Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), Iran
May 9 2005

Lawmaker: Azerbaijan relies on friendly countries’ support

Baku, May 9, IRNA

The Republic of Azerbaijan relies and trusts support of friendly
states in order to consolidate its independence, said an Azeri
parliamentarian Aidin Mirzazadeh here on Monday.

Lawmaker Mirzazadeh said Iran has always been the ‘friend in need’ of
the government and people of Azerbaijan, highlighting Tehran’s
stances in support for Azerbaijan at the beginning of the Karabakh
conflict with Armenia Republic.

“Iran also supported Azerbaijan Republic’s position on the first day
of Karabakh dispute, offering worthy assistance to the refugees and
the needy,” said Mirzazadeh in an address to ceremonies for donating
Iran’s assistance to a group of Azeri needy children and youth,
covered by the non-governmental organization of Azerbaijan’s `Youth
and Needy Children’.

Iran’s ambassador to Baku Afshar Soleimani told the gathering that
the Islamic Republic of Iran has never left any stone unturned in
providing assistance to the needy citizens of the friendly and
neighboring country of Azerbaijan.

Soleymani said Imam Khomeini Relief Committee and the Islamic
Republic of Iran’s Red Crescent Society have offered humanitarian
relief aid to the poor and war refugees in Azerbaijan.

He said Iran has always been in favor of Azerbaijan’s development and
improvement of the living and welfare standards of the republic’s
citizens.

Soleymani said a bright prospect lies ahead for Iran-Azerbaijan
relations, which is in the interest of Iranian and Azeri governments
and people and is significant for the progress of the region.

Azerbaijan’s non-governmental organization of `Youth and Needy
Children’ covers more than 5,000 needy in Baku and different cities
in the republic.
From: Baghdasarian

La Croix , France
4 mai 2005

Les saints du jour. Saint Sylvain (IVe siècle). Saint Grégoire
l’Illuminateur. Saint Florian. Saint Antonin de Florence.

Saint Sylvain (IVe siècle). Évêque de Gaza, condamné aux mines où il
fut décapité parce que malade et âgé.

Saint Grégoire l’Illuminateur, qui évangélisa les Arméniens à la fin
du IIIe siècle.

Saint Florian, ancien officier venu secourir des chrétiens
emprisonnés au IVe siècle. Saint Antonin de Florence, dominicain et
archevêque au XVe siècle.

–Boundary_(ID_iL+zrYgdvWQbgn5/vAdfTQ)–
From: Baghdasarian

Armenian organizations, US officials discuss financial aid programme

A1+ web site
5 May 05

The representatives of the Millennium Challenge Corporation [MCC],
who are paying a four-day visit to Armenia, will discuss with the
Armenian government details of the programme of aid to Armenia within
the framework of the corporation’s projects.

“We will sign a document called Compact with the Armenian government
in the near future in order to allocate money to Armenia within the
framework of the MCC project,” the MMC representative in Armenia,
Alex Russin, said.

He also said that they have already met a number of representatives
of the Armenian government. He even predicted the decision of the
corporation.

The representatives of the corporation also met public organizations
in order to discuss Armenia’s appeal to the MCC. The meeting was
arranged by an organization called Cooperation for Public Organizations
which was not sure that a press conference would be held after the
meeting. The discussion mainly focused on the question of whether it
is worth giving Armenia so much money when there are big corruption
risks, as a result of which the poor get poorer and the rich get
richer. The authorities are extremely corrupt and the level of
education and health is unsatisfactory.

Political analyst Agasi Yenokyan said that corruption risks are higher
in the spheres covered by the MCC project and in this situation,
the authorities are spending these funds on maintaining their own
administrative staff. Asked by Yenokyan whether the MCC had such an
aim in allocating money to Armenia, Russin declined to answer. The
representatives of other pubic organizations also said that the MCC
will not be able to change anything by giving 170m dollars to Armenia –
poverty will not fall and the economy will not develop.

The foreign representative of the World Vision international
organization noted: “You say that there is economic growth in Armenia
and the government is liberalizing the economy, but if you leave
the Central Bank, Finance Ministry or hotel, you cannot see it. The
economic resources are only used by those who are strong and rich.”
From: Baghdasarian

DESPITE BEING YOUNG ARMENIAN ARMY ALREADY HAS MUCH TO BE
PROUD OF: US EXPERT

YEREVAN, MAY 6. ARMINFO. Despite being relatively young the Armenian
army already has much to be proud of, the head of the US military
experts for assessing the defending capacity of Armenia’s army Michael
Anderson during his today’s meeting with Armenia’s Defence Minister
Serzh Sargsyan.

Sargsyan’s Spokesman Seyran Shahsuvaryan reports Anderson as thanking
Sargsyan for the sincerity and transparency given by the Armenian
side during their monitoring. Andersen is impressed to see how
carefully soldiers and equipment are treated in the Armenian army. He
commends the manning of the army with contract officers and the active
enrollment of reserve officers during maneuvers.
From: Baghdasarian

CURRENCY “BUBBLE”

YEREVAN, MAY 5. ARMINFO. In the retail currency market of Armenia US
dollar started strengthening its positions, which has been immediately
responded by the CB. The latter made an official call to the population
to avoid losses not to obey to panic and false rumors and not to give
their savings. The Armenian CB is taking measures in the market to
maintain the natural level of dram liquidity and at exchange points
to secure legality of transactions.

Within 2004 the exchange rate decreased from 570 to 475, decreasing
to 435 AMD per 1 USD by May 3. Today, sharp fluctuation of the

currency rate was observed in the retail currency market of Armenia,
which reached its top – 490 AMD per 1 USD in daytime and decreased

back to 465 AMD per 1 USD. Currency dealers explain this by a

speculative factor, in particular, big sums were regularly directed
to the market, which shook the exchange rate and “currency speculators
took advantage of it.”

Factually, the considerable reduction in the USD exchange rate
within the year has led to changes in the intentions of the
market-participants, in particular, currency speculators are in
question, who earlier sold dollars and now try to buy them. A dealer
of one of the largest banks of Armenia says talking to ARMINFO. He
thinks that the so-called “resold market” because of intensive dram
interventions of the Armenian CB had not less important part in the
situation in the country’s currency market. The CB purchased $55.5
mln from Jan 27 to May 3 including $27 mln in April alone. He says
that the CB announcing the change in the mechanism of calculation of
the normative of compulsory reservation on attracted funds from May
27 had an important impact on the fluctuation of the currency rate.
The announcement supposed that reservation on dollar funds must
be made in terms of dollars, EUR – in terms of EUR, AMD – in terms
of AMD and on other currencies – in terms of dollars. Besides, the
lion’s share of the fund attracted by the commercial banks were in
dollars and their reservation required purchase of dollars or at
least their preservation.

On the day of debates at the Armenian Parliament around the situation
in the currency market, on May 3 the Armenian CB held a regular
dram intervention intending to purchase $5 mln from banks. However,
the exhausted opportunities of the banks (many of them had short
dollar positions) did not allow the CB to purchase dollars at the
rate close to the market rate (banks offer high rates). As a result,
the CB purchased only $3.1 mln for 444.90 AMD per 1 USD.

The bank’s dealer thinks that the sale of dollars by the currency
speculators in large lots led to the fact that the cash at exchange
points was almost sold for 465 AMD per 1 USD, that is why the rate

continued to rise reaching 490 AMD per 1 USD. The CB immediately

responded by a toughened inspection of exchange points. By this step,
the CB made the marker-participants understand that it will not
allow further sharp fluctuation of the exchange rate. As a result,
the rate decreased by 20 AMD to 470 AMD per 1 USD.

Top note, the Armenian CB has set the AMD-USD exchange rate for May 6
at 459.39/1 respectively, increasing it by 15.45 AMD as against May 5.
From: Baghdasarian

Burbank allots federal grants
By Alex Dobuzinskis, Staff Writer

Los Angeles Daily News
May 5 2005

BURBANK — Youth job training, counseling and academic programs will
receive the bulk of $271,500 in federal community development money
disbursed Tuesday by the City Council.

The council also gave final approval to disburse more than $1 million
for city building projects, including $459,900 for a new headquarters
for the Burbank Temporary Aid Center. The nonprofit also received
$37,500 to provide emergency lodging, food and other assistance to
the needy.

“All of these organizations were asking for a lot more; they were
asking for twice what we gave them,” said Mayor Jef Vander Borght.
“They all deserve every bit that we can give them, but there’s only
so much funds so you have to be as Solomonic as possible.”

The Burbank Unified School District will receive $70,000 to
administer a summer employment program for young people from low-
and moderate-income households.

Other allocations included:

$42,100 to the nonprofit Family Service Agency of Burbank for youth
counseling programs and a community day school.

$35,000 to the Boys & Girls Club for a student-enrichment program.

$18,000 to the Salvation Army to help the homeless and the needy.

Barbara Howell, executive director of the Burbank Aid Center, said
the federal money is not the nonprofit’s main source of funding,
but that it is important.

“It ensures that we’re going to have money next year to pay people’s
power bills and emergency housing, and help people replace their IDs
and that kind of thing,” Howell said.

The Armenian Relief Society also received $2,500, the first time the
council has funded the group.

“Last year the council voted not to fund them … because of the
concern that we prefer to fund organizations that are as inclusive
as possible and open to everyone,” Vander Borght said.

But the organization deserves funding because it helps Armenians with
limited English who might not get help from other groups, he said.

While the council had given initial approval to the funding breakdown
for $1 million in building projects in December, its final approval
was granted Tuesday.

BTAC’s project to rebuild its headquarters at 1304 W. Burbank Blvd.
is expected to be finished by early next year. The agency got $575,000
in Community Development Block Grant money for the project last year.

The council also allocated $505,148 for city street, alley and walkway
projects; $133,450 for code-compliance inspectors; and $78,000 to
Build Rehabilitation Industries Inc. for new training rooms, lighting
and a sprinkler system to help it train disabled individuals to enter
the work force.
From: Baghdasarian

NOVGOROD: DIVERS LOOK FOR MEDIEVAL BRIDGE REMNANTS ON RIVER BOTTOM

RIA Novosti, Russia
May 03, 2005

NOVGOROD VELIKI, May 3 (RIA Novosti, Andrei Letyagin) – Diver
archeologists are searching for the ruins of a medieval bridge on the
Volkhov river bottom in Novgorod Veliki, in the country’s northwest-one
of Russia’s longest-established cities.

As Novgorodian chronicles have it, the bridge, known as Great, was
built late in the 10th century into the turn of the 11th, to collapse
in the 17th.

The INTAS international research foundation, with headquarters in
Brussels, Belgium, is financing the search on a project roughly
estimated at 100,000 Euros. The Great Bridge endeavor also envisages
search for medieval bridges on their tentative underwater sites in
Venice, Paris and Armenia.

Novgorod Diving Club activists have for now scanned the Volkhov bottom
in the city’s historical heart-the citadel vicinity, to come across
objects that resemble bridge piers.

“We can’t yet say for sure they are really piers-there is too much
debris cluttering the river bottom along that stretch of the Volkhov.
There are logs and other large objects stocked up over the centuries,”
say experts.

Divers will go on with their job, June and July next. If their
conjecture proves correct, archeologists will saw off samples of the
wooden piers to precisely determine their age.

The bridge used to stretch across the Volkhov from the citadel to
the prince’s palace, which were just opposite each other.

The search is expected to take two years or so. Activists of the
Novgorod Amateur History Society will eventually join Diving Club
volunteers on the efforts.

The INTAS intends to hold a research conference in Novgorod, within
the month, for people involved in Project Great Bridge.
From: Baghdasarian

Politics or propaganda?
By Karine Mangasarian

Yerkir
29 April 05

On the eve of the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide the Turkish
Prime Minister Rejep Tayip Erdogan extended a letter to the Armenian
president Robert Kocharian proposing to establish a joint group of
Armenian and Turkish historians and other experts that would research
the events of 1915 and would present the results of the research to
the international community.

At first sight, the Turkish prime minister’s letter could be seen as
a pretext for Turkey to start relations with Armenia had it not been
for the proposal to appeal to the historians of the two countries to
sort out the relations between Armenia and Turkey.

President Robert Kocharian’s answer to Erdogan stated, “Your
proposal to look back at the past cannot be efficient since it
does not deal with the present and the future. In order to engage
in an efficient dialog we need to establish a favorable political
environment.” Kocharian also pointed out that the responsibility
of developing relations between the two countries lies with their
governments and not the historians.

Now that we are familiar with the two letters, what conclusions can we
draw? How sincere was Erdogan’s proposal? Was it not made for merely
propaganda purposes especially that it was made on the eve of the
Genocide commemoration?

Most of the Armenian political forces believe that the Turkish prime
minister’s proposal aimed at countering the increasing international
pressure on Turkey.

“It is obvious that the Turkish prime minister’s proposal was
a political move aimed at minimizing the increasing pressure
on Turkey. I think it was a miscalculated move since it was more
propaganda than anything else, and everyone knows about this,” head
of ARF’s parliamentary faction Levon Mkrtchian said.

As to president Kocharian’s response, Mkrtchian believes his letter
emphasized the weakest points in Erdogan’s letter whereby the latter
tried to transfer the issues that should be dealt with by the state
to the historians.

“This is a groundless proposal and can stand no criticism either from
diplomatic or from academic perspectives. The president’s response is
rather well grounded and reflects the main directions of our foreign
policy,” Mkrtchian said.

Commenting on the possible developments of the incident Mkrtchian,
noted that Erdogan will either reply again or will abstain from any
further activities since the commemoration of the 90th anniversary
of the Armenian Genocide is over and the Turkish political circles
no longer need to launch such propaganda activities.

Chairman of the New Communist Party of Armenia Yuri Manukian noted that
the Turkish prime minister and those Turkish officials who share his
position are first of all the enemies of their own population since
they continue the policies of Sultan Hamid. “The Turkish leadership
never tells the truth to its people. I agree with president Kocharian’s
response.

The time for playing games is over and the Armenian leadership has
to go on pursuing international denunciation of the Genocide with
its foreign policy and in cooperation with the Diaspora Armenian
organizations,” Manukian said adding that these activities should be
carried out not by historians but by politicians.
From: Baghdasarian

THE PRIME MINISTER LULLED THEIR VIGILANCE

A1plus

| 16:53:22 | 02-05-2005 | Social |

«In the Court everything is false, and the lawyers do not want to
speak to us», said Samvel Markosyan, soldier and invalid of the
first group during the meeting at the Government building.

The meeting was organized by the families of the dead soldiers,
participants of the World War, invalids and those having many children,
who had been allotted lands in the Kourghinyan and Sebastia areas by
Vahan Zatikyan. The lands have been taken away from 27 families and
secretly sold by auction. On April 29 there has been a Court session
but by the request of the participants of the meeting it has been
postponed till May 10.

«We have turned to the Prime Minister several times. He answered
«Yes» saying that the land will be allotted to us. We were pleased,
but even after that we are summoned to court», says Samvel Markosyan,
«Both «Yes» and «No» are answers. For almost a year we are taken
to court and we get no clear-cut answer».

At present the issue is being discussed in the municipality. If there
are no results, the struggle will go on till the end.

By the way, in the court the participant of the meeting have found out
that one of the buyers of the land is Simon Hakobyan – the brother
of the NA delegate Hakob Hakobyan. The participants of the meeting
claim hopelessly, «What can the handicapped people do against those
with Jeeps? »

–Boundary_(ID_DDKANRXUgXVa4F3/UE6quA)–
From: Baghdasarian

Armenia Must Recognize Turkey’s and Azerbaijan’s National Borders to Normalize Relations

Journal of Turkish Weekly
May 3 2005

Jan SOYKOK – (JTW) Diplomatic sources argue that Armenia must recognize
neighboring Turkey’s and Azerbaijan’s national borders to normalize
its relations with Turkey and other regional states. According to
the Turkish sources Armenian forces should withdraw from Azerbaijan.

Dr. Nilgun Gulcan said the US and the EU should make pressure on
Yerevan to end the Armenian occupation:

“The US makes pressures on Syria and Syrian troops have withdrawn
from Lebanon. The US imposed embargo and military operations against
Serbia. The occupier Iraq was punished. However Armenian forces
occupied Azerbaijan and the occupation has lasted for more than a
decade. The US and the EU did almost nothing. International community
did not ask the Armenians to end occupation. The US and EU politicians
question Turkey – Armenia relations but never question the Armenian
occupation. The US impose embargo against Iran, Cuba and other states,
but when Turkey-Armenia border is closed due to the Armenian aggressive
policies, the US criticizes Turkey. Both the Americans and the EU
have to see the Armenian responsibility in relations.”

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan offered a joint commission
to discuss the historical disputes, but the Armenian side rejected
the offer.

The irredentist groups in Armenia call Turkey’s eastern provinces
‘Western Armenia’ and the Armenian Constitution does not recognize
Turkey’s national borders.
From: Baghdasarian