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ASBAREZ Online [05-02-2006]

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  • ASBAREZ Online [05-02-2006]

    ASBAREZ ONLINE
    TOP STORIES
    05/02/2006
    TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
    WEBSITE AT <http://www.asbarez.com/>HTTP://WWW.ASBAREZ. COM

    1) Armenian Army Prepared to Defend Itself against Adversaries
    2) US Expresses Concern about New Nuclear Power Plant in Armenia
    3) Turkish Court Overturns Armenian Journalist's Appeal

    1) Armenian Army Prepared to Defend Itself against Adversaries

    Armenian Deputy Defense Minister General Artur Aghabegian said Tuesday that
    the
    Armenian Military is prepared to resist any attack from its adversaries,
    adding
    that the Mountainous Karabagh Republic (MKR) Defense Forces demonstrated their
    abilities last month with week-long war exercises.
    Aghabegian also referred to Azeri President Ilham Aliyev's statement in
    Washington, DC, in which he said that Azerbaijan has been very active in
    peacekeeping efforts in Iraq.
    Aghabegian said that such a statement can only be made by a person who does
    not know what it means to serve in an army and the logistics of a war zone.
    "We have always publicized Armenian peacekeeping operations [in Iraq]," he
    said, adding that many countries have thanked Armenia for its participation.
    Aghabegian said that if Azerbaijan is truly committed, "Let them show on TV
    what their peacekeeping forces are doing in Iraq."

    2) US Expresses Concern about New Nuclear Power Plant in Armenia

    YEREVAN (RFE/RL/Armenpress)--The United States has serious misgivings about
    the
    Armenian Government's ambitious plans to build a new nuclear power station in
    place of the aging Medzamor plant, said a senior US official Tuesday during
    the
    12th meeting of the US-Armenian Economic Task Force in Yerevan.
    Tom Adams, who coordinates US Government assistance to former Soviet
    republics, expressed Washington's position on the issue after attending a
    regular session of the inter-governmental body co-chaired by Adams and
    Armenian
    Finance and Economy Minister Vartan Khachatrian.
    Armenia's energy security was high on the agenda of the one-day meeting, with
    Khachatrian saying that the Armenian side discussed with its US counterparts
    Yerevan's intention to replace Medzamor with a more modern and powerful
    nuclear
    plant.
    "The ideal option in our [energy] strategy would be to launch the new
    facility
    on the day that the existing reactor will stop operating," said Khachatrian
    during a joint news conference with Adams and John Evans, the US ambassador in
    Yerevan.
    Medzamor, which generates nearly 40 percent of Armenia's electricity, is
    expected to be decommissioned by 2016. The plant remains open despite pressure
    from the US and the European Union, which say the plant's sole operating
    reactor is too old and unsafe.
    Adams noted that the mountainous country is located in a seismically active
    zone that poses serious safety risks. "I think our view right now is that
    there
    are probably better alternatives to a second nuclear plant [in Armenia]," he
    said.
    Another, more high-ranking US official, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
    Matthew Bryza, appeared more supportive of the idea when he visited Yerevan in
    early March. Bryza noted that a "new generation of nuclear power" is one of
    potential ways of ensuring Armenia's energy security. The issue was high on
    the
    agenda of his talks with senior Armenian officials.
    Building a new nuclear facility would cost Armenia at least $1 billion, a sum
    worth its budget for this year. The Government says it cannot put the
    ambitious
    project put into practice without external financial support, saying that
    it is
    already looking for potential foreign investors.
    The 12th session of the task force also discussed development of the Armenian
    economy, democratic reforms, and issues pertaining to the Millennium
    Challenges
    Account program. Also discussed were agriculture, energy, education, and
    judicial issues.
    The US-Armenian Task Force was founded in 2002 to promote US-Armenian
    cooperation. The Task Force holds two annual meetings, one in Armenia and one
    in the US. Over the last decade, the US Government has carried out various
    development and humanitarian projects worth $1.6 billion in Armenia.

    3) Turkish Court Overturns Armenian Journalist's Appeal

    (AFP/BBC)A Turkish court in Ankara rejected Monday an appeal by a prominent
    Armenian journalist against a ruling that found him guilty of insulting
    Turkishness.
    Hrant Dink, publisher of the bilingual Turkish-Armenian newspaper Agos, was
    sentenced to a suspended six-month sentence in October by a court in Istanbul
    for an article published in February 2004.
    The article about the genocide of Armenians during World War I in Turkey
    called on Armenians "to turn now to the new blood of an independent Armenia,
    which alone is capable of liberating the Armenian diaspora" and to reject any
    Turkish roots.
    In February, the chief prosecutor's office at the Appeals Court considered
    Dink's case and recommended that the remarks were in no way insulting.
    But now, in a surprise development, the court itself has chosen to ignore
    that
    interpretation and ruled that the substance of the charge still stands. The
    appeal judges in Ankara overturned the conviction due to procedural errors,
    Anatolia reported, adding that the case will be referred back to the Istanbul
    court for retrial.
    It is a blow for the defense team.
    The high-profile newspaper editor, whose publication Agos appears in Turkish
    and Armenian, was first found guilty of insulting Turkishness last year when a
    court ruled that his article described Turkish blood as dirty.
    Dink always denied his words meant any such thing and argued his column
    was in
    fact aimed at improving the difficult relationship between Turks and
    Armenians.

    The case will now go back to the local court that first heard it, and Dink
    could face a retrial.
    He told the BBC he was extremely distressed at the news.
    He has always said he would have to leave the country if the courts here
    could
    not clear his name for good.
    This case is one of several similar cases in Turkey, monitored closely by EU
    officials concerned about limits on free speech in the country.
    European Union officials have expressed serious concern about the article of
    law that was used against Hrant Dink and several dozen other writers here in
    Turkey.
    Despite a series of reforms linked to Turkey's bid for membership of the EU,
    it is still illegal to insult the Turkish identity, the military and the
    judiciary and the line between criticism and insult is often blurred.
    The issue of the Armenian genocide is frequently the spark for court cases.

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