Author: Badalian Vardan

ARMENIAN PEACEKEEPERS PARTICIPATE IN MULTINATIONAL EXERCISE IN GERMANY

13:58 03.02.2014

>From January 13 to February 2 a 75-member peacekeeping subdivisions of
the Armenian Armed Forces participated in the recurrent multinational
military exercises at the training center of US Armed Forces in
Germany organized within the framework of the “Kosovo Forces” program.

Participating in the drills were also peacekeeping subdivisions
from the US, Germany, Romania, Portugal, Slovenia, Albania and other
countries.

Armenian peacekeepers have been participating in the Kosovo mission
since 2004 under the Greek and American command.

TERRORISME. POUR ISRAEL, LA TURQUIE HEBERGE DES CAMPS D’AL QAIDA

TURQUIE

Selon le chef des renseignements israëliens, des djihadistes d’Al
Qaïda ont etabli des camps en Turquie.

Certains djihadistes d’Al Qaïda qui combattent le regime de Bachar
al Assad en Syrie ont etabli des camps en Turquie, d’où ils peuvent
facilement se rendre en Europe, a declare mercredi le chef des
renseignements militaires israeliens.

Presentant pendant une conference sur la securite a Tel Aviv une
carte du Proche-Orient, le general Aviv Kochavi a explique que des
combattants se reclamant d’Al Qaïda entraient chaque semaine en Syrie
mais que tous “n’y restent pas”.

Le militaire israelien n’a fourni aucun chiffre a l’appui de ses
declarations. Sa porte-parole a precise que la carte donnait une
indication de la taille et de l’emplacement des camps, qui semblaient
se situer dans les provinces de Karaman, Osmaniye et Sanliurfa. Pas
de commentaire du gouvernement turque

La taille des points sur la carte pour signaler la presence d’Al Qaïda
en Turquie est moitie moindre que celle qui marque le Sinaï egyptien,
qui abriterait environ 200 djihadistes selon l’armee israelienne.

Le Premier ministre turc, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, dont le gouvernement
soutient ouvertement l’Armee syrienne libre (ASL), la branche la plus
moderee de la rebellion, a regulièrement dementi heberger des groupes
lies a Al Qaïda.

“La Syrie projette son conflit dans toute la region”, a neanmoins
assure le general Kochavi. “Ces points en Turquie n’ont pas ete mis la
par erreur par l’auteur de la carte et, de la, la route vers l’Europe
est courte”, a-t-il ajoute.

Le ministère turc des Affaires etrangères n’a pas fait de commentaire.

lundi 3 fevrier 2014, Stephane (c)armenews.com

The New York Times
January 30, 2014 Thursday

Love and Hatred in Kiev

By YURI ANDRUKHOVYCH

KIEV, Ukraine — It has been severely cold here lately, with
temperatures dipping below freezing night after night. What sustains
the protesters at Independence Square in weather this bleak can only
come from inside: an exceptionally hot mix of despair, hope,
self-sacrifice and hatred.

Yes, hatred. Morality does not forbid hating murderers. Especially if
the murderers are in power or in direct service of those in power —
with batons, tear gas, water cannons, rubber bullets, and, starting
Jan. 22, live ammunition.

That day, the news came about the first two protesters to be shot and
killed by the police since the protests began in November. One of
them, Serhiy Nihoyan, a 20-year-old Ukrainian of Armenian heritage,
dreamed of becoming an actor. The other, Mikhail Zhiznevsky, a citizen
of Belarus, was also young, just 25 years old. An ethnic Armenian and
a Belarusian, giving their lives for the freedom of Ukrainians — this
gives the lie to the fears, held by some in the West, that the
democracy movement here is being hijacked by Ukrainian nationalists.

If anyone is promoting hatred it is the government. My friend Josef
Zissels, chairman of the Association of Jewish Organizations and
Communities of Ukraine, and vice president of the World Jewish
Congress, wrote a few days ago that the website of Berkut, the special
police force (and a final line of defense for the powers that be) had
been ”flooded with anti-Semitic materials that allege that the Jews
are to blame for organizing at Maidan,” the central square, which has
become synonymous with the protests.

Mr. Zissels wrote: ”This is completely absurd, but those who are
armed with batons and shields, now facing the protesters, believe
this. They are brainwashed into believing that the Maidan is a Jewish
project, and thus there is no need to take pity on anyone — you can
beat them all.”

