Author: Antonian Lara

POST-SOVIET ‘FROZEN CONFLICTS’ HEAT UP AS BIG-POWER INTERESTS COLLIDE
Fred Weir

Christian Science Monitor
June 25 2008
MA

Tensions are growing as NATO and a resurgent Russia divide over future
of breakaway statelets.

OstIngur, AbkhazGeorgia border – Tensions are again spiking here on
the lush, subtropical Black Sea coastal plain, where heavily armed
Russian troops aided by United Nations observers have held apart the
warring armies of Georgia and insurgent Abkhazia for 15 years.

Last Wednesday, two powerful bombs exploded in the Abkhaz capital
of Sukhumi, destroying a section of a railroad recently repaired by
Russian construction troops that Georgia says are illegally in the
rebel statelet, which Tbilisi – supported by most of the world –
views as Georgian territory.

The next day, a few miles from this border post, Georgian police
arrested four of the Russian peacekeepers, who have been in place
under a 1994 cease-fire deal, leading a top Russian general, Alexander
Burutin, to warn that if it happens again, "the consequences will be
grave and there could be bloodshed."

If the fragile 1991 settlement that enabled the former Soviet Union
to break relatively peacefully into 15 countries starts to unravel,
the flash point may well be right here. But the antagonists would
not be ragtag irregulars of the 1993 war but real armies, probably
backed on one side by a resurgent Russia, on the other by NATO.

Peering over the half-mile-long bridge that separates Abkhazia from
the Georgian town of Zugdidi, Ruslan, a burly Abkhaz border guard,
says he helped to drive the fleeing Georgian Army across that bridge
15 years ago and expects to see them – now trained and equipped by
the US – attempt a return any day now. "We will never agree to be
part of Georgia again," he says. "I intend to live as an Abkhazian
in a free country, and I’ll fight for as long as it takes."

Most of the world breathed a sigh of relief when the USSR’s collapse
did not bring vast Yugoslavia-like upheavals, and cheerful scenarios
seemed to be borne out when the former Soviet Baltic states of Estonia,
Latvia, and Lithuania joined the European Union and the NATO alliance
in 2004.

Little-noticed wars

Amid the hopeful 1990s, few people noticed the savage wars of secession
that rocked the Caucasus region, leading to the emergence of fiercely
pro-Moscow statelets like Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and the Armenian
enclave of Nagorno Karabakh in Azerbaijan.

Along with Transdniestria, a rebel Slavic republic in Moldova,
these little pieces of post-Soviet unfinished business were tagged
"frozen conflicts" because it seemed unlikely that any big country,
even Russia, would ever recognize their de facto independence.

But dramatic geopolitical changes are threatening a return to hot war,
this time with an oil-rich, stronger Russia standing unambiguously
behind the separatist territories.

After many Western countries recognized the former Serbian territory of
Kosovo earlier this year, despite Moscow’s angry opposition, Russia
eased its 14-year-old economic embargo on Abkhazia and the State
Duma passed a resolution demanding full recognition. The prospect
of NATO expansion into Georgia and Ukraine – a question that was
postponed at NATO’s Bucharest summit in April – has prompted Moscow to
crank up its rhetoric against Georgia and send construction troops,
not covered by the 1994 agreement, into Abkhazia. Those troops were
tasked with reopening a dormant railroad link that runs from Rostov,
Russia, through Sochi to Sukhumi, and would be crucial for supplying
troops in the event of a conflict.

Though war does not appear to be on the immediate horizon, many here
fear that it’s coming. "Tensions are growing very fast, and we find
ourselves on the line of confrontation between Russia and the West,"
says Oleg Damenia, director of the Center for Strategic Studies, an
official think tank in Sukhumi. "Georgia’s military budget is now 10
times larger than Abkhazia’s. In this situation, we have no choice
but to turn to Russia for support."

The Kremlin says the existence of separatist statelets in Georgia
should make Europe wary of admitting such a fissiparous country to
NATO. At the Bucharest summit, then-President Putin reportedly told
President Bush that Ukraine is a similarly unstable place, whose
pro-Russian east could tear away.

"Russia is trying to demonstrate the possible price of NATO expansion,
by warning that Ukraine is an extremely fragile entity," says Fyodor
Lukyanov, editor of Russia in Global Affairs, a leading Moscow foreign
policy journal. "If NATO will push toward Ukraine, Russia might turn
to very ugly means. There is huge potential for Russian irredentism
in Ukraine," he says.

Last month Moscow’s nationalist mayor, Yury Luzkhov, was declared
persona non grata in Ukraine after he said that Moscow should take back
Crimea, a Russian-populated peninsula that is still headquarters of
the Russian Navy’s Black Sea fleet and which was a "gift" to Ukraine
from former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in 1954.

Some Russian nationalists go further and suggest the time is
approaching for a wholesale redrawing of the post-Soviet map, to
gather in Russian minorities and other pro-Moscow ethnic groups who
felt stranded on foreign soil by the USSR’s collapse.

"NATO expansion endangers our national interests, but at the same
time Russia has grown much stronger and is in a position to revisit
the status quo in the post-Soviet space," says Alexander Dugin,
head of the International Eurasian Movement, a Moscow-based group of
nationalist intellectuals, businessmen, and policymakers. "Russia
understands that we cannot allow Ukraine to enter NATO as a whole
state. We will witness a wave of separatism in Crimea and eastern
Ukraine. Russia is no longer weak and at the West’s mercy; it’s on
its way to recreating itself as an imperial power."

Future redivision of territory?

Mr. Lukyanov says that such extreme views are unlikely to get much
traction in the Kremlin, but neither do Russia’s leaders rule out
a future redivision of post-Soviet territory. "The Russian elite
does not consider the current status quo as final," he says. "All
the countries of this region are highly unstable, and subject to
unpredictable shocks. No one here believes that the transition of
the post-Soviet space has reached its final destination."

The new tone in Moscow is music to the ears of Abkhazia’s rebel
leaders, who believe all the attention now being paid them after 15
years of isolation could be their ticket to full statehood.

"Until now the world community has only recognized the partial
collapse of the Soviet Union. But why can’t the captive nations
inside those states also have their freedom?" asks Garry Kupalba,
Abkhazia’s deputy defense minister.

"The world thinks we don’t exist, but we do. We’re building our own
state, with all the attributes of a state, including armed forces. And
Russia is helping us," he says.

RESEARCH FROM K.G. SARGSYAN AND CO-AUTHORS REVEALS NEW FINDINGS ON PHYSICS

Science Letter
June 24, 2008

PHYSICS;

"The two-temperature description of the RNA-like molecule is
invented. Instead of equilibrium treatment of the polymer state,
the steady state viewpoint is proposed," scientists in Yerevan,
Armenia report (see also Physics).

"The molecule is considered as being in an adiabatic steady state,
which is a non-equilibrium one. The general approach to the molecule in
such a steady state is discussed and the simple model with saturating
bonds is considered. The relation between mean square end-to-end
distance and the number of monomers is derived for the simple system
under condition T> Theta," wrote K.G. Sargsyan and colleagues.

The researchers concluded: "The obtained relation depends on additional
so-called disorder temperature."

Sargsyan and colleagues published their study in Modern Physics
Letters B (Two temperature description of RNA-LIKE polymer. Modern
Physics Letters B, 2008;22(10):785-790).

For additional information, contact K.G. Sargsyan, Yerevan Physics
Institute, Dept. of Theoret Physics, Alikhanian Brothers 2, Yerevan
375036, Armenia.

The publisher’s contact information for the journal Modern Physics
Letters B is: World Scientific Publ Co. Pte Ltd., 5 Toh Tuck Link,
Singapore 596224, Singapore.

"IF IRAN GIVES CORRECT MESSAGES TO ARMENIA, IT WILL CONTRIBUTE TO THE SETTLEMENT OF THE CONFLICT"
Khazar Ibrahim

Azeri Press Agency
June 23 2008
Azerbaijan

Lachin Sultanova-APA. "Every country has right to initiate for the
settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict", Khazar Ibrahim, Spokesman
for Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said while commenting on opinions of
Iranian Ambassador to Armenia that its country had mediating recourses,
APA reports.

"All countries should make efforts to contribute to the settlement
of the conflict. If Iran initiates to be mediator, Iranian recourse
can be taken into account. If Iran gives correct messages to Armenia,
it will contribute to the settlement of the conflict", he said.

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr.Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Officer
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:

PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

Armenian version: nian.htm

THE DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER OF ROMANIA IS AWARDED THE
"CILICIAN KNIGHT" MEDAL

The deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Romania, His Excellency
Varoujan Vosganian, who is of Armenian origin, visited the Catholicosate of
Cilicia on June 20 as part of his official visit to Lebanon. His Holiness
Aram I received Vosganian, his family as well as the Romanian Ambassador to
Lebanon. The Deputy Prime Minister briefed the Pontiff about his meetings in
Lebanon.

During a gathering of community representatives following the meeting, His
Holiness awarded Vosganian with the Catholicosate of Cilicia’s "Cilician
Knight" medal. His Holiness praised the work of Vosganian, commending the
skillful politician in him, but also the economist, the poet and writer, who
has at the same preserved his Armenian identity. Welcoming the
Romanian-Armenian politician in the Catholicosate of Cilicia, His Holiness
spoke about the place and role of the Catholicosate in the life of the
Diaspora. The Pontiff then placed the "Cilician Knight" award on Vosganian’s
chest.

The Deputy Prime Minister then expressed his gratitude to the Pontiff and
spoke about the Armenian community of Romania. He highlighted the important
role of the Armenian church in the past and the present, considering himself
privileged for the honour of receiving the medal.

The Deputy Prime Minister, his family and the Romanian Ambassador to Lebanon
then visited the Saint Asdvadzadzine Monastery in Bikfayya, where they
became the dinner guests of His Holiness Aram I.

##
View the photos here:
tos/Photos279.htm
*****
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the history and
the mission of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
the Catholicosate, The Cilician
Catholicosate, the administrative center of the church is located in
Antelias, Lebanon.

CO-CHAIRS TO ARRIVE IN THE REGION ON JUNE 25

armradio.am
21.06.2008 14:35

The date of the visit of OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs Matthew Bryza
(US), Bernard Fassier (France) and Yuri Merzlyakov (Russia) to the
region is known.

French Co-chair Bernard Fassier’s office told APA that the co-chairs
will visit Azerbaijan on June 25 and leave for Armenia on June 27.

The Co-Chairs will leave Yerevan for Moscow, have some meetings
there and later they will attend the meeting of OSCE Minsk Group
members in the extended format in Vienna. The Co-Chairs will brief
the participants of the meeting about the present situation on the
settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict, results of the visit to the
region and talks.

OSCE MG CO-CHAIRS ARRIVING IN REGION JUNE 25

PanARMENIAN.Net
21.06.2008 13:31 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Ambassadors
Matthew Bryza of the United States, Bernard Fassier of France and
Yuri Merzlyakov of Russia are arriving in the region on June 25.

The mediators will start their visit in Azerbaijan and depart for
Armenia on June 27.

In completion, they will pay a visit to Moscow to hold a number
of meetings.

Afterwards, the OSCE Minsk Group members will meet in expanded
composition in Vienna, the Azeri Press Agency reports.

ARMENIAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE OF AMERICA
1711 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel: (202) 775-1918
Fax: (202) 775-5648
Email: [email protected]
Website:

PRESS RELEASE
June 19, 2008
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918
Email: [email protected]

SEN. MENENDEZ CROSS-EXAMINES AMBASSADORIAL NOMINEE FOR ARMENIA

— Senators Obama, Boxer and others to Submit Written Questions

WASHINGTON, DC – Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) castigated the Bush
Administration’s policy of Armenian Genocide denial, today,
dramatically pressing U.S. Ambassadorial nominee to Armenia Marie
Yovanovitch regarding the Administration’s refusal to properly
characterize Ottoman Turkey’s systematic destruction of its
Armenian population as a genocide, reported the Armenian National
Committee of America (ANCA).

The Associated Press, in an article today entitled "Nominee Refuses
to Call Killings Genocide," noted Senator Menendez’s "intense
questioning" and the "prosecutorial style" of his inquiries during
the Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing. The
AP article, which was also carried by MSNBC and other media
outlets, quoted ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian as saying,
after the hearing, that, "we were troubled by Ambassador
Yovanovitch’s refusal to offer any meaningful rationale for the
Administration’s ongoing complicity in Turkey’s denials."

Sen. Menendez, who had placed two consecutive holds on previous
ambassadorial nominee Dick Hoagland for denying the Armenian
Genocide, meticulously questioned Yovanovitch by presenting
historical State Department documents from the time of the Genocide
and comparing those statements with her opening remarks.

"The US government – and certainly I – acknowledges and mourns the
mass killings, ethnic cleansing and forced deportations that
devastated over one and a half million Armenians at the end of the
Ottoman Empire," said Yovanovich in her opening testimony.
Following these remarks, Sen. Menendez presented the nominee with
several documents quoting U.S. Ambassadors to the Ottoman Empire
Henry Morgethau and Abram Elkus, and other U.S. diplomats who served
in the region at the time of the Armenian Genocide and documented
the destruction of the Armenian population.

Juxtaposing the eyewitness accounts of these U.S. officials with
the definition of the crime as outlined by the U.N. Convention on
the Punishment and Prevention of the Crime of Genocide, Sen.
Menendez asked whether the President’s annual April 24th remarks,
Yovanovitch’s prepared statements, and her responses regarding U.S.
diplomatic reporting matched the U.N. Convention, to which the U.S.
is a party. Amb. Yovanovitch sidestepped this question, stating
instead that it is the President and the State Department who set
the policy of defining historic events. In her testimony, she
publicly confirmed that "It has been President Bush’s policy, as
well as that of previous presidents of both parties, not to use
that term."

Sen. Menendez responded, "It is a shame that career foreign service
officers have to be brought before the Committee and find
difficulty in acknowledging historical facts, and find difficulty
in acknowledging the realities of what has been internationally
recognized." He went on to state, "And it is amazing to me that we
can talk about millions, a million and a half human beings who were
slaughtered, we can talk about those who were raped, we can talk
about those who were forcibly pushed out of their country, and we
can have presidential acknowledgements of that, but then we cannot
call it what it is. It is a ridiculous dance that the
Administration is doing on the use of the term genocide. It is an
attempt to suggest that we don’t want to strain our relationships
with Turkey… I believe acknowledging historical facts as they are
is a principal that is easily understood both at home and abroad.
So while the Administration believes that this policy benefits us
vis-a-vis our relationship with Turkey, I think they should also
recognize that it hurts our relationship elsewhere and it tarnishes
the United States’ history of being a place where truth is spoken
to power, and acknowledgment of our failures of the past make us
stronger, not weaker; recognizing the evils of the past do not trap
us, but they set us free."

The complete exchange between Sen. Menendez and Amb. Yovanovitch
can be watched on the ANCA website at:
ses.php?prid=3D1516

"We join with Armenian Americans across the nation in thanking
Senator Menendez for his courage and determination in holding the
Bush Administration accountable for its deeply flawed policy of
enabling Turkey’s denial of the Armenian Genocide," said ANCA
Executive Director Aram Hamparian. "Today’s Senate hearing with
Ambassador Yovanovitch, much like yesterday’s testimony before a
U.S. House panel by Assistant Secretary Fried, confirms the sad
reality that our government has allowed a foreign nation to impose
a ‘gag rule’ on America’s right to speak truthfully about the
Armenian Genocide."

"We look forward to carefully reviewing Ambassador Yovanovitch’s
responses to the written questions that will be posed by Members of
the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in order to get a fuller
understanding of her ability to effectively represent U.S.
interests and American values as our Ambassador to Yerevan," added
Hamparian.

Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) who chaired the confirmation hearing
concurred with Sen. Menendez, noting that "there is no question in
my mind, that facts speak for themselves, and what happened was
genocide… In Armenia we need an ambassador… who understands
the historical facts, and has the historical facts correctly
stated." Sen. Cardin also questioned Amb. Yovanovitch on the
recent elections in Armenia and urged the Ambassadorial nominee to
Austria to help secure Austria’s support for Turkey’s membership in
the European Union.

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) released a statement to coincide with
Amb. Yavanovitch’s confirmation hearing, noting her outrage at the
firing of former U.S. Ambassador to Armenia John Evans for speaking
truthfully about the Genocide. "It is bad enough that Armenians
everywhere have to endure a U.S. President who refuses to
acknowledge the Armenian Genocide despite earlier promises to the
contrary. But Armenians were also recently forced to witness the
dismissal of a career U.S. diplomat, Ambassador John Evans, who
expressed his personal view that it is long past time that the
United States call one of the greatest events of deliberate mass
murder in the 20th century by its rightful name – genocide… I
could not agree with Ambassador Evans more."

Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) has submitted a set of questions for the
record in which he reaffirmed the importance of recognizing the
killing of 1.5 million Armenians from 1915 to 1923 as genocide.

The full text of Amb. Yovanovitch’s testimony is provided below.

#####

Testimony of Marie L. Yovanovitch
Ambassador-Designate to Armenia
June 19, 2008
Senate Foreign Relations Committee

Mr. Chairman, members of the Committee, thank you for the
opportunity to appear before you today. I am honored by the
confidence that President Bush and Secretary Rice have shown in me
by nominating me for the post of U.S. Ambassador to Armenia. If
confirmed, I pledge to build on my 22 years of service to our
country to protect and defend American interests in the
increasingly vital region of the South Caucasus.

Only in the United States would it be possible for someone like me
– a first generation immigrant to the United States — to appear
before you as an Ambassadorial nominee. My father fled the Soviets
and then the Nazis. My maternal grandfather escaped from Russia
after the revolution and raised his family in wartime Germany,
where my mother grew up stateless. My parents brought me to this
country in search of a safe harbor, a harbor that provided freedom
and opportunity, dignity and respect.

The United States offered our family a second chance, just as so
many Armenian-Americans received a second chance in our country
after they were driven out of the Ottoman Empire. In no way do I
want to equate my own family history with that of Americans of
Armenian heritage here in the United States. But I do wish to
convey that I understand from personal experience that the events
of the past can haunt the present and that individuals, born a
generation or more after apocalyptic events, seek recognition of
the injustices of the past.

The U.S. government – and certainly I – acknowledges and mourns the
mass killings, ethnic cleansing, and forced deportations that
devastated over one and a half million Armenians at the end of the
Ottoman Empire. The United States recognizes these events as one
of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century, the "Medz Yeghern" or
Great Calamity, as many Armenians refer to it. That is why every
April the President honors the victims and expresses American
solidarity with the Armenian people on Remembrance Day.

The Administration understands that many Americans and many
Armenians believe that the events of the past that I have referred
to should be called "genocide." It has been President Bush’s
policy, as well as that of previous presidents of both parties, not
to use that term. The President’s focus is on encouraging Turkish
citizens to reconcile with their past and with the Armenians. He
seeks to support the painstaking progress achieved to date.

President Bush believes that the best way to honor the victims is
to remember the past, so it is never repeated, and to look to the
future to promote understanding and reconciliation between the
peoples and governments of Armenia and Turkey. A key part of that
effort is to end Armenia’s isolation in the region by encouraging
normalization of relations between Armenia and Turkey and the
opening of their land border. The Armenian government has
requested that we facilitate this process. It will not be easy nor
will it likely be quick, but there are some hopeful signs.
President Bush believes that normalization can and should be
achieved. The result would be an improvement in the life of every
Armenian.

If I am confirmed, my priority would be to support the efforts of
the United States in working towards regional stability by
facilitating Armenian-Turkish relations and a peaceful settlement
to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with Azerbaijan. Armenia is
isolated from its second largest neighbor, Turkey, and every year
scores of soldiers die along the line of contact with Azeri forces
in Nagorno-Karabakh. The status quo in both situations is
unacceptable, a deterioration unthinkable and clearly not in U.S.
or regional interests.

Some progress has been made in both areas recently. Success would
bring security to Armenia and great economic opportunities. This
is a goal worth pursuing, and, if confirmed, I would give it my
utmost attention — not only by supporting government-to-government
discussions — but by promoting people-to-people contacts and
partnerships, and other cross-border and regional initiatives.
Contact begins to build trust, and trust is the necessary first
step to reconciliation and conflict resolution.

Promoting good governance in Armenia is also a key U.S. goal. The
conduct of the recent presidential elections and their violent
aftermath in which ten individuals died were deeply disturbing.
The path towards democracy is rarely fast or smooth. Our aim is to
help the Armenian government and the Armenian people restore
democratic momentum and to renew their own stated mission of moving
forward to become a country where government institutions are fully
transparent and accountable and where rule of law is accepted by
all.

It is important that the Armenian government support an
independent, objective, and inclusive investigation into the
fateful events of March 1 and release those who have been held on
politically-motivated charges. It is important that the judiciary
becomes truly independent. It is important that freedom of
assembly, freedom of the press, and freedom of expression are fully
protected. It is important that the Armenian authorities show the
will to move forward with a reform program that is responsive to
the legitimate desires of the people and that inspires public
confidence in the country’s political and economic processes.

We are looking at how our democracy programs can be more targeted –
– better supporting civil society, watchdog organizations, the
independent media, and development of the internet. Our programs
will continue to focus on anti-corruption efforts and strengthening
the rule of law.

The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Agreement in 2006
demonstrated our belief that Armenia was fulfilling MCC’s required
criteria in the three broad areas of ruling justly, investing in
people, and economic freedom. MCC is a performance-based program
for governments that demonstrate commitment in these areas. In
Armenia, the MCC Compact is a poverty-reduction program that
focuses on building roads, improving the irrigation infrastructure
and training farmers. The program will eventually benefit 750,000
people, 75 percent of whom live in rural areas.

This is an important program, and we have urged the new Armenian
government to act quickly to improve its standing in the 9 of 17
indicators that it currently fails. The U.S. government is
committed to assisting Armenia in this process, but it is up to the
Armenian government to take the necessary steps, so that the
Compact program could continue.

The Armenian economy has seen great success and double digit growth
over the last six years. Our assistance programs — through
technical assistance to improve the regulatory and legislative
framework, through strengthening of the private sector, and through
training in many sectors of the economy — have contributed at
least in part to this success.

Over the last four years, Armenia has contributed to global
security by providing peacekeepers in both Kosovo and Iraq. In
fact, the size of Armenia’s contingent in Kosovo was doubled just
last week. By supporting Armenia’s defense sector reform and
greater cooperation with NATO, we enhance Armenia’s ability to
assist in peacekeeping operations and to work with coalition forces
to combat global terrorism and make the world a safer place.

Armenia remains committed to overflight and landing rights for U.S.
military aircraft and has worked to improve its capacity to combat
both money laundering and terrorism financing. These are efforts
we have strongly supported. Our assistance for Armenia’s work to
strengthen its borders and combat illegal trade in arms, weapons of
mass destruction, drugs, and people is important to regional
stability.

Our relationship with Armenia is broad and deep, both on a
bilateral level and between our peoples. The United States was
among the first to recognize Armenia’s independence, and the first
to establish an Embassy in Yerevan. Over the past seventeen years,
the United States has provided close to $2 billion in assistance
and materially improved the lives of millions of Armenians. While
challenges remain, we expect our partnership will continue to
strengthen, and that we will continue to cooperate in all areas.

Mr. Chairman, Members of the Committee, if confirmed, I will do
everything in my power to ensure that U.S. interests are promoted
and protected, that the bilateral relationship flourishes, and that
Armenia’s isolation ends and regional stability is enhanced.

Thank you.

#####

Note to the editor: Photos available upon request.

ARMENIAN CONVERSEBANK SUGGESTS SUMMER DISCOUNT CAMPAIGN

ARKA
June 17, 2008

YEREVAN, June 17. /ARKA/. Armenian Converse Bank is holding a new
campaign called "Hit Summer" for those opening savings accounts in
the bank.

The campaign lasts from June 16 to August 16. Those opening savings
accounts in Conversebank in this period will receive a Visa credit
card without monthly service fee during the first six months, as well
as a deposit safe box at 50% discount.

Three months after the account is opened the owner will have a chance
to get privileged individual loans – at 1% lower interest rate than
the bank’s regular rates.

"Opening savings accounts in summer people will both keep in the bank
their savings in the holiday season and jewellery in the boxes. Time
after time Conversebank carries out encouraging measures, and this
is the second such campaign this year.

The first such campaign called "Zartonk" was carried out in spring
in which 600 people opened deposit accounts, 42.6% of them first-time
customers.

The Conversebank closed joint-stock company was registered on December
20, 1993. Armenian-Argentinean businessman Eduardo Eurnekyan acquired
ownership of the bank in February 2007.

According to the data of March 31, 2008, the bank’s assets totalled
64.8bln drams, with the total capital estimated at 11.99bln drams,
net profit in the first quarter 2008 at 682.4mln drams and for the
year of 2007 at 1.4bln drams. The bank operates 23 branches. ($1
-305.37 AMD).

TEMPORARY COMMITTEE SET UP

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
Published on June 17, 2008
Armenia

During the extraordinary session convened by the initiative of the
MPs, yesterday, the parliament passed the draft decision on "setting
up a temporary committee to investigate the grounds of March 1-2
developments".

93 MPs voted for the draft decision authored by MPs Victor Dallakyan,
Samvel Nikoyan, Naira Zohrabyan, Hovhannes Margaryan and Artashes
Shahbazyan. No against votes and no one abstained.

No one was present from "Heritage". Which means, the only
pro-oppositional faction thus refused to express its stance towards
the initiative aimed at mitigating the post-election tension created
in the country.

For the formation of the NA temporary committee, according to the
decision each parliamentary faction represented two MPs. Thus Samvel
Nikoyan and Hermine Naghdalyan will represent the Republican Party,
Artashes Avoyan and Hovhannes Margaryan – "Orinats Yerkir" Party,
Artashes Shahbazyan and Artsvik Minasyan – ARFD, Aram Safaryan
and Naira Zohrabyan will represent Bargavach Hayastan Party in the
temporary committee.

For the representation of the six MPs not included in the factions
one MP was nominated for each seat. 87 MPs supported the candidacy
of MP Lyova Khachatryan elected by the majority electoral system from
constituency 14.

According to the decision, after the formation NA temporary committee
will elect a chairman and vice chairman from its staff. After which it
will invite Levon Ter-Petrosyan and other extra-parliamentary political
forces to participate in their works, with the right to a consultative
vote. It is up to the committee to decide this list. Only one-one
representatives from those political forces included in the list will
have the right to participate in the session of the committee.

The temporary committee, in essence, will act four months or a bit
more. On October 25, during the plenary session the committee must
report about the results of the activity, represent conclusions about
the violence, the police operation and the death circumstances. As
well as to propose options to exclude the repetition of similar
developments.

It is supposed that NA temporary committee will have 11 members. But
because of the attitude of the members of "Heritage" party most
probably only 9 people will have to implement the before mentioned
huge work.

Chairman of the Standing Committee on State-Legal issues Davit
Harutyunyan said he believes "Heritage" party will participate in
the works of the temporary committee. "Some minutes back the National
Assembly voted for the formation of the temporary committee. "It is
too early to conclude that the faction that didn’t participate in the
voting won’t participate in the activity of the committee. I believe
they will.

It is a part of a political process and I don’t think it is right to
keep them away from the process.

Moreover because Levon Ter-Petrosyan himself expressed readiness
to participate in the works of NA temporary committee, by his
representative.

In my view from the political point of view it is not right to miss
this opportunity given by the Committee.

RA NA ENVISAGES TO ADOPT STATEMENT CONCERNING FULFILMENT OF SUGGESTIONS OF PACE RESOLUTION 1609

Noyan Tapan

Ju ne 16, 2008

YEREVAN, JULY 16, NOYAN TAPAN. At the special session convened on
June 16 on the initiative of the MPs of the RA National Assembly
the parliament started the discussion of the draft statement of the
National Assembly on "The Fulfilment of the Suggestions of Resolution
1609 of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe". In the
draft statement it is mentioned, in particular, that "the National
Assembly hopes that the PACE position will be favourable with regard to
the fulfilment of the suggestions of the resolution and the further
normal activities with the Parliamentary Assembly will continue,
as after the adoption of the resolution: within two months, concrete
steps have been taken in Armenia for the purpose of the implementation
of all the suggestions of the resolution, consistent work is being
carried out and time is necessary for the recording of the results."

"Those processes are directed at the preservation of stability,
deepening of democracy, improvement of the national legislation and the
protection of Human Rights and Freedoms in the Republic of Armenia,"
is said in the draft statement composed of 19 points.

Among the steps implemented up to now importance has been attached,
in particular, to the initiative of the creation of the Public Council,
the reforms of the legislation regulating the spheres of the Electoral
Code, TV and Radio, as well as to the creation of a commission in the
direction of the strengthening of the independence of the RA Judicial
system and an NA Ad hoc Commission on the Study of the March 1-2 events
and their reasons. It is also mentioned in the draft statement that
for the purpose of the implementation of Point 2 of Resolution 12,
with which it is suggested that people detained for apparently false
and political motivations should be immediately released, the RA
Prosecutor General’s Office has officially declared that there are
no people detained for political motives. In general, 72 people or
62.6 percent of those detained have been set free, as of this moment.

According to the information provided to a Noyan Tapan correspondent
by Styopa Safarian, the secretary of the only opposition faction of
the National Assembly: Zharangutiun (Heritage), the position of the
faction with regard to the draft statement is very negative. He also
mentioned that the representatives of the political coalition, who
are the authors of the draft statement, could at best apply to the
leadership of the Council of Europe with a letter of such contents
and not adopt a statement.