Author: Chakrian Hovsep

ARMENIA: NUCLEAR ENERGY, IRAN’S RIGHT

PRESS TV, Iran
April 27 2007

Armenian President, Robert Kocharian says Iran like other countries
in the world has the right to benefit from nuclear technology.

Kocharian told a gathering of university students in the Armenian
capital Yerevan on Friday that boosting relations with Iran had great
significance to Armenia.

"Iran is Armenia’s link to the outside world and energy."

Elsewhere in his speech, Kocharian expressed dissatisfaction with the
outcome of meetings between Armenian and Azeri prime ministers. He
added that he would be holding direct talks with Azerbaijan’s president
on the sidelines of the Karabakh peace talks scheduled to take place
on June 10, 2007.

Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian met with his Azeri
counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov in Belgrade last week to discuss the
draft resolution proposed to settle the conflict.

The withdrawal of Armenian forces from occupied Azeri territories,
the refugee situation of the displaced from the Karabakh war, and
the referendum due to decide the faith of the region are parts of
the Karabakh draft resolution aimed at settling the situation in
the region.

IOSIF KOBZON SAYS ZHIRINOVSKI’S REMARKS ON NAGORNO KARABAKH SHOULD NOT BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY

Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
April 27 2007

Russia’s peoples’ artist Iosif Kobzon visiting Azerbaijan held a press
conference in Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater,
APA reports.

The musician said he takes pride in celebration of his 70th anniversary
in Azerbaijan. Noting that he has been for 50 years on the stage
Kobzon said he will celebrate these two great events on the stage.

"My jubilee will be celebrated in a number of countries. I will go
on tour to Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania,
Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and other countries after Azerbaijan," he said.

Kobzon said he visited Martyrs’ Alley and felt sorry for them.

"The graves I saw in the Martyrs’ Alley distressed me. They were too
young. But all this remained the past," he said.

Kobzon said he will sing new and old songs in his jubilee and touched
upon political processes as well. Commenting on the statement by
Vladimir Zhirinovski, chief of Russia Liberal-Democrat Party which
said the Nagorno Karabakh belongs to Armenians, Kobzon said he does
not take this seriously.

"I do not take these thoughts seriously as Zhirinovski said it. If
somebody else said it I could comment on it. I do not consider it right
to comment on it. Zhirinovski’s political line is known to all Post
Soviet countries and he used to make such statements several times,"
he said.

Iosif Kobzon expressed his sorrow about famous musician Mstislav
Rostropovich’s death.

SWING VOTERS MAKE 15 PERCENT IN YEREVAN AND 36 OUTSIDE IT

ARMENPRESS
Apr 27 2007

YEREVAN, APRIL 27, ARMENPRESS: Findings of a latest public opinion
poll, designed to reveal voting intentions among Armenians ahead of
the May 12 parliamentary elections, say some 56 percent of eligible
voters plan a short trip to polling stations on that day to elect
members of their next National Assembly.

According to the survey’s results, conducted by Sociometer pollster
center, 13 percent of Armenians are ready to support the governing
Republican Party, almost three times less than it expects to garner
in next month’s parliamentary elections.

"Our meetings with voters across the country show that the majority of
our citizens are ready to vote for the Republican Party of Armenia,’
a spokesman for this party, Eduard Sharmazanov, told journalists
yesterday, adding that the party plans to get at least one third of
the vote.

The Prospers Armenia party of a millionaire businessmen Gagik
Tsarukian, who is reputed as the wealthiest Armenian, may rely on 11
percent voter support.

These figures, however, represent a striking difference with the
findings of an earlier opinion poll by the British Populus Opinion
Polling Center which surveyed 2,000 Armenians across the country
between April 3-7. Asked who they would vote for if the elections
were held next Sunday, 31 percent said they would cast their ballots
for the Republican Party and 27 percent would cast their ballots for
the Prosperous Armenia.

Unveiling the figures of his latest survey, the head of the Sociometer,
Aharon Adibekian, said what shocked the pollsters was the number of
swing voters in the capital city Yerevan, some 16 percent, who are
still undecided whether they should vote for the Prosperous Armenia
or not.

Adibekian, frequently criticized by opposition leaders for ‘executing
paid orders’, said the number of voters ready to cast ballots for the
Orinats Yerkir party of ex-parliament chairman Arthur Baghdasarian
has grown and those of the opposition National Unity has dwindled.

"Since the number of voters ready to support the Republican and
Prosperous Armenia parties does not, as matter of fact, change,
we can suppose that the Orinats Yerkir, the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation, the National Unity and the Zharangutyun (Heritage) will
be fighting to win over the undecided segment of voters," he concluded.

Adibekian said the majority of public servants and their family
members will vote for the Republican Party, the Prosperous Armenia
may expect the support of the unemployed, pensioners and owners of
small and medium sized businesses. He said 58 percent of people with
higher education in Yerevan will vote for the ARF, 42 percent for
the Heritage.

Also some 42 percent of respondents believe that the May 12 polls will
be marred with as much election fraud as the previous ones in 2003;
20 percent think they will be more transparent and fairer and only
8 believe they will actually meet international standards.

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES PASSES IRAQ WITHDRAWAL TIMETABLE

PanARMENIAN.Net
26.04.2007 15:07 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On Wednesday the lower chamber of the U.S. Congress
adopted a bill on removing American troops from Iraq, AP reports. 218
House members voted for and 208 against the bill. It is expected that
at the beginning of May 2007 the bill adopted by the lower chamber,
where Democrats make majority will be sent to President George Bush
to undersign.

It is expected that the Senate, where Democrats make a narrow majority
will approve the bill too. The both chambers of the Congress have
reached a preliminary agreement on this document.

The legislation on getting out American combat troops from Iraq
includes a budget bill on additional expenses for the wars in Iraq
and Afghanistan, totally $124.2 bilion. The document says that budget
appropriations will be made if the process of removing combat troops
from Iraq will launch not later than October 1, 2007 and finally
completed by April 1, 2008.

President Bush has repeatedly vowed to veto any appropriations measure
that contains a timetable for withdrawing troops from Iraq. The
U.S. President, who represents the Republican party and members of
his administration insist on keeping American troops in Iraq until
the situation in this country normalizes, Lenta.ru reports.

PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY MR. TIGRAN TOROSYAN ADDRESSES ON THE OCCASION OF THE REMEMBRANCE DAY OF THE GENOCIDE VICTIMS

National Assembly of RA, Armenia
April 23 2007

Dear compatriots,

Today, our whole people once again pays tribute to the memory of the
victims of the Armenian Genocide planned and committed at the beginning
of the 20th century by the Ottoman Empire. Year by year the number of
the countries, which, recognizing and condemning that heinous crime,
not only express their support to our people, but also affirm their
responsibility for the destiny of the civilization and mankind,
and ensure that the moral values are beyond diverse political group
interests and small-minded calculations for them.

Bowing our heads before the memory of the Armenian Genocide victims,
we should not only pursue with resolute consistency the unconditional
recognition of one of the gravest events in the mankind’s history,
but we should also strengthen our two Armenian countries with our
unity and work as the best monument of the victims’ memory and one
of the most important guarantees of the secure and dignified life of
our compatriots living in the Motherland and Diaspora.

ARMENIANS MARK 92ND ANNIVERSARY OF MASS KILLINGS IN OTTOMAN EMPIRE

AP Worldstream
Published: Apr 24, 2007

Tens of thousands of Armenians marked the 92nd anniversary of mass
killings in the Ottoman Empire Tuesday, again calling on Turkey and
the world to recognize the slayings as genocide.

Grim-faced mourners waving flags marched through Yerevan to lay
flowers at a large hilltop granite memorial.

"We came here to pay tribute to the victims, so that our neighbors
wouldn’t for a minute think that we could forget about this, so that
this wouldn’t happen in the future," said acting Defense Minister
Michael Arutyunian.

The April 24 anniversary marks the day in 1915 when Turkish authorities
executed a large group of Armenian intellectuals and political leaders,
accusing them of helping the invading Russian army during World War I.

Historians estimate up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I, an event widely viewed
by scholars as the first genocide of the 20th century. Turkey denies
the deaths constituted genocide, saying that the toll has been inflated
and that those killed were victims of civil war and unrest.

Many countries, including Russia and France, have officially recognized
the event as genocide. A resolution pending before the U.S. Congress
that would accuse Ottoman Turks of committing genocide has prompted
warnings from Ankara that its passage would harm relations with
Washington.

VARTAN OSKANIAN ASSESSES HIS BELGRADE MEETING WITH AZERAIJANI COUNTERPART AS NORMAL

Noyan Tapan
Apr 19 2007

YEREVAN, APRIL 19, NOYAN TAPAN. The Armenian Foreign Minister
Vartan Oskanian assessed the Belgrade meeting between the Armenian
and Azerbaijani foreign ministers on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict
settlement as normal in comparison with previous meetings. "After
the meeting in Geneva I said that it was quite difficult. This one
was more normal, without tension," he said in an interview to Radio
Liberty, adding: "We focused on the issues which had not been agreed
on, but no new issue was settled."

V. Oskanian said that the OSCE Mnsk Group co-chairs decided to visit
the region and try together with the presidents to ascertain the
parties’ positions concerning their proposals. They will also try to
come to an agreement with the presidents about the date and place of
the next meeting.

APRIL 24 PROCLAIMED AS ARMENIAN GENOCIDE REMEMBRANCE DAY IN CHICAGO

PanARMENIAN.Net
20.04.2007 14:06 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Chicago City Council adopted a resolution,
according to which April 24 is being proclaimed as Armenian Genocide
Remembrance Day. Mayor of Chicago Richard Daley has undersigned the
resolution, the PanARMENIAN.Net journalist was told in the Armenian
National Committee of America (ANCA). In 2005 the American State
of Illinois became 11th in number to include facts of genocide in
curriculum of schools and colleges of the state. Currently 12 of
19 Congressmen from Illinois express their support for H. Res. 106,
which recognizes the Armenian Genocide.

WEA RESPONDS TO MURDER OF THREE CHRISTIAN WORKERS IN TURKEY

Inspire Magazine, UK
April 20 2007

Three workers at a Bible publishing house in Malatya, Turkey were
killed on Wednesday in the latest apparent attack on Turkey’s minority
Christian community.

The three Christian men — Necati Aydin and Ugur Yuksel of Turkey,
and Tilman Ekkehart Geske of Germany — were bound and had their
throats slit in a Christian book publishing office. Several people
have been detained for questioning regarding the killings.

The murder has sent shockwaves across the Christian minority in Turkey,
and the Christian community worldwide.

Political tensions have been rising in the secular but largely Sunni
Muslim country over the past year. Earlier this year, Armenian
Christian editor Hrant Dink was shot dead by an ultranationalist
youth. Last year, a Catholic priest was killed.

World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) representative Johan Candelin of
Finland will travel to Turkey on Friday to provide spiritual support
to the families of the three deceased.

"Something very dangerous is happening in Turkey at this time. The
country is knocking at Europe’s door and far from everyone is happy
about it. At the same time the nation is about to choose a new
president and tension between Islamists and nationalists is growing
stronger everyday. I ask all Christians to pray for families of the
victims, for the protection of the Christian minority and for Turkey,"
Candelin said on Thursday.

Geoff Tunnicliffe, international director of the WEA, also expressed
his grief over the tragic event.

"We condemn this act of violence against Turkish Christians. We
must find a way of resolving conflict without resorting to these
kinds of brutal acts. It is incumbent upon government, community
and faith leaders to help create a climate of mutual respect that
builds understanding and reconciliation. Today, we grieve for the
loss of our brothers and we stand in solidarity, prayer and support
for Christians in Turkey."

ews.aspx?action=view&id=1139

Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region
104 North Belmont Street, Suite 200
Glendale, California 91206
Phone: 818.500.1918
Fax: 818.246.7353
E-mail: [email protected]
Web:
PRESS RELEASE April 19, 2007

Contact: Haig Hovsepian

Tel: (818) 500-1918

ANCA-WR Welcomes Unanimity of Colorado Delegation– Colorado joins
Massachusetts and Rhode Island as States with Unanimous Congressional
Support for H. Res. 106 and S. Res. 106
Los Angeles, CA – The Armenian National Committee of America – Western
Region (ANCA-WR) has learned that Colorado has joined Massachusetts and
Rhode Island to become the third state with a complete Congressional
delegation in support of both H. Res. 106 and S. Res. 106. The ANCA-WR
is happy to report that Colorado activists were instrumental in gaining
the cosponsorship support of the Colorado delegation.

With the recent additions of Senator Ken Salazar (D-CO) and Congressman
Thomas Tancredo (R-CO-06), the Colorado Delegation now unanimously
supports the Armenian Genocide Resolutions of the Senate and House of
Representatives. Senator Salazar joined Senator Wayne Allard (R-CO) and
Rep. Tancredo joined Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO-01), Rep. Mark Udall
(D-CO-02), Rep. John Salazar (D-CO-03), Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R-CO-04),
Rep. Douglas Lamborn (R-CO-05) and Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-CO-07) in
cosponsorship.

As an example of their grassroots efforts, on March 23, 2007, local
constituents Kim Christianian, Ken Allikian, Denise and Diane Gentilini
and Michael Chandler met with Congressman Ed Perlmutter’s local district
office in Lakewood as part of their grassroots efforts in Colorado. The
constituents met with Congressman Perlmutter’s Congressional Aide,
Christopher Votoupal to discuss H. Res. 106 and to urge the Congressman
to join the Armenian Caucus. During this meeting, the group discussed
issues ranging from the assassination of Turkish-Armenian journalist
Hrant Dink to the re-nomination of Richard Hoagland as U.S. Ambassador
to Armenia.

"This meeting was a good opportunity to articulate issues that are
important to Armenian-Americans that go beyond H. Res. 106 regarding
Armenia and its future," said Christianian. "Even though Rep. Perlmutter
had already signed on as a cosponsor, it is always important to meet
with local Congressmen and strengthen your ties with both them and their
staff."

Because Congressman Perlmutter had already signed on to H. Res. 106, the
constituents asked him to also urge his colleague Senator Ken Salazar to
also join as a cosponsor. "This is a collaborative effort between all
the local organizations working on getting this Resolution passed
whether it is the Armenian National Committee of Colorado or the
Armenian Assembly," said Christianian. "We are very pleased with the
work we have done and happy to do our part here."

"Colorado provides a wonderful example of the power of grassroots
advocacy," stated Andrew Kzirian, ANCA-WR Executive Director. "The
POWER Initiative will continue to reach out to the Western United States
to ensure that the interests of the Armenian American community are
represented properly," he added.

The Armenian National Committee of America is the largest and most
influential Armenian American grassroots political organization. Working
in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters
throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the
world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American
community on a broad range of issues.

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