Author: Badalian Vardan

HOLIDAY SPECTACULAR CONCERT WITH CILICIA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Bianca Manoukian

AZG DAILY
19-12-2009

Culture

Dear Friends,

As some of you may remember, 2 years ago we had organized The first
ever Armenian Holiday Concert. Due to its unprecedented success and
much requests from the community, we decided to have another one this
year. Hence, it is with great pleasure that I would like to announce
that Tele-Culture 24 Hour International Television will proudly
present: 2009 Holiday Spectacular Concert With Cilicia Symphony
Orchestra, Conductor: Maestro Mikael Avetisian.

The concert will include holiday favorites from world renowned
composers such as Johaness Strauss, Leroy Anderson, Peter Tchaikovsky,
& Amadeus Mozart. The 50 member strong Cilicia Symphony Orchestra,
will also perform from the great works of legendary composers such
as Aram Khachatourian, Arno Babajanian, Sayat Nova & Komitas. The
program will also include surprise guest appearances of renowned
soloists and musicians.

The concert will be held on Sunday, December 27, 2009, at 6:00 pm
at First Baptist Church of Glendale (209 North Louise St, Glendale,
CA-across from Glendale YMCA – corner of Wilson & Louise)

The concert will be broadcasted worldwide on New Year’s Eve on
various channels.

Furthermore, a portion of the proceeds generated from this concert
will be donated to Glendale Ghapan Sister City Association, which
was established through the joint effort of the Armenian National
Committee of Glendale, the City of Glendale, and the City of Ghapan,to
help cultivate economic cooperation and cultural exchanges between the
two cities. The Glendale-Ghapan Sister City Association aims to foster
goodwill and understanding through cultural, educational, and economic
cooperation between the people of Glendale and Ghapan, concentrating on
the improvement of the schools, healthcare, & community infrastructures
and has helped thousands of children celebrate New Year’s & Easter
with educational gifts, school supplies, backpacks, toys, & etc.

I certainly hope that I can count on your support in helping me spread
the word.The tickets can be obtained from where
I have arranged a special discount for my friends.You may visit our
direct link at 346
and enter the following Promotional Code FRIENDS to received the
corresponding discounts.

Should you need any further information, please do not hesitate to
contact me.

Yours Truly,

"ARMAVIA" PLANS OPENING OF NEW FLIGHTS FOR THE COMING YEAR

ARMENPRESS
DECEMBER 18, 2009
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 18, ARMENPRESS: Armenian national carrier "Armavia"
company is planning for the coming year opening of new flights to
Barcelona, Warsaw as well as to the USA and Canada. Press secretary
of the company Nana Avetisova told Armenpress that in general the
company is planning to implement 250 flights in a month in more than
30 directions. As of today the company has 6 airplanes – two "A-320",
three "A 319" and one "CRJ 200".

In April 2010 it is planned to fill the park with "Superjet 100"
passenger-carrier new airplanes which have 98 places. "Armavia"
was planning to get two new "Superjets" in December this year and
in January of 2010 but connected with the certification issues of
the new airplanes they will be brought to Armenia in April. The new
planes will be acquired for transatlantic flights.

ANELIK MAKES ANTI-CRISIS SURPRISE FOR CLIENTS

PanARMENIAN.Net
16.12.2009 11:56 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Anelik money transfer system has made an anti-crisis
surprise for its clients, setting the transfer tariff at 0.8%.

"Presently, the tariff is applicable to Armenia only but we hope that
it will function for all CIS countries," Anelik.ru board chairman
Armen Ghazaryan told the Union of Armenians of Russia.

He also informed of the launch of a new service – Anelik Card –
allowing the clients to make transfers via terminals. "It will take
less time to transfer money. We have some 2000 terminals throughout
Moscow," Mr. Ghazaryan said.

Anelik Bank CJSC board deputy chairman Aram Lazarian, for his part,
said that the lowered tariff will boost the amount of money transfers
to Armenia.

"As is customary, the amount of money transfers tends to increase
by the end of the year. We will summarize the results in the first
quarter of 2010," he told a PanARMENIAN.Net reporter.

SITUATION STRAINED IN TURKEY’S EASTERN PROVINCE OF MUSH

Panorama.am
16:45 15/12/2009

In Turkey’s eastern province of Mush (Western Armenia) there was a
clash between the Kurdish demonstrators and the Turkish police. The
protesters threw stones at the police officers during the meeting of
the dissolved Kurdish Democratic Society Party and the journalists.

According to the Turkish Cumhurriyet Daily, two people were killed,
another 6 were injured as an unknown opened fire from an adjacent
shop. The situation is strained.

Panorama.am recalls that since December 11 as the Turkish
Constitutional Court resolved to dissolve the Kurdish Democratic
Society Party, a serious wave of protest arose in different provinces
of Turkey. Mass disorders and clashes have paralyzed Turkey’s public
peace.

NEW BOOK FROM "SPIRIT AND WORDS" SERIES PRESENTED IN CANADA

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
15.12.2009 13:35 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Under the Auspices of His Eminence, Archbishop Khajag
Hagopian, Prelate, the Armenian Prelacy of Canada held a book premiere
for the recently published "The History of the Sourp Hagop Armenian
Apostolic Church" – Montreal, Canada (1958-2008)," written by the Sourp
Hagop Armenian Apostolic Church Pastor, Rev. Fr. Karnig Koyounian.

Dr. Aida Boudjikanian presented the book during the launch, which
was organized by the Pastermadjian Foundation with the participation
of the Hamazkayin Armenian Cultural Association’s Montreal Sanahin
chapter. The evening was held at the Sourp Hagop School Pastermadjian
hall on December 10, 2009.

In turn, Bedros Kaprielian, Vrej Armen Artinian and Archpriest Armen
Ishkhanian, Sourp Hagop Church’s former Pastor, each took the podium
and spoke about their own experiences regarding their first days in
Montreal and how far the community had come since then.

a presentation of a new book from the series "The spirit and the
letter"

The book was written with the blessing of the primate of the Canadian
Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church Archbishop Khajag Hakobyan.

Rev. Fr. Koyounian also took the podium and discussed the importance
keeping our growing community alive and flourishing. Archbishop
Hagopian closed the evening with a few words of encouragement.

This is the 7th book published as part of the Prelacy’s "Spirit
and Words" (Pan yev Kir) series, which includes, "I Kordz Arganel"
by Krikor Beldian (2003), "The Holy Bible, Translation and Analysis"
by Archbishop Zareh Aznavourian (2004), "How Shall We Remember?

Reflections on the Armenian Genocide and Church Faith" by Vigen Guroian
(2005), "A Survey of Graduate Theses Armenia/Armenians in the United
States and in Canada 1919-2005" by Garo Chichekian (2007), Dialogue
with the Youth, Dialogue avec les jeunes" by His Holiness Aram I
(2009).

RUSSIA CUTS GAS FLOW TO ARMENIA

FT
Dec 14, 2009

MOSCOW, December 14 – Russia halted gas supplies to Armenia after two
bombs were found close to a pipeline in southern Russia, officials
said on Monday, but Armenia’s gas importer said it had enough reserves
to supply consumers.

A trunk gas pipeline in Russia’s Ingushetia region was shut down
late on Sunday after several explosive devices were found nearby,
a police official in Ingushetia told Reuters.

The stoppage affected customers in Russia’s North Ossetia and
Ingushetia regions as well as Armenia, which gets about 2bn cubic
metres of gas annually from Russia, Russian news agencies reported.

A spokeswoman for the Armenian subsidiary of Russian gas monopoly
Gazprom, ArmRosGazprom, said gas had been cut but that domestic
consumers would not be affected.

"Our dispatcher received a telegram that deliveries of gas to Armenia
would stop," said Shushanik Sardaryan, ArmRosGazprom spokeswoman.

Gas flows across Europe FT interactive graphic: Countries at greatest
vulnerability to a cessation of gas supplies through the Ukraine
"We will use gas from our storage facilities until the restoration
of supplies," she said.

The mainly Muslim region of Ingushetia, which borders Chechnya,
has seen a surge in attacks by Islamist rebels in recent months.

Russian supplies to Armenia transit through Georgia, which has not
been affected by the cut, a spokeswoman for the Georgian Oil and Gas
Corporation told Interfax news agency.

A spokesman for Russia’s Gazprom said he was not immediately able to
comment on the cut in supplies.

IMF PROJECTS ARMENIAN INFLATION TO BE 3% ON THE AVERAGE IN 2010

ARKA
Dec 11, 2009

YEREVAN, December 11. /ARKA/. The International Monetary Fund (IMF)
projects Armenian inflation to be 3% on the average in 2010, the
outgoing IMF Resident Representative Nienke Oomes said Thursday.

She said the inflation in Armenia has been growing in last several
months rising to 4% in November and is expected to rise to 5.2%
in December.

‘We hope that until the end of the year the inflation will stay
within the frames set by the Central Bank, although the numbers are
approaching the ceiling of the target,’ she said.

In 2009 October the inflation grew by 1.2% from a year before.

According to the official figures of the National Statistical
Committee, prices of food, including beverage prices, rose by 1.8%
in November from October, while prices of non-food commodities rose
by 1.4% and those of services by 0.1%.

The 2009 budget projects an inflation of 4% (±1,5%).

According to Giro Manoyan, Armenia should leave "football diplomacy"
process just today

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 10, NOYAN TAPAN. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan’s meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama was efficient for
the Turks and met their interests. Giro Manoyan, Head of ARFD Hay Dat
(Armenian Cause) Yerevan Office, made such an observation at a
December 10 press conference. In his words, the fact that B. Obama
praised Turkey’s policy and R. Erdogan again spoke about the necessity
of a progress in the Nagorno Karabakh issue is evidence that Turkey
this time also managed to make its view acceptable for the U.S.

According to G. Manoyan, in consideration that Turkey continues
conditioning its relations with Armenia by the Nagorno Karabakh
settlement the RA authorities should declare the failure of the
Armenian-Turkish negotiations just today. The ARFD figure added that
unless Armenia just today leaves the process called "football
diplomacy," it will be difficult to stop the process later.

G. Manoyan also mentioned that to prevent ratification of the
Armenian-Turkish protocols in the RA National Assembly the ARFD
faction members will work with the majority trying to influence their
position. "The issue of the protocols should be of no less
significance for them than the package of tax amendments to which they
opposed," G. Manoyan said. As to the Constitutional Court, according
to him, there is no necessity of mass actions to influence that
instance. "CC should make a decision on the basis of the law and not
on the circumstance that 100 thousand people hold an action of
protest," G. Manoyan concluded.

OSCE MG CO-CHAIRS’ UPCOMING VISIT TO BE RESTRICTED TO AZERBAIJAN

PanARMENIAN.Net
09.12.2009 20:27 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The upcoming regional visit of OSCE Minsk Group
Co-Chairs will be restricted to Azerbaijan.

Mediators will arrive in Baku by the end of current week. Co-Chairs
Yuri Merzlyakov (Russia), Bernard Fassier (France) and Robert Bradtke
(U.S.) and personal representative of OSCE Chairman-in-Office Anjey
Kasprzyk will meet with Azeri President Ilham Aliyev and Foreign
Minister Elmar Mamedyarov to conduct talks over Karabakh conflict
settlement, APA agency reports.

Mediators will not visit Armenia on account of top leaders’ absence
from the country. The visit to Yerevan is planned for a later period.

During their visit, diplomats will convey to Azeri and Armenian
Presidents a proposal on conducting a new meeting.

FOREIGN MINISTERS OF EASTERN PARTNERSHIP COUNTRIES MET IN BRUSSELS

armradio.am
09.12.2009 11:43

The Armenian delegation headed by Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian
participated in the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the countries
included in the EU Eastern Partnership Program in Brussels.

The sitting chaired by Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt featured
the Foreign Ministers of the Eastern Partnership countries, senior
representatives of the European Commission, the European Parliament
and the EU Council.

Speaking at the sitting, Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian
noted that Armenia aspires to further deepen its relations with
the European Union. According to Minister Nalbandian, the Eastern
Partnership Initiative provides an additional opportunity for
cooperation with the European Union in the political, economic and
humanitarian fields.

Underlining that all the initiatives proposed by the partnership
program are important to Armenia and other partners, Minister
Nalbandian called special attention to the simplification of the
visa regime, saying that it would promote the contacts between the
societies and people.

Minister Nalbandian attached importance to the regional cooperation
within the framework of the Eastern Partnership Program, underlining
that Azerbaijan’s refusal from cooperation envisaged by the program
could jeopardize the success of the Partnership.