Author: Andres-Papazian

GEORGIA’S PM’S POLICY TO CHANGE THE SITUATION IN THE REGION – ANALYST

TERT.AM
18.01.13

Director of Noravank scientific-educational foundation Gagik
Harutyunyan says with Bidzina Ivanishvili coming to power in Georgia
more realistic policy, stemming from Georgia’s interests will be
carried out which is being sharply perceived by Azerbaijan and Turkey.

“An exclusive opportunity has been created for Georgia and Russia to
become allied states which both stems from the national interests of
Georgia and Armenia,” he said, speaking to reporters. Harutyunyan said
it is also a good opportunity for Armenia to pull out from isolation.

“If the Abkhazian railway opens it will strategically change the
situation in the region. In this case we are dealing not with the PR
speeches like previously but concrete steps,” he said, adding that
a lot depends on presidential elections in Georgia this year.

“Of course, election of Ivanishvili’s candidate is beneficial for us.

If today’s tendency remains, we will deal with a country that will
conduct a predictable policy which is quite important,” he said.

At the same time he confessed that Georgia is tied with Azerbaijan
and Turkey which, he believes, contradicts Georgia’s interests.

“Of course, there are rather serious issues and it is difficult to
expect essential changes. There is even a possibility of Georgia being
deprived of western means. It remains to hope that the relations with
Georgia will improve and the traditional market will open, partially
improving the situation,” he said, adding that Georgia’s president
Mikheil Saakashvili’s concerns in this respect are dramatized.

“Saakashvili dramatizes the situation. The relations with Turkey and
Azerbaijan could not have worsened or improved in the short period
of time,” the speaker said.

He also voiced hope that Ivanishvili will be committed to his program
as it is a program of not individual but collective approaches.

From: A. Papazian

HEAD OF “VMG GROUP” ARRESTED WITH FRAUD CHARGES

Friday, January 18, 13:01

The head of “VMG Group” CJSC, Vladislav Mangaseryan, was arrested
in Armenia. He has become especially known after bankruptcy of a
businessman from the Armenian Diaspora, Edmon Khudoyan.

As press-service of the Armenian Police told ArmInfo correspondent,
Vladislav Mangasaryan, was arrested on January 17 after midnight
by employees of the Nor-Nork department of Police. He was in the
wanted list from January 16 with fraud charges. Mangasaryan has been
sent to Nubarashen penitentiary. The details of Mangaseryan’s case
are not clear yet. However, it is supposed that he was arrested on
Khudoyan’s case.

To note, the American-based Armenian businessman Edmon Khudoyan has
been accusing Mangasaryan for being a member of the criminal group
that embezzled $8.5 million equivalent real estate property and $1.5
million equivalent sums from his “Arin Capital” investment company
he established in Armenia. He said that the criminal group is under
the patronage of the Armenian president’s brother, Levon Sargsyan.

However, when talking to ArmInfo correspondent, Levon Sargsyan
disproved these accusations calling them false. “I have nothing in
common with the deeds which Khudoyan has been trying to blame me for.

Today any man may accuse another one without proof”, – Sargsyan said.

When commenting on Khudoyan’s initiative to appeal to the European
Court for Human Rights, Sargsyan said that is his own right and he
can do what he wants.

To note, earlier Mangaseryan said at the press-conference that he is
an honest man and has nothing in common with any criminal groups.

From: A. Papazian

TEHERAN ET EREVAN DEVELOPPENT LEUR COOPERATION

vendredi18 janvier 2013, par Gari/armenews

Teheran et Erevan ont signe quatre protocoles d’accord visant a
developper leur cooperation economique a l’occasion de la visite d’une
delegation armenienne dans la province limitrophe de l’Azerbaïdjan
oriental, au nord-ouest de l’Iran. Les documents ont ete signes
le 16 janvier lors d’une rencontre entre des representants de la
province iranienne et Suren Khachatrian, le gouverneur de la province
de Siounik, au sud-est de l’Armenie, qui conduisait une delegation
d’hommes d’affaires armeniens a Tabriz. Les provinces d’Azerbaïdjan
oriental et de Siounik vont developper leur cooperation et leurs
relations bilaterales en vertu de ces protocoles d’accord qui portent
sur differents domaines d’activite economique.

En vertu de ces accords, les deux provinces collaboreront plus
etroitement dans les domaines de l’elevage et des soins veterinaires,
des societes mixtes devant etre creees dans le secteur agricole.

L’Iran devrait auyssi fournir a l’Armenie du materiel agricole,
dont des tracteurs, ainsi que des engrais. L’Armenie est member de
l’Organisation mondiale du commerce (OMC) et son PIB est estime a 9,
4 milliards de dollars. Le revenu moyen per capita en Armenie est
evalue 5 700 dollars, et le volume des investissements etrangers dans
le pays a 570 millions de dollars.

A l’issue de cette visite, le 16 janvier, l’Iran et l’Armenie ont
annonce qu’ils “envisagent de creer une nouvelle zone de cooperation
economique”. Cette question avait ete evoquee lors d’une rencontre
entre le gouverneur-general de l’Azerbaïdjan oriental, Alireza Beigi,
et son homologue armenien du Siounik, Suren Khachatrian, la veille
a Tabriz, capitale de la province iranienne. “L’etablissement d’une
zone economique mixte en vue de conjuguer les potentialites des
deux parties avait deja ete evoque lors de notre recente visite
en Armenie, a commente M. Beigi. Ce dernier a note que la province
de Siounik pouvait utiliser les capacites des groupes industriels
prives de l’Iran en vue souvenir a ses besoins, et au-dela, server
de tremplin aux produits industriels de l’Azerbaïdjan oriental pour
qu’ils puissent penetrer les marches russes.

Le mois dernier, on apprenait que l’Iran etudiait un projet en vue de
la creation d’une nouvelle zone de cooperation economique en accord
avec les Etats situes a ses frontières septentrionales, l’Armenie mais
aussi l’Azerbaïdjan. La question avait ete au c~ur de la rencontre
entre le ministre iranien des affaires etrangères Ali Akbar Salehi
et le gouverneur de la province d’Azerbaïdjan oriental

From: A. Papazian

ISRAEL AUGMENTERA-T-IL LE VOLUME DE VENTE D’ARMEMENTS A L’AZERBAIDJAN ?
Stephane

armenews.com
vendredi 18 janvier 2013

Selon Haykakan Jamanak, un representant du Ministère de la Defense
d’Israël aurait declare que son pays envisagerait d’augmenter le
volume de vente d’armements et de munitions a l’Azerbaïdjan et a
d’autres pays. Au cours de la seule annee dernière, Israël aurait
conclu un accord avec l’Azerbaïdjan a hauteur de 1,6 MD dollars.

Extrait de la revue de presse de l’Ambassade de France en Armenie en
date du 11 janvier 2013

vendredi 18 janvier 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

From: A. Papazian

L’APPETIT RETROUVE DES ENTREPRISES FRANCAISES EN TURQUIE
Stephane

armenews.com
vendredi 18 janvier 2013

L’orage a fait quelques degâts, comme a chaque fois. Mais un an après
le coup de tabac qui a secoue les relations entre Paris et Ankara,
les entreprises francaises sont reparties de plus belle a l’assaut
du juteux marche turc, avec l’ambition d’y renforcer leurs positions.

C’etait l’hiver dernier. Un temps où, comme s’en amuse aujourd’hui
un patron francais en Turquie, ” il valait mieux garder son drapeau
dans sa poche “. Piquees au vif par le vote d’une loi reprimant la
negation du genocide armenien de 1915, les autorites turques decidaient
de mettre la France a l’index.

Pendant trois mois, les contacts diplomatiques sont geles, la
cooperation militaire suspendue et la guerre des mots fait rage.

Jusqu’a la decision, en mars, du Conseil constitutionnel
francais d’annuler le texte incrimine, qui ramène le gouvernement
islamo-conservateur du Premier ministre Recep Tayyip Erdogan a de
meilleurs sentiments a l’endroit de Paris.

Rompues aux poussees de fièvre qui agitent regulièrement la vie du
couple franco-turc, les entreprises tricolores ont fait le gros dos.

” Nous ne l’avons pas ressenti, parce que nous ne sommes pas sur
les marches publics, assure Elisabeth Gehringer, la directrice
generale adjointe de l’assureur Groupama en Turquie. Les Turcs savent
parfaitement faire la difference entre le “business” et la politique.

”

Certains y ont toutefois laisse des plumes. ” Nous avons perdu
deux marches importants pendant la periode, deplore le representant
d’un grand groupe. Nos contacts nous ont confirme avoir recu pour
instruction de leur gouvernement de ne plus travailler avec des
Francais… ”

Les Turcs nient aujourd’hui avoir donne la moindre consigne de
boycott. Mais confirment que les marques francaises ont souffert. ”
Vous savez ce que c’est, on ne peut pas empecher les gens d’acheter
des Renault ou de faire leurs courses chez Carrefour “, observe,
amuse, un ministre turc.

La fâcherie de l’hiver est toutefois restee limitee comparee a
celles de 2001, quand le Parlement francais avait reconnu le genocide
armenien, et 2006, lorsque le futur president Nicolas Sarkozy rodait
sa campagne pour l’Elysee sur le thème du ” non ” a l’entree de la
Turquie dans l’Union europeenne (UE).

2012 marque le pas

” Il y a cinq ans, on a perdu de gros contrats. Pas cette fois,
confie un acteur economique. Des projets ont ete geles mais sont
relances depuis. ”

Au final, le bilan de 2012 reste decevant. Avec un peu moins de 13
milliards d’euros d’echanges, l’annee sera a peine meilleure que 2011
(12,5 milliards). Malgre quelques beaux ” coups ” tricolores comme la
prise de participation d’Aeroports de Paris (AdP) dans son homologue
turc TAV.

Mais le climat politique a change et redonne de l’appetit aux
entreprises tricolores. En novembre, le ministre turc de l’Economie
Zafer Caglayan a celebre a Paris ” l’ouverture d’une nouvelle epoque
dans les relations entre nos deux pays “. Et son homologue francaise
du Commerce exterieur Nicole Bricq debarque aujourd’hui a Istanbul
avec un areopage de patrons pour faire fructifier ce ” retour de la
confiance “.

Avec ses 450 implantations qui emploient 100 000 personnes, la France
est solidement installee en Turquie. Troisième partenaire economique
europeen derrière l’Allemagne et l’Italie, elle dispose des atouts
pour ameliorer son rang.

Mais la frilosite des patrons francais a l’endroit d’un pays qu’ils
connaissent mal retarde encore leur marche en avant. ” Ils ont
encore une vision très negative de la Turquie, deplore le directeur
d’Ubifrance en Turquie, Eric Fajole. Il y a peu, l’un d’eux me
demandait si on y travaillait le vendredi… ”

Et l’hypothèque qui pèse sur les contrats d’Etat reste une realite. ”
C’est vrai, la France est ecartee d’un certain nombre de grands appels
d’offres depuis 2006 “, concède Yves-Marie Laouënan, le vice-president
de la Chambre de commerce francaise en Turquie, ” mais cela pourrait
changer “.

Le ministre turc de l’Energie Taner Yildiz a ainsi recemment encourage
la France a postuler pour la construction du troisième reacteur
nucleaire turc. Un clin d’~il inenvisageable un an plus tôt.

(Source : AFP)

vendredi 18 janvier 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

From: A. Papazian

ARMENIAN OPPOSITIONISTS COMMENT ON ‘GROUND ZERO’ PROPOSAL

12:09 ~U 17.01.13

Tert.am has talked to representatives of the political forces
affiliated with the opposition Armenian National Congress to know
their opinion about a proposed plan for starting everything from zero.

It comes after Nikol Pashinyan published two articles – “Ground
Zero” and “Beginning the Political Year” – addressing the problem
of emigration from Armenia and a recent Facebook news conference
in which the ANC activist explained his political force’s policies
following the March 2008 post-electoral developments.

In an article published in Pashinyan’s Haykakan Zhamanak newspaper,
a former ANC member, Sasun Mikaelyyan (who headed a detachment during
the Nagorno-Karabakh war), had criticized the alliance’s policies of
the past year, particularly the decision not to field a presidential
candidate for this year’s election. He characterized the move as an
“escape from the battlefield” and used such terms as “unforseeing
political flirts”, “deviation from the clearly arranged pan-national
struggle”, etc/

Commenting on Mikaelyan’s article, Grigor Harutyunyan of the Armenian
People’s party said he shares the author’s concerns. “I see grounds
behind Sasun’s concerns, but there is a question I do not accept. With
regard to participation in the elections, I have always said that
scheduled polls will yield no result,” he told our correspondent.

Harutyunyan thinks the ANC’s relations with the Prosperous Armenia
party could be behind what the activist had described as a “political
flirt”. “To some extent, yes; nothing should have been said really. I
didn’t accept that either … but that cannot be termed as a political
flirt,” he said.

Asked about the necessity of the Zero Ground plan, a member of the ANC
Central Office Arshak Banuchyan said a change of tactics might be at
issue. “The ANC”s tactics was to re-establish the constitutional order
through constitutional methods, and nothing set out in the Declaration
was infringed,” he told Tert.am, considering the atmosphere in the
ANC quite normal.

First President Levon Ter-Petrosyan, who now heads the opposition
alliance, had earlier refrained from commenting on the published
material. In an interview with iLur.am, Ter-Petrosyan said that
highly praising the activist’s contribution to the re-establishment
of independent Armenia and the liberalization of Artsakh, he could
not permit himself to say anything about his article.

From: A. Papazian

ORANGE ARMENIA OPENS VOTE FOR 2ND STAGE OF ORANGE BOOK PRIZE

Thursday 17 January 2013 | 08:29 CET | News

Orange Armenia opened the public voting for the second stage of the
Orange Book Prize 2012. During the first stage, the jury chose maximum
three works from each category of the contest. As of 15 January,
all readers can get acquainted with the works that were picked
during the first selection stage on the official website of Orange
Armenia. On the same page, they can vote for their favorite works by
identifying themselves via the Facebook social network and clicking the
‘like’ button. On 15 February, the results of the online vote will be
summarised and the number of votes per participant will be fixed. The
winning works of all genres will be chosen by the vote of the jury.

Online voting results will be considered as the vote of one jury
member. A special ‘Prize for popularity’ will be awarded to the work
that will collect the maximum number of readers’ votes, regardless
of the genre.

From: A. Papazian

MF: ARMENIA’S BANKING SYSTEM PROVED RESILIENT TO THE FINANCIAL CRISIS

10:38 17.01.2013

The banking system of Armenia proved resilient to the financial crisis
and the severe exchange rate depreciation and GDP contraction of 2009,
says the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in an assessment of the
country’s financial sector, published on January 11, 2013.

The resilience is in part due to the low level of intermediation and
exposure to key sectors such as construction, but also because of
swift efforts on the part of the authorities to provide support to the
banking sector. Stress tests show that banks would be resilient to a
repeated shock, although there are some heightened vulnerabilities,
according to the IMF’s Financial Sector Stability Assessment Program
(FSAP) Update for Armenia.

“The authorities show considerable commitment to embedding strong
supervision as an expectation in Armenia,” said Jennifer Elliott,
FSAP mission chief. “Further work on deepening understanding of
individual banks’ risk profiles and some additional reporting from
banks would be a continuation of their progress.” The system remains
broadly appropriate for the level of development but additions will
be required as the financial system develops.

The country however remains vulnerable to a current account shock,
according to the assessment. The authorities are engaged in further
action that could be taken to protect the banking sector, including
the introduction of a liquidity coverage ratio in foreign currency to
ensure sufficient liquidity for the high level of dollar deposits and
are developing more robust monitoring of foreign currency exposures
of borrowers, because foreign currency lending generates significant
credit risk.

The authorities have already taken steps, since the FSAP mission,
to strengthen the crisis management framework concluding a Memorandum
of Understanding between the central bank and Ministry of Finance.

From: A. Papazian

RUSSIA PRESSES ARMENIA INTO JOINING EURASIAN UNION – PAPER

January 17, 2013 – 11:20 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Armenian National Congress (ANC) opposition bloc
member Davit Shahnazaryan deemed the Eurasian Union as Moscow’s
campaign project, helping Russia create a bloc tantamount to the EU,
Aravot daily reports.

In conversation with the paper’s reporter, Mr. Shahnazaryan noted the
EU as an institution guided by universal human values, dubbing the
Eurasian Union a political model of a new empire with vague future.

“Joining the Customs Union won’t favor Armenia’s interest. It will
restrict the country’s sovereignty,” the ANC member said, adding that
Russia keeps pressing Armenia into joining the Eurasian Union.

From: A. Papazian

LEVON ARONIAN CELEBRATED HIS FIRST VICTORY IN “TATA STEEL”

20:28, 17 January, 2013

YEREVAN, JANUARY 17, ARMENPRESS: Armenian grandmaster Levon Aronian
scored the win over Ivan Sokolov during 75th Tata Steel Chess
Tournament in Wijk aan Zee. Armenian grandmaster made his opponent
to surrender on 24th step with blacks.

The central game was between the World Champion Viswanathan Anand
and Magnus Carlsen who ended the game in a tie.

Sergei Movsesian also won the game in “Tata Steel B”.

From: A. Papazian