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| November 1 |
President Robert Kocharian names
Deputy Foreign Minister Levon Mkrtchian as the new Minister for Science
and Education. Mkrtchian, a leading member of the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation (ARF), previously held this same post. |
| November 1 |
A Yerevan newspaper publishes a statement
by former Interior Minister Vano Siradeghian supporting the opposition's
campaign to initiate impeachment proceedings against President Kocharian.
Siradeghian, who faces numerous charges including murder and corruption,
fled Armenia in April 2000 to avoid prosecution. The former
interior minister was a close associate of former President Levon
Ter Petrosian and was a founding member of the former ruling Armenian
National Movement (ANM). |
| November 2 |
In an apparent reversal of its previous
position, the government announces a 15 percent increase in monthly
pension payments. The government defeated a similar proposal
by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) in September, arguing
at the time that such an increase would be fiscally irresponsible. |
| November 2 |
Turkish-Armenian Reconciliation Commissioner
Gunduz Aktan this week called for the opening of Turkey's borders
with Armenia and removal of the visa requirement for Armenians entering
the country. In an op-ed, which appeared in the Turkish Daily News,
he said that in order to fulfill Turkey's role in assisting the Newly
Independent States to end conflicts between each other and with Turkey,
open borders were essential.
"Even at this time when all eyes are focused on Afghanistan,
it can still be said that the Caucasus is the world's most important
geostrategic location," Aktan wrote. He added that, "Unless
Turkey's relations with Armenia normalize, it will not be possible
for it to take on the role expected of it, which is to bring about
peace and stability in the Caucasus." Aktan also said that for
Turkish-Armenian relations to normalize and offer its support to establishing
stable nations in the Caucasus, Turkey should remove the requirement
that Armenians must apply for visas prior to entering the country.
Aktan's op-ed echoes the view of journalist and political commentator
Hasan Cemal, grandson of Cemal Pasha, in an article published last
week in Milliyet. Cemal also called for Turkey to take "symbolic
steps" that included opening borders and beginning normal trade
with Armenia. |
| November 2 |
U.S. President George W. Bush Tuesday
telephoned both Armenian President Robert Kocharian and Azerbaijani
President Heidar Aliyev. In separate calls, the President said he
thanked them for their support of the war on terrorism. President
Bush also thanked Presidents Kocharian and Aliyev for their cooperation
on the conditional waiver of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act.
During the Tuesday afternoon White House press briefing, Press Secretary
Ari Fleischer said, "President Bush underscored the importance
of Congress taking final action to pass authority to waive restrictions
imposed by Section 907...[the waiver] will allow the president to
do more with Armenia, as well as Azerbaijan, to fight terrorism and
to facilitate deeper cooperation in the region." President Bush
expressed his hope the continuing Nagorno Karabagh peace talks would
lead to a peaceful resolution. |
| November 2 |
The Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the leading international mediator in
the Karabagh conflict since 1992, is expanding its involvement in
the peace process in an attempt to reopen the deadlocked negotiations.
In addition to diplomatic efforts, the OSCE is sponsoring expanded
contacts between parliamentarians and representatives of civil societies
from Armenia, Azerbaijan and NKR. Envoys from France, Russia and the
United States, who co-chair the OSCE's main mediation vehicle, the
Minsk Group, will return to the region this weekend for more talks.
They will then visit Baku, before proceeding to the line of contact
between Azerbaijani and Nagorno Karabagh forces in the Mardakert district,
Stepanakert and Yerevan. Azerbaijan has recently questioned the OSCE's
effectiveness in the peace effort, which seemed close to achieving
a breakthrough following talks held between President Robert Kocharian
and Heydar Aliyev in France and the United States earlier this year.
This week, Novruz Mammadov, who is the Azerbaijani President's top
foreign policy aide, in effect, accused the U.S. envoy to the Karabagh
peace talks Rudolf Perina of "spreading disinformation"
and dismissed the "Paris Principles," the framework agreement
reached by the two presidents, as "Armenian speculation."
In an interview last week, Perina confirmed that Aliyev and Kocharian
did reach a general agreement on settlement, before Azerbaijan hardened
its stance.
