Author: admin

Paris-Normandie , France
8 février 2005

l’Arménie, une histoire tourmentée

par Leroy Karine

Le question de l’intégration de la Turquie dans l’Union européenne a
fait ressurgir le délicat dossier de l’Arménie. Que sait-on vraiment
de ce pays?

Découvertes Gallimard retrace l’histoire de ce pays et ce peuple.
Entre Caucase et Mésopotamie, le haut plateau arménien a abrité l’une
des plus importantes civilisations du Moyen orient. En 301, l’Arménie
est le premier état officiellement chrétien mais sa situation
géographique fait de cette terre un territoire âprement disputé.

Les Arméniens préservent une identité culturelle forte et malgré le
génocide dont il est victime en 1915, ce peuple reste fidèle a une
culture dans la mère-patrie tant qu’en diaspora. une histoire
fascinante, chaotique retracée à travers des témoignages, des
documents et une riche iconographie.

L’Arménie. A l’épreuve des siècles, d’Annie et Jean-Pierre Mahé,
Editions Découvertes Gallimard, 160 pages, 13,80 Euro.

–Boundary_(ID_vvotSJF3ks5qpJSEGwkm8g)–

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

NKR FM COMMENTS ON THE CRITICAL MATERIALS ADDRESSED TO NKR
FOREIGN MINISTRY PUBLISHED IN LOCAL PUBLIC NEWSPAPER “DEMO”

STEPANAKERT, FEBRUARY 7. ARMINFO. <We need freedom of speech, but
there is a line, and when exceeding the press becomes “yellow”. The
most important for the image of both the newspaper and the state is
not to exceed this line,> said NKR Foreign Minister Arman Melikyan
commenting on the critical materials addressed to NKR Foreign Ministry
published in the local public newspaper “Demo.”

According to ARMINFO’s special correspondent to Stepanakert, the
minister gave a high assessment of the existence of publications able
to present various, including opposition, views. He called part of
the material corresponding to reality and the other part groundless.

Appointed to the post of Foreign Minister two months ago, Arman
Melikyan considers that the work of NKR Foreign Ministry needs serious
coordination. He said that there were programs to be elaborated within
the year and the public would be informed of the results. He said that
a number of employees would get an opportunity to undergo practical
courses abroad. <To get real information on the real situation, we
should carefully study the work of our offices and all the fields of
their cooperation, > the minister said.

In response to the question about frequent visit of NKR Foreign
Minister to Yerevan, Arman Melikyan said that his residence was in
Stepanakert, but he was to “stay in Yerevan and other places” for
some current tasks.

Karabakh minister hopes OSCE to be satisfied with results of factfinding mission

Mediamax news agency
4 Feb 05

Yerevan, 4 February: The foreign minister of the Nagornyy Karabakh
Republic [NKR], Arman Melikyan, today expressed his hope that the
OSCE factfinding mission, which has already visited six of the seven
districts controlled by the NKR, will be satisfied with the results
of the work that has been carry out.

Speaking at a briefing in Stepanakert today, Melikyan said that “our
help to the mission is a demonstration of good will in reply to the
peacekeeping efforts of the international community”, Mediamax new
agency reports.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

DURING LAST 5 YEARS NUMBER OF OPERATIONS WITH REAL ESTATE
IN ARMENIA HAS ALMOST TRIPLED

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 8. ARMINFO. During the last 5 years the number of
operation with real estate in Armenia has almost tripled, reaching
98,345 in 2004.

ARMINFO was informed in the press office of the State committee of
cadastre of real estate, in 2000 number of deals with realty totaled
33,233, in 2001 – 44,792, in 2002 – 60,874, in 2003 – 71,797 deals.
98,345 deals with real estate were registered in 2004, their number
increased by 37% as against 2003. The monthly growth made up in
average 2.6%. The lion’s share of the bargains (38.4%) falls to
apartments. 44.4% of the deals are registered in Yerevan. Out of
the total number of the deals with real estate 41.5% (40,793) are
amortization, 16.7% – primary registration, 9.3% – rent, 7.8% – pledge,
0.4% – privatization, 8.6% – inheritance and 15.7% – other types.

As compared to 2003 in 2004 the total number of deals on amortization
increased by 27.2%. In the period under review out of 14,546 deals
on purchase and sale of apartments were registered in Yerevan. This
showing has increased by 2.8% as compared with the indicator of
last year.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

DEMOCRATIC ARMENIA PARTY ACCUSES AUTHORITIES OF NEGATIVE
TURNING POINT IN ISSUE OF KARABAKH CONFLICT’S RESOLUTION

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 8. ARMINFO. The party Democratic Armenia lays the
whole responsibility for the turning point in settlement of Karabakh
conflict negative for the Armenian party on the president and the
three parties of the coalition who have seized the power. The party
distributed such statement, Tuesday.

According to the source, PACE Resolution on Nagorny Karabakh,
the statement of its author David Atkinson denying the right of
Karabakh people for self-determination, formation and the visit of
OSCE mission to the <occupied territories> testify the failure of
the Armenian authorities’ foreign policy. The Armenian people have
faces an alternative, that is, either democracy for the welfare of
Karabakh and regional security or dictatorship sheltered by the idea
of Karabakh, which may result in loss of Karabakh, the party says.
According to the statements, the only way out of the crisis is a new
quality and content of the public life.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Dunya, Turkey
Feb 8 2005

Arýnc visits Azerbaijan
08/02/2005 13:50:39

Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc who is currently visiting Azerbaijan,
yesterday met with his Azeri counterpart Murtuz Aleskerov as well as
President Ilham Aliyev.
During their talks, Arinc lamented that 20% of Azeri territory is
under Armenian occupation. Noting how the United Nations had
officially called on Armenia to end this illegal land seizure, Arinc
said, “However, Armenian officials have stubbornly resisted these
calls.”

