Author: Tashjian Arbi

The Messenger, Georgia
Sept 16 2005

Armenia and Georgia agree to waive vehicles payments

Armenia and Georgia have agreed on a mutual waiver of payments for
vehicles crossing each other’s borders, Armenia’s Transport and
Communication Minister Andranik Manoukyan said at the Armenian
Parliament, ARMINFO reports.
He said that the agreement was concluded during talks in Tbilisi in
early September and will be submitted to the Armenian National
Assembly for approval.
Georgia – Energy – Regions

OCCUPIED AREAS BECOME “CAMP FOR TERRORISTS”, SAYS AZERI OFFICIAL

ANS TV, Baku
12 Sep 05

[Presenter] Occupied territories in the entire word are used to
cultivate narcotic plants and produce drugs. These territories also
are transit routes for narcotics, whereas funds received from these
activities are used to finance international terrorism, the chairman of
the Azerbaijani state committee on drug addiction and drug trafficking,
Ali Hasanov, has said.

[Correspondent, over video of UN conference in Baku] The 40th session
of the UN sub-commission on illicit traffic in the Near and Middle
East opened in Baku today [12 September]. Representatives of the UN
Commission on Narcotic Drugs, the UN Office on Drug and Crime and over
25 [UN] member states are attending the session. Occupied territories
are being used to cultivate narcotic plants and produce drugs, and
these territories are also transit routes for drugs, the chairman of
the Azerbaijani state committee on drug addiction and drug trafficking,
Ali Hasanov, said, opening the session. The funds received from these
activities are used to finance international terrorism. Aggressive
regimes which are behind all this pose a constant threat to the
international public and peace as they violate international legal
principles and norms.

[Ali Hasanov, addressing the session] We understand this very well
as our country is suffering from separatism and terrorism. A total
of 20 per cent of our territories have been occupied by the Armenian
armed forces and as a result, 1m people have became refugees. The most
dangerous thing is that a new international [word indistinct] has been
created in that area. Narcotic plants are being cultivated [there]
to produce and export drugs. At the same time, various international
terrorist groups have turned this territory into their camp as the
territory is beyond control.

[Passage omitted: UN official spoke about the number of drug addicts
and funds received from illegal drug trafficking in the world]

Armenians to Hold an EP Conference on Turkey
By Zaman

Zaman, Turkey
Sept 13 2005

Published: Tuesday, September 13, 2005
zaman.com

The European Armenian Federation with the support of the Christian
Democrats is organizing a “Conference on Turkey” in the European
Parliament (EP) on September 22.

Several important figures including former French Foreign Minister
Michel Barnier are expected to participate in the conference titled
“December 2004-October 2005: Has Turkey Changed?”

Under the auspices of the EP Vice-President Ingo Friedrich, the
conference aims to evaluate the reform process in Turkey and if the
country is ready or not for European Union membership negotiations,
which will start in 10 days time.

However, the fact that the conference is being organized by the
European Armenian Federation, well known with its views against
Turkey, increases the possibility that the meeting could turn into
an anti-Turkey platform.

Apart from Barnier, EP Socialist Group Chair Martin Schulz, EP French
member Jacques Toubon, also known for his views against Turkey,
Armenian Parliament Foreign Relations Committee Chair Armen Rustamyan,
EP Turkey Rapporteur Camiel Eurlings and Pierre Mirel from the European
Commission Directorate-General for EU Enlargement are expected to
take part in the conference.

IS THERE ANY PLACE FOR CHRISTIANS IN THE NEW IRAQ?
by Simon Caldwell

The Times (London)
September 10, 2005, Saturday

Simon Caldwell on the exodus that could follow if Sharia is enshrined
in the constitution.

EXACTLY a week after the London bombings of July 7, two Iraqi bishops
met Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor over dinner at a Roman Catholic
church in Chelsea.

Archbishop Louis Sako, of Kirkuk, and Auxiliary Bishop Andreas Abouna,
of Baghdad, were in the capital on business: they specifically wanted
the cardinal to approach the British Government on behalf of Iraq’s
Christians, who, they said, were fleeing their country at the rate
of 30,000 people a month.

The two Chaldean Catholic leaders wanted Britain to intervene to try
to stop Sharia being incorporated into the draft Iraqi constitution,
fearing that they would become second-class citizens if Islamic
religious law were imposed. Instead they wanted the constitution to
be secular, guaranteeing equality under the law for all Iraqis.

Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor “listened to their concerns”. Under Sharia,
non Muslims are accorded “dhimmi” status under which they may have
to pay special taxes. Since Saddam Hussein was removed in 2003, the
experiences of Baghdad Christian alcohol vendors, for example, have
included visits from the Hawza (Shia religious authorities), who have
extorted cash penalties on the grounds that Sharia was being violated.

Sharia is being enforced with greater vigour in the Shia-dominated
south of the country, where barbers have been attacked for shaving
men of their beards. All women, including Christians -who under Saddam
could wear the latest fashions and make-up, and go to work -are under
pressure to wear the hijab.

Many have escaped for Baghdad and the cities of the north, but even in
Mosul they are made to wear headscarves. Others have sought sanctuary
abroad, principally in Syria and the United States.

The Church in Mesopotamia is one of the oldest in the world; the
majority Christian group, the Chaldeans, still speak Aramaic, the
language of Jesus Christ, and the Assyrian Church of the East was
founded in the region in AD33.

For centuries, such communities have not only coexisted harmoniously
with their Muslim neighbours but have been respected for their
contribution to the life of society. Saddam, a Sunni Muslim,
nationalised their schools in 1971 but he tolerated them, appointing
Tariq Aziz, a Chaldean Christian, as his deputy Prime Minister.

It was only after the first Gulf war that the Christians began to
feel unwelcome in the land they have inhabited for 2,000 years. In
1990 they numbered more than a million. By the outbreak of the second
war the number had shrunk to 800,000 but even then, relations with
Muslims remained cordial.

With the growing insurgency and the radicalisation of the Islamic
factions, Christians found themselves in an awkward position. They
were identified with the Western occupiers by Islamist militants,
and last year churches were targeted in a spate of bombings, yet
at the same time they found themselves excluded from the political
reconstruction of their country by their “Christian” occupiers.

Today, the biggest challenge to the Christian community is the
postwar settlement.

“There is a danger that we could have religious government,” Bishop
Abouna said.

“If we mix them both together -politics and religion -it will be
chaos. It will destroy everything.”

Bishop Abouna was chaplain to the Chaldean community in London
until his episcopal ordination by Pope John Paul II in 2003. He
once defended the American presence in his country on the grounds
that Iraq needed help in security and development. Soon afterwards
he protested, along with other Christian leaders, when Paul Bremer,
the American civil administrator of Iraq -and a Catholic – refused
to allow a Christian representative on the interim governing council.

Nor were any Christians invited to take a seat in the interim Iraqi
government after elections this year, although great efforts were
made to include every other “ethnic” faction. When the constitution
was drafted, there was no one at the table to press the case for the
Christian minority.

The Christian leaders decided to make their voices heard. At the
end of June, a group of ten Chaldean, Orthodox, Syriac, Armenian
and Evangelical leaders sent a joint letter to the Iraqi interim
President Jalal Talabani, the Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari and the UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan to say that they feared discrimination if
Sharia was enshrined in the constitution. “If there is a move towards
the confirmation of the role of the Islamic religion in Iraqi society,
then it is only natural to confirm the role of other religions that
have been historically established in Iraq,” they said.

They were ignored, even after Pope Benedict XVI received assurances
from the Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebar, during a meeting
in Castelgandolfo, Italy, last month, that their rights would be
guaranteed. The constitution had missed its August 15 deadline,
partly because of wrangling over the role of Islam, but the final
document asserted, in Article 29(a), that “no law can be passed that
contradicts the undisputed rules of Islam”.

According to Neville Kyrke-Smith, the UK director of Aid to the Church
in Need, a Catholic charity working to help persecuted Christians,
Iraqi Church leaders are concerned that under such a settlement the
remaining 650,000 Christians “will be wiped out”.

A fortnight ago, in a call from Baghdad, Bishop Abounaagain asked
Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor to intercede. This time the cardinal
responded by writing a letter to Jack Straw in which he warned
the Foreign Secretary that the constitution posed a “real threat”
to religious freedom, that it meant “devastating consequences for
minority rights” and that there would be an “exodus of Christians”
fleeing the rule of the mullahs.

“A stable and democratic Iraq, which I know the British Government
seeks, can only be constructed on respect for the human rights of
all citizens,” the cardinal told Mr Straw last week. “I would urge
you, therefore, to use your office to influence the parties to the
constitution to enshrine specific guarantees which establish the
equality of non-Muslims.”

The Foreign Office, however, insists that “Iraq is a sovereign country
and it is up to them how they vote and draft their constitution. It
is not our prerogative to steer the course of decision-making.”

The cardinal, in any case, was overtaken by events. On Wednesday it
was announced that the constitution had been finalised and sent to
the printers: there will be no more changes before a referendum on
October 15.

Iraq’s Christians have had a bad war of liberation. They constitute
only 3 per cent of the population, perhaps their only hope for equal
rights now lies with the Sunnis of Fallujah, Ramadi, Tikrit and Samarra
who are likely to reject the constitution for reasons of their own.

Georgian president outlines three-stage development strategy

Imedi TV, Tbilisi
9 Sep 05

Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili has said that his government is
following a “three-stage programme” of the country’s development. At
his first news conference after the summer holiday season, broadcast
by Imedi TV and other Georgian networks, Saakashvili said that the
first stage of the programme focused on reforming the “state
apparatus”. The purpose of the second stage is to implement major
infrastructure and energy projects. The third stage will create more
jobs and lead to economic prosperity, Saakashvili said. All three
stages of the plan serve the “ultimate” goal of “uniting Georgia”, he
noted.

Answering a question about the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South
Ossetia, Saakashvili said that finding a “new form of relations with
Russia” was crucial to resolve the conflicts. He also stressed that
“for the first time in many years”, the United States had “expressed
its readiness to get directly involved in the settlement of conflicts
in Georgia”. Saakashvili also commented on the situation in Ukraine
and the freedom of press in Georgia. The following is an excerpt from
the live broadcast by Imedi TV on 9 September; subheadings have been
inserted editorially:

Three-stage programme

[Presenter] In a few minutes, the Georgian president will hold a news
conference in the State Chancellery for Georgian and foreign
journalists. Now we will go live to the State Chancellery.

[Saakashvili] Hello everyone. I am very glad to see your relaxed
faces. I hope you had good holidays over the summer. I have not held a
news conference for a few months and I think you have questions. I
also want to review recent developments.

Probably all of you travelled around Georgia in the summer and noticed
many changes happening in our country. If you visited the Black Sea
coast and went there by car, you could not fail to notice that for the
first time in the last 15 years there were no potholes on the road
from Tbilisi to the coast. The road has been repaired. If you
travelled by train, you could see a new, comfortable Ukrainian train
on which my family and I travelled, too. If you visited Borjomi, you
could see the most beautiful and modern park in the former Soviet
Union, although it still needs some improvements. [Passage omitted:
says the number of tourists at Georgian resorts this summer reached
the level of the late 1980s, says the national university entrance
tests were a great achievement]

I would like to say that we are following a plan. We should understand
that we are not doing anything in a chaotic way. From the very first
day we came to power, we had a plan of what to do. The first stage was
reforming the state apparatus. Nothing could be changed in this
country without a state apparatus. We started our purge from the
chancellery, police, prosecutor’s office, tax department, and our
armed forces have been created from scratch. Reforming the state
apparatus was the first stage, there could be no changes without
that. We spent the first year on the new patrol [police] force, new
ministries, a new tax service which has resulted in a manifold
increase in the collection of taxes, so now we have some money to
spend.

The second stage of our development, which started this year, in the
spring, is about creating infrastructure in Georgia, roads and energy
facilities.

[Passage omitted: talks about road construction projects in various
parts of Georgia, repair works on hydropower plants and other energy
projects]

When we finish this second stage, although this is a permanent
process, because the new highways will need repairs, and electricity
consumption will be constantly rising, but as soon we have these two
stable factors against the background of very low corruption, our main
task will be economic development in general and creation of
jobs. This is the third stage of our reforms. This is a three-stage
programme. [Passage omitted: explains that new jobs cannot be created
without stable energy supplies] If our business sector is also active,
we will be able to create hundreds of thousands of new jobs through
cooperation between the state and the business community. [Passage
omitted: repetition]

These three stages will enable us to achieve our main goal, the
unification of Georgia. It will be possible only if we pass these
three stages in a correct and timely manner. [Passage omitted: says
that state investments in health care, the pension system and sports
facilities will continue, stresses the importance of integration of
the ethnic Armenian-populated Javakheti region] A few days ago the
Gonio firing range was handed over to us [by Russia]. It went almost
unnoticed. You may remember that when I first raised this issue in
Batumi a year ago, many people in one of our neighbouring countries
described my statement as an act of provocation. They said it was
impossible and it would never happen. So, less than a year has passed
since then, and the Georgian flag is already there. We have recovered
several hundred hectares of excellent beaches. We have restored
Georgia’s sovereignty over this land. Now we are building a new
international airport nearby, in Batumi, and we are building another
international airport in Tbilisi.

This is what I wanted to say. Now I am ready to answer your hostile
questions [smiles].

Ukraine

[Question] Irma Gegechkori, Imedi TV. Will the current government
crisis in Ukraine affect Georgian-Ukrainian relations? Have you spoken
to President Viktor Yushchenko on the phone?

[Saakashvili] Yushchenko is my friend. In general, the situation in
Ukraine will of course affect the situation in Georgia because
Georgia’s revolution and its development after the revolution would
have been impossible without Ukraine’s success. Ukraine is helping us
politically. It is very important. You know that we have made a
historic decision to create a new coalition of democratic
states. Georgia and Ukraine have now been joined by Lithuania. We are
working with other countries. Poland is actively involved too. By
taking these steps, Georgia will obtain international guarantees to
protect the country’s integrity, our freedom and development
prospects.

We have close economic relations and we cooperate in many other,
sensitive spheres too. Therefore, Ukraine’s success is our success.
Ukraine’s failure would negatively affect Georgia. I believe that
Viktor Yushchenko’s decision was very brave. I have excellent
relations with [former Prime Minister] Yuliya Tymoshenko as well, but
Viktor Yushchenko is the main player there. His courageous decision
cannot but bring about good results. He said that he was going to
consolidate the government as a united team. We do not have this
problem in Georgia. Our government has always been united. It seems
that there were certain problems in Ukraine, as the president himself
said. I cannot say more.

I just want to say that in my opinion Ukraine has enormous
potential. Their success is absolutely crucial for us.

I think that Ukraine has a great future. For us, it is so important
what is happening there, their revolution was so important, our
friendship is so important that sometimes I find it hard to believe
that this is really happening.

God save us from something going wrong there. I am an optimist because
I know these people. I know Viktor Yushchenko. He has great
potential. He is very competent and principled man. I also know that
he and I are stuck in the throats of many people, so to speak, you can
see it every day, but they will not be able to harm us. Everything
will be all right.

Separatist conflicts, Russia’s role, possible US involvement

[Question] Malkhaz Oniani, Public TV. According to the Georgian
authorities, the process of militarization in Abkhazia and the
Tskhinvali region [South Ossetia] has become more active. If this is
true, is there any threat of destabilization? Is it possible that
Georgia may reject the current peacekeeping format? Are you going to
propose a new peacekeeping format at the UN General Assembly in New
York?

[Saakashvili] Of course we are closely watching developments in
Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region. I have to say that the ongoing
process of militarization there, which, let’s say things as they are,
Russia is facilitating, and the process of handing over new arms is a
very unfortunate fact. I don’t think this is in Russia’s
interests. This is a response to Georgia’s strengthening and
development in general.

I think that we should find a new form of relations with Russia. Among
other things, I think that in connection with the conflict in South
Ossetia [changes tack] There is no Ossetian problem in Georgia. There
is a problem in Georgian-Russian relations with respect to certain
territories. I have repeatedly said that Russia is a great country
with lots of territories, but its borders certainly do not lie on the
Inguri river or the Ergneti market. Russia too knows this very
well. We have to clarify our relations with respect to these
territories. I am certain that we can organize a high-level
international conference on South Ossetia with the participation of
the Americans. For the first time in many years, the Americans have
expressed their readiness to get directly involved in the settlement
of conflicts in Georgia. We are ready to take part in the high-level
conference, together with the Americans, the OSCE and the Russians,
which will finally resolve the issue of a peaceful settlement in this
region. This will be the first stage.

The main goal of my life is Abkhazia. I am not going to slow down, we
are working on this very actively, too. [Passage omitted: says that
time is on Georgia’s side and that Ajaria should become an example for
Abkhazia, recalls how Georgian police managed to arrest “terrorist
suspects” in South Ossetia]

We are no longer afraid. We know it and they know too that we are able
to respond to any act of provocation. However, we will do everything
we can to avoid armed confrontation. Unfortunately, while Georgia and
our allies in Washington and elsewhere are actively working on this,
the other side is not yet working on this issue. I raised this issue
in my conversation with [Russian] President Putin. Now we are waiting
for a more pragmatic answer from them.

These territories cannot be kept outside Georgia’s sovereignty, that
is not achievable. Any attempts to draw parallels with other countries
will fail.

These territories are parts of Georgia, they were parts of Georgia and
they are parts of Georgia today in the eyes of the whole world, and
they will always be. So, the sooner these problems are resolved, the
better for everyone. On the other hand, the stronger we are, the
sooner these problems will be resolved. Time is on our side. We are in
a hurry, I am in a hurry. As you know, I am not a very patient man,
but it turns out that my team-mates and myself, you and our public
have a lot more patience than others thought. It is not easy to drag
us into any kind of provocation. So, we are growing, but, on the other
hand, everything has an end.

A few days ago I visited [the village of] Anaklia [in Zugdidi
District]. I was simply interested to see the excellent beach there. I
travelled on a motor boat from Kobuleti and then some fishermen helped
us. I was there with one of my bodyguards. The population received us
very well. For the first time this year, the number of people visiting
Anaklia doubled or tripled, just like in Ajaria, although conditions
in Anaklia are worse. There is a post of the Russian peacekeeping
force there, near the family which I was visiting, in the centre of
Anaklia, in a former sanatorium. I did not notify anyone in
advance. So, when these soldiers saw that we were there, they were put
on alert and assumed combat positions. It was quite funny to look at
them, you know, but this is absurd. This is Georgian territory, but
when the Georgian president arrives, troops are put on alert. You can
see what kind of situation we have inherited.

Therefore, we, together with Russia, should resolve this problem and
get out of this embarrassing and inexplicable situation. We want to
resolve everything peacefully, but, as you know, every issue in
history has its dialectic and logic. Just as we resolved the issue of
the pullout of the Russian bases, we will resolve all other
controversial issues between Georgia and Russia.

These issues were not created by the current Russian leadership or by
us.

However, these problems have become deeper as a response to Georgia’s
strengthening.

But these problems will be resolved. [Passage omitted: repetition] I
repeat, for the first time, the Americans have said that they will get
directly involved in the peace process. This has been published in the
foreign press. Our partners in Russia know this too. So, we all should
be working together on this issue. The status quo cannot be
maintained. Everything should be resolved peacefully and we will
prevent acts of provocation, but the status quo cannot be
maintained. If someone thinks that they can keep us under their feet
as long as these problems are unresolved, they are very
wrong. Everyone with common sense understands this.

[Passage omitted: answering the next question, Saakashvili says that
the increase in fuel prices is a major concern not only for Georgia
but also for the whole world]

Media freedom

[Question] Rusiko Machaidze, Rezonansi newspaper. Mr President, you
have described Georgia’s achievements over the past year, but in
recent months pressure on the freedom of expression has emerged as the
main problem. What can you say about that?

[Saakashvili, smiles] I want to tell you that I am proud of the
freedom of the press in Georgia. Moreover, democracy is the best
system generally, for the whole world, and especially for our country
because our people are very smart. Why is democracy the best system?
Because smart and gifted people can realize their abilities well while
fools can express their foolishness very well too. This is an ideal
situation. Why should one keep fools from expressing their
foolishness? [Passage omitted: says that the authorities will only
benefit if fools are allowed to reveal their stupidity]

By the way, I want to tell you a story I heard from a journalist. What
is the difference between some Russian TV channels and your [Georgian]
channels?

When a person in a Russian province watches TV, he thinks: Well, I’m
not doing particularly well, I don’t feel well, roads are not being
repaired around here and the economy is not developing, but at least
the country as a whole is doing well, so I am happy. When our people
watch Georgian channels, they think: Well, roads have been repaired,
my pension or salary is paid on time and increasing, my children’s
school has been refurbished, and I enjoyed good holidays this year,
but the situation in the country seems so awful. That’s the difference
[laughing]. You know that this is true. This is an ordinary
situation. In a democracy the press is always hunting for negative
stories.

[Passage omitted: recalls his meeting with a Tbilisi pensioner,
general comments on the importance of free media for democracy;
answering a “BBC question” from unidentified journalist – “who runs
your world?” – Saakashvili says that his fate is in the hands of the
Georgian people]

Official: U.S is not seeking extradition of man who admitted throwing
grenade toward Bush

.c The Associated Press

TBILISI, Georgia (AP) – Georgia’s interior minister said Thursday that
a man who admitted throwing a live grenade toward U.S. President
George W. Bush during a rally in the ex-Soviet nation will face
justice at home.

Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili said that the United States had
not asked for the extradition of Vladimir Arutyunian, who was indicted
Wednesday by a U.S. grand jury on charges of trying to assassinate the
president.

“The United States trusts the Georgian justice and law enforcement
agencies, and it hasn’t made an extradition request,” Merabishvili
said at a news conference.

Arutyunian already faces terrorism and murder charges in Georgia
stemming from the May 10 incident in Tbilisi and the killing of a
policeman in a shootout before his arrest in July. Merabishvili says
that the charges carry a punishment of life imprisonment – the same
punishment that he would face in the United States.

Bush and Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili were behind a
bulletproof barrier addressing a rally of thousands in Tbilisi in May
when the grenade, wrapped in a plaid cloth, landed about 100 feet
away. It did not explode; investigators said it apparently
malfunctioned. No one was harmed.

In a video broadcast on Georgian television, Arutyunian said he
intended to spray shrapnel over the bulletproof glass.

Autyunian got a new private lawyer Thursday to replace a lawyer
provided by the state.

09/08/05 13:53 EDT

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION TO BE DISCUSSED IN U.S. CONGRESS

Pan Armenian News
07.09.2005 06:59

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian Genocide legislation appears set to come
before the influential House International Relations Committee as
early as Wednesday, September 14-th. H.Res.316, which was introduced
by Representatives George Radanovich (R-CA), Adam Schiff (D-CA), and
Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Joe
Knollenberg (R-MI), calls upon the President to ensure U.S. foreign
policy reflects appropriate understanding of the Armenian Genocide. The
resolution includes thirty detailed findings from past U.S. hearings,
resolutions and Presidential statements, as well as references to
statements by international bodies and organizations. This measure,
which is in the process of being amended, reaffirms the Armenian
Genocide within the broader context of regional relationships and
addresses Turkey’s efforts to join the European Union. The Turkish
Ambassador and his lobbyists – including the Livingston Group – are
actively making the rounds to members of the International Relations
Committee, seeking to block any action on U.S.

reaffirmation of the Armenian Genocide. As part of this effort, the
Livingston Group has been distributing a four-page genocide-denial
document to Congressional offices, Yerkir Online reports.

COURT UPHOLDS CITIZENSHIP FOR ARMENIANS
By Gillian Flaccus

The Associated Press
09/06/05 22:36 EDT

LOS ANGELES (AP) – A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that a
judge did not err in granting U.S. citizenship to two Armenian men
convicted more than 20 years ago of planning to bomb the Turkish
Consulate in Philadelphia.

The decision by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ends a long
struggle by Viken Hovsepian and Viken Yacoubian, who plotted to bomb
the consulate in retaliation for the mass killings of Armenians during
Ottoman rule in 1915.

The men, who have been out of prison since the early 1990s, now
have doctorates, have renounced violence and are volunteers in the
Armenian-American community, said Mathew Millen, an attorney who
helped handle the immigration portion of their case.

Federal law currently forbids convicted terrorists from becoming
citizens. But anyone convicted of an aggravated felony before November
1990 can be granted citizenship if they have been “of good moral
character” for five years prior to their application, Millen said.

The federal government fought the citizenship application, contending
the men lied on certain portions of their applications. The 9th Circuit
affirmed Tuesday a lower court opinion that the alleged “lies” were
actually misunderstandings or oversights.

“We accept the court’s ruling, as we do with any ruling,” said Thom
Mrozek, spokesman for the U.S. attorney in Los Angeles.

The men were in their early 20s when they and two others were arrested
in 1982 after authorities tape-recorded them planning the bombing.

Hovsepian was sentenced to six years in prison in 1984, while Yacoubian
was sentenced to three years in prison and 1,000 hours of community
service.

ARMENTEL REGISTERS 67.8% GROWTH IN NET PROFIT IN JAN-JUNE 2005

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 5. ARMINFO. The net profit of the ArmenTel telecom
company grew by 67.8% to 14.6 mln EUR in Jan-June 2005 as against
Jan-June 2004, reports OTE, the Greek company owning 90% of ArmenTel.

