With eye on Turkey, Israel debates Armenia deaths

AP photo

The Israeli parliament has begun a debate over whether to recognize the mass killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks during World War I as genocide.

Such a move would enrage Turkey and further strain the already tense ties between the two countries.

For years, Israel has refrained from commenting on the matter for fear of angering Turkey, which until recently was its closest ally in the Muslim world. But as ties have frayed under the Islamic-oriented rule of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Israel appears to be changing course.

Parliament speaker Reuven Rivlin denied that Tuesday's debate was related to deteriorating ties with Turkey. In a radio interview, he said there is no intent to provoke, only to remember.

It was unclear if there would be a vote Tuesday. (JERUSALEM - The Associated Press)

Three killed in Armenia-Azerbaijan border clash

YEREVAN - Agence France-Presse

Azerbaijani troops killed three Armenian soldiers on Monday during an alleged incursion attempt on the border between the enemy ex-Soviet states, the defense ministry in Yerevan said.

"On June 4, the Azerbaijani side once again roughly violated the ceasefire, attempting to penetrate Armenian positions," a ministry statement said.

"Their diversionary offensive was stopped and the enemy was forced to retreat, suffering losses," it said.

The ministry said six Armenian soldiers had also been wounded in the border skirmish. There were no details on any Azerbaijani losses.

Azerbaijani media reported however that the three deaths were caused by an Armenian army "provocation" that was repelled.

The clash erupted in Armenia's northeastern Tavush region, where three other servicemen died during an alleged Azerbaijani attack in April.

The two neighbours are locked in a bitter dispute over the region of Nagorny Karabakh, which Armenian separatists backed by Yerevan seized from Azerbaijan in a war in the 1990s that left some 30,000 people dead.

Despite years of negotiations since the 1994 ceasefire, the two sides have not yet signed a final peace deal, and there are still frequent exchanges of gunfire between the opposing armies.

Baku has threatened to use force to win back Karabakh if peace talks fail to yield satisfactory results, but Yerevan has warned of large-scale retaliation against any military action. (YEREVAN - Agence France-Presse)

Armenia slams NATO declaration

Nalbandian says the declaration jeopardizes the shaky situation in the region.

Armenia criticized NATO’s Chicago Summit declaration, saying the document makes no references to people’s right to self-determination.

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian, who represented Armenia at the summit, said the NATO declaration’s “worrisome” language runs counter to the existing peace plan drawn up by the U.S., French and Russian co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group.

“That could harm not only the Nagorno-Karabakh negotiating process but also jeopardize the shaky situation in the region,” he said, according to Anatolia news agency.

“We remain committed in our support of the territorial integrity, independence and sovereignty of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and the Republic of Moldova, and will also continue to support efforts towards a peaceful settlement of these regional conflicts, based upon these principles and the norms of international law, the United Nations Charter, and the Helsinki Final Act,” the declaration said. (ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News)

Armenia seeks to replace Russia’s radar in Azerbaijan

Armenia seeks to host a Russian radar in order to benefit from a dispute between Moscow and Baku over the Gabala missile defense radar system.

“If Russia fails to agree with Azerbaijan on the lease of Gabala, Armenia is ready to provide a site on its territory for construction of the radar,” Russian daily Kommersant quoted Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan as saying on April 4, according to Russian news agency Ria Novosti.

“There may even be advantages, because Armenia is a mountainous country. Coverage can be broader,” Sargsyan said. Russia has been in talks with Azerbaijan to extend the lease of the Soviet-era radar, which it has been operating in line with a 2002 deal. The current agreement is due to expire in December 2012.

The daily reported in late February that Azerbaijan had demanded Russia pay $300 million instead of the previously agreed $7 million for the lease, which Russia is seeking to extend until 2025.

Intensified negotiations
Sources in the Russian Defense Ministry were quoted as saying the price demanded by Baku was “unreasonably high.” The radar station located in northwestern Azerbaijan was built in Soviet times as one of the most important elements of a missile defense system of the Soviet republic.

After Azerbaijan gained independence the radar station became the country’s property and Russia continued to use it.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed the status and principles of the lease and use of the system during his Baku visit, with no apparent resolution. Following the results of talks with his Azerbaijani counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov, Lavrov said negotiations on this issue needed to be intensified within the working group set up by the two countries’ governments.

The deputy director of the Institute of Political and Military Analysis, Alexander Khramchikhin, has said the end of the Gabala radar lease will do no “real damage” to Russia’s defense capabilities because another radar, constructed in the southern Russian town of Armavir, would cover the area of the Gabala radar.

The Voronezh-class radar in Armavir in the Black Sea area is currently operating in test mode and is a serious breakthrough when compared to the previous generation Dnepr and Daryal class radars, to which the Gabala radar belongs.

MILITANTS KILLED IN CAUCASUS
MOSCOW – The Associated Press

Four suspected militants have been killed in Russia’s restive region of Kabardino-Balkariya in North Caucasus. Interior Ministry spokesman in the region Oleg Gereyev said yesterday that three of the four men were on the wanted list for “grave crimes.” Police say the fourth man was responsible for procurement of ammunition and food for the militants. The men were killed in a special operation outside the city of Nalchik late April 4 night after they had holed up in a house. One policeman was wounded.

(hurriyetdailynews)