Author: Vasilian Manouk

Trend News Agency, Azerbaijan
April 11 2010

Turkey wants OSCE Minsk Group to be more active to ensure peace in the region

11.04.2010 22:34
Turkey wants OSCE Minsk Group to be more active to ensure peace and
tranqulity in the region, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
said at a press conference before flying to Washington, Cihan agency
reported.

"We have discussed this topic with Obama, Medvedev and Sarkozy. In
America, we’ll meet again and evaluate the issue during bilateral
meetings," Erdogan said.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian
armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992,
including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994.

The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group – Russia, France, and the U.S. –
are currently holding the peace negotiations.

According to Erdogan, the main theme of his talks with Obama will be
issues related to Armenia. Turkish Prime Minister said has sent his
personal representative to Azerbaijan and Armenia to, who told his
message to President Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sargsyan.

"In the U.S. we will have the opportunity to evaluate our efforts" –
the prime minister said.

Xinhua General News Service, China
April 8, 2010 Thursday 11:10 AM EST

Turkey reaffirms goal to normalize relations with Armenia

ANKARA April 8

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu Thursday reaffirmed Turkey’s
goal to normalize ties with Armenia despite the stalled reconciliation
process.

Turkey and Armenia have had a vision since they signed protocols last
October to normalize ties and open borders and this vision never
changed, Davutoglu told a joint press conference with visiting Greek
Alternate Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas here.

"We believe we’ll normalize our relations with Armenia thanks to our
vision," he told reporters.

He said a senior Turkish diplomat held fruitful talks on the peace
move in Armenia this week and would travel to Azerbaijan on Friday to
negotiate the issue.

The special envoy arrived in Armenia on Wednesday with a letter from
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Armenian President
Serzh Sargsyan, in which Erdogan called on Sargsyan to fulfill
obligations in the normalization bid, Turkish media reported.

The two presidents are expected to meet on the sidelines of a nuclear
summit in Washington due in mid-April.

The peace move between Turkey and Armenia has made slow progress since
normalization protocols were signed last October. It suffered a blow
after a U.S. congressional panel and the Swedish parliament last month
passed resolutions that recognize Armenia’s "genocide" claim.

Turkey and Armenia have no diplomatic or economic ties and are bogged
down in a long-time row over the killings of Armenians during the
World War I, which Armenia brands as a genocide. Turkey strongly
denies that and has argued the Armenians were victims of widespread
chaos and governmental breakdown as the Ottoman Empire collapsed
before modern Turkey was founded in 1923.

AZERBAIJANI MP CONSIDERS IMPORTANT TO ESTABLISH WESTERN AZERBAIJANI EMIGRANT GOVERNMENT

Trend
April 8 2010
Azerbaijan

The idea of creating the Western Azerbaijani emigrant government must
be supported, said deputy chairperson of the Azerbaijani parliamentary
committee.

"The idea of the Western Azerbaijani emigrant government is very
serious, and I am a supporter of this initiative," deputy chairperson
of the Azerbaijan Parliament’s committee on international relations
and parliamentary relations, Gultekin Hajibeyli, told Trend on April 8.

The mass deportation of Azerbaijanis from Armenia in the 20th century
is divided into four phases – 1948-1956, 1987-1988. Statistical data
and archival documents indicate that as a result, from Armenia more
than 1.5 million Azerbaijanis were expelled from their historical
lands. After the formation of the Armenian soviet republic, upon the
decision of the supreme council of Armenia, Armenian names were given
to 698 out of the 940 settlements, where Azerbaijanis lived and which
carried Azerbaijani names. However, the Armenians did not stop there.

Renaming continued after the complete deportation of Azerbaijanis from
Armenia. The former president of Armenia Levon Ter-Petrosian issued
an order on April 9, 1991, changing the names of the last settlements
of Azerbaijanis – 91 settlements – to which were given Armenian names.

The oblivion of people who lived in Western Azerbaijan, whose number
may now be millions, would be the oblivion that the Western Azerbaijani
lands belong to the Turks. "From this point of view, this idea needs
to be kept on the agenda. At the same time, if today Turks do not
live in Western Azerbaijan, it does not mean that they will not live
there after 50 years. History repeats itself, and I am sure that the
lands will someday be returned to first owners – the Turks," she said.

