Mer Hamunthanour Deghkayl-ue Inchou Verch Chounenar?
ARTICLE BY DR. NOUBAR BERBERIAN
BOSTON, U.S.A.
Armenian Genocide Resource Center
8 months ago
Showing posts with label 28th August 2008. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 28th August 2008. Show all posts
Thursday, 28 August 2008
Armenian News
Monday, 25 August, 2008
Armenia Hit By Fuel Shortages
By Shakeh Avoyan
Armenia was grappling with its worst fuel shortages since the early
1990s on Monday despite the reported reopening of Georgia's east-west
railway that serves as the main supply line of the two South Caucasus
states.
A section of that railway close to the central Georgian town of Gori was
damaged by a weekend fuel train explosion which Georgian officials said
was caused by a landmine. It occurred just over a week after another,
powerful explosion downed a nearby rail bridge. Russia denied Georgian
accusations that it was behind the attack.
The August 16 blast left the Armenian government scrambling to restore
supplies of wheat, fuel and other basic commodities from the Georgian
Black Sea ports of Poti and Batumi which process more than 90 percent of
Armenia's external cargo turnover. The government sent a convoy of about
40 fuel trucks to collect gasoline stranded in the ports.
Officials said on Monday that the convoy returned to Armenia at the
weekend with more than 500 tons of petrol. The government does not plan
to send more heavy vehicles to Georgia in view of the renewed rail
communication, they said.
Meanwhile, the situation with fuel supplies only deteriorated, with the
vast majority of filling stations in Yerevan resorting to severe fuel
rationing on Sunday. They stopped selling petrol altogether the next
morning. Only holders of prepaid corporate vouchers issued by the
country's largest station chains could buy a limited amount of petrol on
Monday.
`We have run out of gas and are selling it only to company cars. This is
all the information I have at this point,' said a worker at one filling
station besieged by angry motorists.
`The war is in Georgia, but it's Armenia that is in crisis,' one of them
complained. `They keep saying that petrol is coming and there are no
problems. But there is a problem.'
`Even in the most remote Georgian village there is no petrol shortage,'
said another driver. `Why? Because there are many petrol importers in
Georgia but only three of them in this country.'
The cargo company Apaven, which was assigned by the government to
organize the emergency fuel imports, downplayed the crisis. `The
[Georgian] railway has begun functioning at a fraction of its capacity,'
Apaven's executive director, Gagik Aghajanian, told RFE/RL. `But even
that is enough. If there is any deficit, I think it will be eliminated
shortly.'
Aghajanian referred to the start of rail traffic through a smaller,
disused rail bridge which Georgia, helped by Armenia and Azerbaijan, has
prepared for use until the damaged bridge is repaired.
According to the Armenian Ministry of Transport and Communications, the
August 16 blast left a total of 178 rail cars, 108 of them loaded with
wheat, stranded on Georgian railway sections west of Gori. `In all
likelihood, 35 cars loaded with wheat will head to Armenia today,' a
ministry spokeswoman, Susanna Tonoyan, told RFE/RL.
`Besides, we have a lot of freight in the ports of Poti and Batumi
awaiting shipment,' she said. `In particular, in Poti there are two
ships carrying 6,700 tons of wheat and 93 rails cars of other goods. In
Batumi, we have 2,500 tons of wheat, ten cars of petrol and another one
thousand tons of petrol.'
Tonoyan added that the government has also organized `intensive' fuel
and wheat supplies from neighboring Iran. More than 400 tons of flour
have already bee imported to Armenia through Iranian territory, she
said.
SHORTAGES OF FUEL AND WHEAT IN ARMENIA
By M. Alkhazashvili
The Messenger
Aug 26 2008
Georgia
Russia's intervention in Georgia and its deliberate damaging of
Georgia's transport infrastructure have caused serious problems to
Russia's strategic partner Armenia. That country receives many of its
essential goods by cargo through Georgia. The suspension of transit
caused by damage to Georgia's transport infrastructure has created
a shortage of certain products in Armenia, most importantly fuel
and wheat.
To try and alleviate the fuel shortage the Armenian Energy Minister
has traveled to Iran, although agreeing to obtain fuel from there
would be a difficult step to take as it would be more expensive than
getting it through Georgia.