The operating income grew by 66.7% to 16.5 mln EUR. The operating
revenues grew by 33.3% to 51.6 mln EUR. The operating income before
depreciation and amortization grew by 40.6% to 30.5 mln EUR. The
number of fixed telephone lines grew by 3.2% to 587,891. The number
of mobile phone customers grew by 87.4% to 257,679.

OTE bought 90% of ArmenTel in late 1997 for $142.47 mln. The remaining
10% belongs to the Armenian Government.

ZOURABICHVILI CALLS FOR GEORGIA TO BE “REGIONAL LEADER”

The Messenger, Georgia
Sept 6 2005

The gathering of representatives of Georgia’s diplomatic corps in
Batumi on September 2-3 was the largest such meeting in the last
9 years. Minister of Foreign Affairs Salome Zourabichvili said the
agenda covered the most important issues for the country’s foreign
policy: European and NATO integration and the necessity of attracting
European investment into the country. However, rousing the most media
interest at the meeting was Zourabichvili’s statement that Georgia
should strive to achieve the position of “regional leader.”

At the conference in Batumi, which brought together Georgian diplomats
accredited in 29 countries, Zourabichvili mentioned that Georgia should
try to gain the position of leader in the South Caucasus. “Being
a leader in the region is the most important issue for us. We need
this in order to be at the top of new movements and directions of
development,” she said, as quoted by the newspaper Akhali Taoba.

Observers think that the fact that such a statement was made by one
of the country’s top leaders is significant in itself, though as
Rezonansi reports, some state that the Minister of Foreign Affairs
should not make such bold pronouncements and that doing so is the
job of only the president or at least the prime minister.

It is clear that the proclamation about regional leadership does
not extend past the South Caucasus, because Georgia’s more distant
regional neighbors include countries such as Turkey, Iran and
Ukraine, to say nothing of Russia. It is fair to question, however,
Georgia’s capabilities to lead even within the small South Caucasus
region. Economics is the most basic precondition for any talk about
leadership. Is Georgia strong enough economically to even think of
being a regional leader?

In 2006 Azerbaijan will receive USD 5 billion in revenues from the
BTC oil pipeline alone. Also, Azerbaijan is twice as big as Georgia
in terms of population. Armenia has a vast and wealthy Diaspora
abroad. Moreover, Georgia is dependent not only on Azerbaijan
for energy resources, but also on Armenia, from which it receives
electricity in winter. In addition, the income per capita is greater
in both Azerbaijan and Armenia, though Georgia could theoretically
make use of the advantages it has given its geopolitical situation
and gain the upper hand, reports Rezonansi.

Others believe the Minister of Foreign Affairs’ statement about
regional leadership refers mainly to democratic reform. Namely,
that Georgia will try to pass reforms earlier than its neighbors. In
addition, Georgia should become a leader in European and Euro-Atlantic
integration issues. “Perhaps those countries supporting Georgia in
its integration into NATO and EU will give the country the role
of regional leader,” one anonymous expert is quoted as saying in
Rezonansi. One international figure encouraging Georgia to take such
a role is the president of PACE Rene van der Linden, who during an
August visit to Tbilisi called on Georgia to take a lead role in the
peaceful resolution of regional conflicts. “Georgia must become an
example for the whole region,” Linden said.

Georgia-Russian relations were another of the major issues on the table
at the Batumi meeting. Minister Zourabichvili stated that normalizing
relations with Russia is a pertinent issue for the foreign policy of
Georgia. The government has taken a lot of important steps to this end,
though according to Zourabichvili, they are not enough. “We are glad
that Russian military bases are leaving Georgia. But we are quite
far from normalizing our relations once and for all. We should all
take effective steps in this area,” said Zourabichvili.

The ministry named the attraction of investments as one of the top
priorities of Georgian ambassadors. “You are not only political,
but also economic ambassadors. We need a strong economy to have
a successful foreign policy. We want a strong economy. Thus the
most important objective of your activities should be attracting
investments,” said Salome Zourabichvili. The ambassadors are now tasked
with disseminating information about Georgia’s economic development
and the privatization processes underway in the country.

The 24 Ambassadors present at the meeting – Ambassadors to the United
States Levan Mikeladze, Russia Irakli Chubinashvili, as well as the
ambassador to Poland were unable to attend – have received their new
agenda for the next year. But for the most ambitious tasks ahead –
attracting foreign investments, promoting Georgia as a regional leader,
and normalizing relations with Russia – they must rely heavily on
officials in Tbilisi to do their job first of all.