Author: Badalian Vardan

AYF YOUTH CORPS TO MARK 20TH ANNIVERSARY ON OCTOBER 12

Wednesday, September 24th, 2014

GLENDALE–The Armenian Youth Federation will kick off the 20th
anniversary celebration of its successful Youth Corps program with
a reception to take place on October 12 at 5 p.m. at the Pasadena
Armenian Center at 2242 E. Foothill Boulevard. The event is open to
the public.

The reception will bring together past Youth Corps participants,
community leaders and benefactors to introduce the future vision of
the program as it enters its third decade of service to the homeland.

Organizers hope that in addition to celebrating the success of the
program, the community will heed the call to raise much-needed funds
for the expansion of the program, as well as institutionalizing it
in Armenia by opening and staffing an office in Armenia that will
coordinate the efforts on the ground.

The AYF Youth Corps program began in 1994 with nine volunteers
venturing to Artsakh a mere two months after a cease fire agreement
was signed. The volunteers worked in the village of Ashan, in the
Martuni region to refurbish a school gymnasium and soon became an
important part of the fabric of village life there.

In 2008, the AYF decided to expand the program to include running
of summer camps serving local youngsters in Armenia and Artsakh,
thus expanding the foot print of Diaspora Armenians in the homeland.

To date some 200 Youth Corps volunteers from the Western US have
participated in the program, impacting thousands of young Armenians
in Gyumri, Proshyan, Martuni and Stepanakert in Artsakh and for the
first time, in 2014, in the border village of Baghanis.

The key to the success of the program has been the enthusiasm of the
volunteers from the Western Region, the excitement and anticipation
of the children participating in the program in Armenia, as well as
the consistent and generous support of the community.

“True to its mission, the AYF conceived of the Youth Corps program
20 years ago to become a true bridge between the Diaspora and the
Homeland,” said Arpa Hatsbanian, chairwoman of the AYF Western Region
Central Executive. “The volatility of the situation in Artsakh and
Armenia did not deter the AYF from sowing the seeds of this program
and against all odds, our volunteers began a tradition–both here
and in the homeland–that continues to grow with every year.”

“With the October 12 event, we hope to bring together community members
to acquaint them about the Youth Corps and the hard work that goes
into the organizing and coordinating the effort every year,” said
Aida Dimejian, the chairwomen of the Youth Corps 20th Anniversary
Committee. “Our aim is to engage the community so each person can
take ownership of this extremely worthwhile project and to ensure
that the project will grow and impact even more children in Armenia.”

The evening will feature an exclusive performance by 2004 Youth Corps
volunteer Raffi Semerdjian. Semerdjian is well known for his band Palm
of Granite, which performs unique renditions of Armenian folks songs.

He is also an artist and a painter. He recently moved to Armenia,
but will be making a special trip to Los Angeles to be present at
the Youth Corps 20th anniversary event.

Join the AYF in celebrating this important milestone and become a
part of the Youth Corps’s future and ensure that the program will
expand and grow. For more information visit the event Facebook page

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:

PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

His Holiness Aram I Condemns the Destruction of the Armenian Genocide
Memorial Church in Der Zor (Syria)

Athens – 22 September 2014. On Monday, upon his arrival in Athens His
Holiness Aram I received the news of the destruction of the Armenian
Genocide Memorial Church in Der Zor (Syria).

The Catholicos said that the destruction of the Church, the Museum and
the compound, executed on the eve of the 100th anniversary of the
Genocide and on the day of the 23rd anniversary of the independence of
Armenia, was a premeditated crime. The Catholicos declared that although
the perpetrators destroyed the Memorial in Der Zor, they will not be
able to erase the symbol and meaning of the desert of Der Zor from the
minds of Armenians.

He then appealed to political and religious leaders to condemn the act
and draw it to the attention of the world.

His Holiness Aram I Is Welcomed in Athens

Athens – 22 September 2014. Upon his arrival at the Athens Airport,
Catholicos Aram I was met by the representative of the Head of the
Church of Greece, the Armenian Prelate Archbishop Khoren Toghtakadjian,
the representative of the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the
ambassadors of Armenia and Lebanon to Greece, as well as representatives
of the Armenian community.

