Author: Badalian Vardan

NO ARMENIANS AMONG CASUALTIES IN DAMASCUS UNIVERSITY EXPLOSION

09:41, 29 March, 2013

YEREVAN, MARCH 29, ARMENPRESS. No Armenians have been recorded yet
among the casualties in the Damascus University Faculty of Engineering
explosion on March 28. Our compatriot from Damascus Nazareth Elmajian
stated this in a conversation with “Armenpress”. In addition he
noted that the bomb fell on the cafe of the faculty. Among other
things Elmajian noted that recently explosions have been recorded in
the capital rather frequently. Notwithstanding general situation in
Damascus is not intense, although shooting can be heard from time to
time in the distant districts. In accordance with Syrian SANA agency
10 students died and 29 were wounded in the explosion.

A number of other Arab sources state that there were 15 casualties and
dozens of wounded students. Also there was information that another
bomb fell on the Beirut Street.

In accordance with the UN data clashes lasting for already two years
in Syria caused death of over 70 thousand people, including more than
four dozens Armenians.

ARMENIAN ORIGIN SOLDIER KILLED ACCIDENTALLY: COURT

Hurriyet, Turkey
March 27 2013

A Diyarbakýr military judge sentenced yesterday a private to four years
and five months in prison for killing Armenian-Turkish soldier Sevag
Balýkcý with “conscious negligence,” but stopped short of sentencing
the suspect to the more serious charge of deliberate murder.

“It seems my dear Sevag’s life was that cheap, so killing is legal,”
the dead soldier’s mother, Ani Balýkcý, told the Hurriyet Daily News
on the phone yesterday.

Aðaoðlu, who killed Balýkcý on April 24, 2011, will serve three years
in prison for killing Balýkcý “with a stray bullet.”

In passing the sentence, the Diyarbakýr Air Force Command Military
Court dismissed the Balýkcý family’s lawyers’ demands to sentence
Aðaoðlu on charges of deliberate murder. Ani Balýkcý and lawyer Cem
Halavurt said they would appeal at a higher court and would consider
carrying the case to the European Court of Human Rights if their
demands were not met. They will also hold a press conference on the
court verdict. “We are determined to continue our legal battle,”
Balýkcý said. “We may even take the case to the European Court of
Human Rights if we have to.”

Activist Garo Paylan noted that the date of Balýkcý’s killing was the
anniversary of April 24, the annual date recognized internationally for
remembering the victims of violence at the end of the Ottoman Empire.

“He was killed on an April 24 and it coincided with Easter, but
the judge did not pay heed to our warnings,” Baylan said. “The
investigation should have been extended.”

Paylan said Aðaoðlu’s lawyers were expecting the decision.

“After the decision was announced, they made statements such as,
‘The minorities are our brothers,'” Baylan said. “That was a decision
they had been expecting.”

March/27/2013

University Leadership Doesn’t Want Changes
Karine Ionesyan

17:29 28/03/2013
Story from Lragir.am News:

Head of National Tempus office in Armenia Lana Karlova told Lragir.am
that 54 programs have been implemented in Armenia since 1995. The aim
of the organization is to develop higher education. The proposals
of the organization relating to higher education concern the right
application of the credit system and management in universities.

According to her, universities don’t use the whole potential that
Tempus provides. The first obstacle is the lack of knowledge of
English or Russian, which could help to organize the education for
foreign students. The level of motivation is not high. “People want
to receive salaries, participate in programs and pay visits but they
don’t want to change anything. Several people say something, the rest
sit and listen to them like slaves,” said Lana Karlova.

She underlines that if at least 50% of the leadership of universities
were interested in changes, the situation would be different today.

According to her, they lack the culture of working, team work and
management. People, who are involved in programs very often don’t
even understand what they are supposed to do.

She says that will is necessary for changes. Very often participants
get acquainted with the best educational methods, but they are sure
they can’t change anything. Lana Karlova says that there are cases
when they provided equipment and resources but the program didn’t
reach its aim because no one knew about the program and about how they
could use the resources. Universities lack young staff, they don’t
promote young people into teaching and as a result good specialists
leave the country. In order to avoid this and to ensure that those who
leave will be back we need to create our Armenian-European model with
favorable conditions for education and further research, Ms. Karlova
says. The curricula should be more interesting and practice-oriented,
as well as IT should be used at universities.

Karlova added that Armenia was not ready for the introduction of the
credit system because those who use it should carry its values. Very
often a student coming to Armenia from a foreign university is
obliged to pass the same exam he or she has already passed in a
foreign university. This problem exists in almost all universities.

According to her, lifelong learning may help to develop the university
system because it is not composed of exceptionally young people. Many
bear Soviet values. Students need to have their role too, because we
know that 25% of students are forced to vote for someone fulfilling
others’ will. Everyone sees and speaks, but few fight. What is
happening in Freedom Square is the reflection of the reality. It
is necessary to fight and carry out radical reforms, concluded Lana
Karlova.

U.S. ENVOY TO AZERBAIJAN SAYS KARABAKH CONFLICT “COMPLICATED”

March 28, 2013 – 17:22 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – The U.S. Ambassador to Azerbaijan urged to intensify
efforts for the settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict.

As Richard Morningstar told a news conference, the U.S., as a part of
OSCE Minsk Group, will do its best to achieve a peaceful settlement
for the Karabakh issue.

“The conflict is very complicated and we must intensify our efforts
to resolve it. I and the U.S. co-chair of the OSCE MG will continue
joint work with Azerbaijani officials to offer new ideas for the
settlement of the conflict,” APA quoted the envoy as saying.

ECONOMIST: MIGRATION IN ARMENIA EVOLVES INTO POPULATION’S ESCAPE

ARMINFO
Thursday, March 28, 15:44

Migration in Armenia is getting bigger and bigger, evolving into
the population’s escape, economist Bagrat Asatryan, ex-head of the
Central Bank of Armenia, said at a press conference in Yerevan, when
commenting on the European Union’s 1 mln EUR assistance provided to
Armenia for implementation of the return migration and reintegration
programme, which will last for 2.5 years.

The economist pointed out that the EU’s support will not help solve the
problems connected with the large-scale migration, which, the economist
thinks, will continue within the next few years. Asatryan also thinks
that Armenia will face a demographic downturn. He said that within the
next 5-7 years for the first time in the history Armenia will find
itself in a situation when death rate will exceeed birth rate. The
number of women of reproductive age will also inevitably decline.

Referring to the results of public opinion polls conducted by
international organizations, Asatryan said that nearly 1 million
Armenians see their future outside Armenia, particularly, in the
EU countries. In the neighboring countries the number of citizens
connecting their future with Europe is much lower. For instance, in
Azerbaijan there are about 500 thsd such citizens and in Georgia –
250 thsd.

Asatryan expressed confidence that Armenia should connect its future
with Europe and criticized the Russian programme “Compatriots”. He
thinks that despite the will of the authorities, the given programme
is still going on, probably, on illegal basis. The expert is sure
that the pro- Russian sentiments in Armenia may leave the country
without a future.

For his part, economist Vardan Bostanjyan, ex-Armenian MP, pointed out
that the migration sizes in Armenia endanger the national security
of the country. The economist thinks that the country should solve
the problems of unemployment and low revenues.

BOURGEOIS REVOLUTION INEVITABLE IN ARMENIA

TERT.AM
15:50 ~U 28.03.13

Tigran Khzmalyan, a Sardarapat movement member, believes that
the present political developments and relevant analyses resemble
unsuccessful hunting.

The fact is that a wave of bourgeois revolution is inevitably rising
against the “military and feudal system.”

“We should realize that this is not a struggle between Serzh Sargsyan
and Raffi Hovannisian. We must see our country as part of global
processes,” he said.

The aforementioned “wave of bourgeois revolution” has come to clear
Armenia of the old system. “The military and feudal system headed by
Serzh Sargsyan,” Mr Khzmalyan said.

AZERBAIJAN GENERATES “BRILLIANT IDEAS”: LET’S MAKE AN EARTHQUAKE

NEWS.AM
March 28, 2013 | 13:36

Azerbaijani side made a “brilliant” offer to test operation of
Armenia-based nuclear power plant not in normal but in extreme
conditions, that is by making an earthquake.

This “bright” idea was voiced by Director of the Institute of
radiation problems of the Azerbaijani National Academy of Sciences
Adil Garibov. In an interview with APA agency he said “9-magnitude
earthquake resistance of the Metsamor NPP has not been verified.”

“Metsamor NPP is located in 9 magnitude earthquake zone. What will be
the results for the reactor in powerful earthquakes and extreme cases?

Therefore the reactor should be tested in extreme conditions. We trust
the tests carried out by foreign specialists at Metsamor NPP and can
not doubt it. Let any foreign specialist answer ‘Will this reactor be
able to sustain or Armenia to ensure its sustainability, if 9-magnitude
earthquake occurs?’ These are our demands,” APA quotes Garibov.

