Fox News
April 28 2006

Bush, Azerbaijani President Talk Iran, Energy Security
Friday, April 28, 2006

WASHINGTON – President Bush told the president of Azerbaijan on
Friday that his oil-rich country has “a very important role to play”
in guaranteeing energy security around the world. The two leaders
also discussed Iran, an area of potential difference.

Bush said he assured President Ilham Aliev that the United States
wants to resolve a crisis over Iran’s nuclear program through
diplomacy. Aliev has made it clear that he would not allow his
country to be used for any operations against its neighbor.

Bush and Aliev met in the Oval Office after the White House
acknowledged that parliamentary elections in Azerbaijan have not met
international standards.

Bush said he told the president that “democracy is the wave of the
future.” Aliev said, “We share the same values.” He said Azerbaijan
is a “secular, democratic country.”

Energy was a major issue. “I appreciate the vision of the government,
the vision of the president, in helping this world achieve what we
all want, which is energy security,” Bush said. “Azerbaijan has got a
very important role to play and we discussed internal politics and we
discussed the politics of the neighborhood as well.”

In a personal note, Bush congratulated Aliev on the wedding of his
daughter this weekend.

Ahead of the meeting, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov
called Iran “our big neighbor” and emphasized that the two countries
“share history, culture and religion.” He said Iran guarantees
Azerbaijan transit rights for land shipments and provides gas
supplies to its Nakhichevan enclave, cut off by Armenia and
Nagorno-Karabakh.

“All this plays a great role when we speak about the situation around
Iran,” he said.

Mammadyarov said the Bush-Aliev meeting signified the two countries
were entering a new level of cooperation as Azerbaijan becomes a key
energy transit country. The newly built Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline,
which provides an alternative to Russian routes and energy sources in
the volatile Middle East, is scheduled to deliver the first shipments
of Caspian Sea oil to Western markets this June. In the fall, the new
Baku-Tbilisi-Erzerum gas pipeline will provide a new source of energy
for the Turkish market.

“This answers our national interest and signifies the strengthening
of Azerbaijan’s independence, of our position on the international
arena and the region,” Mammadyarov told The Associated Press in an
interview.

Azerbaijani officials also hope Bush and Aliev will discuss the
18-year-old conflict over the ethnic Armenian-dominated enclave of
Nagorno-Karabakh. At least 30,000 people were killed and 1 million
made refugees during six years of war that ended with a shaky
cease-fire in 1994. Ethnic Armenian forces occupy the enclave inside
Azerbaijan.

The United States, together with Russia and the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe, is trying to mediate a
resolution.

Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
April 28 2006

GLO issued statement denouncing foreign minister Vardan Oskanian’s
visit to Khankendi

[ 28 Apr. 2006 14:42 ]

Today Garabagh Liberation Organization (GLO) has issued a statement
denouncing Armenian foreign minister Vardan Oskanian’s visit to
Khankendi, GLO press service has informed APA.

GLO evaluated in the statement Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian’s
visit to Nagorno Garabagh as position in the settling of the
conflict: ` The visit of foreign minister’s visit to Khankendi in
this level of the negotiations shows their not being withdrawal from
their occupation intention. Continuing the talks leads to nothing.’
In the statement it is demanded from Azerbaijani state to stop
negotiations: `Taking into consideration the position of Armenia,
Azerbaijan should continue negotiations and launch anti-terror
operations to free the occupied lands in military way. Not any state
can deprive Azerbaijan from this right.’/APA/

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

SAFAROV’S CASE MIRRORS AZERBAIJANI-ARMENIAN RELATIONS

CENTRAL ASIA – CAUCASUS ANALYST
Wednesday / April 19, 2006

By Fariz Ismailzade

Last week the year-long court process on the case of Azerbaijani army
officer Ramil Safarov, who was accused of murdering his Armenian
colleague Gurgen Markarian during a NATO language course in Budapest
was concluded. The Hungarian court found Safarov guilty and sentenced
him to life imprisonment with the right to apply for amnesty only
after 30 years. The decision was immediately labeled in Baku as
biased and unfair. Surely, there were no doubts that Safarov was the
one who committed the murder (as he himself admitted) and few doubted
that he would be found guilty. Yet Azerbaijanis also hoped that the
judge would take into consideration such factors as Safarov’s personal
background as a refugee from the occupied Azerbaijani areas, the
provocations from the side of Armenian officers during the language
classes and his modest behavior during the course of investigation.