Serious efforts to implement this idea could give new leverage to
Azerbaijan in settling the Karabakh conflict, lasting for more than 22
years. "I think that as the realization of this idea, and presenting
to agenda the Megrin corridor between Nakhchivan and Azerbaijan in
the end will lead to strengthening of Azerbaijan’s position in ongoing
negotiations," said Hajibeyli.

Today, when the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding occupied
regions is the topic of negotiations, the issue of return of
Azerbaijanis to the western lands of Azerbaijan in Armenia, where
they formerly lived densely, is not presented to the agenda. "This
creates a serious imbalance in the negotiating process. I think
that if one of the points on which we must be very persistent is
Megri corridor, the other important point is precisely the return
of Western Azerbaijanis to their historical lands. From this point
of view, I think that all have not lost, and we can return to this
issue at any time," said the MP.

AGHET – EIN VOLKERMORD DOCUMENTARY ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE SCREENED IN BERLIN

PanARMENIAN.Net
April 8, 2010 – 15:46 AMT 10:46 GMT

Berlin hosted the screening of Eric Friedler’s Aghet – Ein Volkermord
documentary on Armenian Genocide, which brings the words of diplomats,
engineers and missionaries to life.

The 90-minute film features an ensemble of 23 German actors narrating
the original texts in simple interviews that derive their effectiveness
from the selection of texts and the presentation rather than a
dramatization of history.

The screening held at Babylon cinema was attended by German
politicians, foreign diplomats and Armenian community representatives.

Following the screening, Armenian Ambassador to Germany Armen
Martirosyan and film director Eric Friedler held a Q&A session,
RA Foreign Ministry press office reported.

ANCA CALLS ON US PRESIDENT TO HONOR HIS PLEDGE ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Yerkir
08.04.2010 14:40
Yerevan

Yerevan (Yerkir) – The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA)
has again asked US President Barack Obama to honor his campaign
promise to recognize the Armenian Genocide.

The one-page letter, signed by ANCA Chairman Ken Hachikian and sent in
the days leading up to President Obama’s second April 24th in office,
asks, simply, that President Obama keep his commitment and "stand for
a policy that is truthful, just, and worthy of the American people."

Hachikian also addressed two points of special concern that have
further compounded the anger and outrage felt by Armenian American
voters over the President’s broken promise; his pressure on Armenia
to accept the one-sided, pro-Ankara Protocols; his support for
Turkey’s "historical commission" denial tactic; and his attacks
on the Armenian Genocide Resolution.

"As citizens, we simply call upon you, as our President, to honor
your own commitments. We ask only that you keep faith with your own
understanding of the Armenian Genocide and the modern-day consequences
of this still unresolved crime against humanity. We expect simply
that you stand for a policy that is truthful, just, and worthy of
the American people," the letter reads. "I would also respectfully
ask you to consider, as you prepare your remarks, that April 24th
represents a profoundly solemn remembrance for our community and for
all who care about the painful legacy of this horrific crime.

We look to the White House to mark this day sincerely and not, as
has too often been the case, to view it as an opportunity to present
a policy statement on the region. An explanation of U.S. priorities
regarding Armenia-Turkey relations or other current foreign policy
issues, while certainly entirely appropriate in other settings,
clearly does not belong in a Presidential April 24th statement, just
as a statement of U.S. policy on the Israel-Arab peace process would
not be appropriate in Presidential remarks devoted to remembering
the Holocaust."

EUROPEAN COMMISSIONER: NOW IS THE TIME TO TAKE EXTRA STEPS FOR PEACEFUL NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT SOLUTION

Today
65605.html
April 7 2010
Azerbaijan

European Commissioner Stefan FULE has released an article on the
occasion of his upcoming visit to Azerbaijan on 9 April 2010. Below
is the text of the article.

More than just energy: Bringing Azerbaijan closer to the EU

As the European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy
I want to ensure that the EU and Azerbaijan fully exploit the potential
of cooperation.

