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| June 16 |
Armenian Prime Minister
Andranik Markarian said Tuesday that the serious political crisis
gripping Armenia since last October's parliament shootings has been
overcome. During a meeting with Yerevan-based foreign diplomats, Markarian
said that the lackluster performance of the economy during the last
six months and a somber public mood are evidence that the country
still has not yet recovered fully from the intense shock resulting
from the murder of eight senior government officials. Markarian was
quoted as saying that he will work "to restore the people's trust
in the authorities" and reduce the hardships they have endured.
The Prime Minister assured the diplomats that his government would
not stray from its reformist policies. A key to achieving that end,
he said, is strengthening democracy and civilian institutions. Also,
he placed special emphasis on continued development of economic contacts
between Armenia and foreign countries. The government will do its
utmost to foster conditions favorable to foreign investment, he said.
Sources in the region say that Markarian and Armenian President Robert
Kocharian have pledged to cooperate in resolving the challenges facing
Armenia following the turmoil of the past seven months.
The court hearings of three of former Karabagh Defense Army General
Samvel Babayan's bodyguards on charges of attempting to assassinate
Nagorno Karabagh President Arkady Ghukasian ended in Stepanakert on
Friday, June 9, with the sentencing of the three men to one year imprisonment
each. They were arrested on suspicion of theft and illegal storing
of firearms, just hours after gunmen wounded Ghukasian in an unsuccessful
attempt on his life. Prosecutors claim that on the night of March
21 to 22, the three former bodyguards were given two assault rifles
by one of the gunmen before being caught and arrested several hours
later. The alleged gunman, David Ghulian, had worked as Babayan's
bodyguard. In all, 16 people have been charged with organizing and
attempting to murder President Ghukasian.
Armenian President Robert Kocharian expressed his condolences to Bashar
al-Assad, son of recently-deceased Syrian President Hafez al-Assad,
a source in the presidential press office told Armenpress. "Syria
and the Arab people have lost a leading politician, who has made a
weighty contribution to the modern history of the Arab world by promoting
peace and universal prosperity for the benefit of the Arab people,"
the message reads. |
| June 23 |
News sources characterized
as "calm" the Nagorno Karabagh parliamentary elections,
which took place Sunday, June 18 throughout the republic. A total
of 113 candidates representing five parties contested the 33 seats
in the new legislature. Sources in the region estimated voter turnout
at 56.8 percent of the 84,000 registered voters. Independent observers
and media representatives from Great Britain, France, Italy, Russia,
Armenia, Pridnestrovye and Abkhazia, as well as local observers and
journalists, monitored the elections. Observers and journalists were
present at ballot box sealings where they counted votes and recorded
and photographed the election process. Observers said that, on the
whole, elections were held in accordance with international norms
and Karabagh law.
On the eve of the elections, Karabagh President Arkady Ghukasian was
discharged from the Yerevan hospital where he underwent surgery following
the March 22 attempt on his life and returned to Stepanakert where
he addressed Karabagh Armenians on Karabagh's Republican Television.
He noted that "the forthcoming elections will also define the
place of our Republic in international relations. Whether we shall
be able to enter the plane of inter-relations of the civilized countries,
in many respects depends on our ability and wish to elect honestly
and freely." "The life in Artsakh enters a new stage and
I am sure that we have chosen the right way," said President
Ghukasian on Election Day. "Today Nagorno-Karabagh has a chance
to become a worthy partner in mutual relations with civilized states.
In this connection, the Parliament plays a very important role."
Selected comments made by election observers follow below. "The
elections in Nagorno Karabagh were transparent, independent and free,"
said Bernard Owen, Secretary General of the Paris Center for Elections.
"We followed each stage of the election process, and all we saw,
undoubtedly, spoke about the good organization of the elections."
"The active participation of the constituency speaks about the
people's trust in the authorities...," said Grigory Tischenko,
head of the CIS Department of the Russian Institute for Strategic
Studies. "The fact that in such a short time people could recover
from a serious political crisis indicates to the maturity of the state
authorities and formation of democratic institutions." Thirteen
of the 33 elected deputies were supported by the "Democratic
Artsakh Union," ten were nominated on a civilian initiative,
nine represent the ARF "Dashnaktsutyun," and one is a member
of the "Armenakan" party. Six of the 19 candidates (Deputies
of the previous Parliament), including the NKR National Assembly Chairman
Oleg Yesayan, were elected to the new deputy body.
Armenian President Robert Kocharian on Friday, June 16, named Deputy
Foreign Minister Artashes Tumanian the new chief of staff, official
sources said. Previous head of the presidential administration, Serzh
Sarkisian, was appointed Defense Minister a month ago. Trained as
an economist, Tumanian headed the government's tax department from
1997-98. In the 1999 elections, he unsuccessfully ran for parliament
as a candidate of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun).
Tumanian is not a member of that nationalist party. He was given the
senior diplomatic job shortly afterwards. |
| June 30 |
The Parliamentary Assembly
of the Council of Europe (PACE) Wednesday voted to accept Armenia
and Azerbaijan as members of the pan-European organization. Armenia
was admitted with 123 votes. Azerbaijan received 120 votes in favor
of its membership. The two countries are expected to become members
in November when the Council's executive body, the committee of ministers,
is expected to make the final decision later this year. The parliamentary
assembly attached some conditions to the countries' eligibility to
join, some of them based on resolution of the Nagorno Karabagh conflict,
Bloomberg reported.
PACE head, Lord Russell Johnston, said on Thursday that the two countries'
ongoing admission process into the regional international organization
would support the settlement of the Karabagh conflict. He told a group
of Armenian reporters that this groundbreaking cooperation between
the two countries in PACE would foster "better conditions for
a bilateral contact" on attaining a peaceful solution to the
conflict.
Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian, speaking from Washington
where he was accompanying Armenian President Robert Kocharian during
his official visits this week (see story above), told an RFE/RL correspondent
that he believes Council membership could produce a peaceful solution
to the Karabagh conflict. He said, "Azerbaijan will be required
to make improvements toward democracy, and it [Council of Europe accession]
will have a positive influence on regional stability and the [Karabagh]
peace process." The Foreign Minister also said that he believes
Azerbaijan's Council of Europe membership will help that country develop
a more democratic society. |
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