Author: Badalian Vardan

ANALYSE : LE TRIOMPHE DE EUROMAIDAN EN UKRAINE ET L’ARMENIE DANS TOUT CELA ?

ARMENIE

Les developpements en Ukraine et de leurs eventuelles consequences
pour les autres pays post-sovietiques sont en cours de discussion
ces jours-ci. Ce qu’on a appele Euromaidan, des manifestations
de rue continues a Kiev et ailleurs en Ukraine contre la decision
d’abandonner un accord d’association avec l’Union europeenne qui ont
commence en novembre dernier, a conduit a l’eviction du president
Viktor Ianoukovitch et l’arrivee d’un nouveau pouvoir apparemment
pro-UE en Ukraine.

Les medias occidentaux ne comprennent pas que les manifestations de
l’Ukraine pourraient s’etendre a la Russie et se retourner contre son
leader Vladimir Poutine, l’architecte de l’Union eurasienne vu comme
un rival des projets d’integration europeenne qui avaient ete offerts
a un certain nombre de pays post-sovietiques, y compris l’Armenie.

Les experts disent aussi que si l’Ukraine met fin a ses accords
economiques et militaires actuelles avec la Russie, cela pourrait
conduire a l’echec de l’Union eurasienne de Poutine auquel l’Armenie
souhaite adherer après l’abandon de manière inattendue du processus
de signature d’un accord d’association avec Bruxelles en septembre
dernier.

Recemment, le Premier ministre armenien Tigran Sarkissian a declare
que les preparatifs en vue de l’adhesion de l’Armenie a l’Union
douanière ont ete realisees a 50 pour cent. Un accord sur l’adhesion de
l’Armenie au bloc commercial actuellement compose de la Russie, de la
Bielorussie et du Kazakhstan devrait etre signe en mai avec un accord
sur la creation de l’Union eurasienne. Cependant, il y a maintenant
des doutes serieux que les accords soient signes dans les temps.

Le president bielorusse Alexandre Loukachenko a parle la semaine
dernière. Il a dit qu’il y avait des doutes que le calendrier soit
respecte et a appele a des efforts pour s’assurer que les accords
soient signes dans les temps. Cependant, les developpements en Ukraine
peuvent bouleverser tous les plans.

En particulier, si l’Ukraine signe un accord d’association avec l’UE,
revise ses contrats gaziers avec la Russie et tente de denoncer
l’accord sur la base navale russe de la mer Noire, cela va changer
fondamentalement la position de la Russie. Surtout si le Kirghizistan
ne signe pas l’accord sur l’union douanière et que les economies des
membres actuels de l’UD continuent a baisser rapidement comme cela
a ete le cas au cours des dernières semaines.

Igor Mouradian analyste politique estime que l’Occident n’arretera pas
ses tentatives pour etablir des relations plus amicales avec l’Armenie,
malgre les efforts des dirigeants russes d’isoler l’Armenie des projets
regionaux. L’Occident propose des projets favorables a l’Armenie afin
de diversifier son economie orientee vers la Russie.

Et il y a deja de tels projets – l’achat par une societe americaine
de la cascade Vorotan de centrales hydroelectriques et l’offre d’une
compagnie (probablement chinoise ou americaine) qui a l’intention
d’investir dans la construction d’un chemin de fer Iran-Armenie
. Les investisseurs britanniques, americains et allemands envisagent
d’accroître leur presence dans le secteur de l’exploitation minière
de l’Armenie, et a cet effet ils ont convoque une grande conference
internationale a Erevan debut mars. Il y a aussi d’autres signes que
l’Occident > l’ Armenie de projets lucratifs.

Certains experts ne comprennent pas non plus la cooperation plus
etroite entre l’Armenie et l’OTAN. Il y a une certaine cooperation deja
maintenant car les militaires armeniens participent a des missions de
maintien de la paix dirigees par l’OTAN, cependant, l’Armenie a encore
declare qu’elle est membre de l’Organisation du Traite de securite
collective et, en fait, ne peut pas travailler plus etroitement avec
l’ OTAN.

