Author: Babajanian Karo

Karabakh settlement should be based on six elements – Robert Bradtke

16:01 – 09.10.11

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict should be based on six elements, Robert
Bradtke, US Co-Chair of the Minsk Group of the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe, has said.

Speaking at a session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of
Europe, Bradtke said that Armenia and Azerbaijan must not resort to
using force.

The elements of the settlement of the Karabakh conflict, according to
Bradtke, are:

– Withdrawal of Armenian troops from the territories adjacent Nagorno-Karabakh
– Giving Nagorno-Karabakh a temporary status
– Ensuring direct land communication between Armenia and Karabakh.
– Return of refugees and resettled people to their homelands
– Implementation of peacekeeping mission in the region
– International security guarantees.

Further, he said that the three of the main principles of the
resolution of the Karabakh conflict remain in place – non-use of
force, territorial integrity and nations’ right to self-determination.

The US diplomat also said that the OSCE Minsk Group is sparing no
effort to ensure peace in the region.

OSCE Minsk Group Russian Co-Chair Igor Popov in turn said that the
settlement of the conflict is possible only through diplomacy.

Popov also said that peace will possible to achieve only when both
sides demonstrate political will to so do.

Nagorno-Karabakh broke away from Azerbaijan in 1991 which was followed
by a bloody war that left about 30,000 dead and more than a million
displaced.

Currently Russia, the US and France are mediating talks to find a
peaceful solution to the conflict.

Tert.am

Day of Invention of Armenian alphabet

08.10.2011, 11:56
Aysor.am

`… And the God, who implements the will of those who have fear from
him, hears Mesrop’s prayers and shows him the alphabet in a wonderful
vision, and not in a sleeping dream but while being awake. Mesrop can
see in that vision that he writes on a stone which was in front of
him.’ (M. Khorenatsi `History of Armenia’)

Getting the letters Mesrop Mashtots translates the first sentence from
the Holy Book from Solomon’s Book of Proverbs `To know wisdom and
instruction; to perceive the words of understanding.’ This was the
first sentence written in Armenian letters by the Armenian Great
Teacher.

As priest Yesa Artenyan told during the interview with `Aysor.am’ that
gift given by God – the newly invented letters – St. Mesrop brings to
Armenia and those letters become the weapon of survival for the
Armenians through centuries.

The Armenian alphabet was created in 405 AD. Mesrop Mashtots arrives
to Samosat city, finds the skilled Greek writer by the name of
Hropanos who helps Mashtots with his invention, the newly-created art
of writing. Each of the letters had its name: `Ayb, Ben, Gym, Da…’

DECLARATION INTEGRALE
L’engagement de Nicolas Sarkozy

Lors de la conférence de presse conjointe donné le 7 octobre à Erevan,
Nicolas Sarkozy s’est clairement engagé à faire faire voter le texte
sur la pénalisation du négationnisme, avant la fin de son mandat, si
la Turquie persistait dans son négationnisme du génocide des
Arméniens. Voici la retranscription intégrale de sa réponse à notre
journaliste.

Question? : Jeanine Paloulian de Nouvelles d’Arménie Magazine, M le
président, hier vous avez appelé la Turquie à regarder son histoire en
face, à reconnaître ce qui s’est passé et vous avez ajouté, si tel
n’était pas le cas, la France prendra ses responsabilités. Qu’est-ce
que vous entendez par `ses responsabilités`, et surtout dans quel
délai M. le Président? ?

Le président de la République? : C’est assez simple, le négationnisme
collectif est plus grave que le négationnisme individuel. Cela ne veut
pas dire que le négationnisme individuel est satisfaisant,
naturellement. Si un grand pays comme la Turquie devait reconnaître
les pages sombres de son histoire et donc le génocide des Arméniens au
début du XXe siècle, la France comme l’Arménie considéreraient que
c’est un formidable pas en avant, que c’est un geste de paix et que
c’est un geste de réconciliation. Il ne peut pas y avoir de
réconciliation durable sur la contestation des souffrances. Il ne peut
pas y avoir de réconciliation durable sur la négation de faits
historiques. Si ce grand pays qu’est la Turquie, qui a démontré en de
multiples occasions sa force et son courage, trouvait les ressources
pour faire ce geste, alors la France considérerait que sa législation
reconnaissant l’existence du génocide des Arméniens serait suffisante.
Si hélas ce n’était pas le cas et que d’une certaine façon, tacitement
ou explicitement, le génocide des Arméniens était contesté, la France
considérerait qu’elle devrait aller plus loin dans la modification de
sa législation pour que le négationnisme soit condamné pénalement. Sur
le fond ma réponse est claire. Sur le calendrier, il ne revient pas Ã
la France de poser un ultimatum à qui que ce soit. Ce n’est pas une
façon de faire et comme ça qu’on aide des voisins à se réconcilier.
Mais enfin, Ã travers les lignes, vous pouvez comprendre que le temps
n’est pas infini. 1915-2011? : il me semble que pour la réflexion
c’est suffisant. Donc dans ce cas-lÃ, la réaction de la France, en
fonction de ce que diront les dirigeants turcs se fera connaître dans
un délai assez bref. Et si je ne le précise pas, c’est que j’espère
toujours dans les réactions de la société turque et du gouvernement
turc. Mais enfin, assez bref, ça a une signification qui en tout état
de cause, englobe la durée de mon mandat.

dimanche 9 octobre 2011,
Ara ©armenews.com

[Speaking Sunflowers: new novel by Antonia Arslan]

Corriere della Sera, Italia
04 ottobre 2011

I girasoli parlanti nel nuovo romanzo dell’Arslan

Sentimenti, emozioni, ricordi: i racconti brevi della scrittrice
padovana di origine armena

Francesca Visentin

E’ un viaggio magico, che rapisce come in un sogno, quello attraverso
Il cortile dei girasoli parlanti (Piemme editore). Il nuovo libro di
Antonia Arslan, che esce oggi, narra di sentimenti, emozioni e
ricordi, attraverso la forma del racconto breve. Così le storie
sembrano cesellate come gioielli, ma mantengono la capacità di
incantare e commuovere. Un romanzo folgorante, con i temi cari alla
scrittrice padovana, di origine armena, in una galleria di immagini
nitide e coinvolgenti, difficili da dimenticare. Il cortile dei
girasoli parlanti torna sulla questione armena, ma non solo. I
personaggi sono tanti, variegati, emergono dai ricordi d’infanzia o
dal periodo della guerra, ma spuntano anche dalla quotidianità di
oggi: un viaggio in taxi, la visita a una chiesa a Venezia dove si
celebra il rito della messa in latino, o la passeggiata in un
castello. E la malattia, la lunga degenza della scrittrice, che
diventano storie narrate con serenità. Gli spunti si susseguono,
sembrano uscire con foga dalla carta, incontenibili.

E’ l’ingresso in un mondo di sogno, che fa stare bene, trascina nella
magia di gesti, azioni e parole permeate di poesia. Si sta così beati
tra le pagine di questo libro che riemergere, tornare in superfice, è
duro. «Questi racconti sono piccoli angoli della mia sensibilità-
rivela Antonia Arslan -, flash che si sono presentati con gioia. Mi
mettevo al computer e pregustavo quello che scrivevo, usciva
volentieri, senza sforzo. Credo questo si senta anche nel risultato,
comunque cerco sempre di mantenere una serenità di fondo in quello che
scrivo». Sembra un diario questo libro e lascia la voglia di
continuare il viaggio magico. «Sono piccole storie che nascono per non
rattristare – fa notare la scrittrice -. Cimentarmi con la forma
breve, 1300 battute ogni racconto, è stata una sfida che ho raccolto
volentieri».

Il risultato è un capolavoro, dove la tecnica (che c’è) risulta
impalpabile di fronte della carica emozionale. Il cortile dei girasoli
parlanti riesce a passare da immagini divertenti come quelle di zia
Anja e zia Nini, le migliori sferruzzatrici del paese, alla signora
che vendeva scarponi e che per la sua somiglianza con un grande
coniglio bianco era chiamata «Conigliut», al dramma della bambina che
voleva giocare con il soldatino ussaro, ai ricordi buffi come quello
della «verdigiallumina». Il fascino di questa narrazione, lo svela
l’autrice, dipende forse dal «segreto delle storie che si amano»:
«creano mondi in cui desideriamo entrare e da dove non usciamo senza
rimpianto». Pare di sentirlo il gusto dei «biscotti di zia Enrica»:
rotondi, piatti, piccoli e deliziosi. E il profumo del «prosciutto di
nonno Carlo»: «lo portava a casa ben avvolto in carte oleate e pezze,
come un bambino in fasce». Al momento del taglio, le sue mani, «come
danzando, facevano volare intorno fetta dopo fetta… ».

Spiega l’Arslan nella prefazione: «E’ un viaggio in cui si rincorrono
temi cari al cuore e alla penna: la spontaneità dell’infanzia, la
gioia delle piccole cose, l’odio che contamina e deturpa, la forza
invincibile dell’amore, l’insensatezza della guerra e il calvario
armeno». Folgorazioni. Come quella dell’autrice, che dopo avere letto
una dedica sulla foto di nonna Virginia, capì «in un abbagliante
momento, qualcosa della vita e della morte e della nostalgia per chi
abbiamo amato e di cui cerchiamo di conservare piccoli ricordi, come
il verso di una canzone ». La speranza? «Che come i girasoli riescono
a guardare il sole e a tramutarlo in bellezza, una delle piccole
storie del libro possa diventare un girasole nel cuore di chi legge».

Targeted News Service
October 7, 2011 Friday 4:47 AM EST

LSU Welcomes Armenian Student as Part of State Department Fellowship

BATON ROUGE, La.

Louisiana State University issued the following news release:

LSU will host a new international scholar on campus as part of the
U.S. Department of State’s Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship
Program, as Viktorya Mirzoyan, from Armenia, will be pursuing her
master’s degree in mass communication in the Manship School of Mass
Communication.

Established by the U.S. Congress in 1992 to encourage economic and
democratic growth in Eurasia, the Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship
Program is a program of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural
Affairs, or ECA, of the U.S. Department of State and administered by
IREX. By selecting emerging leaders from 12 countries of the former
Soviet Union, the Muskie program aims to promote mutual understanding,
build democracy and foster the transition to market economies in
Eurasia through intensive academic study and professional training. In
addition to their academic programs, Muskie fellows gain exposure to
American values through a community service experience and develop
professional skills through a full-time internship in their field of
study.

The Muskie program is highly competitive, averaging nearly 4,000
applications per year with a four-percent rate of acceptance. For more
information, visit

ECA fosters mutual understanding between the people of the United
States and the people of other countries to promote friendly,
sympathetic and peaceful relations, as mandated by the Mutual
Educational and Cultural Exchanges Act of 1961. ECA accomplishes its
mission through a range of programs based on the benefits of mutual
understanding, international educational and cultural exchange and
leadership.

Contact: Billy Gomila, LSU Media Relations, 225/578-3867, [email protected]

KMPH Fox 26
Oct 8 2011

‘Lost and Found in Armenia’ Producer Talks with KMPH

By Erik Rosales

Valerie McCaffrey, whose maiden name is Boolootian, grew up in a large
Armenian Fresno family. She says her latest film, ‘Lost and Found in
Armenia,’ was a labor of love.

‘Lost & Found in Armenia’ is the story of Bill (Jamie Kennedy), an
American tourist who vacations to Turkey to get his mind off a bad
break up. In a comedic and dangerous turn of events, Bill unknowingly
ends up in a small village in Armenia, where he is accused of being a
Turkish spy. It is in that small village, he meets a beautiful
Armenian girl (Angela Sarafyan), who helps him escape from misfortune.

McCaffrey hopes the movie inspires others to visit the country. She
even wants Fresno to premiere the film. McCaffrey says,” I’m from
here. I’m Armenian. It would be a great thing for that to happen.”

She’s currently talking with distributors and a rough cut of the film
is expected to be completed at the end of the month. The movie is
expected to hit theaters at the end of this year, or January 2012.

ESPN STAR Sports
Oct 8 2011

Trapattoni not surprised by Armenia

Giovanni Trapattoni insists he has not been taken by surprise by
Armenia’s barnstorming finish to the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign.

The free-scoring Armenians stand between Trapattoni’s Republic of
Ireland and a place in the play-offs in Dublin on Tuesday night after
Russia effectively ended their hopes of snatching automatic
qualification.

Should the Russians beat Andorra, who lost 2-0 to Ireland in the
Pyrenees on Friday night, in Moscow on Tuesday, even victory for the
Irish will secure only second place in Group B.

Barring a shock of monumental proportions, Trapattoni’s men seem
likely to have to be satisfied with yet another play-off adventure,
and a point against Armenia would keep the group’s dark horses at bay.

The Armenians, who lost 1-0 at home to Ireland in the first round of
qualifiers in September last year, have won each of their last three
games, against Andorra, Slovakia and Macedonia, and scored 11 goals in
the process.

But asked if he had been surprised by their late surge, Trapattoni
said: “No. Maybe if you know the players who play for Armenia, it is
not a surprise.

“The Armenian players play in strong leagues, and some of our players
play in the Championship.

“If you think about it, it is no surprise.

“We must play with 100% mentality and 100% attitude and 100%
concentration, and be careful of silly mistakes.

“We are in this position because of one or two silly mistakes against
Russia, for example.

“Armenia is a very, very strong team. They have scored more goals than
us and we must pay very, very much attention.”

The 72-year-old Italian will send his team into their final group game
with his own future still undecided amid speculation that he will be
offered an extended contract should he guide them to the play-offs.

However, as his second qualifying campaign draws to a close – the
first ended in a controversial aggregate defeat by France which denied
him a trip to the World Cup in South Africa – Trapattoni is confident
significant progress has been made.

He said: “At this stage, I hope I have succeeded in instilling a
mentality in our players.

“Unfortunately, I am quite demanding because in the past, I have built
this mentality with teams I have previously managed.

“I am very pleased with our way, but we can improve again.

“Yesterday evening, I said we want to look at Manchester United.
Obviously, we do not have the players of Manchester United, but with
their mentality, with attitude, with balance, I think we can achieve.”

Ireland’s Rugby World Cup exit was unfolding as Trapattoni and his
players touched down in Dublin during the early hours of on Saturday
morning following a gruelling trip back from Andorra.

Trapattoni said: “I am sorry that Ireland lost in rugby against Wales
because Brian O’Driscoll and his team are our friends and we wished
them to do well.

“But sport is sport and it teaches us that when we have the right
mentality, we can achieve every result.”

The nation had been swathed in optimism in the run-up to the
quarter-final, but as O’Driscoll and his team-mates prepare to head
home, attention will turn to their football counterparts once again.

However, that is a pressure Trapattoni is happy to take on.

He said: “In the first qualifying campaign for the World Cup, we
deserved to achieve the minimum of a play-off place.

“You saw the games against France and with a bit of luck – or without
bad luck – we could have achieved this.

“We feel this pressure. No, it’s not pressure, it is commitment.”

Skipper Robbie Keane was on Saturday undergoing a scan on a sore
adductor muscle, but only as a precautionary measure, while Stoke
striker Jonathan Walters, who did not travel to Andorra because of an
ankle problem, has now joined up with the squad.

Left-back Stephen Ward is suspended for Tuesday’s game as a result of
his second booking of the competition, but Richard Dunne is available
after completing his ban.

The Score, Ireland
Oct 8 2011

Injury could sideline Keane for Armenia clash

ONLY DAYS BEFORE taking to the field for their final Group B qualifier
with Armenia, Ireland’s international squad is having to come to terms
with the likely absence of talismanic striker Robbie Keane.

The 31-year-old suffered serious muscle abductor discomfort on his
return from Andorra and was immediately sent for a precautionary
medical scan, the Press Association reports.

Keane’s loss is mitigated somewhat by the return of Jonathan Walters
from injury and the improved form of the Dubliner’s erstwhile
international strike-partner, Kevin Doyle.

Following Russia’s victory over Slovakia yesterday evening, Ireland
have largely relinquished their hopes of automatic qualification. A
single point against Armenia would be enough to guarantee Giovanni
Trappatoni’s men a place in a two-leg qualification play-off.

Armenia, however, enjoying a spell of unprecedented form, are not be
underestimated.

DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
October 7, 2011 Friday

“SECURITY IS MUCH MORE THAN JUST ABSENCE OF THREATS”

Source: Kommersant, October 04, 2011, p. 8
by Lamberto Zannier

OSCE SECRETARY GENERAL SPEAKS ABOUT THE ROLE OF RUSSIA IN THE
ORGANIZATION; Being one of the main players in the OSCE region, Russia
should play one of the key roles in security provision in this region.

The essence of OSCE is confidence. It is through strengthening of
confidence and achievement of reconciliation among the member states
that we can achieve success. At the OSCE summit on the supreme level
in Astana last year 56 member states confirmed adherence to the idea
of “free, democratic, common and indivisible Euro-Atlantic and
Eurasian security communities.” OSCE tries to implement this idea into
life. Being one of the main players in the OSCE region, Russia should
pay one of the key roles in this process.

Strengthening of security in the OSCE region is provided by the
regimes of control over conventional arms that have no historic
precedents and by measures for strengthening of confidence and
security. Participants of the summit in Astana last year confirmed
importance of surmounting of the dead end situation related to the
Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty (CFE). The Vienna document of
1999 that obliges the member states to exchange information about
armed forces and military activity is another key instrument for
increasing of confidence in OSCE. Russia observes its provisions in
practice and participates in updating of the document to make it
reflect modern realities better.

Building of confidence as the basis for reconciliation is a mandatory
condition for progress in resolving of drawn-out conflicts in the OSCE
region. The long-awaited resolution on restarting of negotiations on
the Trans-Dniester regulation in “5+2” format adopted in Moscow on
September 22 has to add powerful momentum to this process. The
non-decreasing attention of Russia played a constructive role in
adoption of this resolution. Assistance to resolving of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict simultaneously with prevention of further
escalation of tension locally is another priority line of work with
regard to which positions of Russia and other key OSCE members
coincide. Active participation of Russia in the activity of the Minsk
OSCE group and personal involvement of the President of Russia into
assistance to negotiations on the supreme level between Azerbaijan and
Armenia are important elements for search for the solution.

Active and constructive participation of Russia is also required by
the Geneva discussions started after the conflict in Georgia in August
of 2008. These negotiations already yielded certain results: a set of
water projects has been coordinated in the framework of the mechanism
for prevention of incidents and reaction to them created in the course
of discussions and OSCE is currently taking them with financial
support of the EU. These projects have not only to meet the needs of
the population on both sides of the administrative dividing line for
drinking and irrigation water, they already contribute to
strengthening of confidence between the parties.

No matter how important is the military political dimension of the
OSCE activity, security is much more than simply absence of direct or
indirect military threats. Security is actually assurance of tomorrow
in all areas of life. Economic rights, observance of human rights,
political pluralism, a possibility to elect and be elected in the
course of free and transparent electoral process guaranteed by the
law, an unprejudiced judicial system, all these factors are vitally
important for strengthening of confidence of people in the authorities
and for functioning ohef a really democratic society. Russia undertook
to fully observe the relevant obligations undertaken in the framework
of OSCE. Russia and other member stated confirmed their adherence to
these obligations less than a year ago in Astana.

United Press International UPI
Oct 7 2011

Azeris get Israel UAVs built under license

BAKU, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

Azerbaijan is expected to acquire 60 small Israeli-designed unmanned
aerial vehicles built under license in the oil-rich former Soviet
republic that’s moving closer to the Jewish state as the Baku
government modernizes its military.

The burgeoning military and intelligence alliance between the
countries is causing growing concern in Iran, Azerbaijan’s southern
neighbor, and in nearby longtime rival Armenia.

The Israeli Aerostar and Orbiter 2M UAVs are being manufactured by
Baku’s Azad Systems Co., a joint venture between Azerbaijan’s Defense
Ministry and Aeronautics Defense Systems of Israel.

That’s the country’s third largest UAV manufacturer after Israel
Aerospace Industries and Elbit Systems.

Around 70 percent of the components are produced in Israel, the rest
in Azerbaijan.

Sixty of the drones are to be delivered to Azerbaijan’s armed forces
by the end of the year, primarily for intelligence, surveillance and
reconnaissance missions.

Azerbaijan’s military already operates Elbit Systems’ Hermes 450 and
IAI’s Searcher reconnaissance drones, as well as some of Aeronautics
Defense Systems’ Aerostar and Orbiter craft.

Azerbaijan Minister of Defense Industry Yavar Jamalov told the
Azerbaijan Press Agency that Baku is considering the production of
missile-armed UAVs within the next two years, a development guaranteed
to deepen Iranian and Armenian concerns.

The UAV deal with Azerbaijan allows Israeli manufacturers to pick up
some of the slack that appeared when Israel’s strategic military
alliance with Turkey collapsed in 2010.

APA reported that Aeronautics Defense Systems beat out several Turkish
defense firms, including TAI, Baykar Makina and Global Teknik, for the
UAV venture set up in March.

Azerbaijan, which lies in the energy-rich Caspian Basin, has oil
reserves of more than 1.2 billion barrels as well as 4.4 trillion
cubic feet of natural gas. It is one of Israel’s largest suppliers of
crude oil.

Last Sunday, Israel’s air force marked the 40th anniversary of the
formation of its first UAV unit, Squadron 200 at the Palmachim Air
Base on the Mediterranean coast south of Tel Aviv from where IAI
satellites are launched.

The squadron was equipped with a drone named the Scout, built by what
was then Israel Aircraft Industries, and became operational in October
1981. The Scout made its combat debut in the June 1982 Israeli
invasion of Lebanon.

That campaign evolved into a counter-terrorism conflict that has
dragged on to this day, even after Israeli withdrew from its last
foothold in south Lebanon in May 2000.

In the years since the Scout took to the skies, but particularly after
9/11, Israel has become one of the world’s leading UAV manufacturers,
second only to the United States.

The Israeli Defense Ministry’s defense export and defense cooperation
arm, known as SIBAT, says Israel’s export of counter-terrorism
systems, including UAVs, has risen from $2 billion a year 10 years ago
to nearly $7 billion.

Defense experts expect the export of counter-terrorism systems to increase.

“The threats aren’t getting any smaller,” SIBAT Deputy Director Itamar
Graff told Bamahane, the armed forces’ magazine.

“We constantly cope with terrorist threats ¦The world’s moving in
the direction of dealing with terrorist threats.

“On issues such as home front protection, shore security and missile
defense, people from around the world come to learn from us,” Graff
said.

“We’re dealing with a variety of possible threats and we’ll continue
to be a dominant and significant factor in the world.”

The Scout was retired in 2004. It was replaced by, among others, IAI’s
Searcher, which carried advanced navigation, communication and sensor
systems and is in service with 10 countries.

IAI has since developed the long-endurance, 1-ton Heron that can
operate at altitudes of 30,000 feet and can loiter over targets for 24
hours.

The Heron Turbo Prop, known as the Eitan, introduced into military
service with Squadron 210 in February 2010, is the air force’s largest
and most sophisticated unmanned aerial system.

Its takeoff weight is 5 tons and can carry payloads of 2,200 pounds.
It has a wingspan of 84 feet, about the same as a Boeing 737. It can
stay airborne for 24 hours and has a range of around 650 miles.