After the reception at the airport, the Catholicos met with Archbishop
Ieronymos II, the Head of Church and Holy Synod of the Church of Greece.
In welcoming the Catholicos, the archbishop spoke of the contribution of
Catholicos Aram I to the ecumenical movement and to bilateral
theological dialogues. He then expressed his concern for the Churches in
the Middle East. At the end of his speech the archbishop referred to the
historical links between Armenian and Greek Churches and thanked the
Armenian community for their contribution to Greek society.

In his response, His Holiness Aram I thanked the archbishop for his warm
welcome and affirmed the importance of the historical ties between the
two churches, and said, `throughout our respective long histories, we
have remained united through our common convictions. We experienced the
Ottoman rule and their genocidal politics together and today we must
endeavor together for justice and human rights.’ Catholicos Aram I
then thanked Archbishop Ieronymos II for his warm reception and the kind
words addressed to the Armenian community in Greece.

After exchanging gifts, the Catholicos and his delegation, including the
President of the Church Council and Mr. Boghos Choloyan, the coordinator
of His Holiness’s programme, were the guests of the Archbishop of
Greece for lunch, in the presence of several Metropolitans.

His Holiness Aram I Meets with the Prime Minister of Greece

Antelias – 22 September 2014. On the day of his arrival, His Holiness
Aram I, his entourage, the Prelate Archbishop Khoren Toghtramadjian, as
well as representatives of the Armenian community, met with Prime
Minister Antonis Samaras.

The Catholicos Aram I thanked the Prime Minister for supporting the
Armenian cause. He said that the recent decision of the Greek Parliament
to criminalize Genocide denial by law brings to fruition Mr. Samaras’s
1996 initiative in which he moved that the Greek parliament recognize
the Armenian Genocide. His Holiness then expressed his appreciation for
his efforts to redress the country’s economic crisis.

In response to Mr. Samaras’ request, His Holiness briefed him on the
visit of Middle East Patriarchs to Washington and their meeting with
President Obama.

At the end, in recognition of the Prime Minister’s contribution to the
Armenian cause, the Catholicos decorated him with the insignia `Knight
of Cilicia.’

Later in the day, the General Secretary of the Foreign Ministry, Mr.
Anastasios Mitsialis received Catholicos Aram I in the name of the
Foreign Minister, who was absent from the country.

# #

AZERBAIJANI, ARGENTINEAN FOREIGN MINISTERS MULL PROSPECTS OF COOPERATION

The Azerbaijan State Telegraph Agency
Sept 24 2014

24.09.2014 [15:31]

Baku, September 24 (AzerTAc). Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar
Mammadyarov has met the Foreign Minister of Argentina Hector Marcos
Timerman.

Hailing the current level of bilateral relations, Timerman stressed
the mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries within
the international organizations.

Mammadyarov briefed the Argentinean Minister about the current state
of the Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, as well as
ongoing negotiation process in this regard.

Minister Mammadyarov invited Timerman to pay an official visit to
Azerbaijan, what was accepted by the latter.

The two Ministers exchanged views on ways of the developing cooperation
in the tourism and agricultural fields, as well as the regional and
global issues.

AZERBAIJANI, ARMENIAN FMS MULL PREPARATION FOR PRESIDENTS’ MEETING IN PARIS

Trend, Azerbaijan
Sept 24 2014

24 September 2014, 11:51 (GMT+05:00)

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and Armenian Foreign
Minister Edward Nalbandian discussed the preparation for an upcoming
meeting of Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents in Paris, Azerbaijani
Foreign Ministry’s Acting Press Secretary Hikmet Hajiyev told Trend
Sept. 24.

The foreign ministers’ meeting was held in New York.

Hajiyev said the meeting was held as part of Azerbaijani foreign
minister’s participation in the 69th session of the UN General
Assembly.

The meeting was held with the participation of the co-chairs of the
OSCE Minsk Group, Hajiyev said.

The meeting also continued discussions on the ways of settlement of
the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, said Hajiyev.

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 U.S. are currently
holding peace negotiations.

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

AZERBAIJAN GUARANTEES SAFETY OF ARMENIAN ATHLETES AT EUROPEAN GAMES IN BAKU

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Sept 24 2014

24 September 2014 – 12:46pm

Azerbaijani Minister for Youth and Sports Azad Ragimov has guaranteed
Armenian athletes security at the 2015 European Games in Baku and
readiness to help with all visa issues, Trend reports.

Armenia has not confirmed readiness to take part in the Games.

The European Olympic Committee granted Baku the right to host the first
Games in December 2012. 20 competitions in 16 types of Olympic and 4
non-Olympic sports will be held. Over 6,000 athletes will participate
in competitions for 17 days.

SARKISIAN SAYS YEREVAN CONSIDERING RECALL OF TURKEY-ARMENIA PROTOCOLS

Wednesday, September 24th, 2014

President Serzh Sarkisian addresses the UN General Assembly Wednesday

UNITED NATIONS–Speaking at the UN General Assembly Wednesday,
President Serzh Sarkisian hinted that official Yerevan is considering
the recall of the Turkey-Armenia Protocols since Turkey continues
to insist on the resolution of the Karabakh conflict in favor of
Azerbaijan as a precondition for ratifying the documents.

“Ankara declares publicly that it will ratify those Protocols only if
Armenians cede Nagorno-Karabakh–Independent Artsakh-to Azerbaijan. In
Armenia and Artsakh ordinary people often just retort to such
preconditions: ‘To hell with your ratification,'” said Sarkisian.

“This vernacular phrase concentrates the age-old struggle of the
entire nation, and it unequivocally explains to those who attempt
to bargain the others’ homeland that the motherland is sacrosanct,
and they had better stay away from us with their bargain. It is in
these circumstances that currently the official Yerevan is seriously
considering the issue of recalling the Armenian-Turkish Protocols
from the parliament.”

In his remarks, Sarkisian also addressed the international crisis
posed by ISIS, and remarked that on Armenia’s Independence Day,
ISIS forces destroyed the St. Mary’s Armenian Church in Der Zor,
which served as a memorial to the 1.5 victims of the Armenian Genocide.

He also chastised the international community for allowing Azerbaijan
to advance its anti-Armenian and war rhetoric.

“The failure of an adequate international characterization of the
bellicose declarations and various threats put forth at the highest
level in Azerbaijan has resulted in all-out permissiveness. The
President of Azerbaijan designates the entire Armenian nation as the
‘the enemy number one,’ and what is considered in the rest of the world
to be a crime, is considered to be a glorious deed in Azerbaijan,”
said Sarkisian.

Below is the complete text of Sarkisian’s statement at the UN.

Distinguished President of the General Assembly, Distinguished
Secretary General, Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. President,

We conduct this meeting in a symbolically significant period between
the centennial of World War I and the 70th anniversary of the end of
World War II, the two turning points in the history of humanity. The
United Nations Organization was established almost seventy years
ago at the end of World War II, and its mission was to form new
civilizational environment and culture of preventing the repetition
of the past tragic pages.

2015 bears particular significance for Armenians all over the world.

On April 24 Armenians around the globe will commemorate the most
tragic page of the nation’s history – the centennial of the Armenian
Genocide. It was an unprecedented crime aimed at eliminating the
nation and depriving it of its homeland: a crime that continues to
be an unhealed scar for each Armenian. The 1915 Genocide was a crime
against civilization and humanity, and its inadequate condemnation
paved the way for similar crimes of mass murder in the future.

Addressing the Assembly ahead of that centennial year of the Armenian
Genocide from this prominent podium, which I would call the podium
of Honor and Responsibility, I declare vociferously:

Thank you Uruguay, France, and Russia!

Thank you Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Sweden!

Thank you Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Greece, Slovakia, and Cyprus!

Thank you Lebanon, Argentina, Venezuela, Chile, Canada, and Vatican!

Thank you for the recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide
regardless of the format and language adopted. I thank the U.S.A.,
European Union, and all those personalities, state bodies, territorial
units and organizations in numerous countries, who publicly called
things by their proper names. That is indeed extremely important
since denial is a phase of the crime of genocide.

For a whole century now Armenians around the globe as well as
the entire progressive international community expects Turkey to
demonstrate the courage and face its own history by recognizing the
Armenian Genocide, thus relieving next generations of this heavy burden
of the past. Alas instead, we continue to hear ambiguous and ulterior
messages, in which the victim and the slaughterer are equalized,
and the history is falsified.

Armenia has never conditioned the normalization of the bilateral
relations with Turkey by recognition of the Armenian Genocide. In
fact, Armenia was the party that initiated such a process which
culminated in the signing of the Zurich Protocols in 2009. However,
those Protocols have been shelved for years now awaiting ratification
in the Turkish Parliament. Ankara declares publicly that it will
ratify those Protocols only if Armenians cede Nagorno- Karabakh,
the free Artsakh, to Azerbaijan. In Armenia and Artsakh ordinary
people often just retort to such preconditions: “To hell with
your ratification.” This vernacular phrase concentrates the age-old
struggle of the entire nation, and it unequivocally explains to those
who attempt to bargain the others’ homeland that the motherland is
sacrosanct, and they had better stay away from us with their bargain.

It is in these circumstances that currently the official Yerevan is
seriously considering the issue of recalling the Armenian-Turkish
Protocols from the parliament.

The tragic events in Syria and Iraq, which we are currently witnessing,
demonstrate how the groups whose creed is hatred are targeting
religious and national minorities. Two days ago, on Independence
Day of the Republic of Armenia, the Church of All Saint Martyrs in
Deir-ez-Zor, Syria, dedicated to the memory of the victims of the
Armenian Genocide, where their remains were housed, was mined and
blown up by terrorists. Such a barbarity is a criminal Godlessness
in no way or shape related to any faith. The catastrophic situation
in Syria and the north of Iraq continuously deteriorates, and today
hundreds of thousands of peaceful people are directly imperiled. Among
them are tens of thousands of Armenians of Aleppo. This is an instance
of a peril to consider in the context of our joint commitments to
preventing the crimes against humanity. Armenia has voiced on numerous
occasions the necessity to defend the Armenian population of Syria
and the Yezidi population of north-western Iraq, and we are encouraged
by the unified stance of the international community in this regard.

The very essence of our organization is the preservation of world peace
and security. In recent years, Armenia has consistently consolidated
its peacekeeping capabilities thus preparing ourselves for a more
proactive engagement in that field. Armenian peacekeepers will very
soon be dispatched to the south of Lebanon within the framework
of the UNIFIL mission under the auspices of the United Nations. It
became possible due to close collaboration we enjoy with our Italian
colleagues. I strongly believe that our servicemen will fulfill their
mission with dignity and high professionalism also utilizing the
extensive experience they have garnered in the last decade in Kosovo,
Iraq and Afghanistan.

Distinguished colleagues, It has been more than twenty years our
neighbor aborts the efforts of the international community directed at
the just and peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict by
its unconstructive and maximalist stance. The failure of an adequate
international characterization of the bellicose declarations and
various threats put forth at the highest level in Azerbaijan has
resulted in all-out permissiveness. The President of Azerbaijan
designates the entire Armenian nation as the “the enemy number one”,
and what is considered in the rest of the world to be a crime, is
considered to be a glorious deed in Azerbaijan.

Despite the fact that each conflict is unique, fundamental human rights
and freedoms, including the right of peoples to free expression of
will and self-determination, continue to evolve as a determinant to
their resolution. The vote held a few days ago in Scotland, once again
proved that nowadays the institute of referendum is more and more
widely perceived as a legal model for peaceful settlement of ethnic
conflicts. It was no coincidence that the right to govern one’s own
fate through referendum is in the core of the proposal put forward
by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group for the settlement of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Ladies and gentlemen,

While discussing the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement I cannot but
address the four UN Security Council resolutions, which were adopted
during the war, that every so often are exploited by Azerbaijani
authorities in order to justify their obstructive policy.

It is about those four Resolutions that demanded unconditionally as a
matter of priority cessation of all military hostilities. Azerbaijan
failed to comply. Azerbaijan’s own non-compliance with the
fundamental demands of these Resolutions made their full implementation
impossible. The Resolutions contained calls upon the parties to cease
bombardments and air strikes targeting peaceful civilian populations,
to refrain from violating the principles of international humanitarian
law but instead Azerbaijan continued its indiscriminate bombardments
of civilian populations. Azerbaijan did not spare children, women
and old men thus gravely violating all legal and moral norms of
international humanitarian law.

Now Azerbaijan cynically refers to these Resolutions – refers
selectively, pulling them out of context as a prerequisite for
the settlement of the problem. The adequate interpretation of the
UN Security Council Resolutions is not possible without correctly
understanding the hierarchy of the demands set therein.

The Resolutions inter alia request the restoration of economic,
transport and energy links in the region (UN SC Resolution 853) and
removal of all obstacles to communications and transportation (UN SC
Resolution 874). It is no secret that Azerbaijan and Turkey imposed
blockade on Nagorno-Karabakh and the Republic of Armenia from the
outset of the conflict. The Azerbaijani President in his statements
even takes pride in this fact promising his own public that direction
would remain the priority of Azerbaijan’s foreign policy.

The abovementioned UN Security Council Resolutions called upon
Azerbaijan to establish direct contacts with Nagorno-Karabakh.

Azerbaijan refused to establish any direct contact with
Nagorno-Karabakh, which was a legally equal party to the Ceasefire
Agreement concluded in 1994, as well as to a number of other
international agreements. Moreover, Azerbaijan preaches hatred towards
people it claims it wants to see as a part of their state.

None of the UN SC Resolutions identifies Armenia as a conflicting
party. Our country is only called upon “to continue to exert its
influence” over the Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians (UN SC Resolutions 853,
884) in order to cease the conflict. Armenia fully complied, and partly
owing to its efforts a ceasefire agreement was concluded in 1994. All
the UN SC Resolutions have clearly recognized Nagorno-Karabakh as a
party to the conflict.

Azerbaijani authorities have failed to implement the fundamental
demands of the Security Council resolutions, including abiding and
sticking by humanitarian norms. Incidentally, Azerbaijan has been
gravely violating this demand every now and then. Azerbaijan’s cruel
and inhumane treatment of the Armenian civilian prisoners of war
regularly resulted in their deaths. Although, I think, one shall not
be surprised about it because it is the same state that suppresses
and exercises the most inhumane treatment of its own people. A clear
proof of it was the decision of the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of
Torture to suspend its visit to Azerbaijan due to the obstructions
it encountered in the conduct of the official Baku.

The Co-Chairmanship of the OSCE Minsk Group is the only specialized
structure that has been dealing with the Nagorno-Karabakh issue
according to the mandate granted by the international community. While
Azerbaijan is very well aware that it could not possibly deceive or
misinform the Minsk Group, which is very-well immersed in the essence
of the problem, it attempts to transpose the conflict settlement
to other platforms trying to depict it as a territorial dispute or
exploiting the factor of religious solidarity. That is ironic, since
Armenia traditionally enjoys very warm relations with the Islamic
states both in the Arab world or, for instance, with our immediate
neighbor Iran.

Ladies and gentlemen, We highly value the indispensable role of the
United Nations in the adjustment and implementation of the development
goals. I strongly believe that through the new “Post-2015” development
agenda we will continue our efforts at seeking solutions and responding
to challenges of global nature stemming from the Millennium Development
Goals.

In conclusion, I would like to underline that we have passed the
substantial part of the road leading to shaping the “Post-2015
Development Agenda” and we will continue our endeavors in this regard
by displaying necessary flexibility in order to bring this process
to its logical conclusion.