La diversification des systèmes commerciaux, de l’energie et de la
securite pourrait permettre a l’Armenie de diminuer sa dependance
envers la Russie et de reconsiderer sa participation dans les Unions
d’Eurasie et autres. Evaluant cette possibilite en Armenie beaucoup
disent que les Armeniens ne sont pas les Ukrainiens et ne sont pas
prets a aller a l’encontre du Kremlin pour defendre leur souverainete
au prix de leur vie. Commentateur a Kentron TV Armen Dulyan, par
exemple, affirme que les dirigeants armeniens ont pris la bonne
decision le 3 Septembre, abandonnant l’integration europeenne.

PRESS RELEASE
Armenian Center for National and International Studies
75 Yerznkian Street
Yerevan 0033, Armenia
Tel: (+374 – 10) 52.87.80 or 27.48.18
Fax: (+374 – 10) 52.48.46
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]
Website:

25 February, 2014

ACNIS Hosts Conference on International Integration Processes

Yerevan–The Armenian Center for National and International Studies
(ACNIS) today held a roundtable discussion on “The Eastern Partnership
and Customs Union: International Integration Projects or Geopolitical
Competition?” The meeting brought together representatives from the
diplomatic community in Yerevan, leading policy analysts, political
figures, and members of the press.

Raffi K. Hovannisian, ACNIS founder and president, welcomed the
audience with keynote remarks, and wished the participants fruitful
deliberation. “With today’s strategic offering, ACNIS enters its 20th
year of public service and commitment to the cause of objective,
multi-disciplinary research, analysis, and national discourse for the
betterment of Armenia and the deepening of its democracy, rule of law,
and sovereignty,” he said.

Welcoming the guests with an opening speech, ACNIS director Manvel
Sargsian underscored the need for public debates on the matter at
hand. “Armenia’s choice between signing the EU Association Agreement
and entering the Customs Union evoked concerns all over the world, and
particularly in those countries, whose interests are closely linked
with the afore-mentioned projects. Armenia is one of those
countries,–hence comprehensive, multi-disciplining assessments of the
processes taking place are of vital significance for us.”

The day’s first speaker was governance expert Harutyun Mesrobyan, who
described Armenia’s decision to access the Customs Union as a serious
challenge to the state’s sovereignty and security. “By accessing any
union, we will become uncompetitive. It is simply amazing why
Armenia–neighboring Iran with its vast resources–does not make any
use of it and is knocking at doors of the North and the West. The
impression is that we do need a state but we are looking for any
available protector,” Mesrobyan underscored.

In his intervention, leading economist Dr. Tatoul Manasserian assessed
the advantages and disadvantages of the Customs Union. According to
him, Armenia’s membership in the Customs Union may bring more economic
harm than good if the procedure of customs clearance is not clarified.
“I appreciate the very positive cooperation, but along political
decisions, we need to be able to make correct economic calculations so
that the budget could avoid any gaps caused by not cleared customs.”
On the other hand, Manasserian stressed that at current stage it is of
vital importance to solve the Abkhazian railroad issue with assistance
of the strategic partner “which will create more favorable conditions
for businesses to develop trade and economic relations with the
outside world.”

In his turn, Yerevan Press Club president Boris Navasardyan–in light
of Armenia’s “official” decision to enter the Customs
Union–contemplated the prospects of the nation’s facing restrictions
upon its democratic freedoms. “By choosing the Eurasian direction, we
are entering a system where the other three members do not meet the
minimum threshold of democracy–freedom of assembly and freedom of
access to Internet–that Armenia has already reached. Therefore, the
model prevailing therein will have a negative impact on our value
system. If Armenia signs the agreement on accessing the Customs Union,
it will become monopolistically dominated by one country. Armenia has
never experienced such isolation over the course of its modern
history,” Navasardyan mentioned.

The presentations were followed by a series of questions and answers,
and featured a lively exchange with the audience. The roundtable
participants also included writer and blogger Marine Petrosyan,
political analysts Mikayel Zolyan, Nikita Zarobyan, and Edgar
Vardanian, civic activist Zarouhi Hovhannisyan, expert Khachik
Harutyunyan of Transparency International Anti-Corruption Center in
Armenia, head Arthur Avtandilyan of Free Democrats Party Policy
Analysis Center, and others.

———————————————————————–
The Armenian Center for National and International Studies (ACNIS) is
a leading independent strategic research center located in Yerevan,
Armenia. As an independent, objective institution committed to
conducting professional policy research and analysis, ACNIS strives to
raise the level of public debate and seeks to broaden public
engagement in the public policy process, as well as fostering greater
and more inclusive public knowledge. Founded in 1994, ACNIS is the
institutional initiative of Raffi K. Hovannisian, Armenia’s first
Minister of Foreign Affairs. Over the past 20 years, ACNIS has
acquired a prominent reputation as a primary source of professional
independent research and analysis covering a wide range of national
and international policy issues.

For further information on the Center call (37410) 52-87-80 or
27-48-18; fax (37410) 52-48-46; email [email protected] or [email protected];
or visit

CUSTOMS UNION: ARMENIA MAKES DEMANDS WHILE THE SUN SHINES

EurasiaNet.org
Feb 25 2014

February 25, 2014 – 1:19pm, by Giorgi Lomsadze

With Ukraine now a lost cause for the Customs Union, Russia’s Vladimir
Putin has checked in with Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sarkisian
to see how Armenia’s plans to join the Customs Union are coming along.

For Russia, Armenia is a poor substitute for Ukraine, but still a
victory in Moscow’s efforts to assert its broader economic clout
through the trade bloc.

Prime Minister Sarkisian seems to have seized on that status to lodge
a request with Moscow to keep the investments coming and to underwrite
some of the legal and institutional changes that Armenia needs to
meet the upcoming trade club’s membership rules by 2015. Yerevan also
needs resources to keep selling Armenians on the idea of pushing the
country into what many claim will be an economic throwback to the USSR.

And it may need more than that. On February 24, ex-President Robert
Kocharian sounded off against the way Yerevan will waltz through the
door of the Customs Union. Believed by many to be positioning himself
for a potential political comeback, Kocharian increasingly has been
taking aim at Sarkisian’s economic policies.

How far Kocharian could go with this is unclear. Memories of the
2008 bloodshed under his administration do not endear him uniformly
to Armenian voters. But his choice of topic could add at least some
fuel to the fire.

Angry over Russia tightening the screws on migrant workers and not
lowering gas prices and watching the desperate efforts in Ukraine
to keep Moscow at arm’s length, many Armenians have strong second
thoughts about Putin’s Customs Union. There is also growing anger
with various local economic policies that, some analysts believe,
may at some point snowball into a larger, anti-government movement.

To be clear, despite such disgruntlement, no EuroMaidan is expected
anytime soon in Armenia. But, as Ukraine showed, in the ongoing game
of checkers between the pro-EU and pro-CU camps in the Eurasian region,
the players’ pieces can indeed move anywhere at any time.

SUMGAIT-88. PART 1: DREAM OF HEAVEN BRINGING HELL

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Feb 25 2014

25 February 2014 – 11:26am

Azerbaijan and Armenia associate February of modern history with
the tragic events of Sumgait and Khojaly. As time goes, there are
fewer and fewer witnesses of the events left, but the question why
the tragedy happened remains. Vestnik Kavkaza experts will describe
details of the horrifying events of February 1988 this week.

In the 1980s, the USSR made its most flagrant civilizational mistake:
it was tempted with promises of heaven on earth. The Russian Social
Democratic Labour Party was charmed with the idea of heavenly
communism, only to be later replaced with another one after decades
of bloodshed and hard work.

Perestroika, collapse of the USSR and the bloody events depicted in
the article could have been avoided if it were not for the idea of
a capitalist heaven in the hearts of people. The state ideology of
the early 1980s was failing to satisfy needs of its citizens. The
Cold War started after WWII could only end with either socialism or
capitalism winning.

Mikhail Gorbachev started his reign on March 11, 1985, believing in
the American Dream. Unlike his predecessors, he was a gullible and
naïve leader who thought that scrapping totalitarian ideology for
the sake of European democratic values would end hostilities and make
the USSR part of the world society.

The West had no intentions to make friends, it was only worried about
own security which could only be strengthened by weakening or better
destroying the Soviet Union. The divide and rule principle was taken as
the basis and served under the cover of “heavenly” ideals of Western
democracy. The ethnic problem was the perfect tool for a coup in the
multiethnic Soviet Union where all nationalities were equal.

Nationalism as a mass movement cannot be born by its own, it is a
political instrument, sort of a scalpel, that cuts the body of the
country into any number of pieces. Organized and idea-firm nationalists
convinced in their superiority are few in numbers, but they are always
under surveillance of special services and cannot do harm under a
strong government. However, they become the blade of the scalpel in
the hands of players of local and global politics.

The scalpel hit Sumgait on February 27-29, 1998.

BEIRUT HOLDS A SERVICE TO COMMEMORATE VICTIMS OF SUMGAIT MASSACRE

arminfo
Tuesday, February 25, 18:56

On Feb 23 the Beirut-based Armenian Surb Nshan Church held a service
to commemorate the Sumgait massacre victims and Gurgen Margaryan,
who was brutally killed by Azeri officer Ramil Safarov in Budapest.

Armenia’s Ambassador to Lebanon Ashot Kocharyan said that the pogroms
of the Armenian population committed in Sumgait, Azerbaijan, 26 years
ago were the first manifestation of ethnic cleansings in the then
Soviet Union.

“Today we pay our tribute to the innocent victims. We hope that
Azerbaijan’s crimes will be adequately assessed and condemned by the
international community”, said Kocharyan.

To note, the victims of the Sumgait massacre have also been
commemorated in Washington.

MONTHLY REVENUE OF ARMENIA’S IT SECTOR AMOUNTS TO 20 MLN USD, BUT THE OUTFLOW OF SKILLED SPECIALISTS IS STILL GOING ON

by Erik Abrahamyan

arminfo
Tuesday, February 25, 17:30

The monthly revenue of Armenia’s IT sector amounts to 20 mln USD,
CEO of the Union of IT Enterprises Karen Vardanyan said at a press
conference on Monday.

He said that though the IT sector is going to be topical within the
next 15 years at least, it is hard to call it a priority now. He
thinks that though the Government has declared IT a priority sector,
the relations between the state and IT enterprises are not developed
enough. It is not clear yet how and on what basis the so- called
national brand of IT companies will be formed and promoted abroad.

As regards the weak sides of the IT sector, Vardanyan said that 500 IT
companies are employing 12,000 specialists, with 10,000 of them being
engineers. He added that most Armenian companies are specializing in
outsourcing and do not develop their own sale-oriented products.

Meanwhile, Armenia’s Economy Minister Vahram Avanesyan told ArmInfo
that Armenia will be able to develop its own IT products only when
its economy shows need for them. “And only then will we be able to
sell them abroad,” the Minister said.

Vardanyan said that Armenia continues successfully exporting IT
specialists even though in 2009-2013 personnel outflow dropped from
4.5% to 3%. “At first glance you may think that this is not a big
figure, but the problem is that most of those people are specialists
with at least 10-year experience and very high qualification,”
Vardanyan said.

UITE was founded by Migma, Algorithm, Link, ArmSoft, Arminco and
Sedit in 2000 with a view to stimulate Armenia’s IT sector.

WHAT ARMENIAN AUTHORITIES WILL SAY TO IRAN PRESIDENT? – NEWSPAPER

February 25, 2014 | 08:03

YEREVAN. – Zhamanak daily spoke with Armenian opposition’s Republic
Party Chairman, former PM Aram Sargsyan. Below is an excerpt from
the interview.

“What regional developments may occur in the near future? America
and Europe have begun to develop relations with Iran. How will these
developments impact Armenia?

