Author: Badalian Vardan

RUSSIA SLAPS A BAN ON FRUIT AND VEGETABLES FROM UKRAINE

YEREVAN, October 22./ARKA/. Rosselkhoznadzor, Russia’s veterinary and
phytosanitary inspectorate banned imports and transit of fruits and
vegetables from Ukraine as from October 22, 2014, the Prime reported.

The ban is imposed as Ukraine’s state veterinary service failed to
ensure safety of crop products, says the report.

First, the Russian regulator tried to settle the problem routinely.

The Russian food safety inspectorate asked the Ukrainian overseer
to provide, by October 21, information about fruits and vegetables
supplies that may be re-exported from the EU.

Key foodstuff imports from the EU were banned by Russia as from
August 7, in response to the EU and West’s sanctions over the
Ukrainian crisis.

The Russian inspectorate said items of quarantine concern were found
in fruits and vegetables supplied from Ukraine, apple seedwarm and
thrips in particular.

Head of plant quarantine department of the Ukrainian service Andrey
Chelombitko said they had not received the Russian request. Hence,
having no answer to its request the Russian food safety watchdog
decided to slap a ban.

The head of Rosselkhoznadzor Sergey Danvert told TASS earlier
the inspectorate suspects Ukraine of re-exporting banned fruit and
vegetables from the EU. The source also said a steep increase in apple,
tomato, cucumber, pear and plum exports from Ukraine was recorded in
August and September this year, compared to 2013.

The products often lack labels indicating the country of origin,
which, according to the watchdog, may indicate non-Ukrainian origin
of these products. -0–

ARMENIA’S PREMIER VISITS ISFAHAN PROVINCE OF IRAN

YEREVAN, October 22./ARKA/. Armenia’s premier Hovik Abrahamyan
visited Isfahan province of Iran on Tuesday, the government press
office reported.

Abrahamyan had a meeting with the governor of the province Rasul
Zarzarpur during his visit.

The premier stressed the importance of Armenia’s cooperation with
Iranian provinces. Mutual visits and establishing new ties can
contribute to cooperation, he said.

Zarzarpur thanked the premier for the visit and praised the role of
the Armenian community in the provincial development.

The premier-headed Armenian delegation visited the Armenian educational
complex in Nor Jugha.

Abrahamyan said the complex plays an important role in keeping Armenian
identity alive and voiced his support to any similar initiative.

The Armenian delegation visited also “Ararat” sports and culture union
and is planning to participate in the events on 350th anniversary of
Surb Hovsep church at Amenaprkich monastery. -0–

HAYKAKAN ZHAMANAK: EURASIAN CUSTOMS TARIFFS BAD FOR ARMENIA’S MEAT IMPORTS

08:43 * 22.10.14

The 15% united customs tariffs, established by the Eurasian Economic
Union, are likely to cause a surge in the meat imports to Armenia
after the country joins the bloc.

The paper says that the code for meat is missing from the list of
the products for which the union has fixed privileged terms. And that
in turn implies a 5% increase in the prices of beef, with the annual
import price from the EEU countries amounting to $20 million (at 10%
customs duty).

But the situation with the poultry import will be far more tragic,
says the paper, adding that the envisaged customs duty for this product
will rise to 25%. The paper notes that Armenia annually imports 45$
million worth poultry meat from the EEU member states, adding that
the earlier promises ruling out a surge on the market for the coming
couple of years thus turn out a blatant lie.

The paper says further that the Eurasian customs tariffs will also
affect the prices of cheese on the Armenian market.

Armenian News – Tert.am

KALCIYAN FAMILY CONTINUES TO SUPPORT DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS IN KHACHARDZAN

13:58 22/10/2014 >> SOCIETY

Hayastan All-Armenian Fund benefactors Mr. and Mrs. Arto and Hilda
Kalciyan of Argentina continue to support vital development projects in
Khachardzan, a village in Armenia’s Tavush Region. Following the recent
opening of Khachardzan’s health clinic and multifunctional events
hall, both of which were built with the support of the Kalciyans,
the benefactors have also provided funds for the extensive renovation
of the community’s school, the press service of Hayastan All-Armenian
Fund reports.

For the duration of the school’s reconstruction, the mayor’s building
will serve as a makeshift campus for the 66 students.

To date, the Kalciyan’s have made possible several initiatives in
Khachardzan, which has a population of close to 400. In June of this
year, they donated various school supplies, including school bags and
stationery, to the community’s students, and, most recently, provided
financial assistance to four local families with newborn babies. The
Kalciyans have pledged continued assistance to such families.

“Hundreds of villages in Armenia need our care and support,” Arto
Kalciyan has said in an appeal to the Argentinean-Armenian community.

“Perhaps we’ve been responding to that need with silent indifference.

Life has been extremely difficult in those villages and today they
continue to face a number of major issues. Children who were born
in such villages are the babies of our homeland, Armenians like
us. Isn’t it time for us to join forces and turn our good intentions
into tangible actions, as a united people?”

According to Khachardzan mayor Gagik Shahnazaryan, the Kalciyans
have also expressed their willingness to support the development of
beekeeping in the community.

“Although Mr. and Mrs. Kalciyan have joined the family of the Hayastan
All-Armenian Fund only recently, they have already made possible
several development projects in the border village of Khachardzan,”
said Ara Vardanyan, executive director of the fund. “The initiatives
they have sponsored are so far-reaching that the grateful community
has named its benefactors Honorary Citizens of Khachardzan.”

L’ANNEE DE L’ARMENIE FAIT GRINCER DES DENTS

REVUE DE PRESSE
Certains Armeniens craignent la recuperation politique

L’idee, sortie de la mairie de Marseille, semble partir d’un bon
sentiment : faire du centenaire du genocide armenien un evenement
qui depasse le stade du recueillement.À Marseille, où vivent
quelque 80000Armeniens – un reservoir electoral non negligeable –
la commemoration de la tragedie qui fait toujours debat a l’Assemblee
nationale sur le volet du negationnisme, se declinera sur une annee
de memoire et de festivites.

Un modèle existe : MP 2013, Capitale europeenne qui a su rebondir
economiquement en liant projets associatifs et financements
institutionnels et prives.

“À son retour d’Armenie en octobre 2013, raconte Didier Parakian,
adjoint au maire en charge de cette annee armenienne, Jean-Claude
Gaudin nous a demande de travailler sur ce modèle. Onest alle
chercher les collectivites, Region, Departement, communaute urbaine
qui nous ont dit ‘OK’. L’objectif est de creer un fonds pour collecter
l’argent a destination des organisateurs d’evenements, essentiellement
les associations. On en confiera la presidence au consul d’Armenie
Vartan Sirmakès.” La où ca coince, c’est que certaines associations
reunies sous la bannière du Conseil de Coordination des organisations
armeniennes de France (CCAF) avaient deja prevu l’evenement et
s’estiment doublees par une initiative municipale pour laquelle elles
“n’ont pas ete concertees. Nous sommes oublies alors qu’on travaille
la-dessus depuis un an. On craint une recuperation politique de
l’evenement”, assurent ses dirigeants, dont le positionnement proche du
PS n’est pas secret. Etonnamment a la Ville où l’UMP Didier Parakian
convoque sa bonne foi politique en la personne du socialiste Garo
Hovsepian, vice-president comme lui de la mission. “On ne prend
la place de personne, notre initiative n’ayant d’autre but que
de financer les projets des associations, dont le CCAF bien sûr”,
pointe Garo Hovsepian. Si la crispation est reelle, elle pourrait
etre resorbee debut octobre par une nouvelle organisation au sein
d’un CCAF divise. “Ce serait la meilleure reponse a une polemique qui
n’a pas lieu d’etre, parce qu’on a besoin de tout le monde”, apaise
Didier Parakian en rejetant toute idee de recuperation. Le centenaire
du genocide aura lieu le 24 avril 2015. La situation internationale
qui touche les chretiens d’Orient ne devrait guère laisser de place
aux polemiques.

LA PROVENCE

mercredi 22 octobre 2014, Stephane (c)armenews.com

ARMENIA’S PARLIAMENT TO EXEMPT COMPANIES IN BORDER REGIONS FROM SEVERAL TAXES

YEREVAN, October 21, / ARKA /. Armenia’s National Assembly began on
Tuesday debating a government-drafted package of changes to the tax
laws, which call for exempting companies in the country’s border
settlements from several taxes.

