|
|
|
| March 3-10 |
President George W. Bush sent letters
to the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan earlier this week, stressing
America's continued interest in the settlement of the Karabagh conflict
and calling it one of the priorities of his Administration. Media
reports quoted President Bush as being encouraged over recent talks
between Robert Kocharian and Heydar Aliyev in France and expressing
hope that a peace agreement can be reached this year. Bush also reiterated
US readiness to participate in international assistance efforts in
post-conflict reconstruction once a negotiated settlement is reached.
In addition, the US President reportedly offered help "in forming
internal public support for the settlement of the conflict."
Armenian leaders have expressed cautious optimism about the Armenian-Azerbaijani
talks scheduled to take place in Paris March 4-5. President Kocharian
said he remained hopeful that the parties will make substantial progress
this weekend. Earlier this week, President Kocharian met with the
President of the Nagorno Karabagh Republic Arkady Ghoukasian and heads
of the Armenian parliamentary factions to brief them on the ongoing
talks. Galust Sahakian, leader of the largest Miasnutiun (Unity) faction,
said parliamentary leaders were satisfied by what the President told
them. Presidential spokesman Vahe Gabrielian said that while it was
too early to speak of a timeframe for a final settlement, Armenia
expects real progress to be reached in the near future.
Optimism was also expressed in talks with the Romanian Foreign Minister
Mircea Geoana, who is also the current Chairman-in-Office of the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). OSCE has mediated in
the Karabagh talks since 1992. On his first visit to the region, Geoana
met with the Presidents of Armenia, Nagorno Karabagh, and Azerbaijan
to discuss the ongoing peace efforts.
Meanwhile, several political parties and organizations in all three
countries warned against "unacceptable concessions." Leaders
of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation and National Democratic Union,
both represented in Armenia's coalition government, and several other
political and veteran organizations in Armenia and Nagorno Karabagh,
warned against major compromises.
In Azerbaijan, opposition parties charged that President Aliyev's
Karabagh policy has been a failure, threatening protests against the
government, and several opposition leaders called for a new war against
Nagorno Karabagh. One organization of retired Azerbaijani officers,
that includes at least two former Defense Ministers, again called
for a military solution to the Karabagh conflict, saying that "if
needed, 100,000 more people will die" to achieve this objective,
while some nationalist parties called for additional annexation of
parts of Armenia proper.
Following two-day hearings on the Karabagh conflict held in the Azerbaijan
parliament, most local commentators said they came away with no clear
idea of President Aliyev's real agenda. Some believed Aliyev was getting
ready to let go of the Azerbaijani claim on Nagorno Karabagh in exchange
for the withdrawal of Karabagh Armenian forces from several districts
that now serve as a security zone for NKR. Others saw it as Aliyev's
effort to induce public protest against concessions to strengthen
his negotiating position in talks with the Armenian President. Yet
others, referring to Aliyev's statement that he "would support
war if the public supports it" and pointing to reported civil
defense exercises in Azerbaijan's hospitals, expressed real concern
over renewed armed conflict.
Aliyev at least partly disassociated himself from the last option
in his comments later this week. Meeting with the US Ambassador Ross
Wilson, he said Azerbaijan was ready for a peaceful solution and downplayed
the opposition's war calls, saying they arose from "lack of understanding"
of what war would entail. Aliyev's own assertion that Azerbaijan's
army was actually capable of launching an offensive against Karabagh
is doubtful in light of international expert opinion. A recent study
commissioned by the US Joint Chiefs of Staff concluded that the Karabagh
Army continued to enjoy better combat readiness and morale, was relatively
better armed than Azerbaijan's, and would prevail in any potential
conflict. Karabagh's and Armenia's leaders have in the past repeatedly
stated that this arrangement helps keep the almost seven-year cease-fire
intact and may eventually bring about a peaceful resolution to the
conflict. |
| March 3-10 |
Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian offered
Armenia's assistance in promoting trade links between Armenian and
Turkish businesses. Meeting with co-chairmen of the Turkish-Armenian
Business Development Council, Arsen Ghazarian and Kaan Soyak late
last week, Oskanian praised the organization for its activities. Even
though Turkey has prohibited its major companies from trading with
Armenia and blockaded its border with Armenia since 1993, some trade
between the two countries continues to take place via other neighboring
states. That trade reportedly amounted to several hundred million
dollars in the last several years. As of last year, 25 Turkish companies
were active in Armenia.
During the meeting, Oskanian also said that Armenia was interested
in Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem's proposal to hold a trilateral
meeting with Azerbaijan. The move came after Turkish officials clarified
their offer as not restricted to a discussion of the Karabagh conflict.
Armenia earlier reiterated its long-held view that Turkey cannot be
a mediator in talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan due to its established
policy of favoring Azerbaijan.
The United States continues to encourage normalization of Armenian-Turkish
ties. This week, the US Embassy in Armenia organized a visit by a
group of Armenian businessmen to Turkey to explore ways for development
of economic relations. |
| March 3-10 |
The judge in the high-profile trial
of the October 27, 1999 attack on the Armenian Parliament ruled this
week to postpone the court proceedings for 25 days this week. Nairi
Hunanian, who led the group of four other gunmen that assassinated
Armenia's Prime Minister and Speaker of the Parliament, was seen as
using his rights as a defendant to intentionally delay the proceedings
"to study case materials." His strategy is reportedly to
drag out the trial until such time that the Armenian Parliament abolishes
the death penalty in accordance with its obligations to the Council
of Europe.
Meanwhile, debates about the prosecution's handling of the investigation
continued. Mutual suspicions and recriminations between rival political
groups have abated somewhat since the fateful night one and a half
years ago. But all sides continue to criticize the investigation team
for what they believe was mishandling of the case. Led by Gagik Jhangirian,
the Chief Military Prosecutor, and close ally of the murdered Prime
Minister Vazgen Sargsian, the investigators are said to have failed
to conduct an impartial investigation, free of political influences.
Much of the public continues to believe that Hunanian and other attackers
had powerful backers, but no evidence has surfaced to date.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Parliament's State and Legal Affairs Committee
Viktor Dallakian is pushing for separation of the case of two police
officers, who were on guard duty during the attack on Parliament and
are charged with criminal negligence. In addition to the five direct
perpetrators of the attack and the police, six other individuals are
charged with various degrees of participation. |
| March 3-10 |
Nagorno Karabagh Republic's former
Defense Minister Samvel Babayan has been sentenced to 14 years in
prison, after the local court found him guilty of organizing the March
2000 assassination attempt that seriously wounded NKR President Arkady
Ghoukasian. Babayan denies he is guilty and his lawyer has launched
an appeal to a higher court. Sassoun Aghajanian and Levon Mirzoyan,
charged with directly perpetrating the attack, gave conflicting testimonies;
in the end each received a 14 year sentence. Aghajanian, who is Babayan's
former chief bodyguard, testified in court that he masterminded the
attack and denied Babayan was involved. Mirzoyan denied any involvement.
Erik Paramazian and David Ghoulian, charged with helping organize
the attack, received 13 and 7 years respectively. Paramazian denied
his involvement, while Ghoulian pled guilty and also implicated Babayan
in the attack. Nine other defendants, who were charged with indirect
involvement in the case, received suspended sentences and were released. |
| March 11-16 |
The Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan,
Robert Kocharian and Heydar Aliyevmet in Paris last Sunday and Monday
to try to agree on general principles of settlement of the Karabagh
conflict. But the highly anticipated talks, mediated by the President
of France Jacques Chirac, failed to yield any joint statement. France,
one of three co-chairs in the Minsk Group of the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), took a lead role in international
mediation of the Karabagh conflict earlier this year. At a joint press
conference following the two-day talks, Chirac described them as "friendly
and sincere", adding that "both sides show an equal interest
in finding a just resolution." He further expressed hope that
the OSCE Minsk Group will be able to come up with a new proposal acceptable
to all parties and that they will achieve a peaceful resolution to
the Karabagh conflict this year. The Azerbaijani President was less
optimistic. Upon his return to Baku, Aliyev said that the Armenian
side insists on non-subordination of Nagorno Karabagh to Azerbaijan,
and the latest talks were "difficult and tense" and produced
"no concrete result." He added, however, that talks with
the Armenian President will continue since the only other choice to
negotiations mediated by the OSCE is maintaining the current status
quo. Asked to comment on the latest talks, Armenia's Foreign Minister
Vartan Oskanian said that "the overall trend [of negotiations]
is in the right direction." No date has been set for the next
round of talks so far. Also this week, Armenia's Defense Minister
Serge Sargsian and other Armenian and Nagorno Karabagh officials downplayed
talks in some quarters in Baku that Azerbaijan may again try to take
control of Karabagh by military means. In addition to statements by
various retired military and nationalist opposition leaders, President
Aliyev and his Defense Minister Sefer Abiyevalso hinted at a possibility
of war, in what is widely seen as an attempt to boost Azerbaijan's
position in the negotiations. Armenia's Sargsian told local newspapers
that armed forces of Armenia and Nagorno Karabagh are much better
prepared for any renewed fighting today than they were in the early1990s