There are currently 37 petrol tankers in Batumi which could be used to
transport fuel to Armenia. The Batumi terminal however is storing 1,800
tonnes of petrol which is due for delivery to that country. Armenia
is therefore sending 40 extra petrol tankers to Batumi. One of six
carriages of wheat intended for Armenia is also stranded in Georgia
due to Russia's damage of the railways.
Both Armenia and Azerbaijan are vitally interested in the prompt
restoration of the Georgian railway system. Specialists from both
countries are assisting Georgia to reconstruct it.
By M. Alkhazashvili
The Messenger
Aug 26 2008
Georgia
Russia's intervention in Georgia and its deliberate damaging of
Georgia's transport infrastructure have caused serious problems to
Russia's strategic partner Armenia. That country receives many of its
essential goods by cargo through Georgia. The suspension of transit
caused by damage to Georgia's transport infrastructure has created
a shortage of certain products in Armenia, most importantly fuel
and wheat.
To try and alleviate the fuel shortage the Armenian Energy Minister
has traveled to Iran, although agreeing to obtain fuel from there
would be a difficult step to take as it would be more expensive than
getting it through Georgia.
There are currently 37 petrol tankers in Batumi which could be used to
transport fuel to Armenia. The Batumi terminal however is storing 1,800
tonnes of petrol which is due for delivery to that country. Armenia
is therefore sending 40 extra petrol tankers to Batumi. One of six
carriages of wheat intended for Armenia is also stranded in Georgia
due to Russia's damage of the railways.
Both Armenia and Azerbaijan are vitally interested in the prompt
restoration of the Georgian railway system. Specialists from both
countries are assisting Georgia to reconstruct it.
THE CAUCASUS MOMENT
By Vartan Oskanian
AZG Armenian Daily
26/08/2008
YEREVAN, Armenia. Although we could see the clouds gathering, the
recent Georgia-Russia confrontation shook us all. No one had allowed
themselves to believe that mixed messages and complicated agendas
would come to such a head, causing so much devastation, loss of life
and geopolitical chaos.
The South Ossetia conflict should not be viewed solely through the
larger prism of Georgia-Russia relations. This is an ethnic conflict,
after all, and one of several in the Caucasus. It is a warning to
the international community: If pipeline safety is a concern now,
then imagine the very real dangers that an Azerbaijani-Armenian
conflict over Nagorno Karabakh would create.
Therefore, in order to seriously tackle the more difficult conflicts
throughout this region, the comparatively more straightforward security
and stability issues must be resolved first - and quickly.
Conflicts in the region would be viewed in a wholly different, more
reassuring and tolerant context if there were a binding and strong
security pact that assured non-use of force.
These conflicts are not frozen. In the absence of a security pact,
there is an arms build up that is in itself destabilizing, distorting
national budgets and hampering the normal development of civil society.
Yet in the Caucasus, our countries and peoples have lived under a
common umbrella far more than we have been divided. Today, we share
a common vision of European integration, a vision that is greater
and more enduring than issues that divide us. It is in the broader
context of European integration that our issues should be resolved.
Although integration with Europe is not controversial, NATO expansion
is. Never in history has a grand coalition formed to defeat a
particular enemy survived after the task was completed. Not after
the Napoleonic wars, not after World War I and not after World War II.
After the West's Cold War victory, two things happened. NATO tried
to reinvent itself by directing its attention and resources to other
regions and addressing other problems. Containing Russia was not a
declared intention. And NATO created the Euro Atlantic Partnership
Council, which invited all Eastern Bloc and former Soviet republics
to participate.
This was visionary and potentially sustainable. After all, the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Council
of Europe extended their efficacy in that way by including the
remnants of the USSR. Not only did they remain relevant and viable,
they contributed immeasurably to our own growth and development.
But NATO also planned to continue and even expand in the same form,
even after its stated goal had long been met. Given the changed
security environment and Russia's great security sensitivities,
this was, it appears, a strategic mistake.
Georgia's eagerness to get into NATO is understandable. But the
security benefits to Georgia that NATO membership would bring would
be offset by the creation of a dividing line in the Caucasus, and
its attendant security challenges.
