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| February 1 |
Armenian security forces
arrest a group of twenty-five heavily armed individuals. According
to Interior and National Security Minister Serge Sarkisian, the group
was responsible for the 1994 attempted assassination of special prosecutor
Vladimir Grigorian. Prosecutor General Henrik Khachatrian later adds
that the group, led by Armen Ter Sahakian, is also linked to the murders
of former Armenian KGB chief Marius Youzbashian, railroad department
chief Hambartsum Gandilian, and former Yerevan mayor Hambartsum Galstian.
Reportedly, the militia group reported directly to former interior
minister Vano Siradeghian during his tenure. |
| February 1-2 |
Foreign Minister Alexander
Arzoumanian and Central Bank Chairman Bagrat Asatryan both resign
amid mounting public differences between President Levon Ter Petrosian
and Prime Minister Robert Kocharian on policies regarding the Nagorno
Karabagh conflict. Yerevan Mayor and head of the ruling Armenian National
Movement (ANM) Vano Siradeghian also resigns as mayor. |
| February 2 |
Addressing the Nagorno
Karabagh parliament, President Arkady Gukasyan discusses his administration's
opposition to the current peace plan offered by the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Gukasyan states that any
attempt at placing Nagorno Karabagh under Azerbaijani subordination
would undoubtedly bring the "conflicting sides closer to warfare."
The OSCE plan, accepted by the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents,
consists of a staged, or phased, approach calling for the unilateral
withdrawal of Nagorno Karabagh forces from several key areas they
currently hold, the return of refugees from these areas, and the demilitarization
of the border region as preconditions to an eventual negotiation over
the future political and diplomatic status of Nagorno Karabagh. Such
a staged approach is unacceptable to the Karabagh leadership given
the lack of security guarantees and the heavy preconditions imposed
on Stepanakert. The Nagorno Karabagh position advocates a comprehensive
approach, resolving all issues in a package structure. |
| February 3 |
In a special televised
evening address to the nation, President Ter Petrosian formally announces
his resignation. Ter Petrosian states that "well-known bodies
of power demanded" his resignation and that he is resigning since
continuing as president "under the current situation is fraught
with a real danger of destabilization." The evening address follows
an afternoon where the entire management of the Armenian Central Bank
tendered their resignations, which the president refused to accept,
as well as the recent defections of 40 of the 96 deputies of the government-allied
"Republic" parliamentary coalition. |
| February 4 |
A delegation of thirty
Turkish business and trade representatives arrive in Yerevan for meetings
with the Union of Manufacturers and Businessmen of Armenia. The meeting
calls for the opening of the countries' borders and the formation
of cross-border joint ventures.
A flurry of resignations follow President Ter Petrosian's announcement
that he is resigning, including Parliamentary Chairman Babken Ararktsian
(who was constitutionally in line to temporarily assume the presidency)
and Deputy Parliamentary Chairman Ara Sahakian. Recent defections
by deputies from the pro-Ter Petrosian Republic coalition to the Defense
Minister Sarkisian-allied "Yerkrapah" bloc has dramatically
altered the parliament, making the Yerkrapah bloc the dominant parliamentary
group with 72 deputies. Given the resignation of the parliamentary
chairman, the constitution stipulates that interim presidential powers
are to be transferred to the next in line, Prime Minister Robert Kocharian.
Parliament also elects Khosrov Harutiunian, who briefly served as
Prime Minister in 1992 before being dismissed by Ter Petrosian, as
the new chairman of the parliament.
At a press conference, acting President Kocharian pledges his commitment
to holding free and fair presidential elections within the constitutionally-required
40 day period and promises to continue the country's economic reform
program. Kocharian adds that the government is functioning normally
and that Armenia remains committed to all international treaties and
conventions concluded by the Ter Petrosian government. He also states
that there will be no significant change in foreign policy and that
he will leave the appointment of a new foreign minister to the incoming
president, leaving Deputy Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian as acting
Foreign Minister.
Responding to the change of the Armenian government, Russian President
Boris Yeltsin states that Armenia is "part of Russia's field
of strategic interests" and that, although he regrets the departure
of Ter Petrosian, he expects to work closely with the new Armenian
leadership.
A spokesman of the United States Department of State announces that
the U.S. government will continue to pursue its initiative seeking
a negotiated resolution to the Nagorno Karabagh conflict no matter
what the composition of the new Armenian government. The spokesman
adds that Washington is closely monitoring events in Armenia and is
urging the strict adherence to constitutional and democratic norms.
The French Foreign Ministry also issues a statement pledging their
commitment to the current peace plan proposed by the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), whose "Minsk"
working group on the Nagorno Karabagh conflict they co-chair with
Russia and the United States. |
| February 5 |
Opposition National Democratic
Union leader Vazgen Manukian announces his intention to run for president
in the new elections. Manukian adds that he will maintain the same
political platform of the 1996 presidential elections, promising to
promote greater democracy, to defend the interests of Nagorno Karabagh,
and to strengthen ties with Armenians outside of Armenia. Manukian
states that if elected, he will seek the adoption of a new constitution
creating a new parliamentary form of government and a weakening of
presidential powers. The head of the Armenian Communist Party, Sergei
Badalian, and Pariur Hairikian, leader of the opposition Self-Determination
Union, both announce their candidacies as well. |
| February 6
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The Armenian Central Electoral
Commission announces that the presidential elections will be held
on March 16th and that candidate nominations must be submitted by
February 17th. Candidates must gather at least 25,000 petition signatures
by the deadline. Commission Chairman Khatchatur Bezirjian states that
he is reactivating the local precinct electoral committees formed
for the 1996 presidential elections (committee members are elected
by political parties). Formal invitations are also being readied asking
for international election observers from the UN, the European Union,
the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and
the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), among others.
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| February 7 |
Issuing a statement from
Yerevan, acting Armenian President Robert Kocharian calls on the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to support direct bilateral
talks between Nagorno Karabagh and Azerbaijan as a "parallel"
approach toward restarting peace talks. Azerbaijan has consistently
rejected the idea of bilateral negotiations. President Kocharian,
formerly president of Nagorno Karabagh, adds that he favors continued
OSCE mediation, but criticizes former president Ter Petrosian's policy
of "concessions and exaggerated compromise." Kocharian states
that the situation now requires confidence-building measures including
the deployment of observers to monitor the informal cease-fire in
effect since May 1994. |
| February 9 |
Acting President Robert
Kocharian announces his intention to run in the upcoming presidential
elections. There is some question over his eligibility, however, as
his citizenship is unclear and he does not meet the constitutional
ten-year residency requirement. Several political and legal figures,
however, have cited the ambiguity of the constitutional protocols
in light of the unaltered 1988 governmental resolution regarding Armenian-Nagorno
Karabagh unification, as well as the conflict between the Soviet-era
and post-communist constitutions. |
| February 9-10 |
The Armenian Ministry
of Justice formally registers the country's largest opposition party,
the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF), banned by presidential
decree since December 1994. The same day, prominent ARF figure Hrant
Markarian, jailed in connection with the Ter Petrosian government's
"Dro" trial charging ARF members and leaders with involvement
in terrorism and drug trafficking, is released from prison. The next
day, officials release ARF leader Vahan Hovanessian from prison. Hovanessian
has served over two and half years in jail as part of a four year
sentence after being convicted in the "trial of thirty"
on charges of attempting to overthrow the government and has suffered
a serious decline in health |
| February 11 |
Concluding the formal
investigation into the armed attack on the chief of former President
Ter Petrosian's presidential security service, Interior and National
Security Minister Serge Sarkisian reports that the attack was staged
for political reasons. The minister adds that it is unclear whether
criminal charges will be filed against the security chief, who has
left the country.
Acting Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian states that he hopes
that the current peace plan proposed by the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) will be revised at the upcoming meeting
of OSCE officials in Paris. Oskanian adds that the OSCE plan must
be revised because it is impossible to accept in its current form
because it would predetermine the outcome of the talks. |
| February 12 |
The leadership of the
Armenian National Movement (ANM), meeting to formulate a new political
strategy, replace the head of the party's parliamentary bloc, Vano
Siradeghian, with former parliamentary chairman Babken Ararktsian.
The ANM is now reduced to having 53 deputies within the 160-seat parliament.
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| February 13 |
The Armenian Revolutionary
Federation (ARF) announces its support for the candidacy of acting
President Kocharian in the forthcoming election. Recently released
ARF leader Vahan Hovanessian adds that the ARF sees Kocharian as the
best person to achieve greater progress in resolving the Nagorno Karabagh
conflict and the democratization of the country. Adding to the list
of presidential contenders, Karen Demirchian, who ruled Soviet Armenia
from 1974 to 1988, announces his candidacy.
