Author: Andres-Papazian

TOLEDO: TURKEY SHOULD NORMALIZE TIES WITH ISRAEL AS 2015 NEARS

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
Oct 24 2013

2 324 October 2013 /SÄ°NEM CENGÄ°Z, JERUSALEM Ankara should accelerate
its efforts to normalize ties with Israel before 2015, the centennial
of the so-called Armenian genocide in 1915, as the global Israeli
lobby has significantly toned down its previously staunch support of
Turkey in blocking the recognition of claims of genocide, said Zali
De Toledo, head of the Association of Turkish Jews in Israel.

“As 2015 is approaching, Turkey should take into account its interests
and should normalize relations with Israel by appointing an ambassador
to Israel as soon as possible. If both countries miss the opportunity
to mend the ties, the Israeli lobby will likely stay neutral when
2015 comes,” De Toledo told Today’s Zaman.

Relations between Turkey and Israel — countries that once enjoyed
solid ties at all levels — worsened in May 2010 and have remained
strained since Israeli naval commandos stormed the Mavi Marmara, a
humanitarian aid ship attempting to breach Israel’s blockade of Gaza,
killing eight Turkish civilians and one Turkish-American.

After the Mavi Marmara incident, Turkey downgraded ties with the
Israeli state by withdrawing its ambassador and expelling the Israeli
ambassador from Turkey.

De Toledo said she had done her utmost to pressure the Israeli lobby
in the US to refrain from labeling mass killings of Armenians at
the hands of the Ottomans in 1915 as genocide, adding: “I was the
strongest supporter of the Turkish position. And now I am really
disappointed to see Turkish-Israeli relations at this point.”

De Toledo served as Israeli cultural attaché to Turkey for 10 years,
from 1993 to 2003. Israeli President Shimon Peres offered her the
position in a bid to improve relations between the two countries.

Although for many years Israel has held back from commenting on the
matter for fear of angering Turkey, last year the Israeli parliament
had a debate over whether to recognize the mass killing of Armenians
by Ottoman Turks during World War I as genocide.

In order to end what became a major diplomatic crisis between the
two former allies, in late March Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu offered an apology to Turkey for the Mavi Marmara incident.

The apology met one of three demands Ankara made to Tel Aviv. The
others were compensation for the families of the passengers killed
on the ship and the lifting of the blockade on Gaza.

Referring to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s harsh
stance toward Israel over the Gaza issue, De Toledo says: “It’s a
one-man show in Turkey. Why is Erdogan asking for the lifting of the
blockade on Gaza? Why is he interfering? This is an issue between
Israelis and Gazans, after all!”

Israeli apology has nothing to do with isolation in region Israel did
not apologize to Turkey for the Mavi Marmara incident because it felt
isolated in the Middle East, according to Reuven Azar, head of the
Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs Bureau for Middle East Research.

“It is not an issue of feeling alone in the region or not. It is more
than that. Israel considers Turkey a major player in the region and
wants to have an alliance with it just like in the past years.

Israelis have sympathy toward Turkey and want to restore relations,”
Azar told a group of Turkish journalists at the Israeli Foreign
Ministry earlier this week.

“Israel is not alone. When it comes to the balance of power in the
region, our position is better than the past in terms of security
and economy,” Azar said.

The Israeli prime minister said that Israel apologized to Turkey
because of the volatile situation in Syria.

Azar went on to say that Israel and Turkey have common interests when
it comes to Syria. “The common goal is to maintain stability in the
country,” he said.

Addressing the strained relations between the two countries, Azar said
that Ankara and Tel Aviv can solve the problems that concern each
side, adding that the two countries should come to an understanding
and move on. “However, we don’t really know what is going to be the
future of the Turkish approach toward Israel. Turkey’s relations with
Hamas are seriously disturbing. This situation brings a question to
mind — to what extent can we put our eggs in the Turkish basket?”

Azar said.

Relations between Turkey and Hamas, which rules Gaza, have been
improving since Turkey’s ties with Israel collapsed over the Mavi
Marmara incident.

“We have to ask whether Mavi Marmara is the only issue on the table.

Where is Turkey heading in terms of political orientation? We look
to Turkey-Hamas relations with great concern. We know that Turkey
supports the Middle East peace process, but on the other hand it
talks with Hamas,” Azar said.

In early October, Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal paid a surprise
visit to Ankara, where he met with Erdogan for talks on Palestinian
reconciliation and developments in the Middle East.

From: A. Papazian

PREVIEW: TCHAIKOVSKY SENT MESSAGE WITH 6TH SYMPHONY

Postmedia Breaking News
October 23, 2013 Wednesday

REGINA, Canada – You can tell Maestro Victor Sawa is excited about
this weekend’s concert by the sheer exuberance in his voice discussing
this Saturday’s Mosaic Masterworks offering.

