Author: Badalian Vardan

RUSSIA EXTENDS TREATY ON MILITARY BASE IN ARMENIA

CRIENGLISH
June 22, 2011
China

Guo The Russian Federation Council, the upper house of parliament,
ratified a protocol Wednesday extending the presence of a Russian
military base in Armenia.

The two countries signed amendments in 2010 to a 1995 bilateral treaty,
extending Russia’s use of its military base in Gyumri near Armenia’s
border with Turkey until 2044.

According to the newly ratified protocol, the term of the treaty will
be automatically extended every five years unless either side gives
six months notice it wants to end the arrangement.

The base, which is under the command of Russia’s North Caucasus
Military District and part of the Commonwealth of Independent States
integrated air defense system, is also responsible for maintaining
Armenia’s security together with the Armenian armed forces, Russian
media reported.

RIA Novosti news agency said the base had about 5,000 personnel,
as well as S-300 surface-to-air missile systems and MIG-29 fighters.

MOURADIAN TO DISCUSS TURKEY’S CONFISCATION OF CHRISTIAN CHURCHES AT ARMENIAN CAUSE 2.0

Armenian Weekly
Tue, Jun 21, 2011

Timely Presentation will Address Key Points Raised by Introduction
of H.Res.306

WASHINGTON–Khatchig Mouradian, the editor of the Armenian Weekly
and one of the diaspora’s leading public intellectuals, will speak
at the Armenian National Committee of America’s (ANCA) “Armenian
Cause 2.0â~@³ conference about the confiscation of Christian church
properties by the Ottoman Empire and the Republic of Turkey.

Armenian Weekly editor Khatchig Mouradian Mouradian’s timely
presentation will take place in wake of the recent introduction of
a resolution, H.Res.306, in the U.S. House calling upon Turkey to
return Christian religious properties to the Armenians, Greeks,
Assyrians, and the other nations that have lived on the lands of
present-day Turkey for thousands of years. This religious freedom
measure, which has already come under attack from Ankara’s surrogates
in Washington, D.C., has drawn broad bipartisan support, including
from both Chairwoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Ranking Democrat Howard
Berman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, the influential panel
to which this legislation has been referred.

Mouradian’s presentation, the first ever about H.Res.306 at a civic or
community gathering, will cover the Ottoman era of Sultan Abdulhamid
and the Young Turks through to the present-day Republic of Turkey.

Drawing from a wealth of primary and secondary sources, including
recently published scholarly works, Mouradian will present an overview
of the process through which Armenian property, including church
property, was confiscated from Armenians and transferred to the Ottoman
and later Turkish state, and how the economic wealth stolen from the
Armenians contributed to the creation of the Turkish national economy.

He will share a broad overview of the destruction, desecration, and
disregard of Armenian and other Christian church properties, and a
detailed inventory of pre- and post-genocide religious properties.

Mouradian will then discuss the Turkish state’s current policy
towards Armenians and Armenian cultural and religious heritage in
Turkey. He will also explore, with all in attendance, the moral and
material remedies available to begin addressing the damages inflicted
upon the Armenian and other victims of Ottoman and later Republican
Turkey’s genocidal campaign to eliminate the Christian populations
within its borders.

In addition to serving as editor of the Armenian Weekly, Mouradian
is a Ph.D. student in Holocaust and genocide studies at Clark
University in Worcester, Mass., where he is writing his dissertation
on the destruction of the Armenians in the Syrian desert during
the Armenian Genocide. Mouradian has lectured extensively and
participated in conferences in Armenia, Austria, Cyprus, Lebanon,
Norway, Syria, Switzerland, Turkey, and across the United States. He
has presented papers on media, human rights, and the Armenian Genocide
at several academic conferences, including the 5th and 6th Workshops on
Armenian-Turkish Scholarship, held at NYU in 2006 and at the Graduate
Institute in Geneva in 2008; the International Conference on Genocide
and International Law at Haigazian University in Beirut in 2009; the
Middle Eastern Studies Association (MESA) conference in Boston in 2009;
the Armenian Genocide Research Conference at Clark University in 2010;
and the Armenian Genocide Reparations Conference in Ankara, Turkey,
in 2010. Mouradian writes for a number of national and international
publications.

Armenian Cause 2.0’s full schedule of educational workshops and
interactive presentations, including speakers such as former U.S.
Ambassador to Armenia John Evans, POLITICO National Politics Editor
Charles Mahtesian, and angel investor and blogger Haig Kayserian will
be complemented by social and networking opportunities, including a
dinner reception at the Armenian Embassy hosted by Ambassador Tatoul
Markarian. Break-out sessions will include workshops on advocacy,
social media, and elections.

Due to high demand, Armenian Cause 2.0 has sold-out. No more
registrations are being accepted.

ARMENIA TO RECEIVE ARMS AND MILITARY EQUIPMENT FROM RUSSIA ON A GRANT BASIS

arminfo
Wednesday, June 22, 20:53

The excess arms and military equipment of the 102nd Russian military
base in Armenia will be transferred to the Armenian Armed Forces on
the a grant basis, Head of Russian Defense Ministry Department for
Military Cooperation with CIS States, Colonel Andrey Gusev said when
replying to the question of the Russian senators considering a federal
law on ratification of the protocol between Russia and Armenia on the
Russian military base, where the excess arms and military equipment
of the base will be redeployed.

According to Gusev, the Russian military base in Armenia has switched
to a brigade system. Now it has 4 thsd 245 people, nearly 3700 of them
are military servicemen, and about 500 are civilian specialists. He
said that the switch to the brigade system has not violated the
combat readiness of its units, and the personnel of the base is ready
to carry out the relevant tasks, including in the structure of the
joint Russian-Armenian troops grouping. The document on introduction
of amendments in the Russian-Armenian agreement on the Russian
military base in Armenia was signed on March 16 1995. According to
the amendments, the deployment period of the Russian military base
in Armenia is increased from 25 to 49 years.

The protocol envisages that over the period of its deployment in
Armenia the Russian military base does not only protects Russia’s
interests but also ensures Armenia’s security jointly with the Armenian
Armed Forces. The protocol also stipulates expansion of the sphere of
geographical and strategic responsibility of the base. The Russian
base is also to provide the Armenian party with up-to-date arms and
special military equipment.

Deployed in Gyumri, the 102nd Russian military base is on combat alert
within the frames of the United System of CIS Anti-Aircraft Defense.

The base has an S-300 missile complex, MiG-29 fighters, and the
personnel of the base has 5 thsd people.

ARMENIANS CAN REACH SEVAN RESORTS BY TRAIN

news.am
June 22 2011
Armenia

YEREVAN. – South Caucasus rail road (SCRR) of Armenia will run
Sevan-Kanaker-Shorzha (Tsovagyugh) train from July 2, press service
of SCRR informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.

The train will start its route from Tsovagyugh on weekdays at 6.00
a.m. to reach Yerevan city at 8.03 a.m. The train will move from
Kanaker (Yerevan) at 08.30 to reach Tsovagyugh at 10.46 a.m. The
evening shift will start from Tsovagyugh at 5.55 p.m. to reach Kanaker
at 8.27 p.m. and will head back to Sevan at 10.37 pm.

KARABAKH AIRPORT PURCHASED EQUIPMENT FROM TURKEY

news.am
June 22 2011
Armenia

STEPANAKERT. – The administration of civil aviation of
Nagorno-Karabachos (Artsakh) purchased equipment for the Stepanakert
airport from Turkey, head of administration of civil aviation of
Karabakh Dmitri Adbashyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am.

“We bought equipment from Turkish Demirci makina company for knitting
metal net for the airport. It was a very profitable deal, compared
to European equipment, which were more expensive,” Adbashyan noted.

Adbashyan believes that the deal will not lead to negative consequences
as it is mere business and there are no political aspects.

RUSSIAN PRESIDENT CONTRIBUTED SIGNIFICANTLY TO KARABAKH PEACE PROCESS – ARMENIAN FM

news.am
June 22 2011
Armenia

YEREVAN.- Not only Armenia but the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs as well
said about inexpediency to resume work of the PACE sub-committee on
Karabakh, said Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian.

Speaking at a press conference in Strasbourg Nalbandian reminded
of Minsk Group’s position: resumption of sub-committee on Karabakh
cannot benefit to the Karabakh peace process, the Armenian News-NEWS.am
correspondent reports.

This structure was of no benefit and its restoration is senseless
as it has no mandate of compulsory decisions on the Karabakh peace
process, he said.

He recalled that the peace process progresses within the framework
of OSCE Minsk Group and Russia in particular.

“The significant contribution of the Russian President Dmitry Medvedev
to the Karabakh peace process is well known. The Kazan meeting is
held on his initiative as well,” he said.

The PACE sub-committee was set up back in 2005, later its work was
suspended as chairman Lord Rassel Johnston passed away.

On January 2011 it was decided to resume work of the sub-committee
which is headed by Jordi Xucla i Costa.

GERARD DEPARDIEU TESTS SUPER JET

Voice of Russia

June 22 2011

French super star Gerard Depardieu has taken part in an ad for
Armenia’s Armavia company in Russia’s Sukhoi super jet at the Le
Bourget air show in France. The carrier has purchased the planes for
its flights from Yerevan in April.

The actor was impressed with the jet and has highly assed its
performance at the show.

ARMENIAN DASHNAKTSUTYUN MADE STATEMENT ON UPCOMING NEGOTIATIONS ON KARABAKH

news.am
June 22 2011
Armenia

YEREVAN. – Central committee of ARF Dashnaktsutyun-Artsakh made a
statement on the eve of the meeting in Kazan, which will be held on
Thursday. It called the mediators of the Karabakh conflict to avoid
steps that will break the balance and peace.

Based on the efforts of co-chairs of OSCE Minsk Group [U.S., Russia and
France] in the peace keeping process of Karabakh-Azerbaijani conflict,
ARFD-Artsakh supported three basic principles of international
law offered to the sides, and considered it inadequate to place
of peacekeeping troops in the conflict area. ARFD-Artsakh central
committee called on co-chairs and other sides of mediating mission
to avoid steps breaking balance and peace.

NO SIGNATURES OF ARMENIA AND AZERBAIJAN WILL BE ACCEPTED UNDER BASIC PRINCIPLES ON KARABAKH – NGOS

news.am
June 22 2011
Armenia

STEPANAKERT. – Armenian News-NEWS.am publishes a statement of
Nagorno-Karabachos (Artsakh) NGOs.

We confirm once again all our previous statements on basic principles
offered by OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs concerning Karabagh conflict
settlement. And we declare that we will not accept any document
signed by Armenia and Azerbaijan on those principles. We believe
that no other interstate agreement can have legal status if it has
a goal of limiting basic human rights, is signed under the pressure
of threats or economic obligation, and violates dignity of people,
who won in the struggle of national-liberation movement of Karabakh.

Karabakh NGOs are positive that the only way to establish peace between
Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh is the unconditioned international
recognition of the Karabagh state.

Thus, NGOs call the three presidents [Armenian, Russian, and
Azerbaijani] participating in the Kazan meeting to accept existing
reality and to show political will in introducing new format of
negotiations. Free and peaceful development of nations in the region
is guaranteed only by respecting fundamental human rights.

Negotiations on this principle may open a way of peaceful solution
of existing problems.

AZERBAIJAN ACCUSES UN

Trend
June 22 2011
Azerbaijan

The UN’s relevant agencies do not include information about drug
production in the occupied Azerbaijani territories in their reports,
Azerbaijani Deputy Prime Minister and Head of the State Commission
for Combating Drug Addiction and Illicit Drug Trafficking Ali Hasanov
said at a conference titled “Fight against drug addiction is duty of
each person” in Baku on Wednesday.

“We have repeatedly appealed to these agencies on this matter, but
could not achieve the goal,” he said.

Hasanov said the UN Vienna Office has recently attempted to monitor
this issue, but Armenia did not allow it.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian
armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992,
including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts.

Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The
co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group – Russia, France, and the U.S. –
are currently holding the peace negotiations.

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