when the Azerbaijani army failed to capture Karabagh and lost territories
adjacent to it. Sargsian added that any settlement of the conflict
is impossible without compromises, but such compromises "must
be within reasonable limits". Meanwhile, the US official in charge
of assistance to the Newly Independent States, Ambassador Bill Taylor
said this week that the World Bank will soon send a team to Armenia,
Azerbaijan and Nagorno Karabagh to conduct a needs assessment study
in anticipation of the international assistance effort that is expected
to follow a peace agreement on Karabagh. |
| March 11-16 |
Admiral Guido Venturoni, former Chief
of Staff of the Italian Armed Forces and currently head of NATO's
Military Committee, visited Armenia this week. During a meeting with
Venturoni, President Robert Kocharian reaffirmed Armenia's determination
to expand cooperation with NATO, particularly in the framework of
the Partnership for Peace (PfP) program and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership
Council (EAPC). Venturoni also discussed a wide range of security
issues with Armenia's Defense Minister Serge Sargsian, the Armenian
Army's Chief of Staff Mikael Harutiunian and Deputy Foreign Minister
Tatoul Markarian. Armenia's Defense Minister described Armenia's participation
in PfP and EAPC as an integral element of Armenia's national security
doctrine. The parties also discussed bilateral cooperation between
Armenia and individual NATO countries. NATO Secretary-General George
Robertson visited Armenia in January of this year. At the time Armenian
and NATO leaders agreed to expand the ongoing cooperation in peace-keeping,
emergency management, civil-military relations and defense reform.
Armenian-NATO cooperation began in 1994 when Armenia joined PfP and
EAPC. |
| March 11-16 |
US and Armenian officials held three-day
talks in Yerevan this week, the third session of the US-Armenia Task
Force (USATF). The group is currently co-chaired by the Armenian Minister
of Finance and Economy Vardan Khachatrian and the US State Department
Coordinator for Assistance to the Newly Independent States Bill Taylor.
USATF was set up over a year ago to promote bilateral economic links
and coordinate US assistance programs in Armenia. Following the talks,
Taylor and Khachatrian said they mainly focused on ways to improve
the investment climate in Armenia. The two officials viewed the upcoming
conference on investments in Armenia, to take place this May in New
York, as an opportunity to attract major investors to Armenia. The
United States and major international organizations are preparing
the high-profile conference. World Bank President James Wolfenson
is expected to chair the event. The two countries are also working
toward an agreement on avoiding double taxation. Taylor reported that
the US Department of Treasury saw significant improvement in Armenia's
tax legislation, but did not announce a time frame for signing an
agreement . The sides also discussed joint measures aimed at
combating corruption, issues related to Armenia's energy sector, and
US assistance programs to Armenia. The United States Congressman dated
at least $90 million in assistance to Armenia in Fiscal Year 2001. |
| March 11-16 |
Leaders of the Union of Armenians
of Russia (UAR) were in Yerevan this week to look for opportunities
to attract Russian investors to Armenia.Chairman of the Union, Ara
Abramian met with President Robert Kocharian to offer his organization's
help in promoting of investments and trade between Russia and Armenia.
The Armenian President welcomed the offer, and noted the significant
investment potential of the Armenian community in Russia. UAR Deputy
Chairman Spartak Kostanian said that the Union, which was created
last year, brought together numerous Armenian associations in 56 regions
of the Russian Federation. The Armenian Diaspora of Russia is said
to number two million people. This week, UAR helped organize a visit
by a group of Russian businessmen interested in Armenia's radio-electronic
enterprises. In Russia, the Union is involved in cultural and educational
programs, including those related to the celebration of the 1700th
anniversary of Armenia's adoption of Christianity. |
| March 11-16 |
OTE, the Greek company which owns
90% of the shares of Armenia's telecommunications network monopoly,
reported this week that as of this month its investments in Armentel
reached $102 million. According to the1997 privatization agreement,
OTE pledged to invest a total of $200 million in Armentel by 2004,
with half of that amount to be invested by this month. A joint control
commission, set up by the Armenian government and OTE, is currently
studying how these investments were made. Armenia and OTE have tried
to renegotiate Armentel's monopoly rights in the local telecommunications
market. |
| March 17-23 |
US Secretary of State Colin Powell
this week invited the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan to the
United States to continue negotiations on the Karabagh conflict. Robert
Kocharian and Heydar Aliyev are expected to meet on April 3 on Key
West Island off the coast of Florida in another attempt to find an
agreement on general principles of the Karabagh settlement. The two
Presidents have conducted two rounds of negotiations in Paris and
are believed to have made progress towards agreement. The main sticking
points in the negotiations continue to be the status of Karabagh,
and a corridor to connect it to Armenia. The United States is one
of three co-chairs of the Minsk Group created by the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to mediate in the Karabagh
conflict. The other two co-chairs are France and Russia.
State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said in a statement that
"assisting the parties to find a peaceful settlement to [the
Karabagh] conflict is a major US priority." A spokesperson for
the Armenian President said that Yerevan has accepted the offer to
hold new talks, but the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry refused to issue
a comment.
Following the latest round of talks in Paris, the Armenian leadership
remained largely silent on the substance of negotiations. Earlier
in the week, Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian insisted that
the [peace] "process has not yet been exhausted, it is on the
right track and will be continued." Oskanian refused to give
any further details.
Armenia's Defense Minister Serge Sargsian again stated that "a
resumption of combat operations in the Karabagh conflict area is unlikely."
He added, however, that Armenian Armed Forces will hold five-day military
exercises with participation of reservists this week. Meanwhile, Azerbaijani
officials continued to issue contradictory statements. Tough talk
prevailed, but most analysts downplayed any possible military flare-up
and speculated that Baku was preparing the Azerbaijani public for
concessions. Ali Hassanov, the head of President Aliyev's Administration's
Social-Political Department said late last week that a new conflict
in Karabagh "would not lead to good results" for Azerbaijan.
He added that Aliyev would prefer to freeze the conflict settlement
process rather than make "unacceptable compromises." But
later in the week, Azerbaijani media reported that the presidential
administration was preparing a public opinion poll on the Karabagh
settlement that will cover all districts of Azerbaijan and include
nearly 100,000 respondents.
This week Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Vilayat Guliyev again said
negotiations "have yielded no result... due to Armenia's non-constructive
position." He said that Yerevan wants to unite with Karabagh
and said Azerbaijan needs to focus on a military build-up. But he
added that negotiating potential has not been "exhausted and
the political dialogue should continue." President Aliyev himself
was on a five-day visit to Turkey this week, in an attempt to garner
Turkish military support, should hostilities in Karabagh resume. Addressing
the Turkish Grand National Assembly, Aliyev called on Turkey to jointly
fight Armenian "insolence." He stressed that Azerbaijan
needs Turkish help in order to settle the Karabagh conflict on favorable
terms. But Turkish leaders, currently embroiled in a financial crisis,
made no firm commitments of military assistance and only grudgingly
agreed to sign an agreement on the purchase of Azerbaijani gas. According
to reports in the Turkish press, Aliyev also shared the details of
the latest OSCE plan with Turkish officials. Neither conflicting parties
nor mediators have so far confirmed that such a plan exists. Armenia's
Parliamentary Foreign Relations Committee Deputy Chairman Armen Rustamian
called Turkish interference in the Karabagh dispute "dangerous"
with the potential of spreading the conflict. At the same time, Rustamian,
who is a member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation that is part
of Armenia's coalition government, predicted that the OSCE mediators
will soon present a peace proposal that will be acceptable to all
parties to the Karabagh conflict. |
| March 17-23 |
The Armenian government and the Hellenic
Telecommunications Organization (OTE), which owns 90% of the Armenian
telecommunications monopoly's shares, denied Greek media reports that
OTE plans to swap its Armenian holding with Turk Telekom, a monopoly
owned by the Turkish state. Reports appearing this week in a Greek
daily newspaper suggested that OTE is discussing a possible swap of
its stake in Armentel for a share in the Turkish company. The Turkish
government had announced plans to privatize its telecommunications
sector later this year.
OTE bought the controlling stake in Armentel for $142.5 million in
1998. The Greek company purchased 39% of Armentel's shares from the
Armenian government and 51% from an offshore intermediary. As part
of an agreement granting OTE-Armentel monopoly rights in Armenia's
telecom services for 15 years, the Greek company pledged to invest
$300 million by 2006. The company claims that $102 million has already
been invested. Critics charge there have been no serious improvements
in Armentel service and costs for long-distance phone calls and internet
access are among the highest in the region.
