Author: Babajanian Karo

IOSIF KOBZON APPEARS ON EU ‘BLACKLIST’

13:03 | February 16,2015 | Politics

The European Union has expanded its blacklist for the Russian
Federation, including 19 physical and nine legal entities, BBC reports.

The EU believes these people are responsible for destabilizing the
situation in the east of Ukraine.

The newly sanctioned individuals include three top military officials:
Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov, Russia’s First Defense
Minister, Army General Arkady Bakhin, and the head of the main
Operation Directorate of General Staff, Lieutenant General Andrey
Kartapolov.

Two members of the Russian lower house of parliament, the State Duma,
singer Iosif Kobzon and Valery Rashkin, who heads the Russian Communist
Party branch in Moscow, are also on the list. The remaining 14 people
are officials of the self-proclaimed republics in eastern Ukraine.

DISTRACTION?: PAP SAYS ATTACK ON TSARUKYAN TAKES FOCUS OF BIGGER GOVERNMENT CONCERNS

POLITICS | 16.02.15 | 15:22

GOHAR ABRAHAMYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter

The President’s harsh comments and accusations toward Prosperous
Armenia Party (PAP) leader Gagik Tsarukyan have stirred unrest within
the party, while members of the “alternative” party say that the
government should be focusing on greater matters of concern rather
than trying to bring down Tsarukyan.

PAP faction MP Mikayel Melkumyan told reporters on Monday that the
party’s activities were solely oppositional; they moved along the
path with no turbulence, however, these latest events will accelerate
their activities.

“At the (Republican Party of Armenia) meeting there was not a word
about the country’s grave social state; are they trying to distract
people’s attention? Is Gagik Tsarukyan to be blamed that there are
no investments in Armenia, that there are more than a million poor
people in Armenia, is Gagik Tsarukyan to be blamed that there is
officially 20 percent of unemployment . . .”

Melkumyan said, adding that there is an exceptional chance now to
follow the people’s desire.

Christian-Democratic Renaissance party leader Sos Gimishyan spoke
about the situation saying that it is the first time he does not
agree with either side, he believes in neither the government nor
the other side and even sees a political game in this situation.

“One side said that this is the evil, the other one – the opposite,
they had the government in their hands together once, and today’s state
is the result of those years. I do not exclude the option that this is
a political game, an attempt to clarify the political field between
the two forces, and behind these political forces I can clearly see
Serzh Sargsyan and Robert Kocharyan,” Gimishyan said.

Melkumyan dismissed the statement as “nonsense”.

Gimishyan said that the two sides with their actions made the situation
in the country tense, which, on the background of current geopolitical
processes, is unnecessary for the country.

TAILS OF NAHATAK TAILING DUMP OWNED BY AKHTALA ORE DRESSING COMBINE DUMPED INTO DEBED (PHOTOS)

13:25 February 16, 2015

EcoLur

The tails of Nahatak tailing dump owned by Akhtala Ore Dressing
Combine are dumped into the Debed River, as EcoLur eye witnessed on
12 February visiting the area of Nahatak tailing dump after the the
public hearings on allotting new land area from Mets Ayrum community,
Lori Region, for the construction of a new tailing dump together with
the environmentalists and local residents.

“Under the law, it should be isolated from environment, and as you
can see, the tails flow downwards and get into the Debed River,” said
Hakob Sanasaryan, Chairman of Greens Union of Armenia, and added the
tails contain such heavy metals, as copper, zinc, thorium etc.

One of the residents responded, “We all feel unwell, dizzy and feel
like vomiting.”

“All three tailings owned by Akhtala Combine experience problems with
recultivation. This very tailing dumps is used for over 5 years and
doesn’t prescribe any safety standards with numerous violations,”
said Oleg Dulgaryan, Director of “Community Unity and Support Center”
NGO, member of Mets Ayrum Aldermen’s Council.

LES AUTORITES FISCALES INSPECTENT LES COMPTES DE GAGIK TSARUKIAN

Opposition

Le Premier ministre, Hovik Abrahamian, a ordonne a son gouvernement de
“verifier les rapports” alleguant que le leader de l’opposition Gagik
Tsarukian aurait cache d’enormes sommes d’argent.