The news from Hungary prompted a very radical reaction in
Baku. Thousands of university students left their classes and
organized ad-hoc street rallies, demanding freedom and a fair trial
for Safarov. Police was totally unprepared to block such a massive
flow of people and could only observe the march. Students accused the
Hungarian court of being biased and unfair towards the Azerbaijani
officer. They claimed that a regular murder case in Hungary would
result in 8-9 years in prison, and that pressures from the Armenian
lobby and government forced the Hungarian judge to impose a much
harsher conviction.

Safarov’s case also brought reactions from Azerbaijani politicians and
media. `We were not able to protect our son!’ exclaimed the
Azerbaijani opposition daily Azadliq. `Making Ramil a hero, and
claiming that he embarrassed the Azerbaijani nation, are two extreme
assessments,’ said Ali Kerimli, the leader of the opposition Popular
Front party.

Safarov’s personal lawyer Adil Ismaylov gave a press conference in
Baku, saying that the defense side would appeal the decision in the
Courts of Appeals and would even take the case all the way to the
European Court on Human Rights until `Ramil receives a judgment that
his action and personality deserve.’ Ismaylov also noted that a series
of court procedures were violated by the Hungarian judge and expressed
hope that these examples would be taken into consideration by the
Court of Appeals.

The majority of Azerbaijanis continue to consider Safarov’s actions as
justified. `Armenians have occupied our lands, raped our women, killed
our children. Why doe nobody focus on that? Why does the world refuse
to talk about that? Ramil has killed an enemy and he did the right
thing,’ said Tarlan Gasimov, a master’s degree student at Baku State
University.

Safarov’s career in the military and his various achievements in
foreign military trainings add respect to him in the eyes of the
Azerbaijani public. Finally, Safarov is widely respected for not
putting up with Armenian officer’s insults and the latter’s disrespect
for the Azerbaijani flag and honor. `When they [Armenian participants
of the training] were drunk in the evenings, they would make insults
towards me and my nation. I was being patient at the beginning, but
when it came to the flag, I could not take it any more,’ said Ramil
Safarov in an interview to ANS-TV on the day of court decision.

Safarov’s case serves as a perfect example of Azerbaijani-Armenian
relations today. Most international organizations and local NGOs
continue to note the rising frustration in Azerbaijani society over
the fruitless and deadlocked peace process. This frustration as well
as the humiliation over the loss of lands is leading to the rise of a
militaristic mood among the Azerbaijani public. Most ordinary citizens
truly believe that the negotiations will not lead to the liberation of
the occupied regions and that war is the only remaining and effective
option. Thus, Safarov’s anger and revenge might be the first harbinger
of future Azerbaijani-Armenian tensions.

These issues are of special importance at the moment as Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev prepares to depart to Washington on April 26 to
meet with his American counterpart George W. Bush. It is widely
expected by the local experts that the resolution of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict will be one of the main issues in the agenda
of bilateral talks. American diplomat Steven Mann, in charge of the
peace process, will be traveling to the region on April 20 to make
final arrangements for the `recent new proposals’ made to the warring
sides. It will be hard for Azerbaijani President Aliyev to make
further painful compromises on the conflict while tensions in the
Azerbaijani society are high and Safarov’s case continues to remain
the number one news in the local media.

leid=4175

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
April 28 2006

Human Rights Watch reports become more subjective – Ali Hasanov

Source: Trend
Author: R. Abdullayev

28.04.2006

Human Rights Watch reports on Azerbaijan became more subjective
during the last several years, the head of the public affairs
department of the presidential apparatus, Ali Hasanov told Trend.

