Armenia edition - Armenian Reporter

The Armenian Reporter | December 19, 2009NationalWashington briefingby Emil SanamyanClinton rings upArmenia with freshassurances on TurkeyprocessIn a telephone call made on December10, Secretary of State HillaryClinton informed Armenia’s PresidentSerge Sargsyan of the detailsof the December 7 meeting betweenPresident Barack Obama and theTurkish prime minister, the Armenianpresident’s office reported.Turkish lobby offersscholarships to Armenian-Americanswhile ANCA is currently campaigningagainst them.The Armenian Assembly ofAmerica, an advocacy group thatsupports the protocols, could notbe reached for comment about theTCA program.The number of Armenian-Americansstudying in Turkey is believedto be small.Source of fundingcolors experienceThe Armenian-American scholarRachel Goshgarian had severallengthy stays in Turkey while workingon her doctoral thesis in historyat Harvard University. She was thereon a Fulbright-Hays scholarship,one of the more prestigious amongthe many forms of support availablefor study in Turkey and elsewhere.Secretary ofState HillaryClinton, whocalled Armeniathis week.Rep. Howard Berman with Armenian MP Armen Rustamian, Dec. 2009. ARF.n Continued from page Ms. Goshgarian said life in Turkeyfor a diasporan Armenian “ishard, although it can be profoundlyfun and interesting and eye-opening”as well.Ms. Goshgarian, who directs theZohrab Center at the Diocese of theArmenian Church in New York City,said: “My only advice for any Armenianis that he or she should go [toTurkey] with a really clear goal inmind, and he or she should be carefulabout where their money comesfrom. Because in the end it does matter,it does color your experience.”Mr. McCurdy also said the scholarshipsallow students “to makefriends while expanding their worldview.This opportunity is furtheraugmented in the university setting,where preconceptions and biasesare challenged and investigated.” fShant Shahrigian is interning with theArmenian Reporter’s Washington office.The two also discussed the Karabakhpeace process, which is mediatedby the United States, togetherwith France and Russia.Mrs. Clinton once again reiteratedthe U.S. position that normalizationof Armenia-Turkeyrelations should occur in a speedyfashion, without a linkage to otherissues, and that Washington wouldremain steadfast in supporting thenormalization process, the officesaid.The secretary of state was instrumentalin the lead-up to the signingof Armenia-Turkey protocols inZurich on October 10. The protocolsenvision a lifting of the Turkishland blockade against Armeniabut require parliamentary ratificationto be implemented.The protocols have caused controversyin Armenia and the diaspora,as political parties and organizationshave declared for and againstthe terms negotiated.On his visit to the United States,Turkish prime minister RecepTayyip Erdogan ruled out ratificationof the protocols without whatTurkey would deem to be progressin the Karabakh peace process.Mr. Sargsyan retorted that Ankara’sconditions run counter tothe agreement reached and indicatedthat Yerevan was consideringrescinding its signature from theprotocols.In the call Mr. Sargsyan expressed“gratitude to PresidentObama for the untiring assistanceof the U.S. in facilitating the Armenia-Turkeynormalization process.”Mr. Sargsyan said he was ready to“move forward in the process ofnormalization and expressed hopethe Turkish side would also manifestreadiness and responsibilityregarding the matter.”Last week’s conversation wasMrs. Clinton’s fourth known telephonecall to Armenia. She previouslyrang up in May, August, andSeptember. President Obama calledPresident Sargsyan while he touredArmenian-American communitiesin October.U.S. Senators“increasingly concerned”with Turkey’s IsraelpolicyTen members of the U.S. Senate addresseda letter to Turkey’s ambassadorin Washington on December7, the day of Turkish prime ministerRecep Tayyip Erdogan’s summitwith President Barack Obama atthe White House, it emerged thisweek.In the letter, published by theWeekly Standard magazine, the senatorssaid that they “have grownincreasingly concerned with thedownward trend of relations betweenTurkey and Israel this pastyear.”They argued that “strategic cooperation”between Turkey and Israelwas of “vital importance” to theUnited States and expressed hopethat ties could be repaired soon.Mr. Erdogan’s comments inWashington did not augur well forsuch an outcome, as he continuedto vocally criticize Israel’s conduct.Meanwhile, in the House of Representatives,the outgoing chair ofthe Europe Subcommittee and cochairof the congressional TurkeyCaucus, Rep. Robert Wexler (D.-Fla.), did not appear to agree withthe senators’ concerns.During a congressional hearingon U.S.-European Union relationson December 16, the chair arguedthat “it’s very clear that Turkey isassuming a regional policy” thatincludes a “great rapprochementprocess with Armenia” and “democratizationprocess” with TurkishKurds, Today’s Zaman reportedthe following day.