Beat them all. The police have beaten women and children, and even
priests trying to intervene to stop the bloodshed. Berkut not only
beats; it maims, tortures and kills. Its members like to pounce on
individuals who have gotten separated from the crowd of protesters.
Some have even posed for the cameras, their boots on the heads of
victims lying on the ground. They proudly upload these photos and
videos to their personal pages at social networking sites.

Article 21 of our Constitution states that ”human rights and freedoms
shall be inalienable and inviolable.”

The abuses by the ruling authorities, and their escalating use of
violence, have threatened to make the Constitution a joke.

On Jan. 16, the government of President Viktor F. Yanukovych pushed
through Parliament a package of laws severely curtailing freedom of
speech and assembly. This week, the prime minister resigned, and the
majority of the repressive laws were repealed, partly because of the
wave of international condemnation.

It is precisely for their rights and freedoms — long and brazenly
violated by the Yanukovych regime — that the Ukrainian people are now
fighting. They have been given no other choice. Our national anthem
says, ”We will lay down our body and soul for our freedom.” On Jan.
19, the protests turned violent. But if no one resists the riot
police, the thinking goes, Ukraine will be turned into one large
prison in a matter of weeks.

This is why an acquaintance of mine, a translator of Kierkegaard and
Ibsen, now spends her time making Molotov cocktails, and her young
sons, classics majors, aged 17 and 19, throw their mother’s products
in the direction of the wall of smoke on Hrushevsky Street, which runs
past major government buildings.

This is why an 80-year-old Kiev grandmother brought her knitting
needles to the protest headquarters and gave them to the first
protester she saw with the words, ”Take them, son. If you don’t kill
the monster, maybe you’ll at least stop it.”

This is why even the Hare Krishnas in Kiev now carry baseball bats.

We are defending ourselves, our country, our future, Europe’s future
— some with Molotov cocktails, some with knitting needles, some with
paving stones, some with baseball bats, some with texts published on
the Internet, some with photos documenting the atrocities.

The police have been targeting journalists as rabidly as they have
targeted medics taking the wounded out of the scene of clashes. Berkut
has been treating journalists with cameras and notebooks as the enemy.
Several dozen journalists have been wounded, hit by stun grenades,
tear gas or rubber bullets.

Recently, coordinators of the protest made an appeal across online
social networks for medicine and diapers –which are excellent at
absorbing blood. The people of Kiev began bringing drugs and nappies
to the protest headquarters at such a scale that in just a few hours a
new message went up online: ”Enough medication for now! We don’t have
enough storage space! But we urgently need warm clothes, bread, tea
and coffee!” And again, people from all over Kiev brought everything
they could to help.

The authorities can’t understand this. Recently, some unknown thugs in
civilian clothes kidnapped an activist and spent the night torturing
him, demanding: Who is funding the Maidan? Which Western sources? Is
it the State Department, or someone else?

The regime’s mental system of coordinates cannot fit one simple fact:
The Maidan funds itself, through its own love and its own hatred.

I have never loved my homeland as much as I love it now. Before, I had
always been skeptical and restrained toward it. I am 53 years old, and
had long put sentimentality behind me.

But these days I see our women, young and old, sorting with amazing
efficiency the donated medications and food supplies, I see hipster
students in hockey masks and camouflage pants fearlessly going onto
the frontline barricades, I see our workers and farmers providing
security for the Maidan protesters, our grannies and grandpas who keep
bringing more and more hot food to Independence Square, and I feel a
lump in my throat.

Yuri Andrukhovych is a poet, essayist, translator and the author of
the novels ”Perverzion” and ”The Moscoviad.” This article was
translated by Vitaly Chernetsky from the Ukrainian.

URL:

CTK Business News Wire, Czech Rep
January 31, 2014 Friday 6:39 PM (Central European Time)

Trade with Armenia could be much higher –confederation

Prague Jan 31 (CTK)

Czech trade with Armenia is far from filling its potential,
Confederation of Industry president Jaroslav Hanak said at a
Czech-Armenian business forum held on the ocassion of a visit of
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan.

Some 100 entrepreneurs from both countries took part in the event.

“Trade with Armenia is not at the level we would imagine,” Hanak said,
adding that trade turnover between the two countries was worth EUR32m
in 2012 and only some EUR20.3m last year.

Czech President Milos Zeman also attended the forum. He recommended to
Armenian companies Czech cars, in particular Skoda cars, and
traditional Czech beer. Sargsyan talked about mineral resources of his
country.

“Czech companies are examining opportunities on the Armenian market
above all in energy supplies, municipal waste management, engineering
industry, information technologies, health care equipment and
prospecting, and are also looking at business opportunities in other
segments,” Industry and Trade Minister Jan Mladek said.

Seven memoranda were signed at the business forum, which is good news
that could intensify mutual cooperation, Hanak noted.

The Export Guarantee and Insurance Company (EGAP) signed a cooperation
agreement with new Armenian credit insurer EIAA in the presence of
both presidents.

“The agreement will allow Czech and Armenian companies to cooperate on
projects in third countries and is, of course, very important also for
further diversification of Czech exports,” said EGAP’s CEO Jan
Prochazka.

The agreements also concern, for example, cooperation between the
Nature protection agency (AOPK) and Armenia’s Mineral Resources
Agency, as well as between some regions and national parks in both
countries.

fs,kou/er

The Oxford Times, UK
January 30, 2014 Thursday

Chilingirian Quartet – maestros to teach and play

by Nicola Lisle

Nicola Lisle talks to violinist Levon Chilingirian as he brings his
famous string quartet to Abingdon School

You wouldn’t normally expect to hear an internationally-renowned
chamber ensemble performing in a school hall.

But the Chilingirian Quartet will feel quite at home next week at
Abingdon School, where they will hold a master class for the school’s
advanced violinists and viola players before giving a public concert
in the evening. It will be the quartet’s fourth such visit to the
school.

“It’s become almost like a tradition,” says Levon, who formed the
quartet in London in 1971.

“The first time the quartet played, the audience at the concert was
incredibly responsive and amazing, and it was such a great pleasure
for us. So on the one side there’s the audience, who appreciated it,
and on the other side the students, who we get on very well with.”

Education is an important part of the quartet’s ethos, and they have
worked with music colleges and conservatoires all over the world. But
Abingdon is the only school the quartet works with on a regular basis,
and Levon is delighted with what he calls their “very special
relationship”. As teachers themselves, quartet members appreciate the
dedication of the school’s music teachers.

“We do realise that the hard work is done by the week-in, week-out
teachers,” Levon says. “Hopefully we can reinforce what they’ve been
saying and inspire the boys further. “They will be playing what they
have prepared, and I am sure there will be a variety of things. There
will be sonatas, duos and quartets. “We’re here to help them with the
music they are working on, and then they will come and hear us play.”

This year’s concert features two great masterpieces of the chamber
music repertoire – Beethoven’s Rasumovsky Quartet Op.59 No.2 in E
Minor and Schubert’s Death and the Maiden. “These are two incredible
pieces, very substantial, probably two of our favourite pieces,
probably the audience’s as well, so it’s a fantastic programme of
exhilarating music – a great Beethoven quartet and a great Schubert
quartet,” he says.

The Chilingirian Quartet is one of the UK’s longest-running quartets,
although Armenian-born Levon is now the only original member. He and
his co-founders started the quartet while still students at the Royal
College of Music, and he is somewhat surprised at their longevity.

“We certainly didn’t intend in 1971 that we would be playing for over
40 years as a quartet, but that’s what’s happened.” he laughs.

Michael Stinton, director of music at Abingdon, is delighted to be
welcoming Levon and the quartet back to the school. “The boys can
learn so much from hearing these internationally famous musicians who
are at the top of their game and to have the quartet coach our young
chamber musicians beforehand is a huge bonus,” he says. “The quartet’s
last visit in February 2012 was an unforgettable experience for us and
there’s growing excitement as the next concert draws near.”

“The combination of master-classes and concerts is something we love
so we’re enormously looking forward to it,” Levon says. “There’s
always a great atmosphere, and we enjoy being at the school.”

Chilingirian Quartet
Amey Theatre, Park Road, Abingdon
Wednesday, February 5, 7pm
[email protected] or

Iranian Army Preparing for 8 Wargames

Tue Jan 28, 2014 2:42

TEHRAN (FNA)- Commander of the Iranian Army Ground Force General Ahmad
Reza Pourdastan said his forces will stage eight sets of drills in the
next Iranian year (starts March 21, 2014).

“The Ground Force programs for the year 1393 (March 2014-March 2015)
comprise of eight wargames, including a drill in the cyber field for
the first time,” he said.

The Iranian commander underlined Iran’s full preparedness to confront
enemy’s possible threats, but stressed that the Armed Forces need to
maintain their preparedness through exercises.

Iran’s Army and IRGC hold regular wargames to practice combat tactics
and also test new home-made military tools, equipment and weapons in
action.

Iranian officials and commanders have repeatedly underlined that all
military exercises and trainings of the Iranian Armed Forces are
merely meant to serve deterrent purposes.

“When the enemy observes that our Armed Forces are constantly in
wargame zones and their fingers are kept on the trigger, it will not
dare to invade the Islamic Iran’s borders,” Pourdastan said in
January, underlining the significance of military trainings for
boosting the country’s deterrent power.

As regards the Iranian Armed Forces’ military exercises, Pourdastan
described wargames as “very important” to the Iranian military, and
said drills have provided the Iranian military forces, including the
Army Ground Force, with an opportunity to test its achievements and
remove deficiencies for future missions.

The Iranian Ground Force conducted Beit ol-Moqaddas 25 in the general
zone of Isfahan from May 20 to 24 in a bid to boost its units’
military preparedness and exercise different asymmetric tactics.

Lieutenant Commander of Ground Force for Training General Hossein
Shokouhi told FNA at the time that different army units, including air
force, airborne, infantry, armored, cavalry, artillery, air-defense,
drone, communications and logistical units participated in the
wargames.

Shokouhi further noted that during the drills, the Iranian army tested
its latest home-made weapons and equipment, including the newly
unveiled Shaher sniper rifle, Neinava tactical vehicle, optimized
Scorpion tanks, anti-chopper launchers, Fadak wireless radio and
Akhgar machinegun.

The commander also said that Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and
aircrafts were used in the exercises for reconnaissance and aerial
imaging operations.

Freedom House: No country reacts as aggressive as Azerbaijan to
reports of organization

17:03 01/02/2014 >> REGION

No country in the world reacts to the report of Freedom House in such
an aggressive manner as the Azerbaijani authorities do, Arch
Puddington, the Vice President of the American Human Rights
Organization Freedom House said in an interview with Azerbaijani News
Agency Turan in connection with the recent accusations of the official
Baku.

According to him it is not the first time that Azerbaijan reacts to
the reports in a wrong way. Instead of discussing the issues
highlighted by the Human Rights Organization, the authorities in
politically unfair and unconvincing way attack Freedom House by
organizing spam attacks on it.

To the question why the government of Azerbaijan reacts to Freedom
House Puddington answered that this is not the only organization that
gives a very critical assessment of the situation of democracy and
human rights in Azerbaijan, so perhaps the government of Azerbaijan
acts in the same manner with other organizations as well. “They are
obviously unhappy with our estimates and reports. I don’t know why but
they think that the availability of the reports in the press that
contradict the reality and an online campaign against us would affect
our analysis. Anyway it will not affect.”

Puddington states that if we look back at the historical period
between the years of 1995, 1998 and 2000, Freedom House gave
Azerbaijan much better estimates than the country receives today.

“Thus, we were not biased by Azerbaijan in 2000 when we ranked
Azerbaijan as partially free country as we had expectations that the
adherence to the standards of Human Rights could be improved in the
country,” the Human Rights Defender said noting that the situation
worsened in the last decade.

“I don’t know what it is. I know that Azerbaijan has energy resources
and this is the reason why it is addressed diplomatically,
specifically because it is an energy giant. In this regard our reports
have less impact on Azerbaijan than they could have on the countries
without energy resources. However, I also think that the leadership of
Azerbaijan certainly would like to see their country recognized if not
as a great power but at least a respected member of international
diplomatic and economic sphere. Perhaps our reports in regard to this
irritate them,” Puddington noted.

To the question about the inclusion of Nagorno Karabakh into the list
of “partially free” countries the Human Rights Defender said that
their organization gives individual assessment also to the areas which
are not recognized as sovereign countries such as the West Bank , Gaza
Strip , Palestine , Western Sahara , South Ossetia, Abkhazia
Transnistria , Tibet and others.

Puddington stated that the organization doesn’t single out Nagorno
Karabakh and doesn’t try to punish Azerbaijan.

“We don’t have pro-Armenian or pro-Azerbaijani bias. We assess the
Nagorno Karabakh because it is a disputed territory. This is a
territory the status of which is not decided yet and which is not
controlled either by Azerbaijan or by Armenia. Our analysts considered
that the situation in Nagorno Karabakh is such that it can be
evaluated as “partially free” and that is why we gave that estimate,”
Puddington said.

He also referred to the release of a call record by Azerbaijani Media
where the director of Azerbaijani News Agency Turan Mehman Aliyev
speaks with the alleged representative of the Freedom House some
Evgeni who called from Ukraine to tell that they are ready “to make
the changes” in Azerbaijan.

“Evgeni doesn’t work at Freedom House. We don’t know anyone by that
name. And of course there was no phone call to Azerbaijan from the
official saying that we are ready to aim at Azerbaijan. This is a
primitive fable devised by Azerbaijani authorities,” Puddington
declared.

Note that according to the Freedom House report “Freedom in the World
2014” Armenia and the Nagorno Karabakh Republic are ranked as
“partially free” countries, while Azerbaijan is noted by the
organization among the countries that recorded a significant decline
in freedom.

Source: Panorama.am

Sponsorship Needed for Inesa Sargsyan at Gavar Orphanage

Gavar Orphanage is a state orphanage in Gavar housing approximately
115 children between the ages of 3 and 18. SOAR’s Sponsorship
Program is the primary mechanism through which we provide support to
specific orphaned Armenians. The entire donation benefits the
individual you are sponsoring – no funds support the facilities or
SOAR generally. Once a week, we highlight an orphaned Armenian in
need of sponsorship. This week we highlight Inesa Sargsyan.

Name: Inesa Sargsyan

Facility: Gavar Orphanage

Gender: Female

DOB: April 2o, 1992

Father’s name/Occupation: Unknown

Mother’s name/Occupation: Unknown

Family history: Unknown

Health history and current medical conditions:

Inesa studies in the Law Department of Gavar State University. She is
an excellent student.

If you would like to sponsor Inesa, please contact George S.
Yacoubian, Jr., at [email protected] or select her (under Gavar)
through our Sponsorship Enrollment page. Thank you in advance for
your support!

SOCIETY FOR ORPHANED ARMENIAN RELIEF (SOAR)

1060 First Avenue, Suite 400, King of Prussia, PA 19406

Office: 610.213.3452 Fax: 610.229.5168

Email: [email protected] Web:

Armenia’s natural population growth in 2013 declined by 2 percent from the
year before to 14,605 people

YEREVAN, February 1. / ARKA /. Armenia’s natural population growth in 2013
declined by almost 2 percent from the year before to 14,605, Karine
Kuyumjyan, head of census and demography department of the National
Statistical Service, told a news conference today.

The number of babies born last year decreased by 1.7 % to 41,770 (19,570
girls and 22,220 boys) against 42,480 babies born in 2012. The number of
deaths also decreased by 1.6 % to 27,165 against 27.599 in 2012.

Kuyumjyan said the birth rate in Yerevan, Aragatsotn , Ararat , Kotayk
and Shirak regions was higher of the national average (14 per 1,000
persons), while the lowest birth rates were recorded in Vayots Dzor ,
Armavir, Syunik , Gegharkunik and Tavush regions.

According to demographer, 411 cases of child mortality (under 1 year) were
reported last year against 458 cases in 2012.

Armenia’s population as of January 1, 2014 decreased by 9,500 from the year
earlier to 3. 017.4 million. Some 1. 914.3 million were urban residents. -0-

– See more at:

ARMENIE
Une personne gée arménienne qualifiée de > par Bakou

L’armée azerbaïdjanaise a confirmé ses allégations selon lesquelles un
résident de 77 ans d’un village à la frontière arménienne capturé par
ses forces faisait partie d’une unité de commando arménien qui a
essayé d’entrer en Azerbaïdjan cette semaine.

Les agences de presse azerbaïdjanaises ont cité un porte-parole du
ministère de la Défense à Bakou affirmant que l’homme, Mamikon
Khojoyan, a agi comme guide pour les troupes arméniennes qui
envisageient de mener une incursion transfrontalière.

Le ministère avait affirmé plus tôt que Mamikon Khojoyan avait été
blessé et arrêté mardi après que les forces azerbaïdjanaises aient
repoussé un >. D’autres reportages
azerbaïdjanais ont déclaré, cependant, que le résident de Verin
Karmiraghbyur, un village du nord de l’Arménie, était en fait détenu
par des villageois azéris et remis aux autorités militaires.

Le ministère arménien de la Défense et le maire du village de Verin
Karmiraghbyur, Kamo Chobanian, ont ri des revendications officielles
de Bakou. Selon Chobanian, le vieil homme souffre de troubles mentaux
et s’est égaré dans le territoire azerbaïdjanais par accident.

Uzeir Jafarov, un analyste militaire de l’Azerbaïdjan, a également
rejeté la version officielle de l’Azerbaïdjan sur la capture de
Khojoyan. >, a déclaré
Jafarov. >.

Khojoyan a été montré jeudi à la télévision azerbaïdjanaise. Il a été
montré assis sur ce qui ressemblait à un lit d’hôpital, avec son bras
droit dans le pltre, et a parlé à la chaîne ANS. > et a ajouté >.

samedi 1er février 2014,
Stéphane (c)armenews.com