Perhaps this is the Caucasus moment: A historic opportunity, in the
context of a new regional security pact, for Brussels, Washington and
Moscow to meet with Tbilisi, Yerevan and Baku and create a nonaligned
Caucasus, free of security memberships and adversarial alliances. Such
positive, engaged, inclusive neutrality will be possible and beneficial
all around.
This would be in the best interest of this highly combustible region. A
U.S.-Russia confrontation at the Georgia-Russia level will make life
very difficult, not just for us here in Armenia but also for Azerbaijan
and Turkey.
It is in the context of these existential security issues that we
must view the recent Turkish proposal for a Caucasus Stability and
Cooperation Platform.
The idea of such a pact was floated already in 1999. The concept
found favor because there were fresh memories of the use of
force in our region, and the urgency of security arrangements was
evident. Opposition to Russian interests was not yet deep and there
were no tensions through proxies. But even during such a honeymoon,
the idea didn't become reality.
Today, force has been used again, and perhaps for that reason, the
idea has resurfaced. But today, with the threat of a renewed Cold-War
mentality, divisive lines may be drawn through these mountains and
all regional relations will become unimaginably complicated. That is,
where there still are relations.
Turkey's proposal is therefore interesting and the urgency is not lost
on anyone. But the concept must be developed right and implemented
well. But we've been down this road before in this part of the world,
where good intentions were sidetracked by the very political problems
they were meant to resolve.
The Black Sea Economic Cooperation pact, for example, was created
precisely for the purpose of bringing together those who otherwise
shared no common forum for economic cooperation and the resolution
of problems. But it's effectiveness has been limited because Turkey
lacked the commitment to use the forum as a way to relate with a
country like Armenia, with whom its borders are closed.
The proposal today, in this new tense environment, must be more
serious and sustained. It must marginalize no one. Security issues
are intertwined, and they ought to be addressed in a stability pact
with a comprehensive, strong security component.
During his visit to Baku last week, Turkish Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan discussed the Turkish plan and publicly made reference
to Armenia's inclusion. It is also a fortuitous coincidence that
President Abdullah Gul of Turkey has been invited by President
Serzh Sargsian of Armenia to watch the Turkey-Armenia FIFA World Cup
qualifying match on Sept. 6 together.
This offers an opportunity for these two neighbors to discuss common
security challenges and pave the way for a region of peace.
Vartan Oskanian was foreign minister of Armenia from 1998 to April
2008. He is the founder of the Civilitas Foundation in Yerevan,
which addresses foreign policy, democracy and development issues in
the Caucasus.
By Vartan Oskanian
AZG Armenian Daily
26/08/2008
YEREVAN, Armenia. Although we could see the clouds gathering, the
recent Georgia-Russia confrontation shook us all. No one had allowed
themselves to believe that mixed messages and complicated agendas
would come to such a head, causing so much devastation, loss of life
and geopolitical chaos.
The South Ossetia conflict should not be viewed solely through the
larger prism of Georgia-Russia relations. This is an ethnic conflict,
after all, and one of several in the Caucasus. It is a warning to
the international community: If pipeline safety is a concern now,
then imagine the very real dangers that an Azerbaijani-Armenian
conflict over Nagorno Karabakh would create.
Therefore, in order to seriously tackle the more difficult conflicts
throughout this region, the comparatively more straightforward security
and stability issues must be resolved first - and quickly.
Conflicts in the region would be viewed in a wholly different, more
reassuring and tolerant context if there were a binding and strong
security pact that assured non-use of force.
These conflicts are not frozen. In the absence of a security pact,
there is an arms build up that is in itself destabilizing, distorting
national budgets and hampering the normal development of civil society.
Yet in the Caucasus, our countries and peoples have lived under a
common umbrella far more than we have been divided. Today, we share
a common vision of European integration, a vision that is greater
and more enduring than issues that divide us. It is in the broader
context of European integration that our issues should be resolved.
Although integration with Europe is not controversial, NATO expansion
is. Never in history has a grand coalition formed to defeat a
particular enemy survived after the task was completed. Not after
the Napoleonic wars, not after World War I and not after World War II.
After the West's Cold War victory, two things happened. NATO tried
to reinvent itself by directing its attention and resources to other
regions and addressing other problems. Containing Russia was not a
declared intention. And NATO created the Euro Atlantic Partnership
Council, which invited all Eastern Bloc and former Soviet republics
to participate.
This was visionary and potentially sustainable. After all, the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Council
of Europe extended their efficacy in that way by including the
remnants of the USSR. Not only did they remain relevant and viable,
they contributed immeasurably to our own growth and development.
But NATO also planned to continue and even expand in the same form,
even after its stated goal had long been met. Given the changed
security environment and Russia's great security sensitivities,
this was, it appears, a strategic mistake.
Georgia's eagerness to get into NATO is understandable. But the
security benefits to Georgia that NATO membership would bring would
be offset by the creation of a dividing line in the Caucasus, and
its attendant security challenges.
Perhaps this is the Caucasus moment: A historic opportunity, in the
context of a new regional security pact, for Brussels, Washington and
Moscow to meet with Tbilisi, Yerevan and Baku and create a nonaligned
Caucasus, free of security memberships and adversarial alliances. Such
positive, engaged, inclusive neutrality will be possible and beneficial
all around.
This would be in the best interest of this highly combustible region. A
U.S.-Russia confrontation at the Georgia-Russia level will make life
very difficult, not just for us here in Armenia but also for Azerbaijan
and Turkey.
It is in the context of these existential security issues that we
must view the recent Turkish proposal for a Caucasus Stability and
Cooperation Platform.
The idea of such a pact was floated already in 1999. The concept
found favor because there were fresh memories of the use of
force in our region, and the urgency of security arrangements was
evident. Opposition to Russian interests was not yet deep and there
were no tensions through proxies. But even during such a honeymoon,
the idea didn't become reality.
Today, force has been used again, and perhaps for that reason, the
idea has resurfaced. But today, with the threat of a renewed Cold-War
mentality, divisive lines may be drawn through these mountains and
all regional relations will become unimaginably complicated. That is,
where there still are relations.
Turkey's proposal is therefore interesting and the urgency is not lost
on anyone. But the concept must be developed right and implemented
well. But we've been down this road before in this part of the world,
where good intentions were sidetracked by the very political problems
they were meant to resolve.
The Black Sea Economic Cooperation pact, for example, was created
precisely for the purpose of bringing together those who otherwise
shared no common forum for economic cooperation and the resolution
of problems. But it's effectiveness has been limited because Turkey
lacked the commitment to use the forum as a way to relate with a
country like Armenia, with whom its borders are closed.
The proposal today, in this new tense environment, must be more
serious and sustained. It must marginalize no one. Security issues
are intertwined, and they ought to be addressed in a stability pact
with a comprehensive, strong security component.
During his visit to Baku last week, Turkish Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan discussed the Turkish plan and publicly made reference
to Armenia's inclusion. It is also a fortuitous coincidence that
President Abdullah Gul of Turkey has been invited by President
Serzh Sargsian of Armenia to watch the Turkey-Armenia FIFA World Cup
qualifying match on Sept. 6 together.
This offers an opportunity for these two neighbors to discuss common
security challenges and pave the way for a region of peace.
Vartan Oskanian was foreign minister of Armenia from 1998 to April
2008. He is the founder of the Civilitas Foundation in Yerevan,
which addresses foreign policy, democracy and development issues in
the Caucasus.
ARMENIA BANS OPERATION OF WESTERN UNION ON ITS TERRITORY
Today.Az
Aug 25 2008
Azerbaijan
The Board of the Central Bank (CB) of Armenia decided today to
forbid all the banks on the territory of Armenia to participate in
the international Western Union money transfer system.
As Mediamax was told in CB press service, the banks were ordered to
annul the cooperation agreements with Western Union in an envisaged
order.
The CB press service informed that this decision was made to reduce the
banking risks as "there are cases of unfounded violation of agreement
provisions between Western Union and several banks acting on the
territory of Armenia. Thus, in branches of several banks the money
transfer system stopped service which can harm the usual activity of
the banks, their financial status, lead to an unexpected situation
in the sphere of money transfers, as well as influence the economic,
financial and real sectors of the country."
Mediamax recalls that earlier Azerbaijan demanded that Western
Union, Moneygram and some other systems stopped their activity in the
"Nagorno-Karabakh Republic" (NKR) threatening to ban the activity of
the systems in Azerbaijan. As a result of this, several money transfer
systems stopped their activity in "NKR".