OTE Vice President George Skarpelis denied the report and said his
company does not plan to end its presence in Armenia. A spokeswoman
for Armenia's Ministry of Transport and Communications said that any
such discussion would be in violation of the 1998 agreement, which
obliges OTE to officially inform the Armenian government were it to
discuss a sale of more than 20% of Armentel stock to another entity.
Justice Minister David Harutiunian, who is in charge of the Armenian
government's dealings with OTE, also said that any sale of Armentel
stock is impossible without government approval. He added that he
did not believe the reports of talks with Turk Telecom. Leaders of
parliamentary factions ruled out any such deal with Turk Telecom,
calling it "impossible." Harutiunian also criticized OTE
for "poor management" of Armentel. He disputed the company's
investment statistics and said the government may soon demand a company
audit. Harutiunian added that talks with OTE on renegotiating the
1998 deal, to lift Armentel monopoly rights, have failed to produce
any agreement. |
| March 17-23 |
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade
Ashot Shahnazarian said this week that Armenia will receive $30 million
over the next year to invest in information technologies in Armenia.
Epygi Labs, a US-based company, plans to invest $20 million for a
technical park and assist in the retraining of programmers. The World
Bank is to credit $5 million and the Eurasia Fund will allot $2 to
$3 million for training Armenian specialists. Additional funds are
expected to be invested in the "Transistor" plant. Shahnazarian
told journalists that although Armenia needs more programmers, he
believes the country's situation is beginning to change for the better.
On average, programmers in Armenia can expect to earn between $700-$1500
per month. Currently, there are approximately 2,500 programmers and
50 companies in the information technology sector that implement the
orders of large international companies. Ten of these companies are
highly active in the market and anticipate increasing their workforce
fivefold. Over the last few years, many programmers have left Armenia
for international job opportunities, leaving a shortage of qualified
personnel available. |
| March 17-23 |
Armenia's industrial output increased
by nearly 49% during the first two months of this year, Deputy Minister
of Trade and Industry Ashot Shahnazarian said this week. During January-February,
the output rose to approximately $32 million as compared with $22
million in the same period last year. Mining, jewelry, chemical and
machinery production all registered significant increases. Exports
and overall sales of the industrial products increased to $26 and
$30 million respectively. Shahnazarian said the industrial output
is expected to grow throughout the year, thanks to planned reactivation
of the Vanadzor chemical, Yerevan tire and Akhtala ore processing
plants, and increased production at other industrial enterprises. |
| March 24-31 |
As the date for talks between the
Armenian and Azerbaijani Presidents nears, the conflicting sides and
mediators remain cautiously optimistic about possible progress. Presidents
Robert Kocharian and Heydar Aliyev are expected to meet for four days
starting April 3 in Key West, Florida. International mediators from
France, Russia and the United States willparticipate in the meetings.
US Secretary of State Colin Powell will meet the Presidents on the
first day of talks. Asked during this week's State Department briefing
why the United States was focusing on the Karabagh conflict, Spokesman
Richard Boucher said the Karabagh conflict was important. He added
that the United States has been "working very intensely on [a
settlement in Karabagh] for years... to bring the process forward"
and the next step in this process would be the talks in Key West.
Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian said this week that the
Armenian President is optimistic about the upcoming negotiations and
believed they would be effective. Kocharian's optimism is based on
the basic consensus among the three mediators, who are in a position
to positively influence the talks. However, some observers believe
that the recent diplomatic row between the United States and Russia
may negatively influence the Karabagh peace process.
