DATE=10/28/1999
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=U-S / ARMENIA (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-255581
BYLINE=KYLE KING
DATELINE=STATE DEPARTMENT
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Secretary of State Madeleine Albright has
ordered her Deputy Strobe Talbott back to Armenia to
offer U-S support in the wake of Wednesday's deadly
hostage drama in the Armenian Parliament. From the
State Department, VOA's Kyle King reports.
TEXT: The United States has strongly condemned
Wednesday's attack on government leaders and
lawmakers.
President Clinton and Secretary of State Albright have
offered their condolences to the families of the
victims, which included the Prime Minister (Vazgen
Sarkisian).
Speaking to reporters at the State Department, Ms.
Albright said she spoke by telephone with Armenian
President Robert Kocharian to express her sorrow.
/// FIRST ALBRIGHT ACT ///
I also asked Deputy Secretary of State Strobe
Talbott to return to Yeravan briefly after he
finishes his work in Moscow to express
personally the President's and my condolences
and support for Armenia.
/// END ACT ///
Mr. Talbott was in Yerevan earlier this week. He had
been holding talks on ways to resolve Armenia's long
running conflict with Azerbaijan over the disputed
territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.
/// REST OPT ///
Asked about the spread of conflict in Southern regions
of the former Soviet Union, Ms. Albright said this is
clearly a difficult period for an area where peace is
necessary.
She said the world was watching what most people had
only read about, the devolution of a major empire,
with all its various ethnic groups and languages.
In remarks clearly directed at recent events in the
breakaway Russian Republic of Chechnya, Ms. Albright
said she was concerned about the effect of Russian
policies.
/// SECOND ALBRIGHT ACT ///
Try to make sure it does not become an area for
terrorists, who threaten us all, and do what we
can to push in turn and suggest to Moscow to go
in the right direction. We have been troubled
by some of the steps they have taken and said
some of them are ominous and we keep discussing
this issue with them.
/// END ACT ///
The Secretary said she expected to meet Russian
Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov in Oslo next week. The
Secretary will be accompanying President Clinton to
the Norwegian capital for a memorial honoring the late
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. (Signed)
NEB/KBK/TVM/gm
28-Oct-1999 15:39 PM EDT (28-Oct-1999 1939 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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