Azerbaijan is a key partner for the European Union for many reasons.

The country’s geostrategic location at the crossroads of Europe, the
Middle East and Asia, and its energy resources are only two of them.

Azerbaijan has confirmed its ambition to make full use of the
opportunities offered by the European Neighbourhood Policy and
the Eastern Partnership, the EU framework for cooperation with its
Eastern partners.

Energy is central to our relationship. Azerbaijan plays a key role as
a producer and also for transit. Europe offers an attractive market
for producers who wish to diversify their customer structure. This
provides the basis for a constructive relationship which is of benefit
both to Azerbaijan and Europe.

We count on Azerbaijan’s continued commitment to help us develop the
Southern Corridor which will provide for the shipping of gas from
Azerbaijan and the wider region to Europe. European companies are
prime investors in developing Azerbaijan’s full export potential of
hydrocarbon products.

The Eastern Partnership provides significant opportunities to
strengthen EU-Azerbaijan cooperation, beyond energy. It offers
a number of concrete steps to strengthen ties between the EU and
partner countries. Let me highlight two of them.

First, the intended negotiation of an Association Agreement will
pave the way for a broader and deeper partnership between the EU and
Azerbaijan. This includes the objective of a deep and comprehensive
Free Trade Area, as a key instrument to provide in due course
Azerbaijan with access to the EU market of 500 million consumers.

This will increase trade and investment between the EU and Azerbaijan
and help generate further economic growth and jobs in Azerbaijan,
including in sectors other than energy. We will help Azerbaijan in
its efforts to join the World Trade Organisation which is a necessary
step before the EU can negotiate a free trade area with Azerbaijan.

Secondly, the Eastern Partnership has set the long term goal of making
visa free travel possible between Azerbaijan and the EU. This is an
ambitious prospect, to which citizens from both the EU and Azerbaijan
pay a lot of attention. We will work with our partners in Azerbaijan
to make sure the necessary steps are taken so that one day their
citizens could enjoy free travel to Europe.

This in turn means that Azerbaijan allows us to move forward in our
relationship while delivering on some other issues. In particular,
strengthening respect for the rule of law and democratisation and
Human Rights is very important. This is not only for the benefit
of increased cooperation with the EU, but first and foremost for
the benefit of Azerbaijan’s citizens. In undertaking these reforms,
Azerbaijan can continue to count on the EU full support.

The EU also wants to promote peace across the region. As Commissioner
for Enlargement and the Neighbourhood Policy, I will give my full
support to Baroness Ashton – the EU’s High Representative for Foreign
Affairs and Security Policy and Vice President of the Commission
– as she seeks to ensure full implementation of the Lisbon Treaty
instruments to provide for single, integrated and effective external
policy. Stepping up the EU’s efforts in support of a settlement of
the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh should be a part of this proactive
approach. I appreciate the will and work done so far by both Presidents
to speed up peace talks. It is now time to go the extra mile that
can pave the way for a peaceful solution to this conflict.

The European Union and Azerbaijan have a mutual interest in developing
a broad and stable relationship.

This will benefit the people of Azerbaijan and of the EU, as our
credibility on the international stage depends on our capacity to
shape a peaceful and prosperous neighbourhood.

Stefan Fule, EU Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy

WITHOUT KARABAKH STATUS DETERMINATION, OTHER ISSUES HARDLY TO BE SOLVED: RA FM

news.am
April 7 2010
Armenia

The focal point of Karabakh peace process is the recognition of
NKR people’s right to self-determination and its exercise. Without
Karabakh conflict settlement, other issues will hardly be solved,
RA Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian stated at April 7 joint press
conference with Secretary General of La Francophone (International
Organization of the Francophonie) Abdou Diouf.

Commenting on ANC leader Levon Ter-Petrosyan’s statement that Serzh
Sargsyan is ready to present 5 regions of Nagorno-Karabakh on a platter
to Azerbaijan, leaving all other matters of principle uncertain,
including Karabakh status quo, Nalbandian said: "Not only Armenia,
but also OSCE MG Co-Chairs realize that the paramount issue is the
status of Nagorno Karabakh, the recognition of Karabakhi people’s
right to self-determination and its exercise," he stressed.

Referring to the Co-Chairs’ proposals in the talks, RA FM said such
offers were, are and will be made and discussed by sides until they
conciliate.

"I repeatedly stated that presently Madrid Principles are on the table,
proposed in November 2007, which is a basis for the talks.

Numerous proposals can be made, and like I said they were discussed,
underway and will still be discussed," Nalbandian concluded.

STEFAN FULE : " ANKARA DOIT POURSUIVRE SA RECONCILIATION AVEC EREVAN "
par Stephane

armenews
mercredi7 avril 2010
ARMENIE

La Turquie doit poursuivre ses efforts de reconciliation avec
l’Armenie, a declare mardi le commissaire europeen a l’Elargissement
Stefan Fule, liant la question a l’adhesion d’Ankara a l’UE.

"Des bonnes relations entre pays voisins sont très importantes dans
le cadre de l’adhesion de tout pays a l’UE", a declare le commissaire
europeen lors d’une visite dans la capitale armenienne Erevan.

"L’UE doit aussi faire des efforts pour aider les deux parties a
resoudre cette impasse", a-t-il dit.

Ankara et Erevan ont signe en octobre deux protocoles visant a une
normalisation, mais leur ratification par les deux Parlements tarde.

Cet accord vise a etablir des relations diplomatiques et a ouvrir
la frontière. Les Armeniens qualifient de "genocide" les massacres
et deportations qui, entre 1915 et 1917, ont fait, selon eux, plus
d’un million et demi de morts au sein de leur communaute.

La Turquie reconnaît qu’entre 300.000 et 500.000 personnes ont peri,
non pas victimes d’une campagne d’extermination mais, selon elle,
dans le chaos des dernières annees de l’Empire ottoman.

HUMAN RIGHTS IN ARMENIA: A 37TH FIDH CONGRESS APPEAL

Tert.am
15:36 ~U 06.04.10

At the Opening Ceremony of the 37th FIDH Congress, FIDH President
Souhayr Belhassen issued a call on behalf of the Congress for the
immediate liberation of all political prisoners in Armenia. FIDH also
reiterated its call for an independent and effective investigation
into the events of March 2008 and the disproportionate use of force
by the security services. FIDH further expressed concerns about the
electoral process and obstacles to freedom of the media.

"We have expressed these concerns repeatedly over the last months
to the Armenian authorities at the highest levels – and this morning
once again in person to the President of the Republic, as we promised
to the families of victims and political prisoners with whom we met
yesterday," declared Souhayr Belhassen.

"All these issues are of utmost concern to the FIDH Congress, which
today launches a solemn appeal to the authorities. We hope that
we will receive concrete responses to all of our concerns. We will
persist until we obtain them," she added.

"The release of all political prisoners and holding to account those
responsible for the ten deaths of March 1 are two of the essential
conditions for the effectiveness of the justice system in Armenia,"
concluded Artak Kirakosyan, representative of FIDH’s Armenian
member-organization, the Civil Society Institute.

4 ARMENIAN MEN KILLED IN LA RESTAURANT SHOOTING

Tert.am

Authorities have identified the four men killed in a shooting at a San
Fernando Valley restaurant, as the search for the gunman continues,
reports AP.

In a statement Sunday, Los Angeles police named those killed as:
28-year-old Harut Baburyan; 26-year-old Sarkis Karadjian; 31-year-old
Vardan Tofalyan; and 25-year-old Hayk Yegnanyan. No hometowns or
other information was released.

Investigators believe the victims in Saturday’s shooting at the Hot
Spot Cafe in North Hollywood were targeted.

Three of the men died at the scene, while the fourth died at a
hospital. Two other people were wounded and are expected to survive.

Investigators believe the victims in Saturday’s shooting at the
Hot Spot Cafe in Valley Village were targeted, said Deputy Chief
Kirk Albanese.

"We don’t have a crazed gunman running around North Hollywood that
presents an immediate threat to public safety, to anyone in their
homes or businesses in the area," Albanese said. "However, this is
also not a random act of violence, this was an intentional act."