Author: Mamian George

Anatolian Times, Turkey
Dec 1 2006

Pope Conducts Religious Ceremony At Sourp Asdvadzadzin Church

ISTANBUL – Pope Benedict XVI conducted a religious ceremony at the
Sourp Asdvadzadzin (Virgin Mary) Church in Istanbul.
The pope visited the Patriarchate of Turkish Armenians in Kumkapi
neighborhood, and was welcomed by Patriarch Mesrob II.

The ceremony lasted about half an hour, and was attended by about 600
people.

After the ceremony, Pope Benedict XVI and Patriarch Mesrob II had a
tete-a-tete meeting.

ArmInfo News Agency, Armenia
Dec 1 2006

ARMENIAN DEFENSE MINISTER: SETTLEMENT OF KARABAKH CONFLICT WILL BE
PAINFUL FOR EVERYBODY

Even after the settlement of the Karabakh conflict, the
Armenian-Azeri problem is unlikely to be solved, Serzh Sarkisyan, the
Armenian Defense Minister and the Secretary of the National Security
Council under the Armenian President, said in the National Assembly,
Friday.

He emphasized that the priority for the Armenian side is the
recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh’s independence by Azerbaijan, as it
is the only guarantee of non-renewal of hostilities in the future.
The recognition of Karabakh’s independence by Azerbaijan is more
important than the recognition by 50 countries of the world. The
international recognition of NKR’s independence can only be an
additional instrument of pressure on Azerbaijan to acknowledge NKR’s
sovereignty.

Speaking of the latest meeting of Armenian and Azeri Presidents
Robert Kocharyan and Ilham Aliyev in Minsk, the minister noted that
despite the fact that the sides positively assess the meeting, there,
certainly, will be difficulties in the forthcoming meetings. The
settlement of the Karabakh conflict will be painful for everybody, he
said. If it were easy, the conflict would be already settled,
S.Sargsyan said, adding that it is meaningless to specify the time of
the conflict settlement.

Commenting upon the NATO summit’s statement that the North-Atlantic
alliance acknowledges the territorial integrity of South Caucasian
countries, S.Sargsyan pointed out that it is a natural statement.
Armenia also has announced for several times that it acknowledges
Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity, at the same time, it recognizes
also the sovereignty of Nagorno-Karabakh which, along with
Azerbaijan, gained independence after the disintegration of the
Soviet Union. He added that the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan
with Nagorno-Karabakh is out of the question.

AZERBAIJAN PARLIAMENT PASSES 2007 BUDGET

Baku Today, Azerbaijan
AP
Nov 29 2006

Azerbaijan’s parliament passed a 2007 budget Tuesday that increases
projected income and spending by some 40 percent over last year,
relying largely on oil for revenues.

The budget foresees revenue of 5.3 billion denominated manats (US$6.1
billion; euro4.6 billion) and outlays of 5.7 billion denominated manats
(US$6.5 billion; euro4.9 billion).

The Caspian Sea nation’s oil industry should account for 56 percent
of revenues, according to the budget, which is based on the assumption
of a relatively low US$50 per barrel price for oil on world markets.

Defense and security spending in the ex-Soviet republic are set
at 906 million manats ($1 billion; euro760 million), up 27 percent
from this year. Azerbaijan’s dispute with neighboring Armenia over
the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh keeps fears of a major new armed
conflict simmering 12 years after a cease-fire ended a six-year war.

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
Nov 25 2006

Divisions of Armenian Armed Forces Broke the Ceasefire Regime Again

Source: Trend
Author: Sh.Jaliloglu

25.11.2006

The divisions of the Armenian Armed Forces broke the ceasefire regime
on the frontline again, Trend Regional Correspondent reports. On
November 24 at 20:30, the divisions of the Armenian Armed Forces,
located in the occupied Seyddulan village of Tartar district of
Azerbaijan, fired the positions of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, with
submachine guns and machine-guns. The enemy was made silent with
response shot and there is no losses.

