Currency causes political firestorm

http://www.eurasianet.org/department...av090704.shtml

In article ,
John Stone wrote:
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/business/articles/eav090704.shtml

It's a kindness to provide a synopsis, for future Google News readers
and for those of us with intermittent Net links.

Over the past month and a half, two souvenir currency notes from
Nagorno-Karabakh have unleashed a storm of accusations and
counter-accusations between Azerbaijani officials and
representatives of the Armenian-controlled, self-styled republic
of Nagorno-Karabakh. ...

At present, the Karabakh peace talks are deadlocked. Azerbaijan is
adamantly opposed to any political arrangement that leaves
Karabakh outside its jurisdiction. Armenia, meanwhile, will not
accept a settlement that restores any level of Azerbaijani control
over the enclave. [For background see the Eurasia Insight
archive
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insight/articles/eav051204.shtml
[Briefly, Nagorno-Karabakh was in Azerbaijan in Soviet times
but had a population that was mostly Armenian.].

For Baku [capital of Azerbaijan], the two-dram and 10-dram notes
represent an attempt by the enclave to burnish its image as an
independent entity. "Despite the fact that this is not real money,
we cannot accept this and we strongly oppose any attempt at
creating this currency," said Fikret Pashayev, economic counselor
at the Azerbaijani embassy in Washington, DC. "It could create
further tension in the region."

For Armenian leaders in the Karabakh capital of Stepanakert, the
bank notes are seen as an attempt to reinforce their republic?s
right to exist. "Of course, my government is involved in this,"
said Vardan Barseghian, the US representative of the self-declared
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. "We see this as a promotion for
Nagorno-Karabakh."

--
Tim McDaniel; Reply-To: