Author: Badalian Vardan

Michael Kambeck: free trade agreement with Armenia important to EU

September 24, 2011 – 09:05 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – The Warsaw-hosted Eastern Partnership summit is a
good signal for Armenia in terms of visa facilitation and free trade
agreement negotiations with EU, according to the Secretary General of
European Friends of Armenia (EuFoA) non-governmental organisation.

As Dr. Michael Kambeck stated in a conversation with a PanARMENIAN.Net
reporter, that although long overdue, negotiations for visa
facilitation are a step to visa free regime.

`In Warsaw, the negotiating parties will outline the roadmap for Deep
and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement. I view it as a positive sign,
capable of changing so many things, including an enormous amount of
business laws. The whole way the market functions will be much more
organized according to European standards. I think this project is
really exciting and Armenia deserves it; it will be really good for
Armenia and also Europe.’

When asked to describe the advantages cooperation with Armenia will
pose to Europe, Dr. Kambeck explained, `Armenia is a small country,
but its not the size of the market that matters here; it’s a so-called
bridge market, from Armenia you can go to lots of other markets, which
otherwise are much more difficult to explore.’

`As to opinion that Armenia-EU cooperation might be directed against
Russia, or speaking against being a strategic ally with Russia and be
economic partner of the EU, quite frankly, Russia and the EU could
have had their free trade agreements a long time ago. They’re just too
big to agree on everything, and they will not manage for quite some
time. And they don’t need it so much because each one is big enough in
itself. Since this is going to take an endless amount of time, till
Russia and the EU themselves can do this, why not go through Armenia.
People speak the language, they have the contacts, they know how to do
this, but they’ll do it according to new standards and they will be
the bridge for European business and also for Russians to go into
Europe. So its good for everyone and in the middle sits Armenia. So
there’s nobody with disadvantages, everyone profits. That’s why I
think it’s an exciting project.’

Commenting on the monopoly in Armenia, Dr. Kambeck characterized it as
one of the challenges of implementation of free trade agreement with
the country.

`However, if you look at the way the Armenian market is structured
today, and how it was structured 5, 10 years ago, you’ll see a certain
shift. I think, Armenian general market will move away from monopolies
anyway, because even the monopolist has an interest in that, having a
chance to make more money if the general market becomes more solid and
grows more. If he keeps the whole market for himself, this market can
never grow beyond; meaning it’s better to have a strong market share
in a big growing market than a 100% market share in a small market
which doesn’t grow any further. This is why even the so-called
oligarchs themselves should be interested in breaking all this up and
moving ahead in a more pluralist system. Now there are some market
sectors where this will take longer time and some where it’s very
urgent and it will go faster. I’m saying that because I know, even in
Europe there are still highly monopolized sectors. Event after 40-50
year, those countries didn’t manage to break up those structures.’

As Dr. Kambeck further noted, civil society is very important in
European integration process. `The civil society is actively taking
part, with EU strongly increasing their programs of working with civil
society,’ he said, expressing hope for initiation of smaller sized
programs to assist local NGOs.

Iranian expert: NATO radar in Turkey means direct support for Israel

September 24, 2011 – 12:59 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Deployment of NATO’s anti-ballistic missile system
in Turkey means direct support for Israel and unveils the truth about
Ankara’s stance on ties with Tel Aviv, an Iranian analyst said.

`Turkey’s agreement with the deployment of the NATO missile system on
its soil is aimed at supporting Israel,’ Talal Atrissi was quoted by
Fars News Agency as saying.

“Although Turkish media are trying hard to portray Ankara as a hostile
state to Israel, Ankara’s consent in this regard puts the honesty and
validity of Turkey’s stance on Tel Aviv under a question mark,” he
said.

“Turkey’s real stance on Israel has not changed because the country is
one of the key members of the NATO and shares interests with the West,
the U.S. and Israel,” Atrissi said.

He further said that Turkey shows support for Arab revolutions `in a
bid to divert attention of the public opinion both in and outside the
region from its dangerous decision on deploying the NATO’s missile
shield on its soil.’

Ankara returns Armenia-Turkey protocols to parliament

14:44 – 24.09.11

Turkey’s Council of Ministers has returned the Armenia-Turkey
protocols to parliament to resume discussions over the documents, the
Turkish newspaper Takvim reported, characterizing the move as a fine
gesture to Yerevan.

Following the recent parliamentary election in Turkey, the Protocols
on the Establishment of Diplomatic Ties, and Development of Bilateral
Relations between Armenia and Turkey were declared null and void.

Under the Turkish chief lamaking body’s rules of procedure, any bill
not approved and enforced by the previous parliament should be
invalidated by the parliament of the new convocation. But the Council
of Ministers and lawmakers are also vested with the power to bring the
invalidated bills to the agenda.

The Armenia-Turkey protocols were signed on October 10, 2009 in
Zurich, Switzerland.

Tert.am

US DEPUTY SECRETARY OF STATE MET WITH ARMENIAN FM

news.am
Sept 23 2011
Armenia

NEW YORK. – U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Bill Burns met on
Friday with Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan, official
representative of Department of State told Armenian News-NEWS.am.

The meeting took place in UN Headquarters in New York. Media was
not allowed to attend the meeting. Press-office does not release
additional details of the meeting, however, according to unofficial
information the negotiations between Armenian FM and U.S. Deputy
Secretary were focused on the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
resolution with Azerbaijan.

According to the U.S. Department of State, soon after the negotiations
with Armenian FM Edward Nalbandyan, which started at 2:00 p.m.,
Burns met with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov.

Both Armenian and Azerbaijani FMs arrived in New York to participate
in the 66th session of UN Assembly General.

GERMAN AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA: ARMENIANS ESTABLISH STABILITY

Panorama
Sept 23 2011
Armenia

The military parade dedicated to the 20th anniversary of Armenia’s
Independence has been aimed at displaying some technologies that
Armenia owns and warn if a country intends to resume war, Armenia
will be able to give an adequate response, Ambassador of Germany to
Armenia Hans-Jochen Schmidt said in a news conference.

German Ambassador said the armaments displayed in the parade –
SKAT, “Tochka-1” are evident that Armenia develops its armament and
established stability.

HOVIK ABRAHAMYAN HEADS A DELEGATION TO GERMANY

Panorama
Sept 23 2011
Armenia

Chairman of National Assembly Hovik Abrahamyan will head a delegation
to the Federative Republic of Germany.

Information and public relations department of NA has informed on
September 26 Hovik Abrahamyan will visit house-museum of Johannes
Lepsius and will have a meeting with the scientific staff of the
museum.

On September 27 Hovik Abrahamyan will have a meeting in Berlin with
the Chairman of German Bundestag Norbert Lamert and will attend the
concert and reception dedicated to the 20th anniversary of Armenia’s
Independence.

NAGORNO KARABAKH MAY BECOME NEXT RECOGNIZED STATE AFTER SOUTH SUDAN – ARMENIAN LEADER

Interfax
Sept 21 2011
Russia

Armenian President Serzh Sargsian believes in the possibility of
independence for Nagorno Karabakh and warns against the use of force
in resolving the problem of Karabakh.

“This year South Sudan became independent thus enriching the
international experience of matters related to the self-determination
of nations. I am simply sure that we will have the same result in
Karabakh,” he said in an interview with Russia 24 channel.

He said “calls for a military solution are dangerous for the entire
region, not just Karabakh itself.”

Sargsian stressed that at the summit in Kazan Azerbaijan proved
“its reluctance and inability to reach compromise” but assured that
in its turn Yerevan will continue seeking compromise.

ANTI-IRANIAN FEELING RUNS HIGH IN AZERI CAPITAL
By Sabuhi Mammadli

Institute of War & Peace Reporting IWPR
CAUCASUS REPORTING SERVICE, No. 608
September 16, 2011

Environmental protests in Iran spark concerns about ethnic Azerbaijanis
living around shrinking lake.

Protests in northwest Iran demanding action to stop a major lake
drying up have been echoed across the border in Azerbaijan, where a
demonstration took place outside Tehran’s embassy in the capital Baku.

The hundreds of people who took part in the Baku protest, which was
broken up by police, went beyond environmental concerns about Lake
Urmia and expressed support for Iran’s large ethnic Azerbaijani
minority.

Chants of “Unite Azerbaijan with its capital in Tabriz” were heard
– a reference to nationalist aspirations for their former Soviet
republic to one day join up with ethnic Azerbaijan-majority regions
of northwest Iran..

“Our demands are not political,” Seymur Hasanli, head of the youth
section of the World Congress of Azerbaijanis, insisted. “We just think
it’s our duty to support our Azeri brothers in Iranian Azerbaijan.”

Lake Urmia, located between Iran’s East and West Azerbaijan
provinces, is the largest lake in the Middle East, but its area has
shrunk drastically through damming, overuse of water, drought, and
evaporation. Because it is a saltwater lake, the minerals deposits
left as the lake’s edges recede pose potential health hazards.

Javad Jahangirli, an Iranian parliamentarian from the region, told
the BBC that if the lake were to disappear, the salt-covered bed could
create an environmental catastrophe affecting up to 14 million people.

Protests in August in the cities of Tabriz and Urmia, which sit
on either side of the lake, met with the usual heavy-handed police
response.

“Instead of listening to people’s demands, the Iranian authorities
launched mass arrests,” Vahid Garadagli, spokesman for the Baku-based
Association for the Defence of Azeri Political Prisoners in Iran,
said. “On September 4 alone, more than 200 protesters were arrested
in Urmia – both in the street during the protest, and in their homes.

It’s very hard to put a figure to the total numbers arrested, but
it’s already in the thousands.”

The environmental issues are real enough for people living over the
border in Azerbaijan, who are well aware of what happened to the
Aral Sea in Central Asia. Excess use of river waters in the Soviet
era reduced the sea’s area, and harmful dust and salt residues on
the exposed Aral seabed were dispersed over surrounding areas of
Uzbekistan and Kazakstan.

In Azerbaijan, however, much of the focus has been on minority politics
in Iran.

“The Iranian authorities’ indifference [to the lake] shows their
antipathy to us Azerbaijanis,” Sabir Rustamkhanli, a member of
parliament who heads the World Congress of Azerbaijanis, said. “If
Lake Urmia, one of the world’s saltiest lakes, dries up, then all of
southern Azerbaijan [in Iran] will be affected by salinity. People
will lose not just their homes but their livelihoods. Just think of
the threat our brothers face from the Iranian authorities.”

The World Congress has promised to keep up the pressure on Tehran.

“Despite the brutal police response and the dispersal of the
protesters, we are going to continue protesting until the problem
is resolved,” Hasanli said. “Following our protests, the government
closed the road outside the Iranian embassy, supposedly for repairs.

But that isn’t going to stop us – we will find ways and places to
show our support for our kin.”

The nationalists have already shown some ingenuity in voicing
their views. At a football match between Kazakstan and Azerbaijan
on September 6, a group of fans chanted: “Azerbaijan is our life,
Urmia is our blood”, and “Persians, Russians and Armenians are the
[Azerbaijani] Turks’ enemies”.

The police moved in, arresting 14 fans and dispersing the rest.

The grassroots protests leave the Azerbaijani authorities in a
difficult position, given that relations with Tehran have never
been easy.

Mubariz Gurbanli, a parliamentarian from the ruling Yeni Azerbaijan
party, called for moderation.

“Of course we understand that Azerbaijanis in the cities of Tabriz and
Urmia are justified in protesting against the evaporation of the lake.

We cannot be indifferent to that. But they are citizens of Iran, and
we can’t interfere in the internal affairs of another country. All
the same, no amount of force and violence can stop people standing
up for their rights. I am certain that sooner or later, the Iranian
authorities will come to understand this.”

Sabuhi Mammadli is a correspondent for the website.

OPPOSITION WILL USE PUBLIC PRESSURE TO REACH ITS GOALS, SAYS DEMIRCHYAN

Tert.am
24.09.11

Armenia’s opposition forces will reach their goal not through dialogue,
but rather public pressure, Stepan Demirchyan, the leader of Democratic
Party of Armenia, has said.

Speaking at a rally organized by the opposition Armenian National
Congress, Demirchyan said that fair elections must be forced to the
ruling authorities.

“Recently, while speaking about the achievements of independence,
Serzh Sargsyan noted that the greatest achievement is our citizens. Of
course, these are very nice words, but the authorities have for
several years now been offending the dignity of those citizens,
by falsifying their vote,” said Demirchyan.

“Due to the unskillful governance by the authorities many are leaving
the homeland. The country had been appropriated by a group of people,”
said he, adding that Armenia is still under the control of what he
called a criminal-oligarchic system.

“All these must be stopped. It should be started by holding free,
independent elections,” Demirchyan explained.

PRESIDENT SERZH SARGSYAN’S SPEECH AT THE 66TH SESSION OF THE UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

armradio.am
23.09.2011 21:44

Mister President,
Mister Secretary-General,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Firstly, I would like to thank and wish much success to Mr. Nassir
Abdulaziz al Nasser, the President of the 66th session of the UN
General Assembly, and thank Mr. Deiss of Switzerland for his leadership
during the 65th session.

I would also like to take this opportunity to once again congratulate
the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his second term in office.

Mister President,

I wish to recognize the important choice of the general debate
theme for this session and highlight the role of mediation in the
settlement of disputes by peaceful means and as a means of preventing
the resumption of hostilities.

We highly appreciate the mediation efforts of global and regional
structures and organizations in various parts of the world in
preserving peace and security and in conflict settlement through
peaceful negotiations.

It is particularly worth mentioning the engagement of regional
organizations that have built-up an enormous experience in mediation
and have an in-depth knowledge of the political, cultural, and military
realities on the ground. The success of mediation hinges, among other
things, upon the articulation of a clearly-defined mandate. A case in
point for us is the mission of the OSCE Minsk Group in the settlement
of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Another key factor worth highlighting here is the mediators’ role in
preventing conflict escalation and the resumption of hostilities. This
aspect of mediation is sometimes overlooked, yet it is of no less
importance to international peace and stability than finding a solution
to a contentious matter.

Mr. President,

Three years ago, when I had the honor to speak from this rostrum, I
stated that the time has come for seriously considering the exercise
of the people’s right to self-determination in the 21st century. We are
today witnessing new cases of the exercise of this inalienable right.

In this context, I would like to congratulate the newly-elected
193rd member of the United Nations Organization, the Republic of South
Sudan. Its path to having a place in this august hall has been long and
difficult, but the people of South Sudan, through the free expression
of will, exercised their right to live sovereignly and independently,
thus crossing the path that many of the UN member states present here
today have crossed.

Mr. President,

The people of Nagorno-Karabakh made the same choice two decades ago
by exercising their right to self-determination, by withstanding the
war unleashed by Azerbaijan, and surviving bloodshed to earn their
right to live in freedom.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement talks are continuing with
the mediation of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs. We are grateful to
the co-chair countries and their leaders for their mediation efforts.

However, the mediators cannot reach an agreement in place of the
negotiating parties.

Azerbaijan’s utter unwillingness to reach an agreement and its
“everything or war” position have stalled progress in the peace talks.

Despite the expectations and the high-level advice from the
international community, Azerbaijan took yet another step back during
the last meeting in Kazan by rejecting the previously elaborated
arrangement and trying, in fact, to break down the negotiation process.

Baku has turned armenophobia into state propaganda, at a level that
is far beyond dangerous. It is not only our assessment; the alarm
has also been sounded by international structures specializing in
combating racism and intolerance. Even more dangerously, armenophobic
ideas are spread among the young Azerbaijani generation, imperiling
the future of peaceful coexistence.

By denying and destroying all that is Armenian, Baku stubbornly
continues to disseminate false accusations against Armenia,
Nagorno-Karabakh, and the Armenians at all levels everywhere, including
here, within the framework of the UN. The Azerbaijani propaganda
machine continues regularly to overwhelm the international community
and the domestic audience with horrendous lies about the so-called
“Armenian brutality” and the killings of children. These stories are
fabricated and disseminated using a trite yet painful logic, whereby
their authors believe that some people out there will rise to the bait
of this black PR against Armenia, and it will thus serve a purpose.

In recent years, owing to the efforts of the Minsk Group co-chair
countries, particularly the direct mediation by the President of the
Russian Federation, a number of documents have been signed, including
the Meindorf, Astrakhan, and Sochi Declarations, which have stressed
the need to strengthen the confidence-building measures between the
parties. The signature of the President of Azerbaijan also stands on
those documents.

Azerbaijan, however, continues to turn down the repeated proposals
by the international community concerning agreement on the non-use
of force and strengthening the confidence-building measures.

Moreover, the belligerent rhetoric and war threats uttered by
Azerbaijan have intensified and ceasefire violations have grown more
frequent, continuing to deprive of life innocent civilians. All of
this is orchestrated from the highest state level.

The dangerous rise in manifestations of armenophobia not only fails to
contribute to an atmosphere of trust in the region, but also leads to
questions about Azerbaijan’s understanding of the goals of the United
Nations to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one
another as good neighbors. Aspiring for membership in the Security
Council of the UN with such an understanding is impermissible and
even dangerous.

Mr. President,

In the frameworks of this Assembly, alongside debates on some of the
most vital and urgent issues of our time, a high-level meeting took
place yesterday on the 10th anniversary of the Durban Declaration,
which reiterated the urgent need to eliminate racism, racial
discrimination, xenophobia and all forms of intolerance.

Unfortunately, such intolerance is known to us, Armenians, not
only through the examples I mentioned earlier. As a nation that has
survived a genocide, the most extreme form of racism and xenophobia,
we are morally obliged to act for the prevention of future genocides.

The elimination of racism and xenophobia and the inculcation of
tolerance can become a truly effective mechanism if accompanied with
clear prescription of liability. Impunity and avoidance of liability
give birth to yet new crimes. Hence, it is incumbent upon us in the
international community to identify and denounce without delay any
expression of intolerance, but especially its extreme forms.

The Genocide of the Armenians perpetrated in the Ottoman Empire has
been recognized and condemned by numerous countries, parliaments,
international organizations, and genocide scholars’ community.

Unfortunately, the same does not hold true for the Republic of Turkey,
which continues to engage in a policy of denying this atrocious crime
committed against humanity.

We unequivocally welcome the clear position adopted by the
international community in precluding any possibility of immunity or
pardon for perpetrators of genocide or other crimes against humanity.

Without recognition and condemnation, it will be impossible to develop
and implement effective mechanisms of prevention, which is one of the
UN’s priorities. Armenia will contribute its most to the recognition,
punishment, and prevention of genocides.

These references to the Armenian Genocide lead me to recall another
important celebration marked this year: the 150th birthday of Fridtjof
Nansen, the first High Commissioner for Refugees. In the most difficult
period for my nation, the great humanist rendered priceless support
to the survival of the homeland-deprived fragments of the Armenians
fleeing from the Genocide. Holders of the Nansen passports settled in
various countries of the world, reaching as far as South America. They
rose to their feet and partook in the development of the countries
and peoples hosting them.

I believe that justice and the equality of rights between states have
become standards in international relations owing to such powerful
individuals who promoted their vision of morality in that cruel world
of the “realpolitik.”

Mr. President,

Speaking from this rostrum in 2008, I had expressed hope that
the Armenia-Turkey normalization process initiated by us and the
establishment of diplomatic relations and the opening of the borders
closed by Turkey, trespassing international law, would become the
first steps in enabling us to start a dialogue and overcoming the air
of mistrust, suspicion, and uncertainty existing between us. Although
our initiative was commended and widely supported by the international
community, Turkey has in all ways possible aborted the ratification
and implementation of the protocols we initialed in 2009.

Mr. President,

Today, on the eve of the Rio Summit on Sustainable Development,
political will must be demonstrated to honor the international
commitments in order to turn the South Caucasus into a region of
cooperation and prosperity.

The correlation between security and development is not an abstract
theory for our region where economic cooperation and deeper integration
with the global economy are hindered by unlawful blockades and the
blockage of regional integration projects.

These attitudes, alongside the fueling of an arms race, not only are
dangerous for the peoples of the region, but they also continue to
absorb the resources direly needed for sustainable development.

The time has come for the leaders of the countries in our region to
try to stand above the dictates of a narrow political agenda and to
move towards solutions that are aimed at a peaceful and prosperous
future for generations to come.

I want to believe that, not in the distant future, our region will
be perceived as a solid and firm bridge uniting civilizations, rather
than as a dividing line.

Mr. President,

Two days ago, the Republic of Armenia celebrated the 20th anniversary
of its independence. In September 1991, Armenia restored its
independence, realizing the dream of the Armenian people and reuniting
with the Family of Nations.

In the realm of history, 20 years may seem like a short period, but
it has served for the present generation as a period of great change,
construction of independent statehood, and a renewed perception of
their role and place in the world. I wish to take the opportunity
from this esteemed rostrum to express my gratitude to all the states,
peoples, and individuals that have supported us in these 20 years of
development and construction of statehood.

Freedom, peace, and democracy are our choice, and we are committed to
this path. We are proud of our achievements today. In two decades,
the Republic of Armenia has implemented a wide-scale program
of constructing statehood. Much has been done in the fields of
democratization, human rights and economic reforms, the establishment
of the rule of law and liberal economy. We have many achievements,
but much still remains to be done. Above all, we are convinced that
we are on the right path, a path that is irreversible.

Mr. President,

Exactly a decade ago, New York, the city which is home to the United
Nations Organization, experienced one of the worst atrocities in the
history of mankind, the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Armenia unconditionally
supports and actively contributes to the international community’s
counter-terrorism efforts and all of the UN’s initiatives in this
area. We are doing and will continue to do our best for the world to
be a safer and more peaceful place.

We stand ready, to the best of our abilities, to contribute to global
security and respond to global threats, be it through peace-keeping
missions, elimination of the consequences of natural disasters,
environmental protection, or the fight against terrorism, racism,
and intolerance. Over the years, we have proven our aspirations
and determination with deeds, and we stand ready to continue doing
the same.

Thank you.