Month: December 2008

CATHOLICOS OF ALL ARMENIANS TO ATTEND FUNERAL OF PATRIARCH OF MOSCOW AND ALL RUSSIA ALEXY II

ArmInfo
2008-12-08 15:51:00

ArmInfo. On December 8 Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II is
leaving for Moscow to attend the funeral of Patriarch of Moscow and All
Russia Alexy II, the press-service of Mother See of Holy Echmiadzin
told ArmInfo correspondent. To note, according to the decision of
the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church, the funeral will take
place at Epiphany Cathedral on December 9. Meanwhile, thousands of
Christians continue visiting the Temple of Christ the Savior, where
the service for Alexy II is being held.

ARMENIAN PEACEMAKERS IN KOSOVO ROTATED

ArmInfo
2008-12-08 11:46:00

ArmInfo. A group of Armenian peacemakers was ceremonially sent to
Kosovo from Yerevan Capital Regiment Monday. It is the second rotation
of Armenian peacemakers in Kosovo. Earlier Armenia was represented
in Kosovo by a platoon. To recall, Armenia has been participating in
the peacemaking mission in Kosovo since 12 Feb 2004 as part of the
Greek battalion in the town of Urosevac. The groups are rotated once
is 6 months. Armenian peacemakers on the mission in Kosovo arrived
in Yerevan Sunday on 7 December.

GEORGE BUSH ADDRESSES ARMENIAN PEOPLE ON OCCASION OF 20H ANNIVERSARY OF EARTHQUAKE IN SPITAK

ArmInfo
2008-12-08 11:45:00

ArmInfo. US President Georgia Bush has send his condolences to the
Armenian with the 20th anniversary of the earthquake in Spitak.

President Bush, in particular, says: ‘Laura and I send our condolences
on the 20th anniversary of the massive earthquake that struck northern
Armenia on December 7 1988. This disaster took the live of nearly
25,000 people and left many thousands of others homeless.

On this solemn anniversary, we are reminded of the strong bonds between
America and Armenia and the resilience of the Armenian people. They
rose from this tragedy and have reclaimed a bright future of hope
and opportunity. Through hard work and support from the international
community, including the United States, the Republic of Armenia gained
its independence. Today, our national stand together, pursuing peace,
prosperity, and freedom for the citizens of our countries and the
world.

I join with my fellow Americans and all Armenians in commemorating
this national tragedy. We pay tribute to the live lost, and we send
our best wishes to Armenians throughout the world as you remember
loved one and the hardships you have overcome.

‘May God Bless you’, the US Embassy in Armenia reported.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

12TH CONFERENCE OF ORGANIZATION FOR PROHIBITION OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS IN HAGUE

ArmInfo
2008-12-08 11:44:00

ArmInfo. The 12th conference of the Organization for the Prohibition
of Chemical Weapons was held in Hague on December 2-5. As the Armenian
Foreign Ministry press service reported, the delegation of Armenia
at the conference was headed by Permanent Representative of Armenia
to the Organization Samvel Lazarian. The delegation also included
adviser of the Foreign Ministerial Department for Control of Armament
and International Security A. Aznavouryan.

Secretary of the Organization Rogelio Pfirter presented a paper
at the session. He introduced the process of implementation of the
Convention for the prohibition of chemical weapons, the results of the
second conference on revision of the document. He also touched on the
situation in separate regions, as well as the existing problems. In
2008, Congo and Guinea-Bissau joined the Convention, and it will become
obligatory also for Lebanon till late, 2008. Thus, 185 members will
enter the Organization and only 10 countries will not join it. Armenia
joined all the EU statements adopted at the conference.

PRIME MINISTER OF ARMENIA TO PAY OFFICIAL VISIT TO GEORGIA SHORTLY

ArmInfo
2008-12-07 19:57:00

ArmInfo. Prime Minister of Armenia Tigran Sargsyan is expected to
pay an official visit to Georgia shortly. The premier told media of
his visit while in Spitak on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of
Spitak earthquake, Monday.

He also added development of Armenian-Georgian relations is in the
focus of the government’s attention. The prime minister is expected to
discuss the prospects of the bilateral cooperation in all the spheres
in Georgia. ‘We cooperate and we are interested in development and
extension of ties in any sphere’, Tigran Sargsyan said.

SARKISIAN’S NOTHING IF NOT SURPRISE PICK
By Jim Moore

Seattle Post Intelligencer
390908_moore06.html?source=mypi
Dec 6 2008
WA

IF YOU ASK me, the whole Washington football coaching search ended
with a whimper.

After seeing some big names on their supposed wish list, the Dawgs
hire Steve Sarkisian. Steve Sarkisian? Are you kidding me? When they
said that money was no object, they offer the job to an offensive
coordinator who has no head coaching experience?

But if I think the hiring was suspect, chances are great that Sarkisian
will be Pac-10 coach of the year next season.

As a Coug, it’s not my inclination to support a Husky hiring,
whoever it is, especially when they didn’t even interview the three
men I boxed in my trifecta — former Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer,
Buffalo coach Turner Gill and Florida offensive coordinator Dan Mullen.

Fullmer, who went 152-52 at Tennessee, was at the top of my list. Gill,
46, was best remembered as the Nebraska quarterback who went 28-2 as
a starter in the ’80s. But he’s better known in Buffalo as the coach
who led the Bulls to their first bowl game in 50 years.

Most of my money was on Mullen, the longest shot on the board. He’s
Urban Meyer’s right-hand man, the offensive coordinator who tutored
quarterbacks Alex Smith at Utah and Chris Leak and Tim Tebow at
Florida.

Jeff Golden / Getty Images Steve Sarkisian, with USC quarterback Mark
Sanchez, has Huskies boosters excited.

I also like that Mullen is married to former Golf Channel anchor Megan
West, which has nothing to do with anything, making it significant
to me.

If I had been handicapping this search like a race at Emerald Downs,
Sarkisian would have been the second horse I threw out after Mike
Haywood, the offensive coordinator from Notre Dame.

Yet Sarkisian prevailed, though UW president Mark Emmert would not
admit it when I spoke with him Friday. An official announcement is
not expected until Sunday or Monday, so Emmert didn’t want to violate
his own embargo.

All he said was: "Obviously the world knows we met with Steve
Sarkisian, and we certainly liked our conversations with him. I think
he’s an incredibly promising young coach."

Emmert also said the job was offered to only one person. To another
question about the future of the program, he said, "Husky football
is going to be heading in all of the right directions right away."

Right away is defined as 24 hours from now, after the UW’s benchmark
12th defeat at Cal, a winless season signaling the end of the Tyrone
Willingham era and the start of Sarkisian’s.

To get an idea of what Husky fans think about the hire, I called
Dawgman.com’s Kim Grinolds, who was his predictable wise-guy self.

"Steve Sarkisian is no Paul Wulff," Grinolds said. "Washington goes
to L.A. to get guys, not to Cheney."

Grinolds added that after Jim Mora, the fantasy candidate, anyone
would do, including Sarkisian.

"You could hire me a snowman, and he’d win more games than Tyrone
did this year," he said.

Prominent Husky booster Ron Crockett was more enthusiastic, saying:
"I’m very excited. Obviously I don’t know the fella. I like the age
(34). Some people say he’s too young. I disagree. … He comes from a
great program, he can recruit on the West Coast, and he has a passion
to be here."

As is usually the case in this space, I went on a search for useless
information, specifically wondering if Sarkisian golfs, drinks beer
and owns a dog. I struck out and still don’t know. I tried calling five
Sarkisians in Torrance, Calif., his hometown, and left messages or got
a busy signal. No one called back, and, frankly, I don’t blame them.

So I went scraping for stuff from the USC sports department and
discovered that he’s a family man who married his high school
sweetheart, Stephanie. They have two daughters — Ashley, 5, and
Taylor, 6 months or so; and a son, Brady, 3.

According to the USC media guide, Sarkisian is pronounced sar-KEY-juhn,
and one story said he’s half Armenian and half Irish — the latter
leading me to believe he must be a beer drinker. Then again, he went
to BYU, so it’s hard to say.

I typically go to great lengths to unearth little-known nuggets about
new coaches, but this is not one of those times. He was born March 8,
1974, which makes him a Pisces.

According to psychicguild.com, Pisces frequently become top business
leaders. On the same Web site, it’s said that Pisces "seldom perceive
whatever is going on around them in its true light. They see life
as they want to see it, coloring their view of the world in hues and
tones far removed from its true reflection."

In other words, Sarkisian’s the perfect coach for Washington because
he’s probably delusional, too!

Then again, with a bachelor’s degree in sociology, he might be able to
once and for all explain U-Dub fans’ irrational behavior. This is more
certain — it won’t be long before they’re complaining about him, too.

Food for thought for Coug fans rooting against Sarkisian — sure,
he’s great at USC, but how will he do coaching average players? And
the last time the Huskies hired a thirtysomething, it backfired into
March Madness pools and courtroom drama.

Crockett plans to reserve judgment, saying he doesn’t know Sarkisian
"from a can of paint."

But most signs are good — a USC spokesman said Sarkisian is "real
enthusiastic, real personable and real positive," calling him "a
mini-Pete Carroll."

Which could be a major problem for the rest of the Pac-10.

NKR PRESIDENT SENT CONDOLENCE LETTER TO HOLY SYNOD OF RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH

De Facto
Dec 8, 2008

In connection with the death of Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia
Alexy II President of the Nagorno Karabagh Republic Bako Sahakian
send a letter of condolence to the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox
Church. According to the Central Department of Information of the
Office of the NKR President, the letter reads as follows: "On behalf
of the people and authorities of the Nagorno Karabagh Republic I
express my heartfelt condolences about the death of His Holiness
Patriarch Alexy the Second of Moscow and All Russia.

The Russian Orthodox Church, the people of Russia and the entire
Orthodox world suffered a great bereavement. Patriarch Alexy the
Second was a prominent figure of global scale. The period of his reign
has become an epoch of Russia’s spiritual revival and new waive of
orthodoxy’s spreading.

He had a great input in uniting and consolidating the Russian Orthodox
Church, establishing cooperation spirit between various religions and
confessions. The Patriarch also proposed peacekeeping initiatives
to settle international conflicts and strengthen peace and mutual
understanding between peoples.

We grieve over this irretrievable loss together with you. The memory
of His Holiness Alexy the Second will be always in our hearts".

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL SITTING HELD IN YEREVAN

De Facto
Dec 8, 2008

YEREVAN, 08.12.08. DE FACTO. On December 6 the RA President Serge
Sargsian convened the National Security Council sitting.

The issues referring to the work carried out by Armenia in 2007-2008
within the frames of the European Neighborhood Policy Action Plan,
and urgent tasks and priorities for two years were discussed at the
sitting, the RA President’s Press Office reports.

The next issue discussed at the National Security Council sitting was
the work realized by the Republic of Armenia in 2007-2008 within the
frames of the Collective Security Treaty Organization membership and
on realization of decisions of the Organization Council sitting held
in September, 2008.

The issues relevant to the works realized in 2007-2008 within the
frames of Armenia-NATO Individual Partnership Action Plan, an action
program for 2009-2010 and judicial-legal system’s amendments were
also discussed at the sitting.

AZERBAIJANI DELEGATION IN OSCE: "ARMENIA MUST FULLY WITHDRAW ITS TROOPS FROM ALL THE OCCUPIED LANDS OF AZERBAIJAN"

Today.Az
s/politics/49449.html
Dec 5 2008
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijani delegation has released the document "Principles, applied
to the peaceful resolution of the conflict around the Nagorno Karabakh
region of Azerbaijan", at the ministerial meeting of OSCE in Helsinki.

The document fixes Azerbaijan’s adherence to the resolution of the
conflict by political means and in the constructive direction.

"Yet Azerbaijan will never make its territorial integrity an object
of compromise and will not recognize the resolution, based on a
"complete fact", which Armenia is trying to impose", says the document.

The document fixes that "the conflict can only be settled on the
basis of respect to the territorial integrity and inviolability of
internationally recognized borders of Azerbaijan, peaceful co-existence
of Armenian and Azerbaijani communities of Nagorno karabakh within
Azerbaijan and their equal use of democracy and prosperity".

"The final aim of the process is the development and definition of a
model and legal frames of the status of the Karabakh region within
Azerbaijan. The process of definition of any status must be held
in normal peaceful conditions with a direct, complete and equal
participation of the whole population of the region, especially
the Armenian and Azerbaijani communities and their constructive
interaction with the government of Azerbaijan exclusively in the
framework of legal and democratic process", says the document.

The published "Principles" also stress that "several important steps
must be taken in order to pass to the stage of talks on the status
of self-government in Nagorno Karabakh region within Azerbaijan".

Among them the Azerbaijani delegation listed the following: "the
factor of armed occupation must be removed from the context of the
conflict resolution. Armenia must fully withdraw its troops from all
the occupied lands of Azerbaijan. Any delay in the return of lands may
protract the process"; "internally displaced persons must be safely
returned to the lands of their past residence in Nagorno karabakh
region and adjacent lands"; "Special programs on reconciliation and
tolerance must be initiated to encourage cooperation between the two
communities of Nagorno Karabakh".

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

MILLI MEDJLIS DEPUTY: "IT IS NECESSARY TO LIFT RESTRICTIONS ON THE PRESIDENTIAL TERM IN AZERBAIJAN"

Today.Az
s/politics/49463.html
Dec 6 2008
Azerbaijan

"A new era -the era of Ilham Aliyev has started in the country".

Through the past five years, the President of Azerbaijan managed to
inform the whole world about its occupied lands, said Milli Medjlis
deputy Fattah Heydarov in his interview to the official website of
the Yeni Azerbaijan party.

He said the president of Azerbaijan chose a political line, under
which he wants to restore the territorial integrity of the country
peacefully.

"Ilham Aliyev has raised the issue of the Karabakh problem before
all leaders. I study the historical events in details, therefore,
I know that historical moments appeared at the time, when the powers
were strong. If it changed rapidly, it led to disaster.

Democracy is a wonderful concept. Yet, it does not mean that it can be
used artificially, creating chaos and disorder in the country. Facts
prove that such cases damage the state construction.

It should be noted that the powers, who are trusted by people, promote
the state development. I think for preservation of independence and the
political and economic consolidation the government must be long-term
and people want it.

Currently, charity works are held in the country, new establishments
are created and area for development of democratic processes is
established, which, in turn, strengthens the state. In order to
continue the execution of the events, which are currently developed,
long-term government is needed. Only Ilham Aliyev can be a guarantor
of Azerbaijani stability and independence.

Today, there are restrictions in the presidential term. I think it is
necessary to introduce changes to the Constitution and remove these
restrictions once and forever", Heydarov said in his interview.