“The benefits of Turkey conductingequal relations with its neighborsfor the U.S. and the Westoutweigh its harms,” Mr. Wexlerconcluded.Armenia hints at rescindingprotocols as Turkey stallsn Continued from page “If Turkey procrastinates [on]ratification, Armenia will undoubtedlyexercise the rights stipulatedby international law,” the presidentwarned, announcing that hehad “instructed the correspondingstate bodies to draft amendmentsto our national legislation pertainingto the signing, ratification, andabrogation of international agreements.”“Everyone should understandthat the longer the process of ratificationlingers, the more obstacleswill stand in its way. Political developmentsmay become obstacles,”he said.Mr. Sargsyan noted that on January12, Armenia’s ConstitutionalCourt would rule on the questionof whether the protocols are consistentwith Armenia’s Constitution.He said this fact was proofthat Armenia was moving aheadwith the ratification process. Underthe country’s basic law, treatiesare subject to constitutional reviewprior to ratification.“Given simple comparison ofprotocols and the Constitution,there are no contradictions; so,most likely, the ConstitutionalCourt of Armenia will give itspositive conclusion,” constitutionallaw expert Hrayr Tovmasyan saidon December 15, according to theMediamax news agency.But, Mr. Tovmasyan added, thecourt’s approval would not preventArmenia from recalling itssignature on the protocols, if itso chooses. Such a step would be“more aggressive” than simple nonratificationCommenting on the developmentslast week, the oppositionArmenian Revolutionary Federation(ARF), which has campaignedagainst the protocols, argued thatthe Armenian government shouldexit the process and draw attentionto Turkey’s explicit refusal to proceedwith ratification on the termsagreed to.Congress seeksadditional sanctionsagainst IranMore than 340 out of 435 membersof the House of Representativeshave cosponsored legislationthat would penalize companiesinvolved in energy trade with Iran,the House Foreign Relations Committeereported on December 15.The measure is championed byHouse Foreign Affairs CommitteeChair Rep. Howard Berman (D.-Calif.), who in the release for thepress said, “the prospect of a nuclear-armedIran is the most seriousand urgent strategic challengefaced by the United States.”Mr. Berman’s House Resolution2194 would penalize companiesthat are involved in developingIran’s domestic petroleum-refiningcapacity.The Obama administration,which is seeking to reach an agreementon sanctions with the Europeans,Russians, and Chinese, hasnot endorsed the legislation.In recent months Iran has turneddown international offers to enrichuranium abroad and Iranian officialssaid they planned to build additionalenrichment facilities. Uraniumenrichment produces fissilematerial that can be used for bothmilitary and peaceful purposes.Russia, Georgia saythey are “ready” toreopen land, air linksThe presidents of Russia and Georgiaexpressed readiness to reopendirect transportation links betweenthe two countries, Russianand Georgian media reported. Thefirst charter flights between Moscowand Tbilisi are now expected bythe New Year holidays.Russian president Dmitry Medvedevsaid on December 9 thateven though relations remainedstandoffish, he saw “no obstacles”to reopening of the overland bordercrossing closed in 2006 and directair links suspended in the wake oflast year’s war.A spokesperson for Georgia’sMikhail Saakashvili respondedon the next day that “in spite ofRussian occupation of Georgianterritories” Tbilisi would accept theRussian offer.Russia has recognized Abkhaziaand South Ossetia as independentstates and established military basesin both former Georgian provinces.This week the Pacific island nationof Nauru joined Nicaragua andVenezuela in recognizing the independenceof Abkhazia in exchangefor Russian economic aid.(Nauru previously joined 60-oddpro-Western countries in recognizingKosovo’s independence overRussian objections.)Russia’s Foreign Ministry firstproposed to reestablish direct linkslast May. Russian and Georgian officialshave since held proxy talksmediated by Armenia. More talkswere held this week in Moscow betweenformer prime ministers ofRussia and Georgia.Prior to 2006 the Georgia-Russiaborder crossing was also the mainoverland route between Armeniaand Russia.fVahan Hovhannesian, leader ofthe ARF faction in parliament, said,“In response to Ankara’s statements,an adequate mechanism of reactionto the Turkish blackmail maturesin the Armenian side,” accordingto Mediamax. But whether Turkeyratifies the protocols or not, theARF will continue to oppose ratificationby Armenia, he said.Khachik Harutyunyan, amember of parliament from thepro-presidential Country of LawsParty, praised the president’s approach,saying, “The ball is in theTurkish part of the field, and theblame for failure of the protocolratification process will fall on theTurkish side.”Meanwhile, member of parliamentand former diplomat AramSafaryan, a senior member of theProsperous Armenia Party, part ofthe governing coalition, remainedoptimistic, predicting that “inJanuary-February, the Turkishparliament will ratify the protocolswithout preconditions.” f