Author: Andres-Papazian

4TH JOINT SYRIAN-ARMENIAN BUSINESS FORUM OPENS IN ALEPPO

Zawya
Nov 25 2010

Aleppo, northern Syria – The 4th joint Syrian-Armenian Business Forum
opened on Wednesday in Aleppo.

Chairman of the National Assembly of Armenia Hovik Abrahamyan
highlighted the importance of this forum in developing economic
relations between the two countries, calling for exerting all efforts
to develop the economic cooperation to match the level of the political
relations.

He wished for the two countries to continue holding such forums and
exchange visits to serve the interests of the economic relations.

For his part, Governor of Aleppo Ali Ahmad Mansoura said the 2-day
forum aims to push the economic relations between the two countries
forwards, adding it is a reflection of the historical relations
between the Syrian and Armenian friendly peoples.

He called on businessmen of the two countries to set up joint
investments to increase the volume of trade exchange.

The governor pointed out to the necessity of benefiting from the
available capacities in increasing cooperation in the fields of
industry, tourism, culture and science.

For his part, Chairman of the Syrian-Armenian Businessmen Council
Leon Zaki said the forum serves to prepare for establishing a free
trade zone between Syria and Armenia.

He added that the forum completes the previous three forums which
resulted in signing 54 agreements and memos of understanding.

Later, the Chairman of the National Assembly of Armenia and the
accompanying delegation visited the Armenian Orthodox Diocese in
Aleppo and met members of the congregation in the presence of Bishop
Shahan Sarkissian.

Also on Wednesday, the Armenian Products Exhibition opened in Aleppo.

The exhibition is held by the Syrian-Armenian Business Council in
cooperation with the chambers of commerce and industry of Aleppo
and Armenia.

Abrahamyan and Ahmad Mansoura inspected the pavilions of the exhibition
in which 30 companies are taking part.

From: A. Papazian

THE OFFICIAL VISIT OF THE ARMENIAN MINISTER OF DEFENCE SEYRAN OHANYAN TO SLOVAKIA

23.11.10

On the 22nd of November the delegation headed by Armenian Defence
Minister Seyran Ohanyan paid an official visit to Slovakia, following
the invitation by the Minister of Defence of the Slovak Republic
Ľubomír Galko.

During the visit the Defence Ministers of the two countries discussed
matters of bilateral cooperation. ARM MoD Seyran Ohanyan and the SR MoD
Ľubomír Galko signed an agreement on “Military Cooperation between
the Government of the Republic of Armenia and the Government of the
Slovak Republic”, which anticipates a cooperation in the following main
areas – Professional Military Education and Training of the personnel,
military medicine, peacekeeping, exchange of experience in the sphere
of Strategic Defence Review, etc.

Seyran Ohanyan also visited the memorial of Armenian Genocide
in Bratislava and put a wreath there. On the 23rd of November the
delegation headed by the ARM MoD left for Hungary, where the matters
of bilateral military cooperation are also to be discussed.

ARM MoD Department of Information and Public Affairs

From: A. Papazian

ABDULLAH GUL OF TURKEY TRAVELS TO SWITZERLAND

Panorama
Nov 25 2010
Armenia

Upon invitation by Doris Leuthard, President of Swiss Confederation,
Abdullah Gul of Turkey will be paying official visit to Switzerland
on November 25 and 26.

According to Turkish TRT TV company Gul will hold talks with President
Leuthard, the Council of States President Erika Forster-Vannini and
other officials.

Issues related to international and regional affairs are supposed to
be highlighted during the negotiations.

It’s worth recalling that Ankara and Bern have tenses ties since 2003
when Lower House of Swiss Parliament recognized Armenian Genocide, and
lows of criminal charge for rejecting it. Some Turkish nationalists
have been sentenced for rejecting Genocide, which made the relations
between the two states even tougher.

Switzerland is a mediator state to contribute the settlement of
Armenian-Turkish ties. Swiss President declared recently that
Armenian-Turkish protocols are on agenda.

From: A. Papazian

SWISS AND TURKISH PRESIDENTS SEEK SOLUTIONS
by Ariane Bonzon

swissinfo.ch
Nov 25 2010
Switzerland

Turkish President Abdullah Gul and Swiss counterpart Doris Leuthard
will officially discuss “current issues” on his two-day state visit
to Switzerland.

In practice, this means the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh between
Armenia and Azerbaijan which is holding up the ratification of
a landmark deal signed by Turkey and rival Armenia in Zurich 13
months ago.

Gul – who is always seen smiling and likes to remind people that
his name means “rose”, as in the flower, in Turkish – is generally
considered more conciliatory than the forthright Turkish Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

But when it comes to the contentious issue of Turkey and Armenia,
not much separates the two.

Swiss-Turkish relations became strained back in 2003, when the cantonal
parliament of Vaud recognised as genocide the killing of more than
1.5 million Armenians in the Ottoman Empire at the beginning of the
20th century. Geneva and the House of Representatives followed suit.

In response, Ankara withdrew an invitation for Foreign Minister
Micheline Calmy-Rey to visit the country. But relations have much
improved since then.

Global player Gul comes to Switzerland on Thursday with good cards:
at home the Turkish government is enjoying economic and political
success. The only snag is Ankara’s diplomatic U-turn on the treaty
signed with Armenia in Zurich in October 2009.

What’s more, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party)
strengthened its diplomatic position on September 12 when voters
approved 26 amendments to Turkey’s constitution, written in the
aftermath of a 1982 military coup.

The Turkish economy has largely resisted the economic and financial
crisis: growth rose to 5.6 per cent in 2009 and Turkey has become an
essential part of the regional and global energy policy. At the end
of last year Switzerland signed a deal in Istanbul for the delivery
of energy resources from the Caspian Sea and Iran via Turkey.

Welcomed at the heart of the G20 – unlike Switzerland – Turkey is
asserting itself among the emerging powers.

Turkey doesn’t have any simmering anger with Switzerland, but there
is a running battle going on with France and Germany, both of whom
vociferously oppose Turkish integration in the European Union.

Foreign strategy Not to mention dynamic Foreign Minister Ahmet
Davutoglu, whose doctrine of “problem-free strategic depth” with his
neighbours has resulted in mixed success (good marks with Russia, Iraq,
Syria, Serbia and Russia; not so good with Israel and Cyprus). But
the intention – albeit occasionally a little naive – is good.

It was in this spirit – following years of negotiations and clandestine
meetings – that the Turkish government signed the so-called Zurich
Protocols in October 2009.

These aimed to re-establish diplomatic relations between Turkey and
Armenia and re-open the border, closed by Turkey in 1993 following
the Armenian occupation of the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave in Azerbaijan.

Problem solving If Davutoglu was hoping for a “problem-free”
relationship with his Armenian neighbours, he had forgotten the
latter’s “problem-full” relationship with Azerbaijan.

The Azerbaijan government came out against the Zurich deal and any
normalisation between Turkey and Armenia which would deprive them
of a means of pressurising Armenia and would confirm the occupation
of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Initially a close ally of Turkey, Azerbaijan threatened to turn
off the gas taps. Faced with this pressure, Recep Tayyip Erdogan
made a U-turn the day after signing the protocols and linked their
ratification to the Nagorno-Karabakh problem.

Officially, Armenia froze the process, but Leuthard and Gul have
recently let it be known that confidential talks would continue.

Some people with knowledge of the dossiers say it is not out of the
question that the Turkish government could ratify the protocols after
its probable victory in next year’s general election.

Gul could ask Switzerland – together with the United States, which
is looking to limit Russian influence in the region – to help it
find a solution that is acceptable to both Turkey and Azerbaijan,
Switzerland’s other important energy partner.

However such a request is likely to be contested. Sarkis Shahinian,
head of the Swiss-Armenian Association, has commented that “Switzerland
shouldn’t fall into this trap”.

The Nagorno-Karabakh question should be kept separate to the 2009
accord, which “should not include preconditions”, he said.

Ariane Bonzon, swissinfo.ch (Adapted from French by Thomas Stephens)

From: A. Papazian

BAKO SAHAKYAN HELD A NUMBER OF MEETINGS IN LOS ANGELES ON THE EVE OF THE TELETHON

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
2010-11-25 14:21
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic

President of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic Bako Sahakyan continues his
visit to the United States of America in the frames of preparations
to the annual fund-raising telethon in Los Angeles aimed at the
restoration and development of Artsakh.

According to the Central Information Department of the NKR President’s
Office, on November 24, Bako Sahakyan received in Los Angeles some
members of the “Artsakh Development Group” organization. Issues
related to the cooperation between the structures of the Diaspora
and Artsakh were discussed during the meeting.

The Head of the State underlined Artsakh’s interest in establishing
such cooperation considering it an important direction of the NKR
foreign policy and cementing inter-Armenian ties.

On the same day, Bako Sahakyan met entrepreneur and philanthropist
Ray Hartoonian. Issues related to the development of printing industry
in Artsakh were discussed during the meeting.

The President also met philanthropist Harout Broutyan and discussed
with him prospects of carrying out different projects in the NKR.

Issues related to prospects of cooperation in the health care system
were discussed during the meeting famous cardiologist Harout Mesrobian.

The Head of the State appreciated highly readiness of the American
Armenians to assist Artsakh in every possible way, underlining that
such cooperation would be beneficial both to the Diaspora and the
Motherland.

Primate of the Artsakh Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church
Archbishop Pargev Martirosyan, Executive Director of the “Hayastan”
All-Armenian Fund Ara Vardanyan, Head of the Central Information
Department of the NKR President’s Office Davit Babayan, NKR Permanent
Representative to the USA Robert Avetisyan, Chairman of the Artsakh
Public TV and Radio Company’s Board Norek Gasparyan and other officials
took part in the meetings.

From: A. Papazian

KARABAKH TRAP FOR MOSCOW

Lragir.am
25 Nov 10

The feeling is that Armenia is quietly pushed into the arms of Russia
to make Moscow, as in the South Ossetian war, intervene in the Karabakh
conflict, and then finally push it out of the South Caucasus.

