ARMENIANS PROTEST WITHDRAWAL OF TROOPS FROM SAMTSKHE-JAVAKHETI

Interfax News Agency
Russia & CIS Military Newswire
May 30, 2006 Tuesday 4:49 PM MSK

Several hundred people have held a protest in Yerevan opposing the
withdrawal of Russian home to a significant number of Armenians,
an Interfax correspondent reports.

“History has shown that when Russians leave, Armenians soon follow
them,” Aram Karapetian, leader of the New Times party, which organized
the rally, said.

“Radical changes will happen after Russian troops pull out of the
Samtskhe-Javakheti region. In particular, the socio-political situation
will change as a result of the resettlement of Meskhetian Turks, which
will result in clashes with the Armenians who live in the region,”
he said.

After the Russian troops withdraw, serious destabilizing factors will
emerge in the region, he said.

Armenia and Georgia are planning to sign a border demarcation treaty
and “we believe that the issue of Samtskhe-Javakheti should be fully
settled before the document is signed,” he said.

CHIRAC INDICATES NEED FOR URGENT SETTLEMENT OF KARABAKH ISSUE

PanARMENIAN.Net
30.05.2006 18:31 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ French President Jacques Chirac indicated the need
for urgent settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh issue at a meeting with
his Azeri counterpart Ilham Aliyev May 30. The French leader remarked,
“there is no alternative to peace talks and reminded of importance
of peace for Azerbaijan, Armenia and the region as a whole.”

According to a Elysee Palace representative, the French President
“confirmed the principles of joint statement of representatives of
the OSCE MG three co-chair states, made in Yerevan on May 25,” which
points out, “time has come for the parties to reach accord over basic
principles of settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict.”

ARMENIAN NEW SPEAKER TO BE ELECTED MAY 31

PanARMENIAN.Net
30.05.2006 18:45 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian National Assembly will convene a special
session on May 31 to elect a new Speaker. A respective decision was
signed by Parliamentary Vice-Speaker Tigran Torosyan in compliance with
item 2 of article 19 of the National Assembly Regulations, reports
the Press Service of the Armenian NA. Chairs of Standing Commissions
on Defense, Security and Internal Affairs, as well as Social Issues,
Health and Environment will also be elected at the Armenian National
Assembly special session.

May 29 Artur Baghdassaryan confirmed his retirement from the office of
the Speaker. May 25 the Parliament accepted the retirement of Chair
of the Standing Commission on Defense, Internal Affairs and National
Security Mher Shahgeldyan and Chair of Commission for Social Issues,
Health and Environment Gagik Mkheyan.

They were both members of Orinats Yerkir Party.

ARMENIAN SOLDIER KILLED IN EXCHANGE OF FIRE WITH AZERBAIJAN

Interfax News Agency
Russia & CIS Military Newswire
May 30, 2006 Tuesday

An Armenian soldier was killed in an exchange of fire at the
Armenian-Azerbaijani contact line, the press service of the Armenian
Defense Ministry told Interfax on Monday.

Armenian troops were fired at near the town of Noyemberyan at 9.30
p.m. local time (1630 GMT) on May 27, the press service said.

“An Armenian soldier, Color Sergeant Levon Adamian born in 1985,
was wounded in the chest, he was taken to hospital where he died,”
a statement issued by the press service said.

The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry has yet to comment on the incident.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARAM KARAPETYAN DOESN’T INTERFERE IN THE INTERNAL AFFAIRS OF GEORGIA

A1+
[07:28 pm] 30 May, 2006

“New Times” party held a meeting in Shahoumyan Square with the claim
“Attention to Javakhq.” The meeting participants were surprisingly
fewer than it was expected. According to chairman of the party Aram
Karapetyan this was determined by the hindrance of the authorities.

He says that several buses broke down in a few regions, and people
couldn’t arrive at the meeting.

The most striking was that the meeting aroused great interest among
the Armenian representatives of the Russian Mass Media.

The meeting didn’t start at once in the square. Hovik Tamamyan, Chief
Police Officer of Kentron, quarreled with some people asking them
about the reason of their gathering before Aram Karapetyan’s arrival.

“They say that the Akhalqalaq residents are settling their affairs,
go and join them,” says an elderly women from Akhalqalaq. “I have
never mingled with their affairs, I simply came, stood silent and
kept public order, but as the question of my compatriots is being
discussed how can I keep silent?.”

The meeting was allowed by the Yerevan municipality.

“We don’t want to interfere in the internal affairs of Georgia it
is not our task. Our task is to inform the RA Government about the
changes in Georgia. The last events testify to the fact that all
the changes lead to a failure, to a collapse. And what will Javakhq
benefit from it is still unknown,” states Aram Karapetyan.

“We want them to draw their attention to us as we need it. The youth
have no job, only elderly people stay in the countries. Schools have
turned into Georgian one, and this is one of the main reasons for
abandoning motherland,” claimed the participants of the meeting.

Aram Karapetyan, leader of the “New Times” party announced that the
aim of their meeting today is not to demand Robert Kocharyan’s or
Serge Sargsyan’s resignation. Their number one problem is the issue of
Javakhq. Then he added that their meeting will not hinder the solution
of the problem, on the contrary, it will strengthen it as people will
know that such questions are aroused in their homeland. “If Georgia
is our friend it will try to understand us,” urges Mr. Karapetyan.

Today the party “New Times” released letters to the RA Government,
RA Foreign Ministry and Georgian Embassy with the claim “Attention
to Javakhq.”

By the way, according to Aram Karapetyan they will continue their
meetings until the RA authorities react to their complaints. “We
closely cooperate with the Javakhq organizations and they think
Armenia pays less attention to Javakhq.”

RA REPRESENTATIVE WAS ELECTED DEPUTY CHAIRMAN

A1+
[08:38 pm] 30 May, 2006

Emin Eritsyan, head of the Armenian delegation was elected the deputy
chairman of the European Council Congress and a member of the Bureau
on the first day of the 13th session of the Congress of the European
Council regional and local authorities.

So far this is the highest post in the European structures held by
the Armenian representatives.

ANOTHER “OUR MOTHERLAND”

A1+
[09:09 pm] 30 May, 2006

The talks on introducing changes into the RA hymn were followed by
practical steps. Composer Robert Amirkhanyan presented his version
of the hymn in the Yerevan State University.

The composer claims that the music is the outcome of his assiduous and
year-long work and it has constantly been worked out. The author of
the words is again Amirkhanyan. By his step of presenting his version
of the hymn he shows his love for the country, maintaining that only
in this way one can prove that he is not indifferent to his homeland.

“Today I share my feelings with people who are concerned whether we do
anything or not. I had a few tasks. I strove to find the spirit and
inspiration of revival. It is rather difficult to create a symbol
within a moment and a half which is likely to remain for ever,”
says the composer.

While speaking of the music of the hymn of the Soviet Armenia the
composer stated that it is the symbol of the second republic. “The
third republic must have its symbol and improve it in the future,”
claims Amirkhanyan.

Robert Amirkhanyan is going to present his work in the competition
and claims that the public must listen to all the versions before
the final decision of the Committee is made.

Conductor and head of the Chamber orchestra Robert Mlkeyan supported
Robert Amirkhanyan’s opinion on this score. “We had an excellent hymn
written by Khachatryan but it is no longer the hymn of Armenia.

The present hymn is inadmissible, humiliating and improper. As a
citizen of RA I want it to be changed,” noted Robert Mlkeyan.

GOVERNMENT COMMISSION ENDORSES COMPANY BID TO RAISE DRINKING WATER PRICE

Armenpress
May 30 2006

YEREVAN, MAY 30, ARMENPRESS: From July 1 residents of Yerevan and
33 communities lying in close vicinity will pay 172,8 drams per
one cubic meter of drinking water instead of current 125 drams. The
decision was made today by the Armenian government Public Services
Regulatory Commission which has actually endorsed an application by
Yerevan Water company seeking a hike in the price of drinking water
and waste water removal.

This price was originally suggested by the French General des Aux
company that won an international tender to run the Yerevan Water
Supply and Removal company for ten years. It was renamed later the
Yerevan Water.

Under the agreement signed by the Armenian government and General des
Aux, the tariff will be reduced gradually to 90 drams by 2016. However,
the exchange rate of the Armenian national currency-Dram-against Euro
and some other factors may prompt the company to revise these tariffs.

Serge Popoff, the chief manager of Yerevan Water, said the company
will work to improve the quality of drinking water and meet consumers’
demands. He said by the end of the contract term 95 percent of Yerevan
population will have 24-hour water supply against 78 percent now.

The company has pledged to invest $22 million of the World Bank credit
into improvement of the system together with 16.7 million euros from
the company’s future profits and 9.1 million euros will be invested
by General des Aux.

ANOTHER ARMENIAN YOUTH MURDERED IN RUSSIA

Armenpress
May 30 2006

MOSCOW, MAY 30, ARMENPRESS: A 19 year-old Armenian boy, Arthur
Sardarian, was killed on May 25 in a train bound from Moscow to
the town of Pushkin, where his family of Armenian refugees from
Azerbaijan lived.

This was the second killing of an Armenian youth in one month. In
late April a 17-year-old Armenian native Vigen Abramyants, a Moscow
university student, was attacked and stabbed to death by a group of
skinheads on a Metro platform. He died on the spot.

Abramyants’ murder prompted sharp criticism from the Union of Russian
Armenians, whose chairman Ara Abrahamian, slammed Russian authorities
for avoiding to classify these killings as racially motivated.

The second victim, Arthur Sardarian, was reportedly killed by a gang of
skinheads. The police said he was stabbed to death receiving several
knife strikes in his back and the heart and died immediately. Russian
police have opened a criminal case into the murder classifying it as
a hate crime. According to an eye-witness, the attackers, who chased
the Armenian boy in the carriage before reaching him shouted’ Long Live
Russia.” An eye-witness said the people in the car did not interfere.

The international human rights watchdog-Amnesty International, said
in its latest report that racist killings in Russia were “out of
control.” The Amnesty report, entitled “Russian Federation: Violent
racism out of control”, includes examples of police and prosecutors
routinely classifying murders and serious assaults by skinhead
extremists as the lesser crime of “hooliganism”.

EU TO OPEN 1ST ROUND OF TALKS WITH TURKEY ON JUNE 12

PanARMENIAN.Net
30.05.2006 15:13 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ During their meeting in Vienna over the weekend,
European Union foreign ministers agreed to open the first round of
negotiations with Turkey on June 12 during the ministers’ meeting
in Luxembourg.

Diplomatic sources stated that the EU plans to open talks on the
science and research chapter during the Turkey-EU Partnership Council
meeting the same day in Luxembourg. Sources also underlined that the
decision taken by the 25-nation bloc’s foreign ministers is aimed at
strengthening reforms in Turkey, which will give a positive message
to those who object to Turkey’s EU bid. They underlined that although
Austria, which will hold the rotating EU term presidency until the
end of June, is unwilling to open talks with Turkey, it might welcome
the opening of talks on one chapter during its presidency to shake
the impression that Vienna is biased against Turkey, reports the New
Anatolian Agency.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress