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| December 1-2 |
Bulgarian President Petar
Stoyanov meets with President Robert Kocharian and other senior government
officials during a state visit to Armenia. The Bulgarian leader formally
signs a set of bilateral agreements on expanding trade and economic
cooperation and vows to support Armenia's application for full membership
in the Council of Europe. |
| December 2-4 |
The leadership of the majority
Yerkrapah political organization convenes its fourth party congress
in Yerevan. The main topic of discussion is the recent assassinations
of several of the country's political leaders, including Yerkrapah's
nominal founder, Prime Minister Vazgen Sarkisian. Yerkrapah Deputy
Chairman Albert Bazeyan strongly criticizes President Kocharian for
"failing to guarantee political stability" and sharply rebukes
the country's media for its negative portrayal of the military in
the immediate aftermath of the shooting in the parliament. In a speech
to the assembled 800 delegates, Minister for Industrial Infrastructure
and former Deputy Defense Minister, Vahan Shirkhanian, demands Kocharian's
resignation and calls for new presidential elections. |
| December 3 |
The Armenian Parliament
overwhelmingly endorses the economic program submitted by the new
cabinet of Prime Minister Aram Sarkisian. The new government's economic
program relies on much of the policies of the previous Prime Minister,
the late Vazgen Sarkisian, and pledges to advance the economic reforms
underway and to combat corruption while seeking to restore political
and economic stability in the country. However, the cabinet has yet
to submit its draft 2000 budget.
A two-day seminar aimed at fostering greater Armenian-Karabagh trade,
commerce and investment is held in Stepanakert. Several agreements
are concluded during the course of the business seminar, including
planned Armenian investment in Karabagh's agricultural, food processing,
and banking sectors. The Karabagh economy is largely dependent on
subsidies from Armenia for much of its state budget and its financial
system is based on the Armenian dram. Karabagh President Arkady Gukasyan
promises that work on establishing "a legal framework and taxation
policy meeting European standards" would be completed soon and
welcomes the announcement by the Armenian-Canadian firm Grand Tobacco
to establish a small factory in the Karabagh capital. The Karabagh
infrastructure is undergoing rapid modernization and reconstruction,
largely with outside assistance, and is focusing on a $25 million
strategic north-south 170-kilometer modern highway construction project. |
| December 6 |
Armenian Military Prosecutor
Gagik Jahangirian reports that police investigators are still gathering
and evaluating evidence related to the parliament shootings. The military
prosecutor adds that investigators have questioned over 250 individuals,
including over fifty parliamentarians and nearly forty journalists.
The October 27th attack on the parliament by five gunmen resulted
in the deaths of eight senior officials including the Prime Minister
and the Parliamentary Chairman. Jahangirian confirms media reports
revealing that the gunmen have implicated unnamed political figures
and parties during their interrogation.
Seeking to downplay the strong demands for the president's resignation
by some members of the Yerkrapah group, Republican Party Deputy Chairman
Tigran Torosian states that the demands were merely personal opinions
and do not reflect party policy. Armenian Revolutionary Federation
(ARF) Parliamentarian David Lokian adds that it supports the president
and dismisses the calls for his resignation. |
| December 7 |
Presidential spokesman
Vahe Gabrielian expresses the president's frustration with the continued
delay of the trial of former Interior Minister Vano Siradeghian on
charges of plotting a series of politically related murders from 1993
to 1996. The Siradeghian trial was most recently postponed following
his demand for a new attorney, his seventh, and the court's decision
to allow for additional time for the new attorney to prepare an adequate
defense.
Minister for Industrial Infrastructure Vahan Shirkhanian reiterates
his recent call for President Kocharian to resign, charging that the
president has failed to offer a coherent and comprehensive program
to restore stability to the country following the October 27th attack
on parliament. President Kocharian dismisses the statements, adding
that Shirkhanian is merely seeking greater political office.
Nagorno Karabagh President Arkady Gukasyan publicly warns former Defense
Minister, Samvel Babayan, not to interfere in Karabagh's defense and
economic policies. Gukasyan adds that although there is no real political
opposition in Karabagh, there is a need for his government to contain
"certain internal tension." President Gukasyan ended the
growing confrontation with Babayan by dismissing him from the powerful
post of Defense Minister and instead appointed him to the nominal
position as Commander of the Armed Forces. |
| December 8 |
Prime Minister Aram Sarkisian
returns to Yerevan after concluding a two-day visit to Moscow where
he met with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Defense Minister
Igor Sergeyev and Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov. The officials discuss
bilateral defense and security cooperation, Russian technical assistance
for the Medzamor nuclear power plant and review the situation in Chechenya.
Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian meets with Iranian Foreign Minister
Kamal Kharrazi and parliamentary (Majlis) speaker Ali Akbar Nateq-Nouri
in Tehran. The officials discuss the proposed expansion of bilateral
ties including the planned construction of a natural gas pipeline
from Iran to Armenia and several smaller joint projects aimed at improving
the transport links along the Armenian-Iranian border. Foreign Minister
Oskanian also briefs the Iranian leadership on the status of the recent
talks between the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents on the Nagorno
Karabagh conflict. |
| December 9 |
A seventeen-year old gunman
briefly seizes a group of students at an educational institute in
Yerevan before being wounded as police storm the building. The prosecutor-general's
office launches an immediate investigation which results in the arrest
of two of the gunman's associates for an alleged plan to set off explosions
in buildings throughout the capital.
A statement signed by eight opposition political parties and groups
criticizes the Kocharian government for failing to have a clear plan
for resolving the Nagorno Karabagh conflict and accuses the government
of neglecting to adequately protect the interests of Karabagh during
last month's summit meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe (OSCE). The collective statement is endorsed by the Liberal-Democrat,
the 21st Century, the Azatutiun, Christian-Democrat and Nor Ughi parties
along with the Shamiram and Armat organizations. |
| December 10 |
President Kocharian holds
a meeting with Parliamentary Chairman Armen Khachatrian, his deputy
chairmen and several parliamentary committee chairmen to discuss measures
to "overcome the atmosphere of mistrust between the president
and the parliament." Kocharian adds that, contrary to media reports,
he has no plans to dissolve the parliament in order to call for new
elections. According to the constitution, the president may dissolve
the parliament any time after one year following its election, in
this case on or after May 30, 2000.
Officials of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's
(OSCE) special working group on the Nagorno Karabagh conflict, the
so-called Minsk Group, meet with Armenian government officials in
Yerevan to discuss the current situation. The OSCE officials, who
will also travel to Baku and Stepanakert, state that they are engaged
only on a fact-finding mission and are not offering any new proposals
during this trip. |
| December 12 |
Officials from the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), on a tour of the region,
meet with the Karabagh leadership to discuss the current state of
negotiations. The OSCE delegation consists of the French, Russian
and U.S. co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group which is specifically empowered
to mediate the Karabagh conflict. President Gukasyan informs the OSCE
officials that there can be no lasting settlement to the conflict
without the inclusion and full participation of the democratically
elected government of Karabagh in the peace process. The warning is
a clear reference to the lack of a role for the Karabagh leadership
in the direct Armenian-Azerbaijani presidential talks over the past
few months and to the recent OSCE Istanbul summit meeting's failure
to grant an appropriate and recognized position for Karabagh. |
| December 13-14 |
The deputy head of the
Republican Party, Tigran Torosian, states that his party favors the
idea of a presidential republic which would allow for a "stronger
and more disciplined executive" and adds that the path toward
a compromise between the parliament and the president is still promising.
The Republican Party and the People's Party comprise the dominant
Unity Bloc in the parliament. Kocharian ally and former National Security
Minister Serge Sarkisian adds that the demands by the recent Yerkrapah
Party congress for the president's resignation do not reflect the
opinion of the majority of its members and blames a small, but vocal,
minority within Yerkrapah for the discord. |
| December 14 |
Commander of the Armed
Forces, Samvel Babayan, and a group of armed men approach Prime Minister
Anushevan Danielian in front of the government office building in
Stepanakert. After a heated discussion, the 34-year old former Defense
Minister physically assaults the Prime Minister before fleeing the
scene. |
| December 15 |
Presidential foreign affairs
advisor, Aleksan Harutiunian, is arrested on charges of involvement
in the October 27th attack on parliament. Harutiunian had already
been questioned twice before and submits his resignation just prior
to his arrest. President Kocharian calls for an objective investigation
of his former adviser. Later the same day, Prime Minister Sarkisian
meets with a senior World Bank official and reaches a tentative agreement
for the release of the final $25 million of a $65 million World Bank
loan package to address the 1999 budget deficit. This final installment
was delayed by a significant shortfall in last quarter tax revenue.