DELEGATION OF ROMANIA IN THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

23.09.2014

On September 23 the members of the Armenia-Romania Friendship Group
Volodya Badalyan and Tevan Poghosyan met with the delegation of
Romanian Mayors. The Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of
Romania to Armenia Sorin Vasile attended the meeting.

In the course of the meeting the Armenian parliamentarians have
recorded with satisfaction that the Armenian-Romanian relations
proportional ly develop in different spheres. They have highlighted
the organization of the events dedicated to the centenary of the
Armenian Genocide in the Romanian cities with Armenian communities.

Noting that historically good neighbourly relations have been between
the two countries, Tevan Poghosyan has underlined that during the
recent period Romania has adopted a pro-Azerbaijani position. The
Ambassador in his turn has noted that after his appointment due to his
work Romania sees the solution of the NKR issue within the framework
of the Minsk Group based on the three well-known principles.

The sides have highlighted the development of the Armenian-Romanian
economic cooperation and the necessity of implementing joint business
programmes. They also touched upon issues concerning the perspectives
of cooperation in the spheres of agriculture, industry and tourism.

MIDDLE EAST TERROR: MEMORY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE VICTIMS TARGETED BY ISIS MILITANTS

ANALYSIS | 24.09.14 | 11:19

Photolure

By NAIRA HAYRUMYAN
ArmeniaNow correspondent

On September 21, when people in Armenia marked the 23rd anniversary
of their independence, one day after the completion of a large
Armenia-Diaspora forum in Yerevan that discussed the events in the
run-up to the commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide, in Deir ez-Zor, Syria, Islamic State (ISIS) militants mined
and blew up the Armenian Holy Martyrs Church.

The church commemorated the victims of the Ottoman-era Armenian
Genocide in a part of Syria where countless Armenians were sent to
die in death marches. The blowing-up of the church was perceived in
the Armenian world and beyond as a sign that Turkey and the forces
supporting it are going to respond to the just claims of Armenians
that gather momentum ahead of the centennial of the 1915 Genocide.

At the Armenia-Diaspora forum in Yerevan Catholicos of the Great
House of Cilicia Aram I said that the Church is going to apply to the
Constitutional Court of Turkey with a suit for the recovery of the
huge property of the Armenian Church, in particular, the residence
of the Catholicos of Cilicia in Sis. This property was confiscated by
Turkey as a result of the extermination and expulsion of Armenians at
the beginning of last century, and now, 100 years after those events,
the Armenian Church intends to recover what it lost then.

Literally on the same day Islamists blew up the church in Deir ez-Zor.

According to many Armenian political analysts, Turkey is behind the
attack as it tries to demonstrate that it will respond to the claims
of Armenians with terror.

On his Facebook account Aram condemned the explosion of the Armenian
Church in Syria. According to the Catholicos, it was a specifically
planned crime aimed against the Church that was dedicated to the
memory of the victims of the Armenian Genocide as well as against the
museum affiliated with the church. “We view this atrocity, committed
in the run-up to the Armenian Genocide centennial and on the 23rd
anniversary of Armenia’s independence, as an act of barbarism. Many of
those standing behind this plot know that Deir ez-Zor, which symbolizes
our martyrs’ memory and our nation’s struggle for justice, will never
be destroyed as a sacred place in our nation’s collective memory,”
reads Aram I’s post.

The act was also strongly condemned by the Armenian Foreign Ministry,
as well as by American congressmen. Earlier, U.S. ambassador-designate
to Armenia Richard Mills said during a Senate Foreign Relation
Committee confirmation hearing that “the United States and the world
will stand in solidarity with the Armenian people next year to mark the
centenary of one of the 20th century’s worst atrocities.” At the same
time, U.S. ambassador-designate to Turkey John Bass, who was confirmed
in this post later, said that respect for the rights of ethnic and
religious communities in Turkey, including the restoration of the right
of ownership of religious property, was a major priority for him as a
representative of the United States. He answered questions from Senator
Mark Kirk that were connected with the policies of the United States
with regard to the Armenian Genocide and the return by Turkey of the
confiscated property of the Armenian, Greek and Assyrian churches.