`For example, we all perfectly know about processes taking place in
Armenia, in particular about relations between opposition and
government in that country,’ Hasanov said, reminding, that `in the
near past Armenian oppositionists have been gathered in the National
Council hall and shot dead.’

Despite all that Armenia occupies leading places in the South
Caucasus in the Human Rights Watch reports, he said. `Azerbaijani
government already complained about it to representatives of the
organization,’ he assured.

Representative of the president administration emphasized that
Washington foreign policy is not formed upon NGO opinion but rather
on position of the official structures. `However, position of this
organization definitely influences the formation of social opinion in
US we don’t want Americans receive negative information about us,’ he
concluded.

Civil Georgia, Georgia
April 28 2006

Georgian MFA Comments on Akhalkalaki Base

The Georgian Foreign Ministry said on April 27 that there are
certain forces who will try `to derail the already ongoing process of
withdrawal’ of the Russian military base from Akhalkalaki under the
pretext of deteriorating social conditions in the region.

In an information note issued on April 27 the Foreign Ministry
commented on a protest rally which took place outside the Russian
military base in Akhalkalaki on April 25. The Russian Foreign
Ministry said that this protest rally by the local population against
the withdrawal of the Russian military base hindered the pull out of
military hardware from the base which was scheduled for April 26.
Many locals in Akhalkalaki, a a town predominantly populated by
ethnic Armenians, are employed at the Russian military base.

The Georgian Foreign Ministry said that a `rather small protest’
rally outside the base was held mainly by `Russian servicemen and
their family members.’

`The Georgian Authorities exercise full control over the situation
[in Akhalkalaki] and continue to unerringly comply with all
commitments under the [March 31, 2006] Agreement between the Russian
Federation and Georgia on Terms and Rules of Temporary Functioning
and Withdrawal of the Russian Military Bases,’ the Georgian Foreign
Ministry said.

The information note also stresses that the Georgian authorities are
planning `a series of effective’ social and economic rehabilitation
programs in the Samtskhe-Javakheti region, including those in frames
of the U.S.-funded Millennium Challenge Account aid.

Reuters, UK
April 28 2006

Renovated kindergartens and schools for children in Armenia
28 Apr 2006 08:41:24 GMT

Source: World Vision Middle East/Eastern Europe office (MEERO)

Children get good daytime sleep in the kindergarten’s newly renovated
bedroom

World Vision MEERO, Background CHILD
SOLDIERS: Who’s recruited where?

More than 25 children from the mountainous village of Tsav, 40
kilometers away from Kapan town in southern Armenia, now receive
pre-school education in clean and comfortable conditions. World
Vision’s Kapan Area Development Programme in close partnership with
the local community completed the renovation and furnishing of the
village kindergarten earlier this month.

‘I did not want to send my child to the kindergarten before,’ said
Elena Arustamyan, the mother of five-year-old Alen.

‘The toilet smell spread all over the place, and the dishes were
being washed in the room adjacent to the toilet. The children often
had diarrhea, because of the poor sanitary conditions. Now the
kindergarten has changed beyond recognition,’ she continued.

This kindergarten is the only place, where young children receive
preschool education and learn social skills through play and
interactive activities.

The previous dilapidated and unhygienic conditions of the
kindergarten’s rooms, kitchen and bathrooms created an unpleasant and
unhealthy environment for the children. The furniture was old and
broken, and there was a lack of toys, games and teaching materials.

This is sadly all too common in many other villages in the region,
where schools and kindergartens have not been renovated for many
years due to the lack of funds.

In addition to complete renovation of the kindergarten, the Kapan ADP
provided furniture, toys and games for the children’s playroom.

‘Most of our children had never seen board games before. Thanks to
World Vision, they now enjoy their leisure time at the kindergarten’s
renovated playroom,’ says the village Mayor Seyran Zakaryan.