Armenian Defense Minister Vagharshak Harutiunian meets with Karabagh
President Gukasyan in Stepanakert and publicly announces his "strong
support" for the Karabagh president. Adding their support for
the president, several Karabagh parliamentarians and the administrators
of Karabagh's regions and districts issue corresponding pledges of
loyalty to the president. The visit comes in the wake of a statement
issued by senior Karabagh military officials and commanders which
accuses President Gukasyan of "exacerbating political tensions"
in Karabagh and calls for the resignations of both President Gukasyan
and Armed Forces Commander Babayan. |
| December 16 |
Senior political leaders
convene an emergency meeting to discuss rising political tension in
the republic. Discussion centers on the recent attack by Samvel Babayan
against the prime minister, which resulted in minor injuries. Prime
Minister Danielian is a strong supporter of Gukasyan and has echoed
the president's criticism of Babayan and his followers for "resorting
to provocative and violent acts." Although the visit of the Armenian
Defense Minister offered Gukasyan a visible demonstration of support,
a group of thirteen Karabagh deputies loyal to Babayan threaten to
launch impeachment proceedings against President Gukasyan. |
| December 17 |
President Gukasyan announces
the dismissal of the Commander of the Armed Forces, Samvel Babayan,
from his post. President Gukasyan names Babayan deputy, Colonel Movses
Hakobian, to the post of acting Armed Forces Commander. President
Gukasyan, in a meeting with his cabinet and several of his supportive
deputies, commends the Armenian Defense Minister for an "invaluable
role in stabilizing the situation."
In response to a formal call by fifteen parliamentarians, a session
of parliament is convened in Stepanakert, but fails to reach the minimum
number of deputies required for a quorum. Seventeen pro-Gukasyan deputies
boycott the emergency session. Babayan loyalist deputy Nerses Ohanjian
accuses President Gukasyan and Parliamentary Chairman Oleg Yessayan
of organizing the boycott in order to prevent the legislature from
considering impeachment motions. |
| December 18 |
Newly appointed Armed Forces
Commander Colonel Movses Hakobian states that although the Nagorno
Karabagh military "deplores" the dismissal of Babayan, it
will remain loyal to the democratically elected government and will
not challenge the dismissal in order to assist the Gukasyan government
to "overcome a serious political crisis." Hakobian adds
that the Karabagh military is dedicated to the principle that "stability
in the country must be maintained" and states that "the
army does not have the right to demand the president's resignation." |
| December 20 |
Karabagh Foreign Minister
Naira Melkoumian commends President Gukasyan for effectively ending
the crisis in Karabagh in accordance with the law. Melkoumian notes
that "the state has proven its viability" as "the situation
has stabilized." Despite hundreds of leaflets and flyers distributed
throughout Stepanakert calling on the population to take to the streets
to demonstrate support for Babayan, the demonstrations never materialize. |
| December 24 |
The leadership of the People's
Party of Armenia, a partner in the dominant two-party Unity Bloc in
parliament, announce the appointment of Stepan Demirchian as party
chairman. Demirchian is the son of the late Parliamentary Chairman,
Garen Demirchian. The party leadership renews its call for a national
referendum on constitutional amendments to reduce presidential powers. |
| December 27 |
Military Prosecutor Gagik
Jahangirian, leading the case against the defendants in the case of
the attack on parliament, dismisses demands for the formation of an
independent parliamentary committee of inquiry to take over the investigation
of the case. Jahangirian also rejects accusations that he has close
personal ties to the Yerkrapah group and assures the public of his
impartiality.
The Karabagh branch of the Yerkrapah Union calls for the resignation
of Karabagh President Gukasyan and demands new presidential elections
as the only way to overcome the political crisis. The leader of the
500-member Karabagh Yerkrapah organization, Arkady Karapetian, states
that the group will oppose the Gukasyan government and its allies
in the coming parliamentary elections scheduled for April. |
| December 29 |
The Nagorno Karabagh parliament
votes to extend martial law in the republic for another year. Over
a dozen supporters of ousted Armed forces chief Samvel Babayan boycott
the session. Martial law has been in effect in Karabagh since 1992. |
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