Author: Tigranian Ani

Azerbaijan Embassy in Hungary asks to improve security of Ramil Safarov

REGNUM NEWS AGENCY
30 MARCH 2006

Azerbaijan embassy in Hungary addressed law enforcement agencies of
the country with a request to provide necessary security to officer
of the Azerbaijani army Ramil Safarov, who is currently arrested on
accusation of murder of an Armenian soldier.

The statement of the embassy says that such address was caused by
Armenian statements that reward of $125 thousand has been announced
for Safarov’s head. So now the embassy is concerned with security of
the officer.

It should be noted, spokesman for the Armenian Progress Party Tigran
Urikhanyan announced a $125 thousand reward for Ramil Safarov’s head.

CHEAP CREDITS PROVIDED TO FARMS AND AGRICULTURAL PROCESSING ENTERPRISES

Noyan Tapan
Mar 29 2006

YEREVAN, MARCH 29, NOYAN TAPAN. The process of crediting of Armenian
farms and agricultural processing enterprises started in Armenia with
10 mln dollars of the International Fund for Agriculture Development
(IFAD) and 5 mln dollars of the World Bank (WB). RA Deputy Minister
of Agriculture Gagik Khachatrian stated this at a round table
“The Food Safety Problems in Armenia” organized by the Aylntrank
Research Center. According to him, the credits are provided at a 10%
annual interest rate, which is considerably lower than the market
rate, for a 7-year period. In the opinion of G. Khachatrian, such
terms of crediting will help increase competitiveness of the the
Armenian agricultural complex’s production on foreign markets. 35
mln USD to be allocated under the respective component of Armenia’s
Millennium Challenge Program will also serve the purpose of advanced
technologies introduction in the agricultural sector. G. Khachatrian
noted that the Armenian agricultural processing companies and the
departments dealing with agricultural export problems regularly
participate in international agricultural exhibitions and forums
abroad. According to the speaker, it is envisaged to display the
production of 15-20 companies of the Armenian food industry at a large
international agricultural exhibition in Paris in early 2008. The
deputy minister said that many Armenian foodstuffs of vegetable origin
are exported to European Union countries, with exports growing each
year. G. Khachatrian noted that the ministry considers every proposal
for exports promotion put forward by representatives of the private
sector.

GRECO IS AGAINST IMMUNITY OF ARMENIAN OFFICIALS

Lragir.am
29 March 06

GRECO, the international organization against corruption, starting
from the report on our country, advises the government of Armenia to
reduce the number of public officials who have immunity. Particularly,
the members of parliament, members of central and divisional electoral
committees are mentioned. Besides, GRECO’s recommendation emphasizes
the importance of reducing the role of the president of Armenia and
the public prosecutor, who make individual decisions, in depriving
judges and the staff of the Office of Public Prosecutor of immunity.

Now under the legislation of Armenia different people receive immunity
in different periods. Only during the local elections several dozens
of thousands of people are granted immunity.

FREIZER: “AZERBAIJAN AND ARMENIA CHOSE TIME GAINING STRATEGY IN SETTLING OF NK CONFLICT”

Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
March 29 2006

The International Crisis Group (ICG) Caucasus Project Director Sabine
Freizer held a presentation of the Nagorno Garabagh conflict within
traditional conference of the US Columbia University.

The ICG office in Tbilisi told APA that the presentation was made
on the reports on the conflict that the ICG made last year. In her
speech, Sabine Freizer said the Nagorno Garabagh conflict is not a
frozen conflict.

“There are still people being killed regularly,” she underlined.

According to Ms. Freizer, both Azerbaijani and Armenian sides consider
that their stances are strengthening as long as the peaceful way of
solution of the conflict is delayed.

Stressing that as many as 19 people have been killed in cease-fire
violations over the past month and 90 people were killed in 2005,
Freizer said outbreak of the war might lead to great harms.

“There are 30 thousand Azerbaijani and 20 thousand Armenian military
men in the front line,” she said.

The ICG representative also reported that the Armenians of Nagorno
Garabagh hope to gaining independence gradually and Azerbaijanis
think that oil and gas revenues will strengthen the Army and provide
an opportunity to resume military operations.

“Both parties have chosen the strategy of gaining time,” Freizer said.

She also added that renewed fighting in Nagorno Garabagh potentially
could involve Russia, Iran, Georgia and Turkey.

PACE TO DISCUSS ISSUES ON REFUGEES IN SOUTH CAUCASUS

Prime News Agency, Georgia
March 28 2006

Tbilisi, March 28 (Prime-News) – Spring session of the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) will be held in Strasbourg
on April 10-13.

