Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

ARMENIA PARTICIPATES IN CRRF CSTO EXERCISES AS OBSERVER

news.am
Sept 20 2011
Armenia

YEREVAN. – Armenia takes part in exercises of the Collective Rapid
Reaction Force of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CRRF
CSTO) as an observer, press service of Armenian MOD told Armenian
News-NEWS.am.

Anti-terrorist command exercises of CRRF CSTO in Central Asian
direction within the frameworks of the strategic doctrine “Center-2011”
began on September 19 at the range of Russian 201st military base
in Lyaur, Tajikistan. Major strategic trainings are also held in
other regions, such as Ural and Volga Region in Russia, as well as
in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Exercise will last till the beginning
of October.

Founded in 1992, CSTO features Armenia, Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan,
Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

From: Baghdasarian

R. ZOHRABYAN: WE WEREN’T SO ROMANTIC TO THINK EVERYTHING WOULD BE FINE

Panorama
Sept 20 2011
Armenia

“We weren’t so romantic to think that as soon as Armenia declared
its independence everything would be fine, in line with European
standards, with developed economy and social justice. It couldn’t
be so,” said Razmik Zohrabyan, Vice Chairman of Republican Party,
in a news conference on Tuesday.

“We knew that economic shocks were inescapable when system was
changing. People were thinking that bright days would follow the
independence, but it was impossible.

Armenia was forced to be involved in a war with Azerbaijan; we were
passing from the economy of Soviet Union into a liberal one. So,
we managed to overcome those shortcomings,” said the official.

To Panorama.am question what achievements have been gained in political
culture, R. Zohrabyan underlined the formation of multi-party-system
and pluralism.

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIAN EXPERT SAYS SEP 21 PARADE SENDS SERIOUS MESSAGE TO BAKU

PanARMENIAN.Net
September 20, 2011 – 20:15 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – The military parade dedicated to the 20th anniversary
of Armenia’s independence is a serious message to both Azerbaijan
and the international community, according to a political analyst.

As Sergei Minasyan told a PanARMENIAN.Net reporter, the heavy armament
to be exhibited during the parade will demonstrate the might of the
Armenian army.

“Besides, Armenia-made missile drones will be exhibited. We’re aware
of Baku hopes for a remote war; however, our defense equipment is
capable of shattering those hopes. The Sep 21 parade will prove the
restored parity in the region; Azerbaijan may abandon its hopes for
a renewed war as impossible, at least in near future,” the expert said.

From: Baghdasarian

40,000 TREES AND BUSHES TO BE PLANTED IN YEREVAN

Tert.am
18:50 20.09.11

Around 40,000 trees and bushes will be planted in Yerevan this autumn,
the head of the Department of Nature Protection at the Yerevan
Municipality has said at a working consultation on Tuesday.

Yerevan Mayor Karen Karapetyan was also informed that some of those
trees will be evergreen.

Besides, stiff areas in Yerevan’s Saralanj district, Yerablur cemetery
and the both sides of the bridge in Argavand will have irrigation
systems.

“We should make sure that after being planted none of those trees
will not be left into oblivion. Therefore, it is very important that
each Yerevan resident plants his/her tree,” said Karapetyan.

He also suggested upon necessity equipping the trees and bushes in
central streets in Yerevan with illumination.

Karen Karapetyan instructed to pay special attention to the entrances
into the capital, especially the greening of the street starting from
Zvartnots Airport.

From: Baghdasarian

GOVERNMENT DOESN’T NEED CONTROL OVERHEAD
Naira Hayrumyan

Lragir.am News

14:47:39 – 20/09/2011

The Armenia-Diaspora Forum was launched in Armenia in which about
500 representatives of 50 countries of the world participate.

The forum will last for 2 days, till the Independence Day, the
delegates will take part in the festive events, gaze at the military
force and will leave for home inspired by the success of Armenia.

The forum will hardly reach agreement on the key issue of relations
between Armenia and the Diaspora – institutionalization of the
participation of 7 million Diaspora Armenians in shaping the politics
of Armenia of 3 million Armenians, determining its political line
and making national and state decisions.

For 20 years of the independence of Armenia, no such institutions
have been set up, and the problem is not the diversity of the Diaspora
itself which is divided by virtue of party and other characteristics
but perhaps the wish of the Armenian authorities which do not want
to have a super-national institution overhead, empowered to make
decisions or to veto.

The creation of such an institution is not helpful only to the
government which is not eternal. Meanwhile, it is highly urgent for the
society which may get additional protection from external interference
in the face of some pan-national board, from the role of an object
of international politics and an important incentive of modernization.

The Armenian Diaspora is best organized in Americas and the Near
East, though the Russian Diaspora outnumbers them all. The process
of centralization of the European Diaspora is also underway. The
increasing influence of the Diaspora of countries ruled by modern
worldview, democratic approaches and concepts of free market may help
introduce this trend to Armenia.

Meanwhile Armenia moves by the Soviet Russian inertia, and it
automatically blocks the way to homeland for most representatives of
the Armenian Diaspora who wish to make investments in Armenia, shape
a new business culture which defies corruption, ensure participation
of all the citizens in decision making.

The Armenian Diaspora may do a great favor to Armenia by withdrawing it
from the inert post-Soviet track. It is better to do it with a swift
move of the hand, and the action of the ARF Dashnaktsutyun could be
such a move when its Central Committee of West America made a tough
statement regarding the policy of Serzh Sargsyan. Unfortunately,
this statement was later disavowed, other organizations did not join,
and the effort of the Diaspora to express its opinion on the internal
policy of Armenia failed.

However, if nobody is able to resolve the issue of
institutional participation of the Diaspora in decision making,
Armenia-Artsakh-Diaspora will remain just a triangle the sides of which
join one another but do not allow the angles to meet. The Diaspora
will remain a “foreign virgin land” from where they will be able to
pump money, and Armenia itself will remain a province which does not
want to raise its head and look where the world is moving.

From: Baghdasarian

‘I STUDIED WITH ALIYEV’: POLITICIAN VISITED KARABAKH THEN BANNED AZERBAIJAN ENTRY

epress.am
09.20.2011 15:40

A confederation or the reunification of Karabakh and Azerbaijan is
impossible, said Fair Russia party member and former deputy of the
State Duma from the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia Aleksey
Mitrofanov in an interview with Vesti.az, who has been denied
entry into Azerbaijan after visiting the unrecognized Republic of
Nagorno-Karabakh.

– The decision by Azerbaijan’s foreign affairs ministry was unexpected
for me… I don’t understand why the Azerbaijani foreign ministry
reacted so sharply to my visit. I didn’t make any hostile remarks about
Azerbaijan. On the contrary, all was well… Yes, I gave the people
of Karabakh greetings from hundreds of thousands of sympathizers, but
I don’t see anything wrong with that. There are people who sympathize
with them.

And what about your call for Moscow to recognize Karabakh’s
independence because “the creation of a Nagorno Karabakh-Azerbaijan
federation or confederation is not possible”? You do not deny these
are your words, yes?

– I don’t deny it. I said those words. But I didn’t say it to offend
the Azerbaijani side. I spoke of the actual reality which, in my view,
exists. A confederation or the reunification of Karabakh and Azerbaijan
is impossible. You can only decide on a military solution.

I said it in this sense. The mood in Karabakh is such that a
confederation or reunification with Azerbaijan is simply impossible.

Whatever happens, for violating the Republic of Azerbaijan’s
legislation, you are included on the “Black List.” You understand
that you will not be able to visit Azerbaijan?

– I plan to appeal to the relevant authorities on this matter. I
repeat: During my visit to Karabakh, I did not offend any Azerbaijani
officials, nor the people of Azerbaijan, for whom, incidentally, I have
great respect. I studied at the Institute together with Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev, although I was one year behind him. We even
have friends in common.

From: Baghdasarian

HYDROPOWER PLANT ON TRCHKAN WATERFALL WILL OPERATE FOR 6 MONTH IN A YEAR AT BEST

arminfo
Tuesday, September 20, 14:10

The hydropower plant on the Trchkan Waterfall may prove not so
economically viable. Aram Haroutiunyan, Nature Protection Minister
of Armenia, says the HPP can operate for 6 months in a year at best.

“At the moment, I cannot say where the HPP will be built, but no
construction will be launched in the area of Trchkan Waterfall. In
addition, environmental water release will be ensured. At present
waterfall requires 300-500 liters per second and we must ensure this
volume in any season,” Aram Haroutiunyan told ArmInfo.

Therefore, minister said, in summer season the HPP will not operate.

“As for other seasons, the HPP will not work unless environmental water
release is ensured. By our preliminary calculations, HPP will operate
for 6 months in a year at best. If these terms meet the requirements
of the company:..”, the minister said.

