Author: Badalian Vardan

APA, Azerbaijan
Oct 28 2012

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs issue press release on Paris meeting of
Azerbaijani and Armenian Foreign Ministers

[ 28 Oct 2012 12:37 ]

The mediators will visit the region next month

Baku – APA. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group have issued a press
release on the meeting held with Azerbaijani and Armenian Foreign
Ministers Elmar Mammadyarov and Edward Nalbandian in Paris on 27
October, APA reports quoting the website of OSCE.

The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (Ambassadors Robert Bradtke of
the United States of America, Igor Popov of the Russian Federation,
and Jacques Faure of France) met jointly on October 27 with the
Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan, Elmar Mammadyarov, and the Foreign
Minister of Armenia, Edward Nalbandian. The Personal Representative of
the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk also
participated in the meeting.

The Co-Chairs stressed to the Ministers the importance of reducing
tensions among the parties. They presented their ideas on a working
proposal to advance the peace process.

The Foreign Ministers reiterated their determination to continue
working with the Co-Chairs to reach a peaceful settlement. The
Ministers and the Co-Chairs agreed to a further discussion of these
ideas during the Co-Chairs’ visit to the region in November.

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Oct 26 2012

EU peace-building efforts in Nagorno-Karabakh: second phase of civil
society programme launched

26 October 2012 – 6:48pm
The second phase of the EU-funded civil society programme aimed at
supporting the peace-building efforts around the conflict in
Nagorno-Karabakh has been launched, according to a press release
issued by the EU Delegation in Georgia, the EU Neighbourhood Info
Center reports.

The European Partnership for the Peaceful Settlement of the Conflict
over Nagorno-Karabakh (EPNK) is a continuation of a programme launched
in 2009 under the Instrument for Stability, promoting a dynamic
dialogue between a broad range of policy makers, media and civil
society from all sides of the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
It also supports a wider participation of conflict-affected people in
the peace process, including women, youth, internally-displaced
persons and refugees.

EPNK is a consortium of five European NGOs, which seeks to work with
local partners in the South Caucasus on a wide range of peace-building
projects to improve framework conditions conducive to positively
impacting on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement process.

OSCE MG co-chairs meet Armenian, Azeri FMs for Karabakh talks

October 28, 2012 – 18:03 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian met on
Saturday, October 28 with the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs Robert
Bradtke, Igor Popov, Jacques Faure and the Personal Representative of
the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk in Paris.

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov joined the parties later.

At the meeting, the co-chairs stressed the necessity to ease tensions
between the conflicting parties, briefing those present on their views
for achieving progress in Karabakh conflict settlement.

The Ministers, in turn, announced their readiness to continue joint
work in reaching a peaceful solution.

In conclusion, the parties agreed to discuss the co-chairs’
suggestions during the latters’ visit to the region in November,
Foreign Ministry press service reported.

BULGARIE
Le conseil municipal de Yambol annule la déclaration reconnaissant le
génocide arménien

Le Conseil municipal de la ville de Yambol située dans le sud de la
Bulgarie a annulé une déclaration reconnaissant le génocide arménien
de deux ans après son adoption.

20 conseillers municipaux ont voté en faveur de l’annulation, huit ont
voté contre et deux se sont abstenus de voter. La proposition visant à
annuler la déclaration a été déposée par sept conseillers à la demande
de plusieurs organisations dont les projets avec la Turquie n’avait
pas été mis en `uvre en raison de la déclaration ont déclaré les
conseillers.

Selon eux, la déclaration `a un effet négatif sur les relations de
partenariat de la municipalité de Yambol, et surtout des organisations
professionnelles avec des organisations similaires en Turquie. `

La déclaration reconnaissant le génocide arménien avait été adoptée le
28 Octobre 2010 avec 28 voix pour.

dimanche 28 octobre 2012,
Stéphane ©armenews.com

ARMENIA: PRE-ELECTION SITUATION – 1

Vestnik Kavkaza
Oct 26 2012
Russia

David Stepanyan, Yeveran. Exclusively to Vestnik Kavkaza

According to information circulating in the Armenian parliament,
the ruling Republican Party of Armenia will organize extra session in
December, where its leader, President Serge Sargsyan, will be proposed
to be a candidate in the presidential elections of 2013. The Central
Election Committee hasn’t defined the date of the elections yet,
but most probably they will take place on February 18th.

At the moment none of main candidates for presidentship hasn’t stated
officially on his intentions. Such a situation appears in the republic
for the first time. The uncertainty was caused by absence of agreement
between leading political parties – RPA and Prosperous Armenia.

The closer the date of the elections, the more difficulties appear
in relations of previous allies. Sargsyan and a probable rival from
PA will compete also with several other politicians: leaders of the
union National Self-Identity Parujr Airikyan and the party New Times
Aram Karapetyan, the chairman of Peoples Party Tigran Karapetyan, the
chairman of the opposition party Heritage Raffi Ovannosyan. After the
July session, the leaders of Dashnaktsutyun also stated on possible
presentation of their own candidate.

Even today we can say that all these politicians will play no real
role in the elections. Their task is to provide legitimization of the
current authorities who prepare for next reproduction. The question
whether the opposition will present a unified candidate is also acute.

However, there are few chances for it.

After first presidential elections in Armenia in 1991, a strange
tradition appeared: to deal who will be next president ahead of
elections. Elections only fixed agreements of interested sides.

Previously the strategy of artificial competition between parties was
effective and provided reproduction of the regime in various levels
of power. Corruptive nature of Armenian politicans – pro-governmental
and pseudo-opposition – caused the tendency when political forces
separated from the society and began to lie their own life.

It led to indifference of the society to political processes.

Disorientation took place in the Armenian society: the majority of
electorate doesn’t trust the power and the opposition, preferring not
to go to elections at all or spoil ballots. There were 54 thousand
spoiled ballots in the parliamentary elections on May 6. 54 thousand
voters and several hundred thousand citizens who ignored the elections
are the best confirmation of indifference caused by political processes
in Armenia.

Really strong rivals for Sargsyan could be only his predecessors –
Levon Ter-Petrosyan and Robert Kocharyan; however, observers exclude
a possibility of their participation. Ter-Petrosyan is thought to be
an active player of the Armenian politics, but it would be reasonable
for him not to go to the elections as the ANC lost a significant part
of its supporters after March 1st, 2008.

Kocharyan has chances, but they are shadowy, as well as his whole
activity in recent years. The chances are expressed in a moderate
figure of Prosperous Armenia’s chairman Gagik Tsarukyan. Nevertheless,
Tsarukyan keeps silence and states no attitude to the elections. It
seems he is waiting for somebody’s decision. However, it is obvious
that such a powerful force as Prosperous Armenia will do its part.

To be continued.

NKR DEFENSE ARMY CONTINUES TO GROW NEW WEAPONS AND EQUIPMENT

Mediamax
Oct 26 2012
Armenia

Yerevan/Mediamax/. NKR Defense Minister Movses Hakobyan said that the
recent military exercise in Artsakh showed that the NKR Defense Army
is ready to fulfill all the tasks set forth.

“The entire structure of the Defense Army took part in the exercise,
which ended two days ago. The exercise showed everything the Defense
Army will do in the event of resumption of hostilities, “- he said.

Movses Hakobyan noted that the NKR Defense Armey continues to grow
weapons and equipment.

According to him, the Karabakhi side enriches its reserves with the
same speed the enemy acquires armament.

AZERBAIJAN STEALS WEAPON FROM SOUTH AFRICA – ARMENIAN MOD

news.am
October 26, 2012 | 21:14

YEREVAN. – The Armenian Ministry of Defense is going to release a
video, which will denounce the so-called ‘super advantage’ weapon
‘made in Azerbaijan’ under the name of ‘Istiglal.’

As a matter of fact, the Istiglal is a sort of a weapon, produced in
the South African Republic out of license, the Armenian MOD secretary
Artsrun Hovhannisyan said.

Hence, the Azerbaijani side simply stole it. However, the fact of
being out of license is not the greatest default of the weapon.

“The weapon features bad optics. Also the snipers’ weapons cannot
match the machine-gun bullets,” Hovhannisyan claimed.

According to some data, the ‘proud’ of Azerbaijani military productions
will be no longer produced due to its high level recall morbidity.

RA NA PRESIDENT HOVIK ABRAHAMYAN IS TO LEAVE ON AN OFFICIAL VISIT FOR THE CZECH REPUBLIC

26.10.2012

On October 29 the RA NA President Hovik Abrahamyan on a three-day
official visit will leave for the Czech Republic at the invitation
of the President of the Senate of the Czech Republic Milan Å tÄ~[ch
. The delegation led by the NA President comprises of the Chairman
of the NA Standing Committee on Foreign Relations Artak Zakaryan,
the Chairwoman of the NA Standing Committee on Protection of Human
Rights and Public Affairs Elinar Vardanyan, deputies Karine Atshemyan
and Artur Gevorgyan.

In Prague the NA President Hovik Abrahamyan had meetings with
the President of the Senate of the Czech Republic Milan Å tÄ~[ch,
the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Miroslava Nemcova, the first
Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Karel Schwarzenberg,
the Archbishop of Prague, the Leader of Bohemia Diocese His Eminence
Dominik Cardinal Duka, the Chairman of the Czech Republic-Armenia
Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group Robin BÅ’hnisch. A meeting with
the representatives of the Armenian community is also envisaged.

In Karlovi Vary the NA President will have meetings with the Head of
the State Joseph Novotny and Mayor of the City Petr Kulhánek .

In the evening of October 31 the Delegation led by the RA NA President
will return to Yerevan.

“ARTSAKHKAT” RESUMED ITS WORK, YET WHO WILL COMPENSATE THE CHILDREN?

Friday, 26 October 2012 11:54

“Artsakhkat” CJSC has resumed its activities since October 22.

Karabakh-open.info was informed about this by director of the company
Armo Tsaturyan according to whom the company’s probationary produce
had been tested and the company got the permission to resume its
activities that had been stopped at the end of September.

It must be mentioned that according to the official information the
“Artsakhkat” produce became the reason for the acute enteric infection
that burst out in a number of kindergartens of Stepanakert and in that
of Aygestan village, Askeran region. The director of the company,
however, does not accept this opinion and claims that nothing like
that is possible. As he assures he has his own arguments and the
results of his own examinations.

Anyway, the company will resume its dairy production, how the company
will manage to restore its rating in the public is another question,
though the number of consumers may possibly increase as according
to the public rumours not the “Artsakhkat” dairy produce but the
meat used caused the infection. According to other rumours macaroni
products were the reason. However, these are the rumours that have
been circulating in the public during the latest 20 days. Yet some
definite information can be provided by Ministry of Healthcare only
which has so far made no official announcement and gave no explanation
concerning the real reason for the infection. To the journalists’
question when the results of the examinations will become known the
Ministry’s answer is “Soon they will”.

As we have already informed criminal proceedings were brought against
the company and Armo Tsaturyan hopes that the law enforcement bodies
will soon reveal the real reasons and those who are guilty will answer
for the case.

As a consequence of all this the company carried 2,5 mln dollars’
damage the compensation of which is a separate matter. A question
arises: who will compensate the children and their parents who spent
days and weeks in hospitals?

Anahit Danielyan

AZERBAIJAN CONDUCTED SEVEN DIVERSIONARY OPERATIONS SO FAR THIS YEAR – KARABAKH MOD

news.am
October 26, 2012 | 14:58

Azerbaijan conducted seven diversionary operations so far this year,
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) Defense Minister Movses Hakobyan
stated during a press conference on Thursday.

Last year the adversary was able to infiltrate into Karabakh territory
several times. “This year seven such attempts were made and all of them
were prevented on time. Suffering losses, the adversary was forced
to retreat,” Hakobyan noted adding that, except for one attempt,
the adversary was unable to cause any losses to the NKR Defense Army.

As per the Minister, Azerbaijan violated the ceasefire in NKR’s
direction 12,000 times since the beginning of the year until October
1. It had breached the truce 9,519 times within the same time period
last year. As Hakobyan noted, in the case of firing shots, the Karabakh
side likewise opens retaliatory fire. “The adversary is attempting
to maintain a tense situation at the line of contact,” NKR Defense
Minister noted, and added: “I don’t know how much they have managed
to raise the spirit of their own army, but they have not achieved
[any] success in other respects.”

Movses Hakobyan informed that an analysis has been conducted on the
causes for the NKR Defense Army servicemen being killed by Azerbaijani
snipers. “We have done much work to correct the situation at the line
of contact,” the NKR Defense Minister noted.