Author: Badalian Vardan

NATO’S POLICY IN SOUTH CAUCASUS NOT TO CHANGE

ArmInfo
2009-08-05 13:17:00

ArmInfo. NATO policy regarding the South Caucasus countries will
not change dramatically after the new Secretary General Anders Fogh
Rasmussen, official representative of NATO James Appathurai told
Trend News.

"Rasmussen certainly has not announced any major changes," Appathurai
told Trend News by telephone from Brussels on August 4. I don’t think
that you should expect to see any great changes."

The new Secretary General has expressed his strong commitment to
fundamental principles of NATO with regard to its partnerships,
mentioning specifically the South Caucasus, Appathurai said.

"He demonstrated commitment to partnership and to autonomy and
independence of sovereign states in that region," Appathurai said.

To recall, Dane Anders Fogh Rasmussen came to the post of NATO
Secretary General on August 1, replacing in this post Dutch Jaap de
Hoop Scheffer.

TATEVIK HOVHANNISIAN’S BENEVOLENT CONCERT TAKES PLACE IN LOS ANGELES

Noyan Tapan
Aug 3, 2009

LOS ANGELES, AUGUST 3, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. Jazz
singer Tatevik Hovhannisian’s benevolent concert took place in Los
Angeles. The whole profit of the concert must be given for treatment
of people sick with blood cancer. The organizer of the concert was
the Armenian Bone Marrow Donor Registry. Besides her own repertoire,
Tatevik Hovhannisian also performed improvisations on the themes of
Komitas’ and Sayat-Nova’s works.

RAILROAD MUSEUM OPENS IN YEREVAN

/ARKA/
July 31
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, July 31. /ARKA/. The South Caucasus Railways company opened
a railway museum in Central railway station building in Yerevan
on Friday.

According to Chief Engineer Sergey Harutyunyan, the opening of the
museum is timed with the International Railway Day, which is celebrated
on August 2nd.

"The museum presents the history of the Armenian railway, starting
from 1896 till our days. There are 10 stands, each of which shows a
certain period in the history of the railway. Some of the exhibits
are gifts from the Russian Railways ", Harutyunyan said.

The creation of the museum cost about 22 thousand dollars.

"The opening of the railway museum is due to the need to introduce
the new generation with the history of the railways in Armenia and
the people who stood at its foundation," the chief engineer of the
company said.

CJSC South Caucasus Railways, the "daughter" of OJSC Russian Railways,
manages the Armenian Railways.

The company balanced the rolling stock of the Armenian Railways on
June 1st, 2008, in accordance with the concession contract on the
transfer of state CJSC Armenian Railway for a 30 year management by
the company with the right to prolong for another 10 years by mutual
agreement,dated on February 13, 2008 The amount of investments in
the railway system of Armenia in 2009 will be 2.6 billion rubles.

OFFICIALS SAY ARMENIA NOT INFECTED WITH SWINE FLU

Panorama.am
12:27 31/07/2009

A/H1N1 influenza is not registered in Armenia, officials say. Liana
Torosyan of the Armenian Health Minsitry told Panorama.am that no cases
of swine flu have been recorded, hence rejecting the news spread by
local mass media that one single case of swine flu has been registered.

According to the source all the passengers pass medical control
in the airport and if a passenger has high temperature he is being
isolated. "We have not registered any case of swine flu, if there is
such, Health Ministry will made correspondent statement," she said.

RA MINISTER OF DEFENCE SEYRAN OHANYAN’S GREETING SPEECH ON THE OCCASION OF THE 15TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE MILITARY INSTITUTE AFTER VAZGEN SARGSYAN

mp;p=0&id=940&y=2009&m=07&d=31
31. 07.09

RA Minister of Defence Seyran Ohanyan’s Greeting Speech on the
Occasion of the 15th Anniversary of the Military Institute after
Vazgen Sargsyan and of the Recurrent Flow of the Graduates of Military
Educational Institutions

Honorable President of the Republic of Armenia, Your Holliness,
Mr. Generals, officers and students, dear guests:

I am heartily greeting all of you on the occasion of the 15th
Anniversary of the greatest MoD officers’ educational establishment –
Military Institute after Vazgen Sargsyan, and of the Recurrent Flow
of the Graduates from higher military educational institutions. The
Military Institute after Vazgen Sargsyan was established in 1994 on
the borderline of war and ceasefire, when the Armenian army, based
on the voluntary detachments, had already gained gigantic experience
in battle activities.

That was one of the best times, when the experience of the regular
militants was merged with the unparalleled devotion of the volunteers,
which was to transform to a military experience and practical knowledge
from fight to fight and by every appliance of a new weapon. However,
like in every sphere, and even more than the other spheres, the Armed
Forces need regular recruitment and r enovation. For this reason it was
an imperious necessity to shape a new generation of officers, so that,
together with their seignior brothers, who had deserved the victory
in the front, they would continue the difficult and crucial task of
protecting our motherland and continuously increasing the fighting
capacity of the Armed Forces. Today, it is a gratifying reality that in
different commanding circles the responsibility of commanding in the
Armed Forces is already equally shared between our over four thousand
officers, who have graduated from RA higher military educational
establishments – motorized infantry, artillerists, tankers, scouts,
military doctors and pilots, officers specialized in aviation and
anti-aircraft defence, and they have almost all the commanding posts
in the army – from detachment commanders to regiment commanders. This
is to say that our military educational establishments, now for sure,
are well established and serve their purpose, which embodies the dream
of all of us and symbolizes its realization today. The passed years
have shown that the Armenian military educational establishments have
shaped worthy successors – officers – who both continue the heroic
tradition of the Armenian army and master today’s military business
at best. And the latter has a simple formula, "The direction of power
in time and space." Due to the science developments, today time and
space have decreased in battle activities. But, at the same time,
the role of the human has increased – the role of an officer who
is educated, masters in the complex technologies of the time, is
literate and devoted to his motherland. From this point of view, I’d
like to mention that we have expectations just like this, that you,
filling the rows of the officers in the Armed Forces, will promote
the development of the army building and, by sincerely loving the
motherland, you will assist to the invincibility of its borders and
the strengthening of its defence.

Our army has been and will always be subject to universal care. The
issues of the army – issues varying from army building and social
status of the militants to strategic issues – have always been in the
centre of the state’s attention. And the fact, that today our army is
protecting the borders of the motherland with honor and is ready to
face any challenge, is a result of the attention of the President,
the government of our country and the Armenian people towards the
Armed Forces. This attention also obliges us to continue improving and
developing by everyday studies, to increase the fighting capabilities
and walk parallel to the quite strict demands presented to the armies
of the 21st century.

Parallel to the present defence reforms, the personnel policy is also
quite important. And today one of our tasks is to recruit the Armed
Forces with professi onal personnel possessing modern knowledge. To
the solution of this topical problem assist not only the higher
educational institutions of the RA MOD and the foreign ones,
but also other educational institutions of the republic. I would
like to acknowledge the preparation of military doctors, military
bandmasters, medical psychologists, military instructors by the State
Medical University after Mkhitar Heratsi, Armenian State Pedagogical
University after Khachatur Abovyan, State Conservatory after Komitas,
Gyumri Pedagogical Institute after Mikael Nalbandyan. By heartily
congratulating all the newly-converted officers, I wish you health,
peaceful service, will and determination to unfailingly walk up the
difficult path of a militant and conquer heights. Be informed, that
the profession of an officer is heroic! Be proud and be strong and
successful in all your undertakings! I wish that you and the whole
officers’ personnel have the devotion of your seignior brothers and
necessary commanding knowledge, so that the cherished idea of the
protection of the country and the distinct issues of its realization
will be merged in your service. The preceding generation of Armenian
officers that has had hard destiny, inherited you a rich tradition, and
I am sure, that you will enrich and pass it to the coming generation
of graduates from our military educational institution.

As a conclusion, in this ceremonial settings, I want to assure the
Commander-in-Chief that, today too, the Armed Forces is to act in
accordance to the demands of the time and is to continue to carry
out its mission with honor for the sake of the peaceful and creative
coexistence of our people.

STONES FELL ON RAILWAY

A1+
12:32 pm | July 30, 2009

Official

On July 29 at 12:05 a.m. pieces of stones broke off from a tunnel
and fell on the nearby high-voltage electric wire pole and damaged
the railway located on the 2nd kilometer section of the Spitak-Gyumri
highway due to heavy rains.

At 2:35 a.m. the locomotive of the Batumi-Yerevan train clashed into
the fallen pole and the damaged train wagons were transferred to the
"Gyumri" station in another locomotive.

The trains stopped due to restoration works and there are no injuries
or victims.

TAXPAYERS’ CONSCIOUSNESS WILL ALLOW ARMENIA PAY OFF DEBTS

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
29.07.2009 18:27 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ High tax assemblability will allow lowering
of national debt index ratio against 2015-2016 GDP index to 30%
level, WB Armenia country Manager Aristomene Varoudakis told a news
conference. According to him, small national debt of Armenia at the
time of crisis allowed RA government find necessary financing to
support the economy.

RA’s external debt will increase, as monetary resources were mobilized
to overcome financial crisis consequences. In 2012-2013 external debt
ratio against 2015-2016 GDP index will reach 45% level. Aristomene
Varoudakis also added that according to WB forecasts, increase in tax
payments, linked to restoring economy will enable repayment of external
debt. "High tax assemblability rate will allow lowering of national
debt ratio against 2015-2016 GDP index to 30% level," Varoudakis noted.

Still there are issues to be solved in tax administration and
assemblability sphere. "Tax payers have to fulfill their tax
obligations," WB Armenia country Manager emphasized.

RIGHT ON TIME!

by Shahan Kandaharian

Aztag Daily
July 20 2009
Lebanon

No official document has emerged from the meeting that took place
in Moscow between the president of Armenia and the president of
Azerbeidjan. Evidently until this moment no document has been issued
that’s been co-signed by the leaders of the two conflicting sides,
unlike the ‘road map’ which encloses the trilateral agreement that took
place on April 22 aiming at the normalization of the Armenian-Turkish
relations and which hasn’t been disclosed yet. We are drawing this
parallel simply because we believe in the theory of an existing
relation between the Armenian-Turkish and the Armenian-Azerbeidjani
negotiations. The connection of these two issues is being acted out
by the international community, the United States and the mediator
countries.

The mediator tri-presidency was manifesting an obvious haste, evident
in the optimistic stances speaking about a recorded advancement in
the negotiations as well as putting a new or, better to say, a renewed
document on the negotiation table and, as it is often referred to in
the political media, making a breakthrough. This haste was accompanied
by an announcement made by the tri-presidency where the principle of
the integrity of a country overweighed the right of self-determination
of a people. This was a renewed approach as well considering the
fact that the previous announcements made by the co-presidents were
characterized by the equal emphasis on both principles.

Echoes from official Moscow are scarce while media interpretations are
overflowing. Of the few official stances we must mention the evaluation
of the American co-president in which his shock was explicit. The
long meeting that took place in Moscow had disappointed the American
senior diplomat. Prior to Moscow, however, what exactly was going
on on the national internal platform? On the 11th and 12th of July
political, public and academic figures from Armenia, the Republic of
Nagorno Karapagh and the Diaspora gathered in Stepanagerd to discuss
the latest developments in the Armenian-Turkish relations as well
as the Artsakh conflict. The assembly issued a special declaration
where it stressed the faults and weaknesses of the foreign politics
of our country and state on both pathways as well as the necessity of
taking a step backwards from the red line. A while later ARF Armenia
called for public demonstrations in Yerevan at the same time raising
a wave of protest and frustration in the Diaspora countries against
the countries represented in the tri-presidency. Soon came the demand
for the resignation of the foreign minister of Armenia.

