Author: Talalian Arpi

Turkish foreign minister meets investors in London; views EU entry talks

Anatolia news agency, Ankara
12 Jul 05

Text of report in English by Turkish news agency Anatolia, subheadings
inserted editorially

London, 12 July: Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul sees no risk
regarding the start of full membership negotiations between Turkey and
the European Union (EU), on 3 October.

After having a breakfast with investors in the British capital of
London, Gul told a press conference that Turkey had adopted all
required reform laws, and therefore, expected that the entry talks
will start as scheduled.

Terrorism

Touching on terrorism, Gul said that fight against terrorism was the
common responsibility of all countries, and stressed that a joint
platform should be established to combat it.

“Terrorism is a severe crime committed against humanity, and therefore
we strongly condemn it,” said Gul.

Commenting on attacks on some mosques in London after last week’s
bombings, Gul said: “This is another kind of violence. Islam has
nothing to do with terrorism. Terrorists may be Muslim, Christian, Jew
or members of some other faith. Religion and terrorism cannot be
considered together. So, we should condemn terrorism altogether.”

Armenian allegations

Regarding the so-called Armenian genocide allegations, Gul said that
Turkey had opened up all its archives, including military ones, to all
foreign scientists, and stressed that even a single document proving
Armenian allegations could not be discovered.

RIA OREANDA
Economic News
July 12, 2005 Tuesday

RUSAL Sums Up Activity in First Half of 2005

Moscow. OREANDA. RUSAL, a top three global aluminium producer, has
today announced production and financial results for the first half
of 2005. According to the RUSAL press service, for this period RUSAL
raised a $200 million unsecured loan to partially refinance its
purchase of a 20% stake in Queensland Alumina Limited, Australia. The
loan has been extended by Paris-based Natexis Banques Populaires at a
low interest rate.

RUSAL also secured a 46.6 million export loan from German-based
Bayerische Landesbank (BayernLB) to fund a large-scale modernization
programme at RUSAL ARMENAL foil mill in Armenia.

RUSAL commissioned Lahmeyer International to conduct a banking
feasibility study for the first phase of the Rogunskaya hydroelectric
station construction project in Tajikistan. The company has opened
two representative offices in Arkhangelsk region – one in the
region’s capital Arkhangelsk and the second in the city of Plesetsk –
to manage the development of the three deposits of the North Onega
bauxite group. New casting pit started installed at Sayanogorsk
Aluminium Smelter as part of the plant’s foundry modernization
program has reached its full capacity of 90 000 tonnes of billets per
year.

RA PREMIER WELCOMED YOUTH COOPERATION

A1+
12-07-2005

Today Armenian Prime Minister Anrdanik Margaryan met with the members
of the European Steering Committee for Youth (CDEJ).

The activities of the committee is targeted at the development of
youth policy and exchange of experience between the CoE
member-states. Deputy Minister of Culture Lilit Asatryan informed that
after a long-lasting process Armenia will join the Convention of the
European Youth Movement.

The Prime Minister expressed assurance that the activities of the
Committee and the programs implemented will contribute to the
international youth cooperation.

US sidelined as Central Asia’s ‘Great Game’ intensifies

The SCO is taking steps to tighten its grip on security and energy deals
in the region, writes Benjamin Robertson

South China Morning Post
8 July 2005

A fresh salvo was fired this week in the ongoing “Great Game” of
international power play when the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation
(SCO), a security alliance dominated by China and Russia, urged the US
and its allies to set a timetable for troop withdrawal from Central
Asian republics.

In a reference to a term coined in the 19th century to describe the
heated rivalry between Russia and Britain as the two powers competed
for influence among Central Asian rulers, analysts say that in the new
game, the rules are the same and only the players are different.

“Central Asia is a chessboard for competing interests,” says Alexander
Neill, head of the Asia Security Programme at the Royal United
Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies in London. “It
has huge energy resources and when you look at China’s multilateral
engagement, the SCO is clearly something they’re concentrating on in
order to compete with American interests in the region {hellip} it’s a
game of energy strategy more than anything else.”

