Author: Nahapetian Boris

RUSSIA WILL RECOGNIZE ANY AGREEMENT OF PARTIES OVER KARABAKH ISSUE

Pan Armenian News
21.05.2005 05:45

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Russia will recognize any agreement of the parties
over the Karabakh issue and Russia’s stand lies in the parties coming
to an agreement themselves, Konstantin Zatulin stated in an interview
with Echo Baku newspaper. In his words, if is it a voluntary agreement
on providing independence to Karabakh, Russia will recognize it. “If
Karabakh decides sometimes to agree to be an autonomy as part of
Azerbaijan, though I personally do not believe it, we will also
recognize this decision,” he noted and emphasized that any decision
of the parties is that of theirs. “Today Russia is unambiguously
against resumption of hostilities in Karabakh settlement. Undoubtedly,
in today’s situation it is a guarantee for Armenia and, if you wish,
for Azerbaijan: we welcome the negotiation process and not at all
the resumption of hostilities by any of the parties,” he noted. In
his words, the plans of the Armenian party do not include resumption
of hostilities and if the Azeri party does not have them either,
there is nothing to speak about.

Celebrating 2000 years of Christianity in Georgia

The Messenger, Georgia
May 20 2005

A group of students has set off on a six-month trek following in
the footsteps of Saint Andrew, who is credited with introducing
Christianity to Georgia By Nino Gvalia

Although not adopted as the state religion until 330 AD, under the
influence of Saint Nino, Christianity first appeared in Georgia in
the first century A.D.

Saint Andrew the Apostle was the first to bring Christianity, but
later missionaries came from Cyprus, Syria, Armenia, Greece, and
elsewhere. Their travels through Georgia are described in ancient
Georgian, Greek and Latin sources.

Adopting Christianity as the state religion brought Georgia into
close cultural relations with Byzantium – one of the most advanced
civilizations of that time – and helped promote the development of
Georgian culture.

2005 is being celebrated in Georgia as the 2000th anniversary of
Christianity in the country, and to mark this important occasion a
number of events have been organized and initiated by the Georgian
Patriarchy, under the aegis of UNESCO and with the sponsorship of
the Georgian government.

The events include walking in the footsteps of Saint Andrew and Saint
Nino and the International Symposium “Christianity in our life: past,
present, future” to be held in November.

One group of thirteen students began tracing the footsteps of St.
Andrew on May 12 – Saint Andrew’s Day. Over the next six months they
intend to travel throughout Georgia visiting all the places Andrew
reputedly passed through.

Patriarch Ilia II blessed the young people at the outset of their
tour. They first traveled to Adjara, where Andrew began his own
travels through Georgia. Staring in Kobuleti, they intend to walk to
a number of places in Adjara before continuing to Samtskhe, Javakheti,
Kartli, Samachablo, Imereti, Racha, Lechkhumi, Svaneti, Kodori Gorge,
Samegrolo, Guria, Imereti and finally Tbilisi.

“I’m very excited to participate in this event and to pray for
Georgia. I’m also rather curious to meet with people here and talk
with them,” said 24 year old David Dandurishvili, whose obligations
in the group include the medical care of other members, as he is a
graduate of the Medical Institute.

The young people do not intend to stop their walking, no matter what
the weather, and say they are ready for any inconvenience and have
all useful accessories, including raincoats and sun cream.

Dandurishvili reports that so far nothing more serious has affected
the group than one member Eka suffering from blisters and another
Lasha hurting his hand.

“Of course, I knew that this trip promises lots of out-of-the-ordinary
surprises, but I could not imagine that it would be so remarkable,”
says 22 years old Lali Tseskhladze, adding that she is very happy at
the chance to explore almost half of Georgia. “I’m in high spirits
to be part of something so important and interesting,” she declared.

In every village where the group stays, the young people are holding
screenings of a documentary film about Adjara shot in 2000 charting
the route taken by St. Andrew, as well as other films.

The people in Adjara have been very hospitable and warm to them,
the walkers report. “These people are so welcoming, they feel happy
when we are staying in their houses,” says Levan Odisharia, adding
that most people have not been baptized and wish to become Christians
and to build churches in their villages.

A similar walk, again bringing together mostly students, following
in the footsteps of Saint Nino of Cappadoccia is to begin on June 1.
This route begins in Javakheti and passes through several different
regions, again lasting for six months.

CATHOLICOS OF ALL ARMENIANS RECEIVED ITALIAN MINISTER

A1plus
| 19:56:56 | 19-05-2005 | Official |

Today Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II received the delegation
headed by Italian Minister of Regional Affairs Enrico La Loggia.

Welcoming the first visit of the Minister Garegin II pointed out to
the importance of relations between the two states and expressed
hope that the ties between the Armenian and Catholic Churches. He
also recollected the visit of late Pope John Paul II to Holy
Echmiadzin. «The resemblance of our churches is the outcome of our
belief», he noted.

In his turn the Italian Minister thanked His Holiness for reception and
noted that his call would not be efficient without visiting Echmiadzin.

–Boundary_(ID_WD+i/VJGn77RlZawYLkebQ)–

OSCE CONDUCTS MONITORING AT CONTACT LINE OF TROOPS

Azer tag
[May 19, 2005, 17:53:31]

In accordance with a mandate of personal envoy of the OSCE Acting
Chairman, on May 20, a monitoring will be conducted at the contact
line of troops on the Fuzuli-Horadiz motor road of Fuzuli region of
the Azerbaijan Republic.

Monitoring will be conducted by the special representative of the OSCE
Acting Chairman Andjey Kaspshik, his assistance Peter Kay and Imre
Palatinus and high rank representative of the working group on the
Azerbaijan side, and the field assistants of special representative
of the OSCE Acting Chairman Misroslav Vimetal, Oleksandr Samarsky
and representative of working group – on the opposite side.

SE European media roundup on EU-related issues 19 May 05

BBC Monitoring Service – United Kingdom
May 19, 2005

For queries and feedback please contact Duty Editor, Europe, on
0186254 (internal) or 0118 948 6254 (external), or email
[email protected]

The following is a roundup of media reports on EU-related issues from
the applicant countries in Southeastern Europe between 12 and 18 May
2005:

BULGARIA

EU/reforms

According to Bulgarian Diplomatic Review magazine, European
Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso sees successful reforms in
the judiciary as the main priority among Bulgaria’s outstanding tasks
connected with its EU accession.

According to Barroso, further modernization of the police, progress
in the fight against organized crime and corruption are other tasks
facing Bulgaria.

He also thinks that Bulgaria should reform its public administration
and put an end to all forms of discrimination and artificial
bureaucratic obstacles to the EU citizens.

(BTA web site, Sofia, in English 16 May 05)

Visiting European Commissioner Siim Kallas said he wanted to remind
the Bulgarian government that the commission expected the country to
be consistent in its policies and to honour its commitments.

He said no nation was immune to possible financial fraud such as
customs and VAT fraud or misuse of public procurement funding
provided under EU structural and pre-accession programmes.

Kallas identified transparency in public procurement practices as a
key element of administrative reforms.

(BTA web site, Sofia, in English 16 May 05)

EU accession/elections

President Georgi Purvanov said he expected a “strongly fragmented”
new parliament after the elections. The general elections in Bulgaria
are due 25 June.

According to Purvanov, Bulgaria needs “a European majority” that will
have to pursue an unpopular policy enshrined in this country’s EU
accession commitments. This will take a majority capable of seeing
beyond 2007, the target date of Bulgaria’s accession to the EU, which
can be achieved by substantially more than 122-125 MPs, the president
said.

(BTA news agency, Sofia, in English 1525 gmt 15 May 05)

EU membership/ethnic model

Bulgarian Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha said that designing
an ethnic model in Bulgaria was a crucial issue for EU membership.

(BGNES web site, Sofia, in Bulgarian 0713 gmt 13 May 05)

EU membership/referendum

President Georgi Purvanov said that he would advocate a referendum on
Bulgaria’s EU membership through a new special law.

(BGNES web site, Sofia, in Bulgarian 1048 gmt 12 May 05)

CROATIA

Croatia/War crimes/Hague cooperation

In a week marked by local elections in Croatia with a turnout which
stood at an all-time low – estimated at less than 35 per cent – and
which did not produce any immediate clear winners the political arena
was less preoccupied by the cooperation with the Hague tribunal and
the Gotovina case.

There were very few additional reactions to the Hague Prosecution’s
proposed amendment to the indictment against Generals Ivan Cermak and
Mladen Markac, who stand accused of criminal responsibility for
crimes committed in Operation Storm in 1995. The amended indictment
would extend to the entire state and military leaderships and lower
levels of government for a criminal enterprise whose objective was to
drive the Serbs out of Croatia and which was implemented through the
Storm military and police operation.

“Croatia will hold legal talks with the Hague Prosecutor’s Office as
it considers the legal and political implications of the amended
indictment against Generals Cermak and Markac to be unacceptable,”
the assistant justice minister, Jaksa Muljacic, who had a meeting in
The Hague with Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte, was quoted by
Croatian radio as saying.

Prime Minister Ivo Sanader on 18 May told the Croatian Assembly that
the government rejected as unacceptable the allegations under the
proposed amended indictment against Cermak and Markac. He said the
government would try to ensure withdrawal of the amendments, as the
prosecutors had gone over the top with allegations that were absurd
and easy to refute. Asked what the government was doing to try war
crimes committed against Serb civilians after Operation Storm,
Sanader said that war crimes fell within the jurisdiction of the
judiciary and not the government. “The government cannot interfere in
the work of the judiciary,” the prime minister said.

Commenting on the possible referral to Croatia of the Hague case
against three former Yugoslav Army officers charged with the Ovcara
massacre, President Stjepan Mesic said that standards in Croatia’s
judiciary were so high that Croatia was able to take over any case:
“The Croatian judiciary has proved to be meeting the European
standards, so that today Croatia functions as any other law-based
state. I agree that Croatia should take over all the cases.”

(Croatian Radio, Zagreb, in Croatian 0700 gmt 14 May; HINA news
agency, Zagreb, in English 1132 gmt 18 May and 1728 gmt 12 May 05)

Croatia/regional cooperation

The foreign ministers of the Quadrilateral Group consisting of
Croatia, Hungary, Slovenia and Italy adopted in Budapest a joint
declaration expressing support for Croatia’s starting EU entry talks
as soon as possible, the Croatian Foreign Ministry said in a
statement:

“In the final document of the meeting the foreign ministers of the
Quadrilateral Group have supported the speedy start of Croatia’s EU
membership negotiations”.

On 15 May a rally was held at Mt Ravna Gora where Vuk Draskovic,
Serbia-Montenegro foreign minister, addressed some 20,000 rally
participants and paid “full tribute to General Draza Mihailovic and
his soldiers”.

In reaction to the rally President Mesic cancelled his visit to
Serbia-Montenegro: “The president believes that in the wake of the
Chetnik gathering in Ravna Gora yesterday, which was supported by the
Serbian government and in which some government representatives took
part, there are no conditions for him to visit Serbia-Montenegro in
the foreseeable future.”

This was followed by a statement from the Serbia-Montenegro Ministry
of Foreign Affairs which said that “Historical facts should not be an
obstacle to best possible relations between two countries”. Mesic
responded by saying: “I agree that historical facts should not be an
obstacle. Nevertheless, we must adhere to historical facts and not to
falsification. Those who took sides with Fascism and quislings were
certainly not for anti-Fascism”.

The Croatian government strongly condemns and rejects attempts to
rehabilitate the Chetnik Movement, but will continue to maintain
bilateral relations with Serbia-Montenegro because “we believe that
there are forces in that country that look at that movement as we
do”, Prime Minister Sanader said on 18 May. “If we can help those
forces to win, it is worth trying to maintain bilateral relations and
continue ensuring the stability of the entire region,” he remarked.
Sanader proposed that the Croatian Assembly adopt a declaration
condemning the Chetnik Movement, the crimes its members committed in
Croatia and their collaboration with Fascism and Nazism.

President Mesic on 17 May spoke by telephone with his
Serbia-Montenegro counterpart Svetozar Marovic about defusing
tensions after the Ravna Gora rally and continuing with the
improvement in relations.

(HINA news agency, Zagreb, in English 1617 gmt 13 May; Belgrade-based
Kurir daily in Serbian 16 May page 2; Croatian Radio, Zagreb, in
Croatian 1300 gmt 16 May; HRT1 TV, Zagreb, in Croatian 1730 gmt 16
May; Croatian Radio, Zagreb, in Croatian 1000 gmt 17 May; HINA news
agency, Zagreb, in English 1200 and 1920 gmt 18 May 05)

MACEDONIA

Macedonia/EU/Council of Europe

On the sidelines of the Council of Europe summit in Warsaw,
Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski on 16 May met his Slovak,
Estonian, Austrian and Latvian counterparts Ivan Gasparovic, Arnold
Ruutel, Heinz Fischer and Vaira Vike-Freiberga. The presidents of
these EU member countries supported Macedonia’s activities to meet
the standards for accession to Euro-Atlantic institutions,
Crvenkovski’s office announced. Crvenkovski pointed out that the
experiences of European integration, particularly of the new EU
members Slovakia, Estonia and Latvia, were welcomed for accelerating
the process of Macedonia’s EU and NATO integration.

Macedonia supports the set guidelines for relations between the
Council of Europe and the EU which are to strengthen the partnership
between the two organizations, Crvenkovski said on 17 May in his
address to the CoE summit. He added: “My country draws its energy for
democratic reforms inter alia from the adopted Council of Europe
standards for respect for human rights, including the advancement of
rights of persons belonging to minorities, the rule of law and
development of democracy.” He expressed strong support for the
establishment of the Council of Europe Forum for the future of
democracy.

Macedonia failed to sign the three conventions on the fight against
terrorism, money laundering and human trafficking which were
submitted for adoption in Warsaw. The reason was that Foreign
Ministry had not completed the necessary procedures, presidential
spokesman Valentin Nikolovski said. This was why President
Crvenkovski had stressed Macedonia’s intention to sign the
conventions in the future.

(MIA news agency, Skopje, in English 1340 gmt 16 May and 0936 gmt 17
May; Makfax news agency, Skopje, in English 1400 gmt 17 May 05)

Macedonia/Slovenia/EU

Jelko Kacin, a Slovene member of the European Parliament, has said he
anticipates that Macedonia will be allocated a date for talks to
begin on accession to the EU during Britain’s stint as EU president
in the second half of 2005. This would allow Macedonia to take over
from Croatia as the role model for other countries wishing to join
the EU, Kacin said. According to him, Croatia has lost momentum and
is distancing itself from the EU because of its internal troubles. As
a result, Balkan EU integration should be promoted through Macedonia.
Kacin also said he had prepared an initiative, which he had sent to
the British Parliament, proposing that the EU recognize Macedonia by
its constitutional name, the Republic of Macedonia.

Macedonian Prime Minister Vlado Buckovski and Jelko Kacin on 17 May
discussed Macedonia’s preparations for EU integration, as well as
recognition of Macedonia’s constitutional name. Buckovski welcomed
Kacin’s letter to the UK Parliament calling on London to recognize
Macedonia’s constitutional name.

(STA news agency, Ljubljana, in English 1140 gmt 16 May; MIA news
agency, Skopje, in English 1248 gmt 17 May 05)

Macedonia/Bulgaria/crime

The Macedonian and Bulgarian justice ministers, Meri Mladenovska
Gjorgjievska and Anton Stankov respectively, on 16 May signed a
Memorandum on Legal and Judicial Cooperation in combating organized
crime, human and drug trafficking, money laundering, corruption and
terrorism, as well as other forms of crime.

(MIA news agency, Skopje, in English 1106 gmt 16 May 05)

Macedonia/regional cooperation

Macedonian Defence Minister Jovan Manasievski met Kosovo’s President
Ibrahim Rugova in Pristina on 12 May. Rugova afterwards said that the
meeting had been very successful, and that relations between the two
countries were very good. Manasievski also met Prime Minister Bajram
Kosumi. The two were quotes as saying that relations between Kosova
and Macedonia were better than ever and they shared the view that a
free trade agreement should be signed by the two countries as soon as
possible.

After meeting the head of the UN mission in Kosovo, Soeren
Jessen-Petersen, Manasievski said that Rugova’s idea of establishing
cooperation between the Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC) and Macedonian
Army (ARM) was impossible, as the KPC is a “rescuing agency”. Kosovo
security is under Kfor (Kosovo Force) auspices, leaving no room for
ARM-KPC cooperation, Manasievski said.

Manasievski and his Bulgarian and Albanian counterparts, Nikolay
Svinarov and Pandeli Majko, on 17 May in Ohrid signed a memorandum on
military cooperation.

(KosovaLive website, Pristina, in Albanian 12 May; MIA news agency,
Skopje, in English 1832 gmt 12 May and 2009 gmt 17 May 05)

ROMANIA

EU accession/reforms

Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu stressed the importance of
judicial reform in the EU integration process. “The ratification of
the EU Accession Treaty is a pledge assumed by Romania to its
European partners itself. EU integration is not the prerogative of
elites, of political parties, or administrations… If we do not
fundamentally reform our justice, as we have pledged to do for our
accession, the law-governed state will never work in Romania. I
believe the struggle against corruption is the most difficult battle
we have to fight. And if we do not win this battle now, we have no
chance whatsoever to ever win the war for freedom and for Europe, ”
he said.

(Radio Romania Actualitati, Bucharest, in Romanian 1500 gmt 17 May
05)

EU accession/delays

Romanian Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu warned ministers and
state secretaries that he would not hesitate to resort to dismissals
in case of delays in observing the EU accession timetable.

“The most difficult exam is due this autumn, when the European
Commission will analyse the monitoring report and decide whether the
safeguarding clause will be applied or not. I remind you that our
main priority is the country’s EU integration on 1 January 2007. To
accomplish that, my main priority is to fulfil the pledges taken
within the safeguarding clause and the community acquis. I will not
hesitate to resort to dismissals in case of delays in observing the
European timetable,” he said.

(Rompres web site, Bucharest, in English 1310 gmt 15 May 05)

TURKEY

Cyprus/EU/property claims

Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesman Namik Tan said that Greek Cypriot
property claims hampered the efforts for a “comprehensive settlement
on the island”. Tan referred to the remarks of EU Commissioner for
Enlargement Olli Rehn, who described those law suits as meaningless
and stressed that nothing could be achieved by such methods.

(Anatolia news agency, Ankara, in English 0957 gmt 18 May 05)

Armenian genocide issue

Addressing the Council of Europe leaders summit, Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan criticized countries whose parliaments had adopted
resolutions on Armenian genocide.

“I certainly do not find it right, either in terms of human rights
and in terms of the supremacy of the law, that interested or
disinterested parliaments adopt such resolutions through some simple
lobbying activities without basing themselves on documents or
information,” he said. Erdogan said that the allegations were
“totally baseless” and added that since Turkey had already opened its
archives it was Armenia’s and other third countries’ turn to do so.

(NTV television, Istanbul, in Turkish 1000 gmt 17 May 05; Anatolia
news agency, Ankara, in English 1802 gmt 16 May 05)

Felicity Party Chairman Recai Kutan said that the government had
“handed over foreign policy to the United States and the European
Union”. He said the EU countries were “putting up every sort of
obstacle in front of Turkey and are virtually making fun of us”.

“This government has given way to complete and unrequited love
towards the EU,” he said.

(Anatolia news agency, Ankara, in Turkish 1347 gmt 15 May 05)

Kurdish leader’s retrial/EU/human rights

President Ahmet Necdet Sezer said that parliament must first remove
legal obstacles before Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan can be retried.

“If a new trial is sought on the basis of this ruling, in my opinion
the Turkish court that looks into this case will reject this request,
for there is a legal impediment on this issue. However, the European
Court of Human Rights’ decision could be accepted as a call for
retrial only if a relevant change is made in the Penal Procedure Law
[CMK]. As long as this is not done, under existing laws it is
impossible to accept it (as a call for retrial) And it remains to the
discretion of the legislature whether to amend it [the CMK] or not.”

Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said that the decision adopted by the
European Court of Human Rights [ECHR] on Abdullah Ocalan would be
assessed taking into account the constitution and international
agreements to which Turkey is a party.

He said that it should never be forgotten that Abdullah Ocalan was
the head of a terrorist organization and that thousands of innocent
people died as a result of terrorist activities.

Justice Minister Cicek said that the ECHR decision related to the
procedure not to the merit of the case, adding that there would be no
change of laws. Calling for international cooperation against
terrorism, Cicek warned: If you describe as freedom fighter the
person whom I call terrorist, then this cooperation will drop to the
minimum level.

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said that the decision was essentially
related to the procedure and not to the merits of the trial.

The prime minister also said that if sensitivity was exploited in a
perverse manner, it would be impossible to pay the cost for this.

Republican People’s Party leader Deniz Baykal said that the ECHR
decision did not mean retrial and added that the government could
find an alternative way of resolving this problem by exerting its
influence on the EU Ministerial Committee, which would adopt the real
decision.

(Anatolia news agency, Ankara, in English 0000 gmt 12 May 05; (NTV
television, Istanbul, in Turkish 0400 gmt 13 May 05; (NTV television,
Istanbul, in Turkish 1200 gmt 12 May 05); NTV television, Istanbul,
in Turkish 1123 gmt 12 May 05)

–Boundary_(ID_gPyshr2NUgluP/0NJ5RfpQ)
Content-type: message/rfc822; CHARSET=US-ASCII
Content-description:

From: [email protected]
Subject: SE European media roundup on EU-related issues 19 May 05
MIME-version: 1.0
Content-type: multipart/alternative;
boundary=”Boundary_(ID_PSt4nQD/P+WutkUhiklyCw)”

–Boundary_(ID_PSt4nQD/P+WutkUhiklyCw)
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT

SE European media roundup on EU-related issues 19 May 05

BBC Monitoring Service – United Kingdom
May 19, 2005

For queries and feedback please contact Duty Editor, Europe, on 0186254
(internal) or 0118 948 6254 (external), or email [email protected]

The following is a roundup of media reports on EU-related issues from the
applicant countries in Southeastern Europe between 12 and 18 May 2005:

BULGARIA

EU/reforms

According to Bulgarian Diplomatic Review magazine, European Commission
President Jose Manuel Barroso sees successful reforms in the judiciary as the main
priority among Bulgaria’s outstanding tasks connected with its EU accession.

According to Barroso, further modernization of the police, progress in the
fight against organized crime and corruption are other tasks facing Bulgaria.

He also thinks that Bulgaria should reform its public administration and put
an end to all forms of discrimination and artificial bureaucratic obstacles to
the EU citizens.

(BTA web site, Sofia, in English 16 May 05)

Visiting European Commissioner Siim Kallas said he wanted to remind the
Bulgarian government that the commission expected the country to be consistent in
its policies and to honour its commitments.

He said no nation was immune to possible financial fraud such as customs and
VAT fraud or misuse of public procurement funding provided under EU structural
and pre-accession programmes.

Kallas identified transparency in public procurement practices as a key
element of administrative reforms.

(BTA web site, Sofia, in English 16 May 05)

EU accession/elections

President Georgi Purvanov said he expected a “strongly fragmented” new
parliament after the elections. The general elections in Bulgaria are due 25 June.

According to Purvanov, Bulgaria needs “a European majority” that will have to
pursue an unpopular policy enshrined in this country’s EU accession
commitments. This will take a majority capable of seeing beyond 2007, the target date
of Bulgaria’s accession to the EU, which can be achieved by substantially more
than 122-125 MPs, the president said.

(BTA news agency, Sofia, in English 1525 gmt 15 May 05)

EU membership/ethnic model

Bulgarian Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha said that designing an
ethnic model in Bulgaria was a crucial issue for EU membership.

(BGNES web site, Sofia, in Bulgarian 0713 gmt 13 May 05)

EU membership/referendum

President Georgi Purvanov said that he would advocate a referendum on
Bulgaria’s EU membership through a new special law.

(BGNES web site, Sofia, in Bulgarian 1048 gmt 12 May 05)

CROATIA

Croatia/War crimes/Hague cooperation

In a week marked by local elections in Croatia with a turnout which stood at
an all-time low – estimated at less than 35 per cent – and which did not
produce any immediate clear winners the political arena was less preoccupied by the
cooperation with the Hague tribunal and the Gotovina case.

There were very few additional reactions to the Hague Prosecution’s proposed
amendment to the indictment against Generals Ivan Cermak and Mladen Markac,
who stand accused of criminal responsibility for crimes committed in Operation
Storm in 1995. The amended indictment would extend to the entire state and
military leaderships and lower levels of government for a criminal enterprise
whose objective was to drive the Serbs out of Croatia and which was implemented
through the Storm military and police operation.

“Croatia will hold legal talks with the Hague Prosecutor’s Office as it
considers the legal and political implications of the amended indictment against
Generals Cermak and Markac to be unacceptable,” the assistant justice minister,
Jaksa Muljacic, who had a meeting in The Hague with Chief Prosecutor Carla Del
Ponte, was quoted by Croatian radio as saying.

Prime Minister Ivo Sanader on 18 May told the Croatian Assembly that the
government rejected as unacceptable the allegations under the proposed amended
indictment against Cermak and Markac. He said the government would try to ensure
withdrawal of the amendments, as the prosecutors had gone over the top with
allegations that were absurd and easy to refute. Asked what the government was
doing to try war crimes committed against Serb civilians after Operation Storm,
Sanader said that war crimes fell within the jurisdiction of the judiciary
and not the government. “The government cannot interfere in the work of the
judiciary,” the prime minister said.

Commenting on the possible referral to Croatia of the Hague case against
three former Yugoslav Army officers charged with the Ovcara massacre, President
Stjepan Mesic said that standards in Croatia’s judiciary were so high that
Croatia was able to take over any case: “The Croatian judiciary has proved to be
meeting the European standards, so that today Croatia functions as any other
law-based state. I agree that Croatia should take over all the cases.”

(Croatian Radio, Zagreb, in Croatian 0700 gmt 14 May; HINA news agency,
Zagreb, in English 1132 gmt 18 May and 1728 gmt 12 May 05)

Croatia/regional cooperation

The foreign ministers of the Quadrilateral Group consisting of Croatia,
Hungary, Slovenia and Italy adopted in Budapest a joint declaration expressing
support for Croatia’s starting EU entry talks as soon as possible, the Croatian
Foreign Ministry said in a statement:

“In the final document of the meeting the foreign ministers of the
Quadrilateral Group have supported the speedy start of Croatia’s EU membership
negotiations”.

On 15 May a rally was held at Mt Ravna Gora where Vuk Draskovic,
Serbia-Montenegro foreign minister, addressed some 20,000 rally participants and paid
“full tribute to General Draza Mihailovic and his soldiers”.

In reaction to the rally President Mesic cancelled his visit to
Serbia-Montenegro: “The president believes that in the wake of the Chetnik gathering in
Ravna Gora yesterday, which was supported by the Serbian government and in which
some government representatives took part, there are no conditions for him to
visit Serbia-Montenegro in the foreseeable future.”

This was followed by a statement from the Serbia-Montenegro Ministry of
Foreign Affairs which said that “Historical facts should not be an obstacle to best
possible relations between two countries”. Mesic responded by saying: “I
agree that historical facts should not be an obstacle. Nevertheless, we must
adhere to historical facts and not to falsification. Those who took sides with
Fascism and quislings were certainly not for anti-Fascism”.

The Croatian government strongly condemns and rejects attempts to
rehabilitate the Chetnik Movement, but will continue to maintain bilateral relations with
Serbia-Montenegro because “we believe that there are forces in that country
that look at that movement as we do”, Prime Minister Sanader said on 18 May.
“If we can help those forces to win, it is worth trying to maintain bilateral
relations and continue ensuring the stability of the entire region,” he
remarked. Sanader proposed that the Croatian Assembly adopt a declaration condemning
the Chetnik Movement, the crimes its members committed in Croatia and their
collaboration with Fascism and Nazism.

President Mesic on 17 May spoke by telephone with his Serbia-Montenegro
counterpart Svetozar Marovic about defusing tensions after the Ravna Gora rally and
continuing with the improvement in relations.

(HINA news agency, Zagreb, in English 1617 gmt 13 May; Belgrade-based Kurir
daily in Serbian 16 May page 2; Croatian Radio, Zagreb, in Croatian 1300 gmt 16
May; HRT1 TV, Zagreb, in Croatian 1730 gmt 16 May; Croatian Radio, Zagreb, in
Croatian 1000 gmt 17 May; HINA news agency, Zagreb, in English 1200 and 1920
gmt 18 May 05)

MACEDONIA

Macedonia/EU/Council of Europe

On the sidelines of the Council of Europe summit in Warsaw, Macedonian
President Branko Crvenkovski on 16 May met his Slovak, Estonian, Austrian and
Latvian counterparts Ivan Gasparovic, Arnold Ruutel, Heinz Fischer and Vaira
Vike-Freiberga. The presidents of these EU member countries supported Macedonia’s
activities to meet the standards for accession to Euro-Atlantic institutions,
Crvenkovski’s office announced. Crvenkovski pointed out that the experiences of
European integration, particularly of the new EU members Slovakia, Estonia and
Latvia, were welcomed for accelerating the process of Macedonia’s EU and NATO
integration.

Macedonia supports the set guidelines for relations between the Council of
Europe and the EU which are to strengthen the partnership between the two
organizations, Crvenkovski said on 17 May in his address to the CoE summit. He
added: “My country draws its energy for democratic reforms inter alia from the
adopted Council of Europe standards for respect for human rights, including the
advancement of rights of persons belonging to minorities, the rule of law and
development of democracy.” He expressed strong support for the establishment of
the Council of Europe Forum for the future of democracy.

Macedonia failed to sign the three conventions on the fight against
terrorism, money laundering and human trafficking which were submitted for adoption in
Warsaw. The reason was that Foreign Ministry had not completed the necessary
procedures, presidential spokesman Valentin Nikolovski said. This was why
President Crvenkovski had stressed Macedonia’s intention to sign the conventions in
the future.