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today.Az
Aug 25 2008
Azerbaijan
The Board of the Central Bank (CB) of Armenia decided today to
forbid all the banks on the territory of Armenia to participate in
the international Western Union money transfer system.
As Mediamax was told in CB press service, the banks were ordered to
annul the cooperation agreements with Western Union in an envisaged
order.
The CB press service informed that this decision was made to reduce the
banking risks as "there are cases of unfounded violation of agreement
provisions between Western Union and several banks acting on the
territory of Armenia. Thus, in branches of several banks the money
transfer system stopped service which can harm the usual activity of
the banks, their financial status, lead to an unexpected situation
in the sphere of money transfers, as well as influence the economic,
financial and real sectors of the country."
Mediamax recalls that earlier Azerbaijan demanded that Western
Union, Moneygram and some other systems stopped their activity in the
"Nagorno-Karabakh Republic" (NKR) threatening to ban the activity of
the systems in Azerbaijan. As a result of this, several money transfer
systems stopped their activity in "NKR".
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ANCA and Armenian Weekly Live at the Democratic Convention
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Obama/Biden Strong on Genocide Recognition; US-Armenia Relations
LA Fundraiser to Honor Armenian Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Joe Knollenberg
LOS ANGELES--Congressman Joe Knollenberg (R-MI), Co-Chair of the Congressional Armenian Caucus and a staunch supporter of issues of importance to Armenian Americans, will be honored on August 28, at a reception co-hosted by the Armenian National Committee Political Action Committee (ANC-PAC), the U.S.-Armenia Public Affairs Committee (USAPAC) and The California Courier newspaper. Also in attendance will be members of the National Organization of Republican Armenians (NORA. Armenian News (look out for article on Vergine)
RUSSIA TO CONVEY TURKISH-LED PROPOSAL TO ARMENIA FIRST
Turkish Daily News
Aug 22 2008
Turkey's proposal to create a stability pact in the Caucasus is
helping improve Turkish-Armenian ties amid low-profile diplomatic
contacts that have commenced between the two neighbors.
As questions linger over the fate of the Turkish-led proposal, due
to conflicts between the potential members, Russian Foreign Minister
Sergei Lavrov is expected to communicate Turkey's proposal for a
Caucasus stability pact with Armenia after a telephone conversation
with his Turkish counterpart, Ali Babacan, this week.
On another front, the deputy undersecretary of the Turkish Foreign
Ministry, Unal Ceviköz, is expected to hold talks with his Armenian
counterparts regarding the Caucasus plan. Ceviköz was one of the
Turkish diplomats who held secret talks with Armenian officials
in Switzerland.
Turkey has prioritized Armenia's involvement in the regional
cooperation mechanism. Diplomatic sources earlier told the Turkish
Daily News that it was Armenia that was most negatively affected by
the Georgian-Russian war in the region and highlighted the importance
of Yerevan joining the platform.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced Wednesday that Babacan
would speak to Lavrov this week after which the format of the contacts
would be determined. The proposal is expected to be first presented
to the Armenian side by the Russian foreign minister.
Meanwhile, Yerevan welcomed the Turkish will to include Armenia in the
Caucasus pact. "Armenia was always in favor of dialogue and talks,
particularly on the issues concerning cooperation and security in
our region," Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian said in a
written statement released by the Armenian Foreign Ministry.
"The Turkish prime minister's statement on the intention to start
talks with Armenia on this agenda could be welcomed," he noted.
Babacan is expected to hold talks with his Armenian counterpart on
the sidelines of the annual U.N. General Assembly meetings in New
York in September.
Turkey continues practice to ease airspace quota
Ankara's move to relax its airspace quota for Armenia is also
considered another positive gesture toward Yerevan, in addition to
considerations of aid to civilians.
Turkey decided to loosen its airspace quota for Armenia to allow easier
access for humanitarian aid to war-torn Georgia. The most visible
aim is to contribute to aid efforts by facilitating the transfer of
material via Armenia and to help civilians leave Georgia by using
Yerevan as an alternative to Baku, which is already overcrowded.