Formally created in Shanghai in June 2001 as a security forum to
combat terrorism, the SCO’s member states include China and Russia, as
well as the Central Asian republics of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,
Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Since 2001, it has evolved into an
economic, energy and security forum. At this week’s meeting in
Kazakhstan’s capital of Astana, Iran, Pakistan, India and Mongolia
were permitted to attend with observer status, a possible sign of
ambitious expansion plans for the organisation.

In a joint declaration, SCO members said: “We support and will support
the international coalition, which is carrying out an anti-terror
campaign in Afghanistan, and we have taken note of the progress made
in the effort to stabilise the situation. As the active military phase
in the anti-terror operation in Afghanistan is nearing completion, the
SCO would like the coalition’s members to decide on the deadline for
the use of the temporary infrastructure and for their military
contingents’ presence in those countries.”

America and France have troops based in Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and
Tajikistan.

Formerly part of the Soviet Union, Central Asia is seen by Russia and
China as their backyard. Ruled by authoritarian leaders who are
routinely criticised by human rights observers, the region is also
home to extremist Islamic groups.

The comparatively recent American presence, in the form of oil money
and troops – while initially welcomed by Central Asian states as part
of the “war on terror” and a counterbalance to Russia’s own designs on
its former provinces – now appears to be under threat.

After last year’s “orange revolution” in Georgia – when president
elect Viktor Yanukovych was forced to step down in the face of popular
protests and allegations of electoral fraud – and this year’s unrest
in Kyrgyzstan, when president Askar Akaev fled the country to Russia,
the suspicion is that America is trying to overthrow the area’s
traditionally dictatorial and pro-Russian leaders.

Talking at the conference, Uzbekistan President Islam Karimov
suggested that outside forces were at work “to create instability and
undermine the region economically in order to impose their own
development model”.

After a massacre in eastern Uzbekistan in May this year, when
government troops reportedly killed hundreds of protesting civilians,
America and other western countries called for an independent inquiry.

Mr Karimov refused, and subsequently curbed America’s flying rights
from its airbase near the capital of Tashkent. Enter China. Only a
week after the massacre Mr Karimov was being feted in Beijing, his
security policies supported, and a US$600 million oil and gas joint
venture signed.

Critical of other countries when they raise issues such as human
rights, Tibet or Taiwan – all issues Beijing says are internal affairs
– China does not knowingly tie its trade deals to preconditions on
political reform or human rights improvements.

In recent years China has been adept at filling the vacuum left by
western companies either forbidden to, or unwilling to do business in
countries that have become international pariahs. Those countries
include Sudan, Zimbabwe, Nepal and Myanmar.

This week’s announcement by the SCO appears to be the next move in
China’s game of chess. Taking advantage of a rise in anti-American
sentiment among Central Asian leaders, China, along with Russia, is
hoping to woo regional statesmen into signing firmer security and
energy deals.

Behind this is not only China’s own strategic concerns in keeping
Central Asia free of US troops – a concern that some speculate stems
from the idea that America is trying to create a containment circle to
control a rising China – but also from China’s insatiable energy
needs.

Already consuming 5.5 millions barrels of oil a day, 30 per cent of
which is imported, the US Energy Information Administration estimates
China’s demand will rise to 11 million barrels a day by 2025.

Although the majority of imported oil is currently shipped on tanker,
the ongoing construction of pipelines across China and into Central
Asia may soon change this. “China definitely wants to secure resources
now heading west, and divert them to head eastwards,” says Mr Neill.

In part, the success of this policy will depend on what the SCO can
become. Greeted with some scepticism by western observers when it
first began, the organisation has since mushroomed.

Having taken over the presidency this year, it seems likely that China
will press to include the four nations granted observer status at this
week’s conference. “They don’t want to give the impression that the
SCO is a home-grown baby {hellip} the Chinese are playing a game to
tidy up their international image and will try and create a major
movement {hellip} though not necessarily at the expense of creating
leverage against Asean or Apec,” says Mr Neill.

Chinese observers concur. “We see the SCO as a possible forum for
ironing out differences in Asia,” says Mei Renyi, an expert on Sino-US
relations at the Beijing Foreign Language University. “As long as it
helps to bring peace and stability in the area, we would like to see
the SCO continue. How it develops will depend on how the incorporation
of observer nations develop.”

One thing is clear – America will not be invited to sit at this table.

New Straits Times, Malaysia
July 10 2005

BOOKS: An Armenian’s vision of the Earth’s fate
Pravin Karunaivell

JULY 11:

TITLE: “… and then I saw Him!”
AUTHOR: Rev Samuel Doctorian
Reviewed by Pravin Karunaivell

A TSUNAMI hitting Asia, skyscrapers in New York tum
bling, destruction in the city of London, millions dying in
China and India, the Nile drying up and dead fish all over
Egypt, floods throughout Canada and North America. And no
United Nations.

Now imagine this: angels, in all their glory, on Earth; and
someone, somewhere on the island of Patmos, getting a visit
from them in 1998.

Seven years ago, someone actually knew about all these
incidences – some have eerily enough, occurred in recent
months!

Dr Samuel Doctorian, in his book `… and then I saw Him’,
says five angels visited him and revealed things that would
happen in the five continents they represented. One angel
told him that there would be disasters, starvation, many
deaths from hunger. The prediction included strong winds
like none seen before, earthquakes and the land going under
the sea.

Do some of these predictions sound familiar?
Doctorian feels he was told about the Dec 26 tsunami last
year and even the disastrous 9/11 happenings in New York.
And now, the latest … the multiple bombings in the heart of
London which tore apart trains and peeled the top off a
double decker bus, massacring at least 37 people and
wounding 700 in the worst peacetime attack on Britain.
The past 10 years has seen more disasters than any other
in history.

One can see the natural disasters as either the natural
course of things or look deeper into the phenomenon. Is there
a divine message for us in all these tragedies?

Doctorian, who claims to have seen nine angels in all, feels
the disasters are God’s way of telling us to prepare for the
future. But who is this Doctorian?

An Armenian, he is the founder and International Director
of the Bible Land Mission. He was born in a refugee camp in
Lebanon in 1930 and raised in Jerusalem.

At 16, while working as a shoemaker, he heard the voice of
God calling him to leave his shoemaking work and go into the
ministry. Doctorian heeded the call and has never looked
back since.

The 75-year-old has travelled to 126 countries, spreading
the Gospel of Christ and the revelations of the five angels. He
is married and has five children and six grandchildren.
The book also tells readers of another episode while flying
to Brussels when an angel visited Doctorian as fire threat
ened to spread from an engine to the rest of the aircraft.
`Suddenly one of the engines exploded. Everyone on that
plane was praying, believers and non-believer alike. They
were terrified.’ Doctorian says he found a quiet spot and
cried to God for help.

`A hand gripped my shoulder and I thought it was the pilot
or stewardess, but I saw no one near me. Yet I still felt the
hand strongly grip my shoulder. Then I heard a voice say,
`Samuel, I shall save you and everyone on this plane. I shall
deliver you from this fire.’

Everyone on that plane, including Doctorian and his family,
survived.

The author also speaks of a woman facing the death
sentence for a crime she did not commit and how an angel
revealed the identity of the actual criminal.
Not sure what you think about this man?

Doctorian himself will be in Malaysia to share his ex
periences at the Sunway Pyramid Convention Centre on Sept
22. His visit is in conjunction with efforts to raise funds for the
Trinity Community Centre building project.

Those interested can contact TCC for reservations at
03-7784-2839 or

`… and then I saw Him’ is also available at RM28 at TCC.
Whether you believe what he says or not, the book makes for
an interesting read.

It may give some the creeps but is, nevertheless, food for
thought.

