By empty (2/14/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)

In an address to parliament on 13 February, Tekebaev praised the work of the legislature but harshly criticized both President Kurmanbek Bakiev and Prime Minister Feliks Kulov. Calling parliament the country\'s \"most transparent branch of government,\" Tekebaev said that the legislature has \"evoked the intense envy of certain individuals, who have accused parliament of trying to assume the role of head of state.\" The remark apparently referred to a 3 February address in which Bakiev criticized parliament for allegedly exceeding its mandate.

By empty (2/13/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)

U.S. Minsk Group co-Chairman Steven Mann told RFE/RL in Rambouillet on 12 February that the two presidents discussed \"the full range of issues,\" and he characterized the \"personal atmospherics\" between them as \"good.

By empty (2/13/2006 issue of the CACI Analyst)

Robert Kocharian and Ilham Aliyev met separately on 10 February in Paris with French President Jacques Chirac, and later the same day and on 11 February in Rambouillet, to discuss approaches to resolving the Karabakh conflict, RFE/RL reported. But they failed to finalize the anticipated statement on general principles that could serve as a framework for resolving the conflict. The two presidents met for several hours on 10 February, first in the company of their respective foreign ministers and the co-chairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group, and then one-on-one; a further one-on-one meeting lasting some two hours took place on 11 February, after which the two presidents left Rambouillet without making any statement for the press.