Featuring Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6, considered one of
superstar composer’s greatest works, the venerable conductor sounds
like a kid in a candy store.

“If you’ve ever seen Fantasia or The Nutcracker, you know Tchaikovsky
could write a melody better than anybody,” he exclaims. “That’s
including Rodgers and Hammerstein, Andrew Lloyd Webber – anybody. He’s
amazing through and through.

“The interesting thing about this piece is that it was his final
completed symphony,” he continues. “He was the kind of guy who wore
his emotions on his sleeve. His heart was always on his sleeve; if
he was sad the music was sad. As Russia’s premier composer he was no
slouch. He was that good.

“He was Mr. Showbiz. This guy would have made a fortune today. He
would have written a couple musicals, a couple movies, this guy
would have done it. The one rule he gave to everybody else was to
never end a piece soft – always end with a bang. His 1812 Overture
with the cannons – it doesn’t get any louder than that. There’s not
one of his big pieces, such as symphonies or ballets, which he’s done
that doesn’t end with a bang. This one ends soft. Of all the pieces,
this one, right before his death, ends softly.

“Why did he do that?” Sawa asks. “It was time and he kind of wanted
to send a subliminal message to everybody that he knew his time was
up, it was time, he had a great run, and thank you very much. If you
really want to hear the ending, you’ll listen closely to the third
movement. The third movement is spectacular. It was like he was
telling the audience that if they want him to end like he usually
does, here’s the third movement – I’ve still got it in me, but I’m
going to end this symphony another way.”

Besides Tchaikovsky’s 6th, patrons will see the Regina Symphony
Orchestra perform Buhr’s Akasha and Khachaturian’s Piano Concerto,
the latter featuring acclaimed Saskatchewan pianist Samuel Deason.

Deason, who was born in Saskatoon, has Sawa’s stamp of approval and
is perfect for this piece.

“I’ve listened to him a couple times and he’s such a great pianist
and a really nice guy. He’s doing a piece by Khachaturian who was
Armenian. At this point it was part of the Soviet Union and they were
all faithful Soviets he wrote under the auspices of Russia but he was
really Armenian. You can tell the inspiration from Tchaikovsky that he
got because he also wore his emotions on his sleeve. It’s like, ‘Wow.’

“Khachaturian had his own hell to pay. Tchaikovsky had his demons but
Khachaturian had to deal with a Stalin-era Soviet Union. The Soviet
government was very conscious of what culture was and how important
it was as part of their image to the world, so if Stalin didn’t like a
particular piece he would personally confront the composer and threaten
to wipe out them, their family, and all of their friends, unless they
wrote something that he would personally like. Talk about pressure.

“As far as playing the piece, Sam’s a strong performer and gets way
into the notes. You can’t pussyfoot your way around this piece. This
is not a philosophical and introspective kind of piece – this is
a bread and butter right into the guts, let’s do it piece. That’s
exactly how Sam plays it.”

Tchaikovsky’s 6th Symphony Regina Symphony Orchestra 8 p.m., Oct. 26
Conexus Arts Centre

From: A. Papazian

ARMENIA INVITES KAZAKHSTAN ON OVER FOR A CHAT

EurasiaNet.org
Oct 24 2013

October 24, 2013 – 10:31am, by Giorgi Lomsadze

Armenia and Kazakhstan do not have much in common other than their
Soviet Union past and Eurasian-Union future. So, if Kazakh President
Nursultan Nazarbayev accepts a recent invite to visit Armenia, the two
countries are likely to talk about their new, Moscow-led customs club.

Granted, when Armenia’s new ambassador to Kazakhstan, Ara Saakian,
conveyed Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan’s invitation, he put it
in terms of relying on Kazakhstan, as a member of the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), to take a balanced
position in the OSCE-led attempts to resolve the Armenian-Azerbaijani
conflict over the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Yet Kazakhstan, like anyone else in the post-Soviet world, is unlikely
to take any dramatic step on the dispute, lest it angers one of its
across-the-Caspian Sea neighbors. Nazarbayev’s visit, therefore,
is not expected to mark any changes in the Karabakh status quo.

But what needs some discussion is the membership rules in the Eurasian
Union that Moscow hopes will be a new and better USSR. Nazarbayev has
long been a Eurasian Union enthusiast and is pushing for his views
about formation of a supranational body to govern the alliance. The
current bureaucracy of the Eurasian Union is led by Russian officials,
which some Kazakh experts believe shows who will be calling the shots
in the Union.

The club is still hiring, but so far has just five committed members:
Russia, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Belarus. The five have yet to
fine-tune the rules of engagement and make sure that their interests
are reflected to some degree in the final decision-making mechanism.

For many in Armenia, where grassroots opposition to the Union runs
strong, that may ultimately prove key.

From: A. Papazian

AZERBAIJAN CRITICISES EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT’S BACKTRACKING OVER RECENT PRESIDENTIAL POLL

Sacramento Bee, CA
Oct 24 2013

By Azerbaijan Monitor

BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 24, 2013 — /PRNewswire/ —

Azerbaijan has suspended its activities in the EuroNest Parliamentary
Assembly after the European Parliament (EP) defied the findings of
its own observer mission to the recent Presidential elections in
Azerbaijan to pass a resolution critical of the poll.

Observer missions from both the EP and the Council of Europe found
the poll, which re-elected President Ilham Aliyev on October 9th,
to be “free, fair and transparent”. But in the past week the EP has
passed a motion, which contradicts the findings of its own people on
the ground in Azerbaijan.

It has now determined that the election was held in “non-conformity
with the OSCE standards and non-fulfilment of OSCE requirements”,
a reversal, which has sparked a furious reaction from the Head of
the Azerbaijan delegation to Euronest PA, Elkhan Suleymanov.

He has questioned how the EP could base a ruling on “the partial
resolution of the OSCE ODIHR monitoring mission” despite the fact that
“three out of four international institutions monitoring the elections
– European Parliament, PA of Council of Europe and OSCE Parliamentary
Assembly – have provided their positive evaluation.”

He added that this is not the first such inconsistency on the part
of the EP. In July it declared it didn’t need to send a monitoring
mission to Azerbaijan at all, before announcing a dramatic about
face on the eve of the election, which, Suleymanov says, amounted to
“political sabotage.”

The election was monitored by almost 50,000 election monitors from
around the world and was won by Aliyev in a landslide. The emphatic
outcome was consistent with exit polling conducted by respected
American polling firm Arthur J. Finkelstein, based on 60,000 interviews
conducted at 835 polling stations.

Suleymanov also decried a contradiction by the European Parliament
over the Armenian occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh. Despite the fact
that the European Parliament – like the United Nations, OSCE and
the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe – has passed
resolutions condemning Armenia’s occupation, its President, Martin
Schulz, now says “Azerbaijan and Armenia themselves should solve this
complex issue.”

“This is absurd,” Suleymanov said in response. He pointed out that
Schultz’s comments totally contradict the approach of the Minsk group,
which is dedicated to finding a political solution to the occupation
involving regional and international involvement.

Armenia continues to occupy 20 percent of Azerbaijan territory
following a conflict two decades ago that displaced one million
Azerbaijanis

From: A. Papazian

GUL ASKS KAZAKH LEADER TO HELP TURKEY JOIN CUSTOMS UNION?

October 24, 2013 – 19:15 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – The President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev
has introduced two proposals at the current meeting of the Supreme
Eurasian Economic Council in Minsk, Vestnik Kavkaza reported.

Nazarbayev has made a statement in which he proposed to dissolve the
Eurasian Economic Union and extend the Customs Union by accepting
Turkey as its member.

He added that Turkish President Abdullah Gul had spoken to him with
a request to join the Customs Union.

Armenia completed technical talks on a ‘deep and comprehensive
free-trade agreement’ (DCFTA) with the EU in July and it was set
to be signed at a summit with the EU in late November. In addition
to a free-trade deal, Armenia has been working towards the signing
of an association agreement with the EU, a framework agreement on
co-operation that is seen as a first step towards political integration
with the EU.

However, during a Sept 3 meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin,
Armenian leader Sargsyan said Armenia is ready to join Customs Union,
with further plans to be involved in formation of the Eurasian Economic
Union. Mr. Putin supported the initiative, vowing procedural assistance
to Armenia.

Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt described Armenia’s intention as
a U-turn in relations with the European Union. “Seems as if Armenia
will break talks on free trade agreement with EU and integrate with
Russia instead,” he said.

Linas Linkevicius, the Foreign Minister of Lithuania, which holds
the rotating EU presidency, said Armenia “has blocked its chances of
signing a free trade deal with the European Union by choosing to join
the Russia-led union.” “We respect any choice of countries but they
cannot enter both organizations at the same time because of different
tariff requirements,” he said.

However, Armenian leadership continues expression intention to expand
ties with the EU, which won’t contradict Armenia’s CU membership.

“Armenia will take part in the upcoming Eastern Partnership Summit
in Vilnius and is ready to sign the Association Agreement,” President
Serzh Sargsyan said at the October 2 PACE session.

“No Armenia-EU document is being readied to be signed at a Vilnius
summit,” the spokesperson of the EU Commissioner Stefan Fule said.

“We’re trying to find routes for further cooperation with Armenia,
based on the existing achievements,” Peter Stano said.

From: A. Papazian

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT EXPRESSES CONCERN OVER SHORTAGE OF DEMOCRACY, SUPERIORITY OF LAW AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN AZERBAIJAN

ARMINFO
Thursday, October 24, 18:01

On its session in Strasbourg on October 23 The European Parliament
adopted a resolution on the European neighbourhood Policy.

In the part of this document devoted to Azerbaijan, European Parliament
says that “Regrets that an unclear vision and hesitation persist
on the issue of Azerbaijan’s pursuit of the Association Agreements;
stresses the economic potential of EU-Azerbaijan relations, but is
concerned by deficiencies in the fields of democracy, the rule of law
and human rights in Azerbaijan; insists therefore that Azerbaijan show
its commitment by stepping up its relevant standards, including freedom
of speech and association and allowing the democratic opposition to
enjoy their rights; insists that the release of political prisoners
and an end to the harassment of political activists, human rights
defenders and journalists are the necessary preconditions for any
agreement on a strategic modernization partnership with Azerbaijan;

Deplores the lack of respect for international standards shown in the
run-up to the presidential elections which took place on 9 October
2013, including candidates being denied registration on procedural
grounds, and calls for the immediate and unconditional release of the
14 Azerbaijani opposition politicians, journalists and human rights
activists imprisoned during the past months, including Tofiq Yaqublu
and Ilgar Mammadov;

Regrets the lack of vision and hesitation shown by the Union
with regard to the AAs and DCFTA, as a consequence of failing to
understand the strategic role of Azerbaijan in economic, geopolitical
and cultural terms”.

From: A. Papazian

VFL WOLFSBURG INTERESTED IN SIGNING ARMENIAN STRIKER YURA MOVSISYAN

15:19 24.10.2013

Armenia, Football, Yura Movsisyan

Several German clubs are interested in the services of the
Armenian striker Yura Movsisyan from Spartak Moscow, according to
transfermarkt.co.uk.

Especially VfL Wolfsburg wants to sign the 26-year-old striker,
who scored seven goals in twelve matches this seasons.

From: A. Papazian

MHER SHAHGELDYAN TO REPLACE ZARUHI POSTANJYAN IN ARMENIAN DELEGATION TO PACE

17:38 24/10/2013 ” POLITICS

Orinats Yerkir faction put up the candidacy of Mher Shahgeldyan during
the formation of the Armenian delegation to PACE, but it was decided
that the composition of the delegations will change in a year on the
rotation principle, head of Orinats Yerkir faction Heghine Bisharyan
told a press briefing in parliament.

“One year has passed since then and based on rotation, Mher Shahgeldyan
will represent Orinats Yerkir in the Armenian delegation to PACE,”
she added.

Source: Panorama.am

From: A. Papazian

AUSTRIAN PLASTIC SURGEON TO TELL ABOUT 82-YEAR-OLD PATIENT DURING ARMENIA-HOSTED CONGRESS

October 24, 2013 | 16:46

YEREVAN. – Professor of Evangelic Hospital of Vienna Kurt Vinzenz is
trying to bridge reconstructive and aesthetic surgery of the face.

Professor Vinzenz is one of the participants of Armenia-hosted
international congress of plastic reconstructive and aesthetic surgeons
which kicked off on Thursday.

Talking to the Armenian News-NEWS.am correspondent, Professor Vinzenz
noted that restorative surgery is a new branch. This kind of surgery
implies restoration of form and functions of the body simultaneously
with the appearance. He underscored that the two third of those
applying for restorative surgery are female patients.

The oldest patient of Mr. Vinzenz was 82 years old, and she was
diagnosed with aging face syndrome. The surgery gave good results,
he said, adding that it is a topic of his report that he is going to
present during the congress.

Armenia is hosting the international congress of plastic reconstructive
and aesthetic surgery on October 24-26. The congress brought together
surgeons from Georgia, Russia, U.S., Germany, Austria, South Korea,
Turkey and other states.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

From: A. Papazian

ZHAMANAK: JUST A FEW DAYS REMAIN UNTIL END OF ISHKHAN ZAKARYAN’S TERM IN OFFICE

12:17 24/10/2013 ” DAILY PRESS

Just a few days remain until the end of term in office of Control
Chamber Chairman Ishkhan Zakaryan, who has held that position since
November 2007, Zhamanak reports.

The paper notes that it is decided that Zakaryan will not remain on
his post.

“The issue of Ishkhan Zakaryan and the candidate for that position
will probably be discussed soon at one of the coming meetings of the
RPA Supreme Body. According to rumors, Deputy Chairman of Control
Chamber Levon Yolyan is the most likely candidate. Serzh Sargsyan is
to introduce the CC chairman candidate to the parliament which will
vote on it by secret ballot,” the paper says.

Source: Panorama.am

From: A. Papazian