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December
3 - 7 |
An Armenian member of the Turkish-Armenian
Reconciliation Commission, former Armenian Ambassador to Syria David
Hovhannissian, told journalists in Yerevan this week that the recent
TARC meeting in New York produced serious results, noting in particular
that the Commissioners have asked the International Center of Transitional
Justice to evaluate the applicability of the 1948 United Nations Convention
on Genocide to the Armenian Genocide of 1915.
Hovhannissian said, "The raising of this problem is a serious
result... and the settlement of Armenian-Turkish relations is one
of the most important factors of Armenia's security." He added
that TARC would continue its work as long as positive results could
be expected. The TARC statement, published following the New York
meeting, also said its recommendations regarding simplifying the visa
regime, opening roads and development of trade and economic relations
would eventually be presented as proposals to the Armenian and Turkish
governments. The next meeting of the Commission is scheduled for January
21, also in New York. |
December
3 - 7 |
Armenia marks the 13th anniversary
of the earthquake which killed some 25,000 people and left over half
a million homeless. President Robert Kocharian visited Gyumri to lay
a wreath in memory of victims. Speaking earlier this week, Construction
Minister David Lokian promised that rebuilding in the devastated regions
will be completed before the end of next year. Lokian told a news
conference in Yerevan that despite the need to find additional funding,
a three-year government plan to reconstruct houses and public infrastructure
in the Lori and Shirak provinces is proceeding on schedule.
The rebuilding program, worth $150 million channeled primarily from
external sources and employing some 6,000 local workers, was launched
in 2000. An additional $60 million will be needed in order to complete
housing for the remaining 14,000 families who are still without their
own homes. Lokian said that almost 2,000 families were settled in
houses and apartments this year. Over half of them, living in the
northern cities of Gyumri and Vanadzor, acquired new apartments under
a USAID-funded housing scheme worth $15 million. Not all the living
spaces are new: under the USAID program, families are issued certificates
giving them the right to purchase existing space and many are provided
grants to complete construction or repairs. American billionaire Kirk
Kerkorian's Lincy Foundation is financing a major portion of the construction
work. Other major contributions come from the U.S. Huntsman Corporation,
the All-Armenian Fund Hayastan and World Bank's Social Investment
Fund. |
December
3 - 7 |
A U.S. District Court judge in California
ruled this week in favor of a previous judgment allowing heirs of
Armenian Genocide victims to move forward in their class action suit
against the New York Life Insurance Company. The 1999 class action
suit was filed on behalf of Armenians living in the state who have
attempted to collect life insurance payments from the company. New
York Life had argued that the case should be heard in Europe, not
California. Martin Marootian, the lead plaintiff in the case, was
"thrilled" about the decision. "After nearly 100 years,
things are going in the right direction," he said. The Armenian
Assembly recognized Marootian earlier this year for his courage and
perseverance as the lead plaintiff. |
December
3 - 7 |
The President of the Nagorno Karabagh
Republic Arkady Ghoukasian has asked the Chairman-in-Office of the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) for an
OSCE-mandated fact-finding mission to visit Karabagh. Ghoukasian's
request comes in response to ongoing Azerbaijani efforts to discredit
Armenia and Nagorno Karabagh, by accusing both of support for terrorism
and organized crime, damaging the environment and other serious allegations.
Azerbaijani officials of all ranks have repeatedly leveled unsubstantiated
accusations at Armenians, but its propaganda campaign has intensified
recently at international forums like the United Nations and Council
of Europe. Ghoukasian noted that Azerbaijan's posture hampers the
Karabagh peace process, and indicated he hoped that an OSCE study
would end Azerbaijan's disinformation campaign.
Speaking at the OSCE Ministerial meeting earlier this week, Foreign
Minister Vardan Oskanian said that no "amount of ambiguous diplomatic
language" by Azerbaijan can obscure the fact that NKR has earned
the independence it now has. He also called Azerbaijan's claim on
Nagorno Karabagh "baseless" and said that its independence
was established in a legal manner. In his turn, Chairman of the OSCE
Parliamentary Assembly Adrian Severin renewed the proposal to establish
a special commission on Karabagh. He said similar commissions helped
improve the environment for negotiations in other regional conflicts.
Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry reacted to the NKR President's proposal
by saying that Baku would have to agree to the composition and agenda
of any OSCE mission. |
December
3 - 7 |
The number two person in Azerbaijan's
state hierarchy and loyal ally of President Heydar Aliyev, Parliament
Speaker Murtuz Aleskerov this week criticized proponents of a new
war against Karabagh. He said that the "enemy is strong"
and Azerbaijan is "not ready" for a new confrontation. Azerbaijani
commentators said the statement was the result of international pressure
on Azerbaijan to stop its military rhetoric, as well as a reflection
of the real state of affairs. Shifting focus, Aliyev allies unleashed
a barrage of criticism against the opposition. Heydar Aliyev's brother
Jalal, who is a member of Parliament, called opposition political
parties and press "enemies of Azerbaijan" and claimed that
they "support the Armenians." He said that since the opposition
press is Azerbaijan's enemy, "just like Armenians," it should
be "annihilated." Parliamentarians then turned to a discussion
of amendments that would limit the "anarchy in press." |
December
3 - 7 |
Armenia's National Assembly has established
a temporary commission to review separate constitutional reform packages
prepared by President Robert Kocharian and opposition deputies earlier
this year. The commission, chaired by Deputy Speaker Tigran Torosian
of the governing Republican Party, includes representatives from all
political parties and groups represented in parliament. The presidential
proposal was prepared by Justice Minister David Harutiunian and a
group of experts and is in line with Kocharian's pledge made during
the 1998 presidential elections. The proposal, approved by the Council
of Europe last June, has been termed a "new edition" of
Armenia's 1995 Constitution that provides for a "semi-presidential"
form of government. If approved by parliament and popular referendum,
it will strengthen the power of Armenia's judiciary, legislature and
cabinet, and will also lift the controversial ban on dual citizenship.