The Guardian (London)
November 25, 2006 Saturday

Crusades to Bin Laden: Explainer Islam v Christianity

The Christian-Muslim faultline first opened up in the decades
following the founding of Islam in the seventh century, with
conflicts in Spain and France in 722 and 732. The crusades were
launched in the 11th century by western Christians in an attempt to
curtail the spread of Islam and to take control of the Holy Land. By
then Muslims had conquered two-thirds of the ancient Christian world.

Pope Urban II called for the first crusade at the Council of Clermont
on November 18 1095 after the Seljuk Turks had taken control of
Jerusalem. Two centuries of conflict followed in which parts of the
Holy Land alternated between Christian and Muslim control.

The last of these crusades in 1291 ended in defeat for the Christians
with the expulsion of the Latin Christians from Syria. After 1291,
campaigns by Christians against Muslims continued but began to wane
by the 16th century as papal authority declined. This period saw the
fall of Constantinople in 1453, where the forces of Mehmed II wrested
control of the city from its Byzantine rulers.

Conflicts have continued into the 20th century and include the
killing of 1.5 million Armenian Christians by the Ottoman Turkish
authorities between 1915 and 1923. In his messages Osama bin Laden
refers to western-led conflicts in the Middle East as a
"Zionist-Crusader war against Islam". In 2000 Pope John Paul II,
sought forgiveness for all the past sins of the church, including the
crusades.

IRAN BORDER-GUARDS SPREAD NEWS ABOUT CROSS DESTRUCTIONS IN JULFA

Azeri Press Agency
Nov 22 2006

"Iran border-guards first saw the destruction of the crosses in
Armenian cemetery near the old Juga territory." These ideas belong
to Derenik Melikyan, the editor-in-chief of Alik newspaper published
in Armenian language in Iran, APA reports.

Derenik Melikyan says that there are enough schools, churches and
media meeting the demands of Armenians in Iran, Armenian historical
monuments, especially, Surb Tatevos temple in Atrratakan are protected
by the government.

"The only difficulty for Armenians is the activity of local Turkish
speaking circles. But both Armenian community and Iran government
observes their activity and takes needed measures in any case,"
he said.

Derenik Melikyan also said that Iran diplomatic circles have also
warm relations with Armenians living in the foreign countries. He
also said the information about Armenian monuments in Iran and Surb
Tatevos temple was posted in the website of Russia Embassy. It should
be noted that with the support of Iran government Armenians call
some Christian monuments in South Azerbaijan to be theirs. So, Iran
government already suggested including Black Church (Surb Tatevos)
temple to UNESCO World Heritage sites.

TELETHON 2006 – A THANKSGIVING TRADITION SINCE INDEPENDENCE

Public Radio, Armenia
Nov 22 2006

Armenia Fund United States Western Region announces the domestic and
international broadcast coverage lineup of its upcoming 9th Annual
International Telethon. The telethon will be aired on Thanksgiving
Day, November 23, 2006 in all Armenian communities around the United
States and the world.

As part of the Rebirth of Artsakh project, proceeds from the live
12-hour program will benefit the regional development of Hadrut,
Nagorno Karabakh. The funds will go towards building new drinking
water pipelines as well as reconstructing healthcare facilities and
schools that fell victim to the war and years of neglect. In an effort
to eradicate poverty in this war ravaged border region, Armenia Fund
will also implement a comprehensive agricultural development project
to impact 1,000 farmers in 8 Hadrut villages. A similar regional
development program is currently underway in the northern Martakert
region using the funds raised during last year’s Telethon 2005.

His Excellency Arkady Ghukasyanan, President of the Nagorno Karabakh
Republic and Mrs. Naira Melkoumian, Chief Executive Officer of
Armenia Fund International will be present during the telethon. The
live program is set to air internationally from Glendale Studios,
California. Below is the listing of the domestic broadcast stations
in the United States and their times in respective local time zones.

H1-Armenian Public Television will also air the live program in
Armenia, as well as on satellite in Europe, the Middle East, Asia,
and the United States. Viewers with a Globecast World TV satellite
may tune in to H1-Armenian Public Television and view the live 12-hour
program. In addition, Horizon Armenian Television, the largest Diaspora
based Armenian cable and satellite network outside of Armenia will
air the telethon on its channel as well. Viewers in North America
may watch the Telethon on Horizon’s satellite channels.

The Telethon will also be webcasted live for 12 hours on

RELATIONS BETWEEN FRANCE AND ALGERIA REMAIN STRAINED DUE TO THE ALGERIAN GENOCIDE
Mukremin TASCI (JTW)

Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
Nov 22 2006

Relations between France and Algeria remain strained due to the
Algerian Genocide committed by France during the colonial period.

French President Jacques Chirac has rebuffed Algerian President
Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s demand that France apologize for its "long,
brutal and genocidal" rule. Bouteflika officially named the French
period as "cultural and political genocide of the Algerian identity".

During a visit to Algiers last week, French Interior Minister Nicolas
Sarkozy, the leading ruling party candidate in the 2007 presidential
vote, said he couldn’t "ask children to apologize for the faults
of their fathers." Sarkozy and his party accuses Turkey for the
Ottoman past and Sarkozy strongly support a bill which makes crime
to reject the Armenian genocide crimes in Turkey. Algerians argue
that France should first face with its own crimes before judging the
other countries.

Algerian historians estimate that more than 1,5 million Algerians
were massacred by the French Army.

The Algerian war for independence began in 1954, and the French army
largely crushed the rebels by 1958. Civilian massacres and the use of
torture undercut support for the war in France, resulting in General
Charles de Gaulle’s decision to quit Algeria.

LEVON ARONIAN WINS TAL MEMORIAL AND COMES 2ND IN BLITZ TOURNAMENT

AZG Armenian Daily
21/11/2006

The Mikhail Tal Memorial chess festival that was being held in Moscow
from November 5th to 19th had 3 winners: Peter Leko of Hungary,
Ruslan Ponomaryov of Ukraine and Levon Aronian of Armenia. It was
a round-robin super-tournament of Category 20 (the highest by FIDE
standards), with participants from seven countries. All three were
declared joint winners and each received 33% of the fame.

At the end of the main event there was a very strong blitz tournament,
with nine players from the main tournament, three special invitees and
six top finishers from a blitz qualifier. The blitz tournament was won
by Vishvanathan Anand of India two points ahead of his nearest rival,
Levon Aronian.

ARMENIAN "MITK" ANALYTICAL CENTER: YEREVAN SHOULD CONTINUE TO SUPPORT SADVAL, AVAR AND TALISH NATIONAL MOVEMENTS IN AZERBAIJAN

Today, Azerbaijan
Nov 20 2006

Armenian analytics consider that official Yerevan should gain pressure
leverage by supporting separatist movements in the territories of
Georgia and Azerbaijan.

The details of the separation ideas of Georgia and Azerbaijan
territories is declared in the writings of Apet Madoyan "Armenian
Project of Caucasus" and Andrey Arashev "International legitimating
of unrecognized countries" in official website of Armenian "Mitk"
Analytical center. Apet Madoyan thinks that statehood genes of
Abkhazians, Ossetian and Armenians are strongly developed than
Azerbaijani and Georgian genes.

"That is why Armenia should support the fight of Abkhazia, South
Ossetia and Nagorno Garabagh for the independence and freedom demands
of Chavakhetia Armenians. Besides, Armenia should continue to support
Sadval movement in Azerbaijan, "Talish liberty movement," the projects
to make Avars more active. Armenia’s position is to gain stability
and peace in Caucasus by releasing all nations from Azerbaijan and
Georgian despotism."

Andrey Areshev shared his partner’s view and said that Georgians
pursues genocide policy against Ossetians. Andrey also wrote that
Russia should also support unrecognized Republics in South Caucasus.

It should be noted that, "Mitk" Analytical Center has close relations
with Armenian special service bodies and issues material against
Azerbaijan. Besides, "Mitk" cooperates with Lezghin separatists,
APA reports.

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