Month: March 2007

VARTAN OSKANIAN RECEIVED NATO ASSISTANT SECRETARY GENERAL FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

armradio.am
12.03.2007 17:17

On March 12 RA Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian received NATO Assistant
Secretary General for Public Diplomacy Jean Fournet.

Jean Fournet stressed the importance of opening the NATO Information
Center in Yerevan from the perspective of disseminating corresponding
information about the Alliance, specially underlining the importance
of the dialogue and discussions about NATO’s role and place for
the Alliance.

The interlocutors attached importance to involving the society in
the Armenia-NATO dialogue, which is not restricted to security issues
only and embraces a broad circle of public interests.

Reference was made to the accomplishment of the Armenia-NATO Individual
Partnership Action Plan.

CHAIRMAN OF DPA TO TAKE PART IN SITTING OF DIALOGUE OF CIVILIZATIONS FORUM

Noyan Tapan
Mar 12 2007

YEREVAN, MARCH 12, NOYAN TAPAN. Chairman of Democratic Party of
Armenia, RA MP Aram Sargsian will take part in the sitting of
Coordinating Committee of Dialogue of Civilizations World Public
Forum to be convened on March 12 in Paris. The NDP Chairman represents
Armenia in the Coordinating Executive Committee of that authoritative
international organization (Center Vienna) consisting of 10 members,
the head of which is former CE Chairman Walter Schwimmer. According to
the report submitted to Noyan Tapan from DPA central office, on March
13-14, A. Sargsian will take part in the international seminar on the
subject "Dialogue of Cultures and Civilizations: Bridge Between Human
Rights and Moral Values" to be convened in the capital of France with
the sponsorship of UNESCO, where he will make a report under the title
"The Centuries-Old Experience of Armenian Diaspora in Establishment
of Principles and Strategy of Joint life."

FORMER CAPTAIN OF ARMENIAN FOOTBALL NATIONAL TEAM VARDAN KHACHATRIAN IN GRAVE CONDITION

Noyan Tapan
Mar 12 2007

YEREVAN, MARCH 12, NOYAN TAPAN. On March 9, former captain of Armenian
football national team, Vardan Khachatrian was hospitalized with grave
injury in consequence of car accident. Through a misunderstanding
some media spread wrong information about the football player’s
death. On March 12, Noyan Tapan was informed from Pyunik club where
Vardan Khachatrian works that the football player is at the Armenia
medical center. Though doctors estimate his condition as grave,
sometimes he regains consciousness.

OPENING OF ARMENIAN CHESS CLUB TEAMS CHAMPIONSHIP TAKES PLACE

Noyan Tapan
Mar 12 2007

YEREVAN, MARCH 12, NOYAN TAPAN. Solemn opening ceremony of Armenian
club teams championship took place on March 12 at Yerevan’s Tigran
Petrosian Chess Player’s House. Five men’s and three ladies’ teams
will compete. To recap, the Bank King team, last year’s winner of
men tournament, is replenished with grand masters (Karen Asrian,
Smbat Lputian, Rafael Vahanian, Artashes Minasian, Ashot Anastasian,
Tigran L. Petrosian and Tigran Kotanjian). Mika Yerevan women’s club,
2006 Europe champion also has a strong staff (Maya Chiburdanidze –
Georgia, Elina Danielian, Lilit Mkrtchian, Nino Khurtsidze – Georgia
and teams newcomer, vice-champion of Armenia Liana Aghabekian).

ARMENIA GAS PRICE MAY GO UP WITH PIPELINE

Earthtimes.org
March 12 2007

YEREVAN, Armenia, March 12 Gas tariffs in Armenia may rise by $16
per 1,000 cubic meters if Yerevan invests in the second section of
the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline, an expert said.

The comments by Robert Nazaryan, chairman of Armenia’s public services
regulatory commission, came Monday as he was endorsing the Hayrusgazard
investment program for 2007-09, which is worth $193 million. The
comments were reported by the Arminfo news agency.

He said the costs might be less if Armenia’s supply of 3 kW of
electricity for 1 cu.m. of gas from Iran was taken into account.

He noted, however, that the investment was needed to ensure Armenia’s
energy security. Hayrusgazard plans to invest $93 million to increase
the capacity of the pipeline’s section running from Kajaran to Ararat,
Arminfo reported.

Work on the 120-mile pipeline began last year.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

DIASPORAN ARMENIAN GENERATION FINDS IT DIFFICULT TO READ IN ARMENIAN, EDITORS OF ARMENIAN NEWSPAPERS OF DIASPORA ARE ANXIOUS

Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
Mar 12 2007

YEREVAN, MARCH 12, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The majority
of periodicals of Diaspora are published in rather difficult
public, social, language conditions. Editors of the U.S. "Asbarez"
(field), Greece "Azat Or" (Free Day), Lebanon "Azdak" (Impulse),
Canada "Horizon," Iran "Alik" (Wave), U.S. "Hayrenik" (Fatherland)
newspapers who are on a working visit in Yerevan during these days,
stated about it at the March 10 press conference.

"Asbarez" editor Vache Brutian, particularly, mentioned that during
99 years that the newspaper has been published in the U.S. western
regions, the Armenian community was subjected to serious demographic
changes: the one that is comprehensive for Armenians come from
Beirut, is not understandable for those moved to U.S. from
other colonies. Continueing the theme, editor of the "Hayrenik"
periodical Khazhak Mkrtchian mentioned that different sections of
a non-homogeneous community are interested in articles touching
upon different themes, from educational materials to ones telling
about the tax field. Kh. Mkrtchian added that the serious reason of
difficulty in sale of the newspaper is that the younger generation
gradually forgets the mother tongue. In his words, their editorial
staff recently got a letter from a subscriber of the newspaper who
mentioned that his grandfather died and asks to send him the English
variant of the newspaper then. Hripsime Haroutiunian, the "Azat Or"
newspaper editor stated that they also have such a problem in Greece:
the new generation finds it difficult to read in Armenian, and because
of it articles are published in their newspaper in the Greek language
as well. Vahakn Karakashian, the editor of the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation "Horizon" official newspaper being publisged in Canada,
mentioned that the newspaper is able to care not only its printing
expenses but also to secure some profit. The speakers also touched upon
the issue of dual citizenship, saying that every Diasporan Armenian
has the right to be a citizen of Armenia, as not of his own will he
lost the possibility of living in the Fatherland.

CONFERENCE OF HAY DAT COMMITTEES OPENS IN YEREVAN

Yerkir
12.03.2007 17:09

YEREVAN (YERKIR) – The conference of the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation’s (ARF) Hay Dat committees opened in Yerevan on March 12. It
will discuss key aspects of Armenia’s domestic and foreign policies,
review the ARF Hay Dat strategy and discuss the work to be done by
the committees and offices.

This is the second such conference held in Yerevan. 85 members of
the ARF Hay Dat committees, youth and student organizations from
28 countries, including Argentina, USA, Canada, Belgium, Cyprus,
Uruguay and Great Britain, are attending the conference.

National Assembly deputy speaker and the ARF Bureau member made the
opening remarks. He was followed by Levon Mkrtchian, ARF Armenia
Supreme Body member and the Science and Education minister, and ARF
Armenia Supreme Body representative Armen Rustamian.

PRECIPITATIONS FORECAST IN COMING WEEK IN ARMENIA

Noyan Tapan
Mar 12 2007

YEREVAN, MARCH 12, NOYAN TAPAN. From time to time precipitations are
forecast on March 13-16 in some regions of Armenia. Due to cloudiness,
air temperature will rise by 3-5 degrees at night and will fall by
2-4 degrees in the daytime. As Noyan Tapan correspondent was informed
from Haypethydromet Department’s Meteorological Forecasts Unit,
in the coming days air temperature in the daytime in mountainous
regions will be 0 +5, at night -10, in Ararat valley, +9 +13 and -2
+3, respectively.

TURKEY LIFTS BAN ON YOUTUBE

About – News & Issues, NY
March 12 2007

Why did they ban it in the first place? Because there apparently were
some videos on there insulting Ataturk. (For the record, there are
videos on there insulting everybody.) According to the Associated
Press, a court ordered the popular video-sharing site blocked on
Wednesday pending demanded removal of the Ataturk stuff. Then,
suddenly:

"Ahter Kutadgu, head of corporate communications for Turk Telekom,
told the Anatolia news agency his company had been notified of a
court decision to lift the ban.

Kutadgu did not elaborate on the court’s reasoning. ‘As soon as the
court decision lifting the ban reached us, we immediately opened
YouTube,’ he said."

In 2005, Turkey outlawed "insulting Turkishness" and "insulting
Ataturk"; slain Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was convicted on the
Turkishness article.

Yet in addition to the regular clamps on freedom of expression seen
in such countries, the willy-nilly YouTube ban has an ominous edge
against citizen journalists. After all, it’s not the videos of people
performing "Jackass"-style stunts that such governments fear, but the
increasing use of video-sharing sites to distribute home footage of
government activities or protests around the globe.

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FORMER PRIME MINISTER OF ARMENIA RESPONDS TO EX GEORGIAN PRESIDENT

arminfo
2007-03-12 14:59:00

"They say that age brings wisdom but not always: sometimes, age
comes alone.

I think that Shevardnadze is exactly the case," former prime minister
of Armenia, rector of Russian-Armenian (Slavonic) State University
Armen Darbinyan said while commenting on the recent statements of ex
Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze in Region+ magazine (Baku).

When in office Shevardnadze turned the problem of Azeri fuel supplies
into a national idea and thereby curbed real sector development. This
is his own business and he will answer for it in due time, but to
try to impose the same policy on Armenia is too much. "His sense of
reality seems to be failing him," says Darbinyan.

To remind, when speaking of the Nagorno-Karabakh problem, Shevardnadze
said: "Sooner or later Armenians will realize that this problem must
be resolved, otherwise, they may lose their independence. Azerbaijan
is a strong country and has enough strength to solve any problem. I
think that Armenians will search for solution."