Bass acknowledged that the Turkish government “in the period from
1936 to 2011 confiscated thousands of units of property belonging
to Christian and Jewish religious institutions”. He listed several
specific steps that he said he was ready to take to help ensure
their return.

Meanwhile, President Serzh Sargsyan is in the United States to
participate in the UN General Assembly session. In his speech, the
Armenian leader is likely to address Turkey’s responsibility and call
upon the international community to support the Armenian demands.

SCOTLAND IS NOT KARABAKH, OR ANOTHER MYTH OF ARMENIAN PROPAGANDA

AzerNews, Azerbaijan
Sept 23 2014

23 September 2014, 17:51 (GMT+05:00)
By Elmira Tariverdiyeva

The world has once again witnessed a LEGAL secession referendum – the
Scottish referendum on secession from the UK. And although Scotland
eventually refused to leave part from the United Kingdom, the very
fact of holding a referendum triggered many unrecognized separatist
regions to try to use it as a reminder of themselves and claim their
own mythical rights.

Armenian experts and political analysts, as well as officials of
this country are not an exception. They attempted to thrust upon the
world a myth of their own – that the Nagorno-Karabakh is a region that
“legally” seceded from Azerbaijan through a referendum.

Western media journalists and even some Russian media, who are not
informed about the international law, have immediately picked up on
another lie of the Armenian side. But, let’s dot the i’s and cross
the t’s.

The analogies, drawn in this matter by the Armenian experts, are
the outcomes arising from the hopeless situation of the separatist
authority in Azerbaijan’s occupied region, which has not been
recognized by any country.

In fact, the Scottish referendum is a classic self-determination,
which has all the legal bases, and comparing it with the realities
of Nagorno-Karabakh is wrong and offensive towards Scotland itself.

They key point here is that the referendum was agreed upon with the
British government. In other words, the referendum was held with the
consent of the central government and that is why it is absolutely
legitimate in terms of international law.

The question of holding a “referendum” in Nagorno-Karabakh, which the
Armenian authorities are tirelessly talking about, has a slightly
different story. And, for some reason, Armenia doesn’t wish to say
it as it is.

Firstly, the Azerbaijani government has never given a formal or
informal consent to holding a referendum for secession of any region
from the country. It is noteworthy that the Azerbaijani constitution
doesn’t envisage the possibility of secession of any part of the
country’s territory through voting. Therefore, the ‘referendum’
held in Nagorno-Karabakh in 1991 was illegitimate.

The second important factor is that the international community
recognized neither the first “referendum” of 1991, nor the second
“referendum” held in 2006 to adopt the constitution of the breakaway
Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Additionally, the significant difference between the situations
in Scotland and Nagorno-Karabakh is that the Armenian-Azerbaijani
conflict has nothing to do with the principle of “self-determination
of peoples”, as the ‘Karabakh people’ simply do not exist, while
Scots are a separate nation.

Third – the “referendum” was held not by the population of
Nagorno-Karabakh, but only by Armenians living in this territory
of Azerbaijan after expelling a million of representatives of the
titular nation – Azerbaijanis.

So there is no point to talk about the “self-determination” of
Nagorno-Karabakh. The substitution of the notion of “self-determination
of peoples” for the “occupation of foreign territories” is
inappropriate and offensive towards the international law.

The international community regards the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
as a territorial dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Therefore,
the representatives of the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region do not
participate in the negotiations on the settlement of the conflict.

The principle of territorial integrity is a priority in interstate
conflicts. No one questions Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity which
is supported by the international community and recognized by the
governments of all countries.

ISLAMIC STATE DESTROYS ARMENIAN GENOCIDE MEMORIAL CHURCH

Catholic Culture
Sept 23 2014

Catholic World News – September 23, 2014

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has destroyed the Armenian
Genocide memorial church in Deir ez-Zor, Syria’s 6th-largest city,
according to Armenian media reports.

Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandyan called the act a “horrific
barbarity.”

Ottoman Turkish officials forced many Armenians to march through the
desert to Deir ez-Zor during the 1915 genocide.