In 2008 Trchkan Waterfall was included in the list of hydrological
natural monuments of Armenia. Despite that, the project of HPP
construction received a positive environmental impact assessment.

Environmentalists say HPP will cause a serious damage to Trchkan. An
initiative group ‘Let’s Save Trchkan Waterfall’ has been created.

EcoLur NGO and “Let’s Not Keep Silent” initiative group have included
Trchkan in their S.O.S. campaigns “Nature of Money”.

From: Baghdasarian

EXPERT: ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RECOGNITION IS A LEVER IN ISRAEL’S HAND
By Gohar Abrahamyan

ArmeniaNow
20.09.11 | 14:31

The Armenian Genocide recognition issue to be discussed in October
at the Israeli Ksennet is simply a card in Tel Aviv’s hands to be
played as countermeasure against Turkey, experts say.

Turkey-Israel relations got tense when Israel refused to officially
apologize for the deaths of Turkish citizens caused by an Israeli
assault against the Mavi Marmara ship – part of the Gaza Freedom
Flotilla. Turkey responded by deporting three Israeli diplomats and
freezing all military and economic relations.

Specialist in Turkish studies Arestakes Simavoryan, leading Noravank
Educational-Foundation’s Center for Armenology (Armenian studies),
says Israel is using the Armenian Genocide recognition issue as a
political lever in the period of tensions with Turkey.

He believes that Turkey has levers to counteract against Israel, namely
Palestine’s recognition and trade-economic and military-technological
cooperation with Arab countries. And Israel has its levers against
Turkey.

“Recently Israeli foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman has stated
that they would hit at Turkey’s most vulnerable [painful] spots,
using the Armenian Genocide recognition and the Kurdish case,” says
Simavoryan, adding that Israel is not ready yet to recognize the
Armenian genocide. “By doing so Israel would get completely isolated
from the region.”

Although Simavoryan does not exclude risk factors for Armenia, since
it would mean that Turkey-Israel deteriorated relations would be
again on the same level.

“One shouldn’t have high hopes for this little discussion,
metaphorically speaking it would mean an earthquake of a 4.5-point
magnitude by which Israel will try to put pressure on Turkey,” he says.

From: Baghdasarian

NAGORNO-KARABAKH PRESIDENT VISITS YEREVAN BRANDY FACTORY

Tert.am
17:04 20.09.11

A Nagorno-Karabakh delegation led by President Bako Sahakyan has
visited the Yerevan Brandy Factory (YBF). At the ageing and bottling
section of the factory and delegation got acquainted with the history
and production of the Ararat cognac.

The Nagorno-Karabakh president stood at the Cask of Peace, which was
set up at the factory in 2001, to commemorate the OSCE Minsk Group
co-chairs’ visit to Armenia. The alcohol symbolizing the establishment
of ceasefire in 1994 is being aged at the Cask of Peace. It will be
opened after the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has been resolved. The
Nagorno-Karabakh leader also put his signature to the guestbook.

By tradition, Bako Sahakyan’s personal cask was set up at the YBF
ageing section.

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIA PAID TOO MUCH FOR INDEPENDENCE, EXPERT SAYS

Tert.am
11:36 20.09.11

In 1991, ninety percent of Armenia’s population was against
independence, and 40% of Parliament members representing the Armenian
National Movement (ANM) was against Armenia’s seceding from the USSR,
Aharon Adibekyan, Director of the Sociometer center, told journalists
Sept. 20.

The reason was that 40% of Armenia’s industrial output was exported
to the USSR market, he added.

“None of the ANM leaders was an engineer or an economist. They were
extremely enthusiastic people who did not even think of the cost we
would have to pay for independence. The country was impoverished in
one day,” Adibekyan said. The “independence-caused” social situation
resulted in emigration, he added.

Adibekyan disagreed with the ANM Aram Manukyan, who claimed that over
2m people took part in the referendum on independence. “Only 40 per
cent of people enjoying the voting right took part in the referendum,”
he said.

“We were doomed to become independent because the USSR was collapsing,”
Adibekyan said. Freedom was the basis of Armenia’s independence –
“there was no fascism.” “To quote Mr. Ronald Reagan, we were shattering
the Evil Empire,” the expert said.

Armenia is Russia’s “outpost” in the region now, which allows it to
receive some aid. “However, we do not yet see the sweet fruits of
independence so that we might live a prosperous life,” the expert
added. “We should draw lessons from the process of independence and
realize that most of the problems have not been resolved and need to
be resolved in the near future,” Adibekyan said.

From: Baghdasarian