“When the sanctions upon that country were lifted, we, as a
neighbor-friend country, should have been the first to go and express
our support [to Iran] in the future processes. [Armenia President]
Serzh Sargsyan should have gone to Iran. But the Armenian authorities
didn’t go; the Turkish authorities went [instead], and signed a
document that they are setting up a committee to develop their
relations; this should have been signed with Iran, and Iran wanted
that. Fortunately, the president of Iran is coming to Armenia. I again
urge the Armenian authorities, I even demand that the viewpoints in
that direction be clarified, that they maintain themselves as the
leaders of Armenia, not as the henchmen of the Russian Federation.”

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

FRENCH POLITICAL SCIENTIST: ARMENIA ACCESSING CUSTOMS UNION NOT FOR ECONOMIC REASONS

by Ashot Safaryan

Tuesday, February 25, 15:25

Armenia decided to access the Customs Union for security reasons
rather than economic benefits, said Laure Delcour, a French political
scientist, in an interview with RFE/RL Armenia Service.

According to her, Armenia really sought to meet the EU standards as
it applied for participation in the EU partnership project. It was
a clear goal for Armenia then, following the conflict in Georgia
and the failed efforts to normalize relations with Turkey, Delcour
said. She thinks the situation is quite different now and the EU is
reluctant to revise its offers for Armenia.

The political scientist studying the poverty and migration problems,
conflicts and domestic policy in the country is sure that nearly
four-year-long negotiations with the EU were not in vain. Armenia
has launched a series of reforms in the course of the negotiations
for the Association Agreement and DCFTA but has not completed them.

Nevertheless, Delcour is sure that those reforms will have certain
impact on the country. She thinks that it will be hard for Armenia to
transfer from the EU standards to the Russian ones, for instance in
the field of food safety where Armenia has carried out quite serious
reforms to bring the field in line with the EU requirements. Now, the
country has to bring the field in line with the Russian standards
that are quite different. This process will be financially and
administratively complicated for Armenia.

Asked to comment on further financing of some Armenia-related projects
after the failure to sign the Association Agreement and DCFTA with
the EU, Laure Delcour said that the EU Neighborhood Program does not
end with the Association Agreement. There are countries, for instance
Azerbaijan or Belarus that have not even launched any negotiations
for the free trade agreement. The EU implements many other projects
with the partner-countries. Consequently, the AA and DCFTA is just
part of the EU’s projects and the cooperartion with Armenia will be
continued in other fields, Delcour said.

The French expert called Armenia’s decision to access the CU
quite unexpected for the EU, which had no plan B. Now, the EU has
to draw such plan for the countries that may not sign the AA and
DCFTA. This plan will be drafted for Armenia, first, as the country
has successfully completed the negotiation process unlike Azerbaijan
and Belarus, Delcour said.

HRAPARAK: WORKERS OF ARAKS POULTRY FACTORY TREATED LIKE SLAVES

11:46 25/02/2014 >> DAILY PRESS

The patience of Araks poultry factory workers was exhausted. They
decided not to work obediently anymore, and to finally voice their
discontent. The workers complain about low salaries, salary deductions
and mistreatment by the management, Hraparak writes.

“The management treats us like slaves, exploits us, deducts large
sums from our salaries, explaining this by omissions in our work,”
a worker told the newspaper.

The worker also said that the management often accuses them of thefts.

“We presented our problems to the management and they promised to
solve them, we shall see…,” the worker noted.

Source: Panorama.am

REVUE DE PRESSE N2 – 24/02/14 – COLLECTIF VAN

Publie le : 24-02-2014

Info Collectif VAN – – Le Collectif VAN [Vigilance
Armenienne contre le Negationnisme] vous propose une revue de presse
des informations parues dans la presse francophone, sur les thèmes
concernant la Turquie, le genocide armenien, la Shoah, le genocide
des Tutsi, le Darfour, le negationnisme, l’Union europeenne, Chypre,
etc… Nous vous suggerons egalement de prendre le temps de lire ou
de relire les informations et traductions mises en ligne dans notre
rubrique Par
ailleurs, certains articles en anglais, allemand, turc, etc, ne sont
disponibles que dans la newsletter Word que nous generons chaque jour.

Pour la recevoir, abonnez-vous a la Veille-Media : c’est gratuit !

Vous recevrez le document du lundi au vendredi dans votre boîte email.

Bonne lecture.

Groupe Manouchian : pas de Pantheon pour les resistants etrangers Info
Collectif VAN – – Le President de la Republique,
sollicite par l’Association Nationale des Anciens Combattants et
Resistants Armeniens (ANACRA) et l’Aumônerie Israelite des Armees (AIA)
pour presider l’hommage au Groupe Manouchian le vendredi 21 fevrier
2014 au Mont-Valerien, a saisi l’opportunite qui lui etait donnee,
pour faire de ce premier hommage national a des resistants etrangers
morts pour la France (essentiellement juifs, mais egalement armeniens
avec notamment Missak Manouchian qui a donne son nom au groupe qu’il
dirigeait), une ceremonie plutôt dediee a quatre resistants francais
dont il a annonce le transfert des cendres au Pantheon : Germaine
Tillion, Geneviève de Gaulle-Anthonioz, Pierre Brossolette et Jean
Zay. Le chef de l’Etat a ete interpelle au terme de la ceremonie par
Seta Papazian, presidente du Collectif VAN, qui lui a demande : , de > mais d’une >.”

Syrie: 24 morts dans un attentat a la frontière turque Au moins
24 personnes ont ete tuees et plus de 40 autres blessees dans un
attentat a la voiture piegee perpetre jeudi a 13h45 UTC près du
poste-frontière syrien de Bab al-Salama situe a la frontière avec la
Turquie, ont annonce les medias turcs. D’après le quotidien Milliyet,
20 personnes ont ete tuees sur le coup et quatre autres sont decedees
sur le chemin de l’hôpital de Kilis (Turquie).

Syrie : une ville antique et 17 villages pris par des Kurdes La petite
ville antique de Tell Brak et dix-sept villages, situes entre Qamishli
et al-Hassaka, ont ete pris samedi 22 fevrier par des combattants
kurdes, après des combats avec des groupes affilies a Al-Qaïda.

Manifestation a Taksim – La police empeche un rassemblement contre
la nouvelle loi sur internet Les forces de police ont disperse une
nouvelle manifestation samedi soir près de la place Taksim. Plusieurs
centaines de personnes se sont rassemblees pour protester contre la
loi approuvee par le president Abdullah Gul le 18 fevrier. Cette loi
augmente le contrôle de l’Etat sur internet (lire nos precedents
articles). La police a utilise du gaz lacrymogène et des canons a
eau pour empecher la manifestation, rapporte le quotidien Hurriyet
Daily News.

Une vingtaine de nationalistes Turcs et Azeris ont crie a Istanbul > Un groupe d’une vingtaine
de jeunes nationalistes Turcs et Azeris ont tente de realiser une
manifestation anti-armenienne. Selon le journal turc Milliyet, le 23
fevrier cette poignee de nationalistes Turcs et Azeris sous couvert
de l’organisation rappelant les faits de Khodjalou se sont reunis
près de la mosquee de Chichli a Istanbul -dans le quartier de la
redaction du journal armenien >- et profere des menaces et
insultes a l’encontre des Armeniens.

Holocauste. La plus vieille survivante est morte La plus vieille
survivante de l’holocauste du monde, dont l’histoire a fait l’, est
morte a Londres a l’âge de 110 ans. Alice Herz-Sommer, juive originaire
de Prague, avait passe deux annees pendant la deuxième guerre mondiale
dans le camp de concentration de Terezin, en Tchecoslovaquie, où elle
distrayait ses codetenus en jouant du piano.

Depeche de l’APA [ 24 Fevrier 2014 11:52 ] – Agence de Presse
d’Azerbaïdjan Le Collectif VAN vous propose un article de l’APA
(Agence de presse azerie) date du 24 fevrier 2014. Les articles
de ce site (ecrits generalement dans un francais rudimentaire) ne
sont pas commentes de notre part. Ils peuvent contenir des propos
negationnistes envers le genocide armenien ou d’autres informations a
prendre sous toute reserve. “