Also this week, a group of ten journalists from Armenia and Nagorno
Karabagh are visiting Azerbaijan. Together with their Azerbaijani
colleagues, they are discussing the role mass media could play in
the settlement of the conflict. The meetings are taking place at an
isolated resort outside Baku with stepped-up police protection. The
additional security precautions came following the assault by Azerbaijani
militants on a group of human rights activists from NKR last September.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Adrian Severin,
who late last week visited Armenia and NKR, became the latest official
to urge Azerbaijan to avoid military rhetoric. Severin, who represents
300 members of Parliament from 55 countries, also announced plans
to establish an inter-parliamentary commission on Karabagh that would
work to create an atmosphere more conducive to peace settlement. |
| November 2 |
At public events held in Yerevan
this week, Armenia's current and former security officials discussed
threats to the country's security and ways to address them. Deputy
Defense Minister Colonel General Artur Aghabekian said at the seminar
organized by the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies
that Azerbaijan continues to pose a clear threat of military aggression
against Armenia and NKR. He said that a new war would become inevitable
if Azerbaijani leaders sense a military advantage over the Armenian
side. Aghabekian added that Turkey also poses a threat, saying that
that country's 1998 military doctrine viewed Armenia as its second
most likely adversary (after Greece). By committing itself to training
the Azerbaijani army, Turkey has essentially become involved in the
Karabagh conflict. Aghabekian said Armenia was trying to address these
concerns through cooperation with the Russian-led Collective Security
Treaty and NATO's Partnership for Peace Program.
An Azerbaijani report this week cited "informed sources"
as saying that Turkey was ready to take diplomatic steps to "neutralize"
the expected negative international reaction in the event of renewed
Azerbaijani aggression in Karabagh. In military terms, Ankara is reportedly
ready to step up military assistance to the Azerbaijani army, while
building up its own forces along the Turkish-Armenian border and,
possibly, in Nakhichevan to tie up the Armenian army in that direction.
Meanwhile, former National Security Advisor (1992-94) Ashot Manucharian,
argued for expanding Armenia's national security system outside of
the state apparatus to include think tanks and academia to take advantage
of the "potential of the whole nation." |
| November 2 |
Declaring that "Romania will
always be a friend to Armenia," Romanian President Ion Iliescu
made an official visit to Armenia this week for talks with his Armenian
counterpart Robert Kocharian and other officials. The parties focused
primarily on ways to expand economic cooperation. Since independence,
Armenia has come to rely on Romania's ports for its growing trade
with European countries and much of Armenia's gasoline is imported
from that country's refineries. Iliescu offered Romania's assistance
in the ongoing Karabagh peace process. Romania currently holds the
OSCE presidency, which is the main mediator in the conflict. Iliesku
also stated that Romania would use its "good relations"
with Turkey to help advance the peace process. Referring to Stalin's
1921 decision to place Nagorno Karabagh within Soviet Azerbaijan,
Iliescu called the ongoing conflict with Azerbaijan a remnant of the
"heavy legacy" of the Soviet Union and its leaders. Iliescu
also visited the Armenian Genocide Memorial where he laid a wreath
in honor of the victims and planted a tree near the Memorial.
Also this week, Dutch Finance Minister Gerrit Zalm was in Armenia
to discuss economic development in the Caucasus and the Nagorno Karabagh
conflict. The Netherlands is one of the largest foreign donors to
Armenia, most recently releasing a $5 million grant to promote investments
and trade. Zalm and Armenia's Finance and Economy Minister Vardan
Khachatrian signed an agreement on avoiding double taxation. The Dutch
Minister also backed Armenia's long-standing position that revival
of regional economic ties could assist in solving the Karabagh conflict
and offered to financially support such efforts. The Azerbaijani Government
has repeatedly rebuffed offers of economic cooperation with Armenia,
proposed by Western mediators and supported by Armenia and some ex-officials
and businessmen in Azerbaijan. |
November
5 - 6 |
President Kocharian, Foreign Minister
Vardan Oskanian and other senior government officials meet with visiting
Latvian Foreign Minister Indulis Berzins to discuss plans for expanding
bilateral trade and economic cooperation. The Latvian government
was one of the strongest proponents of Armenian membership in the
Council of Europe. |
November
6 - 8 |
A delegation of officials from the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) arrives
in Yerevan for a series of meetings with President Kocharian and Foreign
Minister Vardan Oskanian. The OSCE delegation includes the three co-chairs
of the OSCE's Minsk Group, as well as Russian First Deputy Foreign
Minister Vyacheslav Trubnikov. The OSCE officials present the Armenian
leaders with newly proposed confidence-building measures and review
draft changes and amendments to the peace plan that served as the
basis for talks in Key West, Florida last April. The OSCE delegation
issues an official statement in Yerevan reporting on their meetings
with Azerbaijani, Karabagh, and Armenian officials. The statement
expresses concern that a renewal of hostilities would result in "disastrous"
effects in the region, while the continuation of the status quo seriously
hinders both Armenia's and Azerbaijan's development. |
November
7 |
World Bank Regional Director Judy
O'Connor informs President Kocharian that the World Bank will only
release the second $15 million tranche of its loan package to Armenia
if the International Monetary Fund (IMF) confirms that the government
has met tax revenue collection targets. The World Bank is also
withholding another $20 million tranche until Armenia completes its
promised privatization of four national energy distribution networks. |
November
8 |
Following some criticism about the
pace of the investigation into the death of Poghos Poghosian, Prosecutor-
General Aram Tamazian reports that his office has interrogated more
than 50 people in connection with the incident. Poghosian, an
ARF member from the Armenian-populated Javakhk region of southern
Georgia, died September 25 after being assaulted by presidential bodyguards
in a Yerevan cafÈ. |
November
8 |
Meeting in Paris, Yerevan Mayor Robert
Nazarian and Mayor Ali Gurtuna of the Turkish city of Istanbul discuss
avenues for establishing direct cooperation between the cities. The
meeting is organized by Christian Poncelet, the President of the French
Senate. |
November
2 - 9 |
Reiterating Armenia's support for
the fight against terrorism, Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian Thursday
signed a Council of Europe (COE) Convention permitting the extradition
of those who commit serious offenses including hijacking airplanes,
taking hostages and other offenses that "together with any serious
act of violence [endangers] the life, physical integrity or liberty
of people." In his speech to members of the COE Parliament, Oskanian
emphasized the role of the COE in the war against terrorism and the
organization's participation in resolving regional conflicts. "The
situation in the South Caucasus will greatly depend on the position
and political will of countries and members of the Council of Europe,"
he said. Oskanian also met with the COE Parliamentary Assembly President
Lord Russell-Johnston (UK) and COE Commission on Political Issues
Chairman Terry Davis (UK) to discuss these conventions and the settlement
of conflicts in the Caucasus region. Oskanian signed six conventions
aimed at easing the transfer of proceedings in criminal matters, tightening
the law relative to the extradition of suspected war criminals, providing
mutual assistance in fiscal offenses and fixing requirements for the
compensation of victims of violent crimes. Armenia became the 42nd
Member of the COE earlier this year. |
November
2 - 9 |
The French, Russian and U.S. envoys
acting under the aegis of the Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe (OSCE) were back in the region this week. The co-chairs
of the OSCE Minsk Group Phillippe de Suremain, Nikolay Gribkov and
Rudolf Perina, together with Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Viacheslav
Trubnikov, held talks with the Presidents of Armenia, Azerbaijan and
Nagorno Karabagh to share what they termed "new ideas" about ways
to settle the Karabagh conflict. They said the ideas were related
to principles agreed to by Presidents Robert Kocharian and Heydar
Aliyev during their talks in Paris and Key West, Florida this year.
No progress in negotiations has been achieved since then as Azerbaijan
reportedly hardened its stance.
In a statement issued at the end of their visit this week, the co-chairs
called war rhetoric "unacceptable" and said resumption of fighting
in Karabagh would result in disastrous consequences for the whole
region. The visit seems to have had a cooling effect on the Azerbaijani
leader. Speaking at the Congress of Azerbaijani Diaspora, which opened
in Baku on Friday, Aliyev said he was committed to a peaceful settlement
of the Karabagh conflict. Kocharian and Aliyev will have an opportunity
to meet at the end of this month during the summit of the Commonwealth
of Independent States (CIS) in Moscow. They last met at an unofficial
summit of CIS heads of state in the Russian resort town of Sochi in
August of this year.
During their visit, the co-chairs visited the Sarsang water reservoir
in northern Karabagh. Prior to the war, the reservoir supplied electricity
and irrigation water to several adjacent Azerbaijani districts and
the Karabagh government recently offered to renew the supply of water
to Azerbaijan. An Azerbaijani official visited NKR and expressed general
desire to accept the offer, but the Azerbaijani government refused
to pay for supplies. The co-chairs said they took note of the project
as a potential economic confidence-building measure.
While in Armenia, the co-chairs also visited the Yerevan Brandy Plant
where they participated in a ceremony sealing a 300-liter barrel of
brandy. The barrel, which contains brandy spirit from 1994, the year
of the Karabagh cease-fire, will be opened only after the final resolution
of the conflict. |
November
2 - 9 |
Turkish, Armenian and Azerbaijani
journalists signed a cooperation protocol Thursday to "develop relations
between the peoples of the three countries and help bring a solution
to the existing problems." The document, called the Ankara Protocol,
was signed by Diplomacy Correspondents' Association Chairman Yusuf
Kanli, Turkish Democracy Foundation Secretary General Murat Sengul,
Armenian Yerevan Press Club President Boris Navasardian and President
of the Azerbaijani New Generation Journalists Association Arif Aliyev.
The journalists' goal is to reduce hostility and prejudice existing
in the three societies. Kanli, speaking at the signature ceremony,
said "The world is going through a new period. All of us know the
problems created by hate and intolerance and we'll try to contribute
to the friendship between the peoples of the three nations." |
November
2 - 9 |
As part of the celebrations dedicated
to the 1700th anniversary of its adoption of Christianity, Armenia
hosted two high-level delegations this week. His Holiness Ecumenical
Patriarch Bartholomew I, Archbishop of Constantinople, paid a first-ever
visit to Armenia. The Patriarch's jurisdiction includes some three
and a half million Orthodox faithful in Europe, Turkey, the Americas
and Australia. He was accompanied by the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople,
His Beatitude Archbishop Mesrob Mutafyan. Also visiting for the first
time were members of the British Royal family, the Duke and Duchess
of Gloucestor, cousins of Queen Elizabeth II. They visited Armenia-based
British-owned companies and participated in the ceremonial laying
of the foundation stone for the UK Embassy's new building. |
November
2 - 9 |
An American association of retired
business executives is helping Armenia's gold and diamond jewelry
makers to enter the American market, reported Business Link, the association's
Yerevan branch. The U.S. International Executive Service Corps (IESC)
has implemented over 100 consulting projects in Armenia since 1992.
IESC Executive Director Lisa Scorsolini said the organization will
select the six most competitive jewelry companies and assist in finding
customers in the United States. The diamond and gold processing sector
is one of the most successful branches of Armenia's economy and accounts
for a large share of the country's exports. |
November
2 - 9 |
Environmental Protection Minister
Vartan Ayvazyan told Armenian media this week that the government
is reviewing a $300 million program to restore Lake Sevan. As a first
step, the government will allocate funds next year to complete the
construction of the Vorotan Tunnel which will feed water from the
Vorotan River into Lake Sevan, where water levels have dropped in
recent years (13 centimeters in 2001 alone). The World Bank and the
Global Nature Fund are expected to assist with financing. Early stages
include a temporary ban on fishing at Lake Sevan, restoration of Gili
Lake and a financial allocation to maintain the Sevan reserve. A six
meter increase in Sevan's level is expected. |
November
2 - 9 |
To maintain its current rate of spending,
the Armenian government plans to reduce its budget deficit to about
$55 million next year, a decrease of over 40 percent. More efficient
tax and custom duties collection is expected to make the difference.
The government of Prime Minister Andranik Markarian submitted the
2002 budget proposal to parliament last week. The increased revenue
collection implies a more serious crackdown on the shadow economy
than has been achieved to date. The government expects the economy
to grow by six percent next year with three percent inflation. Deputy
Finance and Economy Minister Pavel Safarian also announced plans to
increase pensions and teachers' salaries by about 20 percent. Necessary
funds are expected to be accumulated through cuts in the size of government
due in January 2002. |
November
2 - 9 |
After months of disagreements with
the Greek-owned communications monopoly ArmenTel, the Armenian Government
proposed a new round of negotiations to reach an out-of-court settlement
of the dispute over phone charge increases. ArmenTel CEO Nikos Georgulas
said the company accepted the proposal late last week. Following ArmenTel's
decision to charge for domestic phone calls on a per-minute basis
beginning September 1, the Minister of Transport and Communications
Andranik Manoukian repeatedly said that the company had no right to
introduce the new policy because the government had not authorized
it. Under the license, ArmenTel must apply to the government-authorized
body for consent 60 days prior to implementation. According to Manoukian,
ArmenTel's proposal was submitted with procedural violation and therefore
not considered by the government. If talks fail again, the Ministry
has indicated it will bring the case before the International Court
of Arbitration in London. |
November
12 |
Workers in the country's energy sector
appeal to Prime Minister Andranik Markarian for their growing back
wages owed to them by the state. Wage arrears for energy workers range
from an estimated four to ten months' salary. |
November
13 |
Government spokesmen confirm press
reports that a large Ukrainian corporation is considering the purchase
of a majority 51 percent stake in the country's largest chemical facility,
the Nairit plant. The Ukrainian firm is reported to be prepared
to invest $22 million in the plant's modernization and to increase
annual production of chloroprene rubber from 10,000 to 30,000 tons.
The Nairit facility is burdened by more than $7 million in debt for
the first six months of this year alone. |
November
13 |
The head of the independent Yerevan
Press Club, Boris Navasardian, announces the suspension of exchange
programs and contacts with Azerbaijani media representatives after
several incidents of hostility and intimidation during a delegation
of Armenian journalist's visit to Baku last month. The Yerevan
Press Club had engaged in a series of media exchanges with Azerbaijan
since 1996. Despite Turkey's refusal to extend diplomatic relations
with Armenia, Navasardian also announces a new effort to solidify
formal contacts with the Turkish media, with an initial visit to Turkey
by a group of Armenian journalists sometime next month. |
November
13-15 |
Parliamentary Foreign Relations Committee
Chairman Hovaness Hovanessian and Defense and Security Committee Chairman
Vahan Hovanessian in separate interviews express concern over efforts
in the U.S. Congress to weaken existing conditions imposed on U.S.
aid to Azerbaijan. Both officials warn that the weakening of
these provisions will only serve to encourage recent statements by
the Azerbaijani leadership threatening to resume military hostilities
against Nagorno Karabagh. The restrictions on U.S. aid to Azerbaijan,
passed in 1992 as Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act, were imposed
because of Azerbaijan's continued blockades of Armenia and Nagorno
Karabagh. |
November
14-15 |
Polish President Aleksandr Kwasneiski
arrives from Tbilisi for a state visit to Armenia. Meeting with
President Kocharian, the Polish president discusses plans for expanded
economic and trade relations and signs a new bilateral declaration
on political, security and economic cooperation. During a speech
at Yerevan State University, the Polish president acknowledges the
Armenian Genocide of 1915, stating that "no one should dispute
the fact" of the Armenian Genocide. |
November
15-16 |
After the government extends a $5
million emergency loan, the Medzamor nuclear power plant resumes operations
following an extended period of maintenance and refueling. The
facility, which was closed for four months, had to delay its planned
August reactivation when funds were unavailable to purchase nuclear
fuel from Russia. As a result of the delay, Armenia was forced
to double imports of Russian natural gas for electricity production. |
November
9 - 16 |
Speaking at the United Nations General
Assembly this week, Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian called the September
11 terrorist attacks on the United States a product of "arrogance
and fascist mentality...The immediate determination that the perpetrators
must be punished and their bases eliminated was necessary and prudent,"
he added. For its part, "Armenia has offered unreserved assistance
to the global coalition" against terrorism, including military and
strategic assistance. At the same time, Oskanian expressed concern
about "how advent of such terror, and the extended battle against
it, will affect" Armenia and its region. He urged the international
community to deal with "fundamental, developmental, short and long-term
issues" in Armenia's larger neighborhood, where "basic freedoms...are
not universally guaranteed." Turning to Armenian-Turkish relations,
Oskanian expressed hope that "perhaps in this post-September 11 world,
when the Cold War has truly and finally ended" and former adversaries
are cooperating and establishing partnerships, Turkey too could finally
drop its pre-conditions and establish normal relations with Armenia
and engage in constructive cooperation. He added that "the memory
of the Armenian Genocide continues to haunt and obstruct Turkey's
relations with Armenia."
Oskanian also offered Armenia's views on the Karabagh conflict. He
stressed that "Nagorno Karabagh has never been a part of independent
Azerbaijan." He added that "whether we consider history or geography,
whether we adopt a long-term political perspective, or whether we
face the reality on the ground" the people of Karabagh have earned
the right to live peacefully and "free of alien domination and foreign
occupation." Referring to Azerbaijani efforts to present itself as
a victim in the Karabagh conflict, Oskanian said that "Azerbaijan's
insistence on inventing numbers, redefining terms, creating history
and obfuscating discussion are part of the problem, and not a search
for a solution."
Speaking to reporters earlier this week, Oskanian reiterated Armenia's
readiness to reach settlement in the Karabagh conflict based on the
framework agreements reached by Presidents Robert Kocharian and Heydar
Aliyev during talks in Paris and Key West, FL earlier in the year.
Oskanian said he was hopeful that recent efforts by the mediators
from France, Russia and the United States will help re-invigorate
talks. In contrast, Aliyev's foreign policy aide Novruz Mammadov called
the mediators' latest proposals "unacceptable for Azerbaijan," while
his Foreign Minister Vilayat Guliyev again criticized the three countries'
efforts as inefficient. Azerbaijan has increasingly found itself isolated
internationally on the Karabagh issue, and its leaders' occasional
military threats are widely condemned. In his speech at the UN, Oskanian
characterized these threats as a product of "adherence to old clichÈs,
rather than new realities, [that] are not acceptable among neighbors
serious about peace." |
November
9 - 16 |
In the latest manifestation of international
recognition of the Armenian Genocide, President of Poland Alexander
Kwasniewski said that "no one in the world can dispute the fact
of the Armenian Genocide: the Armenian Genocide is a fact." Kwasniewski
made the remarks during his official visit to Armenia this week. He
said his country is strongly aware of the issue, perhaps because the
Nazi-perpetrated Holocaust bore such an impact on Poland. The Polish
president called Genocide a "global danger" and offered
his country's assistance in the international affirmation of the Genocide
to prevent similar acts from occurring in the future. During his visit
to the Armenian Genocide Museum, Kwasniewski wrote in the Genocide
Museum's visitors' book, "We share the pain of Armenians, regarding
the 1915 Genocide. We are sure that by joining our efforts we shall
not allow such crimes to be repeated in the future." Later while
visiting Yerevan State University, he also noted that the "visit
to the Genocide Memorial was the most important part of my state visit
to Armenia." In what has become a tradition for visiting world
leaders, Kwasniewski planted a tree near the Memorial complex.