EXCERPTS from `… and then I saw Him’

FIRST ANGEL (ASIA): `I am the angel of Asia,’ he said.
Then the angel said, `There shall be disaster, starvation –
many will die from hunger. Strong winds will be loosened like
never happened. A great part shall be shaken and destroyed.
Earthquakes all over will take place. The sea will cover the
earth. … Australia will be divided, destroyed. Great part will
go under the ocean.

SECOND ANGEL (MIDDLE EAST): `I saw nuclear weapons
used in many of those countries. Smoke rising from ev
erywhere. Sudden destruction and men will destroy one
another. I saw the United Nations shall be broken to pieces
because of the crisis in the Middle East. There shall be no
more United Nations.’

THIRD ANGEL (EUROPE): `Suddenly I heard earthquakes
all over Europe. Countries that had no earthquakes before
shall be shaken,’ said the angel. Suddenly I saw the Eiffel
Tower in Paris crumbling, falling down. Great part of Ger
many destroyed. Great city of London, destruction every
where. I saw floods all over Scandinavia. I looked to the south
of Europe. I saw Spain and Portugal passing through great
hunger and great disasters.’

FOURTH ANGEL (AFRICA): I saw the River Nile drying.
Fishes dead, stinking all over Egypt. Great part of the middle
of Africa shall be covered with water, millions drowned.’

FIFTH ANGEL (NORTH & SOUTH AMERICA): `The world
market collapsing with mighty earthquakes in New York. The
skyscrapers tumbling … Great part of north Brazil covered
with water, the Amazon River turning to a great sea… Forests
destroyed and flooded, major cities in Brazil destroyed …

The Messenger, Georgia
July 8 2005

Paper: American official made “false evaluation”

The Azeri newspaper Ekho Baku reports that an American official has
labeled Armenian as well as Azeri diasporas in Georgia ‘pro-Russian
forces.’ According to the paper, U.S. State Department’s Advisor on
National Security Stephen J. Hadley made an interesting statement and
expressed his opinion that Armenian and Azeri diasporas in Georgia
pursue pro-Russian interests in the country, politicizing all common
problems with an aim toward pressuring central authorities. The paper
does not cite the source of Hadley’s alleged statement.
According to Ekho Baku, Georgian political analyst Givi Bolotashili
does not agree with such an opinion and states, “The Azeri people in
Georgia really have lots of common problems, about which they are
loudly speaking. However, these problems are not being politicized.”
As for the Armenian population of the Akhalkalaki region,
Bolotashvili agrees that all the common problems always get
politicized, the paper states.
“Sometimes, there are demands about autonomy and so on from the
Armenian population. As for the Azeri population, I have never heard
that any Azeri organizations have political demands. I cannot agree
with the opinion of the American politician because it is impossible
to compare all the problems with each other,” he said in the paper.
A member of the National Movement of Azeri people of Georgia “Geirat”
Zumrud Gurbanov told the paper the American high-ranking official was
either misled or he himself misleads the world’s community by
pursuing some political goals.
“I do not want to think that Hadley is such a simple person who does
not know real state of affairs in the country. Most probably, this
statement has been made specially. I think that all the events that
have been taking place in Georgia is shown to the entire world from
the point of view of the West and particularly from the point of view
of Tbilisi,” Gurbanov said.
According to him, for the last 15 years of independent Georgia, none
of the Azeri organizations has expressed a pro-Russian orientation.
The Azeri people of Georgia always were supporters of Georgia’s full
independence, the paper states, and supporters of the withdrawal of
all the Russian military bases from Javakheti. “And note please that
Armenians are against this. They obviously hold a pro-Russian
orientation, and moreover, they have much fewer social-economic
problems than Azeri people in Georgia,” Gurbanov concluded.

Yerevan Press Club of Armenia presents `MediaDialogue” Web Site as a
Regional Information Hub project.

As a part of the project web site is maintained,
featuring the most interesting publications from the press of Armenia,
Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey on issues of mutual concern. The latest
updates on the site are weekly delivered to the subscribers.
***************************************************************************

==========================================================================
CONFLICTS
==========================================================================
AZERBAIJANIS AND ARMENIANS ARE LIKELY TO CLASH
——————————————– ——————————–
Source: `Resonansi’ newspaper (Georgia) [July 02, 2005]
Author: Manana Mchedlishvili

Azerbaijani residents of Sadakhlo village, located at
Georgian-Armenian border, have suspicions their co-villager Sadradin
Palangov, missing for a few days, fell victim to Armenians, who have
kidnapped and killed him. They demand to start criminal proceedings
and threaten to take countermeasures. It should be emphasized that
several days before Palangov’s disappearance, Armenian frontier guards
arrested four Sadakhlo Azerbaijanis, cutting wood in the border forest
of Armenia. According to some data, Minister of Interior, Vano
Merabishvili intended to ease tension in Sadakhlo, however the
notorious `wrestlers’ rebellion’ in Tbilisi forced the Minister to
change his plans.

Sadradin Palangov is a reputable person in Sadakhlo. According to some
data, he is the mullah of the village, according to other -`Mullah
Gara’- the nickname he got during hadj to the sacred city of the
Muslims, Mecca. During the search for Palangov, the law and order
bodies got only his hat and seven bullet cases from `Makarov’ gun,
which tuned the suspicions of the villages to the `Armenian
track’. However, the Armenian side categorically refutes any
information about Palangov. At the same time, it is a fact that he
disappeared near a watercourse in close proximity to the Armenian
border. Based on the evidence of the villagers, that evening they
heard shots from the Armenian side. In a while, several residents of
Sadakhlo headed for that direction to find out the details. Close to
the watercourse, they saw traces of blood. It was then that they found
the hat and the bullet cases.

The indignant residents of Sadakhlo organized a protest action and
blocked the Georgian-Armenian highway. Amiran Shubitidze, head of
Marneuli regional administration, which includes Sadakhlo village, was
to visit the site. During the meeting with him, protest participants
demanded that leading specialists of the Ministry of Interior, General
Prosecutor’s Office and heads of Kwemo Kartly regional administration
take up the case.

The search for Palangov is still underway. The Azerbaijani deputies of
Georgian Parliament strangely showed no interest in the accident. None
of them visited Sadakhlo, while the staff of Azerbaijani Embassy in
Georgia arrived at the site.

As for the four arrested Azerbaijanis, they returned home. According
to Amiran Shubidze, he held negotiations with the Armenian side
concerning their release. `Armenian frontier guards arrested them when
they chopped wood in the forest on Armenian territory. Our citizens
trespassed the border by accident. The Armenians understood it and
released the detained. However, we did not manage to find out anything
about the missing Palangov from them’, Shubitidze stated.

The investigation on Palangov case includes central investigation
bodies. The President’s representative in Kwemo Kartli region, Zurab
Melikishvili stated to `Resonances’, `The investigation is conducted
quite intensively. It includes specialists from the Ministry of
Interior. Several versions of the accident are worked out. However, it
is still too early to make any conclusions, since no new details are
revealed yet. The current situation in Sadakhlo and the border regions
is quite calm, the interstate route is opened’. }

==========================================================================
NEIGHBOURS
==========================================================================
ERDOGAN: TURKEY WILL NOT BE IMPOSED TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE OF ARMENIAN BORDER
——————————————————- ———————
Source: “Milliyet” newspaper (Turkey) [June 30, 2005]
Author:

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliev stated that Azerbaijan plans to
launch an air flight to Northern Cyprus that will soon be visited by a
delegation of Azerbaijani businessmen. `We just cannot tolerate
further isolation of our Turkish brothers in Northern Cyprus’.

After the meeting of President Aliev with Prime Minister Erdogan, on
official visit to Baku, a press conference was held. Aliev stated that
during the meeting the issue of Cyprus was considered thoroughly, `On
behalf of Azerbaijan, we will do our best to stop the isolation of
Northern Cyprus. Various companies, travel agencies of Azerbaijan will
soon start air flights to Northern Cyprus. Soon, the delegation of
Azerbaijani businessmen will go there too. `We cannot tolerate our
Turkish brothers in Northern Cyprus to go on living like
this. Isolation should be stopped. Azerbaijan will do its utmost for
it’.

On his behalf, Prime Minister Erdogan stated that he welcomes the
unanimity of Azerbaijan and Turkey in their stance on Cyprus issue,
thus confirming Aliev’s intention to launch air flights for ceasing
isolation.

The Border With Armenia Is Not A EU Requirement

Prime Minister Erdogan stated that Turkey intends to support
Azerbaijan in Armenian issue. In his opinion, Council of Europe
resolution, qualifying Armenia as `occupier’ of Mountainous Karabagh,
was adopted through the efforts of Turkey.

Erdogan stated that opening the border with Armenia is not ratified in
the Copenhagen resolutions Turkey is to comply with for full
membership in EU, `Turkey cannot be imposed such measures, we do not
accept them. This is Turkey’s decision. Besides, the frame document,
referred to yesterday, states all the conditions of EU. On this basis,
EU negotiations will start October 3′.

President Aliev, answering the question about elections in Iran,
stated that Azerbaijan has good relations with Iran and will try to
keep this level of relations in the period of Ahmedinecad presidency.

Aliev also emphasized the necessity for activating trade relations
between Turkey and Azerbaijan, and pointed to the significance of
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline for both countries and the world
overall.

According to Prime-Minister Erdogan, the turnover between the two
countries will increase up to1 milliard dollars. Erdogan emphasized
that due to the pipeline both countries became an energy corridor
joining the group of three on a par with Georgia. He stated that
President Aliev, by his request, will take part in the ceremony of oil
shipment on a tanker in the port of Ceyhan, October 27.
}

WHAT IS BAS BAKAN THINKING ABOUT
—————————————————————————-
Source: “Zerkalo” newspaper (Azerbaijan) [June 30, 2005]
Author: K. Guluzadeh

Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan Arrived in Baku

On June 29, evening, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
arrived in Baku on a two-day visit. Today, he will have meetings with
President Ilham Aliev, Speaker of Mili Mejlis Murtuz Aleskerov and
Prime Minister Arthur Rasizade.

Besides, Erdogan will make a speech for the Parliament deputies and
have meetings with the Turkish businessmen, working in Azerbaijan.

The ceremony of laying the foundation for the new building of the
Turkish embassy is fixed for the evening.

By the official schedule, Turkish Prime Minister does not plan to meet
the representatives of the opposition and public in Azerbaijan.

In the past two decades, the role of Turkey in the domestic and
foreign policy of Azerbaijan has undergone repeated changes and
transformations. If previously Ankara was a foreign strategic partner
of Baku and Turkey was capable of initiating a power change in
Azerbaijan, now the situation is quite different.

With Erdogan coming to power, Turkey took the course of EU accession.
On this strenuous path, Ankara started to reduce the levers of
pressure in the region of Central Asia, South Caucasus and Middle
East. Cyprus almost abandoned, Iraq headed by a Kurd, withdrawal from
both coasts of the Caspian form an incomplete list of the foreign
policy concessions by Turkey in the race for the much-desired EU
membership. In the context of a truly pragmatic saying about a bird in
the hand being worth two in the bush, Ankara has not moved a single
step on the way to EU, having lost all the previous achievements. No
one has given Turkey any guarantees for accession to the `closed
Christian club’ in the tactical perspective.

It was during Suleyman Demirel’s rule that the omissions started, when
the state interests of Turkey were sacrificed for the economic
interests of the entourage of Turkish Prime Minister. In particular,
it is no secret in Azerbaijan that certain contracts and licenses were
received by the Turkish businessmen through active lobbying of their
interests by S. Demirel.

Further on, Erdogan simply `gave a final strike’ to Turkey’s
withdrawal from Azerbaijan’s domestic policy. His statements
concerning Kurdish protégés within Azerbaijani authorities could
hardly improve bilateral relations. Up to now, the general public is
uncertain about the reasons for the notorious statement of Erdogan and
his refusal to hold further discussions of this issue after such
high-flown accusations.

For the current stage, the relations between the countries are based
on Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline and a common `headache’ in the shape
of Armenia. At the same time, Turkey becomes still more active in
voicing the calls for ignoring the Karabagh issue and opening of
communications with Armenia, as implied by EU. However, the Karabagh
issue is almost the only trump to be used by Turkey, constantly
pressured by the events of 1915 that are qualified by some members of
EU as `Armenian Genocide’. The Turkish representatives, demanding
opening of communications, are allegedly unaware that the main problem
between Ankara and Yerevan is not Karabagh as such, but Armenia’s
territorial claims to Turkey. Opening of communications with Armenia
is a start of implementing the Armenian plan on `getting Western
Armenia back’.

True, on the level of various international organizations Azerbaijani
and Turkish delegates have a common stance and show mutual
support. However, it is just a minor detail inherited from the
previous relations of the two states.

Anyway, the previous proximity was more of advantage to Turkey
-pro-Western at the time – than to Azerbaijan, left with the
alternative of an extra regional payer. The brotherhood was unequal
since Ankara could impact all the processes in Baku with no other
opportunity left for Azerbaijan.

At present, Turkey still remains a state closely supporting
Azerbaijan. However, it is not the support it used to be several years
back. In the relations between the two countries, emotions prevail
over pragmatism.

It is possible that the current visit of Erdogan will show Azerbaijani
authorities that Turkey has interest in the internal political
processes of Azerbaijan. The `velvet’ analysts do not exclude the fact
that USA assigned a certain role to Turkey in November elections,
similarly to Poland and Latvia in the Ukrainian `revolution’. Still,
these are just guesses and suppositions, since Turkey is currently not
a decisive player in the domestic policy of Azerbaijan. For the time
being, it still has a positive role in foreign policy, whereas the
domestic policy of Azerbaijan is now in the hands of other players. }

==========================================================================
INT. STRUCTURES
======================================= ===================================
IT IS NOT TURKEY BUT ITS POSSIBLE STATUS OF US PLENIPOTENTIARY THAT IS
UNACCEPTABLE TO EU
—————————————————————————-
Source: “Azg” newspaper (Armenia) [July 02, 2005]
Author: Hakob Chakrian

On June 29, the European Commission ratified the decision `on starting
negotiations with Turkey, October 3′, adopted at EU summit on December
17, 2004. At the same time, the idea of enlarging Europe did not raise
special enthusiasm, whereas Turkey’s membership in EU provoked serious
protests.

The protests are obvious after the unfavorable political events
allowing the leading media of the world to declare that EU
disintegration is close. It is primarily American and British media
that are concerned.

As for the recent events, they led EU to political and economic
crisis. The political crisis is conditioned by the rejection of a
common European Constitution by France and the Netherlands. The
economic decline is caused by June 16-17 EU summit in Brussels where
the heads of EU member states failed to agree on the common budget. In
the issue of June 22, `Azg’ turned to political and economic crisis in
EU, thinking regress of Union enlargement to the background as natural
under the conditions. `If enlargement is not accompanied by expanding
areas of influence, EU members view as priorities their own national
interests, which leads to internal contradictions’.

It was not an accident. We thus emphasized that the regress of EU
enlargement prospects to the background is not related to the
negotiations for Turkey’s accession but to the crisis that will
inevitably impact the negotiations. In other words, the EU problem is
not so much Turkey’s membership as disproportion of territorial
expansion and areas of influence.

This disproportion is caused by a number of factors, among which the
difference between levels of economic development, pro-American
orientation of new members and candidates for EU membership,
disagreement among England, France and Germany and their competition
for leadership, involvement of other countries in this competition,
constant rivalry of EU and USA, the intention of the latter to impede
the process of transforming EU into an independent pole.

The attempts of EU for rapprochement with Turkey to balance US
influence assign special importance to this state. Its attempts to
improve relations with neighboring Iran and Syria with the prospect
for penetrating the region attract leading European powers.

Therefore despite these protests, EU cannot give up negotiations with
Turkey; otherwise the European Commission would have postponed the
ratification of the decision `on the start of negotiations with
Turkey, October 3′.

