Author: Antonian Lara

ACCORDING TO ARFD REPRESENTATIVE, AUTHORITIES ARE NOT CONCERNED WITH POSSIBILITY OF OPPOSITION CANDIDATE’S ELECTION ON YEREVAN MAYOR’S POST

Noyan Tapan
March 31, 2009

YEREVAN, MARCH 31, NOYAN TAPAN. In Yerevan Council of Elders elections
Dashnaktsutiun rather attaches importance to the whole electoral roll
than the person heading the list. Artyusha Shahbazian, the Secretary
of the National Assembly ARFD faction, mentioned at the March 31
press conference that for the first time not only Yerevan Mayor,
but also Council of Elders being Yerevan’s representative body will
be elected. Representation of a great number of political forces in
the latter will lead to balancing of forces, will ensure efficient
work and possibility of general control.

Asked "will the party be able to receive more than 7% votes, if the
list is headed by Artsvik Minasian, whom society does not know well,"
A. Shahbazian said that in the past years from Dashnaktsutiun’s team
no one was so active as he. He affirmed that both the ARFD list and
candidate number one have a great potential.

A. Shahbazian considers improbable assistance to RPA candidate in
Yerevan Mayor’s elections. According to him, the coalition does
not oblige the parties making part of it to become each other’s
adjuncts. Coalition parties can run for the elections individually,
as for political forces having something to say it is an occasion of
manifesting themselves.

According to A. Shahbazian, there is a tendency of on the one hand,
very much politicizing the elections and on the other hand, presenting
them outside of the political sphere. Political parties’ participation,
exclusively proportional system, election programs already make Mayor’s
elections political. The future Yerevan Council of Elders cannot be
outside of political processes, and though not directly, nevertheless
in some way they will show their attitude on issues important for the
country. However, at the same time no political change is expected
in the country as a result of Mayor’s elections, as the elected body
will be subordinate to the Prime Minister and government.

According to the ARFD representative, all political forces taking
part in the elections to some extent will be represented in the
future Council of Elders’ staff. As to the Mayor, the authorities
are not concerned with the possibility of opposition representative’s
taking that post. Irrespective of the fact who will become Mayor the
body will cooperate will the executive power, as it is difficult to
imagine that Yerevan Mayor’s Office will carry out policy contradicting
President’s or government’s policy.

The ARFD faction Secretary called media for not considering this press
conference the start of party’s entering the election campaign. He said
that ARFD Supreme Body representative Armen Rustamian was appointed
head of party’s election headquarters, and the election program will
be publicized soon.

NEICHO VELICHKOV: INTERNET WILL BE ACCESSIBLE EVERYWHERE IN ARMENIA

PanARMENIAN.Net
30.03.2009 14:59 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ ArmenTel CJSC (Beeline trademark) Director General
Neicho Velichkov and Agricultural Association Chairman Hrachya
Berberyan signed memorandum of strategic cooperation, stipulating
collaboration in technological and social spheres.

Says ArmenTel CJSC Director general, "Our investments aim to create
jobs and promote economic development in the regions, the position
our company did and will hold for years to come."

"Village people are the spine of any society, and our company is
honored to establish collaboration with the farmers’ union. By the end
of summer not only internet access but mobile and fixed connections
will be available throughout Armenian villages," Neicho Velichkov
related.

"Offering internet access to villagers is a great step towards easing
their everyday lives and connecting them with the outer world,"
Hrachya Berberyan stated.

According to Hrachya Berberyan, many attempts were taken to provide
internet connection in villages during last 10 years. This is the
first effective attempt which will enable people from Shirak to Goris
to communicate together, as well as obtain international connection
at affordable prices.

Internet clubs will be opened in villages to tutor web-surfing to
local people.

DISTURBING, NEW REVELATIONS ON BORDER OPENING
By Ara Khachatourian

cle=40988_3/30/2009_1
Monday March 30, 2009

The verbal back-and-forth on an imminent agreement between Armenia and
Turkey continued Monday with the Turkish press reporting that Turkey
and Armenia had agreed on a roadmap to establish diplomatic ties and
open the border, with the sides reportedly contemplating the timing
of the announcement and some asserting that the announcement should
come next week before President Barack Obama’s visit to Turkey.

Some media reports also attributed an announcement about the border
opening after Obama’s visit to Armenia’s Foreign Minister Eduard
Nalbandian. The Armenian Foreign Ministry only denied that Nalbandian
ever made such an announcement.

But what of the other revelations blanketing the Turkish press Monday?

"Turkey and Armenia are readying to sign a protocol that marks
commitment by both sides to establish diplomatic relations and set up
committees on issues ranging from border management, customs, history
and more. Having achieved a satisfying deal which includes setting up
a history committee to discuss 1915 events, on which Yerevan dragged
its feet for a long time, the remaining dilemma for Ankara is the
proper timing of the announcement," reported the Hurriyet Daily News.

"The draft protocol will set the framework for transition to full
diplomatic relations possibly starting with low-key representations
in Ankara and Yerevan or accreditation of ambassadors from other
neighboring capitals.

Simultaneously Turkey will come up with a road map for a solution
in Nagorno-Karabakh. The modalities of the new border regime will be
determined upon the work by the border committee while as part of a
show of good will immediate measures would be taken for a gradual
opening. Diplomatic recognition will be supported by social and
economic projects with coordination of the Turkish Armenian Business
Development Council, or TABDC," added Hurriyet.

Several key issues were "revealed" including the troubling assertion
that Armenia has agreed to the formation of a commission of historians
to address the Armenian Genocide and Turkey’s alleged role in drafting
a "road map" to Karabakh peace.

While this could be yet another sensationalist attempt by Turkey to
create an illusion that all systems are go for Turkish-Armenian detente
on the eve of the Obama visit in an effort to derail the Genocide
recognition issue, but the question of the veracity of Turkish claims
that Armenia has agreed to the formation of the commission remains
un-refuted by the Nalbandian apparatus.

On several occasions, Nalbandian and President Serzh Sarkisian have
reiterated that Armenia was in favor of establishing diplomatic
ties and opening of borders without any preconditions. Last week,
Nalbandian said that the issue of the Armenian Genocide is not up for
discussion during the ongoing negotiations to normalize relations
between Armenia and Turkey, when asked by a reporter to clarify
Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan’s announcement that the sides
were, in fact, discussing the Genocide issue.

"I don’t want to believe that the Turkish Foreign Minister can make
such a statement, because the Armenian Genocide issue has not been
discussed with the Turkish side," asserted Nalbandian.

We do not want to believe it either. Any agreement on establishment
of a commission to address the veracity of the Genocide or a leading
role for Turkey in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution process
are unacceptable and will jeopardize Armenia’s national interests
and security.

Next week Obama will be in Istanbul to attend a United Nations Summit
on Civilizations. We learned Monday, through the Turkish press, that
Nalbandian will also attend that event, leading the Turkish press to
speculate that the setting would be ripe to announce the so-called
border agreement.

To end the confusion and to further articulate Armenia’s national
interests, Nalbandian should make clear and thorough announcements,
because one-off responses to reporters’ inquiries and one sentence
denials by a spokesperson on this crucial matter of pan-national
importance are not enough as we enter what appears to be an historic
time for our nation.

PACE POSITIVELY ASSESSES ARMENIA’S IMPLEMENTATION OF RES. 1643

armradio.am
31.03.2009 10:52

During yesterday’s sitting the Monitoring Committee of the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) gave a positive
evaluation to the process of accomplishment of the requirements of PACE
Resolution 1643 by Armenia, but it will continue following the process.

Head of the Armenian delegation to PACE David Harutyunyan told
Regnum that the amendments to Articles 225 and 300 of the Criminal
Code of Armenia had been discussed. The conclusion of the Committee
was presented.

"The Committee welcomed the amendments, but now they expect more
practical steps for their application," David Harutyunyan said. The
Monitoring Committee will return to the results of their implementation
during the session of the Parliamentary Assembly from April 27 to 30.

David Harutyunyan informed that issues related to the elections to
the Yerevan City Council had been discussed. Accordingt to the Head of
the Armenian delegation, the Monitoring Committee positively assessed
the participation of the opposition and separate coalition candidates
in the elections.

ARONIAN TOPS AMBER, ANAND JOINT SECOND

Press Trust of India
March 27 2009

Nice (France), Mar 27 (PTI) World champion Viswanathan Anand missed
chances galore in the blindfold game against Chinese Wang Yue and
had to be content with an overall joint second finish in the Amber
blindfold and rapid chess tournament here.

Anand, however, maintained his supremacy in the rapid section as he
tied with Levon Aronian of Armenia and Gata Kamsky of United.

The Indian ace finished with an impressive 7 points out of a possible
11 in rapid section while in the blindfold he finished joint fourth
on 6.5 points.

Aronian drew both his games against former world champion Veslein
Topalov of Bulgaria in the final round and emerged as the clear winner
in the 18th edition of the prestigious event.

The Armenian finished with 14 points out of a possible 22 games and
remained a half point ahead of Anand and Vladimir Kramnik of Russia
who both shared the overall second spot.

Magnus Carlsen of Norway found his nemesis in the blindfold in Teimour
Radjabov of Azerbaijan and finished clear fourth after recovering to
win the rapid game. The Norwegian ended with a tally of 13 points
and was two points clear of next contender Alexander Morozevich
of Russia.PTI

456 ECONOMIC CRIMES SOLVED IN ARMENIA LAST YEAR

ARKA
March 27, 2009

YEREVAN, March 27. /ARKA/. A total of 456 economic crimes were solved
in Armenia last year against 289 in 2007 – an annual increase of 58%.

Chief of the Head Department for Organized Crime Control, Colonel Unan
Poghosyan reported that last year the RA police registered 83 cases
of illegal business, 80 cases of counterfeiting of money, 140 cases of
tax avoidance, 69 cases of smuggling, as well as other economic crimes.

Pogosyan pointed out that 140 of the crimes were solved by various
police departments.

He said that 213 economic crimes were registered in Yerevan alone –
47% of the total number.

"Economic crimes are latent ones and, therefore, are difficult to
solve," he said.

Colonel Poghosyan welcomed the improvement in crime detection last
tear.

THERE ARE NO OBJECTIVE REASONS FOR THE OCCURRED DEVALUATION OF ARMENIAN DRAM, EX-SPEAKER OF ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT THINKS

ArmInfo
2009-03-26 18:15:00

ArmInfo. There are no objective reasons for the AMD exchange rate
downfall which occurred on March 3, ex-speaker of Armenian Parliament
Tigran Torosyan said at a press-conference, Thursday. According to him,
this event had a very negative effect on Armenia’s stability.

"What happened early this month caused both economic and political
damage to the country. The devaluation of the national currency
shook the public confidence in it. The mistake of our leadership is
that it should have held the whole process smoothly, but it failed,
unfortunately",- Torosyan said.

Torosyan also pointed out that the Government and the Central Bank
should have constantly informed the society of all of their steps
instead of having artificially maintained the AMD stability. "All of
us wish the Government to overcome all these difficulties, however,
unfortunately, the course of events still fails to inspire any
optimism",- Torosyan stressed.

ARMENIA CONCERNED AT RUSSIAN-TURKISH RELATIONSHIP

The Messenger
March 24 2009
Georgia

Ruben Megrabian from the Armenian Centre for Political and
International Research thinks that improvements in Russian-Turkish
relations might be a threat for Armenia. He points out that these
relations are based on their attitudes towards the West and that the
Armenian elite should consider this possibility. Megrabian thinks
that both Russia and Turkey have their own particular interests and
therefore might ignore the Armenian interest.

Megrabian thinks that Russia and Turkey will use Armenia to achieve
their individual goals. For Russia this is preventing Armenia’s
integration with the West. Turkey however seeks to build up its
relations with Armenia to make concrete steps in the Western direction
and resist Western pressure over this.

ARDSHININVESTBANK OF ARMENIA TO RE-LAUNCH ITS "YEGHEGNADZOR" BRANCH TODAY

ARKA
March 20, 2009

YEREVAN, March 20. /ARKA/. Ardshininvestbank of Armenia is to re-launch
its "Yeghegnadzor" branch. The repaired and improved building of the
branch will be opened on March 20, the bank’s press service reported.

The branch is equipped with modern equipment and is ready to provide
reliable banking services to its customers, says the report.

In all branches of Ardshininvestbank throughout the country equal
conditions are provided for all clients, says Acting Board Chairman
of Ardshininvestbank Sergey Virabyan.

The bank’s staff has the required qualifications to render reliable
and high-quality services to its clients, he said.

"Yeghegnadzor" branch has about 3,000 clients, including state agencies
and private organizations, as well as ordinary people.

Ardshininvestbank received its license for banking activities from the
Central Bank of Armenia on February 27, 2003. The main stockholders
of the bank are "Region" investment financial corporation (86.82%)
and the International Financial Corporation (10%). Arshininvestbank
is an affiliated member of MasterCard/Europay international payment
system and a stockholder of local transfer system Armenian Card closed
joint stock company.

In 2008, Moody’s international ratings agency conferred long-term Ba3
and short-term Not Prime ratings to Ardshininvestbank for deposits
in =0 Alocal currency. ("BFSR") "D-" financial stability rating was
also assigned to the bank.

As of the end of 2008, the bank had the greatest net profit among
Armenian banks and was the second in terms of credit investments and
total capital; in terms of total assets and total liabilities it is
the third.

Today, the bank provides services to 157,000 individuals and legal
entities.

It has 49 branches, including 6 branches in Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
and a representative office in Paris.

ARMENIAN DUDUK WEBSITE PRESENTATION TO BE HELD IN YEREVAN

PanARMENIAN.Net
19.03.2009 21:15 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On Mar. 31 Armenian Duduk Melody website presentation
will be held in RA State Museum of National Art. The website is
dedicated to UNESCO’s proclamation of Armenian duduk as a Masterpiece
of the Oral and Intangible Heritages of Humanity

Website creation was made possible by UNESCO and Japanese "Preservation
of Intangible Heritages of Humanity" Fund.

The presentation will be attended by representatives of UNESCO Bureaus
in Moscow and Paris.

Gevorg and Gurgen Dabaghyans, Anna Mailyan and Karine Hovyannesyan
will be performing at the presentation.