Month: September 2008

UK CALLS TO HALT TALKS ON RUSSIA’S STRATEGIC PACT

PanARMENIAN.Net
01.09.2008 17:18 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Britain called on the Union to suspend talks on
closer ties with Russia over the recent events in Georgia.

As European leaders gathered in Brussels for an emergency summit,
Britain, which is advocating a tough line on Russia, urged the EU to
put on hold talks on a new strategic pact.

"In light of Russia’s actions we should suspend negotiations on
a successor to the partnership and cooperation agreement," said a
spokesman for the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown.

However, imposition of sanctions against Russia is not on the
EU agenda, according to High Commissioner Javier Solana. The EU
summit will focus on three issues: economic assistance to Georgia,
possibility of increasing the number of European observers in the
conflict zone and the regional initiative by Turkey, Azerbaijan and
Armenia on establishment of peace in the Caucasus.

Each of 27 member countries will be offered a possibility to express
opinion during the 3-hour summit, siteua.org reports.

WEST CAN URGE AZERI LEADERSHIP ON RESOLUTION OF KARABAKH PROBLEM BY USE OF FORCE?

PanARMENIAN.Net
01.09.2008 18:08 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The West’s ultimate goal is to weaken Russia’s
influence in Georgia and Azerbaijan, through which Nabucco pipelines
will go. It’s quite clear that the struggle for energy sources
transportation bypassing Russia is the main cause of armed conflict
in the Caucasus, according to a Russian expert.

"Gambling on Russia’s support to Armenia, there will be attempts to
involve Russia in a conflict with Azerbaijan, thus inciting the Azeri
leadership to resolve the Karabakh problem by the use of force,"
said Mikhail Delyagin, head of the institute of globalization studies.

Azerbaijan ‘has always pursued a reasonable foreign policy’,
according to him. "We hope that this country will not yield to
provocation. Furthermore, maintaining close ties with both Armenia and
Azerbaijan, Russia will not be able to take an unequivocal position
on Nagorno Karabakh," he said, ibk.ru reports.

LAVROV, BABACAN TO DISCUSS SITUATION IN SOUTH CAUCASUS

PanARMENIAN.Net
01.09.2008 18:32 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov of Russia and Ali
Babacan of Turkey will focus on the situation in Transcaucasia and
prospects of eliminating consequences of Georgia’s armed aggression
against South Ossetia, said Andrey Nesterenko, spokesman for the
Russian Foreign Ministry.

"The officials will discuss possibilities of implementation of the
Caucasus Stability and Cooperation Platform. They will also touch
on other urgent issues in the regional and international agenda as
well as on development of the Russian-Turkish relations," he said,
the RF MFA press office reported.

OSCE PA: KARABAKH CONFLICT MAIN OBSTACLE FOR COOPERATION BETWEEN SOUTH CAUCASUS COUNTRIES

PanARMENIAN.Net
01.09.2008 19:21 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Nagorno Karabakh conflict is the main obstacle
for cooperation between the South Caucasus countries, according to
Goran Lennmarker, OSCE PA special representative for Nagorno Karabakh.

"Resolution of the conflict can give a start to close cooperation
between the South Caucasus countries," he told reporters in Baku.

"Return of displaced persons and establishment of stability in the
region is important," he said, Trend Azeri news agency reports.

RA MFA: ARMENIAN, TURKISH PRESIDENTS TO DISCUSS WIDE SCOPE OF ISSUES IF GUL ARRIVES IN YEREVAN

PanARMENIAN.Net
01.09.2008 19:35 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ If Abdullah Gul visits Yerevan, the Presidents of
the two states will certainly consider a wide scope of international
and regional issues before attending the World Cup qualifying game,
RA Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian said during a meeting with
students and teaching staff of Yerevan State University.

The Minister presented priorities of Armenia’s foreign policy and
said that the annual meeting of Armenian ambassadors and permanent
representatives to international organizations will be held in Yerevan
on September 3.

He also informed that a diplomatic school will open in the republic
in the near future.

LENMARKER ARRIVES IN YEREVAN

AZG Armenian Daily
02/09/2008

OSCE-Armenia

Goran Lenmarker, OSCE PA Special Rapporteur, is to arrive in Yerevan
on Thursday, September 4. Director of the OSCE PA communication
department Klaas Bergman told Armenpress that the aim of the visit
is to discuss and get information about the current round of Nagorno
Karabakh conflict regulation process.

Mr. Lenmarker is rapporteur of OSCE PA on Karabakh issue and has been
recently appointed OSCE PA special representative on Georgia’s affairs,
thus he assumes responsibility for the whole South Caucasus.

Today started Lenmarker’s visit to Azerbaijan, after which the OSCE
official is to visit Georgia, and afterwards Armenia, where he is to
meet with the leadership of the country.

OSCE PA Special Rapporteur shall prepare a special report on the
situation in the South Caucasus which will be heard in the OSCE PA’s
fall session scheduled for September 18-21, Toronto.

GUL’S ARRIVAL IN ARMENIA CONFIRMED

AZG Armenian Daily
02/09/2008

Armenia-Turkey

Yesterday Turkish Prime Minister R. T. Erdogan stated during a press
conference that President Gul might have actually decided to accept
the invitation of Armenian President Serge Sarkisian to visit Yerevan
for the football match between Armenia and Turkey.

As the World Bulletin reported, Erdogan expressed hopes for positive
outcome of the visit. He also added that Turkey’s Foreign Minister
Ali Babacan would accompany Gul during the trip in order to discuss
relations with Armenia.

"ARMENIAN SPORT IN THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE" EXHIBITION IN THE MUSEUM OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

AZG Armenian Daily
02/09/2008

Armenians in the Ottoman Empire

An exhibition under heading "Armenian sport in the Ottoman Empire"
opens September 2 in Yerevan at the hall of temporary exhibitions of
the Museum-Institute of the Armenian Genocide.

The exhibition includes 70 photos, documents, papers and magazines
that present the history of the Armenian sport-clubs and football
teams in the Ottoman Empire before 1915.

According to the notification of the Museum, the Armenian sport-clubs
and sportsmen made a significant contribution to the development of
sport in the Ottoman Empire; there were 100 sport-clubs in the Empire
before 1915.

In 1911-1914 Armenian Olympic Games were held in Costandnupolis.

Sport newspaper "Marmnamarz" was published in those years,
editor-in-chief – Shavarsh Krisian. It was the first sport newspaper
of the Ottoman Empire.

In summer of 1912, two Armenian sportsmen Vahram Papazian and Mkrtich
Mkoyan participated in the 5th Olympics in Stockholm presenting the
Ottoman Empire first time at the Olympic Games.

>From 1915 to 1920, most of the Armenian sportsmen fell victim to the
Armenian Genocide. Most of the Armenian sport-clubs stopped to exist.

OPPOSITION RAISED $60000 IN LOS ANGELES

AZG Armenian Daily
02/09/2008

Opposition

A telethon was held Saturday in Los Angeles. The telethon aimed at
assisting the families of the Armenian political prisoners.

According to the director of "Curtain" telecast of AMGA TV channel
Rudik Hovsepian, $60000 were raised during the telethon.

The Armenians of Los Angeles not only made donations but also met
with the organizer of the All-Armenian Movement in the US Davit
Shahnazarian. The latter said that the process of admitting people
into the Congress has not started yet in the US "In the near future
we will give 35-40 thousand signatures to the Congress", he added.

COURT WAS TO HEAR ANOTHER CASE

A1+
[08:05 pm] 01 September, 2008

"Another case was to be heard here today, for instance, an attempt
upon life, illegal detention, torture, etc. I was to attend the
court-sitting as an injured party and not as a defendant," Deputy
Prosecutor General Gagik Jhangirian said today at the Court of General
Jurisdiction of Yerevan’s Kentron and Nork-Marash districts.

Afterwards, Jhangirian made a political statement. "Actually, Armenia
has never had a fully independent judicial system. What do we have
after February 19? A judicial body fully dependent on the country’s
authorities. On February 19 they usurped our citizens’ votes, power,
courts’ independence and prosecutors’ freedom," announced Gagik
Jhangirian.

"Inspector and judges say: "What can we do? We keep a family." It
means their constitutional rights and powers and guarantees for their
impartiality are also usurped. They are held as hostages and serve
the acting regime. I do not justify them. I simply feel pity for them
as they have no will power to act freely. Otherwise the perpetrators
of the March 1 carnage would be standing at the bar. There is only
one solution: we must establish order of law in this country. Only
in that case, the Goddess of Justice will return to Armenia and make
up losses."