Author: Khoyetsian Rose

Armenia chose lesser of two evils in agreeing to send troops to Iraq – MP

Noyan Tapan news agency
27 Dec 04

YEREVAN

Agasi Arshakyan, a member of the National Unity faction in the
National Assembly, voted for Armenia’s participation in the
anti-terrorist activities in Iraq during the parliament’s closed
sitting on 24 December, choosing the lesser of two evils.

He told reporters about this at the Union of Constitutional Law’s
Azdak club on 25 December, saying that he reconsidered his previous
position on this issue for three days. Arshakyan said that “a fight
against the terrorist state No 1” would have been the greater evil for
Armenia.

Arshakyan pointed to two statements Artashes Gegamyan, the leader of
the National Unity Party, made at that parliament sitting. Both
statements spoke about the motives for sending Armenians to Iraq from
the point of view of national security and they helped Arshakyan adopt
“the right position” on this issue.

Arshakyan believes that there was no third choice on the issue. One
had to choose between the bad and the worse. The MP said the Armenian
government, government officials, the parliament coalition and the
policy of complementarity pursued by the state are to blame for the
“limbo”. He said that those who are aware of Armenia’s “illegitimate
government” now are pressurizing Armenia into making this kind of
difficult decision.

The MP said that Defence Minister Serzh Sarkisyan had been doing his
utmost since July to delay this process. He said Sarkisyan and also
President Robert Kocharyan would have been happy if parliament had
voted against sending troops to Iraq.

Arshakyan also said that the National Unity faction, whose negative
position had been published in the press three days before, could have
missed the parliament sitting and chosen the easy way. However, it
chose “the tough, but honourable way” by voting “for” sending
Armenians to Iraq.

Arshakyan expressed the hope that Armenia “will emerge from this test
with light casualties”.

Agence France Presse
24 décembre 2004 vendredi 7:49 AM GMT

Turquie/UE: Boutih (PS) distingue “les questions légitimes” et “la tactique”

PARIS 24 déc 2004

Malek Boutih, membre de la direction du Parti socialiste, a fait la
distinction vendredi entre “les questions légitimes” et “la tactique”
sur la question de l’entrée de la Turquie dans l’Union européenne.

“Il y a des raisons légitimes qui peuvent porter un vrai débat”, a
déclaré Malek Boutih sur iTélé, mais il y a aussi “des raisons
tactiques”.

Parmi les premières, il a cité le problème des “droits de l’Homme,
des minorités, de la reconnaissance de Chypre, de la tragédie
arménienne”, “on a le droit de prendre du temps sur ces questions
là”, a-t-il reconnu.

Pour les secondes, il a reproché à “certains d’instrumentaliser la
question de la Turquie pour faire un peu peur sur l’Europe”, citant
“des gens comme M.de Villiers (Philippe de Villiers, président du
Mouvement pour la France, ndlr), pour qui l’Europe, c’est pas assez
bon pour nous, mais c’est trop bon pour les Turcs”. “On se demande
pour qui l’Europe est faite”, a-t-il ajouté.

“Je prends le pari que les Turcs relèveront tous les défis et qu’ils
auront une chance de rentrer dans l’Union européenne”, a-t-il dit,
“mais ça, on jugera dans l’avenir”.

–Boundary_(ID_xEdaD3RZBPk5l1NlTYXBOw)–

PACE to hear issue on deportation of Azerbaijanis in 1950s

Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
Dec 24 2004

A report prepared by Swiss parliament member Mark Eimens on the
deportation of people and ethnic cleansing will be discussed at the
winter session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
(PACE).

The report suggests that a Memorial Center for deported people and
ethnic cleansing victims be set up within the Council of Europe. It
also includes an issue on Azerbaijan.

“Azerbaijanis are among those who became victims of deportation in the
former Soviet Union. Under the decision passed by the USSR Council of
Ministers in 1950s, 100,000 Azerbaijanis were deported from Armenia,”
the document said.

The report also covers conflicts in the South Caucasus region, saying
that there are about one million refugees and internally displaced
persons in Azerbaijan.*

Netherlands recognises Turkish Genocide of Armenians
By Our Editor

Het Financieele Dagblad (Dutch newspaper)
December 23, 2004

AMSTERDAM – The Dutch government has recognised the Genocide of 1915 of
the Armenians by the Ottoman Turks. Minister Ben Bot of Foreign Affairs
‘welcomes’ the motion in which the House of Representatives asks the
government “to raise continuously and expressly the recognition of
the Armenian Genocide in the dialogue with Turkey”.

“The minister considers the motion as a support. At each negotiation,
even as we are not President of EU, The Netherlands will bring up
the question. We have always put the subject on the agenda and it
is not for nothing that we raise this question. We want a solution
for this part of the history before Turkey accesses EU. In this way
you can see it as de facto a recognition”, on being asked explains
the spokesman of Bot.

The motion, submitted by the member of parliament André Rouvoet of
Christian Union, has been adopted unanimously on Tuesday evening during
the debate on the outcome of the EU summit in relation with Turkey.
Earlier, in Europe, Belgium, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Sweden
and Switzerland recognised the Genocide of 1.5 million Armenians.

–Boundary_(ID_V/FbNs5Stw6gf6HfTvYbdw)–

Tajik, CIS security officials to look at cooperation

Avesta web site
20 Dec 04

Dushanbe, 20 December: A group of secretariat staff of the Collective
Security Treaty Organization [CSTO] led by deputy secretary-general
of the organization Toktasyn Buzubayev, who arrived in Tajikistan
yesterday, will discuss cooperation issues within the organization,
a source at the Tajik Ministry of Foreign Affairs has told Avesta.

Buzubayev will meet Tajik Foreign Minister Talbak Nazarov, Defence
Minister Sherali Khayrulloyev, Secretary of the Security Council
Amirqul Azimov and the director of the Drug Control Agency, Rustam
Nazarov, as part of the visit which is to end on 22 December, the
source said.

During the meetings, they are expected to discuss regional issues, the
joint fight against drugs and terrorism, as well as the forthcoming
CSTO exercises, which are to be held in Tajikistan in the first six
months of 2005.

We recall that the CSTO members are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan.

Mixed reactions in Europe
By Jean Christou

Cyprus Mail, Cyprus
Dec 19 2004

WHILE the Greek Cypriots were pondering the implications of the
Brussels summit yesterday, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan was
enjoying a hero’s welcome and Europe was experiencing mixed
reactions.

Erdogan was greeted by around 2,000 people carrying placards calling
him “The conqueror of EU”, and “The new star of the EU”.

In a brief televised statement he said: “Yesterday in Brussels,
Turkey concretized 41 years of efforts. We will take advantage of the
period up to October 3” to pursue reforms.

However, not all European leaders appeared a thrilled as Erdogan.
Irish Prime Minster Bertie Ahern criticised what he referred to as
the “bitter little pill” injected into the final roundtable of talks
by the Turks, the Irish Independent said yesterday.

Ahern said Erdogan’s comments that Turkey was not recognising Cyprus
were unnecessary and ruined what should have been a celebratory
occasion.

Ahern said he fully backed the angry Cypriot reaction that this
barbed comment was an attack not on one country but on the entire
Union of 25 member states, the paper said.

Greek President Costis Stephanopoulos said yesterday it appeared to
him that it had been a case of the EU giving in to Turkey’s terms,
rather than vice versa.

French president Jacques Chirac and Austrian chancellor Wolfgang
Schuessel have promised referenda on Turkey’s accession. Chirac said
Ankara would have to recognise the Armenian genocide, while Schuessel
said bringing a Muslim country into the EU “must not be decided in an
ivory tower … We cannot be indifferent about public opinion”.

Greek Foreign Minister Petros Molyviatis yesterday expressed his
satisfaction with the summit outcome. Molyviatis told reporters that
Turkey’s promise to sign the customs protocol was absolutely
positive. “If the protocol is not signed, then negotiations do not
begin,” he said.

Molyviatis also said Friday’s decision would increase the impetus for
a resumption of the Cyprus talks. “I cannot tell you under what
conditions this will occur; I cannot exactly predict this, but I
believe that the Annan plan will comprise its basis, while it should
also be taken into consideration that Cyprus is now a member of the
European Union,” he said.

On the island, diplomatic sources said the positive decision on
Turkey was great for Cyprus and the chances for a solution. A
negative decision would have been “catastrophic” for a solution, the
sources said.

The sources said the ‘recognition’ issue had been blown out of
proportion and was not as significant as it was made out to be. “In
what way would getting that recognition contribute to a solution to
the Cyprus problem? It wouldn’t have done anything at all. If
anything it would have been negative.

It cuts the Turkish Cypriots out of the equation and makes things
difficult to proceed with the Annan plan. It would have been a
significant change to the status quo and one that would not bring any
positive developments at all.”
The sources said that the process of normalisation was inevitable, as
Turkey would have to talk to Cyprus during the accession process,
which would lowers tensions.

“It’s clearly been their full intention to extend the customs union.
It’s a legal formality. What we are talking about here is no big
deal.”

The source also said that if Erdogan had signed the protocol on
Friday the calls for his resignation would have been much louder
“because this thing has been built into a huge political and symbolic
thing. If you look at what it is in reality it isn’t that huge or
important. This is just how it’s become to be perceived both in
Cyprus and in Turkey,” the source said.

“It reasonable to say it would have been political suicide for
Erdogan to do it and he would have had no choice but to walk away.
It’s more a case of the Greek Cypriots having overbid and having to
face the consequences of that.”

However, the source said that the Greek Cypriot side had come through
in the end. “You have to acknowledge that he (Papadopoulos) behaved
in a statesmanlike manner and he accepted the big picture that a
Turkey on the road to accession was preferable to having whatever
language in the conclusions.”

–Boundary_(ID_ANv9I0YY0stkXeFN9aTBmg)–

Russia-Armenia relations play key role for Armenia security
By Tigran Liloyan

ITAR-TASS News Agency
December 17, 2004 Friday

YEREVAN, December 18 — Armenian-Russian relations are strategic
and play a key role for Armenian security, Armenian Defence Minister
Serzh Sarkisyan said in his report “South Caucasus: issues of regional
security” during the debates organised by the Center of public dialogue
and development on Friday.

“Armenian-Russian military and technical cooperation meets Armenian
interests and is a reliable pledge of military security in the region,”
the minister emphasised. According to him, “the Russian military base
deployed in the republic demonstrates this.”

He noted that “the Armenian-Russian strategic union plays an
inestimable role in terms of reliable guarantees of security.”
Armenia is guided by this principle in its security policy in the
current military and political situation in the region.

“Armenian-Russian military cooperation provides for the needs of
the Armenian Armed Forces in armaments and staff, in military and
military-technical spheres, ensures Armenian military security and
keeping the balance of forces in the region,” the minister pointed out.

THERE IS A REAL DANGER OF HANDING LIBERATED TERRITORIES OVER

Azg/arm
18 Dec 04

Armen Aghayan, political secretary of Protection of Liberated
Territories NGO, announced in the press conference that “the threat has
increased and there seems to be a real danger of handing the liberated
territories over.” He condemned both the former and the current
Armenian authorities in this, saying that they are ready to hand the
liberated territories contiguous Nagorno Karabakh to Azerbaijan.

“What the former authorities do?” Some suggestions were made to Armenia
in Astana, Kazakhstan, Armenia rejected them or didnâ~@~Yt agree at
once, after which pressures began, i.e. PACE reports (by Davis and
Atkinson), the UN formula. Yes, the Minsk group has averted that,
but its aim is to exert a pressure, if you donâ~@~Yt accept it
(Astana suggestion), we will impose it on you,” Aghayan said.

“The authorities explain Azerbaijan and OSCE co-chairs that they
didnâ~@~Yt inhabit the regions and they didnâ~@~Yt even intend
to. They say that these territories serving a security zone will
be finally returned, but only against specifying the status of NKR
or giving security guarantees. While the opponents say that it is
better to trade the territories than to give them for free,” Aghayan
described the position of the Armenian authorities.

He believes that there is no contradiction between the former and the
current authorities in the NKR issue. “Kocharian didnâ~@~Yt go far
from Ter-Petrosian both in the NKR issue and in other issues,” he said.

Aghayan thinks that only the Armenian people can be an opposition in
the NKR issue. “No one knows what will be the reaction of the people,
but the authorities are frightened, otherwise this issue (the one of
handing the territories) would be solved long ago, as no power would
stand the pressure of the West.”

“In fact, the issue of the liberated territories is the only one that
arouses disputes after the war and the keystone in the suggestions
of the co-chairs. We can even exaggerate the matter, saying that
there is no other issue existing in the context of Nagorno Karabakh
settlement except for the issue of the territories. The rest of the
issues are derivative,” Aghayan said.

The members of the NGO are sure that the issue of Nagorno Karabakh can
have no international solution. They believe that the only settlement
of the problem is the Armenian version and envisages full and fast
inhabiting and utilization of all the liberated regions, as well as
the announcement of the Armenian power in these territories.

Aghayan believes that we should make Azerbaijan accept the reality of
unilateral activates (unification of NKR with RA together with all
the territories under the control of the Karabakh forces). “Neither
the Azeri people, nor their country have no internal resources to
take back these regions, if they had they wouldnâ~@~Yt have left
them. They are foreigners in these territories. As they banished the
native residents, the same thing the naïve dwellers did to them.
The Azeri understand this factor very well,” Aghayan said.

By Tatoul Hakobian

–Boundary_(ID_wVSnnOrW0E+CAn8IGUlMHg)–

Mannik Sakayan
UCLA Office of Government and Community Relations
(310) 794-0760 (phone)
(310) 794-6827 (fax)
[email protected]
December 17, 2004

[Reprinted from “UCLA Today” December 14, 2004]

Acts of kindness and compassion
Their giving spirit extends near and far

It’s become our holiday tradition at UCLA Today to recognize and
commend faculty and staff members who give selflessly of their talents
and time to help the less fortunate in their communities. This year’s
Bruin Angels, selected from departments across the campus, have
reached out to those near and far, from East Los Angeles to a town
in Armenia. As our thoughts this season turn to giving, we honor them.

ISHIYAMA and AKARAGIAN

Not many travelers pack surgical drills for their trips abroad, but
a UCLA medical team did just that twice this year – in March and
November – when they donated their time and services to travel to
Armenia to perform the region’s first cochlear-implant surgeries.

“It’s really so different from what we know here,” said surgeon
Akira Ishiyama, associate professor of head and neck surgery at the
David Geffen School of Medicine. “All of the infrastructure and the
machinery they have are so outdated.” Working with him to give seven
deaf children the gift of hearing were audiologist Stanton Jones,
anesthesiologist Denise Hawkins, surgical nurse Diane Sennott and nurse
Salpy Akaragian, director of the UCLA International Nursing Center.

The cross-cultural project was a few years in the making; team
members had to train their Armenian counterparts from the Erebouni
Medical Center.

Meanwhile, the nonprofit Armenian International Medical Fund raised
money to cover most of the expenses, including the purchase of
state-of-the-art screening equipment.

All the preparation and hard work paid off. “The whole country
was talking about these surgeries,” said Akaragian, who speaks
Armenian. “They called the project ‘Man-Made Miracles.’ ”

For Ishiyama, the experience was also a personal triumph. “These were
completely deaf people. [It’s] very rewarding that you can make them
hear,” he said. “I take a lot of pride in doing this.”

Akaragian echoes Ishiyama’s sentiments. “I will never forget
the parents’ emotional reaction when we told them the surgery was
successful,” she said. “I felt good about it. I feel like I have done
my deed in this world now.” – S.S.

US STATE SECRETARY SPOKESMAN ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

WASHINGTON, DECEMBER 16. ARMINFO. We have acknowledged the terrible
tragedy that befell the Armenian community in Anatolia in the last
years of the Ottoman Empire. We’ve been encouraging scholarly and
civil society diplomatic discussions about those events, and we’ve
encouraged economic and political dialogue between Armenia and Turkey
on the subject, says US state secretary spokesman Richard Boucher.

I think the President issues a statement almost every year. The
reference I’d give you for this sort of formal policy is the April
24th, 2003, statement that President Bush put out. I would note
we’re following events in regard to the European Union and Turkey
very closely. This has been a matter of some interest to us.