Kwasniewski held three days of talks with President Robert Kocharian
and other senior Armenian officials on ways to expand political cooperation
in the international arena. Poland recently joined the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization (NATO) and is expected to become a full-fledged
member of the European Union (EU) by 2004. Kwasniewski offered his
country's support for Armenia's integration with European organizations.
The Polish president called Armenia the most important partner for
Poland and the most stable country in the region. Kwasniewski's visit
included attendance at the Armenian-Polish Business Forum in Yerevan
where he emphasized that foreign investors did not face any problems
regarding the safety of their investments in Armenia and expressed
optimism about the increased collaboration between Polish and Armenian
businesses. Kwasniewski and Kocharian also discussed the status of
the Nagorno Karabagh peace process, with the Polish president expressing
support for Armenia's policy towards establishing stability in the
region. He said Poland was ready to contribute to the peaceful settlement
of the Karabagh conflict. |
November
9 - 16 |
Reports from Azerbaijan indicated
that a campaign of persecution has been launched against the representatives
of Azerbaijani media and human rights organizations who have been
trying to establish a dialogue with their counterparts from Armenia
and Nagorno Karabagh. Media reports suggest that this effort has been
initiated by the country's Ministry of National Security. The former
Soviet KGB officer Namik Abbasov, who heads the ministry, denounced
exchanges between Armenian and Azerbaijani journalists and human rights
activists and accused Azeri media representatives who visited Armenia
and Karabagh earlier this year of "immoral behavior." Abbasov
also called off a previously scheduled meeting with the Armenian side
to help locate persons missing as the result of the Karabagh conflict.
The International Working Group, which includes humanitarian activists
from Georgia, Germany and Russia, called the move a "significant
step back" that undermines efforts to build confidence between
the two nations. As a result of these developments, the Yerevan Press
Club decided to freeze contacts with Azeri counterparts, citing security
concerns. During recent visits to Azerbaijan, representatives of Armenian
and Karabagh NGOs' were branded "terrorists" and on one
occasion physically assaulted. Shortly after the most recent visit,
a group of Azeri war veterans reportedly backed by the government,
issued a statement threatening "harsh measures against the Armenians
and those inviting them [to visit Azerbaijan], if such invitations
and actions continue to take place."
Recent media polls conducted in Azerbaijan suggest that, contrary
to its government claims, the majority of Azerbaijanis support a peaceful
settlement of the Karabagh conflict. Observers believe that this finding
enraged some Azerbaijani officials, who while threatening a new military
action against Karabagh have been citing alleged popular support for
such an action. Another poll conducted by a leading Azeri daily suggests
that two-thirds of its readers do not believe Azeri officials' threats
of war are serious. |
November
9 - 16 |
Armenia's economy is the most open
and investor-friendly amongst the Newly Independent States, according
to the annual Index of Economic Freedom published by The Wall Street
Journal and the Heritage Foundation, a Washington-based think tank.
The findings rank Armenia forty-fifth and the only "mostly free"
economy in the region, well above its immediate neighbors. The same
report ranks Turkey - 105th, Georgia - 108th, Azerbaijan - 118th and
Iran - 151st out of 156 countries polled, and rates their economies
as "mostly unfree" or "repressed." President of
the Heritage Foundation Edward Feulner wrote in the preface to the
report that "the countries with the most economic freedom also
have the higher rates of long-term economic growth and are more prosperous
than are those with less economic freedom." Authors of the report
rank countries based on ten criteria: trade and monetary policy, fiscal
burden, government intervention in the economy, foreign investment,
banking and property rights, wages and prices, regulation and black
market. Armenia has moved up in the rankings in the past year due
to continuing low inflation and the government's liberal trade and
investment policies, as well as last December's tax cut. At the same
time, the report points out that corruption and red tape continue
to hamper business growth, and together with regional instability,
are the main causes of relatively low levels of foreign investment. |
November
9 - 16 |
Metsamor nuclear power plant, Armenia's
key source of energy, resumed supplying power to the country's electricity
grid this week after months of delay. The plant was taken off-line
in July for annual safety tests and refueling, but its reactivation
has been repeatedly postponed since September. The delay resulted
from the Russian government's insistence that Armenia make a pre-payment
on nuclear fuel supplies, and most recently, by the Metsamor staff's
protests over wage arrears. In the meantime, Armenia has been forced
to import additional amounts of more expensive natural gas, also from
Russia. HayRusGazArd, the sole supplier of natural gas to Armenia's
thermal power station, has already incurred millions in fresh debt
due to additional imports. The government this week was forced to
approve a $5 million emergency loan to the company, so that it could
begin to repay its debt to the Russian natural gas monopoly GazProm.
Because of chronic shortfalls in payment collection and "energy
losses" by Armenia's energy distribution networks, Armenia's
nuclear and thermal power stations have experienced similarly chronic
delays in paying salaries to their workers. President Robert Kocharian
has repeatedly criticized corruption and inefficiencies, and his government
is attempting to improve the networks' performance through privatization.
So far, these efforts have not been successful due to opposition from
groups interested in maintaining control over the lucrative sector,
which has discouraged large foreign investors. |
November
17 |
Calling on the opposition parties
and all "healthy" political groups to unite against President
Kocharian, the head of the Union of Constitutional Law party, Hrant
Khachatrian, announces his plans to run for president in the elections
scheduled for the Spring of 2003. Khachatrian was one of 12
presidential candidates in the 1998 election, polling a mere one percent
of the vote. |
November
19 |
Deputies vote 67-8 to remove the
parliamentary immunity of fugitive former Interior Minister and Yerevan
Mayor Vano Siradeghian on the grounds that his 19-month failure to
attend legislative sessions necessitates his dismissal as a deputy,
citing specific parliamentary rules. Siradeghian fled
the country in April 2000 to escape prosecution for complicity in
a series of political murders, corruption, and other assorted crimes
during his tenure as interior minister in the Ter Petrosian government.
The parliament failed to remove Siradeghian's parliamentary immunity
in vote last month, although that attempt was a secret ballot while
this attempt was conducted by open vote. |
November
20 |
A demonstration of over 200 students
is held in Yerevan to demand a decrease in the rising university tuition,
which currently averages between $600-$700. Student representatives
express their complaints in a meeting with Prime Minister Andranik
Markarian's Chief of Staff, Andranik Hakobian. |
November
29 |
The government's problematic attempt
to privatize the country's four energy distribution facilities once
again fails, as no company submits a bid for the sale. Executives
of the Russian Unified Energy Systems (UES) firm explain that it was
forced to withdraw from the tender due to vague delays in preparing
the proposal, although some Russian press reports suggest that UES
was angered at the Kocharian government's rejection of the firm's
offer to acquire the energy networks in exchange for assuming the
bulk of the $94 million Armenian debt owed to Russia. |
November
16 - 30 |
Two Turkish-Armenian Reconciliation
Commission (TARC) members - Armenia's former foreign minister Alexander
Arzoumanian and prominent Moscow-based political scientist Andranik
Migranian - confirmed a Radio Free Europe (RFE/RL) report this week
that TARC has asked the International Center for Transitional Justice
(ICTJ) to conduct a study as to the applicability of the United Nations
Genocide Convention to the Armenian Genocide of 1915. The two Armenian
Commissioners called the proposed study "an important element
in the initiative to reconcile the two nations." Their comments
followed the publication of a private statement by mediator David
Phillips, leaked to the media following the TARC meeting in New York
City last week, which asked that the New York-based ICTJ "facilitate
the provision of an independent third-party analysis of the applicability
of the 1948 [UN] Genocide Convention...." The ICTJ is engaged
in post-conflict rehabilitation and reconciliation initiatives across
the world.
Arzoumanian told RFE/RL that "what we need is not an international
verdict but an impartial analysis of whether the genocide convention
is applicable or not. But it must be emphasized that the Armenian
members of the Commission will never cast doubt on the historical
fact of the Armenian Genocide."
The two men said that the conclusions regarding UN convention applicability
to the most sensitive issue in Turkish-Armenian relations "could
affect the panel's future policy recommendations to official Ankara
and Yerevan."
Arzoumanian said, "I am sure that the Commission will discuss
that report in detail. And I think that our recommendations to our
respective governments will take account of the opinion [expressed
in the report]."
Arzoumanian noted that the study cannot force Turkey to abandon its
consistent denial of the genocide. "I'm sure that the Commission
will have a very frank discussion of that analysis," he said.
"But whether that will affect their position is difficult to
say."
In the statement, the participants also agreed that "the existence
of TARC should not be used to influence the attitudes of the international
community towards its relations with Armenia and Turkey." Migranian
commented that that was the result of the Armenian side's threats
to suspend the initiative if it damages international recognition
of the genocide. "We were prepared to pull out of TARC if they
continued to use it against the recognition process and mislead the
international community," he said.
TARC members also called for lifting of visa restrictions on Armenian
citizens traveling to Turkey and normalization of trade and transportation
between Armenia and Turkey. Arzoumanian said that TARC's view could
have an impact on official Ankara's policy. "The fact that the
Turkish Commissioners are conscious of the need to normalize ties
with Armenia demonstrates that there is such a mood in Turkey,"
he said.
The statement also said that TARC would prepare a list of facts and
issues affecting reconciliation, identify Armenian and Turkish positions
concerning those issues and suggest measures "which, if adopted,
would promote reconciliation." Plans to establish a secretariat
in the United States are underway, with liaison offices to be located
in Turkey and Armenia. The TARC web site will be developed shortly.
TARC's next meeting is scheduled to take place in New York January
21-26. |
November
16 - 30 |
Following last week's meeting of
the European Union (EU)-Armenia parliamentary commission on cooperation,
Chairman of the National Assembly's Foreign Relations Committee Hovanes
Hovanesian indicated this week that the European Parliament would
welcome closer cooperation with Armenia and said that the EU may grant
Armenia an associated status following the first wave of expansion
expected in 2004. Hovanesian underscored the consensus between EU
and Armenia on a full range of issues of mutual concern.
Speaking at an international seminar organized jointly by the Foreign
Ministry and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC), Foreign
Minister Vartan Oskanian said that Armenia aspires to reach the political,
economic and social standards upheld by the EU. Oskanian also called
for continued expansion of cooperation with NATO. The seminar addressed
the impact of the economy of the South Caucasus on security. Oskanian
said that Armenia views EAPC as an important venue for strengthening
mutual trust between regional states, as well as a complementary security
mechanism to the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty. He also pointed
to the successful implementation of the two-year Individual Partnership
Program in the framework of NATO's Partnership for Peace (PfP) program.
Armenia plans to host large-scale peacekeeping exercises involving
NATO forces in the near future. The head of NATO's International Advisory
Board General Gary Johnson was among the participants of the seminar.
EAPC was established by NATO following the end of the Cold War to
expand cooperation with the former Warsaw Pact states. |
November
16 - 30 |
Armenians are almost evenly split
in their evaluation of President Robert Kocharian's three and a half
years of presidency, according to a public opinion poll commissioned
by Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty and conducted by the Armenian
Sociological Association last week. Of 1,000 randomly selected residents
of Yerevan (400), Gyumri (200), Vanadzor (200) and Goris (200), 47.6
percent generally approve of Kocharian's performance so far, finding
it "satisfactory," "good" or "very good,"
while 47.5 percent disapprove, terming it "bad" or "very
bad," and the remaining 4.9 percent were undecided.
The largest group (30.5 percent) were also undecided about who they
would elect president, were they to vote this week. In such a hypothetical
election, Kocharian would receive 26 percent, and leader of an opposition
faction in parliament Artashes Geghamian would capture 10.5 percent.
None of the other candidates would poll more than five percent. Under
Armenia's election law, such an outcome would necessitate a run-off
vote between the top two contenders. Out of eight other candidates
mentioned in the poll, four are currently in the pro-presidential
camp - their share amounts to an additional 6.1 percent - and four
support the opposition (6.4 percent).
Geghamian was a senior member of Soviet Armenia's Communist Party
rising to head its Yerevan city committee. His first visible role
came after the 1999 parliamentary elections, when his Right and Unity
Bloc came in third with the public backing of then Defense Minister
of the Nagorno Karabagh Republic Samvel Babayan. Prior to that, while
serving as a non-partisan member of the National Assembly (1995-99),
Geghamian ran unsuccessfully in the 1998 presidential elections. After
polling less than one percent in the first round, he endorsed Kocharian
against Karen Demirchian in the run-off. Last year, Geghamian switched
to the opposition.
The same poll shows even weaker public support for Armenia's political
parties. Communists lead the tally with 14.5 percent (even as their
leader Vladimir Darbinian polled only 1.4 percent as a presidential
contender), followed by the opposition People's Party (7.8 percent,
its leader Stepan Demirchian at 4.2 percent) and four largely pro-government
groups: Armenian Revolutionary Federation (7.1 percent, no presidential
contender), Country of Law Party (5.4 percent, Artur Baghdasarian
at 4.2 percent), National Democratic Union (4.6 percent, Vazgen Manukian
at 3.5 percent) and Republican Party (3.1 percent, no presidential
contender). Based on these showings, the voters appear to be happy
with some of the parties currently represented in the National Assembly
and do not yet see any particularly attractive choices outside the
current legislature. Presidential and parliamentary elections are
expected to take place before March and May, 2003, respectively. |
November
16 - 30 |
Agricultural production has bounced
back from last year's dismal showings to post a ten percent gain this
year, Minister of Agriculture Zaven Gevorgian reported this week.
Severe drought caused tens of millions of U.S. dollars in damages
in 2000 and required international humanitarian assistance to prevent
food shortages. Gevorgian said that Armenia's farmers have overcome
the drought's consequences faster than expected. This year's grain
harvest, in particular, was the highest in a decade. Ninety percent
of Armenia's agricultural land belongs to private owners whose production
accounts for one-third of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Meanwhile, critics of the government's agricultural policy suggest
that the higher output of cereals and vegetables is achieved at the
expense of more profitable crops, such as apricots and grapes. Chairman
of the Agrarian Union Hrach Berberian said last month that farmers
are forced to shift away from Armenia's traditional fruit production
due to continued problems with irrigation water supplies. Fruit harvest
is estimated to have fallen by some 25 percent this year over last
year. |
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