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Armenians uneasy at proposed Iraq deployment

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  • Armenians uneasy at proposed Iraq deployment

    Armenians uneasy at proposed Iraq deployment

    ISN
    4 Oct 04
    Critics say that the Armenian government's decision to send non-combat
    personnel to Iraq could turn Iraq's entire Armenian community into
    hostages.

    By Liz Fuller for RFE/RL


    The Armenian government's decision to send non-ombat personnel to
    serve with the international peacekeeping force in Iraq has met with
    resistance from civic groups, opposition parties, one member of the
    three-party ruling coalition, and some senior military
    officers. Acknowledging that unease, Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian
    told parliament on 22 September that the Armenian contingent, which
    numbers some 50-60 medics, US-trained sappers, and drivers, will be
    sent to Iraq only after the legislature has approved the planned
    deploymentthat he stressed is of a "humanitarian" nature. Deputy
    Defense Minister Artur Aghabekian told RFE/RL's Armenian Service on 3
    September that the Armenian contingent would serve in central-southern
    Iraq as part of a Polish-led international peacekeeping force. On 6
    September, Armenian President Robert Kocharian and his Polish
    counterpart Aleksander Kwasniewski signed a protocol formalizingthe
    Armenian commitment. John Evans, the new US ambassador to Yerevan,
    hailed Armenia's announced intention to send noncombat troops to Iraq,
    RFE/RL's Armenian Service reported on 16 September. But some senior
    military officers were less than enthusiastic. Deputy Defense Minister
    Lieutenant General Yuri Khachaturov told journalists on 7 September he
    is "not delighted" at the prospect. He expressed concern that the
    deployment could create future problems both forthe Armenian community
    in Iraq and for Armenians in general.

    Fear for Iraq's Armenian communityArmenians across the political
    spectrum appear to share those misgivings. Parliament deputy Grigor
    Harutiunian of the opposition Artarutiun faction warned on 14
    September of the potential danger to Armenian communities throughout
    the Middle East, Noyan Tapan reported. One week later, a second
    Artarutiun parliamentarian, Viktor Dallakian, argued that the threat
    could extend to Armenia, RFE/RL's Armenian Service reported. He told
    parliament that "sending a medical, humanitarian or any other Armenian
    contingent to Iraq is dangerous for the security of the Republic of
    Armeniaas well as for the Armenian population of Iraq". That minority
    is estimated to number some 20'000 - 25'000 people. Armenian civic
    groups issued astatement on 24 September appealing to the Armenian
    parliament not to approve the planned deployment. One signatory told
    RFE/RL that the deployment risks turning theentire Armenian minority
    in Iraq into hostages; a second argued that "60 people cannot cause a
    breakthrough in the Iraq war." In a 25 September press release, the
    extraparliamentary Hayrenik front argued that the dispatch of an
    Armenian contingent to Iraq "will destroy the mutual trust and
    friendship between the Armenian and Arab peoples", Noyan Tapan
    reported. The press release suggested that the entire Armenian diapora
    could suffer "human, cultural, and economic losses" as a result.

    `Friendly' Armenia to help `occupiers' - The planned deployment may
    even exacerbate perceived tensions within the governing three-party
    coalition. On 24 September, Vahan Hovannisian, a leading member of the
    Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutiun, one of the two
    junior coalition partners, told parliament that as a signatory to the
    CIS Collective Security Treaty, Armenia should consult with Russia
    before sending its contingent to Iraq, RFE/RL's Armenian Service
    reported. He added that as a member of the Council of Europe, Armenia
    should similarly take into account the opinion of those European
    states - he mentioned specifically France and Germany - that opposed
    the US intervention in Iraq. But Hovannisian too stressed that the
    primary consideration should be the safety of the large Armenian
    communities throughout the Arab world. Finally, members of the
    Armenian community in Iraq have themselves signaled their opposition
    to the planned deployment. Archbishop Avak Asadurian told RFE/RL's
    Armenian Service on 28 September that he has written to both President
    Kocharian and the Armenian parliament asking that Yerevan not send
    troops to Iraq lest the Armenian community there become "a target for
    terrorists". The wife of the priest at Baghdad's sole Armenian church
    said that the Arab population has already learned from media reports
    of the imminent Armenian deployment, andis displeased that "even
    friendly Armenia [...] is going to help the occupiers". But during
    talks in Yerevan on 28 September with Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister
    Ruben Shugarian, Tariq Muhammad Yahya, an official from the interim
    Iraqi government, praised what he termed Armenia's "balanced" policy
    towards Iraqand called for the restoration of bilateral economic ties,
    RFE/RL's Armenian Service reported.

    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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