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RFE/RL Newsline, 07-06-12
CONTENTS
[01] PUTIN WANTS QUICK ANSWER ON ALTERNATIVE ANTIMISSILE SITE...
[02] ...AS LAVROV, IVANOV ALSO PUSH AZERBAIJAN-BASED ALTERNATIVE
[03] PUTIN ADVOCATES 'NEW ARCHITECTURE' FOR WORLD ECONOMIC RELATIONS
[04] PUTIN SAYS HE MAY RUN AGAIN IN 2012
[05] NEWSPAPER: LONDON WANTS TO TRY LUGOVOI IN A THIRD COUNTRY
[06] BEREZOVSKY WILL BE TRIED FOR THEFT IN ABSENTIA
[07] RUSSIAN, GEORGIAN PRESIDENTS MEET
[08] DUMA MOVES TO AMEND LAW ON SENATORS
[09] DEMONSTRATORS DEMAND REBURIAL OF SLAIN CHECHEN PRESIDENT
[10] NEW ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT NAMED
[11] ARMENIAN CONSTITUTIONAL COURT REJECTS ELECTION APPEALS
[12] ARMENIAN, AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENTS MEET
[13] GEORGIA DENIES PLANS TO ASSASSINATE SOUTH OSSETIAN LEADER
[14] GEORGIAN PARLIAMENT APPROVES INCREASE IN BUDGET SPENDING
[15] PRESSURE ON GEORGIAN EDUCATION MINISTER INTENSIFIES
[16] ABKHAZ LEADERS HOPE FOR RESUMPTION OF TALKS WITH GEORGIA
[17] KAZAKH PRESIDENT PROPOSES CASPIAN-BLACK SEA CANAL
[18] KAZAKH PREMIER MEETS WITH VISITING KYRGYZ SPEAKER
[19] KYRGYZ LEADERS MEET WITH VISITING U.S. DIPLOMAT
[20] KYRGYZ DEFENSE MINISTER PLEDGES 'SELF-SUFFICIENT' MILITARY REFORM
[21] TURKMEN PRESIDENT DISMISSES CULTURE MINISTER
[22] BELARUSIAN UNION BOSS DENIES FALSIFICATION OF INTERNATIONAL
PETITION
[23] UKRAINIAN SECURITY CHIEF SAYS RUSSIAN 'INTERFERENCE' THREATENS
UKRAINE
[24] G8 MEETING ENDS WITHOUT AGREEMENT ON KOSOVA...
[25] ...PROMPTING FRUSTRATION IN KOSOVA, MIXED REACTION IN SERBIA
[26] RUSSIAN, SERBIAN LEADERS PLEASED AT G8 SUMMIT...
[27] ...AND SERBIA PROMISES 'BIGGER' OPPORTUNITIES FOR RUSSIAN BUSINESS
[28] U.S. PRESIDENT MAKES HISTORIC TRIP TO ALBANIA...
[29] ...AND REITERATES SUPPORT FOR KOSOVA'S INDEPENDENCE...
[30] ...AND MEETS LEADERS OF WOULD-BE NATO MEMBERS
[31] ALBANIA WRAPS UP LOCAL ELECTIONS
[32] MACEDONIAN GOVERNMENT WINS VOTE OF CONFIDENCE...
[33] ...AND REJECTS MINISTER'S RESIGNATION
[34] BOSNIA CRITICIZED FOR LOOSENESS OF TIES WITH MUSLIM WORLD
[35] NORTHERN AFGHAN PROVINCE DECLARED POPPY-FREE, BUT RESIDENTS
STRUGGLING
[36] AFGHAN PRESIDENT SURVIVES APPARENT ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT
[37] CLASHES BETWEEN AFGHAN POLICE, TALIBAN LEAVE 49 DEAD
[38] AFGHAN ATTORNEY GENERAL BEATEN UP IN ATTEMPTED KIDNAPPING
[39] IRANIAN GENERAL THREATENS RESPONSE TO POTENTIAL U.S. STRIKES
[40] MINISTRY DEMANDS U.S. EXPLANATION ON REPORTS OF REGIME CHANGE
BUDGET
[41] IRANIAN STUDENTS DETAINED IN TOUGH CONDITIONS...
[42] ...AS OTHERS PROTEST DETENTIONS
[43] CULTURE MINISTER SAYS IRANIAN GOVERNMENT WELCOMES CRITICISM
[44] IRANIAN COURT LIFTS BAN ON DAILY
[45] IRAQ PARLIAMENT SPEAKER TO BE REPLACED AFTER SCUFFLE
[46] FOREIGN MINISTER SAYS IRAQ IS READY FOR TALKS WITH TURKEY
[47] IRAQI PRESIDENT RULES OUT BACK-TRACKING ON ARTICLE 140
[48] ANFAL VERDICT DELAYED IN IRAQ
[49] THERE IS NO END NOTE TODAY
Monday, June 11, 2007 Volume 11 Number 106
Russia
[01] PUTIN WANTS QUICK ANSWER ON ALTERNATIVE ANTIMISSILE SITE...
President Vladimir Putin said on June 10 that Russia's proposal that
the radar base in Qabala (Gabala), Azerbaijan, which Russia leases, be
used jointly as a European missile shield (see "RFE/RL Newsline," June
8, 2007), is "the best of all solutions" and that the United States
needs to respond quickly. "They have to hurry up with their decision,
I'm not giving them much time," bloomberg.com quoted him as saying in
an interview at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. On
June 8, Putin told reporters at the Group of Eight (G8) summit in
Heiligendamm, Germany, that missile defenses could be "placed in the
south, in U.S. NATO allies such as Turkey, or even Iraq." "The Moscow
Times" on June 9 quoted Putin as saying that missile defenses "could
also be placed on sea platforms." According to the English-language
daily, Putin urged the United States not to act on its plans to build a
missile shield in Poland and the Czech Republic before concluding
proposed talks over the alternative radar site in Azerbaijan. "Gabala
completely covers the whole region that worries the Americans," Putin
said in televised remarks. "We will not be late because Iran does not
have these rockets. If Iran starts working on them we will know about
it in good time, and if we do not, we will see the first test-launch."
JB
[02] ...AS LAVROV, IVANOV ALSO PUSH AZERBAIJAN-BASED ALTERNATIVE
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on June 9 that U.S.
negotiations with Poland and the Czech Republic to deploy elements of a
U.S. missile-defense system should be frozen while Russia's proposal to
use the Qabala radar base in Azerbaijan is being considered, newsru.com
reported. He also said that U.S. plans to deploy a missile-defense
system in Europe could undermine international efforts to deal with
Iran's nuclear program. "At this point, the information provided from
the radar station in Azerbaijan is enough for the hypothetical threat;
it is a reliable warning station that resolves all of its tasks and
serves our interests," Lavrov told journalists in Moscow. "Therefore,
the joint use of information from this station permits the United
States to back off from deploying elements of an antimissile defense
system in Europe and [from] plans for deploying space components."
First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov said the proposal to use the
Qabala radar base remains on the table, despite U.S. plans to continue
negotiations with Poland and the Czech Republic. "Of course [this
Russian initiative] remains [on the table], since Russia's proposal to
use the Gabala radar station, which belongs to Azerbaijan but is rented
by the Russian Federation's space forces, is, in my view, the most
effective from the point of view of controlling the launch of any
rockets from the vast southern strategic direction," Ivanov told a news
conference in St. Petersburg on June 9. Ivanov said using the
Azerbaijan-based radar station would be more effective than operating
radar in Central Europe because it could pick up hostile cruise
missiles as well as intercontinental missiles, AP reported. According
to Interfax, Ivanov also said that Russia asked NATO four years ago to
cooperate in creating a joint, theater missile-defense system. "This
would be a nonglobal, nonstrategic ABM [antiballistic-missile] network
using existing missile defense elements, such as Patriot missiles and
S-300 and S-400 systems," he said. "There has been a series of
Russia-NATO computer drills, which confirmed that this project is
feasible." JB
[03] PUTIN ADVOCATES 'NEW ARCHITECTURE' FOR WORLD ECONOMIC RELATIONS
Addressing the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on June 10,
President Putin called for "a new architecture of international
economic relations." According to a transcript of the speech posted on
the Kremlin's website, kremlin.ru, Putin said that while 50 years ago,
60 percent of the world's gross domestic product came from the Group of
Seven industrialized countries, today 60 percent of the world's gross
domestic product comes from outside that group. "The developing
counties are more actively occupying niches not only in trade in
commodities, but also in services," he said. "Competition from new
players is growing, including in the hi-tech and science-intensive
fields. At the same time, the imbalance in the development of the
global economy, increasing the gap between poor countries, is being
keenly felt.... I am convinced that general words about the fair
allocation of resources and investments will solve nothing. In the
interests of stable development, it is necessary to form a new
architecture of international economic relations -- relations built on
trust and mutually beneficial integration. And therefore, not
forgetting about healthy competition, we should nevertheless move
toward the formation of common interdependent interests and ties."
Putin added: "The new architecture of economic relations also implies a
fundamentally different approach to the work of international
organizations. More and more evidence has appeared lately that the
existing organizations do not fully cope with regulating the global
international market. Structures created with the expectations of a
small number of active players at times look archaic, undemocratic, and
unwieldy. They are far from recognizing the present-day apportionment
of power." The "Financial Times" reported on June 10 that the St.
Petersburg International Economic Forum was attended by 6,000
delegates, including scores of international chief executives, among
them the heads of Deutsche Bank, BP, Royal Dutch Shell, Nestle,
Chevron, Siemens, and Coca-Cola. According to the British daily,
business deals worth more than $4 billion were signed at the
conference, including an order by Aeroflot for Boeing jets. JB
[04] PUTIN SAYS HE MAY RUN AGAIN IN 2012
President Putin said on June 8 that it is possible he will run for
president again in 2012, the daily "Kommersant" reported on June 9.
Asked at a news conference at the end of the G8 summit in Heiligendamm,
Germany, whether he would run again in 2012, Putin answered: "There is
still a lot of time. Theoretically it is possible. The constitution
does not forbid it. But it is a long way off, and I haven't even
thought about this." Commenting on Putin's response, "Kommersant"
wrote, "For the first time, Vladimir Putin publicly admitted the
likelihood of such a course of events in Russia." On June 1, Putin said
he will not seek to change the constitution to enable him to run for a
third consecutive term when his current mandate runs out in 2008, but
that the law should be changed after 2008 to extend presidential terms
from four to up to seven years. He declined on that occasion to
speculate about whether he might run again for president at some
unspecified point in the future (see "RFE/RL Newsline," June 5, 2007).
Putin also said during his June 8 news conference in Germany that his
government "will not permit any attempts to interfere or support
political forces inside Russia on the eve of elections, forces that
someone wants to support to push their vision of Russia's development,"
Reuters reported. "Those who win in the presidential and parliamentary
elections will be those who are trusted by the majority of the Russian
citizens in a fair vote," he said. Putin made those comments about
foreign interference after a young man who later identified himself as
a member of the Other Russia opposition coalition stood up and,
throwing leaflets in the air, accused Putin of suppressing democracy.
Meanwhile, Russian opposition leader and former world chess champion
Garry Kasparov and National Bolshevik Party founder Eduard Limonov led
hundreds of protesters in an authorized opposition march in St.
Petersburg on June 10 that passed without police violence or
interference, AP reported. Another March of Dissent rally is scheduled
to take place at Moscow's Pushkin Square on June 11, newsru.com
reported on June 9. JB
[05] NEWSPAPER: LONDON WANTS TO TRY LUGOVOI IN A THIRD COUNTRY
The British weekly "Sunday Times" reported on June 10 that the British
government is drawing up a "compromise plan," according to which the
prime suspect in the poisoning of Aleksandr Litvinenko, Andrei Lugovoi,
would stand trial in a country other than Britain and Russia. While
Russian authorities are officially "still considering" a request by
Britain's Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to send Lugovoi for trial in
Britain on suspicion of poisoning Litvinenko with radioactive
polonium-210 last year, the "Sunday Times" quoted Russian Ambassador to
Britain Yury Fedotov as saying that Lugovoi's extradition is
"prohibited by the constitution of the Russian Federation," and that
changing the constitution is "impossible." According to the British
newspaper, the proposal to try Lugovoi in a third country is described
as being at an early stage, with no specific country under
consideration, while the British government and the CPS are also
considering trying Lugovoi in Britain in absentia. JB
[06] BEREZOVSKY WILL BE TRIED FOR THEFT IN ABSENTIA
Russian prosecutors said on June 8 that they will try former oligarch
Boris Berezovsky in absentia, RFE/RL reported. The Prosecutor-General's
Office said in a statement that Berezovsky, who is currently living in
self-imposed exile in Britain, is charged with "large-scale theft" of
funds from the Russian airline Aeroflot worth some $619,200 and could
be sentenced to a maximum of 10 years in jail if found guilty. British
officials earlier said Berezovsky will not be extradited to Russia. JB
[07] RUSSIAN, GEORGIAN PRESIDENTS MEET
President Putin met on June 9 in St. Petersburg with his Georgian
counterpart Mikheil Saakashvili, kavkaz-uzel.ru reported. Georgian
Foreign Minister Gela Bezhuashvili, who was present at the talks, which
lasted about one hour, subsequently characterized them as "open,"
"frank," and "useful," and said that Saakashvili assured Putin that
Georgia is ready to take Russia's interests into account to the extent
that they do not impinge on its own. Bezhuashvili said the two
presidents acknowledge the need to transform the current state of
"frozen" bilateral relations into a more "normal" and "neighborly"
relationship. RFE/RL's Georgian Service quoted Saakashvili as telling
the Georgian community in St. Petersburg on June 10 that Russia has
undertaken to remove gradually the economic and travel restrictions
imposed on Georgia last year. LF
[08] DUMA MOVES TO AMEND LAW ON SENATORS
The Duma passed in the first reading on June 8 by 352 votes in favor
and 52 against a draft amendment proposed by Federation Council speaker
Sergei Mironov introducing a residency requirement for persons proposed
to represent federation subjects in the Federation Council, the daily
"Kommersant" reported on June 9. The amendment, which would not apply
to current senators, would require that nominees for the post of
senator have lived for a minimum of 10 years since the age of 18 in the
region they are to represent. Addressing the Duma, Mironov recalled
that in his recent address to the Federation Council, President Putin
approved the introduction of such a residency requirement. But Aleksei
Ostrovsky (Liberal Democratic Party of Russia) protested that the
amendment violates the article of the Russian Constitution that affirms
that any citizen has the right to be elected to any post. LF
[09] DEMONSTRATORS DEMAND REBURIAL OF SLAIN CHECHEN PRESIDENT
The Committee for Antiwar Activities staged a demonstration in Moscow
on June 9 to demand that the Russian authorities hand over the body of
Chechen President Aslan Maskhadov to his family for burial,
kavkaz-uzel.ru and Ekho Moskvy reported. Maskhadov was killed two years
ago and buried in an unmarked grave in accordance with Russian
antiterrorism legislation (see "RFE/RL Newsline," March 9 and April 25,
2005). The demonstrators condemned that law, and branded the war in
Chechnya a crime against humanity. In the course of the June 9 protest,
some 800 people signed a petition in support of the demand to release
Maskhadov's body to his family. Similar demonstrations took place on
June 9 in Vienna, Paris, Berlin, and other cities, chechenpress.info
reported. LF
Transcaucasia And Central Asia
[10] NEW ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT NAMED
President Robert Kocharian signed a decree on June 8 naming members of
the new government formed in the wake of the May 12 parliamentary
elections, lenta.ru and kavkaz-uzel.ru reported. Most members of the
previous cabinet, including Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian and
Defense Minister Mikael Harutiunian, retained their posts. The new
ministers are Nerses Yeritsian (trade and economic development), and
Aram Harutiunian (nature protection), both members of Prime Minister
Serzh Sarkisian's Republican Party of Armenia; Arutiun Kushkian (health
care), Vardan Vardanian (urban development), and Armen Grigorian
(sport), all representing the pro-presidential Bargavach Hayastan
(Prosperous Armenia) party, which has the second-largest parliament
faction; and former Deputy Prosecutor-General Gevorg Danielian
(justice). LF
[11] ARMENIAN CONSTITUTIONAL COURT REJECTS ELECTION APPEALS
Armenia's Constitutional Court rejected on June 10 appeals by four
opposition parties against the official results of the May 12
parliamentary elections, kavkaz-uzel.ru reported. The court conceded
that some "violations took place" during the vote, but concluded that
they were not of such magnitude as to determine the overall outcome.
Representatives of three of the four parties that challenged the
results -- Orinats Yerkir (Law-Based State, OY), Hanrapetutiun, and Nor
Zhamanakner (New Times) -- walked out of the courtroom on June 8 after
making their concluding speeches to protest what OY's Artashes Avoyan
termed "a farce...when political rather than constitutional justice is
administered," RFE/RL's Armenian Service reported. Nikol Pashinian of
the Impeachment bloc left the courtroom on June 8 without having
delivered a final speech. LF
[12] ARMENIAN, AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENTS MEET
President Kocharian met on June 9 in St. Petersburg with his
Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev to continue discussion of the
so-called basic principles for resolving the Karabakh conflict drafted
by the OSCE Minsk Group, Russian and Azerbaijani media reported.
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov was quoted by day.az on
June 10 as saying the two presidents met first one-one-one, and then
continued their talks in the presence of the Minsk Group co-chairmen.
The meeting lasted three hours in all. No further details are
available. The two presidents last met six months ago, in Minsk (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," November 29 and 30, 2006, and "RFE/RL Caucasus
Report," December 1, 2006). LF
[13] GEORGIA DENIES PLANS TO ASSASSINATE SOUTH OSSETIAN LEADER
The Georgian Interior Ministry dismissed on June 9 as "absurd" a
statement earlier the same day by the National Security Committee of
the unrecognized republic of South Ossetia alleging that Tbilisi plans
to assassinate de facto South Ossetian President Eduard Kokoity,
Caucasus Press and lenta.ru reported. The South Ossetian statement
claimed that Tbilisi has deployed to the village of Kurta, near the
South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali, a detachment of Interior Ministry
special troops who are tasked with the purported murder. Also on June
9, Tskhinvali Mayor Alan Kotayev was quoted by kavkaz-uzel.ru as saying
that the town is still receiving only limited drinking water because
Georgia continues to refuse South Ossetian engineers access to the
damaged water main to carry out the required repairs (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," June 5, 6, 7 and 8, 2007). LF
[14] GEORGIAN PARLIAMENT APPROVES INCREASE IN BUDGET SPENDING
Parliament deputies approved on June 8 an amendment to the state budget
for 2007 that increases expenditures by some 600 million laris ($357.1
million) to 4.6 billion laris ($2.7 billion), Caucasus Press reported.
The greater part of the additional funds (442 million laris) will go to
the Defense Ministry, thereby increasing defense spending for the year
to 955.3 million laris. An International Monetary Fund delegation that
visited Georgia last month warned explicitly against increasing budget
spending, in order to keep inflation at a minimum (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," June 5, 2007). Davit Gamkrelidze, who heads the opposition
Democratic Front parliament faction, insisted that parliament should be
informed precisely how the Defense Ministry will spend the additional
funds. He also questioned why the Interior Ministry should receive
114.2 million laris in additional funds, Caucasus Press reported. LF
[15] PRESSURE ON GEORGIAN EDUCATION MINISTER INTENSIFIES
The opposition Democratic Front parliament faction convened a press
conference in Tbilisi on June 8 at which its members again argued that
Education Minister Aleksandre Lomaya should be required to clarify
discrepancies in reports of spending by his ministry in 2003-04 that
leave 40 million laris unaccounted for, Caucasus Press reported (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," May 30, 2007). Parliament speaker Nino Burdjanadze
said Lomaya will be asked to reply to questions from parliament
deputies at some point later this month. LF
[16] ABKHAZ LEADERS HOPE FOR RESUMPTION OF TALKS WITH GEORGIA
Sergei Bagapsh and Sergei Shamba, who are respectively de facto
president and foreign minister of the unrecognized republic of
Abkhazia, met in Sukhum(i) on June 8 with senior diplomats from the
Tbilisi embassies of the five countries (France, Germany, Russia, the
United Kingdom, and the United States) that comprise the so-called
Friends of the UN Secretary-General for Abkhazia group, Caucasus Press
and Bagapsh's website (http://www.abkhaziagov.org) reported. Bagapsh
said that the talks with Tbilisi on resolving the conflict could be
resumed "in the very near future" provided that Georgia complies with
Abkhazia's preconditions, which include releasing local official David
Sigua, who was detained in Georgia four months ago (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," February 7, April 30, and May 4, 2007), and withdrawing the
so-called Abkhaz government in exile from the Kodori Gorge, which
straddles Abkhazia and Georgia proper. Shamba argued that the Kodori
Gorge, where Tbilisi still has an unspecified number of Interior
Ministry troops, should be completely demilitarized; Bagapsh suggested
opening a UN Human Rights Commission office in the gorge. The Georgian
side has for years called on the Abkhaz, without success, to permit the
opening of such an office in Abkhazia's southernmost Gali Raion. LF
[17] KAZAKH PRESIDENT PROPOSES CASPIAN-BLACK SEA CANAL
In an address to an international business forum in St. Petersburg,
Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev on June 10 proposed building a
"navigable canal" between the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea aimed at
bolstering Central Asian energy trade with world markets, Interfax
reported. According to Nazarbaev, the planned canal would be roughly
1,000 kilometers shorter than the existing westward trade route through
Russia's Volga-Don canal network, and would become the best "corridor
for access to the sea through Russia for the whole of Central Asia."