The Nagorno Karabagh Parliament announces plans to introduce a military
amnesty for imprisoned military officers and soldiers. The amnesty,
to be formulated by the parliament's Defense and Security Committee,
will be offered to most of the currently jailed military personnel
convicted of various military crimes. Parliamentarian Rudolf Martirossian
adds that the amnesty will not be extended to those convicted of capital
offenses. The amnesty is timed with the tenth anniversary of the Nagorno
Karabagh liberation struggle. |
| February
16 |
Bringing the
total number of candidates to twelve, the Chairman of the Constitutional
Rights Union, Hrand Khachatrian, parliamentarian Artashes Gegamian
of the National Unity group, and former Education Minister Ashot Bleyan
of the "New Path" movement each announce plans to run in
the upcoming presidential election. A few days earlier, former National
Security Minister David Shahnazarian and Aram Sargsian, the head of
the Democratic Party of Armenia, also announced their candidacies.
The Armenian National Movement (ANM) announces that it is not offering
a candidate. |
| February 17 |
Kocharian calls for a
new policy of dual citizenship for Armenians living outside of the
country, following a meeting with senior leaders of the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation (ARF). Under the constitution drafted by the former government,
diasporan Armenians are prevented from holding dual citizenship.
Despite organized logistical arrangements and cooperation between
both sides preparing for the visit, Azerbaijani forces wound a Nagorno
Karabagh officer accompanying a delegation of observers from the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The attack on the convoy
transporting the OSCE officials, takes place in the eastern Marduni
district. The OSCE officials immediately criticize Azerbaijan for
the attack and commend the Armenian side for not responding to the
incident. The tour of the area is suspended and the OSCE delegation
immediately returns to Stepanakert. |
| February 18 |
Armenia's acting President
Robert Kocharian meets with Nagorno Karabagh Foreign Minister Naira
Melkoumian to review plans for upcoming diplomatic negotiations towards
settlement of the Nagorno Karabagh conflict. The two officials also
discuss the recent meeting in Paris of the three co-chair nations
of the Minsk group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe (OSCE) which resolved to dispatch officials to the region
immediately following the presidential elections in Armenia
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| February 20 |
Nagorno Karabagh celebrates
the tenth anniversary of its movement to secede from Azerbaijan and
declaration of independence. Participating in the commemoration is
a delegation of thirty Russian parliamentarians, including former
Russian Security Council Secretary Aleksandr Lebed. In comments to
Nagorno Karabagh officials in Stepanakert, Lebed states that the ongoing
mediation effort of the Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe (OSCE) is "moving in the wrong direction." The
Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry responds by strongly criticizing the
Russian deputies' participation in the event. Related celebrations
are held in Yerevan with over 20,000 demonstrators participating.
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| February 23 |
Speaking at a press conference
in Los Angeles as part of a tour of major cities in the United States,
Nagorno Karabagh Foreign Minister Naira Melkoumian states that Nagorno
Karabagh needs investment and technology to enhance its fledgling
economy. Melkoumian adds that economic strength is essential to Karabagh's
long-term viability as an independent state and is vital to meet the
needs of the republic's refugee population. Another major hurdle,
according to the Karabagh official, is the need for a well-developed
education system. The Nagorno Karabagh foreign minister will also
hold a series of meetings with officials of the U.S. Congress and
State Department during her visit to Washington. Foreign Minister
Melkoumian is accompanied by the First Secretary of the Nagorno Karabagh
Permanent Representation in Armenia, Shaghik Maroukhian. |
| February 26 |
The Armenian government
announces that it will solicit additional assistance from the European
Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to complete construction
of the Hrazdan hydro-electric power plant. The power plant's construction
was delayed last year following the EBRD's findings that the Armenian
government's plan to utilize a special $57 million EBRD loan was "insufficient
for the completion of the project." |
| February 28 |
A national day of mourning
is held in Nagorno Karabagh commemorating the tenth anniversary of
anti-Armenian pogroms by Azerbaijani mobs in the industrial city of
Sumgait in Azerbaijan. An official wreath laying ceremony is held
by Karabagh officials at the Stepanakert memorial complex.
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