The scientist, however, avoids speaking about consequences of possible
attack of Azerbaijan, since his country is permanently voicing threats
to unleash war.

Representatives of the Armenian NPP do not take such assertions
seriously.

“IAEA experts visited Metsamor NPP last fall. They gave positive
assessments. We have no problems. NPP’s safety is ensured fully,”
they said.

Azerbaijan is constantly raising the issue of Armenian nuclear
power plan in attempt to exert pressure on the Armenian side and
gain political and economic dividends for the settlement of Karabakh
conflict in their interests.

YEREVAN LAGS BEHIND ALL THE CIS COUNTRIES BY THE NUMBER OF GREEN TERRITORIES

ARMINFO
Thursday, March 28, 14:17

Yerevan lags practically behind all the CIS countries by the number
of green territories, the head of Armenian Architects’ Union, Mkrtich
Minasyan, said at today’s press-conference.

He said that during the Soviet times, Yerevan had 14 sq/m of green
territories per capita, but today this indicator reduced to 3 sq/m.
The active site development which is often implemented with breaking
of all the urban development norms, is the reason of that, he said and
added that even the conception for development of the small Center of
Yerevan will not save the situation as it is a little bit late. He
emphasized that many CIS cities, including Minsk, Tbilisi and Baku,
are more careful about preserving of the green sectors than Yerevan.

BERLIN TO HOST CONCERT DEDICATED TO 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

NEWS.AM
March 28, 2013 | 12:09

YEREVAN.- Armenian pianist Hayk Melikyan together with Armenian-German
pianist Karine Gilanyan will perform Armenian and German music during
a concert dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

The concert is organized by Pyunik Foundation within the framework
“100 concerts” project.

Armenia’s Ambassador to Germany, NKR permanent representative and other
diplomats will attend the concert in Berlin’s Schwartzsche Villa hall.

Hayk Melikyan is recognized internationally as one of the most
versatile and imaginative performers of the 20th Century and
Contemporary Music and among today’s most engaging virtuoso pianists
by classical music audiences and critics. His international concert
debut took place at the “Concerto di Concerti” International Festival
of the 20th Century Music in Rome in 2000. He leads an active concert
life, playing throughout Europe, Asia and the Americas.

IS THERE A POSSIBILITY OF ARMED CONFLICT BETWEEN IRAN AND AZERBAIJAN IN CASPIAN SEA?

11:31 28/03/2013 ” INTERVIEWS

Panorama.am held an interview with Iranian studies expert Armen
Israyelyan about the dispute between Iran and Azerbaijan over the
legal status of the Caspian Sea and the possibility of armed conflict
between them.

– What is the main cause of the dispute between Iran and Azerbaijan
over the legal status of the Caspian Sea?

– The point is that under an agreement signed between Iran and the USSR
in 1921, the Soviet government gratuitously passed Ashurade island
and other islands in the Caspian Sea to Iran as well as recognized
Iran’s right to have fleet in the Caspian Sea.

In recent years, there is an impression that Russia reached an
agreement with Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan on the legal status, but Iran,
Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan still have certain disagreements.

Iran believes that the sea should be divided into five equal parts,
and rules out discussion of any other option.

– So does it mean that this is purely a legal issue?

– No, besides legal issues, there are certain disagreements over
environmental issues and ownership of oil fields in the Caspian Sea.

Iranian Vice President, President of the Environmental Protection
Organization Mohammad-Javad Mohammadizadeh has repeatedly accused
Azerbaijan of environmental violation in the Caspian Sea. Also,
Iran has decided to file a complaint with international bodies
against Azerbaijan.

Besides, Azerbaijan, for its part, profits from the fact that the issue
of the legal status of the Caspian Sea remains unresolved, alleging
that Sardar-e Jangal oil field discovered by Iran does not belong to
Iran but is located in waters between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan.

– Could these disputes lead to armed conflict?

– I do not rule out the possibility of armed conflict. Although
the Caspian states say that they view the Caspian Sea as a field of
peaceful cooperation, nevertheless, the current processes testify to
the opposite.

The point is that Baku states that the military equipment purchased
from Israel will be used against Armenia. But expert studies show
that Azerbaijan’s anti-ship rockets will be used against Iran and
Turkmenistan because Armenia has no outlet to sea.

So I think Iran recently launched Jamaran 2 destroyer in the Caspian
Sea for the very purpose of protecting the borders of Iran from
potential danger from Azerbaijan.

Source: Panorama.am