–Boundary_(ID_D48xocFxakoK1Z4X5FEbhQ)–

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

TRIAL ON MURDER OF ARMENIAN OFFICER BY AZERI SERVICEMAN TO RESUME IN BUDAPEST TODAY

PanArmenian News
Feb 8 2005

08.02.2005 13:22

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Trial on murder of Armenian officer Gurgen Margarian
by Azeri serviceman Ramil Safarov will resume in Budapest today,
Armenpress news agency reported. In the course of the sitting the
second Azeri serviceman and a Lithuanian officer, who lived in
the same room with Armenian officer Hayk Makuchian, as well as a
psychologist physician and experts will testify. Lawyer Gabriela
Caspar will represent the interests of the plaintiff. Along with
lawyer Nazeli Vardanian representative of a specially formed group
on the case Hayk Demoyan has left for Hungary.

RIA Novosti, Russia
February 08, 2005

CIS COUNTRIES OUTPACE RUSSIA IN GDP GROWTH

MOSCOW, February 8 (RIA Novosti)-According to the information
published yesterday by the CIS Inter-State Statistics Committee,
Russia has fallen behind almost every other CIS country in terms of
GDP growth rates, writes Noviye Izvestia.

The leader in GDP growth rates in 2004 was Ukraine with 12%, followed
by Belarus (11%), Tajikistan (10.6%), Azerbaijan (10.2%) and Armenia
(10.1%).

Lower increases were registered in Kazakhstan (9.4%), Georgia (8.4%)
and Moldova (7.3%). Russia’s GDP growth rates, after they were
reconsidered, came in at 7.1% – the same as Kyrgyzstan. The
Statistics Committee has no information on GDP in Turkmenistan and
Uzbekistan, which means Russia and Kyrgyzstan are last on the list.

Deputy Economic Development Minister Andrei Sharonov requested that a
comparison not be drawn between Russia and economic development
outsiders. He also noted that the mission to double GDP did not yet
mean that life had become better.

Vasily Solodkov, the director of the Banking Institute at the Higher
School of Economics, recalled that the CIS countries, with the
exception of Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan, were not oil and gas export
addicts. “This means that they had to conduct reforms somehow to
overcome a crisis,” he explained. The second reason is that “the
level of monopolization is enormous [in Russia]” – three or four
monopolies account for 80% of the country’s GDP. The raw material
monopolies do not need to develop, which admittedly puts the brakes
on Russia’s potential growth.

Experts admit that the country’s growth potential is no less than in
the former USSR republics, but it is considerably diminished by
Russia’s current economic policy.

Analysts warn that it is highly probable that the neighbors will
increasingly outstrip Russia in terms of development rates.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

RIA Novosti, Russia
Feb 8 2005

FOREIGN WORKERS IN MOSCOW INCREASING

MOSCOW, February 8 (RIA Novosti) – “An estimated 500,000-800,000
immigrants are in Moscow now. In 2004, our department issued 96,761
work permits to foreign workers,” Vladimir Troitsky, chief of the
Immigration Section of the Interior Ministry’s Moscow Department,
told the media Tuesday.

According to Mr. Troitsky, Chinese citizens are the most numerous
among “far-abroad” immigrants. Official data set their number at
about 22,000, with roughly 16,000 Vietnamese ranking second in
Moscow, then Turks, numbering about 2,000. As far as CIS member-state
citizens are concerned, Ukrainians are most numerous at almost 7,000,
Moldavians number about 4,000, Armenians at about 2,000 and Tajiks at
almost 2,500.

Mr. Troitsky said also that in 2004 his personnel issued immigrants
with almost 1.5 times more work permits than in 2003.

“We expect the number of employers eager to register their foreign
workforce to increase considerably because the administrative
punishment for employing illegal aliens has become far more severe.
Criminal responsibility for such breaches of law is also supposed to
be introduced,” Mr. Troitsky said.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

IRNA, Iran
Feb 8 2005

Khatamihighlights significance of Tehran-Yerevan cooperation

Tehran, Feb 8, IRNA — President Mohammad Khatami said here Tuesday
that Tehran-Yerevan cooperation would be effective to support mutual
interests and security as well as regional stability.
President Khatami further told Armenian National Security Council
Secretary Serzh Sarkisian that Iranian and Armenian presidents have
formed a new phase to develop economic cooperation and efforts should

be made for speedy implementation of mutual accords.
Khatami stressed that the Islamic Republic of Iran supports its
neighbor Armenia, considering the fact that mutual cooperation is
effective for development and security of the Caucasus.
He said regional states can solve their problems through high
level negotiations without foreign intervention and Iran, as a
country
which calls for establishment of good ties with all neighbors, is
ready to take steps for removal of any problem with the neighbors.
The President pointed to the significance of transit and
transportation in boosting relations among regional states and also
to the need for connection of railways and roads.
He underlined the project for transfer of gas to Armenia and also
expansion of commercial relations.
Sarkisian for his part hoped for further expansion of the Tehran-
Yerevan relations on the basis of good faith.
He said development of mutual relations in the fields of culture,
education and economy would prepare the ground for guaranteeing
security and expanding ties in other spheres.
He added that connection of Iranian and Armenian railways would
be effective for establishment of the north-south corridor. He
welcomed the project for transfer of gas to Armenia.
He also described as “very logical and positive” Iran`s viewpoints
on sticking to dialogue and negotiation to settle regional disputes
without foreign intervention.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress