Beginning in this issue of Armenian Forum, we present our readers a number of contributions on the Kurdish Question. Simon Payaslian provides an overview of the geopolitical situation of the Kurdish people and examines the prospects for the establishment of a Kurdish state, with special reference to international law. A photo-essay by Onnik Krikorian takes us to Kharpert, Bingöl (Dersim), Diyarbakir, Istanbul, and Yerevan to give us a glimpse of Kurdish society.

Another matter in the news is the disposition of the wealth of Holocaust victims. Dickran Kouymjian takes the occasion to look at the individual and collective assets of the victims of the Armenian Genocide. He argues that the Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul is the rightful heir to some of those assets today.

In our first issue, we carried a conversation on Caspian oil. In this issue, oil experts Onnic Marashian and Melcon Melconian consider the matter. Marashian argues that the potential of Caspian oil fields has been exaggerated for political reasons. Melconian argues that plans to build oil pipelines within Armenia’s "gaze" provide an important opportunity for Armenia since they "empower Armenia with the capability to guarantee the security of the pipeline routes."

David Calonne writes about William Saroyan and Armenian women. He shows that Saroyan’s work was deeply influenced by the Armenian women in his life.

Khachig Tölölyan, Krikor Beledian, and Haratch correspondent Arpi Totoyan recently held an insightful exchange of views on the relationship between diasporan communities and the Armenian republic. We present a detailed report on the exchange, which is in many ways an eye-opener.

We would like to welcome Stephanie Platz, Alex Manoogian Assistant Professor of Modern Armenian History at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, to our editorial board.