European countries mostly used Georgian and Russian air space before
the war. Charter flights from Istanbul and Trabzon to Yerevan were
already available; now all planes flying to and from Yerevan are
granted flight permission. The TDN learned that the practice is still
ongoing and this liberal air space quota may be kept in place while
progress in the betterment of Turkish-Armenian ties gets clearer in
the upcoming period.
Turkish Daily News
Aug 22 2008
Turkey's proposal to create a stability pact in the Caucasus is
helping improve Turkish-Armenian ties amid low-profile diplomatic
contacts that have commenced between the two neighbors.
As questions linger over the fate of the Turkish-led proposal, due
to conflicts between the potential members, Russian Foreign Minister
Sergei Lavrov is expected to communicate Turkey's proposal for a
Caucasus stability pact with Armenia after a telephone conversation
with his Turkish counterpart, Ali Babacan, this week.
On another front, the deputy undersecretary of the Turkish Foreign
Ministry, Unal Ceviköz, is expected to hold talks with his Armenian
counterparts regarding the Caucasus plan. Ceviköz was one of the
Turkish diplomats who held secret talks with Armenian officials
in Switzerland.
Turkey has prioritized Armenia's involvement in the regional
cooperation mechanism. Diplomatic sources earlier told the Turkish
Daily News that it was Armenia that was most negatively affected by
the Georgian-Russian war in the region and highlighted the importance
of Yerevan joining the platform.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced Wednesday that Babacan
would speak to Lavrov this week after which the format of the contacts
would be determined. The proposal is expected to be first presented
to the Armenian side by the Russian foreign minister.
Meanwhile, Yerevan welcomed the Turkish will to include Armenia in the
Caucasus pact. "Armenia was always in favor of dialogue and talks,
particularly on the issues concerning cooperation and security in
our region," Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian said in a
written statement released by the Armenian Foreign Ministry.
"The Turkish prime minister's statement on the intention to start
talks with Armenia on this agenda could be welcomed," he noted.
Babacan is expected to hold talks with his Armenian counterpart on
the sidelines of the annual U.N. General Assembly meetings in New
York in September.
Turkey continues practice to ease airspace quota
Ankara's move to relax its airspace quota for Armenia is also
considered another positive gesture toward Yerevan, in addition to
considerations of aid to civilians.
Turkey decided to loosen its airspace quota for Armenia to allow easier
access for humanitarian aid to war-torn Georgia. The most visible
aim is to contribute to aid efforts by facilitating the transfer of
material via Armenia and to help civilians leave Georgia by using
Yerevan as an alternative to Baku, which is already overcrowded.
European countries mostly used Georgian and Russian air space before
the war. Charter flights from Istanbul and Trabzon to Yerevan were
already available; now all planes flying to and from Yerevan are
granted flight permission. The TDN learned that the practice is still
ongoing and this liberal air space quota may be kept in place while
progress in the betterment of Turkish-Armenian ties gets clearer in
the upcoming period.
ARMENIA AND THE NEW TURKISH PROPOSAL
Richard Giragosian
Turkish Daily News
Aug 22 2008
As the conflict in Georgia over the past two weeks has so demonstrably
confirmed, there is a glaring need for stability in the South
Caucasus region. As part of a broader Turkish initiative to assert
geopolitical influence, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
has recently launched a new bid for bolstering stability and security
in the region. Hailed as the "Platform for Stability and Cooperation
in the Caucasus," this new Turkish initiative seeks to forge a new
cooperative attempt at conflict prevention, multilateral security
and regional stability.
Heralding this new initiative, the Turkish prime minister arrived in
Baku on August 20 to meet with President Ilham Aliyev and to more
clearly define the proposal's goal for securing the now vulnerable
energy export routes running from the Caspian basin to Europe.
The Energy imperative
While one of the most pressing needs is to rapidly resume the flow of
oil exports through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan, or BTC, pipeline, closed
since August 6 after an explosion damaged the Turkish portion of the
pipeline and has not been reopened since the subsequent conflict
in Georgia raised fresh security concerns. Although preliminary
testing of the Turkish section of the pipeline began on August 18,
serious concerns linger, especially as the BTC's back-up route, the
90,000-barrels-per-day-capacity Baku-Supsa pipeline, has also been
shut down after a key railway bridge was destroyed in Georgia.
Erdogan's Azerbaijan visit comes in the wake of earlier meetings in
both Moscow and Tbilisi last week, where he also pressed for support
of the new initiative. Most importantly, it is the imperative of
stability for energy that is the key to the initiative, as the recent
outbreak of hostilities in Georgia has raised new concerns over the
viability of not only the BTC and Baku-Supsa pipelines, but also
the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum natural-gas pipeline and the U.S.-EU backed
Nabucco gas pipeline project, which proposes bringing an additional 31
billion cubic meters of natural gas to Europe once operational by 2020.
Mutually positive messages
Although Azerbaijan and Georgia have obvious vested interests in the
Turkish proposal driven by their shared energy ties, the exclusion of
Armenia from the regional energy infrastructure will only exacerbate
the challenge of convincing Armenia of the need to accept and support
the initiative. Although this challenge seems to be recognized by
Ankara, as seen by Prime Minister Erdogan's recent statement promising,
"We will discuss the project with Armenia to construct a cooperation
region with five countries," made at the Turkey-Africa summit in
Istanbul, Armenia seems by no means ready to follow Ankara's lead
without any serious improvement in the two countries' non-existent
relations and closed borders.
Yet there have been some recent signs of optimism from both sides,
demonstrated by both Turkey's relaxation of its air space quota for
Armenia in order to ease access for humanitarian aid flows into Georgia
via Armenia, and President Abdullah Gul's August 16 reconciliatory
message to Armenia. That statement noted that Turkey is "no enemy" and
pointed out that the recent conflict between Georgia and Russia affirms
the need for "early measures to resolve frozen problems in the region
and ... prevent instability in the future." The Turkish president
went on to state, "This is our understanding on all problems. We are
no enemy to anyone in the region," before reiterating the Turkish
proposal to set up a regional forum for stability in the Caucasus.
In addition, after a round of secret talks in Switzerland, there is
ample room and even greater necessity for a historic breakthrough in
relations between Turkey and Armenia.
If Gul rejects the invitation
But Gul's conciliatory remarks were not part of an attempt to restore
bilateral ties, but were in response to a question on whether he would
accept an invitation by Armenian President Serge Sarkisian to go to
Yerevan in September to attend a World Cup qualifying match between
Turkey and Armenia on September 6. And as he replied that he was still
"evaluating the invitation," there is a danger that Armenian public
opinion will be angered and disappointed by a Turkish rejection of
the invitation, which seems likely at this point.
Such a negative Armenian reaction to a likely Turkish decision not
to come to Yerevan would also set back recent Armenian overtures,
including an Armenian decision to unilaterally suspend its visa regime
with Turkey to facilitate the arrival of Turkish fans for the upcoming
first-ever match between the two countries' national football teams. An
earlier and far more significant overture came earlier this summer,
when Armenian President Sarkisian signaled his government readiness to
accept, in principle, a Turkish proposal to form a joint historical
commission, which would theoretically also examine the historical
veracity of the alleged Armenian genocide of 1915.
Thus, it seems equally clear that while Ankara is not yet willing
or able to tackle its unresolved bilateral problems with Yerevan at
this time, Armenia will remain unwilling to accept or support this
new Turkish initiative for regional stability. And Armenian public
reaction, both within Armenia and its worldwide diaspora, is certain
to reject any move to sign up to the Turkish regional initiative prior
to the restoration of normal diplomatic relations and the opening of
the closed Armenian-Turkish border.
Vergine is telling a rich mix of tales ...;
Story telling
by VAL JAVIN
STORYTELLER Vergine Gulbenkian's fascination with traditional tales
began with her own Armenian origins.
But once she had researched stories from the rich Armenian oral
tradition Vergine turned her attention to other cultures.
She will be sharing that rich mix of tales when she appears at
Huddersfield Public Library in the autumn.
Vergine has called her show Cradle Of Life and in it she threads
together three stories from very different parts of the world.
In the show at the library in the centre of Huddersfield on October 21
expect lullabies, incantations, repeated themes and factual
observations.
The stories themselves are linked by the timeless themes of
motherhood, birth, death, listening and sacrifice.
Her tales will include the Mesopotamian story of the birth of mankind
and the Flood, the Tibetan story of the wrathful mother goddess Palden
Lhamo and the Celtic story of Ceridwen and the birth of Taliesin.