Meanwhile, one of the main authors of the current Constitution, parliament's
former top legal expert and now a senior member of the opposition
People's Party argued last month that the "semi-presidential"
form of government has failed in Armenia. Vladimir Nazarian, previously
a strong proponent of the concept that provides for executive responsibilities
to be shared by the president and prime minister, now believes that
Armenia should have either a presidential or parliamentary form of
government. Shavarsh Kocharian of the National Democratic Party and
Frunze Kharatian of the Communist Party (both are members of the constitutional
commission) are championing the latter option. This week they received
tentative backing from several other opposition groups and will now
strive for parliamentary approval for their joint proposal to be put
to popular referendum along with the President's. |
December
3 - 7 |
President Robert Kocharian ordered
the dismissal of Energy Minister Karen Galstian this week after the
deadline set for collection of outstanding electricity bills expired.
Galstian was a veteran official at the Energy Ministry, having led
the department since May of last year. Earlier, he served as Deputy
Energy Minister for eight years. Armen Movsisian, previously the deputy
head of the State Committee for Water Resources and, earlier, Deputy
Minister of Energy, will replace Galstian. Movsisian pledged to overhaul
Armenia's energy sector to stop the drain on Armenia's budget and
reduce financial losses. Kocharian had earlier called for establishing
"law and order" in the corruption-plagued sector. |
December
3 - 7 |
Television remains the most popular
source of news in Armenia, according to a recent poll conducted by
the government's Department of Information and Press. News programs
of the Armenian Public Television and privately-owned Prometevs TV,
the only two channels that can be viewed nationally, are the most
popular. TV viewers in Yerevan and adjacent areas have a choice of
some dozen local and foreign channels. Only a quarter of the respondents
consider newspapers an important information source. Among daily newspapers,
privately-owned Aravot is most popular, followed by centrist Azg,
official Hayastani Hanrapetutiun and nationalist Hayots Ashkhar and
Yerkir. |
December
7 - 14 |
Turkish members of the Turkish-Armenian
Reconciliation Commission undercut the initiative this week with a
directive to the International Center for Transitional Justice to
halt its study regarding the applicability of the 1948 UN Genocide
Convention to the Armenian Genocide. Viewed as the last straw, the
four Armenian Commissioners immediately informed TARC moderator David
Phillips that TARC "would not proceed." Congressional Caucus
on Armenian Issues Co-Chairs Joe Knollenberg (R-MI) and Frank Pallone
Jr. (D-NJ) echoed the Armenian Assembly's disappointment. The two
Congressmen said, "Unfortunately, the Turkish Commissioners by
their actions and the Turkish government by its inaction have probably
doomed TARC."
The Turkish Commissioners' action, which breached fundamental TARC
agreements, was only the latest effort to undermine the Commission
in what is widely viewed as a Turkish Government-led campaign. Despite
calls from within TARC to normalize relations, a move widely reinforced
by the U.S. and other governments, Turkish leaders reiterated their
hard-line approach that Turkish-Armenian dialogue would only follow
after Armenia "returned" Karabagh to Azerbaijan. In December,
the Turkish Government refused to participate in a NATO exercise in
Armenia "unless Armenia withdrew from the occupied territories
(of Azerbaijan)." Only last week, following Secretary Colin Powell's
visit during which he was reported to have raised the issue of current
Turkish-Armenian relations, Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit told
the Russian-language daily Ekho that diplomatic relations between
Armenia and Turkey will resume "after Armenia ends the occupation
of Azerbaijani territory...."
Alexander Arzoumanian, Armenia's former foreign minister and a TARC
Commissioner told a Radio Liberty / Radio Free Europe interviewer
later this week that "mutual trust and respect for agreements"
comprises the main principles on which an undertaking such as TARC
is based. He said Turkish members violated these principles and their
Armenian counterparts were forced to stop their participation in the
Commission. |
December
7 - 14 |
Hundreds of Armenians gathered in
one of Yerevan's central squares to remember the victims of the September
11 terrorist attacks in the United States. At 6:46 PM (9:46 AM U.S.
ET) last Tuesday, exactly three months from the moment when the first
hijacked plane flew into New York City's World Trade Center, Armenians
with candles lit and heads bowed joined people around the world for
a moment of silence, followed by the Armenian and American anthems.
