Author: Andres-Papazian

ARMROBOTICS CHAMPIONSHIP HAS NO WINNER

PanARMENIAN.Net
June 4, 2010 – 13:39 AMT 08:39 GMT

The jury of ArmRobotics championship defined winners of Robot
Minesweeper competition. None of the participating teams won the
first and second prizes, as they have not managed to fulfill the
task entirely

Ericta (European Regional Academy) and Ciber RAU (Russian-Armenian
University) won the third place, each receiving AMD 100,000 as a
monetary prize. The other seven teams were awarded encouraging prizes
at the amount of AMD 40,000 , the Union of Information Technology
Enterprises (UITE) told PanARMENIAN.Net

ArmRobotics championship was held for the first time by the UITE in
2008. The HALO Trust, which is a non-political, non-religious NGO,
registered in Britain as a charity specializing in the removal of
the hazardous debris of war, offered the theme for this championship.

During the event, the projected robots should have found mines
underground and sent a map to server through WiFi, radio transmitters
or flash-media. Robots weight should have been below 10kg. Iranian
Hoornet company was the general sponsor of the event, providing the
required parts for robots assembling.

From: A. Papazian

GAZA INCIDENT CAN HELP RECONSIDER ARMENIAN-ISRAELI RELATIONS

PanARMENIAN.Net
June 4, 2010 – 15:15 AMT 10:15 GMT

Turkey is a country of double standards, stated Hayk Babukhanyan,
the leader of the Constitutional Right Union.

“A country which has been imposing a blockade on another country
during 17 years has no right to speak of closed borders,” he told
reporters on June 4.

He slammed the reaction of superpowers to the incident with the
Gaza-bound flotilla, saying that “no country urged Turkey to open
the border with Armenia, which has been suffering from blockade for
17 years.”

However, he did not rule out that after the Gaza incident can stir up
another Armenian Genocide debate in Knesset and even help reconsider
Armenian-Israeli relations.

“Israel can use the Genocide issue as a leverage on Turkey,” he said.

From: A. Papazian

HAYK BABUKHANYAN: CHANGE OF POWER POSSIBLE IN TURKEY

PanARMENIAN.Net
June 4, 2010 – 14:46 AMT 09:46 GMT

Hayk Babukhanyan, the leader of the Constitutional Right Union,
said that change of power is possible in Turkey.

“While Europe is realizing the menace represented by Turkey’s foreign
policy, Ankara is gradually shifting to Iran and Russia,” Babukhanyan
told journalists in Yerevan on June 4.

At that, he noted that Turkish-Iranian rapprochement will not last
long. “Presently, the interests of Ankara and Tehran coincide but
Iran will not allow to transfer the center of Islamic world from
Tehran to Ankara,” he said.

Babukhanyan also said that the forthcoming constitutional referendum
and parliamentary elections in Turkey may result in change of power,
thus solving all the problems in the country.

From: A. Papazian

TURKEY IS A GENOCIDE PERPETRATOR

PanARMENIAN.Net
June 4, 2010 – 14:59 AMT 09:59 GMT

The Armenian-Turkish dialogue will not be in deadlock for a long
time, according to Hayk Babukhanyan, the leader of the Constitutional
Right Union.

He hailed the RA President’s decision to freeze the process of
ratification of Armenian-Turkish Protocols.

“The process will not be resumed unless change of power takes place
in Turkey and the country ‘returns’ under the U.S. supervision and
opens the border with Armenia. But once the dialogue is resumed, it’s
Armenia who should speak to Turkey with the language of preconditions,
i.e. Yerevan should demand recognition of the Armenian Genocide,
compensation and elimination of consequences and protection of rights
of national minorities in Turkey,” Babukhanyan told journalists on
June 4.

He also emphasized that Turkey is a genocide perpetrator and its
mentality will not change.

“Denial of Genocide remains one of Turkey’s foreign policy priorities.

If given an opportunity, Turkey will plot another genocide against
Armenians,” he concluded.

From: A. Papazian

YEREVAN TO HOST ROUNDTABLE ON ARMENIAN-RUSSIAN INTERACTION AND REGIONAL PROBLEMS

PanARMENIAN.Net
June 4, 2010 – 14:03 AMT 09:03 GMT

The Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), Prosperous Armenia party and
Russian Institute for Strategic Studies (RISS) will hold a roundtable
in Yerevan on Armenian-Russian Interaction and Regional Problems,
the event bringing together representatives of the RPA, Prosperous
Armenia party and Armenian experts.

The RISS delegation headed by Institute Director Leonid Reshetnikov
will arrive in Armenia on invitation of Prosperous Armenia party
chairman Gagik Tsarukyan.

The roundtable reports will refer to the Armenian-Russian political
and economic cooperation, security interaction, current stage
of the Karabakh conflict settlement process and outlooks for the
Armenian-Turkish normalization.

Chairman of Prosperous Armenia party Gagik Tsarukyan, Vice-Chairman
of the RPA Galust Sahakyan, Russian Ambassador to Armenia Vyacheslav
Kovalenko and RISR Director Leonid Reshetnikov will be key-speakers
of the event, the press service of Prosperous Armenia party reported.

From: A. Papazian

ARMENIA’S SMALL AND MEDIUM BUSINESSES TO JOIN ISFR

PanARMENIAN.Net
June 4, 2010 – 13:54 AMT 08:54 GMT

Shareholder of Grant Thornton Amiot audit and consulting company
Gurgen Hakobyan said that adoption of the International Standards of
Financial Reporting (ISFR), including by small and medium businesses
of Armenia, will provide with the opportunity to transparently exchange
information on business conduct at international financial markets.

“Besides, the transfer will allow unifying concepts and process of
bookkeeping,” Hakobyan told a PanARMENIAN.Net reporter.

He added that the preparation of financial reports in compliance
with international standards is a technically complicated process,
so it was decided to simplify it at the international level.

Currently, there are two options of financial reporting: one for large
corporations and a simplified option for small and medium businesses.

“This served as an impetus for accelerating the process of transfer
from national to international standards,” Hakobyan said.

On June 2, the Armenian Ministry of Finance hosted an official ceremony
of submission of financial reports by small and medium businesses
that were developed in compliance with international standards.

From: A. Papazian

MAMMADYAROV TO MEET OSCE CO-CHAIRMEN

Tert.am
04.06.10

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister will on Saturday meet the OSCE Minsk
Group co-chairs in the framework of his visit to Italy.

According to Azerbaijani news website Novosti Azerbaijan the main
aim of Elmar Mammadyarov’s visit is to take part in the jubilee
celebrations dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the foundation of
the Council of Europe Venice Commission.

Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesperson Elkan Polukhov told the
source that the co-chairmen will provide Mammadyarov with the results
of the meetings held with Armenia’s Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan.

According to Polukhov the parties are set to discuss also the current
situation over the Nagorno Karabakh conflict and the steps to be
taken further.

Earlier Mammadyarov had said that Baku would after this meeting
clarify the further steps it intends to take for the settlement of
the Karabakh issue.

From: A. Papazian

ERVAND KOCHAR-110: MASTER’S JUBILEE YEAR BEGINS

Tert.am
04.06.10

On June 4 an exhibition will open at the Artists’ Union of Armenia
dedicated to the 110th anniversary of the famous Armenian sculpture
Ervand Kochar.

Some 120 exhibits are included in the exhibition that will last till
June 20.

Besides, this year Yerevan will celebrate the 50th anniversary of
monuments erected by Kochar – David of Sasun and Melancholy.

2010 will see also the 25th anniversary of the foundation of Ervand
Kochar Museum.

From: A. Papazian

ARMENIAN MARKET FLOODED WITH FRUIT AND VEGETABLES RICH IN CHEMICALS: EXPERT

Tert.am
04.06.10

Experts of Consumers Association have examined the vegetables and
fruit that grow in Armavir, Aragatsotn and Ararat marzes (province)
and have come to a conclusion that all citizens, especially those
living in the capital city of Yerevan, should be concerned about.

In a press conference today Levon Achemyan, the Director of Consumers
Association said that the quantity of fertilizers and chemicals found
in them exceeds the level allowed.

“All the green houses are having that problem; the situation is out of
control. Very often the vegetables appear in the markets just a few
days after chemicals are injected in them, while at least 3-7 days
are necessary for the poison’s influence to fade away. The chemicals
penetrate into the organism, infiltrate in the blood and in the course
of time affect the liver, the kidneys and the heart,” said Achemyan.

Armenia is a member state of the World Trade Organization. It signed
an agreement and assumed a liability to ensure the security of food
in the country. But according to Achemyan Armenia does not meet its
obligations, and there is no control over the situation.

Mileta Aristakesyan, another expert present at the press conference,
said that also imported fruit and vegetables are sold in the market
which are genetically modified species that are quite harmful for
health.

Further she said that information must be pasted on those fruit and
vegetables while passing the border, which would inform the consumers
that they are genetically modified.

“There are no laboratories in Armenia so that that food stuff could
be examined,” said Aristakesyan.

From: A. Papazian

ARMENIA HAS TRADITIONALLY HAD A STRONGER ARMY THAN AZERBAIJAN: CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR

Tert.am
04.06.10

Despite a global recession, worldwide military spending increased in
2009 by its fastest pace since 2003, according to a new report by
the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Chad boosted
spending by 663 percent. The US still has the biggest defense budget.

Worldwide military spending jumped 5.9 percent in 2009 to $1.5
trillion. This is despite a recession that shrunk the global economy
2.2 percent.

The US remains by far the biggest military spender, followed by China,
the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said in
its annual report on worldwide military expenditures, released June 2.

Last year saw the steepest jump in worldwide military spending since
the start of the Iraq War in 2003.

>From 2000 to 2009, Chad increased its military budget 663 percent,
Azerbaijan increased 471 percent, and Kazakhstan increased 360 percent.

In Central Asia, according to CSM, Azerbaijan has used oil
revenues to beef up forces along its border with Armenia, which
has traditionally had a stronger army and enjoys strategic terrain
advantages. The International Crisis Group said in a report last year
that Azerbaijan’s stronger military could put the fragile truce with
Armenia under threat.

From: A. Papazian