Vergine has taken her storytelling skills to major venues in London,
including the South Bank Centre, the Battersea Arts Centre, the
British Museum and the Barbican Centre.
She has also visited museums, schools and storytelling clubs around
Britain. Armenian folk songs are an integral part of her performances.
The show, which begins at 7.30pm, is suitable for adults and children
over 12. Tickets are pounds 4 (pounds 3 concessions), including
refreshments from the library on 01484 221959 or 221960.
Story telling
by VAL JAVIN
STORYTELLER Vergine Gulbenkian's fascination with traditional tales
began with her own Armenian origins.
But once she had researched stories from the rich Armenian oral
tradition Vergine turned her attention to other cultures.
She will be sharing that rich mix of tales when she appears at
Huddersfield Public Library in the autumn.
Vergine has called her show Cradle Of Life and in it she threads
together three stories from very different parts of the world.
In the show at the library in the centre of Huddersfield on October 21
expect lullabies, incantations, repeated themes and factual
observations.
The stories themselves are linked by the timeless themes of
motherhood, birth, death, listening and sacrifice.
Her tales will include the Mesopotamian story of the birth of mankind
and the Flood, the Tibetan story of the wrathful mother goddess Palden
Lhamo and the Celtic story of Ceridwen and the birth of Taliesin.
Vergine has taken her storytelling skills to major venues in London,
including the South Bank Centre, the Battersea Arts Centre, the
British Museum and the Barbican Centre.
She has also visited museums, schools and storytelling clubs around
Britain. Armenian folk songs are an integral part of her performances.
The show, which begins at 7.30pm, is suitable for adults and children
over 12. Tickets are pounds 4 (pounds 3 concessions), including
refreshments from the library on 01484 221959 or 221960.
Gibrahayer
BEST RESULT FOR ARMENIAN OLYMPIC TEAM
(Arek Yapoudjian) The Armenian Olympic Team has achieved the best ever result at the Beijing Olympic Games.
(Arek Yapoudjian) The Armenian Olympic Team has achieved the best ever result at the Beijing Olympic Games.
The 25 athletes representing Armenia returned home with 6 Bronze medals in boxing, weightlifting and wrestling. T
his is an outstanding result considering that Armenia won only one Bronze in Sydney 2000 and returned home
empty handed from Athens 2004.
The proud Armenian medallists who were welcome home as great heroes were:
► Hrachik Javakhyan (Boxing 60kg)
► Tigran Gevorg Martirosyan (Weightlifting 69kg)
► Gevorg Davtyan (Weightlifting 77kg)
► Tigran Vartan Martirosyan (Weightlifting 85kg)
► Roman Amoyan (Wrestling Greco-Roman 55 kg)
► Yuri Patrikeev (Wrestling Greco-Roman 120 kg)
It should be noted that Javakhyan’s medal is Armenia’s first Olympic medal in Boxing. As a result of these great
The proud Armenian medallists who were welcome home as great heroes were:
► Hrachik Javakhyan (Boxing 60kg)
► Tigran Gevorg Martirosyan (Weightlifting 69kg)
► Gevorg Davtyan (Weightlifting 77kg)
► Tigran Vartan Martirosyan (Weightlifting 85kg)
► Roman Amoyan (Wrestling Greco-Roman 55 kg)
► Yuri Patrikeev (Wrestling Greco-Roman 120 kg)
It should be noted that Javakhyan’s medal is Armenia’s first Olympic medal in Boxing. As a result of these great
wins, the Armenian flag was raised on 6 different occasions during the medal ceremonies. Each of these Armenian
heroes will receive US$33,000 from the State budget in recognition for their great achievements.
Armenian athletes achieved medals for other countries as well. Artur Ayvazian and Armen Vardanyan represented
Armenian athletes achieved medals for other countries as well. Artur Ayvazian and Armen Vardanyan represented
Ukraine and won Gold in shooting and Bronze in Greco-Roman wrestling respectively, while Ditte Kotzian from
Germany won Bronze in women’s Synchronised Diving. Biurakn Hakhverdian from the Netherlands won Gold after
the Dutch women’s water polo team defeated the US in the final.
Congratulations to all our heroes and looking forward to London 2012.
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Congratulations to all our heroes and looking forward to London 2012.
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