Tigran Torosyan, Vice Speaker of Armenian Parliament, head of Armenian
delegation at the PACE stated about that at the press conference.

According to him, agenda of the session includes issues on refugees
and IDPs in Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan.

WORLD BANK GRANTS ALLOCATED TO 7 ARMENIAN NGOs

Noyan Tapan
Mar 27 2006

YEREVAN, MARCH 27, NOYAN TAPAN. 7 Armenian public organizations were
recognized winners on March 24 in the competition of allocating
grants given for implementation of programs directed to civil
participation. As the Noyan Tapan correspondent was informed by the
World Bank’s Yerevan Office, the competition is organized jointly
with the World Bank and the Open Society Institute Assistance Fund,
within the framework of the “Armenia Small Grants” program.

Community Financiers Union of Armenia (CFU) allocated a grant for
increasing the level of democracy in a number of communities of the
marzes of Aragatsotn, Ararat. Shirak, Tavush and Syunik by developing
abilities of public participation, “Kamk ev Korov” (will and might)
NGO gave a grant for raising the level of public awarness and
self-organization among those having ear disorders.

“Sisyan Zargatsman Kentron” (Development Center of Sisyan) will show
assistance by a grant to socially needy families and those being
under women’s tutorship of the town of Sisyan, Syunik marz, and
“Krtutian Asparez” (Field of Education) will care needs connected
with social rehabilitation of teachers of more than 500 secondary
schools lost their work in the result of optimalization of schools
in Gyumri. “Hetaqnnogh lragroghneri ynkeraktsutiun” (Association
of Researching Journalist) will secure transparency of the local
authorities’ activity in a number of communities of the marzes of
Aragatsotn, Gegharkunik, Vayots Dzor and the sub-region of Goris, and
the “Hraparak” (Square) Social Dialogue, Social Assistance organization
will work out the strategy of overcoming poverty in the community of
Kanaker-Zeytun, Yerevan. “Helsinki Civil Assembly Vanadzor Office”
will use the allocated grant for stimulating the dialogue among
the local authorities and inhabitation of the cottage settlement of
the city of Vanadzor. It was mentioned that the World Bank has been
implemented the program of small grants in Armenia already for eight
years. 41 local NGOs got grant of in total 238 thousand U.S. dollars
during this period of time.

EUROPE WON’T STAY IN SHADE OF US AND EUROPE
By Gayane Movsisian

Yerkir.am
March 24, 2006

Karabakh settlement process has been paused. On March 20, the OSCE
Minsk Group co-chairs met in Istanbul to discuss the settlement but
there us news from them so far.

One more report by the International Crisis Group released recently
says the South Caucasus countries are currently engaged in a
no-war-no-peace situation which could transform into military
operations, and Europe will not be prepared for an adequate reaction.

The report says to ensure its own security Europe should engage in
the conflict settlement more actively to avoid wars near Europe’s
borders. “Only recently did Brussels react strongly to those
challenges. Several promising steps were taken but there is still a
long way to go,” said Sabina Fraizer, ICG’s Caucasus Program director.

With a reputation of fair mediator and having both soft and tough
leverage methods, the European Union is in a position to play a greater
role and add to the efforts of the United Nations and the OSCE, the
ICG believes, which suggests that settling the sides should presume
the obligations to settle the conflict through peaceful means only.

Besides, the ICG suggests that a special observer’s status be given
to EU special representative in the talks for Abkhaz, South Ossetian
and Karabakh conflicts.

“The EU has contributed greatly in the work to restore Abkhazia and
South Osetia. It should evaluate what it could do in Karabakh and
adjacent regions,” the report says.

Judging from the statements EU Special chairman Peter Semnebi mad
in Baku during his recent visit the European Union is preparing for
a new role. “My mandate is extended to include large authority to
settle the ‘frozen conflicts.’ I will be carefully watching all the
aspects of conflict situations and then submit recommendations for
the leadership,” said Semnebi, adding also that the EU’s contribution
could be in sending observing missions, peacekeepers or rehabilitation
of the territories. Besides, beginning March 1, 2006, the office of
the OSCE South Caucasus office moved from Finland to Brussels which
is due to growing interest in the region.

Peter Semnebi is set to visit Armenia in April. It is likely that
the EU would assume more active role in the region by then.

SPEAK THE TRUTH: U.S. AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA IN HOT WATER OVER USE OF ‘GENOCIDE.’

