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By Tatoul Hagopian
Azg DAILY, sept 6th, 2002, EREVAN
It seems like the wordswill at last turn into action regardingthe so much advertised Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan crude oil pipeline.The construction of the pipeline, which will have a length of1,760 km, is said to start this month.
Three days ago the names of the companies which will carry outthe construction of the pipeline were announced. Greek'Consolidated Contractors International Company' (CCIC), French'Spiecopag' and US 'Petrofak', Turkish state 'BOTASH' companieswill respectively carry out the construction works of thepipeline in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey.
The Azeri press is in a perturbed situation on these days. Thepipeline construction in the Azeri territory will be carried outby the CCIC Greek company, a company of a state thattraditionally has a pro-Armenian position. Moreover, it turnsout that the directors of the company are two Lebanese Arabbusinessmen, and what's even worse is that their chief advisoris an Armenian Baku-based Zerkalo daily, giving the autobiography of GevorgToroyan, naturally gives distorted information as well. Thepaper connected him with the Turkish-Armenian ReconciliationCommission (TARC), saying that he is a TARC member. Azeri'Shargh' news agency, quoting as if some reliable sources,writes that CCIC's capital has Lebanese and Armenian roots.Heydar Aliyev expressed his concern when he found out that theGreek company is going to construct the Azeri part of the oil pipeline.
Zerkalo also said that Toroyan is the deputy chairman of'Hayastan' Pan-Armenian Fund's US West shore office, and speaksfluent Turkish. We found out from the 'Hayastan' Fund's Yerevanoffice that Mr. Toroyan has visited Armenia recently andparticipated in a clinic's opening ceremony in Stepanakert,which was sponsored by the fund.
Astonishing here is the regressive thinking of Azeris. So whatif the advisor of CCIC is an Armenian, or that the company hasconnections with Armenians. That will not hurt the pipelineconstruction any. Our neighbors forget that Baku was alsoconstructed by Armenians. So there is nothing to worry about,dear neighbors!
http://www.azg.am/
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