‘This project has helped to mobilize our community. People now
believe that much can be done if they work together,’ said Jasmin
Abgaryan from Geghanoush village, where World Vision has
rehabilitated the sanitation system at the local school.

[/rquotebox]This kindergarten is the only place, where young children
receive preschool education and learn social skills through play and
interactive activities[/rquotebox]The Kapan ADP, which is funded by
World Vision Switzerland, has already completed three
community-initiated projects this year. Fifteen more projects,
including renovation of schools, kindergartens, recreational areas
and community centres in the villages, are currently being
implemented. World Vision provides construction materials, while
community members carry out renovation or construction works.

World Vision has also renovated dilapidated toilets at the school in
Tsav with 56 children.

Regnum, Russia
April 28 2006

Azerbaijan is ready to become mediator between the US and Iran
Read it in Russian

Izvestia daily has published an article `The American Vector of the
Azeri Policy’ prepared with the help of the press service of the
Azeri President. The article is about the context and goals of the
visit of Azeri President Ilham Aliyev to the US and is, in fact, the
account of Azerbaijan’s official position. The article says:

`Washington has had many chances to show its respect, to welcome in
any way the independent Azeri choice, to support the new president
Ilham Aliyev. But the visit did not take place in either 2004 or
2005. Then, the visit might, probably, seem politically and
tactically more necessary to Baku than to Washington. But now the
situation is different: we are faced with the reality of not only a
real war in nearby Iraq but also quickly growing tensions in the
Caspian region itself – over Iran. In this light, Azerbaijan is
becoming not just important for the US but even more important than
its traditional ally Turkey. The situation over Iran is really
critical for the Bush administration. And at this very moment
Washington invites the Azeri president – not just as an ally but as a
possible supporter in this complicated situation…’

Azerbaijan is Iran’s closest neighbor – the countries have
centuries-old common history and even partial ethnic relationship
(multi-million Azeri community in Iran). So, Azerbaijan is exactly
the one who can help Washington out of the present stalemate, who can
prompt how to avoid the follies it made in Iraq. And Azerbaijan risks
nothing. It has nothing to ask for from the Americans (compare the
most quickly growing CIS economy, Azerbaijan, with Georgia or,
better, with Armenia, who would never be able to make up their
budgets were it not for the American money)… It’s quite traditional
for the US diplomacy to use a reliable partner for making a secret
retreat in a stalemate situation. Just remember the legendary Henry
Kissinger. It was he who secretly prepared the historic meeting
between Richard Nixon and Mao Zedong. It was exactly since then
(since Kissinger’s secret voyages) that we have used the term
`shuttle diplomacy.’ Just like today with Iran, it was impossible
then to imagine that the enemies like the US and China might ever sit
down at the negotiating table. Why not to repeat this success in Iran
through President Aliyev? The Aliyev-Bush meeting in Washington might
be an opportunity to find such a solution.”

Meanwhile, Azerbaijan is quite critical of the quality of the US’
alliance with Ukraine and Georgia: `The role of potential negotiator
between the US and Iran is sharply raising the West’s interest in
Azerbaijan. Until now the most attractive objects for the US
diplomacy have been Ukraine and Georgia, where weak presidents have
paved the way for regimes loyal to the US.’

The article gives special attention to the Karabakh problem: `Now
having on hand the Iraqi catastrophe, the growing Iranian crisis,
HAMAS in Palestine and the consequent complications in the whole
Muslim world, Washington will not only try to insure Aliyev’s
authority against any blows but will also search for news forms and
spheres of regional geo-political cooperation with Azerbaijan. Still
we can hardly expect any quick progress in the Karabakh peace
process: the Armenian lobby in America is too strong to be overcome
quickly even if the US actually wants to get closer with Azerbaijan.

But Armenia should not rejoice at this. In strategic terms, the
longer it persists in occupying other’s territories the more it will
lose. As an active partner of big world powers, Azerbaijan is in much
better position. And this position will only grow with time. In the
present-day world, the stability of a state depends not so much on
its territory as on its balanced foreign policy – when it does not
heel to any side but frees resources for internal development.
Despite losses, Azerbaijan has got much, while Armenia has failed to
capitalize on its territorial seizures.’

RA NA SPEAKER MAKES SPEECH IN SAINT PETERSBURG AT JUBILEE SITTING
DEDICATED TO 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF RF STATE DUMA

SAINT PETERSBURG, APRIL 28, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. RA National
Assembly Speaker Artur Baghdasarian who is in Saint Petersburg to
participate in the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the State
Duma of the Russian Federation made a speech at the April 27 jubilee
sitting. On behalf of the National Assembly, Artur Baghdasarian
congratulated upon the 100th anniversary of the State Duma, attaching
importance to the Armenian-Russian interparliamentary cooperation. As
Noyan Tapan was informed by the NA Public Relations Department, within
the framework of the 100th anniversary, Artur Baghdasarian met in
Saint Petersburg with OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Alcee
Hastings, discussing issues of the OSCE PA-RA NA cooperation. At the
meeting with RF State Duma Chairman Boris Grizlov, NA Speaker
congratulated him on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the
State Duma, issues relating to the Armenian-Russian interparliamentary
relations were also discussed. NA Speaker Artur Baghdasarian also gave
inteview to Russian media.

RIA Novosti, Russia
April 28 2006

Two police officers killed in Moscow shooting
11:24 | 28/ 04/ 2006

(Rewrites with investigation details)

MOSCOW, April 28 (RIA Novosti) – Two police officers shot dead early
Friday were killed by members of a Moscow-based organized crime group
set up by ethnic Georgians, a source close to the investigation said.

The officers came under fire from an automatic weapon as they entered
an apartment in the south of the Russian capital, following a
telephone call reporting an ongoing burglary.

“The attackers are members of a Moscow-based organized crime group of
ethnic Georgians,” the source said, adding that the gang had been
raiding the apartment, owned by ethnic Armenians, as part of a war
between crime groups feuding over economic interests.

He said the killers left the apartment through a window, and that no
casualties among members of the Armenian family that owned the
apartment have been reported.

Police said earlier Friday that one police officer was killed at the
scene, and the other was wounded and died while being taken to the
hospital. The second officer said before he died that there had been
six attackers in the apartment.

Prosecutors said they had opened a criminal case into the incident,
and police have launched a search for the killers.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

U.S. ADMINISTRATION STRIVES FOR AZERBAIJAN’S SUPPORT IN IRANIAN ISSUE,
RUSSIAN ANALYST CONSIDERS

YEREVAN, APRIL 28, NOYAN TAPAN. “The goal of the today’s meeting in
Washington between the Presidents of the U.S. and Azerbaijan is that
the U.S. administration influences on Azerbajian in the issue of
Iran, thus, the U.S. strives for having practical support of
Azerbaijan in this issue.” Alexander Krilov, a leading research
officer of the World Economy and International Relations Institute of
the Russian Academy of Sciences stated about this at the April 28
“Caucasus” international conference, organized by the Caucasus Media
Institute. Besides, according to him, Baku, in the respond of striving
of the U.S. to use it as a bridgehead on Caspia against Iran, does
not want to help Americans in this issue not to make relations with
neighbors more difficult.

A.Krilov also attached importance to the succesfully developing
many-sides Russian-Azerbaijani cooperation and pointed out Russia’s
interest in development of “South-North” porjects where Azerbaijan is
destined an important role. At the same time, he assured that the
Kremlin which strives for keeping its presence in Azerbaijan, does not
do it to the detriment of relations with its strategic partner –
Armenia. As for the martial calls made from Baku for settling the
Karabakh conflict in the way of war, the Russian analyst mentioned
that the authorities of Azerbaijan uses the myth about the military
superiority upon Armenia for strengthening its won power.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress