News Digest

EU visit put on hold over Iraqi crises
A European Union (EU) delegation, including Italian, Greek and French deputy foreign ministers and top EU officials Havier Solana and Chris Patten, has postponed its visit scheduled for March 11-12 to Georgia to be followed by Armenia and Azerbaijan. The postponement is due to growing tension around Iraq with the EU leadership needing to participate in important international forums on the matter, including UN Security Council sessions, a spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry told Azernews on Friday. Consultations will start soon to fix a new date.

Protest actions against missionaries
The founder of the religious development association Iman (Belief), Miremin Seyid Hasanzada told a news conference on Friday that protest actions would be organized shortly against missionary organizations which disrespect Islam.  The news conference held at the Ideal press club was devoted to missionary organizations becoming more active in Azerbaijan. Hasanzada said the association would cooperate with State Committee on Religious Bodies to address those who disrespect Islam. According to him, the damning evidence was already available on certain missionaries.

Istanbul summit on banks and investments in the Caspian
The first summit focused on banks and investments in the CIS and the Caspian Basin countries is to be held in Istanbul, on March 19 to 20.  It is expected to give impetus to the enhancement of cooperation between regional bank and financial structures, to prepare ground for the protection of investors rights and investment projects, to discuss the role of international financial institutions in financing oil and gas projects in the Caspian region, etc. Following the announcement, a source at the National Bank of Azerbaijan (NBA) said the ministers of finance, economic development, labor and social security would be among members of the Azeri delegation to the summit. The list of NBA representatives to attend the summit is still to be approved by the bank's chairman Elman Rustamov, who is currently outside Azerbaijan.

President’s son 'premier ambitions'  mere rumour
In an attempt to shed light on the opposition-press reports on placing Ilham Aliyev at the head of the Azerbaijani Cabinet in the near future, vice speaker Ziyafat Asgarov told AssA-Irada that "deputy Ilham Aliyev deserves any state post." He refuted all rumours by saying that "no such issue  is on the parliamentary agenda." In today's issues the majority of the opposition press reported worsening of president Aliyev's state of health and predicted that the next session of Milli Maclis will be marked by the approval of Ilham Aliyev as premier, which in turn could facilitate the realisation of the alleged heir plan.

‘Qarabag problem complicated, difficult and sensitive’
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Committee on political affairs met in Paris on March 5. Rapporteur on the Upper Qarabag conflict Terri Davis made a speech to the meeting, describing the issue as very complicated, difficult and sensitive. Terri Davis said he became familiar with key material provided by Azerbaijan and Armenia, and met with the OSCE special envoy Kasperchek. Furthermore, Davis said he would visit Armenia and Azerbaijan shortly and meet with both the Armenian and Azerbaijani communities of Upper Qarabag.