“The purpose of these changes is to help increase economic activity
in the border regions, improve the business environment and investment
attractiveness,” said deputy finance minister Vakhtang Mirumyan.

According to him, the changes propose to exempt businesses in the
border regions from VAT, income and profit taxes. He said as a result
the entrepreneurs will be assisted in the amount of 2 billion drams.

The deputy minister stressed also that the adoption of these
legislative changes will help reduce unemployment in the border
regions.

The proposed changes include also mandatory introduction of electronic
tax reporting, mitigation of penalties and the possibility of reducing
mortgage rates at the expense of income tax.

The proposed changes are declared urgent. After first reading they must
be voted in the second reading within 24 hours. If adopted the changes
will come into force on January 1, 2015. ($1 -409.69 drams) -0–

LA TURQUIE FINIT PAR OUVRIR SA FRONTIERE A DES RENFORTS KURDES IRAKIENS POUR KOBANE

TURQUIE

La Turquie a opere lundi un changement de strategie en Syrie en
annoncant qu’elle autorisait desormais des renforts de combattants
“peshmergas” irakiens a rejoindre, via son territoire, la ville kurde
syrienne de Kobane assiegee par les jihadistes.

“Nous aidons les forces des +peshmergas kurdes+ a franchir la frontière
pour aller a Kobane (…) nous n’avons jamais voulu que Kobane tombe”,
a declare le ministre turc des Affaires etrangères Mevlut Cavusoglu
devant la presse.

Malgre la pression de ses allies, le gouvernement islamo-conservateur
turc a jusque-la refuse toute intervention militaire pour aider les
combattants kurdes de Syrie qui resistent depuis un mois aux forces
du groupe Etat islamique, estimant qu’elle ne pouvait que renforcer
le president syrien Bachar al-Assad, sa bete noire.

Ce revirement turc intervient alors que les Etats-Unis, qui ont
multiplie les frappes contre les cibles jihadistes, ont procede lundi
sur Kobane a un premier largage aerien d’armes et de munitions pour
les forces kurdes qui defendent la ville.

Le chef de la diplomatie turque n’a pas directement commente cette
initiative.

“Nous cooperons pleinement avec la coalition”, s’est contente
d’indiquer M. Cavusoglu, “nous voulons nous debarrasser de toutes
les menaces qui pèsent sur la region”.

Les Etats-Unis ont annonce la semaine dernière avoir noue des contacts
directs avec le principal mouvement kurde de Syrie, le Parti de
l’union democratique (PYD), dont les Unites de protection du peuple
(YPG) mènent le combat contre l’EI a Kobane.

Dimanche encore, le president turc Recep Tayyip Erdogan a balaye les
appels lances a son pays pour qu’il fournisse directement des armes aux
YPG et au PYD, qu’il a accuses d’etre une “organisation terroriste”.

Malgre l’aide accordee a leurs “frères” irakiens, le ministre des
Affaires etrangères turc a reitere lundi cette position. “Comme l’EI,
le PYD veut contrôler une partie du territoire syrien”, a estime M.

Cavusoglu. “Le PYD et les groupes qui dependent de lui doivent changer
d’objectifs et renoncer a ces ambitions”.

“Double jeu” –

La Turquie considère le PYD comme le pendant syrien du Parti des
travailleurs du Kurdistan (PKK), qui mène depuis 1984 en Turquie une
guerilla a l’origine de 40.000 morts.

Depuis le debut de la bataille de Kobane, les autorites turques
refusent systematiquement d’ouvrir leur frontière a des renforts
turcs du PKK pour rallier Kobane.

Ankara a engage il y a deux ans des pourparlers avec le chef du PKK
pour mettre un terme a ce conflit mais ils sont aujourd’hui menaces
par le refus turc d’intervenir pour Kobane, qui a provoque la colère
des Kurdes de Turquie.

Un elu de Kobane, Idriss Nassen, a rejete les accusations de M.

Cavusoglu contre le PYD.

“Le PYD (…) est l’une des principales composantes de l’opposition
syrienne, cela signifie qu’il travaille non seulement pour les parties
kurdes (du pays) mais aussi pour l’ensemble de la Syrie”, a declare
a l’AFP M. Nassen.

La Turquie de M. Erdogan entretient de bonnes relations avec la region
autonome kurde irakienne, dont les “peshmergas” sont a la pointe du
combat contre l’EI en Irak. Selon l’agence kurde Rudaw, le president
du Kurdistan irakien Massoud Barzani a lui-meme demande aux Turcs de
faciliter le passage de ses “peshmergas”.

“On voit aujourd’hui clairement qu’il existe un accord entre Washington
et Ankara sur Kobane, a commente a l’AFP l’analyste Sinan Ulgen,
du Centre d’etudes politiques et economiques (EDAM) d’Istanbul.

“La Turquie joue un double jeu entre d’un côte la rhetorique antikurde
du president Erdogan et, de l’autre, son interet qui est d’eviter que
Kobane ne tombe et precipite la fin des pourparlers de paix avec le
PKK”, a poursuivi M. Ulgen.

“En laissant entrer les +peshmergas+ irakiens dans Kobane, les Turcs
peuvent continuer a dire qu’ils n’aident pas le PKK et rassurer la
frange nationaliste du pays (…) et repondre a leurs allies qui les
accusent de ne rien faire”, a-t-il juge.

Membre de l’Otan, la Turquie n’a pour l’heure pas autorise les
Etats-Unis a utiliser sa base aerienne d’Incirlik, situee dans le
sud de la Turquie a 300 km a peine de Kobane, pour mener des frappes
aeriennes contre les positions jihadistes.

mardi 21 octobre 2014, Stephane (c)armenews.com

L’IRAN ESPERE UNE IMPLICATION DE L’ARMENIE DANS LA >

DIPLOMATIE

Le president iranien Hassan Rouhani a parle de > pour l’approfondissement les relations armeno-Iraniennes et a appele
l’Armenie a se joindre a la Republique islamique dans la lutte contre
le > dans la region lors d’entretiens avec le Premier
ministre Hovik Abrahamian a Teheran lundi.

Dans une reference apparente aux militants de l’Etat islamique (ISIL)
en Syrie et en Irak, Rouhani a denonce les >, a indique
le communique. Il a declare que les deux hommes avaient discute, en
plus des relations bilaterales, du conflit non resolu du Haut-Karabakh
et des > . Selon IRNA, Rouhani a > entre les deux pays voisins. Il a declare qu’il y a > pour le faire parce que les deux
gouvernements se sont engages a avoir des liens plus etroits.

Abrahamian a ete recu par le president iranien lors d’une visite
officielle a Teheran. Il a egalement eu des entretiens avec le
premier vice-president Eshaq Jahangiri qui, apparemment, se sont
axes sur la cooperation economique bilaterale et, en particulier, les
projets d’energie armeno-iranienne. Le ministre de l’Energie Yervand
Zakharian faisait parti des six membres du gouvernement armenien qui
accompagnaient Abrahamian lors de son voyage.

Selon l’agence iranienne de presse Mehr citant Jahangiri, les deux
parties ont discute de plans de longue duree pour construire une
centrale hydroelectrique sur la rivière Arax marquant leur frontière
et une troisième ligne de transmission a haute tension qui relierait
leurs reseaux electriques . Mais ni lui ni Abrahamian n’ont annonce
les dates de mise en oeuvre de ces projets communs.

Le projet hydroelectrique de 350,000,000 $ avait ete lance il y a deux
ans lors d’une ceremonie en presence du president Serge Sarkissian.

Cependant, il est apparu en fin d’annee dernière que la construction
de l’usine Arax n’avait pas encore commence.

L’ambassadeur d’Iran en Armenie, Mohammad Reisi, a impute ce retard
aux graves restrictions imposees par Erevan sur les operations de
tresorerie entre banques armeniennes et iraniennes en raison des
sanctions occidentales contre la Republique islamique. Reisi avait
declare en mars que l’assouplissement en cours de ces sanctions
etait de bon augure pour la mise en oeuvre du projet. En outre, le
sous-ministre armenien de l’energie, Areg Galstian a declare en mai
que les travaux concernant la ligne de a haute tension ont ete gele en
raison de difficultes relatives au >. Sans
autres precisions. La ligne en cours de construction permettrait une
forte augmentation des exportations d’electricite armeniennes vers
Iran. Une electricite produite par le gaz naturel iranien livre aux
centrales thermiques armeniennes.

