crée deux oeuvres de Tanguy et sort
un CD de Haendel.

par DAHAN Eric

Ouvert mardi, par un récital de Pierre-Laurent Aimard, le festival
Piano aux Jacobins, à Toulouse, propose cette année des grands
maîtres, comme Aldo Ciccolini, et la relève, incarnée par les
Angelich, Andsnes ou Anderszewski. Ce soir, Vahan Mardirossian, 29
ans, donne la création mondiale de Poème, commande du festival, et la
création française de quatre Intermezzi dévoilés à Londres cet été.
Deux oeuvres signées du parrain et ami, Eric Tanguy, l’homme qui l’a
réconcilié avec la musique contemporaine. “J’avais déjà joué Ohana ou
Takemitsu, mais je n’étais pas assez mûr pour apprécier”, déclarait
le pianiste en début de semaine.

Chef d’orchestre. Si la musique de Tanguy l’a séduit, c’est par son
exploration originale de la modalité : “Les échelles de Debussy,
Ravel ou Messiaen sont encore issues de la tonalité. Celles inventées
par Tanguy conservent la note sensible, mais sont plus abstraites, et
par le jeu des renversements et superpositions, confèrent une couleur
unique à chacune de ses oeuvres.” Mardirossian aimerait sans doute
être plus apprécié pour son jeu, techniquement supérieur mais économe
d’effets, à la fois dynamique et parfaitement articulé. Et cela dans
Schubert ou les transcriptions romantiques de Bach qu’il a
enregistrées, mais aussi tout ce répertoire qu’il joue, sous la
double influence de l’école russe et de l’école française, puisque
Mardirossian fut élève de Jacques Rouvier.

Quand l’ambassadrice de France en Arménie offre une bourse au jeune
Vahan, il a 17 ans, mais déjà une jolie carrière dans son Erevan
natal, et le reste du pays. A 8 ans, ce fils d’un radiophysicien et
d’une électromécanicienne, joue dans la même année des concertos de
Mozart et Grieg et la Rhapsodie sur un thème de Paganini de
Rachmaninov avec trois orchestres différents. Son rêve étant de
devenir chef, il s’initie au hautbois “pour pratiquer au moins un
instrument d’orchestre”, puis crée son propre ensemble composé d’amis
du conservatoire d’Erevan, qui donne rapidement des concerts. Il
apprend un temps la direction à Vienne, puis décide “qu’il vaut mieux
commencer par maîtriser son propre instrument, avant de prétendre
diriger un groupe”.

Fraîcheur. A Paris, Mardirossian passe de la condition d’enfant
prodige à celle de simple élève du Conservatoire national. Ses
modèles de pianistes? Richter (“capable de jouer tout le répertoire”)
et Guilels (“noblesse du son”). Côté chefs: Carlos Kleiber, récemment
disparu: “Dans une répétition filmée, j’ai été frappé par sa façon de
trouver des métaphores qui parlent immédiatement aux différentes
nationalités de l’orchestre” et Haitink pour “sa façon d’indiquer
avec un seul geste, à la fois le phrasé et la couleur sonore à
l’instrumentiste, est le propre des grands qui n’ont pas du tout
besoin de parler.”

Dans quelques jours, Mardirossian publiera un CD de Haendel. Trois
Suites, une Sonate qui a inspiré à Brahms de fameuses Variations, op.
24 et une Chaconne, repérées sur la liste des oeuvres jouées en
concert par Neuhaus. “N’ayant pas trouvé de CD complet des oeuvres
pour clavecin de Haendel, j’ai couru acheter des partitions et je les
ai arrangées. Cette musique est d’une fraîcheur absolue, ça sonne
comme du Bach inédit.”

Vahan Mardirossian

Ce soir à 20 h 30 au cloître des Jacobins de Toulouse. Loc. : 05 61
22 40 05.

World mourns Beslan victims

ITAR-TASS News Agency
September 7, 2004 Tuesday

MOSCOW, September 7 — The total number of victims of the last week’s
terrorist act in the North Ossetian city of Beslan is 705, including
307 children.

Thirty people, including ten children, died in hospitals.

A book of condolences over the terrorist act in Beslan was opened for
the second day at the Russian Embassy in Britain on Tuesday. Dozens
of people made entries expressing deep sympathy to the next of kin
of those killed in Beslan.

Cyprus President Tassos Papadopoulos conveyed his condolences to the
Russian nation in connection with the hostage-taking raid in North
Ossetia. At a ceremony in memory of the Beslan victims, he wrote a
note in a book of condolences opened at the Russian Embassy in Nicosia.

A book of condolences was opened at the Russian Embassy in the
Netherlands for a second day. On Tuesday morning, speaker of the
parliament’s first chamber /Senate/ Yvonne Timmerman-Buck arrived at
the Embassy to put her signature in the book and express her sincere
condolences.

Mongolia “condemns the terrorist acts in Beslan, which shocked the
world with their cruelty,” President Natsagiyn Bagabandi said in
a statement he signed on Tuesday together with parliament speaker
Nambaryn Enkhbayar and Prime Minister Tsakhiagiyn Elbedorj.

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour
expressed profound condolences to the Russian people over the tragedy
in Beslan. She visited on Tuesday the permanent Russian mission at
the United Nations Office and other international organizations at
Geneva and made an entry in the Book of condolences. She expressed
profound solidarity with people of Beslan at this tragic moment and
wrote she shares the grief of the parents who lost their children.

Bulgarian President Georgy Pyrvanov, visiting the Russian embassy
in Sofia, expressed compassion for the relatives of those who were
killed in the terrorist act in Beslan. He wrote this in his entry to
the Book of condolences opened at the Russian diplomatic mission. The
Bulgarian president placed flowers at the candles lit in memory of
the victims of the terrorist act.

Norway sent aid for those who were affected by the terrorist act. A
planeload of medicines and medical equipment arrived in Vladivostok
from Oslo. The plane has on board everything necessary for performing
over 1,000 surgical operations. Besides, three ambulances and
anaesthetic equipment were sent to North Ossetia.

Armenian President Robert Kocharyan signed up in the book of
condolences at the Russian embassy in Yerevan on Tuesday. Armenian
Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan also visited the embassy.

Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende of the Netherlands that currently
presides in the European Union presented condolences to families of
the Beslan victims on Tuesday.

Balkenende said they shared the mourning of Beslan residents and
prayed for them. He said they were shaken by the death of hundreds
of innocent people, including children.

Bernadette Chirac, the wife of the French president, expressed on
behalf of her family profound condolences to the Russian people and
government in connection with the tragedy in Beslan. She received on
Tuesday prominent Russian doctor Leonid Roshal now staying in France.

“It was apparent how concerned Bernadette Chirac was with the tragedy
in North Ossetia”, Leonid Roshal told Tass.

Japan supports the fight against terrorism conducted by the Russian
government and people and is going to strengthen solidarity with
Russia in this fight, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi
said. She visited on Tuesday the Russian embassy in Japan and made
an entry in the Book of condolences.