UNITED STATES AND CAUCASUS ASSOCIATION

FOR DEMOCRACY AND ECONOMIC STABILITY

P.G. 1

PROJECT Voices From Free Nations

Armenia
EUROPE RUSSIA
GEORGIA

April, 2012
Azerbaijan
4-Apr: Azerbaijan and Russia continue to discuss terms regarding the renewal or Russia's lease on the Gabala radar station. The lease currently expires in December of 2012 and Moscow wishes to extend the lease to 2025. Ali Hasanov, the representative of the Azerbaijani Presidential Administration, announced that Baku has not yet d e c i d e d u n d e r wh at c o n d i t i o n s Azerbaijan would be willing to renew the lease. In response the Prime Minister of Armenia, Tigran Sargsyan, offered to construct a new radar station in its territory. 4-A pr: Rov n aq A bdullayev, th e president of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), told journalists that other companies such as BP Plc, Statoil ASA and Total SA are invested in investing in the Trans-Anatolian Pipeline project (TANAP). TANAP is the 2,000 km pipeline that will transport Caspian gas to Europe via Turkey. SOCAR currently has an 80% stake in TANAP, with the other 20% held by the Turkey's stateowned company BOTA. 12-Apr: Valeh Alasgarov, Vice Speaker of the Azerbaijans Parliament, stated that European leaders should take concrete steps towards implementation of the Nabucco Project. The Nabucco gas pipeline project was an EU initiated designed to limit Europe's dependency on Russian gas, but in recent years the EU has shown little inclination to support the project. 18-Apr: Elman Abdullayev, Spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan, stated that the European Parliament adopted a resolution which reects its respect for Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. Abdullayev assessed the resolution and called it a signicant victory of Azerbaijani diplomacy.

Issue 8
Georgia
3-Apr: Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili held a meeting with NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen at the headquarters of NATO in Brussels. The visit serves as preparation for the upcoming NATO Summit in Chicago in May 2012. One of the items on the Summit's agenda is to recognize the efforts Georgia has made on its path to improve reforms as well as its contibution in NATO-led operations in Afghanistan. Georgia's goal is to become a full member of NATO. Parliament of Georgia

ASIA
NAG. KAR ABA

ARMEN

IA

TURKEY
AZER BA IJAN

KH

AZERBA IJA

IRAQ

IRAN

2-Apr: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov visited Armenia to strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries and focus on the interests of both the Armenian and Russian people. Sides discussed topics concerning mining, agriculture, and the construction of a new nuclear power unit in Armenia. 4-Apr: Cyprus Foreign Minister, Erato Kozakou-Marcoullis held an ofcial visit in Yerevan. Kozakou-Marcoullis, met with Prime Minster of Armenia, Tigran Sargsyan. Sides acknowledged the untapped economic potential between the two states and agreed to promote prog rams emphas izing economic development between the two states. 10-Apr: Armenia has started importing oil from Iran, several months after Februarys conrmation of an oil agreement between the two states. Jalil Salari, managing director of the N a t i o n a l I r a n i a n O i l P ro d u c t s Distribution Company, has stated that it is much cheaper for Armenia to purchase oil from Iran than Georgia. Oil will continue to be imported from Lories until the Iran-Armenia oil pipeline is completed. 18-Apr: Armenia's government has completed various meetings with Boris Alyushin, Head of the International Organization for Standardization, which is the world's largest developer an d publis h er of In ter n ation al Standards. With Alyushin's assistance Armenia has begun to introduce international standards into the country. Alyushin is a Russian native and his visit contributes to the strengthening bilateral relations between Armenia and Russia.

Points of Consideration
Will the Gabala station break Russian-Azerbaijani relations?
It is still unclear whether Azerbaijan will extend Russia'slease of the Gabala radar station. Is Azerbaijan prepared to lose its political leverage?

Is the Iranian issue nally settled?

Tensions over Irans nuclear program have eased, though it is unclear when the easing of tensions started or how long this will last. What is clear is that Turkeys active diplomatic involvement most likely helped prevent a major armed conict in the Caucasus region.

A model of the new Parliament building, designed by CMD Ingenieros. Georgias second capitol city Kutaisi.

Will NATO uphold its principles?

The NATO press center released its agenda, and noticeably absent was NATO's plans for expansion. If NATO leaders keep their promises then Bosnia-Herzegovina, Georgia, Macedonia, and Montenegro will remain one step away from joining NATO.

6-Apr: Georgia has issued formal invitations to international organizations inviting them to observe the Georgian elections that are planned to be held in October 2012. Numerous delegates from institutions such as the EU and NATO will monitor before and during the elections. 6-8-Apr: With the joint initiative of US Governments Economic Prosperity Initiative (EPI) and the Georgian National Tourism Administration (GNTA) the MICE program has been created. MICE stands for meeting, incentive, convention, and event tourism. The goal of the program is to attract the seminars and workshops of international companies. During the rst Caucasus Travel Fair more than 90 companies participated.

Is the NABUCCO project still under consideration?

EU invested 1215billion in the NABUCCO project, the plan to build a natural gas pipeline though the SouthernCaucasusregion. However, to date it remains unclear when, or even if, the project will be completed.

VOICES FROM FREE NATIONS

www.uscadp.org

UNITED STATES AND CAUCASUS ASSOCIATION

10-Apr: After an 18 month development period, Georgia introduced its own unmanned UAV drones. President Mikheil Saakashvili tested a drone himself and expressed his conviction that the classied informationregarding production of the UAV will remain a secret. The secrecy is especially important after it was revealed last year that UAV's purchased from Israel were not secure.

FOR DEMOCRACY AND ECONOMIC STABILITY showed interest in expending partnership opportunities with Dogan Holding. 28-Apr: Candidates in the French presidential election made statements regarding the Ottoman Empire's mass killing of Armenians during WWI. Turkish President Abdullah Gl objected to the statements. He did offer to create a plan for the establishment of a mutual Turkish-Armenian working group of intellectuals whose task would be to deter mine whether the events of 1915-17constitutedthe genocide.

P.G. 1
economic cooperation between their countries. 12-Apr: Chairman of Irans Chamber of Commerce, Industries, and Mines, Mohammad Nahavandian stated that delegations from Egypt, Sudan, Jordan, Libya, and Turkey would soon be visiting his nation to discuss boosting multi-lateral trade ties. This is part of Ahmadinejad's continuing efforts to expand Iran's non-oil exports to $60 billion by 2013. The non-oil exports would mainly include gas condensates, mineral fuel, chemical products, plastics, fruits, nuts, carpets, and fertilizers.

regarding questions concerning Iran, N. Korea, and Syria. 20-Apr: Moscow hosted a joint meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense of Russia and Italy in a format two-plus-two. Ministers exchanged opinions on issues related to the creation of new architecture that would ensure European safety and prospects for cooperation between the Russian Council and NATO.

Russia
6-Apr: Jean-Jacques Dordain, the head of the European Space Agency (ESA), met with the Vladimir Popovkin, the chief of the Russian Federal Space A g e n c y ( RO S C O S M O S ) . T h e y discussedquestions concerning the Mars research project that is scheduled to take place in 2016. Popovkin expressed Russia's desire to participate in the project along with the ESA. 6-Apr: The Vice-Chairman of the Board of JSCGAZPROMAlexander Medvedev met with the Executive VicePresident of the S. Korean gas corporation KOGAS Pak Yon Son. During the meeting parties discussed questions regarding the pipeline which would supply Russian natural gas to S. Korea via territory of N. Korea. 10-Apr: The Russian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Ryabkov held meetings with the First Deputy US States Secretary William Burns, the Senior Deputy US Secretary Wendy Sherman, and the Special Envoy for Strategic Stability and Missile Defense Ellen Tausher. The main focus was

Turkey
7-Apr: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the friends of the Syrian people summit. Sides discussed many political issues including Turkey's continued problems with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). The PKK is identied as a radical association by the US, the EU, and Turkey. Clinton declared that the US will provide help to Turkey in its efforts to resolve its problems with PKK. 7-Apr: Foreign Minister of Turkey, Ahmet Davutoglu declared that Turkey is prepared to provide a conduit for a peaceful dialogues between the West and Iran regarding Iran's nuclear interests. UN Security Council plus Germany (P5+1) have started talks with Iran in an effort to nd a mutuallyacceptableplace for negotiation. 20-Apr: The Trump Organization showed an interest in a partnership with Dogan Holding. During an ofcial meeting in Istanbul with the Chairman of the Dogan Holding, Donald Trump

Iran
2-Apr: During a meeting with Prime Minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdog an, President of Iran Dr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad discussed improving regional relations and increased bi-lateral trade between their nations. Ahmadinejad praised the Turkish nation for its openness in supporting Irans nuclear program despite pressure from the West. Ahmadinejad has also stated that both Iran and Turkey have common enemies and he urged Erdogan to help Iran foil their common enemys plots of keeping their nations from becoming global powers. 4-Apr: President of Iran, Dr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met with Vice-Chairman of Turkmenistan's Cabinet of Ministers, Baimurad Khojamukhamedov. Sides discussed ongoing efforts in constructing railway links between two countries. Both sides agreed that this is a historic project that aims to expand ongoing

The lesson of all history warns us that we should negotiate only when our military superiority is so convincing that we can achieve our objective at the conference table, and deny the aggressor theirs.
- Richard M. Nixon 17-Apr: Foreign Minister of Iran, Ali Akbar Salehi stated that the outcome of the talks between the UN Security Council plus Germany (Group 5+1) and Iran could be the rst steps in ending disputes regarding Irans nuclear program. Salehi also stated that these talks show the weakness of the Wests sanctions in pressuring Iran to stop pursing its peaceful nuclear rights.Salehi further stated that Iran feels positive about the results of the Istanbul negotiations and is looking forward to the next meeting scheduled in Bagdad on May 23rd.

United States and Caucasus ASSOCIATION

Selected News from CAUCASUS Voices From Free Nations is designed by the Caucasus News Letter Project (CNL). CNLs intent is to provide unvarnished news about the Caucasus region to the world. USCA is an American independent, nonpartisan nonprofit 501 (c) (3) corporation, dedicated to promoting democracy and economic stability in the Caucasus region. All contributions are tax deductible. USCAs Analysts at CNL Project daily observe political and economic developments in Caucasus and other peripheries. SPECIAL THANK YOU Kutaisi University KU and its leadership Leila Kelbakiani, Rector of KU for
corporate sponsorship of CNL project.

www.uscadp.org Phone: 904-237-5118 Fax: 904-358-3095 E-mail: infousca@me.com

CNL Editorial Board: Shota Mkheidze - Author of the Project; Colyn Newton - Project Manager/Chief Editor; Vaso Kuchukhidze - Analyst; Yasemin Karabudak - Jr. Analyst-intern; Fatlum Rushiti - Jr. Analyst-intern; Naadhira Ali - Jr. Analyst-intern; Russel Koehler - Jr. Analysts-intern; Inga Ormotsadze - Jr. Analyst-intern; and Lela Berdzuli - Jr. Analyst-intern.

VOICES FROM FREE NATIONS

www.uscadp.org