The statement by the Director General of the American-Israeli
analytical service STRATFOR George Freedman was not accidental about
the fact that the most important thing for Turkey in its relations
with Armenia should not be the Karabakh settlement but the removal
of the military base from Armenia.

This task, which seems utopist under the current conditions, can be
solved only if Russia interferes in the Karabakh conflict. This task
was solved by Georgia, which reached the withdrawal of Russian troops,
though for this, it was constrained to get Russia as its enemy.

It is already evident that the U.S. and France, refuting any activeness
and offering to Moscow the initiative of the Karabakh settlement,
left Russia “off side”. In this situation, as it is known, goal is not
counted. So, it is favorable for Russia not to score but to retreat.

But Russia apparently does not intend to retreat, and will, as
always, go through. This is evidenced by the forced efforts to
restore lost influence on the Armenian society through the creation of
‘Rossotrudnichestvo” /Russian cooperation/, lobbying for amendments to
the law on language, speeches of a number of political analysts that
Russia is responsible for the situation in Armenia, through the media
provocation and Serge Sargsyan’s coercion to swear eternal allegiance
to Russia after each meeting in Moscow.

Against this background, it is not ruled out that at the upcoming
summit, Russia will propose some scheme of settlement in which the
key role will be attributed to it. And if the West is really preparing
a Karabakh trap for Russia in Astana, it will not oppose to the fact
that Russia is fully involved in the Karabakh conflict.

It is not excluded that everything will end in signing a regular
humanitarian document, like the one in Astrakhan, in accord with which,
Armenia and Azerbaijan exchanged bodies and POWs. It is possible
that this time the agreement will regard the removal of snipers. But
Russia will not be Russia, if it does not try to make its troops’
deployment in Karabakh. Perhaps, from fear that he will have to sign
such a document, Serge Sargsyan will not leave for Astana, which is
not ruled out even by members of his party.

From: A. Papazian

ARMENIA TO FACE PRESSURES IN ASTANA SUMMIT: POLITICAL ANALYST

Tert.am
18:51 25.11.10

Armenia will definitely face pressures at the upcoming summit in
Astana, Arayik Sargsyan, Vice President of the Russian Academy of
Geopolitical Problems, has told Regnum news Agency.

“There can be no positive expectations of the OSCE summit. The parties
will make a regular step towards achieving conflict settlement. But to
say that nothing will happen is wrong too,” the expert said, adding
that the Astana summit cannot provide a platform for settling the
Karabakh conflict.

“The platform is where war is. So everything should end where it
began,” he added.

From: A. Papazian

WHAT’S THE POSSIBLE WAY OF SETTLING KARABAKH CONFLICT?: SOCIOMETER CONDUCTS PUBLIC OPINION POLLS

Tert.am
18:25 25.11.10

Head of Sociometer sociological center Aharon Adibekyan carried out
new public opinion polls from October 22 till 24.

The survey conducted among 1650 people was aimed at finding out
society’s attitude to Armenia’s foreign policy and the possible ways
of settling the Karabakh conflict.

At a meeting with journalists today, Adibekyan introduced the poll
returns.

This, 23.3% of the respondents find Karabakh conflict can be resolved
without returning territories, while 15% see annexation with Armenia
as the only possible way settling the issue. Some 11.6% claimed the
independence of Karabakh, and 11.6% said the country “can be granted
autonomy while forming part of Azerbaijan”.

The overwhelming majority of the respondents – 32.7% – considered
the maintenance of status quo more probable.

Speaking of society’s opinion on Armenian-Turkish rapprochement,
Adibekyan said that most of the people – 6.9% – estimated the process
in the positive light. Some 24% said it was more positive rather
than negative, 30.5% were more negatively disposed and 24.5% said
the process was definitely negative.

The sociologist also introduced respondents’ attitude to the
prolongation of the agreement on Russian military bases in Armenia. He
said 90.6% of those surveyed said it was positive, and only 5.4%
expressed a negative opinion. As to the remaining 4%, Adibekyan
refrained from making comments.

From: A. Papazian

ILHAM ALIYEV, OSCE MINSK GROUP CO-CHAIRS DISCUSS PROSPECTS ON KARABAKH ISSUE

PanARMENIAN.Net
November 25, 2010 – 21:25 AMT 17:25 GMT

25, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met with OSCE Minsk
Group co-chairs Igor Popov (Russia), Robert Bradtke (U.S.) and
Bernard Fassier (France) and Personal Representative of the OSCE
Chairman-in-Office Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk.

The sides discussed current level and prospects of the talks on
resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Azertag reported.

From: A. Papazian

PACE PRESIDENT DOESN’T ABANDON THE IDEA TO FORM SUBCOMMITTEE FOR KARABAKH ISSUES

PanARMENIAN.Net
November 25, 2010 – 20:52 AMT 16:52 GMT

Creation of subcommittee for Karabakh issues will be included on
PACE’s January agenda, according to PACE (Parliamentary Assembly of
the Council of Europe) President Mevlut Cavusoglu.

“In my capacity of PACE President I’ve had 5 meetings with Armenian
and Azerbaijani delegations. We intend to take maximum efforts to
resolve the issue,” Turkish media cited him as saying.

From: A. Papazian