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American University of Armenia
Diana Manukyan
Public Relations Office
Tel: (37410) 512 522
Fax: (37410) 512 523
E-mail: [email protected]

Community Development and Performance Budgeting Projects United Nations
Development Programme Armenia
Zara Amatuni
Communications Associate
14 Petros Adamyan Str., Yerevan 0010, Armenia
Tel: (37410) 566073
Fax: (37410) 543811
E-mail: [email protected]

2nd Annual Conference on Rural Development in Armenia Held

July 11, 2008. On July 10, 2008, the Second Annual Conference on Rural
Development in Armenia was convened at the Business Center of American
University of Armenia (AUA). The conference was organized jointly by the AUA
Turpanjian Rural Development Program and United Nations Armenia Country
Office. The event was opened by AUA President Dr. Haroutune Armenian and
Ms. Consuelo Vidal, UN Resident Coordinator/UNDP Resident Representative.
The keynote speaker this year was Dr. Nerses Yeritsyan, RA Minister of
Economy.

The objective of this year’s event was to discuss some of the challenges
faced by development programs and initiatives implemented in Armenian rural
communities and to discuss the existing problems and opportunities in rural
communities. The panel presenters spoke on educational and health issues at
the community level and canvassed the legal aspects such as the approaches
and challenges in current legislation, community property management in
rural areas, and agricultural trade of the European Union with developing
countries.

In her welcoming remarks, Ms. Consuelo Vidal stressed the importance of
directing joint efforts towards the reduction of regional disparities as a
major prerequisite to overall country’s development. She noted, "The
potential of rural Armenia is immense, and I would like all of us today to
concentrate on identifying how each one of our institutions can support the
unleashing of its potential."

Minister Nerses Yeritsyan talked about the importance of rural development
and the need to increase agricultural output and for the application of new
technologies. He explained that it is crucial to change the thinking of
rural citizens in order to give them an impetus for locally-based economic
activity. "It is not only agriculture that needs boosting up in Armenian
communities," said Dr. Yeritsyan, adding that the work of the Armenian
Government will be aimed at labor diversification in Armenian villages along
with paving the way to vocational education development, organization of
organic farming and modern service delivery.

AUA President Armenian welcomed attendees and talked about the successes of
the AUA Turpanjian Rural Development Program, which works to improve the
lives of poorer families in Armenia through the development of economic
opportunities and education. The Program develops economic opportunities in
rural areas by supporting individual entrepreneurs in the development of
businesses. The Program trained more than 250 new rural businessmen in its
first full year of operation in the villages of the Shirak and Tavush Marzes
and in Nagorno Karabagh and has plans to fund 150 businesses through loans
and grants by the end of 2008.

MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE OPEN TO COOPERATION WITH ARMENIA

ARKA
July 16

The U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) welcomes cooperation
with Armenia, MCC Executive Director John Danilovich said as he met
in Washington with RA Foreign Minister Edvard Nalbandyan.

The specialists of the corporation highly appreciate joint efforts
with Armenia and expects to record good results in September,
Danilovich said.

The participants to the meeting discussed further programs, focusing
on Armenian-U.S. relations.

Minister Nalbandyan said the RA Government plans to allocate $17mln to
fulfill MCC-Armenia commitments, including the further implementation
of the Irrigated Agriculture Program.

The Millennium Challenge Armenia Program was launched on September
29, 2006.

The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) and the Armenian Government
signed a 5-year agreement on awarding Armenia a grant worth $235.65mln
on March 27, 2006.

The Irrigated Agriculture Program contributes to sustained increases
in agricultural productivity and incomes through a combination
of training, technical assistance, access to credit and essential
equipment for farmers in the irrigation zones rehabilitated under
the program. MCC allocated some $11mln for the program last year.

THERE ARE THREE LEADERS IN INTERNATIONAL CHESS TOURNAMENT GOING ON IN MARTUNI

NOYAN TAPAN

Ju ly 16

The games of the 5th tour were held on July 15 in the International
Chess Tournament in Martuni. Only the Avetik Grigorian – Sergei
Zhigalko game was effective, which was ended by the Belarusian chess
player’s victory. The other four games ended in a draw.

Sergei Zhigalko (Belarus), Arman Pashikian and Hrayr Melkumian (both
from Armenia) are the leaders with 3.5 out of 5 possible points each.

EXPERT MIKHAIL ALEXANDROV: "VICTORY OF ARMENIAN OPPOSITION WOULD MEAN CHANGE OF THE POLITICAL COURSE AND, AS A RESULT, LOSS OF NAGORNO KARABAKH"

Today.Az
July 16 2008
Azerbaijan

"The victory of opposition would mean change of the direction in the
Armenian political course, orientation for the West, and, as a result,
loss of Nagorno Karabakh and collapse of the military and political
alliance with Russia", considers chief of Caucasus Department of CIS
states Institute Mukhail Alexandrov.

"Though it was not envisioned in the announcements of the opposition,
but the key difference in the approaches of the sides to the issue on
Nagorno Karabakh proves tht Levon Ter-Petrosyan and its surroundings
intend to change the direction of the foreign political development",
said Alexandrov at the Novosti international press center in Yerevan.

He noted that Russia was closely watching the presidential elections
in Armenia and reckoning on preservation of the foreign political
course, therefore, the events in Armenia caused serious concerns,
which were not peculiar of the society, however.

"Though the election campaign in Armenia was widely covered by Russia
mass media, no one mentioned the tragedy of the situation and that
the global interests are staked on in case opposition wins", said
the Russian expert.

Alexandrov voiced satisfaction that situation in Armenia has calmed
down and there are no more mass protests and clashes in the society,
"though separate outbursts are still observed".

"The new leadership has consolidated its position and I do not think
any dramatic events are possible", noted Alexandrov adding that
"preservation of the authorities is what satisfied us".

FAMILY FUN: A DAY IN THE GULAG?
Cori Anderson

Baltic Times
July 17 2008
Latvia

HEROES OF YORE: Soviet era statues are now just for sightseers.

VILNIUS – Statues of Lenin and Stalin, removed from Lithuania’s public
spaces in the years following its independence from the Soviet Union,
now adorn a replica Soviet prison camp in Dzukija National Park. A
two-hour drive to Grutas Park, outside of Druskininkai, will take
you 50 years into the past.

In the late 1990s, Viliumas Malinauskas, a millionaire Lithuanian
mushroom exporter and former professional wrestler, obtained the
statues from the Ministry of Culture and began constructing his
sculpture park. Despite protests and controversy — the occupation
remains an all-too-recent memory for many people — the park officially
opened on April 1, 2001. An Ig Nobel Prize, awarded yearly for projects
of questionable taste or significance, went to Malinauskas for his
efforts that year.

Grutas Park, popularly known as Stalin World, can have many levels of
meaning for its visitors. The original intention was tongue-in-cheek:
Gulag-style trains would shuttle visitors around the park, and the
restaurant would serve only gulag-style fare. The peaceful natural
setting, with its stream and forests, provides a dose of irony. For
the average foreign visitor with little connection to the horrific
Soviet occupation of Lithuania, it is easy to spend a lazy afternoon
strolling through the forest and climbing atop enormous statues of
Lenin. Those who survived those years, however, are often reminded
of the chilling past.

In addition to statues of Russian and Lithuanian communist leaders,
indoor displays feature a variety of memorabilia. One small house
represents a typical reading room, housing books filled with Soviet
propaganda and communist messages. Mannequins in pioneer uniforms
seem to jump out of nowhere, watchtowers line the perimeter, and
loudspeakers blare party-approved music.

For the little ones, the park features a small zoo, home to a variety
of exotic birds. Near the entrance is a playground equipped with
(thankfully) post-Soviet-era swings and slides. While you can still
find some Soviet favorites on the restaurant’s menu — sprats, a
very thin borscht, and buckwheat kasha — up-scale entrees are also
available. The Dzukija region is known for its mushrooms, and they
star in several dishes. Don’t forget to visit the souvenir shop for
a deck of propaganda-poster playing cards or a Stalin shot glass.

Grutas Park is only three kilometers from Drus-kininkai, a famous
historic spa town. On the road from the park are a few superb shashlik
restaurants, offering excellent grilled meat alongside Armenian side
dishes. Anything with eggplant is guaranteed to be delicious.

In Druskininkai proper, you can find countless spas to wash
away the Soviet grime, some dating back to that very period. The
oldest, Druskininku Gydykla, offers a bio detox in its long list
of procedures. Here you can also try the waters that make the town
famous (druska means salt in Lithuanian), in two levels of mineral
content. Just behind the spa flows the Nemunas River, and you can find
a public water fountain on its banks. For more modern entertainment,
visit the indoor water park, featuring several slides and pools,
with access to the saunas for an additional price.

The local favorite for dining is Sicilija, a pizzeria primarily,
although the menu is quite extensive. The chicken breast with boletus
mushrooms is a must-try, especially when finished off with a refreshing
milkshake or a dish of ice cream with fruit. There are two locations
in town, but both can fill up in the high season.

Grutas Park is 130 kilometers from Vilnius, easily reached by bus
or car. It’s best in nice weather, but a grey sky will intensify the
somber mood of the historic sculptures and add to the effect.

REAL ART SHOULD EXCITE: ABSURD, REALITY OR RUBBISH

Panorama.am
20:36 14/07/2008

"There is no demand of art of absurd, in particular the theatre in
Armenia and as for the realistic theatre, it has no connection with
the real art," said Armen Mehrabyan, in press conference today.

According to him those realistic theatres are failure. They do not
mirror the life itself, as life is closer to absurd. "The audience
got used to soup operas which do but harm to them," he said.

A statement has been made that once allegoric genre was introduced
into Armenian theatre but it died. According to the experts theatre
should excite people.

ACTING EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE HAYASTAN FUND VISITS NAGORNO-KARABAKH REPUBLIC

armradio.am
15.07.2008 15:48

Acting Executive Director of the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund Ara Vardanyan
visited Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. During his visit Ara Vardanyan
had a meeting with Prime-Minister of NKR Araik Harutyunyan and
Minister of Urban Development Anahit Vardanyan. The group also
visited Hadrut hospital being reconstructed by Hayastan Fund’s USA
West Coast Affilliate.

A number of new projects to be implemented in Artsakh have been
agreed upon, among them construction of schools, healthcare facilities
and water-mains.

Two major projects are scheduled in the sphere of school-building,
namely, Chartar village school reconstruction in Martouni region
by French affiliate and Spitakashen village school construction by
Toronto affiliate. Through sponsorship of Los Angeles and French
affiliates new health posts will be constructed and fully furnished
in three communities. One ambulance car for each health post will be
also provided.

The construction of Berdashen village water-main is also among the
Fund’s upcoming projects.

The Acting Executive Director Ara Vardanyan said: "As a result of
lasting successful cooperation and mutual understanding between
Hayastan All-Armenian Fund management and NKR Government we can
carry out major projects which serve as guarantee for strength and
prosperity of Artsakh."

FM: AZERBAIJAN’S ATTEMPTS TO REANIMATE OLD STALIN "BORDERS" CAN RESULT IN KARABAKH CONFLICT’S ESCALATION

DeFacto Agency
July 15 2008
Armenia

YEREVAN, 15.07.08. DE FACTO. "NKR has declared and is building its
independence absolutely in compliance with international law and
the USSR legislation of that time, the cessionary of which is modern
Russian Federation", Georgy Petrossian, Nagorno-Karabakh Republic FM,
stated while commenting on information circulated by mass media,
according to which Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict can allegedly be
settled on the basis of observation and ensuring of sovereignty,
territorial integrity and inviolability of borders, which has found
its reflection in Declaration on Friendship and Strategic Partnership
between Republic of Azerbaijan and Russian Federation.

According to NKR FM, history, the same way as time, cannot be turned
back: "Azerbaijani leadership’s attempts to reanimate Stalin old
administrative and thus doomed "borders" only contribute to tension
around Nagorno-Karabakh issue and can result in conflict’s escalation".

In Georgy Petrossian’s words, it happened in late nineteen
eighties-early nineteen nineties, when the international community
recognized the results of a "referendum" on independence in
Azerbaijan, in which, by the way, Nagorno-Karabakh Republic people
did not participate, however, it refused to recognize the results
of an analogous referendum in Nagorno-Karabakh, held before the
"referendum" in Azerbaijan.

"It was the international community’s position that encouraged
Azerbaijan’s claims to Nagorno-Karabakh, which then became the
reason of Azerbaijan’s aggression against Karabakh people. We have
repeatedly stated that any attempts to return Karabakh and Karabakh
people to the past, thus limiting their freedom, are not only counter
productive, but also doomed to failure. Independence is a highest
value for Nagorno-Karabakh Republic people, and we’ll not budge from
our position. We believe the international community is aware of the
fact", NKR FM stated, NKR MFA Press Office reports.

PROTESTS MAR FIRST DAY OF SEA BREEZE-2008 EXERCISE IN UKRAINE’S ODESA

Interfax News Agency
July 14 2008
Russia

ODESA July 14

Some 50 supporters of the Ukrainian Progressive Socialist Party are
marching in the streets of the see-side city of Odessa in protest
against the holding of the international Sea Breeze-2008 exercise
with Western powers.

The majority of protesters are elderly females. Another 200 more
are expected to join the protest at 10 a.m. Moscow time, head of the
Anti-NATO Defense Headquarters Valery Kaurov said.

The Anti-NATO Defense Headquarters reportedly organized an anti-NATO
naval raid on the day leading to the exercise, with over ten cutters
and yachts taking part. The ships sailed along the Odesa shoreline
sporting anti-NATO signs.

It was reported earlier that Odesa will host the Sea Breeze-2008
international exercise on July 14 – 26. The active stage of the
exercise is scheduled to take part on the territory of the Odesa and
Mykolaiv regions and the Crimea.

It is expected that over 1,000 servicemen, as well as up to 15
vessels, two submarines, up to four transport and patrol aircraft,
and up to four helicopters, from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Canada,
Denmark, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Latvia, Macedonia, Turkey,
Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States will take part in
the exercise.

NEW PHYSICS RESEARCH HAS BEEN REPORTED BY SCIENTISTS AT YEREVAN STATE UNIVERSITY

Science Letter
July 15, 2008

According to a study from Yerevan, Armenia, "We provide an index
formula for solutions of variational inequality problems defined by a
continuously differentiable function F over a convex set At represented
by a finite number of inequality constraints. Our index formula can
be applied when the solutions are nonsingular and possibly degenerate,
as long as they also satisfy the injective normal map (INM) property,
which is implied by strong stability."

"We show that when the INM property holds, the degeneracy in a solution
can be removed by perturbing the function F slightly, i.e., the index
of a degenerate solution is equal to the index of a nondegenerate
solution of a slightly perturbed variational inequality problem. We
further show that our definition of the index is equivalent to the
topological index of the normal map at the zero corresponding to
the solution," wrote S.V. Melkonyan and colleagues, Yerevan State
University (see also Physics).

The researchers concluded: "As an application of our index formula,
we provide a global index theorem for variational inequalities which
holds even when the solutions are degenerate."

Melkonyan and colleagues published the results of their research
in Physica B – Condensed Matter (On the low-frequency limit
of the Schonfeld pulse 1/f law. Physica B – Condensed Matter,
2008;403(12):2029-2035).

For additional information, contact S.V. Melkonyan, Yerevan State
University, Dept. of Physics Semicond & Microelect, 1 Alex Manoogian
St., Yerevan 0025, Armenia.

The publisher of the journal Physica B – Condensed Matter can be
contacted at: Elsevier Science BV, PO Box 211, 1000 AE Amsterdam,
Netherlands.