Author: Babajanian Karo

AZERBAIDJAN
Karabagh : L’Azerbaïdjan recherche le soutien du Pakistan

Alors que la Turquie reste le principal partenaire stratégique de
l’Azerbaïdjan, à Bakou des fonctionnaires prennent des mesures pour
améliorer les relations avec le Pakistan. La pression diplomatique
fait partie du plan de Bakou afin de renforcer sa main dans ses
efforts sur l’avenir du Haut-Karabakh.

Les derniers mois ont vu beaucoup de contacts diplomatiques, de
fonctionnaires et d’experts des deux côtés saluant les relations
bilatérales. Lors d’une conférence à Islamabad au début de mai,
l’ambassadeur de Bakou à Islamabad, Dashgin Shikarov, a décrit
l’Azerbaïdjan et le Pakistan comme des « frères ». Pendant ce temps,
Bahar Muradova, vice-président du Parlement azerbaïdjanais, cité par
l’agence de presse AzerTag à la mi-mai, disait que Bakou « a toujours
senti le soutien du Pakistan sur de nombreuses questions ».

Le bloc fondamental de la construction de la relation bilatérale est
la coopération militaire. Les deux pays ont signé un accord de défense
fin janvier et des officiers de la marine par la suite ont eu des
discussions sur les questions technico-militaires. En outre, le
personnel naval azerbaïdjanais a participé à un exercice pakistanais,
Aman-2013, qui s’est tenue en mars sur la mer d’Arabie.

Le Pakistan est aussi considéré comme un fournisseur d’armes potentiel
à Bakou. Au cours des dernières années, par exemple, l’Azerbaïdjan a
manifesté son intérêt afin d’obtenir des avions JF-17, un avion de
combat polyvalent développé conjointement par le Pakistan et la Chine.
Les tentatives visant à élargir les liens ne sont pas limités à la
sphère stratégique. À la fin mai, Bakou a annoncé qu’elle allait
offrir des bourses pour 36 chercheurs pakistanais et mettrait en place
des programmes dans les universités pakistanaises afin de promouvoir
une meilleure compréhension de l’Azerbaïdjan. Mais les responsables
des deux pays n’essaient pas de cacher le fait que c’est
l’opportunisme stratégique qui conduit les deux pays à se réunir.
Bakou veut rassembler tout le soutien qu’il peut car il s’efforce de
récupérer le Haut-Karabagh , tandis que le Pakistan ressent la même
chose à propos du territoire du Cachemire.

« Ce sont deux pays musulmans, ayant des problèmes similaires comme le
Cachemire et le Haut-Karabagh. Ils ont besoin du soutien de l’autre »
a déclaré Sarwat Rauf, un candidat au doctorat qui se spécialise dans
les affaires du bassin de la Caspienne à l’Université Quaid-i-Azam à
Islamabad.

Le Pakistan a été parmi les premiers Etats à reconnaître
l’indépendance de l’Azerbaïdjan après l’effondrement soviétique de
1991. Inversement, Islamabad n’a pas encore officiellement reconnu
l’Arménie, rival de Bakou.

Les deux parties peuvent sembler optimistes au sujet de la relation
stratégique, mais à l’heure actuelle il semble y avoir une limitation
importante quant aux possibles avancées, en particulier les solides
liens de sécurité de l’Azerbaïdjan avec Israël . Le Pakistan n’a pas
de relations diplomatiques avec Israël et se sent mal à l’aise avec
les liens stratégiques de Bakou à destination de Tel Aviv. En 2012,
les autorités pakistanaises ont exhorté les dirigeants azerbaïdjanais
à former une alliance militaire formelle, un geste que certains
analystes ont interprété comme un mouvement par Islamabad destinée à
saper les liens israélo-azerbaïdjanais. L’Azerbaïdjan a réagi avec
prudence à l’offre pakistanais, car elle veut clairement garder ses
options stratégiques ouvertes .

Le niveau actuel de la coopération est assez bénéfique pour les deux
parties, a déclaré Richard Giragosian, directeur du Centre d’études
régional, un groupe de réflexion basé Erevan. « Pour le Pakistan,
l’alliance avec l’Azerbaïdjan offre un degré de reconnaissance de la
candidature du Pakistan à devenir un acteur régional plus actif,
autoritaire et puissant, tout en répondant aux liens étroits de l’Inde
avec l’Arménie » a déclaré Richard Giragosian. « Pour l’Azerbaïdjan,
le Pakistan est également un partisan diplomatique important et plus
récemment, un partenaire militaire clé ».

Le statut du Pakistan comme puissance nucléaire, combiné à son
équilibre politique interne délicat, rend nerveux Richard Giragosian
car le resserrement des relations Azerbaïdjano-pakistanais pourraient
causer des problèmes dans le Caucase du Sud. « Compte tenu de
l’enregistrement de l’activité criminelle au Pakistan du réseau AQ
Khan du marché noir de vente et de partage des technologies liées aux
armes nucléaires, cela est … une grave préoccupation face à la
prolifération dans une région déjà troublée par la quête d’armes
nucléaires de l’Iran » a-t-il dit.

Jasur Sumerinli, chef du centre militaire de recherche Doktrina basée
à Bakou, a minimisé l’idée que des liens plus forts de sécurité entre
l’Azerbaïdjan et le Pakistan allait accroître le risque de
déstabilisation dans le Caucase. « La coopération [Bilatérale] est
construite avec la bénédiction de la communauté occidentale » a-t-il
dit.

Note de la rédaction :

Shahla Sultanova est un journaliste indépendant se concentrant sur
l’Azerbaïdjan.

Eurasianet.org

samedi 6 juillet 2013,
Stéphane ©armenews.com

Liverpool Echo, UK
July 5 2013

Reds miss out on summer midfield target Henrikh Mkhitaryan
5 Jul 2013 19:32

Armenian on verge of £20.5m move to Borussia Dortmund

Liverpool have been forced to admit defeat in their bid to sign
Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

The highly-rated Armenia international is on the brink of completing a
£20.5m move to Borussia Dortmund.

Shakhtar informed the Reds earlier today that a deal was in place with
the Champions League finalists who have been granted permission to
discuss personal terms with the player.

It’s a major blow to Brendan Rodgers’ summer transfer plans with the
Liverpool manager having been excited about the prospect of working
with the prolific 24-year-old.

Negotiations had dragged on for weeks with the Reds unable to secure a deal.

Mkhitaryan is now expected to pen a five-year contract with German
outfit Dortmund.

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
July 5 2013

Creeping on highways

5 July 2013 – 8:41am
David Stepanyan, Yerevan. Exclusively to Vestnik Kavkaza

The legal robbery on `transit’ Armenian roads shifted to a new phase.
Any driver, first of all, a foreigner, who gets on the road between
Yerevan and Artashat heading to Iran can feel it.

Recently this 30-km part of the four-lane road appeared to be dotted
with speed limit signs – 50 km per hour. The previous top speed limit
was 90 km/h. Drivers who drive at least at 52 km/h are stopped and
fined by the traffic police, who are hidden on the oncoming lane. When
drivers try to appeal to common sense, policemen point at signs. One
of policemen told Vestnik Kavkaza that they don’t like doing what they
have to do, but nothing can be done about it – it’s their job. Traffic
policemen understand that limitation of top speed to 50 km/h on an
international road feels like robbery, but they cannot do anything –
it is `the order from the top.’

It should be noted that speed was limited `due to roadworks.’ In
reality there are no roadworks on any part of the highway. Obviously
placing signs was made for one reason only – to rob law-abiding
citizens `legally.’

Vestnik Kavkaza tried to reach for the head of the Department of Roads
of Armenia under the Ministry of Transport and Communications, Genrik
Kochunyan, but failed. The official doesn’t pick up the phone,
probably he is very busy, developing new plans for reducing speed
limits on Armenian roads. We also didn’t receive sensible explanations
on the issue from the Head Department of the Traffic Police.

Considering the logic of placing road signs on the highway
`Yerevan-Yeraskh’, it seems the Department of Roads of Armenia creates
extra `work’ for the Traffic Police. According to some information the
TP of Armenia plans to gain 6.7 billion drams (about $24 million) from
punishments for offences in 2013, this prediction gets additional
grounds. According to the same logic, they are enthusiastically
placing new radio detectors in Armenia. For example, on the highway
`Yerevan-Sevan-Idzhevan’ the speed limit is 90 km/h, if you drive from
Yerevan to Sevan; while driving from Sevan to Yerevan, you will get
the speed limit in 70 km/h. Why should cars creep on Armenian
international roads? There are dozens, if not hundreds, of such
extortionate limits in Armenia.

However, rumors in Armenia explain much more than official sources.
According to unofficial reports, the Armenian company Security Dream
which suddenly appeared in 2011, is implementing the system of
electronic fines together with the Swedish company Sensys Traffic AB.
The company actually belongs to the brother of the president – Sashik
Sarkisyan. The system of electronic fines (it costs 10 million euro)
was implemented in Armenia in early 2012. The investor will get 70% of
each fine and after return of investments – 50%. The rest will get
into the state budget. By 2017 200 radar detectors will be placed in
Armenia.

The only transit communication with Armenia is through the territory
of Georgia and Iran. The Armenian authorities permanently declare
improvement of transit attractiveness of the country, but the
conditions for Iranian and Georgian cars driving through Armenia are
becoming worse and worse. And the 50 km/h speed limit on an
international highway is another step toward non-attractiveness of
Armenia.

Armenian Ombudsman to send out protest note over Moldovan Ombudsman’s statement

19:28 – 05.07.13

Armenia’s Human Rights Defender (Ombudsman) intends to send a protest
note to international human rights organizations.

Ombudsman’s Spokesperson Naira Karmirshalyan informed Tert.am that the
Ombudsman plans to raise the issue of the scandal in Armenia’s
National Assembly as a result of the Moldovan Ombudsman’s statement.

`This is punishable behavior, which runs counter to the philosophy of
human rights institutes,’ Karmirshalyan said.

At the pan-European Conference on The European Legal Standards of Rule
of Law and the Scope of Discretion of Powers in the Member-States of
the Council of Europe in Armenia’s Parliament, Aurelia Grigoriu
delivered a report on Human Rights Protection in Frozen Conflicts
Zones. She particularly stated that Armenia had occupied 20% of
Azerbaijan’s territory and committed Azerbaijani genocide. She also
called Armenia `an aggressor.’

Armenian News – Tert.am

Events from 1988 to 1994 are genocide – Karabakh minister

July 05, 2013 | 15:30

YEREVAN. – The events, which took place between 1988 and 1994 during
the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) War, are genocide, too.

Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Minister of Justice, Ararat Danielyan,
stated the aforesaid during the Pan-Armenian Conference of Lawyers,
which is held in Armenia’s capital city Yerevan.

`These events likewise need to be qualified as a crime against
humanity, and the country that orchestrated them must answer before
Armenia for what it has done, just as Turkey [must answer for] the
genocide of 1915-1923,’ Danielyan said.

In his turn, Armenia’s Justice Minister Hrayr Tovmasyan noted that
official Yerevan has not yet exhausted all its opportunities for
petitioning to international courts.

`We need to carefully weigh the kind of opportunities we have in this
respect, and to continue the efforts in the international arena to
achieve the formal condemnation of the crimes of Ottoman Turkey,’
Tovmasyan stressed.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

PM: only int’l recognition may change status quo in NKR

July 5, 2013 – 15:10 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – The Nagorno Karabakh Prime Minster believes the
republic’s involvement in the conflict settlement negotiations in the
OSCE Minsk Group format non-crucial, with no prospect for a possible
solution outlined.

As Ara Harutyunyan stated during the meeting with the Hayastan All
Armenian Fund representatives, `the possibility of a solution in the
near future unlikely, current settlement talks are mostly formal,
aimed at preservation of regional peace.’

However, he said, as Stepanakert repeatedly remarked, the final
solution of the Karabakh conflict is impossible without the republic’s
participation.

`Azeri leadership’s statements lead us to believe that no progress in
the conflict settlement s to be expected. Karabakh, however, continues
developing and promoting its national goals,’ he said, adding that
only international recognition could bring a change in the status quo,
Karabakh-open.info reported.

Depardieu, Galustyan speak old Armenian, sing Aznavour’s songs

15:35 05.07.2013
Gerard Depardieu, Mikhail Galustyan

French actor Gerard Depardieu, who received Russian citizenship in
January, starred in a Russian sitcom `Zaytsev+1,’ ITAR-TASS reports.

Depardieu played the father of one of the main characters – Fedor –
played by Mikhail Galustyan.

`I have no experience of playing in comedy series,’ Depardieu told
reporters. There were films with Pierre Richard, and comedies about
Asterix and Obelix. But I never played in sitcoms,’ he said.

Mikhail Galustyan said, in turn, that he liked working with Depardieu.
`He’s ideal for the role. It was very interesting despite the language
barriers. At the end we started communicating in old Armenian and
singing the songs of Charles Aznavour. Now we’re like Asterix and
Obelix,’ he said.

Gerard Depardieu, who became a Russian citizen in winter, considers
himself a French-Russian-Chechen actor and wishes to learn Russian.

Heritage Statement On Kremlin’s Recent Step

The opposition Heritage party issued a statement condemning the sale
of weapons to Azerbaijan by Russia. According to the party, Russia’s
step is incompatible with strategic partnership. On the other hand,
that step, the party statement runs, has become possible thanks to the
policy of the Armenian leadership.

Heritage, affirming that Russia’s selling of weapons to Azerbaijan and
the pressure on Armenia through gas price increase may be aimed at
creating obstacles for Armenia’s Euro integration, demands from the
Armenian authorities to respond to such pressure at official level and
not to deviate from the Euro integration path signing in autumn 2013
the Association agreement with EU.

In case Russia continues its impermissible behavior, Armenia should
revise the character of its relations with that country. If even one
citizen of Armenia is killed by Smerch, the responsibility will fall
on the country-supplier.

Heritage statement continues saying that Armenia’s future is in Europe
and our country should not be led there by self-proclaimed power,
which means that Europe too should respect its values, Armenia’s
sovereignty, national interest and Artsakh’s freedom and integrity, as
well as the right of Armenian people to choose.

11:19 05/07/2013
Story from Lragir.am News:

ARMENIE
Le Parti dachnak en appelle à l’indépendance de la Commission d’audit
du Parlement

Armen Roustamian, leader de la Fédération révolutionnaire arménienne
(Dachnaktsoutioun) a dénoncé mercredi 3 juillet les violentes
critiques adressées par le président Serge Sarkissian à l’encontre de
la commission d’audit du Parlement arménien qui avait fait état de
mauvais usage de fonds publics par son gouvernement. A. Roustamian
avait accuse le pouvoir de chercher à `museler’ cette instance
parlementaire de contrôle des finances de l’Etat qui est censée être
indépendante de l’exécutif. `Nous ne devons pas oublier que la Chambre
d’Audit est une instance indépendante’, a déclaré le responsable de
l’opposition, en ajoutant que « donner des ordres à une instance
indépendante est illégal ».

M. Roustamian faisait allusion à la rencontre qui avait eu lieu le
weekend précédent avec de hauts responsables de l’Etat, sous l’égide
du président Sarkissian. La rencontre avait porté sur un recent
rapport de la Chambre d’Audit selon lequel des des millions de dollars
auraient été gaspillés du fait de la mauvaise gestion de leurs fonds
par différents départements du gouvernement. Le gouvernement arménien
a accusé la commission d’avoir exagéré, à des fins politiques,
l’ampleur des abus financiers attribués au gouvernement. M. Sarkissian
avait défendu avec fermeté son gouvernement lors de cette rencontre,
en faisant valoir que le dirigeant de la commission d’audit, Ishkhan
Zakarian, avait outrepassé ses prérogatives en tirant des conclusions
htives et infondées de ce rapport.

Le président avait été tout particulièrement irrité par les
allegations de M. Zakarian selon lesquelles quelque 70 % des dépenses
budgétaires en Arménie passaient à pertes et profit, pour cause de
mauvaise gouvernance et de gaspillage. M. Roustamian, qui préside le
groupe parlementaite du Dachnaktsoutioun, a indiqué que les remarques
de M. Sarkissian allaient à l’encontre d’un article de la Constitution
guarantissant l’indépendance de la Commission sur laquelle le pouvoir
exécutif n’a donc pas prise. Il a estimé que de tels propos pouvaient
dissuader l’instance parlementaire de superviser en toute objectivité
et intégrité les activités du gouvernement à l’avenir. `Nous avons
aujourd’hui un sérieux problem pour ce qui concerne la mise en place
d’un mécanisme de contrôle et de surveillance dans le système de
pouvoir’, a indiqué le leader de l’opposition.

vendredi 5 juillet 2013,
Gari ©armenews.com

A CENTURY OF MEMORIES: 100-YEAR OLD BIRTHDAY BOY RECOUNTS A FULL LIFE

SOCIETY | 04.07.13 | 15:36

NAZIK ARMENAKYAN
ArmeniaNow

By GAYANE MKRTCHYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter

The 100-year-old eyes of Hovhannes turn young with the reflection of
the flickering candlelight on his birthday cake and reveal a fount of
wisdom holding the treasure of past experiences. He stores his endless
memories under closely shut eyelids, makes a whish and blows the
candles on a century of birthdays.

“My life is over, but I keep on living,” he says.

His 75-year-old sister Alisa holds the birthday-boy, tears streaming
down both their wrinkled faces. They are surrounded by their children,
grandchildren and great-grandchildren – carriers of the traditions of
the Balabanyan family who came to Echmiadzin from historical Musa Ler
(Musa Dagh, modern day Turkey).

For whichever time he tells the story of Musa Dagh resistance (during
the Armenian Genocide in early 20th century), of the French aid, and
every time waves of tears storm the blue depths of his eyes, his voice
trembles with emotion, as he recalls days bygone, but by far not
forgotten. He stops for a flicker of a moment, takes a deep breath,
then continues the story with dates and names of places remembered
clearly, despite his impressive age.

“Have you read Franz Werfel’s ‘Forty Days of Musa Dagh’? You know,
don’t you, who [Louis] Dartige du Fournet was?” he pauses and only
after my affirmative response carries on with his story. “Musa Ler
people made flags from white bed sheets and wrote in English on them
‘Christians in distress: rescue!’. They made a fire so that passing
ships could spot them. The French protected cruiser Guichen appeared
on the horizon facing the mountain [Musa Ler means Mt. Moses in
Armenian] on September 5 of 1915. And on September 14 four other
cruisers under Vice-Admiral Dartige du Fournet rescued around 5,000
Armenians who had taken shelter on Musa Ler.” (History books record
around 4,000 rescued.)

The French cruisers took them to Port Said in Egypt, where they lived
for four years in a tent-town. Only in 1919 they were able to return
to their motherland.

Nostalgia and longing for his birthplace Bitias is ever-present in old
Hovhannes’s heart.

“There are no other mountains and spring water like ours… my grandpas
Karapet and Movses had built our houses – two-storey with two
entrances, one leading to the garden, the other to the street. The two
brothers shared the same courtyard and the garden; there were 25 of us
and we lived in peace and accord. We left with tears and pain, like if
we had to lock the door of this house and leave now…” he recalls, and
tears again flood his kind face.

Two decades later, in 1939, on July 23, the British diplomacy handed
the state of Alexandretta (Iskenderun) to Turkey, along with Musa Dagh
with its six Armenian villages, making locals leave their native
Bitias (Bitius), Haji Habibli (Khablak), Yoghun Oluk (Oghluk/Keigh),
Kheder Beg (Iddeir), Vakef (Maqef), and Kabusiye (Kabsak) forever and
move to Lebanon’s semi-desert village of Anjar.

New roots, new life, but as refugees with no motherland…

Hovhannes’s parents Movses and Mariam Balabanyans had seven children –
Hovhannes, Yeghia, Artashes, Habet, Biatris, Alisa. After living in
Anjar for seven years they were repatriated in 1946 to then Soviet
Armenia.

“In 1945 a Soviet delegation came and said a ship would come and take
us to Armenia. All days long we would sing “Odessa ships will come to
Lebanon, Lebanon Armenians will go to Armenia, ay caravan, jan
caravan, go ahead, lead your way”. We stopped in Batumi for 12 days,
then took a train to Armenia. We were sent to Echmiadzin, and the
world was ours, because we would be living in Echmiadzin known
worldwide as a holy place,” says Hovhannes. (Mother See of Holy
Echmiadzin – the center of the Armenian church where the Catholicos of
All Armenian’s lives and where one of the world’s oldest Christian
cathedrals was built in early 4th century.)

A few years later, however, Stalin repressions started. He recalls how
a friend of his paid them a night visit and advised not stay home that
night along with their families.

“We spent the night at the monastery, on the tile-stoned floor. It was
July 13 of1949. In the morning I went out, reached the main square in
Echmiadzin and was appalled by the scene – there was weeping and
screaming, people were being taken away… there were natives of Musa
Ler among them too… they were looking for spies among us,” he tells.

Just as in Bitias, here in Echmiadzin this time Hovhannes and his
brother build houses side by side. He marries Karine, a girl from Musa
Ler, and has two girls and a boy.

He mentally backwinds his life records and highlights the most
memorable fragments: how due to the efforts of his fellow people from
Musa Ler a memorial was built to honor the Musa Dagh heroic
resistance, where every year on last Sunday of September all the
natives of Musa Ler gather from different parts of the world, they
make traditional harisa (chicken and wheat porridge) and celebrate.

For 40 years he was among those cooking harisa. He was referred to as
‘harisa-master’ in Echmiadzin.

This annual celebration is fascinating to watch and take part in.

“We make 40 huge pots of harisa with 500 kilos of chicken, 6 kilos per
pot… For the last two years I couldn’t do it, my legs have lost their
strength,” complains the hundred-year-old man.

He reveals the myth-like origin of his surname Balabanyan.

“One of my grandfathers was a giant who could move huge rocks; he
possessed extraordinary strength, for which people used to tell him:
‘Are you a ‘balaban’ or something?’ And balaban means a giant, a very
strong man. So from there on people started calling us balaban, and
that is how our surname came forth,” tells Hovhannes with pride in his
ancestors.

His flock has thinned: “There are no buddies of my age left,” he says.

He follows the news and comments: “They have destroyed Syria, there is
no Syria anymore… And in Armenia, there is no life left… years ago my
relatives living in the United States offered to take me there, but I
refused. I told them my last nest was here – Ha-yas-tan [Ar-me-ni-a],”
he says.

The century-old man, still full of vigor, has one dream – to see
Bitias one more time before he would close his eyes forever; and for
now every night he falls asleep looking at the photo of his late wife
resting on the bed next to his.