Nation

ETHNIC AZERIS OF GEORGIA CONCERNED

Ethnic Azeris of Georgia told a meeting with the Musavat chairman Isa Gambar Monday that 37 Georgian villages that used to have ancient Azeri names have been renamed into Georgian ones. Children in 16 villages receive their education in Georgian, while the number of problems of ethnic Azeris is on the increase. Unless the Azerbaijan government takes urgent measures, unpredictable things may occur, the ethnic Azeris, including several intellectuals, men of science and culture, said.

It has been decided to step up the work of "Borchali" society, which unites ethnic Azeris of Georgia, and to establish relations with political parties in the country.

‘Armenian trace not ruled out’, Musavat says ,

When asked by "Echo" newspaper whether there is an Armenian trace in the US terror attacks, the leader of "Musavat" Isa Gambar said, "At first sight, Armenia and Armenian terrorist organizations seem to have no motive to launch the attack on the United States. But, it is common knowledge that terrorist organizations are not in isolation and are closely interconnected. Terrorism has already assumed international proportions. It is a proven fact that Armenian terrorist organizations cooperate with other radical groups and organizations, which was the case between Armenian Asala and Arab terror organizations and Kurdish PKK. Therefore, it is impossible to completely rule out an Armenian trace in the US terror attacks. I think the US must attach special importance to this issue, because the inclusion of only Islamic groups into the list of suspects does not seem convincing.

H.ALIYEV DESCRIBES ARMENIAN AGGRESSION AS TERROR

President Aliyev received a visiting Kuwaiti parliament group for friendship with Azerbaijan Thursday. He said the visit by the delegation represents a great importance to bilateral relations.

Head of the delegation Jamal Hussein Fahat al-Omar said in his remarks that he had witnessed the problems imposed by Armenian aggression, the suffering and deprivation of Azeri refugees. He added that Kuwait too had faced the same problems and although the conflict between Iraq and Kuwait has already been resolved, 625 Kuwaiti POWs still remain in Iraqi captivity.

Mr. Jamal Hussein Fahat al-Omar said Kuwait has vehemently condemned the terror attacks on the US. He went on to say that it is totally unacceptable to launch a comprehensive anti-Islamic campaign because of certain individuals, as is being done in some media.

Agreeing with the visit over the similarity of the problems in Azerbaijan and Kuwait. He added that Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan had been perpetrated in the form of separate terrorist acts. He then described Armenian aggression altogether as terror. Whereas Kuwait has succeeded in resolving its problem with the aid of the international community, Azerbaijan has been unable to do that for years. "We strongly renounce all terrorist acts and think the culprits must be hunted down and punished", the President said. He then ridiculed speculations concerning the hand of Islam in the attacks.

The Kuwaiti guests presented the President with a gift.

NAKHCHIVAN-TURKEY-GEORGIA RAILWAY LINE PROPOSED

A roundtable conference, "Geo-strategic situation in modern Nakhchivan and Armenian falsification", organized by the "Nakhchivan-Araz" society, was held at the "Ideal" press club last week, as chairman of the society Samir Adigozalzaseh said the group's objective is to struggle for liberation of the lost lands.

Chairman of the society's council of elders, former Azeri ambassador to Iran Aliyar Safarli said a recent statement by Armenia's "Nakhchivan" society concerning the liquidation of the Kars agreement (between Turkey and Russia signed in 1920) was very alarming. He said since Armenians regard Nakhchivan as their own territory, it is necessary to assertively expose the true goals being pursued by Armenian ideologists and the "great Armenia" obsession behind such policy. He indicated that in order to prevent the fate of Garabagh from repetition, a book on the history of Nakhchivan must be published and translated into many languages.

The society intends to suggest to the government to establish the Nakhchivan-Turkey-Georgia railway line.

Since 1921, after the Azeri region of Zangazur was transferred to Armenia, Nakhchivan has been isolated from the rest of Azerbaijan. Since 1990 Nakhchivan has been in Armenian blockade and the neighboring country has destroyed the railway connected the autonomous republic with Azerbaijan. The only means of communication with Nakhchivan is by air.

NATO PA CHAIRMAN’s VISIT SCHEDULED FOR NOVEMBER

An official visit to Azerbaijan by the chairman of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Rafael Esterello has been set for early November. According to a diplomatic source, during the visit the parties will focus on prospects of Azerbaijan's accession to the organization. Mr. Esterello is expected to become familiar with Azerbaijan's legislative system and to which extent the Azerbaijan army meets the NATO standards. The distinguished guest will also met with the Azerbaijan government officials.

COOPERATION WITH GERMAN CONSTITUTIONAL COURT ON AGENDA

Chairman of the Constitutional Court Khanlar Hajiyev is currently in Germany on a working visit. On the invitation of his German counterpart Mrs. Yulta Limbach he is attending the celebrations dedicated to the 50th jubilee of the German Constitutional Court, a source from the CC of Azerbaijan said Saturday.

Mr. Hajiyev will also become familiar with the work of Germany judicial system. As part of the visit, the parties will sign an agreement on cooperation between the Constitutional Courts of the two countries.

AZERIS TO FOCUS ON MIGRATION IN YEREVAN

A meeting is due in Yerevan on October 8-10 as part of the Migration Sector Development Program funded by the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Representatives from migration centers of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia are expected to take part. The meeting aims to set further tasks within the program framework and outline improvement mechanisms that could lead to the development of this sector. The attendees will center on migration problems in South Caucasus.

Meanwhile, Tbilisi is expected to host an international conference dedicated to migration problems in November.

BP HOLDS TRAFFIC SAFETY WEEK FOR KIDS

The BP-held week of traffic safety entitled "Solidarity on the road is guarantee of safety" completed at the children motor-camp Friday. The campaign was held in cooperation with the center for extra-curricular activities of the Baku department for education and the Baku City Traffic Police. Children from 6 Baku schools has the opportunity of demonstrating their knowledge of traffic safety and driving skills. Those who qualified for the final were awarded by BP.

Around 20,000 children from 200 Baku school took part in the educational programs to this end.

GLOBAL VACCINATION AND IMMUNIZATION ALLIANCE HELPING KIDS

Inoculations of children against hepatitis B virus started in Azerbaijan on October 1 following a corresponding edict by Azeri health minister Ali Hasanov. The first portion of the vaccine is injected shortly after birth, the second - 2 months afterwards and the third at the age of four months.

The Vaccination is part of the medical assistance from the Global Vaccination and Immunization Alliance in the wake of increased hepatitis B cases worldwide.

AZERBAIJAN's ECOLOGICAL ATLAS COMPILED

NGO Ecores has compiled an ecological atlas of Azerbaijan with financial support from ISAR Azerbaijan. The atlas depicts sources of pollution in the region, pinpoints those responsible and ways of resolving the problems, says Mehdi Aliyev, project coordinator for training of ecological volunteers. He was speaking Tuesday to a two-day workshop at the UN Resource Center Tuesday.

The atlas represents an update of the ecological status of soil in the wake of its contamination with oil, pesticides, radioactive substances, metals, solid wastes, etc. The map divides the country in five ecological regions: the Caucasus Minor, Lankaran-Astara, Kur-Araz, the Great Caucasus, and Nakhchivan.

It also contains maps of forests, preserves, restricted areas, refugee-populated territories, as well as the military and ecological status of the Armenian-held territories of Azerbaijan.

The workshop, attended by representatives of NGOs, international organizations and journalists, provided some guidance as to the use of the atlas.

The workshop is expected to complete Wednesday.