The recently appointed U.S. Ambassador to Armenia John Ordway thanked
the Armenian people for the expression of sympathy and noted that
the terrorist attacks were aimed not just at the U.S., but the entire
world.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld is expected to
visit Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia to express gratitude to the
three countries for their assistance in the U.S. military campaign
in Afghanistan. All three countries granted U.S. planes over flight
rights en route to the area of operations in Central Asia. During
his stop-over in Armenia, Rumsfeld will meet with President Robert
Kocharian and Defense Minister Serge Sargsian to discuss future cooperation.
Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian said the visit will be "important"
for bilateral relations. Rumsfeld will become the most senior U.S.
official to visit Armenia in recent years. |
December
7 - 14 |
U.S. investments in Armenia doubled
this year, Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Armenia
Tom Samuelian told a conference in Yerevan. He said the total investments
amounted to $20.6 million, including $14.9 million in foreign direct
investments (FDI). According to Armenian government's data, total
foreign investments in the first three quarters of the year amounted
to $88.4 million, including $63.3 in FDI, a substantial decrease from
1998-2000. Russian and Greek companies continue to top the list of
largest investors.
U.S. Ambassador John Ordway noted failure to enforce legal acts and
contracts as the main obstacles for potential investors. Samuelian
suggested placing all business-related legislative acts and regulations
on the Internet as a partial solution to the problem. Deputy Minister
of Industry and Trade Armen Grigorian, who participated in the seminar,
extended the government's support for the idea, but added that implementation
may take a few years.
The overall decrease in investments this year is largely accounted
for by privatization failures. The government, in particular, did
not succeed in privatizing the electricity distribution networks,
as well as Armenia's largest cement factory, while the takeover of
major chemical and electronics plants has been postponed.
Armenia registered a considerable increase in its exports to the United
States. Armenian goods, mostly jewelry and clothes worth $24.6 million,
had been exported to the U.S. in January-September of this year, a
more than 40 percent increase over last year's figures. Armenia's
exports to the U.S. compare favorably with Azerbaijan's ($18.4 million)
and Georgia's ($18.9 million) over the same period. |
December
7 - 14 |
Speaker of the Georgian Parliament
Nino Burjanadze urged a further expanded bilateral relationship during
a two-day visit to Yerevan this week. Meeting with President Robert
Kocharian, Burjanadze pledged that Georgia "would never take
a single step that would damage Armenia's interests." She added
that Georgia will use its good relations with Azerbaijan and Turkey
"for the welfare of Armenia, just like Armenia can facilitate
the improvement of our relations" with Russia. Moscow has an
uneasy relationship with the government in Tbilisi, which it accuses
of harboring rebel Chechen forces on its territory. Azerbaijan and
Turkey seek to isolate Armenia politically and economically. The Georgian
speaker promised to facilitate Armenia's participation in all regional
projects. Burjanadze also praised Armenia's position on Javakhk, an
Armenian-populated region within Georgia.
Talks between Armenian and Georgian leaders focused on reactivation
of the Georgian-Russian railroad through Abkhazia. The Georgian government
had previously refused to reopen the railroad until the conflict with
Abkhazia is settled, but recently indicated a change in its position.
The route would give a boost to Armenia's trade with Russia and Europe.
Currently, Armenian companies are forced to bypass Abkhazia using
more expensive shipping options across the Black Sea. Burjanadze told
reporters that Georgia would be willing to open the railroad, should
Russia and Armenia successfully influence Abkhaz authorities to allow
more Georgian refugees to return to the area. Burjanadze also pledged
to improve the Georgian transit regime for goods originating in Armenia
and thanked Armenian leaders for their patience in Georgia's re-payment
of a $19.6 million debt to Armenia. The re-payment was re-scheduled
earlier this year due to Georgia's inability to pay.
This was Burjanadze's first trip abroad since her election last month
following a political crisis in Tbilisi, which led to resignation
of her predecessor Zurab Zhvania and the entire Georgian cabinet. |
December
7 - 14 |
Over 40,000 new jobs were created
in Armenia so far this year, President Robert Kocharian told a press
conference this week. Kocharian pledged creation of at least 40,000
jobs at his address to the nation late last year. Kocharian and Industry
and Trade Minister Karen Chshmaritian said that the figure does not
include temporary or seasonal jobs. They said expansion at re-activated
enterprises and establishment of new ones, mostly in manufacturing
and construction sectors, made the increase in jobs possible. According
to official statistics, growth of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
in the ten months of the year reached 9.6 percent. Speaking late last
week, the President's chief economic advisor Vahram Nercissiantz argued
that much of the growth so far mainly benefited Armenia's rich, who
in turn are "dodging their state responsibilities by evading
taxes." In his report to parliament earlier this week, Chairman
of the Central Bank Tigran Sargsian confirmed that more than 40 percent
of business activity in Armenia continues to be unreported. The government
hopes to do a better a job of clamping down on tax evasion to make
the planned increase of government revenue possible. Parliamentarians
voted today to increase fines on companies that underreport their
profits. |
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