Author: Badalian Vardan

OUTCOME OF DIFFICULT TALKS WITH UEFA

Country – Friday, 20 December 2013, 23:11

In 2016 the State Oil Company of Azerbaijani (SOCAR) will sponsor the
UEFA Euro 2016. The agreement with UEFA has been signed already, which
means that SOCAR will be advertised in all the stadiums, including
the qualifiers of our national team held in Armenia. However, the
president of the Football Federation of Armenia has announced on
Armenia TV today that there will be no ads of the Azerbaijani company
during the games of our national team. Ruben Hairapetyan said the
decision was achieved in the result of difficult negotiations with
UEFA. As to ads on TV, Ruben Hairapetyan said he is responsible for
the stadium, and TV channels should decide whether they will run the
ads of the Azerbaijani company. Note that on the eve of the start of
the Armenian-Turkish football diplomacy when the president of Turkey
Gul arrived in Armenia, the image of Mount Ararat was removed from the
logo of the Football Federation printed on the shirts of the national
team. The president of the FFA also dwelled on the application of
Yerevan to be one of the cities of Euro 2020. He said chances are not
big, and the problem is the lack of a stadium that is in line with
the European standards. Armenia cannot afford to build one that will
require an investment of over 100 million dollars.

SMOKED CROCODILES IMPORTED INTO ARMENIA FROM US

The smoked crocodiles currently on sale for 380,000 drams (about
$1000) in Armenia’s SAS supermarket chain ahead of the New Year have
been actively discussed in the Armenian press and on social media in
recent days.

Spokeswoman for the State Food Safety Service Armine Sukiasian told
PastInfo news agency that 3 smoked crocodiles were imported into
Armenia from the U.S. about two weeks ago. According to her, the
smoked crocodiles, each weighing about 12 kg, were made in November
of this year and their storage life is 3 months. She added that
crocodile meat is considered safe and is consumed in some countries,
particularly in the United States.

ANCA REFERS TO THE ARMENIAN SOLDIER’S MURDER BY AZERBAIJANI SNIPERS

20.Dec.2013 – 17:06

Members of Congress continue to express alarm at Azerbaijan’s most
recent military attack across the Armenian border, which have made
Armenian soldier Hrant Poghosyan Azerbaijan’s latest casualty,
reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

The response, to date, from the Obama Administration and OSCE Minsk
Group Co-Chairs, currently travelling in the Caucasus region, has been
delayed, muted and off-target, limited only to generic references to
border violence “undermining prospects for peace.”

“Our Administration, which is represented as a Co-Chair of the
OSCE Minsk Group, should be clear in condemning the murder of Hrant
Poghosyan, breaking, as it must, from its pattern of pretend parity
in response to each and every new Azerbaijani attack,” said Aram
Hamparian, Executive Director of the ANCA. “The OSCE Minsk Group’s
artificial even-handedness is inexcusable, and only emboldens Baku,
which has made a cruel and dangerous habit of cross-border killings
during visits by international mediators.”

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Central Valley Congressman Jim
Costa (D-CA) noted that he was “appalled to learn of yet another
murder of an Armenian soldier in an unprovoked attack by Azerbaijani
troops against Armenian forces. This tragic bloodshed follows the
Azerbaijani government’s heroic treatment of Ramil Safarov – the
Azerbaijani military officer who savagely killed an Armenian solider.

Azerbaijan, its military, and the perpetrator of this heinous crime
must be held accountable for their actions and brought to justice.”

Costa’s comments follow statements issued earlier this week by the
Congressmen Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Brad Sherman (D-CA) condemning
the attack.

“Azerbaijan has yet again shown that it is not serious about
establishing peaceful relations with Armenia and Artsakh. Despite
the request for a ceasefire during the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group negotiations between
Armenia and Azerbaijan, Azeri forces have killed an Armenian solider,
Hrant Poghosyan. The shooting was unprovoked and Armenian forces have
respected the request for a ceasefire,” explained Rep. Brad Sherman
(D-CA)

Rep. Schiff echoed those concerns and called attention to Azerbaijan’s
ongoing use of violence to resolve the Karbakah conflict. “One need
only look at the sick display of adulation that greeted Ramil Safarov
— the Azerbaijani military officer who beheaded an Armenian colleague
during a NATO Partnership for Peace exercise — to see how the Azeri
government has glorified this violence. Rather than prison, Safarov
was paraded through the streets and given a new house and a promotion.

Baku’s newest murderer will not be brought to justice until the
international community insists on an end to these atrocities.”

On December 19th, the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs issued a press
release referencing, in general terms, the border violence that led
to Poghosyan’s murder. According to the release, “the Co-Chairs noted
that recent violence on the border undermines prospects for peace.

They encouraged the sides to refrain from further actions that could
increase tensions, and to work to maintain an atmosphere conducive
to progress at the negotiating table.”

ARMENIAN ORIGIN SOLDIER’S MURDER WITNESS ADMITS ALTERING STATEMENT UNDER DURESS

Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Dec 20 2013

Ýsmail SaymazISTANBUL – Radikal

An eyewitness to the murder of a soldier of Armenian origin who was
killed while performing his military service in 2011 has admitted
that he altered his testimony under pressure from a relative of the
suspected murderer.

Eyewitness Halil Ekþi had first said that suspected murderer Kývanc
Aðaoðlu shot soldier Sevag Þahin Balýkcý, but later claimed not to
know how Balýkcý was killed. He now says that he was forced to change
his witness testimony after being threatened by Aðaoðlu’s relative,
Bulent Kaya.

Armenian-Turkish soldier Balýkcý was shot in a gendarmerie station in
Batman province by another soldier, Kývanc Aðaoðlu, who was stationed
at the same post and also performing his military service.

Ekþi had confirmed that suspect Aðaoðlu had pointed his weapon at
Sevag in his first testimony, but then claimed the incident was just
an accident at a later hearing.

While the trial of suspect Kývanc Aðaoðlu is continuing on charges
of murder, Ekþi and Kaya are now also facing lawsuits on charges of
“false statements” and “instigation of false statements” respectively.

Ekþi admitted providing testimony in the first hearing of the lawsuit
that took place on Dec. 19.

He said Kaya called him repeatedly after he completed his military
service and returned to the Aegean province of Aydýn, where he resides,
asking him to change his statement.

“Later on this man [Kaya] came to Aydýn. He talked to someone on
the phone and wrote down the parts of my testimony that needed to
be changed. After being pressured into doing so, we rearranged the
respective parts of my testimony,” Ekþi said.

FORMER SOVIET COUNTRIES SEE MORE HARM THAN GOOD FROM BREAKUP

United Press International UPI
December 19, 2013 Thursday 11:46 AM EST

PRINCETON, N.J., Dec. 19

Residents in most of countries once part of the Soviet Union say
the breakup more likely hurt their countries, not benefited them,
a Gallup poll indicated.

Of the 11 countries that resulted from the collapse 22 years ago, only
Azerbaijanis, Kazakhstanis and Turkmens said they were more likely
to see benefits, results of the poll released Thursday indicated.

Georgians were divided.

Overall, 51 percent of residents of the former Soviet republics said
the collapse of the Soviet Union hurt their countries while 24 percent
said it benefited their countries, results indicated.

Adults 15 to 44 were nearly three times as likely as those 65 years
and older to say the breakup benefited their countries, results
indicated. Older residents in all 11 countries were more likely to
say the breakup harmed their countries.

Overall, residents who are more educated are less likely to say the
collapse harmed their country and more likely to say it benefited them,
the Princeton, N.J., polling agency said.

Thirty percent of residents who say children in their country have
the opportunity to learn and grow say their country benefited, while
18 percent expressed the opposite view.

Results are based on face-to-face interviews with at least 1,000 adults
conducted from June to August in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
and Ukraine. The margin of error ranges from 2.7 percentage points
to 3.8 percentage points.

ARMENIA’S MEMBERSHIP TO ECONOMIC ALLIANCES WON’T LIMIT MILITARY COOPERATION WITH U.S., DAVIT TONOYAN SAYS

Thursday 19 December 2013 16:57

First Deputy Minister of Defense of Armenia Davit Tonoyan

Yerevan /Mediamax/. First Deputy Minister of Defense of Armenia
Davit Tonoyan said today that Armenia’s possible membership to any
commercial-economic alliances won’t limit military and security
cooperation with the U.S. or other states.

Davit Tonoyan said this after the end of Armenia-U.S. bilateral
defense consultations held in Yerevan today, Mediamax reports.

“Vice versa, our defense cooperation with the U.S. will develop
even faster. There are no restrictions and there may not be any. The
cooperation is realized within our priorities and it’s our sovereign
right to set them”, said the Deputy Minister.

Evelyn Farkas, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, who arrived
in Yerevan to take part in the defense consultations recalled touching
upon Russia’s possible impact on U.S.-Armenia cooperation that the
U.S. also cooperates with Russia in defense sphere and the current
political discords on other issues between the two states don’t affect
discussions in the defense sphere.

– See more at:

FOREIGN MINISTRY WILL HELP ARMENIANS WISHING TO RETURN TO SYRIA

December 19, 2013 | 17:29

YEREVAN. – Armenian government on Thursday approved regulations,
according to which citizens can apply to foreign ministry to get a
document that attests to a person being Armenian.

In certain cases, a person who cannot return to a country because of
not having any sufficient documents can apply to the foreign ministry’s
consul department that is authorized to confirm the document that
attests to a person being Armenian. This particularly refers to
Armenian citizens who have come to RA from Syria.

MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS RECEIVED THE DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE OF THE USA

18.12.2013

On December 18 Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian received Evelyn N.

Farkas, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia, Ukraine
and Eurasia.

Greeting the guest Minister Nalbandian stated with satisfaction that
Armenian-US partnership in different areas including in defense and
security areas, have experienced dynamic development during the recent
years and there are the conditions for their expansion.

Expressing gratitude for the reception Evelyn N. Farkas stated that
the United States attaches a great importance to the development
of cooperation in the area of defense and her visit is dedicated to
their further enhancement.

During the meeting the sides touched upon Armenia’s participation in
international peacekeeping activities and stressed the importance of
the contribution of Armenia in the peacekeeping missions in Afghanistan
and Kosovo.

Armenia-NATO relations were also discussed.

The Foreign Minister referred to the problems of the armament control
in the region, particularly the importance of the modernization
of the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe(CFE) for the
preservation of regional peace.

The Minister emphasized that Armenia actively participates in the
international initiatives of the elimination of weapons of mass
destruction, non-proliferation of nuclear, biological, chemical
weapons and the fight on terrorism.

Upon the request of the guest Minister Nalbandian presented the recent
developments in Nagorno-Karabakh regulation process and Armenia’s
approaches towards the regional issues.

PROSECUTION FOR DENYING ARMENIAN GENOCIDE UNJUSTIFIED, COURT RULES

United Press International UPI
Dec 18 2013

Dec. 17, 2013 at 6:09 PM

STRASBOURG, France, Dec. 17 (UPI) — Prosecuting someone for denying
Turkey’s 1915 massacre of Armenians is an attack on freedom of
expression, the European Court of Human Rights ruled Tuesday.

The ruling by the court in Strasbourg, France, is a response to a
2007 case in Lausanne, Switzerland, in which Dogu Pernicek, leader
of the leftist Turkish Workers Party, was found guilty of “denying
the Armenian genocide for racist motives.”

Denial of genocide is a violation of Switzerland’s anti-racism law.

Pernicek’s testimony did not deny the massacres of Armenians by the
Ottoman Empire, which ruled Turkey during World War I, the human
rights court said, but noted he was active at conferences in which
he described the Ottoman Empire’s alleged genocidal motives as an
“international lie.”

The judgment came as the French newspaper Le Monde reported a law
banning denial of the Armenian genocide, an election promise of
President Francois Hollande, will be sent to the French Parliament
within months.

A similar French law, passed in 2011 to the anger of Turkey, was
declared unconstitutional, Radio France Internationale reported.

SENIOR ARMENIAN LAWMAKER LAMBASTES AZERBAIJAN OVER ‘GENOCIDE’ CLAIM

Karabakh | 17.12.13 | 14:22

Photolure

Deputy speaker of the Armenian parliament Eduard Sharmazanov has
described the recent statement by a senior Azeri official accusing
Armenians of carrying out “genocidal policies” as something that
shows Azerbaijan’s “real face, desires and goals”, reports Aysor.am.

Ali Hasanov, head of the Public-Political Department of the Azerbaijani
President’s Office, in particular, claimed that Armenians have for
more than 200 years carried out “genocidal policies” against Azerbaijan
and also called on Azeris to avoid being good neighbors with Armenians.

Sharmazanov, who is also a spokesman for the ruling Republican Party
of Armenia, said: “While leaders of the [OSCE Minsk Group] co-chair
countries are visiting the region, Azeris, remaining committed to
their policies of lies and falsehood, disseminate hatred and hostility
towards Armenians, and the result of this is also the recent killing
of an Armenian soldier by their sniper. History has shown that such
policies have negative consequences for Azerbaijan itself. One thing is
clear: they have not learned anything and have not forgotten anything.”