Although the protests were understandably halted because of the
national mourning day announced for the crash of the airplane
travelling from Iran to Armenia, nevertheless the public frustration
and the pan-Armenian stance were already molded. Evidently, the
authorities of Armenia found themselves between international
and national pressures. Now Yerevan, locked between the decisions
of signing or not signing the agreement, chose to succumb to the
pressures of the second party. Shocked was Moscow, the architect of
the renewed version of the Madrid principles.

Let us now list the points of the renewed Madrid principles, and then
let us shed a light on Stepanagerd’s stance. What says this renewed
version that’s been put on the negotiation table:

1. The return of the lands surrounding Nagorno Karapagh to Azerbeidjani
control.

2. An intermediary status for Nagorno Karapagh that guarantees the
security and self-government of the enclave.

3. The security of the corridor linking Nagorno Karapagh to Armenia.

4. The final settlement of the legal status of Nagorno Karapagh with
a binding resolution.

5. Immigrants and fugitives be allowed to return to the place of
their permenant residence.

6. International guarantees for security which include peacekeeping
operations.

We must wait for the experts’ evaluations in order to see the
differences of legal explanations of the previous and the renewed
Madrid documents as well as to assesss the main differences between
the two. From a first glance let us note that the main difference is
the temporary status which, in case of an agreement, could become the
permenant status … And as for the use of the word ‘self-government’,
it is nothing different than indicating the refusal of the idea
of independence. Putting aside for a moment the legal terminology
and the issue of a referendum, let us highlight the first points of
the renewed version. This renewed version starts with the demand of
returning the lands surrounding Nagorno Karapagh. Official Stepanagerd
has already put a demand with a separate announcement for the changing
of the framework of negotiations which will include the representatives
of the state of Artsakh Armenians as a negotiating side. The foreign
minister of Armenia, who visited Stepanagerd lately, said that leaving
Karapagh out of the agreement is out of the question.

Moscow meetings are over. No document has been signed. The public
wave has risen right in the proper time and in the proper measure.

Tarkanian to get day in court

Lawsuit claims election rival defamed him

POLITICAL NOTEBOOK

Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV)
July 27, 2009

By MOLLY BALL, LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

The 2004 election still isn’t over for Danny Tarkanian. Today, he’s
scheduled to take it to court.

Tarkanian ran for state Senate five years ago, losing to incumbent
Sen. Mike Schneider in his heavily Democratic Las Vegas district. The
race got nasty, with mailers and radio ads impugning Tarkanian’s
record as a lawyer, his ties to shady telemarketing firms and his role
in a college basketball scandal.

After losing the election, Tarkanian, the son of legendary former UNLV
basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian and Las Vegas City Councilwoman Lois
Tarkanian, demanded that Schneider retract the various
allegations. Schneider refused.

So, in March 2005, Danny Tarkanian filed a lawsuit, claiming
defamation and libel and seeking more than $40,000 in damages. After
years of lawyerly back-and-forth, the suit is scheduled for a jury
trial before District Judge Valorie Vega beginning today.

Tarkanian didn’t return calls seeking comment on the lawsuit last
week.

Schneider said all the claims he made in the campaign were true and he
can back them up. "We have everything documented. It’s almost silly,"
he said.

"When you’re in a campaign, your job is to create doubts about your
opponent. He tried to create doubts about me, too. He said a lot of
things about me that didn’t stick. We brought up his background, and
that created some doubts in voters’ minds."

Schneider noted that the legal bar for libel is high for a public
figure such as a political candidate — Tarkanian will have to show
not only that the allegations were false, but that they were made
maliciously.

And he disputed the lawsuit’s claim that the allegations caused
Tarkanian, a Republican, to lose the election. "That district has
always been Democratic," he said. "He wasn’t going to win that race to
begin with. I’ve been there 18 years now, and Ronald Reagan could not
get e state, winning the Republican primary but losing the election to
Democrat Ross Miller, who brought up many of the same accusations but
didn’t get sued, Schneider noted.

Elections can be bitter, but usually, after Election Day, everybody
moves on, he said.

"He’s still upset with me," Schneider said. "I guess he’s looking for
absolution, but he’s not going to get it from me."

NEW LEADERSHIP

Clark County Republicans and Democrats both chose new leadership last
week.

The GOP on Tuesday selected a new chairman in Richard Scotti, a local
business attorney. He replaces county prosecutor Bernie Zadrowski, who
didn’t seek re-election after a two-year term.

Scotti defeated four other candidates who sought the post. In an
interview, he said he believes the time is ripe for a Republican
resurgence as a backlash develops to President Barack Obama and
Democratic control of Washington.

"We feel like we’re under attack from within, and most Americans agree
with us," he said. "Obama’s ratings have dropped. People are starting
to fight back."

Other party officers elected by the central committee included Vice
Chairman Bob Ruckman, Political Director David Isbell, Secretary
Heather Kydd, Treasurer Swadeep Nigam, Coalitions Director Frank
Ricotta and Precinct Administrator Duane Liibbe.

The county GOP has lately faced a dilemma over whether to take a hard
line on taxes, at possible peril of shrinking the already thin
Republican ranks, or embrace the moderates within the party, including
elected officials who supported the Legislature’s $1 billion in tax
hikes.

Scotti said he stands for uniting the party and broadening its ranks,
which would include "not criticizing our elected officials publicly."
But he also said he supported the resolutions the Central Committee
approved last month that publicly condemned the tax-hiking legislators
by name.

"Even though I did support that agenda, I would like to be more
constructive moving forward and focus on winning seats and getting our
message out," he said.

Clark County Democrats whose Central Committee chose new officers on
Saturday, overwhelmingly selected Roberta Lange as their new
chairwoman. She replaces John Hunt, the outspoken attorney who did not
seek a second two-year term

Other party leaders elected by the nearly 280 committee members who
voted include First Vice Chairman Andrew Martin, Second Vice
Chairwoman Addie Crisp, Third Vice Chairman Sanje Sedera, Recording
Secretary Carol Burgeson and Corresponding Secretary Mike Selvage.

Lange, a consultant who ran New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson’s Nevada
caucus campaign, got nearly 90 percent of the vote after her principal
rival, Jack Mallory, withdrew from the race.

Lange said she hopes to run the party in an inclusive and transparent
manner as Democrats look to build on a successful 2008.

"We’re in a really good place," she said. "Now we have to take the
energy we have and move forward. We have to re-elect Harry Reid, Dina
Titus, Shelley Berkley and a new Democratic governor."

TERM LIMITS

Term limits are turning the 2010 legislative elections into a game of
musical chairs.

The game began in earnest last week, with Assemblyman Mo Denis, D-Las
Vegas, announcing his candidacy for state Senate. The District 2
Senate seat is coming open as term limits force out Sen. Maggie
Carlton, D-Las Vegas.

Denis is the only currently serving legislator living in the district,
which mostly overlaps with his Assembly District 28. Both the state
Senate and Assembly districts are overwhelmingly Democratic urban
areas east of Interstate 15, centered around Owens Avenue.

"I grew up in this area," Denis, a computer technician, said in a news
release announcing his candidacy. "This is where I’ve served for years
in appointed and elected positions. This is where I volunteer in
schools, in scouting and in my church. This is an area I want to
represent as we face another round of great challenges."

Another member of the Assembly running for an open state Senate seat
is Kathy McClain, D-Las Vegas, who has her eye on the Senate District
7 seat being by Terry Care. It’s another east side Democratic
stronghold.

Carlton, for her part, plans to run for Assembly. She lives in
Assembly District 14, where Assemblywoman Ellen Koivisto, D-Las Vegas,
is barred from running for re-election.

A former casino waitress who now works for a health-care nonprofit,
Carlton said she doesn’t see the Legislature’s lower house as a step
down. "I’m running because there’s still some more things I want to
do" in the Legislature, she said. In her 12 years in the state Senate,
"I didn’t get everything done."

Stay tuned for more moves between houses of the Legislature and
possibly other elected offices, including county commission and city
council, between now and the March candidate filing period.

CAMPAIGN STRATEGY

Some big names in Las Vegas political consulting, Sig Rogich and Jim
and Dani Denton, are teaming up in a new campaign firm, they announced
last week.

The firm, Election Morning, will specialize in campaign strategy, and
will also draw on the services of national pollster Glen Bolger and
Nevada numbers guru Jeremy Aguero.

"We wanted to develop a company that would provide a unique and
dynamic approach to the changing political environment of Nevada,"
Rogich said in a news release announcing the new venture.

Rogich and the Dentons have worked together in the past, such as on
Gov. Jim Gibbons’ 2006 election campaign, though they are not working
on Gibbons’ re-election race next year.

Now head of the Rogich Communications Group, Rogich was a top campaign
staffer for President George H.W. Bush, credited with creating the
famous television ad showing Democrat Michael Dukakis riding in a
tank. He also is a former U.S. ambassador to Iceland and founded the
local advertising and lobbying powerhouse R&R.

Jim and Dani Denton, who are married and live in Henderson, have been
behind numerous initiative and mail campaigns in Nevada.

"Successful campaigns require both the creative component to ensure
that the message is memorable and the analytical aspect to get that
message the right people cost-effectively," Dani Denton said in the
news release. "With this group, we combine talents and can offer
clients both areas of expertise."

Contact reporter Molly Ball at mball @reviewjournal.com or
702-387-2919.

7.html

BLOG WITH INFORMATION ABOUT ARMENIAN CHURCHES OF IRAN OPERATES

NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY
YEREVAN
JULY 27, 2009

YEREVAN, JULY 27, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. A blog which belongs
to the UNESCO’s Dias del Futuro Pasado website took rare photos and
news about several monuments which are favorite historic places for
Armenians and are included in the list of buildings having special
significance, in the World Heritage center, the Azg daily wrote.

These Armenian medieval churches, Saint Thaddeus (Tadei), Saint
Stepanos and the chapel of Dzordzor are situated near the northern
mountain chain of Iran and now they are in uninhabited and deserted
valleys. Kurd and Azeri villagers live in the vicinity. There are no
Armenians. "At first sight it will seem surprising for many people that
such Armenian churches were built on the forign Mahometan places far
away from Armenia, however after getting acquainted with the history
it becomes clear that they were not built far away from Armenia but
it was Armenia that moved away from them", the commentary of the
blog mentioned.

The map next to the pictures shows that the churches were built in the
center of historical Armenia in the cradle of the Armenian people, in
Vaspurakan. Tavriz, which was the trade gate in Marko Polo’s period,
was in its Eastern part and in the upper part, on the side of Araks
was Julfa, the way of Persian silk.

According to the legend, St Thaddeus church was founded in the place
of the former pagan temple in 66 by one of the first preachers of
Christianity, apostle St Thadeus. According to Father of Armenian
history Movses Khorenatsi, the preacher is buried there. After the
earthquake of 1324 the monastry was repaired and for its black and
white stones the natives called it Kara Kilise (a black church).

St Stepanos church dates back to the 7th century but it was built much
earlier by apostle Bardughimeos. The natives called it Kizil Kilisa
(a golden church) for the bright light auburn flashes of its stones. In
several kilometres from the church you can still see the ruins of the
last Armenian village Darashamb. Darashamb was an Armenian-populated
village in Iran’s Maku province. It had 280 inhabitants in 1916 who
were engaged in agriculture and cattle-breeding. The most part of
them immigrated in the Soviet Armenia in 1928 and the rest in 1946.

The chapel of Dzoradzor is the one known least of all, it was built
in the 10th century and was repaired after the earthquake of 1324.