The plan for a new route for gas and oil exports follows a recent
agreement on the construction of a new pipeline along the Caspian Sea
coast to transport Turkmen and Kazakh natural gas to European markets
through Russia (see "RFE/RL Newsline," May 14, 2007). Nazarbaev added
that "another reason why it is important to use the transit potential
is that Central Asian countries, unfortunately, do not have free trade
access to the world's oceans, and Russia can ensure this for us." RG
[18] KAZAKH PREMIER MEETS WITH VISITING KYRGYZ SPEAKER
Kazakh Prime Minister Karim Masimov met in Astana on June 8 with
visiting Kyrgyz parliament speaker Marat Sultanov to review plans to
expand bilateral cooperation, according to Interfax. The officials
discussed greater cooperation in the hydroelectric sector, border
security, transport, and issues related to labor migration. Sultanov
also expressed his country's interest "in the further strengthening of
trade" with Kazakhstan, which increased to $406.6 million last year. On
June 7, Kyrgyz parliamentarian Azimbek Beknazarov called for a "review"
of an existing bilateral border delineation agreement with Kazakhstan,
AKIpress reported. Beknazarov demanded that Kyrgyzstan seek a new
agreement with Kazakhstan on certain border areas, arguing that the
current border agreement, which was reached by former Kyrgyz President
Askar Akaev more than four years ago, is outdated and "does not take
Kyrgyz interests into consideration." He demanded that "strategically
important areas" such as the Karkyra pasture, an area near a bypass
around Tokmak, and the area of Maymak in the Talas region "must be
ceded to Kazakhstan." RG
[19] KYRGYZ LEADERS MEET WITH VISITING U.S. DIPLOMAT
On the second day of a visit to Kyrgyzstan, U.S. Assistant Secretary of
State Richard Boucher met in Bishkek on June 8 with Kyrgyz President
Kurmanbek Bakiev, Foreign Minister Ednan Karabaev, and Prime Minister
Almaz Atambaev, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service and AKIpress reported. During
the meeting with Bakiev, Boucher discussed measures aimed at deepening
bilateral cooperation in the areas of security, economy, and
democratization, and stressed that the United States seeks to "expand
opportunities" in its cooperation with Kyrgyzstan. Bakiev in turn
briefed Boucher on progress in the implementation of the country's
constitutional, judicial, and security reforms. In a separate meeting
with Boucher earlier the same day, Prime Minister Atambaev noted that
"very large economic plans have been drawn up to restore the economy in
Afghanistan," and stressed that "we certainly want to take part in this
process," adding that "our businessmen are seeking to work in
Afghanistan." Atambaev said that "we want to count on the U.S.
government's assistance in finding investors or international donors"
to assist Kyrgyzstan in exporting "surplus electricity" to Afghanistan.
He also called on the United States to consider Kyrgyzstan as a
potential recipient of aid through the U.S. State Department's
Millennium Challenge program. Atambaev promised that as "a leader among
the countries in Central Asia in developing democracy," inclusion in
the program would make it "much easier for us to move further along the
path of democracy," Kabar reported. On the first day of his visit,
Boucher met with representatives of several leading Kyrgyz
nongovernmental organizations and announced a new $20 million aid
package to assist reforms to the judicial system (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," June 8, 2007). RG
[20] KYRGYZ DEFENSE MINISTER PLEDGES 'SELF-SUFFICIENT' MILITARY REFORM
Speaking to cadets at a military academy in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Defense
Minister Ismail Isakov announced on June 8 that the country will
implement defense reforms without outside help, AKIpress reported.
Isakov explained that "we have everything [necessary] today to reform
the army," and noted that "we are capable of supporting ourselves
without the help of others." Isakov noted that the first stage of
defense reform, focusing on living conditions and "minimizing social
problems" within the armed forces, is "coming to an end," and said that
the second stage of reform, involving training, will get underway soon.
He also stated that Kyrgyzstan intends to spend some $2.7 million on
new military equipment in 2007. RG
[21] TURKMEN PRESIDENT DISMISSES CULTURE MINISTER
Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov issued a presidential
decree on June 8 dismissing the minister of culture, radio, and
television, Enebai Atayeva, according to Turkmen television. Atayeva
was dismissed for "grave shortcomings in her work and for failing to
carry out her official duties." She was sharply criticized for "poor
control" over the ministry and its departments and for the "low quality
of TV and radio programs." A former leader of Turkmenistan's trade
unions, she was appointed to the post in late April 2006 by late
president Saparmurat Niyazov, replacing Maral Bashimova, but her
initial appointment was limited to serving for a six-month "probation
period." Atayeva was also relieved of her duties as the chair of the
Women's Association of Turkmenistan. RG
Eastern Europe
[22] BELARUSIAN UNION BOSS DENIES FALSIFICATION OF INTERNATIONAL
PETITION
Leanid Kozik, chairman of the pro-government Federation of Trade Unions
of Belarus (FPB), has denied accusations that he forged foreign labor
union leaders' signatures on a petition against the suspension of
Belarus's benefits under the EU's Generalized System of Preferences
(GSP), Belapan reported on June 9. Guy Ryder, secretary-general of the
International Trade Union Confederation, and John Monks,
secretary-general of the European Trade Union Confederation, said in a
letter to EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson that the Belarusian
government ordered the FPB to win international support for its drive
against the suspension of the GSP benefits, scheduled to take effect on
June 21. The FPB claimed last month that its petition was signed by
trade union organizations representing 16 countries, including the
Moscow-headquartered International Association of Metal Workers' Trade
Unions (MOP), an affiliation of Belarusian, Ukrainian, Kazakh,
Moldovan, Armenian, Azerbaijani, and Georgian labor unions. However,
MOP Chairman Nikolai Shatokhin subsequently denied this claim, saying
that neither he nor other representatives of the organization signed
the appeal. "Several of those union leaders whose signatures were
included at the end of the statement have now stated categorically that
they did not sign the statement and do not agree with it. Their
apparent signatures were in fact scanned from other documents they had
signed -- such as participants' lists from meetings held in Belarus --
and copied into the FPB statement," Ryder and Monks said in their
letter. The GSP benefits for Belarus are due to be suspended as
punishment for the government's failure to implement the International
Labor Organization's recommendations regarding the trade union movement
in Belarus. JM
[23] UKRAINIAN SECURITY CHIEF SAYS RUSSIAN 'INTERFERENCE' THREATENS
UKRAINE
Valentyn Nalyvaychenko, the acting head of the Security Service of
Ukraine (SBU), said in an interview with the "Financial Times"
published on June 11 that Russian political interference and the lack
of transparency surrounding energy imports from Russia threaten Ukraine
as it strives to overcome the current political crisis. "We are a young
country. For any country it is dangerous when domestic politics are
interfered with by foreign sources," Nalyvaychenko said. The SBU chief
promised that Russia and Ukraine will provide greater clarity about the
natural-gas trade in the coming months. "Ukraine and Russia should make
this situation more transparent. [We need to show] what the real prices
are and what the real financial sources are here, the flow of money,
and the risks of dirty money and money laundering. To know the real
situation, the real operators, the real deal, is crucial,"
Nalyvaychenko added. JM
Southeastern Europe
[24] G8 MEETING ENDS WITHOUT AGREEMENT ON KOSOVA...
The leaders of the world's leading industrialized states, the Group of
Eight (G8), failed at their summit in Heiligendamm, Germany, to agree
on how to proceed in efforts to resolve the final status of Kosova,
international media reported on June 8, at the end of the three-day
summit. The closing communique said that there were "different views on
substance and on the way forward" regarding Kosova's future, while the
summit's host, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, said at the closing
conference that talks on Kosova were "constructive" but not "easy,"
adding that while "time is pressing." the G8 leaders want a
"consensus-based solution." Russia appears to have reiterated in
private, as it has in public in recent weeks, that it is prepared to
veto a UN Security Council resolution that imposes a solution on
Serbia. Asked on June 8 if Russia threatened to use a veto, French
President Nicolas Sarkozy said, "I think one could say it like that."
The outcome of the meeting disproved claims carried by Reuters on June
7 that the G8 leaders had agreed to a proposal by Sarkozy that Belgrade
and Prishtina should return to the negotiating table for six months, at
the end of which, in the absence of any agreement, the UN would adopt
the Ahtisaari plan (see "RFE/RL Newsline," June 8, 2007). The summit
communique gave no indication of the course of discussions, but
Sarkozy's late attempt to broker an agreement -- which broke with the
previous French position that there is no reason to delay a decision --
not only dominated reports on the summit, but also appeared to be the
focal point of diplomatic efforts, with Sarkozy saying that "sherpas"
-- diplomats -- and the "political directors" of the eight countries'
foreign ministries "worked for several hours overnight on Kosovo."
Sarkozy's own comments raise doubts about the prospect of Russia
accepting his proposal. "We cannot have a delay to let Belgrade and
Pristina hold talks unless all the actors, notably the Russians,
consider that the independence of Kosovo is an inevitable outcome," he
said. Russia has given no indication that it is prepared to accept
independence for Kosova. AG
[25] ...PROMPTING FRUSTRATION IN KOSOVA, MIXED REACTION IN SERBIA
Kosovar Albanian politicians responded to the apparent lack of progress
at the G8 summit with a chorus of calls for Kosova to be granted
independence immediately, according to reports in the Kosovar and
international media. "We cannot wait forever," Kosovar Prime Minister
Agim Ceku told AP on June 8. "Give us clarity, give us freedom, and let
us go." According to AP on June 8, Veton Surroi, a key member of
Prishtina's negotiating team, said, "Kosova cannot be kept hostage by a
veto threat," while the region's main opposition figure, Hashim Thaci,
said that "the time for independence is now. Every day that is wasted
is bad, it could cause new dilemmas." The head of the UN Mission in
Kosova (UNMIK), Joachim Ruecker, told local journalists after meeting
with Kosovar Albanian leaders on June 8 that they responded very calmly
to Sarkozy's proposal, the news service KosovaLive reported the same
day. In Serbia, comments by political leaders focused on French
President Sarkozy's suggestion of a time-limited return to the
negotiating table. The speaker of Serbia's parliament, Oliver Dulic,
said a delay would be good because it would present "an attempt to move
forward the negotiating process," AP reported on June 8. That upbeat
assessment was not shared by Slobodan Samardzic, the minister for
Kosovo-Metohija, as Serbs call the province. Samardzic told
Radio-Television Serbia on June 8 that the Kosovar Albanian leaders
would simply slow down talks if the Sarkozy process were adopted. "Why
should the Albanian delegation negotiate with Belgrade at all, if it
seems that, should an agreement not be reached within six months, it
would gain independence for Kosovo-Metohija?" he asked. AG
[26] RUSSIAN, SERBIAN LEADERS PLEASED AT G8 SUMMIT...
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav
Kostunica both expressed satisfaction at the course of the G8's
discussions about Kosova when they met on June 9 in St. Petersburg.
According to the Russian news agency RIA Novosti, Putin said that "the
impression I had was that our G8 colleagues were receptive to our
arguments." He offered no details. Kostunica was fulsome in his
appreciation of Russia's support, saying that "it was only thanks to
Russia's principled position that the intention of the Security Council
to pass a resolution, which would have been a direct negation of the UN
Charter, was thwarted," Radio-Television Serbia reported. Kostunica
argued that Russia's stance "has preserved the most basic principles on
which the whole, contemporary international order is based." Before the
meeting, Serbian media said Kostunica would discuss new ideas intended
to lead to a compromise solution, but neither leader revealed how that
the summit had affected their views. Instead, they repeated their joint
stance that the future of Kosova should be decided by Serbs and Kosovar
Albanians alone in open-ended talks mediated by a new UN envoy.
According to the Serbian broadcaster B92, Serbian President Boris Tadic
said on June 9 that no one he has met in his "innumerable international
meetings" has been able "to predict what might happen in the UN
Security Council with respect to Kosovo." AG
[27] ...AND SERBIA PROMISES 'BIGGER' OPPORTUNITIES FOR RUSSIAN BUSINESS
During his meeting with the Russian president, which took place on the
sidelines of an international business forum in St. Petersburg, Serbian
Prime Minister Kostunica urged Russian businesses to invest in Serbia,
with Reuters quoting him as saying Serbia will offer them
"opportunities much bigger" than at present. Kostunica appears to have
offered no explanation, but a slew of recent articles in the Serbian
media have highlighted the growing interest of Russian business in
Serbia. Since the formation of a new government in mid-May, Belgrade
has invited Russian investment in the energy, metallurgical, and
financial industries. Belgrade rebuffed previous Russian efforts to
enter those sectors. The Russian carrier Aeroflot is currently in
pretender talks to buy the Serbian national carrier JAT, and the owners
of Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport have expressed an interest in buying
Belgrade airport, the Russian daily "Kommersant" reported on June 4.
According to Reuters on May 30, Deputy Prime Minister Bozidar Djelic
promised the same day that Russian investors would receive "special
attention," specifically linking this to Russia's stance on Kosova.
Djelic stressed, however, that this would be special assistance in
preparing tenders rather than special consideration in the
decision-making process. A recent report indicated that in at least one
arms deal, Serbia has based its decisions on Russia's stance (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," May 29, 2007). A separate aspect of economic
cooperation relates to Russia's Soviet-era debt to the former
Yugoslavia, which Russia has been settling in recent months. In
Serbia's case, the agreement includes a Russian commitment to modernize
a Serbian power plant and write off part of Serbia's gas bill (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," May 2, 2007). The daily "Danas" wrote on June 5 that
the "doors have started to open" to Russian investors "only of late."
It cited official figures that indicate that Russian businesses
invested a little over $40 million in Serbia since 2000 and spent
another $257 million in four privatization deals. This compares with
foreign investment totaling $4.1 billion in 2006 alone. AG
[28] U.S. PRESIDENT MAKES HISTORIC TRIP TO ALBANIA...
Albanians gave an enthusiastic reception to George W. Bush, who on June
10 became the first U.S. president to visit Albania, local and
international media reported the same day. Local media say that 15,000
law-enforcement officers were involved in security efforts, but Bush
appeared to throw security concerns aside during a walkabout in the
small town of Fushe Kruje, during which he was kissed numerous times.
Commentators and politicians alike have described Albania as the most
pro-American state in the world (see "RFE/RL Newsline," April 27, and
May 17, 25, and 30, and June 1, 2007). Reports indicate an influx of
visitors from the countryside and other towns into Tirana, and the
daily "Gazeta Shqiptare" reported on June 10 that some 2,000 Kosovar
Albanians crossed the border to greet Bush. At a press conference,
Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha touched on three factors that
commentators typically give to explain Albanians' enthusiasm: the
United States as a symbol of democracy for a country seeking to
distance itself from its communist past; an appreciation of the U.S.
role in neighboring Kosova; and the United States' recognition of
Albanian statehood 85 years ago and its efforts to quell claims on its
territory. Berisha hailed the United States as "a great friend of my
nation," the trip as a "beautiful...historic day," and Bush as "the
greatest and most distinguished guest we have ever had in all times."
In one of many demonstrations of public and political enthusiasm for
the visit, Tirana's city council renamed a street near parliament after
Bush. In a poll released on June 4 and cited by the newspaper "Tema" on
June 7, 61 percent described the United States as the best defender of
Albanian interests in the world and two-thirds said they believe
Washington will soon recognize Kosova as an independent state.
Commentaries were not all positive: Washington's stringent security
demands met with some resentment, while the government's welcome of the
U.S. president was seen by some as an appropriation of the visit (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," June 1, 2007). A commentator in "Gazeta Shqiptare"
on June 8 said ministers are no longer just "incompetents" and
"morons," but also "sycophants," adding that the government decked
Tirana out with as many flags as the communist regime had for a visit
by Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. AG
[29] ...AND REITERATES SUPPORT FOR KOSOVA'S INDEPENDENCE...
In his most important public comments, Bush said that, in Washington's
policy on Kosova, "independence is the goal. That's what the people of
Kosovo need to know." The U.S. president told a news conference that EU
leaders "hope that there is some way that we can reach an accommodation
with a variety of interests, so that the transition to independence
will be as smooth and easy as possible. But if it's apparent that
that's not going to happen in a relatively quick period of time, in my
judgment, we need to put forward the resolution. Hence, deadline." Bush
added that "sooner rather than later, you've got to say enough's
enough: Kosovo's independent." He continued: "There just cannot be
continued drift, because I'm worried about expectations not being met
in Kosovo.... And, therefore, we'll push the process," which he said
should end "now." In an interview given to Albanian television on May
31, Bush said the visit was intended to show Albanians that "America
knows that you exist," and that he views Albania as an example of a
"Muslim people who can live in peace." Bush reiterated the message
during his trip, calling Albania "a model of religious tolerance," and
Albania sought to underscore his view by presenting him with an
18th-century Orthodox icon featuring the Madonna and the baby Jesus
flanked by two mosques. The size of Albania's Christian communities is
unclear, but is thought to be a little over 30 percent. A recent claim
by the head of the Albanian Orthodox Church that Albania "is no longer
a typically Muslim nation" was angrily dismissed by some politicians as
"an expression of ignorance" (see "RFE/RL Newsline," May 2, 2007). AG
[30] ...AND MEETS LEADERS OF WOULD-BE NATO MEMBERS
U.S. President Bush also met with the prime ministers of Albania,
Croatia, and Macedonia, whose countries all hope to receive invitations
to join NATO in April 2008. Bush gave no public promises about an
admission date, saying in his press conference with Albanian Prime
Minister Berisha that "I look forward to welcoming you someday into
NATO." However, he reiterated Washington's support for their bids. The
Macedonian news agency MIA on June 10 quoted Macedonian Prime Minister
Nikola Gruevski as saying Bush was "very positive" and strongly
supportive of the three countries' bids, while, according to the
Croatian news agency Hina, Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader said,
"NATO membership is in the offing." Albania has contributed troops to
international missions in Afghanistan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Iraq,
and "The New York Times" on June 9 quoted Albanian President Alfred
Moisiu as saying that "they will continue to be deployed [in Iraq] as
long as the Americans are there." Bush acknowledged Albania's
contribution to those missions by decorating some of its servicemen.
Albania's cooperation with Washington has also extended to the offer of
asylum, currently being processed, for five Uyghurs detained for years
at Guantanamo Bay, and its decision not to sign an agreement with the
International Criminal Court to extradite suspected war criminals (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," March 8 and May 21, 2007). "The New York Times"
reported on June 10 that China has been seeking the Uyghurs' expulsion
from Albania. Tirana refused, but has also refused to accept more
Uyghur detainees from Guantanamo Bay. AG
[31] ALBANIA WRAPS UP LOCAL ELECTIONS
Sixteen weeks after Albanians first went to the polls, Albania's
Central Election Commission on June 8 issued the final results of local
elections, local media reported the same day. Prime Minister Berisha
initially hailed the February 18 elections as "the best ever held in
Albania," even though election day had been set back by a month
because, according to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe's (OSCE) final election report, the electoral process was
"frequently stalled and seemed to be close to the point of collapse on
repeated occasions" (see "RFE/RL Newsline," February 21, 2007).
Berisha's assessment was swiftly cooled by OSCE monitors, who found
that, despite some "measurable improvement," the elections fell short
of international standards, with 23 percent of the vote counts being
classified as "bad" or "very bad." The Central Election Commission was
obliged to sift through numerous complaints, some of them caused by
provisions in the deal that saved the elections from collapse in
January. After the vote, some members of the opposition Socialist Party
called for early parliamentary elections, and in late April threatened
to form a "human barricade" to prevent a fresh poll in one particularly
contentious constituency, Elbasan. In one contested area, in a district
of Tirana, the winner was decided by a lottery. More commonly, in 20 of
Albania's 384 electoral constituencies, elections were reheld on May 6
and -- in two cases -- on June 3. The reruns, which involved over
100,000 of the country's roughly 2.9 million voters, did not affect the
overall result, with the Socialists winning most of the seats for
councilors and mayors in the largest urban areas. Albania's parliament
is due to elect the country's president soon. The run-up to those
elections has also been contentious, with some members of the
opposition calling for early parliamentary elections (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," April 25, and May 4, 7, and 11, 2007). AG
[32] MACEDONIAN GOVERNMENT WINS VOTE OF CONFIDENCE...
The Macedonian government on June 7 survived a vote of no confidence
brought against it by the country's leading opposition party, local
media reported the same day. The Social Democratic Union (SDSM) argued
that, since winning power in July 2006, the government has lost the
country's confidence for reasons that include its alleged failure to
keep promises relating to foreign investments, its handling of
Macedonia's bids for membership of the EU and NATO, its tax policy, its
reform of the judiciary, and a deal struck with the largest
ethnic-Albanian party, the Democratic Union for Integration (BDI),
which in late May ended a boycott of parliament after securing major
concessions (see "RFE/RL Newsline," May 31, 2007). The motion mustered
43 votes out of 120, well below the 65 cast for the government.
According to the news agency Makfax, supporters of the government
called the motion a "stab in the back" and an "antistate project" as it
came ahead of a June 10 meeting with U.S. President Bush in neighboring
Albania, a meeting that could be a crucial moment in Macedonia's bid
for NATO membership. AG
[33] ...AND REJECTS MINISTER'S RESIGNATION
Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski on June 8 refused to accept
the resignation of his interior minister, Refet Elmazi, the MIA news
agency reported the same day. Elmazi tendered his resignation amid a
controversy over a police raid on an ethnic-Albanian border village in
which a search for illegal arms yielded just two rifles and scores of
bullets. Villagers accused the police of physically abusing members of
one family. The raid, which was conducted on May 23, aggravated
tensions between ethnic-Albanian political parties and the government,
which had just expanded to include a second ethnic-Albanian party (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," May 22, 2007). Elmazi himself said the raid "cast a
shadow on the exceptional successes" of his party, the Democratic Party
of Albanians (PDSh), and accused elements in the Interior Ministry that
"do not want the PDSh to take the credit for establishing order and
peace in areas where ethnic Albanians live" of setting up "a number of
obstacles and traps." On June 6, Gruevski said that his party, the
Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (VMRO-DPMNE), and the
PDSh have largely cleared up past "misunderstandings," MIA reported the
same day. Makfax reported on June 7 that the Tanusevci raid was also
cited by the deputy head of the SDSM, Igor Ivanovski, as a factor in
the vote of no confidence brought against the government, which was
also accused of politicizing the Interior Ministry. AG
[34] BOSNIA CRITICIZED FOR LOOSENESS OF TIES WITH MUSLIM WORLD
In a strongly worded interview published by the Bosnian daily "Dnevni
avaz" on June 7, Egypt's ambassador to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Ahmad
al-Sayed Khattab, criticized the Bosnian government for doing too
little to nurture ties with the Muslim world. He welcomed Bosnia's bids
for EU and NATO membership, but added, "Please do not forget your ties
with Islamic and Arab countries." He blamed Sarajevo for the lack of
contact, saying that "it cannot be good...if you abandon other friends
who helped Bosnia-Herzegovina during the war." Bosnian officials have
made "almost no trips to the Arab world" over the past four years, he
said, adding, "What kind of friendly relationship is that?" He was also
critical of the "low" level of trade, which he estimated at $30 million
a year. "No offense meant, but an Egyptian businessman spends that much
money in a year on maintaining and using just one of his planes," he
said. He singled out visas as a key problem, saying that "terrible
things happen," such as the recent refusal of visas to Egyptian
government officials and a leading Egyptian businessman. Contacts
between Egypt and Bosnia in the past two months have included a
counterterrorism agreement. Bosnia has also recently hosted a large
annual gathering of European Muslim scholars, welcomed the Pakistani
leader, and given the go-ahead for the construction of an ethanol plant
by businessmen from another non-Arab Muslim country, Iran (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," April 11 and 30, 2007). AG
Southwestern Asia And The Middle East
[35] NORTHERN AFGHAN PROVINCE DECLARED POPPY-FREE, BUT RESIDENTS
STRUGGLING
Afghanistan's Counternarcotics Ministry on June 9 declared Balkh
Province free of opium-poppy crops, but residents complain that the
government has failed to provide locals with alternative opportunities
to earn an income, Pajhwak Afghan News reported. According to Balkh
Governor Ata Mohammad Nur, the government achieved its goal of halting
poppy cultivation in the northern province within three years, during
which more than 30,000 acres of poppy crops in Balkh were destroyed.
Ata regretted, however, that the central government has failed to
adequately compensate the cooperating farmers under the Alternative
Livelihood Program, intended to encourage Afghans to grow crops other
than poppies. One participating farmer, Sardar Wali from the Char Bolak
district, told Pajhwak that he owns 100 acres of land, but is unable to
maintain a steady income since he stopped harvesting the illegal crop.
The deputy minister for counternarcotics affairs, General Khuda-i-Dad,
has promised to consider Balkh residents' concerns. JC
[36] AFGHAN PRESIDENT SURVIVES APPARENT ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT
In what authorities are calling a failed assassination attempt on
Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Taliban militants fired rockets near the
site where the president was giving a speech on June 10, AP reported.
Witnesses said they heard between four and six rockets whizzing
overhead and exploding during Karzai's speech to elders and residents
of Andar district in Ghazni Province, provincial police chief Ali Shah
Ahmadzai said. Karzai briefly interrupted his speech to tell the
audience to remain calm and not to worry. The program continued as
scheduled, according to an unidentified government official, and Karzai
returned to Kabul afterward. Purported Taliban spokesman Qari Yusef
Ahmadi, speaking to AP from an undisclosed location, claimed the attack
was the work of Taliban militants. JC
[37] CLASHES BETWEEN AFGHAN POLICE, TALIBAN LEAVE 49 DEAD
Two separate battles between police and Taliban militants in
Afghanistan on June 9 left 49 people dead, AP reported the next day.
The militants attacked three police posts in the Murghab district of
Badghis Province, initiating a six-hour battle between police
reinforcements and insurgents in which 20 suspected militants and two
police officers were killed, provincial police chief General Mohammad
Ayub Naizyar said. In the Shinkay district of southern Zabul Province,
NATO and Afghan troops called in air strikes after a clash with
militants, leaving 27 suspected insurgents dead, Defense Ministry
spokesman General Mohammad Zahir Azimi said. There were no reports of
civilian causalities, Azimi added. According to AP, approximately 2,200
people have died in insurgency-related violence in 2007. JC
[38] AFGHAN ATTORNEY GENERAL BEATEN UP IN ATTEMPTED KIDNAPPING
Abdul Jabar Sabet said on June 8 that he was beaten up and fired upon
in an apparent failed kidnapping attempt by men loyal to a former
Interior Ministry general, AFP reported that day. The attorney general
said he was confronted by former General Din Mohammad Jora'at and
approximately 40 of his men when he exited his car at a roadblock while
traveling to a picnic outside of Kabul. According to Sabet, the men
beat him with rifle butts before police arrived and exchanged fire with
Jora'at's militia. Senior police officials added that Sabet's
bulletproof vehicle was struck by nine bullets. The attorney general
was treated in the hospital and had no serious injuries. Sabet has made
powerful enemies since he launched a "jihad" against corruption in
government that led to the dismissal of several officials. Jora'at was
not immediately available to respond to the attorney general's
allegations. JC
[39] IRANIAN GENERAL THREATENS RESPONSE TO POTENTIAL U.S. STRIKES
Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr, Iran's deputy interior minister for police and
security affairs, said in Tehran on June 9 that the United States'
interests "throughout the world and the region will be in danger" if it
attacks Iran, ISNA reported. Speaking after a visit to a police
department, Zolqadr said that Iran has "mocked" the United States'
power and prestige during the past 28 years, and "today all America's
bases in the region are within range of our standard weapons." He said
the "slightest interruption" in the security of the Persian Gulf would
send crude oil prices to $250 a barrel, and "this would lead to
economic and security death" for the EU and United States. He said the
United States may start some "banditry" against Iran, but "its
continuation and conclusion would not be in its hands." Separately, the
head of the presidential office's Strategic Investigations Center,
Alireza Zaker-Isfahani, told the Fars news agency on June 9 that the
United States is likely to adopt a "soft and intelligent" approach to
attempting to change Iran's regime. He said this is partly due to its
regional situation. VS
[40] MINISTRY DEMANDS U.S. EXPLANATION ON REPORTS OF REGIME CHANGE
BUDGET
Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini told the press in
Tehran on June 10 that the ministry delivered a note asking the United
States for an explanation of reports that it has earmarked a budget
intended to fund the peaceful overthrow of Iran's government, IRNA
reported. The note was presented to the Swiss Embassy in Tehran, which
handles U.S. interests in Iran in the absence of formal ties. Hosseini
said that if these reports are not accurate, the United States should
publicly negate them. He said Washington is using academic and cultural
ties with Iranians to forward "its goals," but he is confident that
Iranian academics are discerning enough to recognize such motives. He
said the ministry has also informed the Swiss Embassy that Iran has no
information so far on Robert Lewinson, a former FBI employee thought to
have disappeared in Iran, IRNA reported. VS
[41] IRANIAN STUDENTS DETAINED IN TOUGH CONDITIONS...
Activists have expressed concern over the welfare of eight students of
Amir Kabir University who have been arrested in recent weeks over the
allegedly impious contents of some student journals, Radio Farda
reported on June 9 (see "RFE/RL Newsline," May 25, 2007). Ali
Nikunesbati, a member of the Office to Consolidate Unity, a student
grouping, told Radio Farda on June 9 that some of the students have
been abused or beaten in prison. One of the detainees, Abbas
Hakimzadeh, who was arrested in Mashhad in northeastern Iran on June 6,
is reportedly in "grave" condition. He and another detainee, Ali
Saberi, have not been formally charged and officials have not formally
confirmed their detention, Nikunesbati said. The arrests were made
ostensibly because of the publication of indecent articles that
provoked scuffles and unrest in late April at Amir Kabir University --
also known by its former name, Tehran Polytechnic. But Nikunesbati told
the broadcaster that he believes these arrests and other incidents of
repression at the university are a response to students' heckling the
president during a visit late last year (see "RFE/RL Iran Report,"
January 3, 2007). VS
[42] ...AS OTHERS PROTEST DETENTIONS
An unnamed student activist told ISNA on June 9 that students of Amir
Kabir University have protested against the arrest of two fellow
students during the past week. The report did not give the exact date
of the protest. The activist said students are calling for the
detainees' release "because university examinations are approaching,"
ISNA reported. Separately, Hasan Haddad, a deputy head of the Tehran
Public and Revolutionary Court prosecutor's office, said on June 6 that
students from Amir Kabir University are being kept in Section 209 of
Tehran's Evin prison. The section is usually reserved for political
prisoners or those who allegedly present a security threat. He said
nine people have been arrested in connection with the indecent
publications at Amir Kabir, of whom four have been released, but he
said these were not students. Haddad described them as friends or
collaborators of the student journals' editors, and said investigations
disproved students' claims that the indecent publications were
forgeries of campus publications intended to discredit them, ISNA
reported. VS
[43] CULTURE MINISTER SAYS IRANIAN GOVERNMENT WELCOMES CRITICISM
Mohammad Hossein Saffar-Herandi said in Tehran on June 9 that the
government welcomes criticism, and "thanks" media that help the
government see "some of its errors," the "Iran" newspaper reported on
June 10. He said those dailies that claim that the government of
President Mahmud Ahmadinejad has done no good should "really go and
doubt their criteria." How is it, he asked, that "the government that
has done nothing good...is daily becoming more popular with the public?
If it has really done nothing, are people so sick that they should
support it?" He said the government will admonish dailies that
criticize it out of "party and political grudges," but will not "make a
sharp response." He said publications stepping beyond the "declared
norms" of the Press Law will face "friendly" and "at most, written"
admonishments, "Iran" reported. VS
[44] IRANIAN COURT LIFTS BAN ON DAILY
A Tehran court has acquitted the reformist daily "Vaqaye-i Ettefaqieh"
and its editor of publishing articles favorable to opposition groups,
and lifted the ban on the daily, ISNA reported on June 9. Branch 76 of
the Tehran Province Penal Court and an attendant press jury on May 27
examined the charges against the daily and its editor, whose name was
given only as Khanzadi, ISNA reported, without stating who had pressed
the charges. VS
[45] IRAQ PARLIAMENT SPEAKER TO BE REPLACED AFTER SCUFFLE
Iraqi parliamentarians have voted in a closed session to remove Mahmud
al-Mashhadani as speaker after he ordered his bodyguards to beat up
another lawmaker following an argument outside the parliament chamber
on June 10, Iraqi media reported on June 11. The incident took place
when al-Mashhadani's guards tried to stop Shi'ite lawmaker Fariyad
Muhammad and search him as he entered the parliament building.
Al-Sharqiyah television reported on June 10 that al-Mashhadani ordered
his guards to attack Muhammad, while other media outlets reported that
al-Mashhadani watched as his guards dragged Muhammad away. United Iraqi
Alliance parliamentarian Abd al-Karim al-Anzi proposed putting
al-Mashhadani on compulsory leave following the incident, but other
parliamentarians called for his immediate replacement. Al-Mashhadani
and his bodyguards have been accused of attacking parliamentarians on
three separate occasions in recent months. In May, the speaker slapped
another lawmaker during an argument. Deputy speaker Khalid al-Attiyah
will oversee parliamentary sessions until a new speaker is appointed.
KR
[46] FOREIGN MINISTER SAYS IRAQ IS READY FOR TALKS WITH TURKEY
Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari told the BBC on June 9 that Iraq
is ready to hold talks with Turkey on how to deal with the issue of
Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants holed up in northern Iraq. "We
are against any military interventions or violations of [Iraq's]
borders or regional security, and all issues are negotiable and can be
resolved through dialogue," Zebari said. The Patriotic Union of
Kurdistan (PUK) reported on its website on June 7 and 8 that Turkey has
shelled several Iraqi villages in the northern Irbil and Dahuk
governorates in strikes targeting militants of the PKK. KR
[47] IRAQI PRESIDENT RULES OUT BACK-TRACKING ON ARTICLE 140
A representative of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) has denied
reports that President Jalal Talabani agreed to delay implementation of
Article 140 of the constitution, which refers to normalization measures
in Kirkuk, the PUK reported in a statement posted to its website on
June 9. Azad Jundiyani said the media reports are "completely untrue"
and aimed at "distorting facts," adding, "The only reality is that the
Kurdistan leadership [of Talabani and regional president Mas'ud
Barzani] is passionately committed to the implementation of Article 140
in its present form." Talabani told reporters at a June 7 news
conference in Salah Al-Din that Barzani will head a newly formed
commission on Article 140 to oversee implementation of the article,
which calls for a three-step process of normalization, a census, and
finally a referendum to determine whether Kirkuk is to be integrated
into the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region. KR
[48] ANFAL VERDICT DELAYED IN IRAQ
The Iraqi High Tribunal announced on June 10 that the verdict in the
Al-Anfal trial will be handed down on June 24, Iraqi media reported. A
verdict had been anticipated on June 11. Prosecutor Munqith al-Farun
asked the court to sentence the defendants to death for their crimes
during the 1988 Anfal operation, which prosecutors say killed 180,000
Kurds under the leadership of Saddam Hussein. Defendants have said they
acted on Hussein's orders. Among the defendants in the case are Ali
Hasan al-Majid, also known as Chemical Ali, who carried out orders to
use chemical weapons against Kurdish villages in northern Iraq; former
Defense Minister Sultan Hashim Ahmad; former Lieutenant General and
head of military intelligence Sabir Abd al-Aziz al-Duri; Husayn Rashid
al-Tikriti, former army chief of staff and secretary-general of the
General Command of the Armed Forces; former Industry Minister Tahir
Tawfiq al-Ani; and Farhan Mutlaq al-Juburi, a former major general and
director of military intelligence in Kurdistan. KR
End Note
[49] THERE IS NO END NOTE TODAY
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