(MIA news agency, Skopje, in English 1340 gmt 16 May and 0936 gmt 17 May;
Makfax news agency, Skopje, in English 1400 gmt 17 May 05)

Macedonia/Slovenia/EU

Jelko Kacin, a Slovene member of the European Parliament, has said he
anticipates that Macedonia will be allocated a date for talks to begin on accession
to the EU during Britain’s stint as EU president in the second half of 2005.
This would allow Macedonia to take over from Croatia as the role model for other
countries wishing to join the EU, Kacin said. According to him, Croatia has
lost momentum and is distancing itself from the EU because of its internal
troubles. As a result, Balkan EU integration should be promoted through Macedonia.
Kacin also said he had prepared an initiative, which he had sent to the
British Parliament, proposing that the EU recognize Macedonia by its constitutional
name, the Republic of Macedonia.

Macedonian Prime Minister Vlado Buckovski and Jelko Kacin on 17 May discussed
Macedonia’s preparations for EU integration, as well as recognition of
Macedonia’s constitutional name. Buckovski welcomed Kacin’s letter to the UK
Parliament calling on London to recognize Macedonia’s constitutional name.

(STA news agency, Ljubljana, in English 1140 gmt 16 May; MIA news agency,
Skopje, in English 1248 gmt 17 May 05)

Macedonia/Bulgaria/crime

The Macedonian and Bulgarian justice ministers, Meri Mladenovska Gjorgjievska
and Anton Stankov respectively, on 16 May signed a Memorandum on Legal and
Judicial Cooperation in combating organized crime, human and drug trafficking,
money laundering, corruption and terrorism, as well as other forms of crime.

(MIA news agency, Skopje, in English 1106 gmt 16 May 05)

Macedonia/regional cooperation

Macedonian Defence Minister Jovan Manasievski met Kosovo’s President Ibrahim
Rugova in Pristina on 12 May. Rugova afterwards said that the meeting had been
very successful, and that relations between the two countries were very good.
Manasievski also met Prime Minister Bajram Kosumi. The two were quotes as
saying that relations between Kosova and Macedonia were better than ever and they
shared the view that a free trade agreement should be signed by the two
countries as soon as possible.

After meeting the head of the UN mission in Kosovo, Soeren Jessen-Petersen,
Manasievski said that Rugova’s idea of establishing cooperation between the
Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC) and Macedonian Army (ARM) was impossible, as the
KPC is a “rescuing agency”. Kosovo security is under Kfor (Kosovo Force)
auspices, leaving no room for ARM-KPC cooperation, Manasievski said.

Manasievski and his Bulgarian and Albanian counterparts, Nikolay Svinarov and
Pandeli Majko, on 17 May in Ohrid signed a memorandum on military
cooperation.

(KosovaLive website, Pristina, in Albanian 12 May; MIA news agency, Skopje,
in English 1832 gmt 12 May and 2009 gmt 17 May 05)

ROMANIA

EU accession/reforms

Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu stressed the importance of judicial
reform in the EU integration process. “The ratification of the EU Accession
Treaty is a pledge assumed by Romania to its European partners itself. EU
integration is not the prerogative of elites, of political parties, or
administrations… If we do not fundamentally reform our justice, as we have pledged to do
for our accession, the law-governed state will never work in Romania. I believe
the struggle against corruption is the most difficult battle we have to fight.
And if we do not win this battle now, we have no chance whatsoever to ever
win the war for freedom and for Europe, ” he said.

(Radio Romania Actualitati, Bucharest, in Romanian 1500 gmt 17 May 05)

EU accession/delays

Romanian Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu warned ministers and state
secretaries that he would not hesitate to resort to dismissals in case of delays
in observing the EU accession timetable.

“The most difficult exam is due this autumn, when the European Commission
will analyse the monitoring report and decide whether the safeguarding clause
will be applied or not. I remind you that our main priority is the country’s EU
integration on 1 January 2007. To accomplish that, my main priority is to
fulfil the pledges taken within the safeguarding clause and the community acquis. I
will not hesitate to resort to dismissals in case of delays in observing the
European timetable,” he said.

(Rompres web site, Bucharest, in English 1310 gmt 15 May 05)

TURKEY

Cyprus/EU/property claims

Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesman Namik Tan said that Greek Cypriot property
claims hampered the efforts for a “comprehensive settlement on the island”.
Tan referred to the remarks of EU Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn, who
described those law suits as meaningless and stressed that nothing could be
achieved by such methods.

(Anatolia news agency, Ankara, in English 0957 gmt 18 May 05)

Armenian genocide issue

Addressing the Council of Europe leaders summit, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan criticized countries whose parliaments had adopted resolutions on
Armenian genocide.

“I certainly do not find it right, either in terms of human rights and in
terms of the supremacy of the law, that interested or disinterested parliaments
adopt such resolutions through some simple lobbying activities without basing
themselves on documents or information,” he said. Erdogan said that the
allegations were “totally baseless” and added that since Turkey had already opened
its archives it was Armenia’s and other third countries’ turn to do so.

(NTV television, Istanbul, in Turkish 1000 gmt 17 May 05; Anatolia news
agency, Ankara, in English 1802 gmt 16 May 05)

Felicity Party Chairman Recai Kutan said that the government had “handed over
foreign policy to the United States and the European Union”. He said the EU
countries were “putting up every sort of obstacle in front of Turkey and are
virtually making fun of us”.

“This government has given way to complete and unrequited love towards the
EU,” he said.

(Anatolia news agency, Ankara, in Turkish 1347 gmt 15 May 05)

Kurdish leader’s retrial/EU/human rights

President Ahmet Necdet Sezer said that parliament must first remove legal
obstacles before Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan can be retried.

“If a new trial is sought on the basis of this ruling, in my opinion the
Turkish court that looks into this case will reject this request, for there is a
legal impediment on this issue. However, the European Court of Human Rights’
decision could be accepted as a call for retrial only if a relevant change is
made in the Penal Procedure Law [CMK]. As long as this is not done, under
existing laws it is impossible to accept it (as a call for retrial) And it remains
to the discretion of the legislature whether to amend it [the CMK] or not.”

Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said that the decision adopted by the European
Court of Human Rights [ECHR] on Abdullah Ocalan would be assessed taking into
account the constitution and international agreements to which Turkey is a
party.

He said that it should never be forgotten that Abdullah Ocalan was the head
of a terrorist organization and that thousands of innocent people died as a
result of terrorist activities.

Justice Minister Cicek said that the ECHR decision related to the procedure
not to the merit of the case, adding that there would be no change of laws.
Calling for international cooperation against terrorism, Cicek warned: If you
describe as freedom fighter the person whom I call terrorist, then this
cooperation will drop to the minimum level.

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said that the decision was essentially related
to the procedure and not to the merits of the trial.

The prime minister also said that if sensitivity was exploited in a perverse
manner, it would be impossible to pay the cost for this.

Republican People’s Party leader Deniz Baykal said that the ECHR decision did
not mean retrial and added that the government could find an alternative way
of resolving this problem by exerting its influence on the EU Ministerial
Committee, which would adopt the real decision.

(Anatolia news agency, Ankara, in English 0000 gmt 12 May 05; (NTV
television, Istanbul, in Turkish 0400 gmt 13 May 05; (NTV television, Istanbul, in
Turkish 1200 gmt 12 May 05); NTV television, Istanbul, in Turkish 1123 gmt 12 May
05)

–Boundary_(ID_PSt4nQD/P+WutkUhiklyCw)
Content-type: text/html; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT

<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><HTML><FONT SIZE=2 PTSIZE=10 FAMILY=”SANSSERIF” FACE=”Arial” LANG=”0″>SE European media roundup on EU-related issues 19 May 05 <BR>
<BR>
BBC Monitoring Service – United Kingdom<BR>
May 19, 2005<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
For queries and feedback please contact Duty Editor, Europe, on 0186254 (internal) or 0118 948 6254 (external), or email [email protected]<BR>
<BR>
The following is a roundup of media reports on EU-related issues from the applicant countries in Southeastern Europe between 12 and 18 May 2005:<BR>
<BR>
BULGARIA<BR>
<BR>
EU/reforms<BR>
<BR>
According to Bulgarian Diplomatic Review magazine, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso sees successful reforms in the judiciary as the main priority among Bulgaria’s outstanding tasks connected with its EU accession.<BR>
<BR>
According to Barroso, further modernization of the police, progress in the fight against organized crime and corruption are other tasks facing Bulgaria.<BR>
<BR>
He also thinks that Bulgaria should reform its public administration and put an end to all forms of discrimination and artificial bureaucratic obstacles to the EU citizens.<BR>
<BR>
(BTA web site, Sofia, in English 16 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
Visiting European Commissioner Siim Kallas said he wanted to remind the Bulgarian government that the commission expected the country to be consistent in its policies and to honour its commitments.<BR>
<BR>
He said no nation was immune to possible financial fraud such as customs and VAT fraud or misuse of public procurement funding provided under EU structural and pre-accession programmes.<BR>
<BR>
Kallas identified transparency in public procurement practices as a key element of administrative reforms.<BR>
<BR>
(BTA web site, Sofia, in English 16 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
EU accession/elections<BR>
<BR>
President Georgi Purvanov said he expected a “strongly fragmented” new parliament after the elections. The general elections in Bulgaria are due 25 June.<BR>
<BR>
According to Purvanov, Bulgaria needs “a European majority” that will have to pursue an unpopular policy enshrined in this country’s EU accession commitments. This will take a majority capable of seeing beyond 2007, the target date of Bulgaria’s accession to the EU, which can be achieved by substantially more than 122-125 MPs, the president said.<BR>
<BR>
(BTA news agency, Sofia, in English 1525 gmt 15 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
EU membership/ethnic model<BR>
<BR>
Bulgarian Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha said that designing an ethnic model in Bulgaria was a crucial issue for EU membership.<BR>
<BR>
(BGNES web site, Sofia, in Bulgarian 0713 gmt 13 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
EU membership/referendum<BR>
<BR>
President Georgi Purvanov said that he would advocate a referendum on Bulgaria’s EU membership through a new special law.<BR>
<BR>
(BGNES web site, Sofia, in Bulgarian 1048 gmt 12 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
CROATIA<BR>
<BR>
Croatia/War crimes/Hague cooperation<BR>
<BR>
In a week marked by local elections in Croatia with a turnout which stood at an all-time low – estimated at less than 35 per cent – and which did not produce any immediate clear winners the political arena was less preoccupied by the cooperation with the Hague tribunal and the Gotovina case.<BR>
<BR>
There were very few additional reactions to the Hague Prosecution’s proposed amendment to the indictment against Generals Ivan Cermak and Mladen Markac, who stand accused of criminal responsibility for crimes committed in Operation Storm in 1995. The amended indictment would extend to the entire state and military leaderships and lower levels of government for a criminal enterprise whose objective was to drive the Serbs out of Croatia and which was implemented through the Storm military and police operation.<BR>
<BR>
“Croatia will hold legal talks with the Hague Prosecutor’s Office as it considers the legal and political implications of the amended indictment against Generals Cermak and Markac to be unacceptable,” the assistant justice minister, Jaksa Muljacic, who had a meeting in The Hague with Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte, was quoted by Croatian radio as saying.<BR>
<BR>
Prime Minister Ivo Sanader on 18 May told the Croatian Assembly that the government rejected as unacceptable the allegations under the proposed amended indictment against Cermak and Markac. He said the government would try to ensure withdrawal of the amendments, as the prosecutors had gone over the top with allegations that were absurd and easy to refute. Asked what the government was doing to try war crimes committed against Serb civilians after Operation Storm, Sanader said that war crimes fell within the jurisdiction of the judiciary and not the government. “The government cannot interfere in the work of the judiciary,” the prime minister said.<BR>
<BR>
Commenting on the possible referral to Croatia of the Hague case against three former Yugoslav Army officers charged with the Ovcara massacre, President Stjepan Mesic said that standards in Croatia’s judiciary were so high that Croatia was able to take over any case: “The Croatian judiciary has proved to be meeting the European standards, so that today Croatia functions as any other law-based state. I agree that Croatia should take over all the cases.”<BR>
<BR>
(Croatian Radio, Zagreb, in Croatian 0700 gmt 14 May; HINA news agency, Zagreb, in English 1132 gmt 18 May and 1728 gmt 12 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
Croatia/regional cooperation<BR>
<BR>
The foreign ministers of the Quadrilateral Group consisting of Croatia, Hungary, Slovenia and Italy adopted in Budapest a joint declaration expressing support for Croatia’s starting EU entry talks as soon as possible, the Croatian Foreign Ministry said in a statement:<BR>
<BR>
“In the final document of the meeting the foreign ministers of the Quadrilateral Group have supported the speedy start of Croatia’s EU membership negotiations”.<BR>
<BR>
On 15 May a rally was held at Mt Ravna Gora where Vuk Draskovic, Serbia-Montenegro foreign minister, addressed some 20,000 rally participants and paid “full tribute to General Draza Mihailovic and his soldiers”.<BR>
<BR>
In reaction to the rally President Mesic cancelled his visit to Serbia-Montenegro: “The president believes that in the wake of the Chetnik gathering in Ravna Gora yesterday, which was supported by the Serbian government and in which some government representatives took part, there are no conditions for him to visit Serbia-Montenegro in the foreseeable future.”<BR>
<BR>
This was followed by a statement from the Serbia-Montenegro Ministry of Foreign Affairs which said that “Historical facts should not be an obstacle to best possible relations between two countries”. Mesic responded by saying: “I agree that historical facts should not be an obstacle. Nevertheless, we must adhere to historical facts and not to falsification. Those who took sides with Fascism and quislings were certainly not for anti-Fascism”.<BR>
<BR>
The Croatian government strongly condemns and rejects attempts to rehabilitate the Chetnik Movement, but will continue to maintain bilateral relations with Serbia-Montenegro because “we believe that there are forces in that country that look at that movement as we do”, Prime Minister Sanader said on 18 May. “If we can help those forces to win, it is worth trying to maintain bilateral relations and continue ensuring the stability of the entire region,” he remarked. Sanader proposed that the Croatian Assembly adopt a declaration condemning the Chetnik Movement, the crimes its members committed in Croatia and their collaboration with Fascism and Nazism.<BR>
<BR>
President Mesic on 17 May spoke by telephone with his Serbia-Montenegro counterpart Svetozar Marovic about defusing tensions after the Ravna Gora rally and continuing with the improvement in relations.<BR>
<BR>
(HINA news agency, Zagreb, in English 1617 gmt 13 May; Belgrade-based Kurir daily in Serbian 16 May page 2; Croatian Radio, Zagreb, in Croatian 1300 gmt 16 May; HRT1 TV, Zagreb, in Croatian 1730 gmt 16 May; Croatian Radio, Zagreb, in Croatian 1000 gmt 17 May; HINA news agency, Zagreb, in English 1200 and 1920 gmt 18 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
MACEDONIA<BR>
<BR>
Macedonia/EU/Council of Europe<BR>
<BR>
On the sidelines of the Council of Europe summit in Warsaw, Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski on 16 May met his Slovak, Estonian, Austrian and Latvian counterparts Ivan Gasparovic, Arnold Ruutel, Heinz Fischer and Vaira Vike-Freiberga. The presidents of these EU member countries supported Macedonia’s activities to meet the standards for accession to Euro-Atlantic institutions, Crvenkovski’s office announced. Crvenkovski pointed out that the experiences of European integration, particularly of the new EU members Slovakia, Estonia and Latvia, were welcomed for accelerating the process of Macedonia’s EU and NATO integration.<BR>
<BR>
Macedonia supports the set guidelines for relations between the Council of Europe and the EU which are to strengthen the partnership between the two organizations, Crvenkovski said on 17 May in his address to the CoE summit. He added: “My country draws its energy for democratic reforms inter alia from the adopted Council of Europe standards for respect for human rights, including the advancement of rights of persons belonging to minorities, the rule of law and development of democracy.” He expressed strong support for the establishment of the Council of Europe Forum for the future of democracy.<BR>
<BR>
Macedonia failed to sign the three conventions on the fight against terrorism, money laundering and human trafficking which were submitted for adoption in Warsaw. The reason was that Foreign Ministry had not completed the necessary procedures, presidential spokesman Valentin Nikolovski said. This was why President Crvenkovski had stressed Macedonia’s intention to sign the conventions in the future.<BR>
<BR>
(MIA news agency, Skopje, in English 1340 gmt 16 May and 0936 gmt 17 May; Makfax news agency, Skopje, in English 1400 gmt 17 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
Macedonia/Slovenia/EU<BR>
<BR>
Jelko Kacin, a Slovene member of the European Parliament, has said he anticipates that Macedonia will be allocated a date for talks to begin on accession to the EU during Britain’s stint as EU president in the second half of 2005. This would allow Macedonia to take over from Croatia as the role model for other countries wishing to join the EU, Kacin said. According to him, Croatia has lost momentum and is distancing itself from the EU because of its internal troubles. As a result, Balkan EU integration should be promoted through Macedonia. Kacin also said he had prepared an initiative, which he had sent to the British Parliament, proposing that the EU recognize Macedonia by its constitutional name, the Republic of Macedonia.<BR>
<BR>
Macedonian Prime Minister Vlado Buckovski and Jelko Kacin on 17 May discussed Macedonia’s preparations for EU integration, as well as recognition of Macedonia’s constitutional name. Buckovski welcomed Kacin’s letter to the UK Parliament calling on London to recognize Macedonia’s constitutional name.<BR>
<BR>
(STA news agency, Ljubljana, in English 1140 gmt 16 May; MIA news agency, Skopje, in English 1248 gmt 17 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
Macedonia/Bulgaria/crime<BR>
<BR>
The Macedonian and Bulgarian justice ministers, Meri Mladenovska Gjorgjievska and Anton Stankov respectively, on 16 May signed a Memorandum on Legal and Judicial Cooperation in combating organized crime, human and drug trafficking, money laundering, corruption and terrorism, as well as other forms of crime.<BR>
<BR>
(MIA news agency, Skopje, in English 1106 gmt 16 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
Macedonia/regional cooperation<BR>
<BR>
Macedonian Defence Minister Jovan Manasievski met Kosovo’s President Ibrahim Rugova in Pristina on 12 May. Rugova afterwards said that the meeting had been very successful, and that relations between the two countries were very good. Manasievski also met Prime Minister Bajram Kosumi. The two were quotes as saying that relations between Kosova and Macedonia were better than ever and they shared the view that a free trade agreement should be signed by the two countries as soon as possible.<BR>
<BR>
After meeting the head of the UN mission in Kosovo, Soeren Jessen-Petersen, Manasievski said that Rugova’s idea of establishing cooperation between the Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC) and Macedonian Army (ARM) was impossible, as the KPC is a “rescuing agency”. Kosovo security is under Kfor (Kosovo Force) auspices, leaving no room for ARM-KPC cooperation, Manasievski said.<BR>
<BR>
Manasievski and his Bulgarian and Albanian counterparts, Nikolay Svinarov and Pandeli Majko, on 17 May in Ohrid signed a memorandum on military cooperation.<BR>
<BR>
(KosovaLive website, Pristina, in Albanian 12 May; MIA news agency, Skopje, in English 1832 gmt 12 May and 2009 gmt 17 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
ROMANIA<BR>
<BR>
EU accession/reforms<BR>
<BR>
Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu stressed the importance of judicial reform in the EU integration process. “The ratification of the EU Accession Treaty is a pledge assumed by Romania to its European partners itself. EU integration is not the prerogative of elites, of political parties, or administrations… If we do not fundamentally reform our justice, as we have pledged to do for our accession, the law-governed state will never work in Romania. I believe the struggle against corruption is the most difficult battle we have to fight. And if we do not win this battle now, we have no chance whatsoever to ever win the war for freedom and for Europe, ” he said.<BR>
<BR>
(Radio Romania Actualitati, Bucharest, in Romanian 1500 gmt 17 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
EU accession/delays<BR>
<BR>
Romanian Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu warned ministers and state secretaries that he would not hesitate to resort to dismissals in case of delays in observing the EU accession timetable.<BR>
<BR>
“The most difficult exam is due this autumn, when the European Commission will analyse the monitoring report and decide whether the safeguarding clause will be applied or not. I remind you that our main priority is the country’s EU integration on 1 January 2007. To accomplish that, my main priority is to fulfil the pledges taken within the safeguarding clause and the community acquis. I will not hesitate to resort to dismissals in case of delays in observing the European timetable,” he said.<BR>
<BR>
(Rompres web site, Bucharest, in English 1310 gmt 15 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
TURKEY<BR>
<BR>
Cyprus/EU/property claims<BR>
<BR>
Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesman Namik Tan said that Greek Cypriot property claims hampered the efforts for a “comprehensive settlement on the island”. Tan referred to the remarks of EU Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn, who described those law suits as meaningless and stressed that nothing could be achieved by such methods.<BR>
<BR>
(Anatolia news agency, Ankara, in English 0957 gmt 18 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
Armenian genocide issue<BR>
<BR>
Addressing the Council of Europe leaders summit, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized countries whose parliaments had adopted resolutions on Armenian genocide.<BR>
<BR>
“I certainly do not find it right, either in terms of human rights and in terms of the supremacy of the law, that interested or disinterested parliaments adopt such resolutions through some simple lobbying activities without basing themselves on documents or information,” he said. Erdogan said that the allegations were “totally baseless” and added that since Turkey had already opened its archives it was Armenia’s and other third countries’ turn to do so.<BR>
<BR>
(NTV television, Istanbul, in Turkish 1000 gmt 17 May 05; Anatolia news agency, Ankara, in English 1802 gmt 16 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
Felicity Party Chairman Recai Kutan said that the government had “handed over foreign policy to the United States and the European Union”. He said the EU countries were “putting up every sort of obstacle in front of Turkey and are virtually making fun of us”.<BR>
<BR>
“This government has given way to complete and unrequited love towards the EU,” he said.<BR>
<BR>
(Anatolia news agency, Ankara, in Turkish 1347 gmt 15 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
Kurdish leader’s retrial/EU/human rights<BR>
<BR>
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer said that parliament must first remove legal obstacles before Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan can be retried.<BR>
<BR>
“If a new trial is sought on the basis of this ruling, in my opinion the Turkish court that looks into this case will reject this request, for there is a legal impediment on this issue. However, the European Court of Human Rights’ decision could be accepted as a call for retrial only if a relevant change is made in the Penal Procedure Law [CMK]. As long as this is not done, under existing laws it is impossible to accept it (as a call for retrial) And it remains to the discretion of the legislature whether to amend it [the CMK] or not.”<BR>
<BR>
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said that the decision adopted by the European Court of Human Rights [ECHR] on Abdullah Ocalan would be assessed taking into account the constitution and international agreements to which Turkey is a party.<BR>
<BR>
He said that it should never be forgotten that Abdullah Ocalan was the head of a terrorist organization and that thousands of innocent people died as a result of terrorist activities.<BR>
<BR>
Justice Minister Cicek said that the ECHR decision related to the procedure not to the merit of the case, adding that there would be no change of laws. Calling for international cooperation against terrorism, Cicek warned: If you describe as freedom fighter the person whom I call terrorist, then this cooperation will drop to the minimum level.<BR>
<BR>
Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said that the decision was essentially related to the procedure and not to the merits of the trial.<BR>
<BR>
The prime minister also said that if sensitivity was exploited in a perverse manner, it would be impossible to pay the cost for this.<BR>
<BR>
Republican People’s Party leader Deniz Baykal said that the ECHR decision did not mean retrial and added that the government could find an alternative way of resolving this problem by exerting its influence on the EU Ministerial Committee, which would adopt the real decision.<BR>
<BR>
(Anatolia news agency, Ankara, in English 0000 gmt 12 May 05; (NTV television, Istanbul, in Turkish 0400 gmt 13 May 05; (NTV television, Istanbul, in Turkish 1200 gmt 12 May 05); NTV television, Istanbul, in Turkish 1123 gmt 12 May 05)<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
</FONT></HTML>

–Boundary_(ID_PSt4nQD/P+WutkUhiklyCw)–

–Boundary_(ID_gPyshr2NUgluP/0NJ5RfpQ)–

OSCE MG VISIT TO KARABAKH SCHEDULED IN JULY

Pan Armenian News
19.05.2005 03:05

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs discuss the question of
visiting the Nagorno Karabakh conflict region in July, stated OSCE MG
Russian Ambassador Yuri Merzlyakov. In his words, before the visit a
private meeting is planned with Azeri Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedyarov
and then with Armenian FM Vartan Oskanian, while a joint meeting may
be held after these. “We hope to manage to hold a number of meetings
before July and then the exact time of the visit will be determined,”
Merzlyakov added. Answering the question whether the Co-Chairs intend
to make any proposals to the parties in the course of the visit,
the Russian diplomat said that there is no need in new proposals
now. “The proposals were presented to the Presidents. The Armenian
and Azeri leaders discussed questions that were suggested to them in
Warsaw and in fact we got guiding lines for further work. This is,
in sum, what we needed. And the Ministers are commissioned to hold
intensive talks, including those with our participation,” he noted.

ARMENIANS WHO FLED TO AZERBAIJAN FROM ARMENIA TO BE CONVEYED TO THIRD COUNTRY

Pan Armenian News
19.05.2005 04:13

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ One of these days Roman Terian and Artur Apresian,
who are kept in the investigation jail of the Ministry of National
Security of Azerbaijan, will be conveyed to a third country. The
country, to which they will be conveyed, and the time is not mentioned
yet. The talks on their passing to a third country continue. It should
be reminded that Roman Terian and Artur Apresian fled from Armenia to
Azerbaijan in 2004. In their words, the Armenian authorities persecuted
them, it was impossible to live in Armenia and they came to Azerbaijan
to transit to a third country, reported Regnum news agency.

PRESS RELEASE
May 18, 2005
Embassy of the Republic of Armenia
2225 R Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20008
Tel: 202-319-1976, x. 348; Fax: 202-319-2982
Email: [email protected]; Web:

Third Pan-Armenian Youth Forum to be Held in Armenia in July 2005

The Pan-Armenian Youth International Center foundation in cooperation
with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia will organize the
Third Pan-Armenian Youth Forum on July 22-27, 2005.

The aims of the Forum are to contribute to the strengthening of
Armenia-Artsakh-Diaspora relations and the solution of national
problems; to support the cooperation between youth, as well as dealing
with youth issues, organizations from Armenia, Artsakh and Diaspora;
and to support the realization of Pan-Armenian youth programs.

The participants of the Forum have to be included in the activities
related to different youth issues. They should have the experience of
youth work in the field of youth policy and Pan-Armenian programs. They
must be recommended by the corresponding organizations or by the
Diaspora communities. The age of participants of the Forum should
generally be in the range of 18 to 35 years old. The participants
have to be able to communicate in Armenian.

The participants of the Forum conditionally can be divided
into the three main groups: (1) representatives of governmental
and non-governmental organizations and regions of Armenia, (2)
representatives of youth structures from Artsakh, (3) representatives
of organizations working in Diaspora and delegates of Diaspora
communities.

For the participation in the forum, it is necessary to fill out the
application form and send it to the Pan-Armenian Youth International
Center Foundation before June 24, 2005. Application form is available
online at , or upon from the Embassy of Armenia

The program of the forum will consist of the following main elements:
meetings and discussions with statesmen, political and public figures
of Armenia; seminar-lectures dedicated to the 90th anniversary of
Armenian Genocide and the 1600th anniversary of the Armenian Alphabet;
formation of working groups related to certain fields and problems;
plenary sessions; cultural programs, visits to different institutions.

For more information contact the Pan Armenian Youth International
Center Foundation, at Abovian Street, 3, Yerevan 375001, Armenia; tel.
+374-10-567922, fax. +374-10-567902, email: [email protected],
or visit

Armenian forward signs with Ajax Amsterdam

ontentid=40040

Amsterdam, April 15, 2005

Ajax have reached agreement with Pyunik FC about the transfer of
Edgar Manucharyan. The Armenian forward signed for three years with
the club from Amsterdam. His contract will run from 1 July 2005.

Manucharyan was on trial in Amsterdam in December of 2004. The forward
took part in the friendly match against FC Barcelona on 14 December.
In that match he played only 14 minutes, after which he had to be taken
off with a foot injury, forcing the trial period to be terminated.

Manucharyan (18), who plays for Armenian champion Pyunik FC and
the Armenian national team, remained in Amsterdam for rehab and
has recovered from his injury. Manucharyan will join Ajax’s first
team in July 2005, when the squad will start preparations for the
2005-2006 season.

FORMATION OF COMMON FINANCIAL MARKET TO BECOME EURASEC’S PRIORITY

MOSCOW, May 16 (RIA Novosti) – Formation of a common financial
market and development of currency integration are listed among the
main priorities in the operation of the Eurasian Economic Community
(EURASEC) for the next few years, the Community’s general secretary
Grigory Rapota stated.

As the EAURASEC press service said, on Monday he took the floor at the
regular meeting of the Council of the Heads of the Central (National)
Banks of the Community Member States. According to Rapota, the
meeting’s agenda envisages discussion of the drafts of two documents –
an agreement among the national banks and governments of the EURASEC
states On the Basic Principles of the Policy in the Sphere of Currency
Regulation and Currency Control of Operations Relating to Movement of
Capital, and an agreement on cooperation in the sphere of organizing
the community states’ integrated currency market.

Signing of these agreements will allow the partner states to
make a tangible move in developing integration interaction in the
currency-financial sphere, Rapota noted.

“Establishment of an international investment-credit and accounting
organization within EURASEC can become a not less important integration
factor. It could play a very effective role in deciding the questions
of financing large-scale investment programs within EURASEC,” Rapota
went on to say.

He did not rule it out that such an organization will be set up on the
basis of the Interstate Bank. “This problem has also been submitted
for the Council’s discussion,” Rapota noted.

EURASEC includes Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and
Tajikistan. Armenia, Moldova and Ukraine have the status of observers.

The Council of the Heads of the Central (National) Banks of the
EURASEC Member States is a consultative-deliberative body having the
right to take decisions of the recommendation character on questions
within the Central Banks’ competence.

The Council’s task is to coordinate the actions of the Central
(National) Banks on questions of the national currency-financial
and banking systems, the development of multilateral and bilateral
settlement relations, and other questions within the competence of
the Central (National) Banks of the EURASEC member states.