Armenian Assembly of America
122 C Street, NW, Suite 350
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: [email protected]
Web:

PRESS RELEASE
May 7, 2004
CONTACT: Christine Kojoian
E-mail: [email protected]

SENATOR McCONNELL URGES STRENGTHENING U.S.-ARMENIA RELATIONS
DURING NATIONAL PAN-ARMENIAN CONFERENCE

Washington, DC – Senate Majority Whip Mitch McConnell (R-KY), as the
featured luncheon speaker at a major non-partisan, pan-Armenian conference
April 19, pledged to work towards increasing Armenia’s funding level above
the Bush Administration request of $62 million for FY 2005. McConnell, a
well-known advocate of Armenian issues, also said he supports current
legislation granting permanent normal trade relations to Armenia.

The Conference, a three-day advocacy push led by the community’s major
non-partisan organizations – the Armenian Assembly of America, the Armenian
General Benevolent Union (AGBU) and the Eastern and Western Diocese of the
Armenian Church, brought hundreds of activists to the nation’s capital for
this first-ever gathering.

McConnell, who holds the second most powerful position in the United States
Senate, was introduced by Armenian Assembly Board of Directors Chairman
Anthony Barsamian, who hailed the Senator as, “an extraordinary friend of
our community.”

Below is the full text of Senator McConnell’s speech:

“Well, thank you very much. It’s great to see all of you again. I see some
old friends that I’ve been involved in a few wars with. Hirair Hovnanian,
thank you for being here. I’m proud of the work that you do on the East
coast and of course one of my best friends and buddies – the guy you just
described as being in charge of me – Albert Boyajian and his wife Tove. I
had the opportunity to go to Armenia with them a few years ago. If you are
not Armenian, there is nothing like going to Armenia with somebody who is
Armenian because it really adds a lot to the experience while you’re there
and Albert I thank you for teaching me about Armenia and for being my friend
and always being there when I need you. I think he does an extraordinary job
of making sure all of us who are not of Armenian decent understand the
history of Armenia and the importance of the U.S./Armenia relationship which
is, of course, what I’d like to talk about today.”

“I visited Nagorno Karabakh. I’ve been to Azerbaijan as well and I’ve had a
chance to spend some time with President Kocharian and others, none of which
I would argue makes me an expert but I suppose I know a little bit more
about Armenia than most Americans. I must say that I think it has enormous
potential in large measure because of the Armenian-American community and I
want to thank all you for what you’re doing for the place from which you all
came at one point or another. Without you, the story of Armenia simply
would not be told in America.”

“I also want to encourage you to lobby Armenia to continue to move in the
direction of a closer relationship with the United States. It’s no secret
when I tell you that the Azeris work very hard to cultivate a good
relationship with the United States. They have been very cooperative in the
war on terror and as you all know, since 9/11, a lot of U.S. foreign policy
tends to be viewed through the prism of how committed are you to the war on
terror and how much are you helping us on the war on terror and I know we
have representatives from the Armenian government today and I want to
encourage you to be – to work with us as closely as you possibly can in the
war on terror because I think it is pretty apparent after 9/11 and the other
attacks that have occurred around the world. This is not just something that
happened to the United States – that this is the central challenge of the
21st century. This level of radicalism is a threat to the civilized world
and we simply must stand up to it.”

“Now there are sort of two schools of thought here in the United States.
There are some that think this is kind of a law enforcement problem. You
know, maybe what you ought to do is try to arrest somebody and maybe give
them Johnny Cochran’s card so they’ll be properly represented. There are
others who view it as clearly a wartime issue. So let’s go back to 9/11. I
am a little bit exasperated with the 9/11 commission because they’re
spending an awful lot of time, it seems to me, formerly prominent politicos
enjoying being interviewed and telling us what we already know which is that
Al-Qaeda did it. We know that. We knew it on the day of the attack. These
absurd suggestions by the media and the press that the president should
apologize – I don’t recall FDR being asked to apologize for Pearl Harbor.
What does the president need to apologize for? There’s no question that
during the eight years of the Clinton Administration and the 200 and some
odd days of the Bush Administration, we were not on a war footing with
Al-Qaeda. Monday morning quarterbacks always call the best plays and
hindsight is always 20-20. I think we can all agree that if we’d been on a
war footing against the terrorists before 9/11, we might have had a chance
of preventing it. Although, Richard Clarke, the president’s most persistent
critic, when asked the question – if President Bush had done everything you
asked him to when he was sworn in, would the attack have been prevented? –
he said no. He said no.”

“So I think more important is where do we go from here? The president
believed that it was an act of war, not a law enforcement matter, although
law enforcement is certainly a part of conducting the war on terror. And the
president felt we needed to get on offense. Since many of you are basketball
fans – I know that Albert [Boyajian] tries never to miss a Lakers home game
if he can avoid doing that – let me offer another analogy. In order to have
a good team, you’ve got to have an offense and a defense. But I think we can
all stipulate that it’s easier to score on offense. We have been working to
improve our defense. We passed the Patriot Act which broke down the barriers
between the FBI and the CIA so they could communicate with each other, made
it possible for us to update such things as the inability to get a warrant
to tap a cell phone. That’s how old the laws were. That’s been fixed. We
created the Department of Homeland Security which is all about defense,
having a better defense here at home in trying to protect us from attacks.
It’s easier to score on offense and so the president called out the military
and we went into Afghanistan and we liberated Afghanistan – something the
British had a hard time with and something the Soviets had an extremely hard
time with. Your military here in the United States did a superb job.
Afghanistan has a new constitution, it’s going to have elections next
summer, little girls are back in school after 6 years of being denied the
opportunity to be educated and Afghanistan has a chance of realizing its
aspirations to be a normal, civilized country.”

“And then next on the list, if you want to drain the swamp of the
terrorists, you couldn’t ignore Iraq – a country that had used weapons of
mass destruction twice, that had started two wars, one with the Iranians and
one with the Kuwaitis – a war we had to end by liberating Kuwait led by a
man who tried to assassinate former President Bush and in general was
looking for a way to do us harm again. Some of the critics are now saying
you acted too soon. Scratch your head a minute and think about 9/11.
President Bush is being criticized for acting too late on 9/11 and being
criticized for acting too soon on Iraq. When is the best time to deal with a
terrorist state, before or after they attack you? I rest my case. It’s
before. And so we knew the problem with Iraq was coming and the president
concluded it’s better to deal with it beforehand rather than afterwards and
the same people who are criticizing him for going too soon in Iraq, believe
me, would have been criticizing him for going too late in Iraq had he waited
until after something happened. I was in Iraq in October and Afghanistan in
October and my wife who is a member of the president’s cabinet, was in Iraq
in February and I can tell you that a lot more is going right there than you
think. Unfortunately they teach them in journalism school that only bad
news is news. This reminds me of the story of President Bush out fishing
with the Pope. A strong wind came along and blew the Pope’s hat off and
President Bush stepped out of the boat, walked across the water, picked up
the Pope’s hat, brought it back to him and the Pope put it back on his head.
And the next day the headline in the New York Times was “Bush can’t swim.”
You get my drift. The interest of the media in Iraq is only writing bad
things and certainly we do have a security problem.”

“There is no denying that and there are some remnants of the old Bathist
regime that certainly don’t want to go easily and it’s a challenging
situation. On the other hand, when I was there in October, some six months
ago, we’d already rebuilt 1500 schools – we’ve done many more than that now.
The head of the 101st division, airborne division, the famous 101st
airborne, which happens to be headquartered in my state, they were up in the
northern part of the country, did a marvelous job and they’ve already had
local elections up there. They’ve now come home but their leader, General
Petraeus, is going back to head up the development of the Iraqi military.
The reason I’m spending a good deal of time on the war on terror is because
it seems to me that the key to the U.S./Armenia relationship is cooperation
on the war on terror and I want to encourage again, those of you who are
activists on behalf of Armenia and who go there frequently and the Armenian
government representatives who are here today, look for ways to help us win
this battle because Armenia will not be exempt. No civilized country will be
exempt in the future from this kind of outrageous effort to try to move us
back to the middle ages. And I think particularly, I say to you women in
the audience, if the terrorists had their way, you would have no rights at
all – none. You would not be seen and you would not be heard. They really
want to go back to the middle ages. This kind of fanaticism needs to be
stood up to. It’s the only way to deal with it and I hope that Armenia will
move in that direction.

As was indicated, I tried to make sure Armenia had adequate foreign
assistance from the United States. The request in the present budget this
year was $62 million. I’ll be trying to increase that amount. Armenia
received $75 million last year and that is considerably more than
Azerbaijan, an imbalance that I don’t apologize for, and we will try to
achieve such an imbalance again this year. (applause) But let me reiterate
that I think it really is the key to the U.S./Armenia relationship -really
is cooperation in the war on terror.

With regard to permanent trade status for Armenia, let me just say that
right now, with all of this talk about out sourcing going on in the United
States – we can discuss whether that’s a real or an imaginary issue – free
trade agreements are not moving much this year because of the political
environment. Having said that, I’m not running away from free trade
positions. I think free trade agreements are good, both for the United
States and for the country entering into it with us and I hope that we’ll be
able to move this legislation although I must say I don’t think we’ll be
able to move it this calendar year but I hope we’ll be able to move this
legislation in the near future.”

“Finally, let me just say in conclusion how much I thank all of you for what
you’re doing for this country. America is a country of immigrants. As some
of you know, my wife came to this country as many of you did. She came at
age eight, didn’t speak a word of English and there are all kinds of
interesting stories about her early life in Queens, New York in a little
apartment with her sisters and her parents. One of my favorite ones is when
there was a knock on the door one night and they opened the door and there
are these sort of medium sized to small people dressed up in these costumes
with bags. They thought they were being robbed and they were so frightened,
they gave all the food in the refrigerator to them in order to get them to
go away. So I’ve heard scores of these coming to America stories from my
Chinese-American in-laws but of course many of you have had similar
experiences coming here. Immigration renews and invigorates America and as I
go around the country in the course of my work, it seems to me, and this is
just anecdotal, I can’t prove it by any survey or anything – anecdotally,
that the people that got here the most recent seem to be the most gung-ho,
you know the most excited about the opportunities in America. I think other
countries look at us – and many of them don’t like us because it’s purely a
case of envy – we’ve done very well but there are people in America from
almost every country in the world who’ve come here and realized the American
dream.”

“Now why is that? Why is that? It’s because of the system. The system. And
it is constantly renewed and reinvigorated by people who come here from
abroad and who haven’t gotten accustomed to it like many of us who’ve been
here many generations have – haven’t gotten accustomed to it, really
appreciate it and enthusiastically and vigorously pursue the American dream
and then the pattern is, as these new arrivals of second generation folks do
better and better here in America, they want to help the country that they
came from or that their ancestors came from and I find that exciting. I
know that many of you have spent a good deal of time every single day trying
to do something, not only for America but for Armenia because you love it
and you want it to realize its dreams and you want it to become a country
like America. I assure you, with your energetic participation, some day,
that’s going to happen and some day they are going to be everything you hope
they will be and you’ll be the reason for it. Those of you who’ve gone back
there, who’ve invested there, who’ve employed people there, who’ve done so
much, will have a lot to be proud of in the coming years. So thank you for
what you’re doing, not only for America, but for Armenia. It’s a privilege
to be with you today and I look forward to seeing you again soon.”

Thank you.

The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide
organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian
issues. It is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

NR#2004-042

Armenian Assembly of America
122 C Street, NW, Suite 350
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: [email protected]
Web:

PRESS RELEASE
May 7, 2004
CONTACT: Christine Kojoian
E-mail: [email protected]

SENATOR SARBANES URGES ARMENIAN COMMUNITY TO CONTINUE FIGHT FOR GENOCIDE
AFFIRMATION

Washington, DC – Senator Paul Sarbanes (D-MD) stressed the importance of the
Armenian-American community working together with Washington policymakers to
secure affirmation of the Armenia Genocide in a speech April 19 to
participants of the Armenian Assembly’s National Banquet.

Sarbanes, as the banquet’s keynote speaker, also highlighted the importance
of the event sponsors – the Armenian Assembly of American, the Armenian
General Benevolent Union (AGBU) and the Eastern and Western Diocese of the
Armenian Church, uniting for the betterment of the community for the
first-ever National Conference and Banquet, held April 18-20 in Washington,
DC.

Below is the full-text of Senator Sarbanes’ remarks:

It is a pleasure to be here tonight with such good friends on this important
occasion. It is a great honor to be in the company of His Eminence
Archbishop Barsamian and His Eminence Archbishop Derderian and I want to
particularly acknowledge the wonderful work they do and the leadership they
provide to the church. I know how important the church is to the community
and how much of an organizing principle for the community it is. I speak
from the perspective of my own community in this regard, and I just wanted
to say how appreciative we are to have both of the Eminences here.

I also want to thank Berge Setrakian, the President of the Armenian General
Benevolent Union, for joining tonight with the Assembly for this event. In
my first campaign for the U.S. Senate, Alex Manoogian, the driving force of
the AGBU and for many, many years its president, took me under his wing, so
to speak, when I went to Detroit. He was a very strong supporter of mine in
that first effort to the United States Senate, and we remained close friends
until his death. The AGBU has done wonderful work. The “benevolent” in the
union’s name is really reflected in the benevolence of its work including,
in my view, the especially strong support for education, making sure the
young people in the community have an opportunity to gain a top-notch
education and move forward.

I want to thank Ambassador Kirakossian for the work that he does. We work
closely with him on the Hill, and know how effectively he represents the
Republic of Armenia.

I would like to honor two other people: Frank Pallone and Joe Knollenberg
who serve as co-chairs of the Armenian Caucus in the House of
Representatives. I know their commitment to this cause and how effective
they’ve been. We have been privileged to work across the aisle and across
the Capitol with them. They work together across the aisle, just as I do
with Mitch McConnell, whom you heard from at lunch. We have been able to
join together in a partnership on issues that are of such concern to all of
us.

And finally, I want to thank the leadership of the Armenian Assembly –
Hirair Hovnanian, Anthony Barsamian, the Executive Director Ross Vartian and
of course Annie Totah whose vision and commitment and plain hard work have
made this conference possible.

Now let me tell you something about Annie Totah. Of course, you know all
about her. She’s not only a vice chair but she was the first woman chair of
the organization in its 32-years existence and, of course, she is always a
steady voice on the issues of concern to the Armenian-American community,
and many other issues as well. She is both thoughtful and passionate in her
convictions. Annie and her husband Sami are residents of Maryland. They’re
constituents and very dear and close friends of mine, and they represent the
best of informed and responsible citizens. These are the sort of people,
just as so many others in this room, who make American democracy work.

Tomorrow you will be meeting with your representatives in the Congress of
the United States. You have important issues to put before them and I urge
you, as Frank Pallone said, to make your voices heard as never before.
Although you are a relatively small community among the many that make up
our nation, you enrich our national life out of all proportion to your
numbers–in the arts and sciences, in medicine, and law and business, in the
daily life of our communities across the nation. Perhaps your family came to
this country as refugees fleeing the persecutions and the genocide of the
Ottoman Empire, or perhaps your family sought out this country for its
democratic institutions and its economic opportunities. Whatever the
circumstances, each generation has prospered. You have raised your children
to participate fully in American life while continuing to honor their
Armenian heritage and traditions. The newly independent Republic of Armenia
to which you have contributed in so many ways has helped to strengthen these
ties. This is in the best American tradition.

I make this observation from first-hand experience. My parents came from
Greece and settled on Maryland’s Eastern Shore where I grew up and went to
school. They ran a restaurant. Interestingly enough, on this occasion, it
was named the Mayflower Grill. Thank you for bringing us to the Mayflower
Hotel.

I learned from my parents what it meant to be an American-to live in a
democratic society and to assume the responsibilities of citizenship while
at the same time, taking pride in my family’s Greek heritage. This is how,
in group after group across our country, we have built this nation and this
is what diversity means. We should be proud of our diversity and what it
stands for and the strength it has brought to America.

The Armenian Assembly exemplifies this spirit. Since its founding in 1972,
the Assembly has marshaled the talents of the Armenian-American community to
speak to the nation’s leadership. The Assembly is today one of our country’s
most effective advocacy groups. Let me just mention the internship program,
which I regard as a major achievement, as many of you who have participated
in it know first hand. Each year I meet with a new group of interns. We have
very interesting sessions. One member of my staff, Greg Aftandilian, who
serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee staff, first came to
Washington in 1977 to participate in this internship program. Dean
Shahinian, another senior staff member, who works with me on the Banking
Committee, ought to be considered an honorary member of that program. In
2001, Dean helped to organize the visit to Washington of the Supreme
Patriarch and Catholicos of all Armenians, His Holiness, Karekin II. In
fact, Dean has been a lay delegate who has gone to Etchmiadzin to
participate in the assembly which elected His Holiness. I was gratified to
play a small part in arranging for His Holiness to deliver the Senate’s
morning prayer during his visit to this country, and a number of you that I
see here were present on that occasion.

Another great achievement is the Assembly’s advocacy program, which is what
brings us here tonight, and I want to emphasize how important that is. Just
think of the urgent issues before us: parity and U.S. military assistance to
Armenia and Azerbaijan, Section 907 and the issue of assistance to
Azerbaijan; Nagorno Karabakh; non-military assistance to Armenia; permanent
normal trade relations for Armenia and acknowledgement and commemoration of
the Armenian Genocide. We shall turn to these issues in order.

The Administration’s budget request this fiscal year disregards what I
consider to be a good faith understanding between the Administration and the
Congress for maintaining parity in military assistance to Armenia and
Azerbaijan. The budget sets the assistance levels at $2.75 million and $8.75
million, respectively. In my judgment, this is not acceptable. The
Administration actually sought to tip the balance last summer, using a
congressional notification procedure to add $2 million in assistance to
Azerbaijan beyond the initial budget request. We held up that notification,
and eventually the Administration agreed to add the same amount for Armenia,
and parity was restored.

This year the challenge is greater, first because the gap in the budget
request is much greater – $8.75 million as against $2.75 million – and
second because the request cannot simply be held up by a few members’
objections, but will be put to a vote. A critical vote will probably be
taking place in the Foreign Operations Subcommittees of the two
appropriations committees in the House and the Senate and, therefore, it is
extremely important that you make your views known to the Subcommittee
members. This policy of imbalance, in my judgment, will contribute to the
destabilization in the South Caucasus and make more difficult, not less
difficult, the war against terrorism.

Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act must be upheld.

That Section restricts U.S. government assistance to Azerbaijan in response
to the Azerbaijani blockade of Armenia. In the wake of 9/11, the
Administration obtained a waiver for Section 907. As approved by Congress,
however, the waiver specifies that any assistance shall not “undermine or
hamper” the Nagorno Karabakh peace process or be used for offensive purposes
against Armenia or Armenian communities in the South Caucasus. It is in our
national interest to adhere to the letter and spirit of Section 907.

The Nagorno Karabakh peace process must have our active support.

The prospect for real progress in the negotiations which seemed to be
opening up at the Key West talks in April of 2001 between Presidents
Kocharian and Aliyev unfortunately did not materialize. President Aliyev
went back to Azerbaijan and shifted his position markedly from what seemed
to be developing in Key West, much to our great regret. This, in fact, is
another reason to maintain parity in U.S. military assistance. Tipping
toward Azerbaijan will only give that country less reason, not more reason,
to negotiate in good faith over Nagorno Karabakh.

Now let me turn to non-military assistance for Armenia which is essential of
course to building democratic institutions and strengthening the economy.
The administration’s continuing efforts to cut assistance are short-sighted.
For the current fiscal year, the Administration had requested $50 million.
Through hard work in the Congress, through your friends, again, on both
sides of the aisle, both Republicans and Democrats, we were able to raise
that figure by 50% to $75 million dollars. For the next fiscal year, the
budget now before us, the Administration has asked for about $62 million. I
can assure you that efforts to ensure a higher funding level will continue,
and again, you need to raise this funding issue with your representatives in
Congress.

You should remind your representatives that the Azerbaijani and Turkish
blockades of Armenia raise the cost of doing business there by at least 30%
and constitute an obstacle to the economic development Armenia seeks and
needs, and it constitutes a rationale for raising this assistance level.

We have been focused for quite some time on the effort to extend permanent
normal trade relations – PNTR – to Armenia. Both countries would benefit
from normalizing the trade relationship. Last year on the Senate side,
Senator McConnell and I joined together with Senator Boxer in introducing
legislation for this purpose, as did Frank Pallone and Joe Knollenberg in
the House of Representatives. It was encouraging to learn that earlier
today, appearing here at your sessions, Beth Jones, the Assistant Secretary
of State for Europe committed the Administration to support PNTR for
Armenia. This is, of course, good news for all of us but now, we must
continue to press the Administration and the relevant committees in the
Congress to expedite this important issue and carry through on this
proposal.

Finally, I want to speak to you about the need for us to continue to work
together to secure at last the acknowledgement and commemoration of the
Armenian Genocide.

You have had some encouraging developments. Plans for the Armenian Genocide
Museum in Washington are moving forward, which, of course, means it will
serve an important educational function right here in the nation’s capital.
In Europe, a number of governments have formally recognized the Armenian
Genocide – France, Italy, Sweden, Belgium, Switzerland, Greece, Russia,
Cyprus, as well as the European Parliament.

Through your efforts, an increasing number of states in our own country are
passing resolutions recognizing the Armenian Genocide, and I want to
acknowledge the presence here tonight of my former chief of staff Peter
Marudas who, many of you know, played a very instrumental role as the
Maryland legislature was considering this resolution and was able to dismiss
from the scene some arguments that were being raised, arguments that were
entirely spurious.

Furthermore, a new spirit of inquiry is beginning to appear in some Turkish
academic circles. According to a New York Times feature report on March 6th,
Professor Taner Ackam at the University of Minnesota has called the Turkish
government’s continuing denial “a misrepresentation that has to be
confronted.” Another Turkish historian, Fikret Adanir of the Ruhr University
in Germany, has said, “we have to deal with history, like the Germans after
the war. It’s important for the health of the democracy, for civil society.”

Both of these academics are outside of Turkey but it may be the beginning of
important new thinking about this question because, in my view, Turkey’s
interests and its prospects for the future are not served by the
government’s refusal to face the facts, and our task is to help set the
historical record straight.

Every year I join with many of my colleagues to commemorate the great human
tragedy that was the first genocide of the 20th century. Our resolutions are
routinely met by arguments about the alleged “strategic interests” of our
foreign policy. But any strategy based on a denial of the truth has a
dubious foundation, particularly the truth involving basic human rights.

Your voices can make the difference. In 2001, as I indicated, the active
support of the Armenian Assembly and other Armenian organizations was
critical to the passage in the Maryland legislature of a resolution on the
Genocide in the face of vigorous opposition. Evidence of the Armenian
Genocide is available in our own National Archives. In addition to
Ambassador Morgenthau’s dispatches, the Archives include reports from other
U.S. officials stationed throughout the Ottoman Empire at the time. I have
read those reports myself.

In his recent history, the Burning Tigris, the Armenian Genocide and
America’s Response, Peter Balakian has done a masterful job of bringing the
documentary evidence together. As he observes, “The breadth and intensity of
American engagement… is an important chapter in American history and one
that has been lost.” Professor Balakian is correct. This chapter is
important to Armenian history and it is important to American history.

As you make your rounds, you may hear the familiar arguments that your
concerns reflect only narrow, ethnic interests and disregard the broader
needs of an effective U.S. foreign policy. Do not let that deter you. We
have a national interest – an American national interest – in seeing that
our foreign policy is grounded in the same principles on which this nation
was founded-respect for the truth, the rule of law and democratic
institutions.

As you make these rounds and you do your advocacy in a thoughtful and
well-informed and courteous way, remember that an American foreign policy
worthy of the support of the American people should be based on principles
and values. In making your arguments on these issues that I have
enumerated, you are speaking out as American citizens for an American policy
true to our values and principles. So do not be hesitant in taking this
message to your representatives. You have my best wishes as you set out in
that endeavor.
Thank you.

The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide
organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian
issues. It is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

NR#2004-039

Armenian Assembly of America
122 C Street, NW, Suite 350
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: [email protected]
Web:

PRESS RELEASE
May 7, 2004
CONTACT: Christine Kojoian
E-mail: [email protected]

BUSH ADMINISTRATION MAKES FIRST PUBLIC ENDORSEMENT OF ARMENIA TRADE BILL
DURING PAN-ARMENIAN CONFERENCE

Activists Hail Announcement from Ambassador Jones

Washington, DC – Ambassador Elizabeth Jones, Assistant Secretary of the
Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, in a major announcement publicly
endorsed pending legislation that would extend trade benefits to Armenia.
Jones’ remarks, addressed to Armenian-American activists attending a
national non-partisan conference on April 19, mark the Bush Administration’s
first public endorsement of the trade bill.

The conference, April 18-20, was jointly held by the Armenian Assembly, the
Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) and the Eastern and Western Diocese
of the Armenian Church.

Below is the full-text of Ambassador Jones’ remarks:

I’d like to thank our hosts, the Armenian Assembly of America, Armenian
General Benevolent Union and the Armenian Church of America, for their warm
welcome.

I accompanied Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage on his recent visit
to Armenia. It was a great pleasure to see such obvious growth and dynamism
in Yerevan. Mr. Armitage met with President Kocharian and Foreign Minister
Oskanyian during his stay to reaffirm our strong relationship with Armenia
and to encourage closer cooperation in the security area. President
Kocharian and Mr. Armitage also discussed the domestic political situation
and the need to intensify efforts toward political reform.

Armenian-Americans are making a critical contribution to economic reform and
growth in Armenia. We appreciate your input into the foreign policy process
and assistance programs. Thank you for inviting me to brief you on U.S.
priorities and policy in the South Caucasus.

This is an exciting time for all those interested in the Caucasus. The “Rose
Revolution” in Georgia decalcified Georgian politics by bringing in a new
generation of young, pro-western reformers. There is also a new, younger
leader in Azerbaijan with ideas on how to modernize his own country. The
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline will see the transportation of first oil next
year, bringing new opportunities for prosperity to the region, including
opportunities to improve energy options for Armenia.

NATO and EU enlargement has made the Caucasus a new “neighbor” to those
organizations, which are now taking a greater interest in the region. All
this change offers new hope for the region and new opportunities for the
U.S. to strengthen its relationships with the Caucasus nations.

What are the primary U.S. interests in the region? The most important can be
simply described as security, reform and regional stability.

SECURITY

The nations of the Caucasus are making an important contribution to
international peacekeeping missions as well as to the Global War on
Terrorism. Azerbaijan and Georgia have troops on the ground in Iraq;
Azerbaijan also has troops in Afghanistan. An Armenian cargo truck company
is expected in Iraq by September to contribute to stability operations
there.

U.S. assistance to the region is aimed toward improving our cooperation. It
has the following goals:

* Enhance partnerships in the Global War on Terror;
* Strengthen democratic institutions and civil society;
* Create jobs and support for the emerging entrepreneurial class;
* Fight global threats including weapons proliferation and trafficking
in persons.

Our Foreign Military Finance (FMF), International Military Education and
Training (IMET) programs and peacekeeping assistance promote
interoperability with U.S. and NATO forces.

Armenia has taken big steps to enhance its security relationship with the
United States and NATO in the past six months

* Signed a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) to become a partner in
the NATO Partnership for Peace (PfP) program;
* Signed a reciprocal Article 98 Agreement with the United States to
prevent Armenian and U.S. troops from prosecution at the International
Criminal Court, an organization that does not have U.S. representation;
* Agreed to deploy a truck company to Iraq;
Concluded an Acquisitions and Cross-Servicing Agreement with U.S.;
* Hosted a NATO Partnership for Peace exercise in the summer of 2003;
* Deployed a peacekeeping company to KFOR in Kosovo

We have strongly encouraged the Armenian government to permit closer
military cooperation with the U.S. and look forward to a positive response
from Yerevan.

REFORM

Economic Reform

Across the nations of the former Soviet Union, reform has both economic and
political components. Economic reform is essential to creating prosperity
for the people of the region. Armenia faced the steepest economic decline
after the fall of the Soviet Union, but has now reached 82% of its 1989 GDP.

Widespread unemployment and uneven growth plague the Caucasus. Our policies
focus on creating jobs and strengthening the investment climate by lending
money to micro, small and medium enterprises (SME) in order to promote
profitability and job growth, helping Armenia achieve energy security and
providing the tools to help Armenia quality for the Millennium Challenge
Account.

Our assistance programs have resulted in many tangible results.

* The total value of exports from companies supported by USAID in
Armenia jumped from $l.7 mil in 2002 to $2.4 mil in 2003;
* Through loan guarantees, we provided credit to four financial
institutions in Armenia making $450,000 available for loans to small and
medium size enterprises;
* Our agriculture programs created more than 2,000 jobs in FY 2003;
* Partly because of our assistance to the electrical sector,
collections rose to 92% in 2003 (from 70% in 2001);
* In the earthquake zone, by the end of 2003, U.S. assistance helped
provide 7,000 families with homes;
* U.S. supported Armenia’s WTO accession in 2003 and we’re providing
technical assistance to help Armenia meet its new obligations and benefit
from membership.

Breaking down the barriers to trade is one of our priorities. The U.S. and
Armenia have had normal trade relations since 1992, but the U.S. government
supports extending Permanent Normal Trade Relations to Armenia and will
support Congressional efforts to graduate Armenia from the Jackson-Vanik
Amendment to the Trade Act. The purpose of Jackson-Vanik legislation was to
encourage religious freedom and free emigration. Armenia is fully compliant
with Jackson-Vanik standards. The House of Representatives approved lifting
Jackson-Vanik on Armenia in 2003. This year, a similar provision is attached
to Senate Bill S1637. If Congress acts, the President will certify that
Jackson-Vanik no longer applies to Armenia.

Another key U.S. priority to facilitate increased trade throughout the
region is encouraging Turkey to open its border with Armenia. With this
border open, transportation costs would fall by 50 percent or more, likely
increasing trade between Turkey and Armenia, and between Armenia and Western
Europe via Turkey. As Mr. Armitage stated during his press conference in
Yerevan, we frequently engage the Turkish government on the border issue but
may not see progress in the short term. Ankara is currently struggling with
a panoply of other difficult issues, including stability in Northern Iraq,
Cyprus and the possibility of EU accession.

Political Reform and Democratic Change

We have noted slow and steady progress in democratic reform and institution
building in the nations of the former Soviet Union since independence, but
also backsliding in recent years. In the past year, all governments in the
Caucasus region were guilty of manipulating the pre-election environment and
limiting access to the media.

Georgia’s revolution showed the possibility of peaceful political change. We
did not play a role in the choice exercised by the Georgian people for a
change, nor should we have. However, U.S. assistance was key to building the
capabilities of Georgians and Georgian organizations.

The U.S. is also working on democracy and good governance programs in
Armenia and Azerbaijan. More than 400 Armenians came to U.S. in 2003 on
exchange programs. In addition to exchanges, the U.S. plans to spend
approximately $9.4 million on democratic reform programs in Armenia in 2004.
We are working with nongovernmental organizations, media, political parties
and parliament deputies and staff.

Since March 2003 presidential elections, relations between the government
and the opposition in Armenia have worsened. We are concerned about the
recent escalation in rhetoric and confrontation between the government and
opposition. The government’s decision to forcibly disperse protestors at an
April 13 demonstration and the detention of opposition members of parliament
and activists are not helpful. Such actions don’t encourage opposition
activists to engage in dialogue with the government in order to resolve some
of the differences that separate them, including accountability for the
flawed elections in 2003.

We urge both sides to agree to political dialogue and not allow
recriminations and tensions to build. There has clearly been little public
support for the government’s handling of the situation. The government
assures us it will reduce political pressure on the opposition.

REGIONAL STABILITY

Unfortunately, the Caucasus region is still plagued with separatist
movements and unresolved conflicts almost thirteen years after independence.
If these conflicts are left unresolved, the region cannot realize its
economic potential, and will forever be at danger of a return to war. The
U.S. is re-thinking how best to tackle separatist conflicts in Georgia and
seeking closer cooperation with the United Nations and Russia in support of
Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The U.S. continues to seek a resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict,
both bilaterally and through its role as Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group,
along with France and Russia. On April 16, we announced the appointment of
Ambassador Steve Mann as new U.S. Special Negotiator for Eurasian Conflicts.
Steve was our first U.S. envoy to Armenia in 1991 and helped setup our first
embassy until the arrival of Ambassador Gilmore. Steve will also continue in
his role as the coordinator for Caspian Sea Energy Issues. It has been ten
years since an uneasy cease-fire was declared between Armenia and Azerbaijan
on Nagorno-Karabakh. Unfortunately, Yerevan and Baku have made no effort to
prepare their populations for the politically difficult compromises
necessary to effect a genuine peace agreement. At Key West in 2001, the
parties came close to agreement, but momentum was lost. The status quo harms
overall security in the region and restricts economic growth in both
nations. This prevents Armenia and the rest of the Caucasus from fully
integrating into Europe and the other Euro-Atlantic institutions.

To recap, U.S. priorities in the South Caucasus region relate to overall
security of the region, intensifying political and economic reform and
resolving regional conflicts in order to attain long-term stability.
Armenian-Americans have made a great contribution to the development of the
modern nation of Armenia. My colleagues and I look forward to working with
you to push for reform in Armenia and to seek an improvement in the lives of
Armenia’s people. I wish you a successful convention. My thoughts are with
you this April 24 as you commemorate Armenian Remembrance Day.

Thank you.

The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide
organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian
issues. It is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

NR#2004-039

PRESS RELEASE
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America
138 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-689-7810
Fax: 212-689-7168
e-mail: [email protected]
Website:
Contact: Iris Papazian

May 7, 2004

Eastern Prelacy’s National Representative Assembly
Will Convene in Philadelphia, May 19-21

NEW YORK, NY-The National Representative Assembly (NRA) of the Armenian
Apostolic Church of America (Eastern United States), will convene in
Philadelphia, May 19 through 21, during which time the clergy and lay
delegates will deliberate on current issues as well as long-range planning
for the future. The host church is St. Gregory the Illuminator, one of the
Eastern Prelacy’s largest and most vibrant parishes.

The NRA is the highest authority of the Armenian Apostolic Church of
America, and is charged with the task of supervising the ecclesiastical and
administrative bodies of the Eastern Prelacy. The Assembly is composed of
one-seventh clergy and six-sevenths lay delegates. The clergy delegates are
elected by the clergy conference, and the lay delegates by their respective
parishes. Although the membership changes, the NRA is a permanent body.

The first session will begin Wednesday afternoon, May 19, with the official
“Call to Order,” and opening prayer, followed by welcoming addresses by the
host parish, report of the credential committee, and the election of the NRA
chairmen and secretaries. All of the meetings will take place at the church,
which is located at 8701 Ridge Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19128.

The Prelate, His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, will deliver his
message during the second session on Thursday, May 20, at approximately 10
a.m. This will be followed by the Keynote address by Professor Vigen
Guroian, who will speak about “The Armenian Christian Family Under Fire.”
His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, proclaimed
2004 as “The Year of the Family,” and the Eastern Prelacy has been focusing
on this theme throughout the year. Dr. Guroian is professor of theology and
ethics at Loyola College in Baltimore, Maryland. He is the first Armenian
theologian ever elected to the American Theological Society and the Orthodox
Theological Society of America. His published works include nearly 150
articles, and six books with three more scheduled to be published later this
year.

Also featured during the sessions will be a study conducted by the St.
Asdvadzadzin Church, Whitinsville, Massachusetts, as “one example of how a
parish is meeting the needs of its parishioners.”

The various workshops will focus on the responsibilities of boards of
trustees, delegates, and the Prelacy, and steps that can be taken at a
parish and regional level to build on various educational programs.

Awards
Mrs. Alice Sachaklian, of Virginia, will be honored as the “Woman of the
Year.” Mrs. Sachaklian and her late husband Col. Harry Sachaklian have been
active members of the Armenian Church for decades as well as generous
benefactors, especially for clergy training. Mrs. Sachaklian recently
established a fund with the Prelacy Endowment Fund, “The Col. Harry A. and
Alice K. Sachaklian Antelias Seminary Fund.” Col. Sachaklian served as a
delegate to the NRA for many years and was elected to serve as co-chairman
of the NRA on several occasions.

Mr. Aram Hamparian, Executive Director of the Armenian National Committee of
America in Washington, D.C., will be honored with the “Spirit of Armenia”
award in recognition of his years of outstanding service as an advocate for
Armenian issues.

The prestigious “Eagle of the Prelacy” will be conferred on local
parishioner, Mr. K. Yervant Terzian, who has been an active member of the
Philadelphia Armenian community for decades and benefactor to many Armenian
organizations, including the Eastern Prelacy.

On Thursday, May 20, the Divine Liturgy will be celebrated on the occasion
of Ascension Day at St. Gregory Church, 7:30 p.m.

The Prelacy Bookstore is organizing a mini book fair, which will be open for
the duration of the Assembly for the benefit of the delegates and the
Philadelphia community. The latest books, CDs, and gifts will be available.

The closing banquet, during which several local parishioners will be honored
with Certificates of Merit, will take place at Doubletree Guest Suites in
Plymouth Meeting. For details visit the Prelacy web site,

From: Baghdasarian

ArmenPress
May 7 2004

KOCHARIAN TRAVELS TO LEBANON ON MAY 10

YEREVAN, MAY 7, ARMENPRESS; Armenian president Robert Kocharian
will pay a working visit to Lebanon on May 10 at the invitation of
Lebanese president Emile Lahoud. Kocharian’s press office said
Armenian president will be received by Lahoud, prime minister Rafiq
Hariri, parliament chairman Nabi Berri and deputy prime minister
Issam Fares.
Kocharian will also meet with Catholicos Aram I, the head of the
Great See of Cilicia, Catholicos-Patriarch Nerses Tarmuni, the head
of Armenian Catholic Church, Mkrtich Karagyozian, the head of
Armenian Evangelical Church in the Middle East and with
representatives of the local Armenian community. Kocharian will also
visit local historical sights and monuments.

U.S. Newswire Press Releases / Yahoo News
May 7 2004

U.S. Church Leaders Press President Bush on Problems Facing Holy Land
Christians

To: National Desk and Religion Reporter

Contact: Jim Wetekam of the Churches for Middle East Peace,
202-543-4150 or [email protected]

WASHINGTON, May 7 /U.S. Newswire/ — Fifty leaders of evangelical and
mainline Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox churches and
church-related organizations in the U.S. today delivered a letter to
President Bush (news – web sites) asking for a full understanding of
“the crisis in the Holy Land confronting Christian Palestinians,
Christian institutions, and those who wish to visit the birthplace of
Christianity.”

Stating that the “churches have directed their concerns to the
Israeli government but to little avail,” the church leaders appealed
for the President’s intervention to help restore the normal
functioning of Christian institutions in Israel and the Occupied
Territories and claimed that “it is generally acknowledged that
relations of the churches and these institutions with the Israeli
government may be the worst they have ever been.”

The letter addressed the church leaders’ concerns specifically
regarding the effects of the separation barrier being constructed by
Israel, taxation issues that may force some church institutions to
close due to the removal of their longstanding tax-exempt status, and
“the denial and delay of visas, by Israel, for clergy and church
personnel result(ing) in understaffed seminaries, churches,
hospitals, education and other institutions.”

Speaking as one of the diverse group of signers, the Most Rev. Frank
T. Griswold, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, USA, said,
“Our churches, hospitals, schools, and other institutions are
important visible expressions of our faith’s concern for humanity.
While they serve Christians and non-Christians alike, they are also
expressions of our Christian heritage and its many contributions to
the region.”

Another signer, Brother Robert Schieler, Provincial for the De La
Salle Christian Brothers who administer Bethlehem University,
emphasized the destructive effects of the separation barrier on
Christian and Palestinian populations: “Even if the barrier is
intended for security, it has had the very real effects of separating
students and faculty from their classrooms, families from one
another, farmers from their fields, and Christian worshippers from
their churches.”

In the letter to President Bush, the church leaders observe, “We find
it difficult to be assured by your description on April 14 of the
barrier as ‘temporary’ in light of Israel’s plans to extend the
barrier far beyond the 1967 Green Line, encompassing on the Israeli
side those large West Bank settlements that you implied would remain
part of Israel.”

Speaking of Bethlehem particularly, Bro. Schieler noted, “The barrier
and checkpoints are now cutting off Christians in Bethlehem from
Jerusalem just a few miles away. I wonder if U.S. Christians who
visit Bethlehem as tourists know that many of their Christian
brothers and sisters who live and work and worship where Jesus was
born are not able to travel just a few miles to Jerusalem to where
Jesus died and was risen. Unfortunately, most American Christians
remain woefully uninformed about what is happening in the very land
where Jesus walked.”

Letter signers included the heads of many Catholic orders and
organizations in the United States; the General Secretary of the
National Council of Churches; the Presiding Bishops and leaders of
many denominations, such as the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America, Presbyterian Church (USA), Reformed Church in America; and
Armenian Church of America; evangelical leaders including Leighton
Ford, Robert Seiple, and Ron Sider; the heads of relief and
development agencies such as World Vision, Catholic Relief Services,
Church World Service, and the Mennonite Central Committee; and many
others. The complete text of the letter and list of signers is
available at

The signers, while specifically raising the concerns of church
institutions and Palestinian Christians, stated clearly that they “do
not mean to minimize the suffering of Muslims and Jews.” The letter
ended by imploring the President to assist all Muslims, Jews, and
Christians in the Holy Land, stating, “your help is needed as a force
for peacemaking that builds bridges to a new and hopeful future.”

Bishop Griswold summarized, “We believe that our institutions provide
services that are essential to bringing hope to people in need and
thus to our shared goal of two states, with secure borders, and able
to live in peace, one with the other.”

ArmenPress
May 7 2004

PRIME MINISTER ANDRANIK MARGARIAN’S ADDRESS ON THE OCCASION OF MAY 9
VICTORY AND PEACE DAY

YEREVAN, MAY 7, ARMENPRESS: Dear compatriots,
I congratulate you all cordially on the occasion of Victory and
Peace Day. As part of today’s reflections, each year on this
wonderful and festive day we get once again united by the feelings of
solidarity, national spirit and sacred dignity, thanks to which we
have gained all our historical achievements and victories.
Today when we continue building our independent state that has
entered into the second decade of existence, we cannot fail to
realize that one of the major conditions to withstand many ordeals
that are still on our way is to recollect the heroic pages of our
past. In order to build a peaceful and safe future we have to first
of all assess our historical achievements, to pay tribute and bow
down to the memory of hundreds of thousands of those heroes, who
sacrificed their lives for our homeland’s independence, its
continuance and peace.
Our heroic people have crowned their name with fame also in World
War II. Armenians contributed heavily to the victory over fascism
both in the ranks of the Soviet Army, partisan warfare, while
Diaspora Armenians did their share in the ranks of the allied armies
and Resistance Movement.
That was the victory that gave a new start to peaceful and
creative work of the civilized world and our people.
The glorious pages of our new history were created in the trenches
of Karabagh war with the craving for freedom and the belief in future
peace, and the heroic liberation of Shushi on May 9, 1992 was the
evidence of the present day triumph of Armenia’s arms.
Sending my warmest congratulations to our compatriots in Armenia,
Diaspora and Karabagh, our war veterans on the occasion of Victory
and Peace Day, I wish you all good health, peace and creative work
for the welfare and strengthening of our independent state, for the
prosperity and development of our country and our people.

ArmenPress
May 7 2004

BUSH NAMES JOHN MARSHAL EVANS NEW AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA

WASHINGTON, MAY 7, ARMENPRESS: President George W. Bush announced
Thursday his intention to nominate John Marshall Evans, of Virginia,
to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United
States of America to the Republic of Armenia.
A career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Mr. Evans currently
serves as Director of the State Department’s Office of Russian
Affairs. He previously served as Director of the Office of Analysis
for Russia and Eurasia in the Bureau of Intelligence and Research.
Mr. Evans earned his bachelor’s degree from Yale University.

Armenian opposition bloc suggests discussing ways out of crisis

Noyan Tapan news agency
7 May 04

YEREVAN

The Justice bloc has offered the ruling coalition to hold a political
dialogue on “Ways out of the crisis that has taken shape in the
country since the 2003 presidential elections”. The secretary of the
Justice faction, Viktor Dallakyan, told Noyan Tapan today that this
decision was made at a meeting of the bloc.

According to Dallakyan, the chairman of the National Unity Party,
Artashes Gegamyan, will also express his attitude towards the subject
of the political dialogue. Representatives of the bloc will meet him
in one or two days. Only after that will the final opinion of the
opposition be submitted to the chairman of the National Assembly,
Artur Bagdasaryan.

Dallakyan added that if the coalition also outlines issues of interest
to it, they could all be included in the agenda of the political
consultations.

The MP also said that the Justice bloc has no problem with the format
of the dialogue.

To recap, at the end of yesterday’s meeting between the coalition and
the opposition, the sides issued a joint statement expressing their
readiness to continue the dialogue by forming the agenda of issues to
be discussed jointly.

Azeri authorities do not sanction pressure group’s march to Karabakh

Trend news agency
7 May 04

BAKU

Trend correspondent S. Agayeva: The authorities have not given
official permission for a peace march to Karabakh by members of the
Karabakh Liberation Organization (KLO) scheduled for 8 May, the
chairman of the organization, Akif Nagi, told a news conference on 7
May. He said that the organization had received a letter from the Baku
Mayor’s Office saying that “although the mayor’s office approves the
move itself, it does not think it expedient to hold it as the
authorities themselves are dealing with a solution to the Nagornyy
Karabakh conflict”.

Despite this, the organization is set to hold the march which will
start from a visit to the Martyr’s Avenue and then a delegation of 150
people will go to Karabakh. Nagi did not disclose the route of the
march as he had not agreed it with the authorities.

All political parties, except for the [ruling] New Azerbaijan Party,
gave their support for the action. Representatives of embassies and
international organizations intend to closely follow the march. The
aim of the action is to let the international community know that the
Azerbaijani people will not allow any compromise to be made on
Nagornyy Karabakh, Nagi said, denying Armenian media reports that the
march had been organized by the Azerbaijani authorities “as a show
that they want to perform for the international community and
international organizations”.