Dans une riposte spectaculaire a la pression croissante de Tsarukian,
le President Serge Sarkissian a dit aux membres superieurs de son
Parti republicain jeudi que le magnat qui dirige le deuxième parti
parlementaire, Armenie prospère (BHK), doit etre exclu du processus
politique.

Le president a charge le Premier ministre d’ordonner une enquete sur
“des informations non verifiees” de longue duree accusant le leader
du BHK d’evasion fiscale a grande echelle. Il a egalement averti de
la possibilite de le poursuivre pour d’autres crimes presumes.

Le porte-parole d’Abrahamian, Gohar Poghosian, a dit samedi que,
lors de l’instruction du Premier ministre, le chef de cabinet
du gouvernement, le ministre David Harutiunian, avait envoye une
lettre au ministre des Finances Gagik Khachatrian demandant que
son agence verifie la veracite des rapports a propos de Tsarukian,
accuse d’evasion fiscale sous couvert d’activites caritatives.

lundi 16 fevrier 2015, Claire (c)armenews.com

KHOSROV HARUTYUNYAN: WE ARE IN THE SAME BOAT (VIDEO)

14:40 | February 16,2015 | Politics

Republican lawmaker Khosrov Harutyunyan says national security threats
are emerging in Armenia in the face of the Prosperous Armenia Party
(BHK).

“What are we supposed to do now? Shall we start flattering each
other?” Harutyunyan told a press conference on Monday.

Speaking about the recent conflict between the Republican Party of
Armenia (HHK) and BHK, the MP said his party is ‘taking preventive
measures’ so that Armenia would not turn into a Maidan.

“Do you compare Armenia with Belgium and Luxembourg which do not have
problems? A regime change is possible only in cases of deep shocks,”
said Mr Harutyunyan.

He does not exclude interpersonal conflicts inside the BHK. “But we
are in the same boat now,” he said.

Asked whether he asked the president to ‘have mercy on’ the BHK
leader after his speech on Feb. 12, Mr Harutyunyan did not refute
the information though, he says, he used other words.

DESINFORMATION AZERIE
Les médias azéris présentent des photos de massacres d’Arméniens en
1905 en affirmant qu’elles sont ceux de turco-tatars tués en 1918 par
les Arméniens au Chamakhi

Les médias azéris, à l’exemple de leurs cousins turcs, ne font pas
dans le détail et cumulent les désinformations pour aboutir à une
déformation de l’histoire. Le site azéri 1news.az voulant à tout prix
créer de toute pièce un dossier sur >…a
même utilisé des photos d’archives qui montraient non pas des
tatars-azéris massacrés…mais des Arméniens.

Ainsi 1news.az présente des photos de corps massacrés et mutilés en
1905 à Bakou présentés comme des

Trend Daily News (Azerbaijan)
February 14, 2015 Saturday 5:37 PM GMT +4

Iran’s mediation not enough to solve Karabakh conflict

Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 14
By Umid Niayesh, Fatih Karimov – Trend:

Iran alone can’t solve Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,
other states also are important, Hassan Beheshtipour, Iranian expert
on international affairs told Trend Feb. 14.

Iran can play a key role in resolving the conflict, Beheshtipour said,
adding, “of course, the role of other countries, such as Russia and
the US should not be disregarded. The intermediation of Iran is not
sufficient to resolve the problem.”

Beheshtipour said that Iran’s stance regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict is to secure Azerbaijan’s sovereignty and wants the conflict
to be resolved as soon as possible.

“Iran says rights of Nagorno-Karabakh people should be met and
sovereignty of Azerbaijan should be secured,” the expert added.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result
of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent
of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven
surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs
of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently
holding peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council’s four
resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the
surrounding regions.

While commenting on the current level of the ties between the two
neighboring countries Beheshtipour said that after the visit of
Iranian and Azerbaijani presidents on the sidelines of the World
Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos last year, relations between
the two countries were improved significantly.

Visits of high-ranking officials of the two sides show that both Iran
and Azerbaijan are determined to remove hurdles and expand bilateral
cooperation, he added.

Beheshtipour said bilateral ties have been facing with problems over
the past years, especially relations between Iran and Armenia and
relations between Azerbaijan and Israel have created problems in
Tehran-Baku ties.

For the time being, such sensitive issues have been alleviated and the
two countries think about expanding bilateral relations far from
political interests, he noted.

“There was a speculation in Iran that Israel may use Azerbaijan’s
territory to attack Iran, but Azerbaijani official have stressed that
such a thing will not happen,” the expert explained.

He further noted that the volume of propaganda against each other in
the two countries’ mass media has also decreased and the media have
helped improvement of the relations.

Any improvement in bilateral relations will be beneficial for both
people and governments, Beheshtipour said, adding that in this line
upcoming visit of the Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to
Baku will be a welcome opportunity to resolve the extant problems.

The two countries should not entwine their relations to a third
country, he stressed.

The Iranian FM is scheduled to visit Baku on Feb.16 at the invitation
of the Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov.

During the visit, the Iranian top diplomat will hold several
high-level meetings and discuss the intensification of the bilateral
relations.

Beheshtipour also forecasted that the lifting of sanctions against
Iran within the framework of nuclear talks with the West can give
Azerbaijan more freedom to improve relations with Iran.

Iran and the P5+1 (the US, the UK, Russia, China, France and Germany)
group have extend their negotiations to reach a comprehensive nuclear
deal, with the aim of reaching a high-level political agreement by
March 1, and confirming the full technical details of the agreement by
July 1.

After the sides failed to meet the November 24, 2014 deadline they
also extended the Geneva nuclear deal, which was signed in November
2013 to provide Iran with some sanctions relief in exchange for Tehran
agreeing to limit certain aspects of its nuclear activities.

The US and its Western allies suspect Iran of developing a nuclear
weapon – something that Iran denies.

TRADITION-ARMENIE
Plus d’une trentaine de jeunes mariés fêtent le Diarnentaratch au
monastère de Tatev

Au monastère de Tatev (région de Syunik, au sud de l’Arménie) samedi
14 février, plus d’une trentaine de jeunes mariés des villages
proches, ont participé à la Fête de Diarnentaratch (Présentation de
Jésus au Temple). Le père Mikaël Kévorkian a béni les couples avant la
fête du Diarnentaratch qui s’est déroulée en présence d’une troupe de
chants danses folkloriques venue d’Erévan. Une festivité placée dans
le cadre du programme > qui vise à promouvoir
la situation sociale des familles de la région ainsi que de présenter
les traditions du pays. Haïg Toutoundjian, le responsable de
l’organisation > a remercié le préfet de la
région de Syunik ainsi que l’Eglise arménienne pour leurs aides pour
cette Fête de Diarnentaratch à Tatev qui réunit plusieurs centaines de
participants, habitants de la région et touristes vendu de la capitale
et de l’étranger.

Krikor Amirzayan

dimanche 15 février 2015,
Krikor Amirzayan (c)armenews.com

Minneapolis Star Tribune
Feb 13 2015

On Ukraine, the best first step is to form a strategy

by: ROSS WILSON

It might be a good idea to send arms, but figure out what road we’d be on.

Arming Ukraine, as this newspaper, prominent Washington think tanks
and Sen. John McCain have argued, may be right. The case for doing so
appears compelling. The country is being savaged by a bullying Russia,
thousands are dying, and President Vladimir Putin’s redrawing of
political boundaries is violating the political order in Europe.
However, the matter of arming or not arming the authorities in Kiev
ends up being the wrong issue, or at least a premature one. What
should come first is some thinking through of the broader problem of
Russia and its neighbors, where American interests lie, and what
capabilities we have. These represent the harder work of formulating a
strategy.

Putin has one.

He aims to promote Russia’s welfare and role in the world by keeping
its neighbors away from the West. No more creep of the European Union
or NATO further into the former Soviet bloc, which his foreign
minister, Sergey Lavrov, declared in 2008 to be Russia’s zone of
“privileged interest.” Roughing up and punishing Ukraine is a means to
that end. It sends a blunt message to all of the neighbors about where
their interests had better lie — or else. Seemingly over-the-top
Russian actions caution Europeans, whose reluctance to challenge
Moscow goes all the way back to German unification in 1990 and before,
against further outreach to the east.

That’s what the mauling of Georgia was about in 2008. It’s why Moscow
has supported criminal separatists in tiny Moldova since 1991. These
priorities lie behind more subtle policies, too. Russia’s arming of
both Azeri and Armenian forces around the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh
region reinforces the protagonists’ dependence on it and therefore the
Kremlin’s role in the Caucasus. Promoting a Eurasian Economic Union
that now includes Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and
Tajikistan keeps them commercially focused on Russia and reduces their
options elsewhere. Putin’s making nice to friendly regional autocrats
who dislike Western hectoring about human rights and democracy is an
easy gesture that fits this strategy, too.

Is arming Ukraine the right response? Maybe, but steps to do so should
flow from a broader policy and strategy regarding that country and
Russia. It is not enough to give arms to help Ukraine better protect
itself or to hope that doing so will convince Putin that aggression
will not go unchecked. What happens if this military aid is not
sufficient to make a difference — what do we do then? What does
“checking” aggression mean, and where might it end? It isn’t
appeasement or cowardice to insist on thinking through the
implications of confrontation with Russia in its back yard — any more
than it would be wise blithely to disregard the risks of failing to
take a stand now against Kremlin aggression.

We need at least some semblance of a strategy on all this — a plan of
action that relates what we would like to see with what our
capabilities are for realizing that outcome. It should address a
number of questions.

What are America’s interests with respect to Ukraine, what are
Russia’s and where are our trans-Atlantic allies? How should the fact
that the Kremlin retains thousands of nuclear warheads affect our
calculus? What are Ukraine’s inherent attributes and problems, and how
can we affect those? Is that country sui generis, or should U.S.
policy also focus on Georgia and/or others among the former Soviet
states — and, if so, which ones, and what do we then make of their
democratic and other failings? What other ways could we add to the
pressures Putin faces already — with regard to Syria, Russia’s energy
markets in Europe or even relations with China — to influence his
behavior?

What risks elsewhere in the world — for example, on the Iran nuclear
issue — might we run by taking a more robust stance against Putin’s
actions, and how can we mitigate these? If we lack sufficient military
or other instruments to affect developments, how can we add to our
capabilities and undermine the other side’s? If there is a problem
with public support for a robust policy on Russia in the United States
and Europe, how can that be changed — not in the firmament of partisan
politics, but in reality?

This is not to argue that military support for Ukraine is a bad idea.
It may be a very good idea. A compelling case can be made that the
United States and its trans-Atlantic allies need fundamentally and in
every way to resist Kremlin aggression and efforts to subjugate
Ukraine and other neighbors — to recreate in some measure a Soviet
Union-like entity whose collapse 23 years ago represented a great
windfall for security and prosperity in Europe and all over the world.

But the U.S. government needs to have worked up some kind of strategy
on Russia and explained it to the American people. And if we’re not
prepared to go a very considerable distance down the road of
confrontation with Russia, then we should be careful about adding to
expectations in Kiev that we may ultimately not be prepared to follow
through on.

Ross Wilson, a Minnesota International Center board director, served
as U.S. ambassador to Turkey and Azerbaijan during a 30-year career in
the U.S. Foreign Service.

PATRIMOINE ARMENIEN EN PERIL EN TURQUIE
L’église arménienne Sourp Yerortoutioun de Malatya va être rénovée à
partir de juin prochain

Selon le site d’Asbarez, le journal arménien paraissant aux
Etats-Unis, les travaux de restauration de l’église arménienne Sourp
Yerortoutioun (Sainte Trinité) de Malatya en Turquie vont débuter en
juin prochain. Le 21 janvier, l’architecte arménien Kevork
Yozkarakeuz, accompagné de l’Archevêque Aram Atéchian du patriarcat
arménien de Constantinople, se sont rendus à Malatya pour visiter
l’église Sourp Yertortoutioun. Ils décidèrent après l’inspection de
cette église appelée par les Turcs > que sa rénovation
pourrait débuter en juin prochain avec les autorisations des autorités
locales délivrées. Profitant de sa visite à Malatya, Mgr Aram Atéchian
a également visité la chapelle arménienne > dont les travaux de
rénovation sont pratiquement terminés.

Krikor Amirzayan

dimanche 15 février 2015,
Krikor Amirzayan (c)armenews.com