Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

HYUNDAI GETZ CARS FOR BEST TEACHERS OF THE REPUBLIC
Hasmik Dilanyan

"Radiolur"
07.10.2008 15:38

The first Sunday of October is traditionally marked as Teacher’s Day.

It’s been seven years that the results of the annual "Best teacher
of the year" and "Best kindergarten teacher" have been summed up at
the initiative and with the support of the Government of Armenia.

Today Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan personally handed the keys of
Hyundai Getz to the winners. Anush Mehrabyan, teacher of biology of
Ijevan School #1 could not conceal her excitement. "I’m very excited
and I’m grateful to our Government that I was awarded this prize,"
she said.

The surprise was really successful. Anush Mehrabyan and Arpik
Hovakilmyan, teacher of Gavar kindergarten #7, will long remember
October 7, 2008. They will remember and will tell their grandchildren
that they received the keys of Hyundai Getz personally from the Prime
Minister of the republic.

Tigran Sargsyan also turned over the pages of his school memories. He
confessed he was a naughty pupil but remembers his first teacher
with great love and tenderness. "I remember that my first teacher was
Ruzanna Sergeevna, who was teaching Russian language and literature. I
remember she was a rather exacting teacher. I was very naughty. My
first memory is that the freedoms of the child were restricted at
school. Yo u have to follow the rules established at school and the
teacher sees to it that you don’t break the rules."

In compliance with the decree of the President of the Republic of
Armenia, a number of teachers from different marzes of Armenia were
awarded Movses Khotenatsi medals and were granted the title of honored
teacher for their contribution to bringing up the younger generation.

President Serzh Sargsyan pays great attention to ensuring the wellbeing
of teachers in our country. In his address at the National Assembly
the President once again emphasized the importance of the educational
system, considering it a priority for our country. This very idea
lies in the basis of the Government’s activity.

Tigran Sargsyan said new surprises are awaiting teachers in 2009. "The
salaries will rise, reaching 116 on the average. "You shape the future
of our state by bringing up deserved citizens and invaluable is the
work you are doing today. The issues of teachers are in the focus of
our attention," the Prime Minister said.
From: Baghdasarian

Market Wire (press release)
Oct 02, 2008 14:35 ET

Tree Canada to Visit Armenia: Building International Bridges for
Forestry Futures Enters Phase 2

OTTAWA, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – Oct. 2, 2008) – Tree Canada President
Michael Rosen and Tree Canada Associate, Adrina Bardekjian Ambrosii
will be in Armenia from October 11-25 to share their forestry
expertise to help combat desertification. The two-week trip is the
second phase of the Building International Bridges for Forest Futures
project. In April 2008, Tree Canada sponsored two Armenian foresters,
Alla Berberyan and Gagik Amiryan, to learn about sustainable forestry
and conservation practices by touring urban and rural forests in
south/central Ontario. Project travel is financed by the Canadian
International Development Agency (CIDA).

Armenia is a small country with limited resources. Only 8% of
Armenia’s forests remain intact. Conservationists fear that the
country will become a desert within 20 years if deforestation is not
stopped. They see education as a key component in promoting the
benefits of healthy forests for the social and economic well-being of
Armenians. After the visit by Tree Canada staff, both organizations
will identify and implement practical projects that can be developed
collaboratively in the future.

Tree Canada will be visiting (amongst others):

Minister of Environment, Mr. Harutyunyan

Director, Sevan National Park, Mr. Ziroyan

Director, Gugark Forestry Agency, Gagik Amiryan

Dean Sayadyan, Agricultural University of Armenia

K. Menvelyen, Director World Wildlife Fund, Armenia and

Nazeli Vardanyan, Director, Armenian Forests (NGO)

Phase 3 of the project will consist of how Tree Canada and Armenian
officials will be able to work together to help restore that nation’s
forest cover.

nationalbridges.htm

Tree Canada is a not-for-profit charitable organization established to
encourage Canadians to plant and care for trees in urban and rural
environments. A winner of the Canadian Environmental Award (2007),
Tree Canada engages Canadian companies, government agencies and
individuals to support the planting of trees, the greening of
schoolyards, and other efforts to sensitize Canadians to the benefits
of planting and maintaining trees. To date, more than 75 million trees
have been planted, more than 450 schoolyards have been greened, and
Tree Canada has organized 8 national urban forestry conferences. More
information about Tree Canada is available at
From: Baghdasarian

NA Speaker Hovik Abrahamyan’s congratulation of Teacher’s Day

armradio.am
04.10.2008 17:39

President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Hovik
Abrahamyan congratulated the teachers on their holiday. The
congratulatory message states, in part:

`After the invention of letters the most essential task of maintaining
the national identity has been entrusted to teachers. For centuries
teachers have kept bright the comprehension of necessity of knowledge.
More than ever, today we attach importance to education and knowledge
for the development of independent statehood.

Issues of education and science have always been at the core of
attention of the National Assembly and the Parliament will continue
doing its best to improve the existing laws in line with requirements
of the time and legally solve the problems of the sphere if necessary.

Dear teachers, on your Day I want to wish you the most important `
patience, vigor and love for carrying out your important mission. The
future of the citizen of our country starts from you, and let this
understanding be a support for you every day you enter the classroom.

I render my warmest congratulations to thousands of our teachers of the
Diaspora, who solve the issue of maintaining of our national identity.
Thank you and good luck.’
From: Baghdasarian

PanARMENIAN.Net

U.S. searching for State Department officials who incited Georgia to
aggression against South Ossetia
04.10.2008 15:44 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ A new front has opened between Georgia and Russia,
now over which side was the aggressor whose military activities early
last month ignited the lopsided five-day war. At issue is new
intelligence, inconclusive on its own, that nonetheless paints a more
complicated picture of the critical last hours before war broke out,

According to the publication, Georgia has released intercepted
telephone calls purporting to show that part of a Russian armored
regiment crossed into South Ossetia nearly a full day before Georgia’s
attack on the capital, Tshkinvali, late on Aug. 7.

The intercepts circulated last week among intelligence agencies in the
United States and Europe, part of a Georgian government effort to
persuade the West and opposition voices at home that Georgia was under
invasion and attacked defensively. Georgia argues that as a tiny and
vulnerable nation allied with the West, it deserves extensive military
and political support.

The back and forth over who started the war is already an issue in the
American presidential race, with Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska, the
Republican vice presidential candidate, contending that Russia’s
incursion into Georgia was "unprovoked," while others argue that
Georgia’s shelling of Tshkinvali was provocation. Georgia claims that
its main evidence – two of several calls secretly recorded by its
intelligence service on Aug. 7 and 8 – shows that Russian tanks and
fighting vehicles were already passing through the Roki Tunnel linking
Russia to South Ossetia before dawn on Aug. 7.

By Russian accounts, the war began at 11:30 that night, when President
Mikheil Saakashvili of Georgia ordered an attack on Russian positions
in Tshkinvali. Russian combat units crossed the border into South
Ossetia only later, Russia has said.

General Lieutenant Nikolai Uvarov of Russia, a former United Nations
military attach?, who served as a Defense Ministry spokesman during
the war, insisted that Georgia’s attack surprised Russia and that its
leaders scrambled to respond while Russian peacekeeping forces were
under fire. He said President Dmitri Medvedev had been on a cruise on
the Volga River. Putin was at the Olympics in Beijing.

"The minister of defense, by the way, was on vacation in the Black Sea
somewhere," he said. "We never expected them to launch an attack."

Matthew Bryza, the deputy assistant secretary of state who coordinates
diplomacy in the Caucasus, said the contents of the recorded
conversations were consistent with what Georgians appeared to believe
on Aug. 7, in the final hours before the war, when a brief cease-fire
collapsed.

"During the height of all of these developments, when I was on the
phone with senior Georgian officials, they sure sounded completely
convinced that Russian armored vehicles had entered the Roki Tunnel,
and exited the Roki Tunnel, before and during the cease-fire," he
said. "I said, under instructions, that we urge you not to engage
these Russians directly."

By the night of Aug. 7, he said, he spoke with Eka Tkeshelashvili,
Georgia’s foreign minister, shortly before President Saakashvili
issued his order to attack, The International Herald Tribune reports.

Meanwhile, according European media reports, certain intercepts prove
that some high-ranking American officials were inciting the Georgian
leadership to aggression against South Ossetia. An investigation
initiated by the U.S. Congress is underway, the reports say.
From: Baghdasarian

US SENATE CONFIRMS JEFFREY AS NEW AMBASSADOR TO TURKEY

Today’s Zaman
04 October 2008, Saturday
Turkey

News Diplomacy

James Jeffrey speaks at a confirmation hearing at the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee in late September.

The US Senate has confirmed career diplomat James Jeffrey as the new
ambassador to Turkey, replacing the incumbent Ross Wilson.

"I am pleased that the Senate confirmed Jim Jeffrey to be the United
States Ambassador to Turkey. Jim is a man of intellect, integrity,
and commitment. His work as my Deputy National Security Advisor, as
United States Ambassador to Albania, and in three previous assignments
to Turkey make him superbly qualified to represent the United States
to our friend and NATO ally," President George W. Bush said in a
statement issued on Thursday.

Jeffrey, currently Bush’s deputy national security advisor, was
pressured by some members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
during his confirmation process last week to describe World War I
events in eastern Anatolia as a genocide of Armenians by the Ottoman
Empire. He declined to describe the events as genocide in the face of
questions from Democratic Sen. Robert Menendez during the confirmation
hearing and added that he would support initiatives encouraging
Turkish-Armenian rapprochement. He also said that Washington favors
the unconditional opening of borders with Armenia by Turkey as well
as the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

When Jeffrey used the term "forced exile" while speaking of the 1915
incidents, Menendez said that he was disappointed that this term fell
short of the term "ethnic cleansing," which was earlier used by some
US officials. In response, Jeffrey said that he was behind statements
by officials which outline US policy, but still refrained from using
the term "ethnic cleansing."

Armenia claims that Ottoman Turks killed up to 1.5 million Armenians
during World War I, toward the end of the Ottoman Empire, and labels
the killings as genocide. Turkey says the casualty figures are inflated
and that the deaths occurred during a time of civil conflict when
both Armenians and Turks were killed.

In a landmark step, President Abdullah Gul visited Armenia to watch a
World Cup qualifying game between national teams of the two countries
in early September. The foreign ministers of Turkey, Armenia and
Azerbaijan also met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in
New York late last month.

Jeffrey, first nominated as ambassador to Turkey in June, is expected
to take over his new post from Wilson in the coming weeks. He is
known to be an expert on Turkey and can also speak Turkish. Jeffrey
served as US ambassador to Albania from 2002-2004. He was the chargé
d’affaires at the US Embassy in Baghdad from 2004-2005.

–Boundary_(ID_Ao8qjXcJooSR38x5OMJwjw) —
From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIAN, RUSSIAN DEFENSE MINISTERS DISCUSS BILATERAL MILITARY COOPERATION

PanARMENIAN.Net
04.10.2008 13:46 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan of Armenia
and Anatoly Serdyukov of Russia met Saturday to discuss bilateral
military cooperation, the RF Defense Minister’s spokesman, col. Alexei
Kuznetsov said.

"Today, Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov, who is on a working
visit Armenia, met his Armenian counterpart to discuss issues referring
to bilateral military cooperation," he said, Russian media reports.
From: Baghdasarian

U.S. NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION REJECTED ARMENIAN ATTORNEY’S REQUEST FOR GENOCIDE DOCUMENTATION

PanARMENIAN.Net
02.10.2008 16:55 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ A civil action against the National Archives and
Records Administration of the United States was filed seeking documents
as they relate to the Armenian Genocide of 1914 to 1925. (Vartkes
Yeghiayan v. National Archives and Records Administration of the
United States of America, Case No. CV08-16248, U.S. District Court,
Central District of Calif., Sept. 23, 2008).

"Repeated efforts have been made to procure these documents,
but the National Archives has been non-responsive," said Mark
MacCarley, partner with Glendale, Calif.-based MacCarley & Rosen
who is representing plaintiff Vartkes Yeghiayan. "Its actions are in
violation of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)."

The initial request by Yeghiayan occurred in April 2006. "The
National Archives acknowledged receipt of the request, but has not
provided the information despite repeated inquiries from my client,"
said MacCarley. "The National Archives, without explanation, has
exceeded the generally applicable 20-day deadline for processing FOIA
requests. We simply want the requested documentation."

Yeghiayan is an attorney who has successfully litigated lawsuits
in State and Federal courts against U.S. and foreign businesses for
Armenian Genocide asset restitution. More than 1.5 million Armenians
were killed during the genocide with millions more deported from the
Ottoman Empire. Yeghiayan filed the FOIA request because he believes
documents being held by the U.S. government that would identify
countries having either direct complicity in the Armenian Genocide
or profited by the Ottoman Turks’ actions against Armenians.

"This lawsuit is on behalf of Armenian-Americans who are seeking
documentation and information that could shed light on what happened
to their loved ones during the Armenian Genocide," said Yeghiayan,
Gibrahayer.com reports.
From: Baghdasarian

Armenia: PACE Monitoring Committee remains concerned about the limited
progress with regard to the implementation of Resolutions 1609 and 1620

Strasbourg, 02.10.2008 – The Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has received the report from
the Human Rights Commissioner regarding his visit to Yerevan from 13 to
15 July 2008 and is extremely alarmed about its findings and conclusions
that show that only limited progress has been achieved regarding key
demands of the Assembly. The committee therefore invited the Human
Rights Commissioner to return to Yerevan and report back to the
committee at its meeting in Paris on 17 December 2008.

While noting the positive steps made regarding establishment of an
independent and credible inquiry, the Monitoring Committee remains
extremely concerned regarding persons deprived of their liberty in
relation to the events on 1 and 2 March 2008.

In Resolution 1620 (2008), the Assembly made it clear that "the cases
still under investigation should be closed or promptly brought before
the courts"; "a verdict based solely on police testimony without
corroborating evidence cannot be acceptable" and that "the cases under
Articles 300 and 225 of the Criminal Code should be dropped unless there
is strong evidence that the accused have personally committed acts of
violence or ordered, abetted or assisted to commit them".

In that respect, the committee took note that, while the investigations
regarding persons in preventive detention have now closed, the cases
against seven, all charged under articles 300 and 225, have not yet been
brought before the courts as a result of the excessive length of the
investigation. In addition, the committee is deeply concerned that the
investigations regarding the responsibility for the ten deaths on 1 and
2 March have not yet been, or are not yet on the point of being,
concluded.

Serious questions remain regarding the nature of the charges brought
against people arrested in relation to the events on 1 and 2 March, as
well as regarding the court proceedings of several cases, including with
regard to the principle of a fair trial. In addition, and contrary to
Assembly demands, 19 persons have been convicted on the basis of police
testimony only. The committee is therefore seriously concerned that
people may have been detained, and even convicted, based on political
beliefs and non-violent activities, which is unacceptable to the
Assembly.

The committee regrets that the Armenian authorities did not consider the
possibility of amnesty, pardons, or any other legal means available to
them, to resolve the situation regarding persons deprived of their
liberty in relation to the events on 1 and 2 March 2008. It strongly
urges the authorities to consider such options, which would result in
major progress towards meeting the requirements of the Assembly.

The committee noted the positive steps regarding the establishment of an
independent and credible inquiry as outlined in the report by the
Commissioner. The committee expresses its full support for the proposals
made by the Commissioner. It welcomes the constructive dialogue between
the Armenian authorities and Commissioner on this issue and hopes that
the remaining outstanding issues will be resolved soon in order for the
expert group to start and finalise its work as soon as possible.

The committee is of the view that Armenia is on a threshold regarding
the implementation of Resolutions 1609 (2008) and 1620 (2008). Now is
the time for the Armenian authorities to show the political will to
resolve this problem. The committee places its full trust in, and gives
its full support for the work of the Human Rights Commissioner in this
respect. Therefore, it would invite the Commissioner to make a follow-up
visit to Yerevan and to report back to the committee at its meeting on
17 December 2008 on the progress made regarding the independent and
credible inquiry and release of persons deprived of their liberty in
relation to the events on 1 and 2 March. In December, on the basis of
that report, the committee will make its decision on the actions, and
possible sanctions, it will recommend to the plenary of the Assembly in
January 2009.
From: Baghdasarian

THIRTY-THREE PERCENT OF ARMENIAN CITIZENS BELIEVE RECONCILIATION WITH TURKEY IMPOSSIBLE

ArmInfo
2008-10-01 18:26:00

ArmInfo. Thirty-three percent of Armenian citizens believe
reconciliation with Turkey impossible, Suzanna Barseghyan, Coordinator
of Armenian Center for National and International Studies told media
when presenting the results of a relevant poll Wednesday.

She said that about 76% of the respondents believe that establishment
of relations with Turkey are possible if the Armenian party observes
Turkey’s preconditions. 11% of the polled came out against any form
of cooperation with Turkey.

‘In addition, the poll revealed that 64% of local experts Armenia
believe that establishment of relations with Turkey is possible but
Armenia must be careful and do not forget that Turkey is an enemy of
the country’, S. Barseghyan said.
From: Baghdasarian

PRESIDENT GUL VOICES PLAN TO VISIT BAGHDAD SHORTLY

Today’s Zaman
29 September 2008, Monday
Turkey

President Abdullah Gul and his wife, Hayrunnisa, exchange greetings
on Saturday with Turks living in New York ahead of the Eid al-Fitr
holiday. Gul departed from New York on Sunday. – Photo

President Abdullah Gul has said he plans to visit neighboring Iraq in
a short time to show Turkey’s support for the Iraqi people. Gul had a
bilateral meeting with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani on Friday in New
York on the sidelines of the 63rd session of the UN General Assembly.

During the assembly, Talabani reiterated an earlier invitation to
Gul for paying a visit to Iraq, with Gul accepting this invitation,
sources from President Gul’s office told the Anatolia news agency.

The issue was raised on Saturday when Gul held a press conference
at the Turkevi (Turkish House). "It’s a visit which I desire very
much to make. The prime minister went [to Iraq] a short time ago,"
Gul was quoted as saying by Anatolia when asked whether he had any
plans for visiting Iraq. The president referred to Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s official visit to Baghdad in July.

"I also want to go to Baghdad shortly at an appropriate time. A visit
paid needs to be reciprocated," Gul continued, in apparent reference
to Iraqi President Talabani’s visit to Ankara in March of this
year. "Iraq is Turkey’s neighbor and is passing through a significant
period of time. I would like to show my support to Iraq," he said,
while describing his meeting with Talabani as "useful and precious."

Gul was also reminded of the fact that his meeting with Talabani
came only hours after a Thursday air strike by the Turkish military
on targets of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) based in
northern Iraq.

"The struggle against the PKK is a separate thing. Turkey is
launching targeted operations. All executives have seen Turkey’s
intention. Turkey’s intention is not to destabilize Iraq. Our target
is obvious. What is going on is isolated activity against a terrorist
organization which is launching terrorist actions against Turkey via
arms and explosives," Gul was quoted as saying by Anatolia. "These
[Turkey’s activities against the PKK] are not annoying anyone,"
he was also quoted as saying by the NTV news station.

Until last year, tensions between Ankara and Iraq were high due to
Turkey’s frustration over Iraq’s perceived reluctance or inability
to hunt down the PKK terrorists, who conduct hit-and-run attacks
on Turkish targets from bases in northern Iraq. Things began to
improve last year, following a visit by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri
al-Maliki, who pledged to support Turkey in its efforts to fight
terrorism. Talabani visited Ankara in March, taking the dialogue a
step further.

Prime Minister Erdogan in July became the first senior Turkish leader
to visit neighboring Iraq since the US-led war in 2003, pledging
to deepen cooperation with the country in all areas after years of
tension in relations.

‘Armenia border could be opened’

During the same press conference, Gul also said bilateral cooperation
with Armenia in various fields was possible as long as a healthy
dialogue with this country is maintained. "Would border gates be closed
if we didn’t have any problem?" Gul asked, when he was asked under
which conditions Turkey would agree to open border gates with Armenia.

"We do not have full diplomatic relations and cooperation. Why
not? Because we have problems, and that’s why border gates are
closed. The aim of this visit and meetings is launching a meeting and
dialogue process which will remove these problems. If these problems
are removed, then all kinds of cooperation happen, borders can be
opened and relations cane be fully established. Other things can also
be done. A much wider economic solidarity may emerge," Gul said,
in an apparent reference to his visit to Yerevan on Sept. 6 at the
invitation of Armenian President Serzh Sarksyan to watch a World Cup
qualifying match between the Turkish and Armenian national teams, as
well as to a trilateral meeting between foreign ministers of Armenia,
Azerbaijan and Turkey which took place in New York on Friday on the
sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

The three ministers agreed to continue talks "for a better political
dialogue and a better understanding," Turkish Foreign Minister Ali
Babacan said after the meeting with Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard
Nalbandian and Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov. Babacan
said they began talks on "specific regional matters" but did not
elaborate.

Turkey closed its border with Armenia in 1993 in protest of Armenian
occupation of a chunk of Azerbaijani territory over a dispute
on Nagorno-Karabakh. Ankara is now seeking to include Armenia in
a regional cooperation platform that is planned to also include
Azerbaijan, Turkey, Russia and Georgia. Nalbandian backed Turkey’s
regional cooperation proposal and Mammad-yarov said regional problems
must be resolved in appropriate ways.
From: Baghdasarian