Thus, USA also protests against Turkey’s rapprochement with EU. Then,
how can we explain the numerous statements about US support of
Turkey’s EU membership? Apparently, there is an intention of having
one more plenipotentiary within EU alongside England. In this case
Turkey will get into the ranks of the countries taking pro-American
positions. It will lead to the failure of all EU aspirations to get to
Middle East via Turkey and to establish control over the Transcaucasus
and other countries of the region.

This allows assuming that it is not Turkey but its status of US
plenipotentiary that is unacceptable for EU. Apparently, the
government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan does not accept this option, since
at the current stage they have unresolved contradictions with US on
the one hand and no guarantees for Turkey’s EU membership on the
other. }

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Armenian defence chief wants strong army for “dignified” Karabakh talks

Regnum, Moscow
1 Jul 05

1 July: In two years the Armenian armed forces will be fully equipped
with professional officers, Serzh Sarkisyan, secretary of the National
Security Council and minister of defence, has said in an address to
graduates of the Vazgen Sarkisyan Military Academy.

Sarkisyan pointed out that it is necessary to maintain and strengthen
the combat efficiency of the army. “This will give us an opportunity
to carry out dignified negotiations with our enemy and achieve a
solution to the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict that will be favourable
to our people,” Sarkisyan said.

At the same time, the defence minister said that it was important to
improve the country’s armed forces. “We must strive not to lag behind
the best armies of the world. We will resolve this task by 2015.
Remember that the government is able today to supply the Armenian
armed forces with everything necessary in order to prevail over any
enemy,” he said.

Three hundred graduates of the military academy received the rank
of lieutenant today. In line with the defence minister’s directive,
all the graduates were given a rank and a job. Sarkisyan personally
handed diplomas to the best students.

AART DE GESE: ARMENIA IS THE ONLY TRANSCAUCASIAN REPUBLIC, WHERE IT-TECHNOLOGIES ARE DEVELOPING

YEREVAN, JUNE 27. ARMINFO. General Director of world leader in
the sphere of e-design of automatized technologies – the American
company of Synopsys Aart de Gese gave certificates 64 graduates of
the training center Synopsys-Armenia on June 26, which jointly with
the Yerevan Engineering Institute founded Department on training of
chip-design specialists.

“Armenia attracts us rather the high qualification of man power
than its cheapness”, Gese told journalists. He mentioned that the
Synopsys is represented in 60 countries and it is implementing
joint educational projects with 400 universities. According to him,
Armenia is the only TransCaucasian republic, where IT technologies are
developing. “In Georgia and Azerbaijan we have not noticed presence
of high technologies”, he said.

Vahram Muradian, Director of Synopsys-Armenia, which supplies
components and chips to Taiwan, informed ARMINFO that the company
continues to increase the export volumes.

Secretary of the information technologies assistance fund of Armenian
government Armen Grigorian informed journalists, the positive dynamics
in the sphere was continued this year. So, the number of people
engaged in the sphere of IT-technologies increased by 20%. Now about
5,000 specialists work in the sphere of IT-technologies in Armenia.

ILHAM ALIYEV: AZERI ARMY MOST EFFICIENT IN SOUTH CAUCASUS

Pan Armenian News
27.06.2005 04:43

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev stated that
the increase of Azerbaijan’s military expenses is conditioned by the
transportation of the Russian armament from Georgia to Armenia. “It
is true that the military equipment is not conveyed to Armenia,
however this fact makes us undertake appropriate measures and increase
military expenses”, Ilham Aliyev said. In his words, this year the
expenses will make $300 million against $175 million in 2004. “The
strengthening of defense possibilities is essential for the settlement
of the Karabakh conflict. “Our army is the most efficient in the South
Caucasian region. We have achieved superiority and will consolidate our
army. We use all the diplomatic and political possibilities, however
the enemy should know that the Azeri army can be mobilized at any
moment and can liberate the seized territories”, Ilham Aliyev stated.