Selon un communique distinct emis par le gouvernement armenien lundi,
Abrahamian a declare que les deux gouvernements devraient donner > a des projets economiques conjoints

“TO KILL ONE MORE ARMENIAN TO GIVE COMFORT TO OUR HEARTS”

October 20 2014

Azerbaijani famous handwriting ahead to the Paris meeting The
statistics of recent border incidents shows an interesting dynamics.

After the August subversive acts and tensed situation, which
drastically eased after the Sochi meeting of the Presidents Sargsyan
and Aliyev, began to grow again. Responding to the observation of
“Aravot”, member Standing Committee on NA defense, internal affairs and
national security affairs, also “Heritage” faction MP Tevan Poghosyan
said, “The upcoming meeting of the presidents is expected.

Naturally, ahead to the meeting, Azerbaijan is trying to create, the
so-called, favorable situation so that prior to going to Paris they
would say, “look, we have given an answer”. Perhaps, these are the
matters. Indeed, there are moments when they are unable to reconcile
with the psychology of a loser and to calm down. They are buying more
and more weapons, but are unable to solve any problem.” In addition,
our interlocutor believes that similar cases like Karen Petrosyan’s
torture and murder obtain great international sonority, and a kind of
outrage awakens in them, “to kill one more Armenian to give comfort
to our heart.” “The very first thing that we must realize is that
the war is not over. Our war is going on. It has transferred from one
active situation to another active situation. We need to be ready for
the situation may turn to worse or calmed down at every moment, and
we need to solve our problems. Unfortunately, we have the enemy what
we have. Should we have a little more civilized enemy, the situation
could be different. Azerbaijan is trying to use every situation, and
in any place where the situation is aggravated, using the severity
of a problem, it is trying in every way to bring it to the region.

Instead of thinking about how to do for the snipers to shoot on the
border every day, they would better recall the Azeri gangs from the
Middle East because they are dying there more than even here,” said
our interlocutor. To the question of the Sargsyan-Aliyev meeting in
Paris is going to be procedural or little progresses are possibly,
Tevan Poghosyan said that in his opinion, it is going to be a regular
procedural one, as it is the logical continuation of the meeting
held under the auspices of the president of Russia and the U.S> State
Department. “Naturally, these kinds of meetings every time are trying
to promote the escalation or reduction of the tension in the region;
some small positive problem can be solved, but I strongly believe
that unless we know that the meeting is also attended by the official
representative of Nagorno-Karabakh, I do not expect any real progress
from this type of meetings.”

N. GRIGORYAN

Read more at:

ARMENIAN-RUSSIAN FILM TO CENTER ON DEVASTATING SPITAK QUAKE OF 1988

October 20, 2014 – 15:38 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – A film based on the 1988 devastating earthquake
in Armenia will launch production in January 2015, Kavkaz-uzel.ru
reported.

The Yerevan, Gyumri and Moscow-set Armenian-Russian film titled “11:41”
will star Armen Jigarkhanyan, Yevgeni Sidikhin, Chulpan Hamatova,
Rafael Kotanjyan, Mkrtich Arzumanyan and Sos Janibekyan.

The film, budgeted at $2,5 million was produced and scripted by Cinema
Concept Production founder Alik Shahbazyan.

The film centers at a young woman (Hamatova) buried under the quake
debris with her 1,5-year-old baby daughter who she keeps alive by
biting through her fingers to feed the child with her own blood.

“These characters were based on real-life events, with the actual
mother and daughter to be consulted during the film-making,”
Shakhbazyan said.

The filmmakers hope to premiere the movie December 7, 2015 at 11:
41 through the assistance of World Armenian Congress.

On December 7, 1988, at 11:41 a.m. local time, magnitude 6.9 earthquake
shook northwestern Armenia and was followed four minutes later by a
magnitude 5.8 aftershock. In the epicenter, the village of Nalband,
the tremors were reported to measure 10 on the Richter scale.

The earthquake leveled the cities of Spitak and Gyumri and left about
25,000 people dead, 100,000 injured and 500 000 homeless.