Chairman of the Armenian Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee Hovanes
Hovanesian said he doubted any written agreement would be reached
in Key West, but thought the meeting may result in a new peace proposal
by mediators. He dismissed what he termed an "hysteria in Azerbaijan",
designed primarily for internal consumption and ruled out renewed
fighting in Karabagh. Hovanisian added, however, that "we live
in such a region that we should always be ready for war." President
Aliyev's son Ilham Aliyev, who is his father's deputy within the Azerbaijan
ruling political party, said he was optimistic about the Key West
talks since the mediators, and Russia in particular, have become much
more active and enthusiastic about the peace process. |
| March 24-31 |
Georgia's Foreign Minister Irakly
Menagrishvili this week met with Armenian leaders to discuss bilateral
relations and regional security issues. They agreed to do more to
expand bilateral trade and cooperation within the international organizations,
such as the Council of Europe. Menagrishvili welcomed Armenia's participation
in economic projects in Javakhk, the Armenian-populated region in
Georgia. He denied reports that Georgia plansto host NATO forces on
its territory, saying the country was more concerned with the ongoing
reduction of the Russian military presence there. This week, Georgia's
Deputy Defense Minister Gela Bezhuashvili told the country's parliamentarians
that Turkish Air Force jets will be able to use the Marneuli air base
in southern Georgia. The Turkish Armed Forces recently spent about
$1 million to renovate the base. |
| March 24-31
|
An Istanbul Women's Biennial panel
this week focused on solving problems between Armenia and Turkey through
dialogue and peaceful means. Participants, Armenian Parliament Deputy
Hermine Naghdalyan and Turkish Democratic Left Party Deputy Gonul
Saray both underscored the importance of peace. Following the discussion,
Naghdalyan and Saray signed a declaration urging their respective
countries' politicians to open a peaceful dialogue to resolve the
issues between Armenia and Turkey. The declaration read: "We
believe that problems between Turkey and Armenia should be solved
through dialogue and with peaceful means instead of intimidation and
armament. As women and politicians, we are determined to make any
kind of contribution to provide rapprochement between the Turkish
and Armenian peoples. As a first step, we will work to start a dialogue
between our political parties. We call on our governments to start
political dialogue." |
| March 24-31 |
A two-day, groundbreaking conference,
held March 24-25 in Muelheim an der Ruhr, Germany, invited Armenian
and Turkish scholars to discuss the Armenian Genocide of 1915. A total
of seven participants--three of Turkish origin, three of Armenian
origin and one German--took part in the event. University of California
Professor and Chairman of the Armenian National Institute's Academic
Council Richard Hovannisian led the group of Armenian historians and
Istanbul University Professor Halil Berktay led the Turkish historians
for this unprecedented meeting. The three Turkish historians agreed
that the historical record supports Armenian charges that in 1915
the Ottoman Empire committed crimes against Armenians by ordering
deportations and mass killings. Turkish scholar Elcin Kuersat-Ahlers
said, "What happened in April 1915 in the Ottoman Empire was
nothing but genocide. The deportation of Armenians took place not
only in the war zone, but throughout the entire Ottoman Empire. In
reality, it was aimed at achieving the ethnic homogenization of Anatolia.
"Hovannisian called the conference an important step toward establishing
dialogue between the Turkish and Armenian communities. He said such
steps are not easy to take because both sides face internal and external
pressures.The German-Armenian Society and the German-Turkish Association
for Exchange in Humanities and Social Sciences sponsored the conference. |
| March 24-31 |
The Supreme Court of the Nagorno Karabagh
Republic (NKR) this week upheld a lower court ruling in the case of
the assassination attempt against President Arkady Ghoukasian. On
February 26, Karabagh's former Defense Minister Samvel Babayan and
several individuals close to him were found guilty of organizing and
implementing the March 2000 attack on the NKR President. Ghoukasian
and two of his bodyguards were shot and seriously wounded in the attempt.
The attackers fled after the President's security detail returned
fire. The court sentenced Babayan to 14 years in prison, with five
other individuals receiving sentences between seven and 14 years.
The latest ruling came amid calls for clemency for Babayan. A former
Chief of Staff of the Karabagh Defense Forces General Arkady Ter-Tatevosian
and several other veteran commanders this week urged the Karabagh
people to forgive Babayanfor "inappropriate deeds" and pardon
him, based on his military achievements. Babayan, once feted as a
national hero for his contribution to the Karabagh defense effort,
lost much of his popularity in post-war years and especially after
the March 2000 attack. A recent opinion poll conducted in Karabagh
found that a majority of respondents believed Babayan was involved
in the assassination attempt and that his sentence was appropriate.
In a recent interview, President Ghoukasian said he felt deep regret
over the whole affair, but believed the trial was fair. |
| March 24-31 |
At the request of a US-based company,
the announcement of terms of the tender on the privatization of power
distributing companies of Armenia was postponed for 20 days. The documents
will now be presented on April 19. Spokeswoman for the Armenian Energy
Ministry said that the AES Silk Road has asked for more time to look
into the bid specifications. The other two bidders--Swiss-Swedish
ABB and Spanish Union Fenosa endorsed the American company's request.
She said the State Tender Commission, made up of senior government
officials and parliamentary deputies, decided to disclose the bids
on April 19 and then name two firms that will gain control of Armenia's
energy distribution networks. Meanwhile, a coalition of twenty-five,
left-wing, public and political organizations conducted a March 28
rally in Liberty Square under the motto," No privatization of
power distributing companies." The rally attracted an estimated
3,000 people. |
|
|
|
|
|