Fresno Bee (California)
March 24, 2006 Friday
Final Edition

John Evans, a career diplomat, may be about to discover that speaking
the truth can have severe personal and professional consequences —
especially when it is a truth one’s bosses wish to avoid.

Evans is the American ambassador to Armenia — for now. His
transgression came last February, when he spoke at UC Berkeley,
where he had gone to accept a prestigious award from the American
Foreign Service Association.

In the course of his address, according to the Los Angeles Times and
other news sources, he said that it was “unbecoming of us as Americans
to play word games here. I will today call it the Armenian genocide”
— something The Bee and many others have been saying for years.

Since then, Evans has been made to issue a “correction,” and seen the
State Department force the association to rescind its award. Now his
job is threatened. Shame on the State Department.

Evans was referring, of course, to the actions of the Ottoman Turks
from 1915 to after the end of the First World War. During that time
the Turks killed some 1.5 million Armenian men, women and children,
by most estimates. Their stated reason: The Armenians were supporting
Turkey’s ancient enemy, Russia, in that conflict.

No doubt many Armenians did just that. The enmity between Muslim
Turks and Christian Armenians has run deep for centuries. But the
Turks set out to systematically destroy an entire people, not just
enemy combatants, in the first — though sadly not the last —
genocide of the 20th century. Some Armenians were able to flee,
including the ancestors of the Armenian Americans who’ve made such
valuable contributions to the Valley for many decades.

Several American administrations, abetted by the State Department,
have tiptoed around Turkish sensibilities because of that nation’s
strategic importance on the southern flank of the former Soviet
Union. Whatever merit that pragmatic approach might have once had
vanished with the fall of the communist giant.

Today Turkey desperately wishes to join the European Union, but the
EU has strongly urged that recognition of the genocide be a condition
for Turkish membership.

It’s past time for the State Department, Congress and the
administration to do the same. The facts are plain. The history is
clear. Turkey offends the victims’ survivors with its intransigence,
but hurts itself most of all when it continues to deny what the entire
world knows.

John Evans doesn’t deserve this either.

Panorama.am

14:43 25/03/06

WORK DONE FOR SHOW

The enthusiasm of the participants of the `Tree planting of Unity’
made the chief procurator to review the terms of the program: `I have
already decided and we are going to carry out 10 years of
tree-planting of unity. It’s high time we shifted to concrete words
from empty talks,’ A. Hovsepyan said during tree-planting organized in
`Haghtanak’ (Victory) park. The tree-planting was organized by joint
efforts of Kanaker-Zeytun Community and 50 compatriotic unions.

To note, 15 days ago `Haghtanak’ park was given to the above mentioned
community. Community head Arayik Kotanjyan said: `If we carry out a
good trimming here, we shall restore the trees that were here years
ago. Today 3000 trees are going to be planted in the park territory
of 30 thousand square meters.’

Arayik Kotanjyan also says: `Give me some time and I’ll put the park
in good order.’ And that time is about a year as the irrigation system
works well.

After watching the lovely dancing of juvenile groups the Mayor, the
Procurator and many other officials had a glass of wine blessed by a
priest and got down to work at once. By the way, as the Mayor said the
trees planted last year showed 70% of stickiness. `If we go on working
like this we shall finish establishing green areas in the city in the
coming 2-3 years. Several more years and we shall secure the green
areas determined by the main plan of the city,’ Yervand Zakharyan
assured. As he stated about 90 000 trees will be planted in city areas
having irrigation system this spring instead of 32 000 planted last
year./Panorama.am/

PanARMENIAN.Net

Karabakh: Interests of Parties to Conflict Observed «as Luck Would Have It»

24.03.2006 00:14 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The role of the OSCE in settlement of the conflict
is not that much self-dependent, as it seems to
Azerbaijan. Peculiarities of contemporary policy in the globalization
age are the way, that when deciding core matters of world policy – and
the Nagorno Karabakh conflict refers to those – some consensus is
reached at the EU or UN, Chair of the Standing Commission for Defense
and Security of the Supreme Council of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic
in 1992-1995, Chairman of Tradition NGO Valery Balayan stated in an
interview with a PanARMENIAN.Net reporter. In his words, consensus is
being reached mainly within the interests of large countries, who fund
activities of those organizations, while interests of the parties to
conflict are taken into account «as luck would have it.» This
was true also at division of Yugoslavia, it is observed now when
solving the Kosovo issue and that of Iraq. Thus, those who insist on
it are advised to read Krylov’s fable or recall arithmetic rule on
changing the order of items,» Balayan underscored.