Author: Chakrian Hovsep

GAS AND ELECTRICITY TARIFFS TO BE REVIEWED

ARMENPRESS
Feb 5, 2009

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 5, ARMENPRESS: The prices for gas are expected
to be increased from April 1, 2009 and naturally it will have its
impact on the tariffs, chairman of the Armenian Public Services
Regulatory Commission Robert Nazarian said today in the NA answering
to the questions of members of parliament after the presentation of
the report.

He noted that in the coming days "Armrusgasprom" company is expected
to present an application to the commission on reviewing the tariffs.

"How much the increase on the border will be I do not know yet, as
I as far as I know by yesterday negotiations were going on with the
Russian side. After receiving the application we will study it and
we have to establish tariff by the end of this month," the chairman
of the commission said.

He also added that depending on the amount of the increase of the
gas tariff an issue on reviewing electricity tariff will raise.

OPEN LETTER FROM 19,000 ASSYRIANS TO TURKEY: DO NOT TOUCH ST. GABRIEL MONASTERY

Assyrian International News Agency

Feb 5 2009

The group "Aktion Mor Gabriel" in Germany, held a protest demonstration
in Berlin (AINA 1-27-2009) against Turkey’s attempts to confiscate
the Mor Gabriel Monastery. According to official figures from the
Berlin police, more than 19 000 people gathered. It is undoubtedly
the largest Assyrians demonstration ever in Europe.

Buses filled with young, old, men and women from Belgium, Holland,
Switzerland, Austria, and from several cities in Germany emptied
outside the magnificent cathedral, the Berliner Dom. In an hour the
cathedral’s park area turned to a meeting place for Assyrians from
all over Europe.

Just a stone’s throw from the gathering is the Pergamon Museum. Inside
the museum you can watch the impressive Babylonian procession street,
built by the Assyrian king Nebuchadnezzar II (604-562 BC). Lions in
the relief walking along the procession street’s blue and ocher colored
glazed walls towards the mighty gate of Ishtar. They are witnesses of
a great past and have seen many generations of Assyrians come and go.

The contrast in Berlin

Inside the Pergamon Museum, you can watch the Babylonian procession
street and the gate of Ishtar, one of ancient history’s most unique
remains from the great Assyrian empire, while outside, a stone’s
throw from the museum you are met by today’s brutal truth, where the
remains of the Assyrian empire protest against Turkey’s attempt to
confiscate the Mor Gabriel Monastery, which has become a symbol of
the Christian Assyrians since it was built in 397 A.D.

Before the protest march was moving towards its final destination,
the Syriac Orthodox Church Archbishop of Germany, Julio Hanna Aydin,
made a short speech.

– I am extremely pleased to see so many young people involved in
the Mor Gabriel issue. I am overwhelmed with joy to see all of our
organizations, regardless of name, flags and colors. It is the day
of unity, said Bishop Hanna Aydin.

Under the leadership of Bishop Hanna Aydin the crowd prayed the
lord’s prayer, after that the demonstrators began to move towards the
Brandenburg Tor, the arch of triumph that has become the symbol of
a free, democratic and reunited Germany, where several demonstration
speeches would be held.

Berlin’s main avenue, Unter den Linden, was closed for car traffic
for the demonstration. This avenue which is Berlin’s cultural and
political center is heavily visited by tourists. Some curious tourists
asked the organizers in yellow vests what it is about.

The demonstration took the march from the Berliner Dom at Pariser Platz
to the Brandenburg Gate in one hour. "Do not touch the Mor Gabriel"
the crowd scanted all the way.

The list of speakers consisted of representatives from various
organizations, Assyrian, Armenian, German Evangelical Church
representatives, other coreligionists and human rights activists. Also
the authors Yelda Ozcan and Recep Marasli showed their solidarity
and gave speeches during the demonstration.

The line of argument in the speakers’ message was that Turkey should
stop harassing the Assyrians. Most speakers noted that the feudal
system is a problem and the village guards armed with government
weapons are raging freely and terrorizing the Assyrians in the
area. The Turkish State which has started this systematic state terror
by using Kurdish clans and village guards has to immediately stop it
if they want to belong to the civilized world, emphasized the majority
of speakers.

History is present

A few hundred meters south of the Brandenburg Gate, where 19 000
Assyrians were assembled, the Holocaust Mahnmal, a monument to the
Holocaust, which covers a 19 000 m2 area in the middle of Berlin’s
most central neighborhoods. The monument was built as an unforgettable
symbol of the crime that Nazi Germany had committed against the city’s
once flourishing Jewish community.

Turkey, however, does the contrary, and responds to its dark history in
an entirely different way. Just a few kilometers from the demonstration
site is Hardenberg Strasse, the street where the genocide architect
of Seyfo, Talat Pasha, was killed in March 15, 1921 by an Armenian
survivor of the genocide. Seyfo-genocide was staged by the young
Turks under the direction of among others Talat Pasha. The current
Turkish government continues its policies in the same spirit. With its
aggression and its harassment of the Assyrians and other Christians
in the country, the Turkish state shows that even today they follow
in Talat Pashas footsteps.

Turkey seems to have difficulties to put up with the fact that there
are a couple of thousand Assyrians left in Turabdin, the origin area
of the Assyrians, and that they have a monastery in the area, although
they already have eradicated several hundred thousand of them during
the Seyfo genocide. Turkey wants to erase the last remains and to
complete the genocide that Talat Pasha and the young Turks began in
the shadow of the First World War. A country which does not recognize
its crimes and apologize for them is always prone to commit the same
crimes against humanity. Learn from Germany, Turkey! Dare to face
your dark history and make up with it!

BELARUS-ARMENIA INTERPARLIAMENTARY COMMISSION TO MEET IN MINSK

Trend News Agency
Feb 5 2009
Azerbaijan

The Belarusian-Armenian interparliamentary cooperation commission plans
to hold a session in Minsk on February 23-24, Chairman of the House
of Representatives of the National Assembly Vladimir Andreichenko
said as he met with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
the Republic of Armenia to Belarus Oleg Esayan, reported Belta .

The Belarusian part of the cooperation commission has already been
set up. According to Vladimir Andreichenko, the forthcoming session
will help establish closer contacts between the National Assemblies
of Armenia and Belarus. The agenda of the session includes goals to
enhance energy security. Armenia has a rich experience in the field,
the Belarusian speaker said.

Vladimir Andreichenko stressed that the Belarusian and Armenian
parliamentarians have been closely cooperating including within the
international organisations. The recent years have seen the cooperation
between the two countries considerably intensified. With setting up
the bilateral commission, the parliaments of Armenia and Belarus have
reached higher level of cooperation, Vladimir Andreichenko added.

"Although we have no common borders, Belarus and Armenia have
established warm friendly relations. The mutual trade has been
increasing year-on-year," Chairman of the House of Representatives
said. At the same time, according to him, the potential in the trade
and economic relations of the two countries remains untapped.

Vladimir Andreichenko invited an official delegation of Armenia and
its Speaker to visit Belarus this year.

On his part, Oleg Esayan said that Belarusian-Armenian relations
have been successfully developing almost in all areas: politics,
economy, culture. The two countries have similar positions on all most
important issues of international politics. Yet there is a need to
put more efforts in creation of joint companies, investment projects,
interbank cooperation. Oleg Esayan is confident that "2009 can be
most important for starting a new series of high-level visits."

According to the Ambassador of Armenia, bilateral trade has increased
significantly over the past several years. Last year, trade between
Belarus and Armenia reached $28.2 million, up 18.9 over 2007.

An increase in Belarusian exports to Armenia came on the back of
large contracts for the delivery of Belarusian goods for the mining
industry. Belarus’ major exports to Armenia were tyres, trucks,
medicines, tractors, special-purpose vehicles. All in all Belarus
exports more than 140 types of products to Armenia.

Oleg Esayan conveyed an invitation to Vladimir Andreichenko from
the Speaker of the Armenian parliament to pay an official visit to
Armenia this year.

ARMENIAN COMMUNIST PARTY: "THERE IS NARIMANOV STATEMENT OF THE 1920S IN WHICH IS FIXES THAT BODIES OF 26 COMMISSARS ARE BURIED"

Today.Az
litics/50521.html
Feb 5 2009
Azerbaijan

The Communist Party of Armenia is solidar with the Communist and
Socialist Parties of Azerbaijan in the issue of reburial of Shaomyan’s
residuals, said first secretary of the central committee of the
Communist Party of Armenia Ruben Tovmasyan.

"They told me this in our recent telephone calls", he told reporters
Thursday.

He refutted the statements of Azerbaijani powers about the alleged
move of Shaumyan and two other commissars to England.

"I have Narimanov’s statement made during reburial of Baku commissars
in Baku in the 1920s, in which he says that bodies of 26 commissars
are buried", said he.

The actions of Azerbaijani powers, considers Tovmasyan, are aimed to
terminate any trace, connected with Armenians.

"And this against the fact that Heydar Aliyev during the celebration of
100th jubilee of Shaumyan said "Stepan Shaumyan is a great son of not
only the Armenian people, but also the Azerbaijani people", added he.

He said the world communist movement raised its voice of protest
against demolition of the monument to 26 Baku commissars.

Tovmasyan announced that the Communist Party of Armenia appealed to
the Armenian president to use all diplomatic and political means for
reburial of the residuals of Stepan Shaumyan and his fellows in arms
on the Armenian land. For this purpose, the head of the Communist Party
has already appealed to the President with a request about the meeting.

He also added that the further steps of the Armenian Communist Party
in this issue will depend on the outcome of his meeting with President
Serzh Sargsyan.

AS ARPI VARDANIAN PREDICTED IT, BARACK OBAMA WILL KEEP HIS PROMISE TO RECOGNIZE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

NOYAN TAPAN

Feb 4, 2009
YEREVAN

In the meetings with American Armenians U.S. Congressmen express
the hope that new President Barack Obama will keep his preelection
promise to recognize the Armenian Genocide of 1915. Arpi Vardanian,
the Armenian Assembly of America Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh Office
Director, reported at the February 4 press conference reminding B.
Obama’s words: "The Armenian Genocide is not a personal perception,
but a fact, about which there is large-scale evidence."

As A. Vardanian predicted it, U.S. President will remain loyal to
his promise and will recognize the Armenian Genocide, especially as,
according to her observation, an irreversible process of genocide
preception, search for the truth, learning lessons from the past has
started in the world.

According to A. Vardanian, that process has been also launched and
continues in Turkey, where nearly 30 thousand signatures have been
collected as a result of a group of intellectuals’ initiative to
apologize to the Armenians. A. Vardanian classed as a progress the
circumstance that the Turkish authorities decided not to call for
criminal liability the signature collection initiators.

A. Vardanian confirmed the observation of a journalist that the Turkish
lobbying has become active in the U.S. in the past years. Nevertheless,
according to her, the Turkish agitation is still inferior to the
Armenian one.

NOVRUZ MAMMADOV: "ARMENIAN LEADERSHIP INTENDS TO DELAY NEGOTIATION PROCESS DOING CERTAIN MANEUVERS AGAIN"

APA
Feb 4 2009
Azerbaijan

Baku. Lachin Sultanova-APA. "President Ilham Aliyev, commenting on
the Zurich meeting in his interviews, said that the negotiations had
had some progress, but not enough.

The essence of the issue is that it is impossible to say something
about the details while full agreement on the conflict solution
is not reached in the negotiations", Chief of the International
Relations Department of the President’s Office Novruz Mammadov told
APA exclusively. He said the main goal of the negotiations over the
settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict was to put full solution to
the conflict on agenda. "The goal is to determine Nagorno Karabakh
status within the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, to return
refugees to their homeland and to liberate Azerbaijani lands from
the occupation. Therefore it is impossible to say something fair
because full agreement was not reached. I can say in a sense that
Armenian leadership intends to delay the negotiation process doing
some maneuvers again".

Novruz Mammadov commented on the statement made by Armenian leadership
after the meeting with separatist regime of Nagorno Karabakh "Nagorno
Karabakh can not be a part of Azerbaijan": "After independence all
Armenian leaders came to power only in the wave of Nagorno Karabakh
conflict. Today one of their main aims is to delay these negotiations
and ensure their stay in power. Unfortunately, these leaders are
preparing catastrophic future for Armenian people. They do not learn
from the current situation, from at least last year’s happenings. They
do not understand that this patronage is not everlasting, nothing
is stable in the regions, everything changes. But if today this
patronage loses its force, Armenia will face a fatal situation, as
once Ter-Petrosyan said. At that time nobody will pay attention to
Armenia’s calls. Though Armenian leaders understand this, they can
not take steps in this direction. The Armenians know very well that
within these 20 years no country has recognized or will recognize the
so-called regime established in the Azerbaijani territories. That’s
why they make such absurd statements to gain some dividends before the
people and calm themselves and the country’s population down," he said.

HOPE IS A GOOD THING, BUT…

Azat Artsakh Daily
04 Feb 09
Republic of Nagorno Karabakh [NKR]

So one more – the first in 2009 – meeting of the presidents and the
heads of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Armenia and Azerbaijan
on settlement of Nagorno Karabahk conflict held in Zurich on January
28 is behind. The basic question which, for sure, the societies of
the conflicting parties are interested in is whether they achieved
any progress in the negotiation process. It’s worth to say at once
that most of the experts and politicians did not expect too much from
the Swiss meeting of Serzh Sargsyan and Ilham Aliyev. Even American
co-chairmen Matthew Bryza, who usually excels as an unflagging
optimism, the day before rendezvous of the presidents also admitted,
that serious progress was not expected. In a certain sense such a
skeptic attitude toward the meeting can be explained by accruing it
within the framework of Davos World Economic Forum, due to importance
of which the meeting became of secondary meaning. But is it the only
reason why a diplomatic breakthrough did not happen? Certainly,
the reasons are deeper and they lie in the positions of parties,
or rather in the absolute polarity of those positions on the key
points of the regulation. It is known that now on the negotiation
table lie so called Madrid Principles, named by mediators as basic,
after reconciliation of 0Awhich the co-chairmen of the Minsk Group
intend to get the final agreement signed by the parties. But are
their expectations realizable? After the presidents meeting in
Zurich, Matthew Bryza, true to form, underlined with optimism that
the positions of Azerbaijan and Armenia on the basic principles of
the regulation of the Karabahk conflict notably drew together.

Though the American diplomat did not work out in details, in which
principles the approachment took place, yet there is no doubt,
that it was certainly not the status of NKR and the territory
which practically appears to be the stumbling block in the process
of regulation. The co-chairmen themselves realize the difficulty
of achieving mutual compromise. In their joint statement on the
results of the meeting of the presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia in
Zurich, they announced their willingness to work with the Ministers
of Foreign Affairs to develop a detailed proposal and submit for
consideration by two presidents of the most essential distinctions
between the parties by the base principles of settlement. The
mediators expressed the hope that in the near future, the parties
could overcome those distinctions for the achievement of the secure
peace agreement. Hope is a good thing, but… Right after the
meeting of the presidents in Zurich, the head of MFA of Azerbaijan
E. Mamedyarov announced that "The negotiations held in the frame
of territorial inte grity of Azerbaijan". And he declared this,
despite the fact that in the above mentioned statement, issued by
the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmen, directly stated that the balanced
agreement must be based on the Principles of the Helsinki Final Act –
territorial integrity, self-determination and peaceful settlement of
disputes. As seen, this was far not the first time Azeri officials
selectively and to the best advantage for themselves interpret
the process of settlement of the conflict. Nevertheless, I want
to believe, that Swiss meetings of the presidents and the heads of
Foreign Ministries of Azerbaijan and Armenia were not just ordinary
consultations and an imitation of negotiation process. Let’s trust
the Armenian foreign minister Eduard Nalbandyan in whose words the
two presidents underlined the presence of definite dynamics in the
settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh problem. In any case, even in the
lack of appreciable results the dialogue of parties helps to maintain
the process of regulation afloat. Consequently, in a certain extend it
reduces the risk of resumption of the war. Undoubtedly, this creates
conditions for further search of a realistic solution of the problems,
more precisely – a full-scale solution with obligatory participation
of official Stepanakert in the negotiations.

ERDOGAN – HONORARY CITIZEN OF TEHRAN

AZG Armenian Daily
05/02/2009

International

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has become an honorary
citizen of Tehran, Press TV reported.

The decision was made after Erdogan’s speech in Davos, where he
condemned Israeli military operations in Gaza.

Tehran Mayor Mohammad-Baqir Kalibaf assessed the Turkish PM’s speech as
"bold and sage deed".

Erdogan delivered a speech on January 29 in a conference in the
framework of Davos World Economic Forum. The conference was dedicated
to Gaza incidents. The Turksih PM was angry about the situation,
when Israeli President Shimon Peres was allowed to speak 25 minutes,
when he was not allowed to finish his speech. Erdogan managed to
condemn Israel for killing of peaceful Palestinians.

In his message addressed to Turkish PM Erdogan the Mayor of Tehran
wrote, "While many states have preferred to remain silent and
ignore the crimes committed by Israelis, the Turkish leader has
found the words to express their solidarity [with the Palestinian
people]. Turkish people should be proud of their leader".

"Azg" daily has touched upon the incident in Davos in its previous
issues.

To recall, earlier, the representatives of Palestinian "Hamas"
radical movement praised Erdogan’s courage. Moreover, at the airport
in Istanbul Turks greeted their Prime Minister as a national hero.

Auction Central News, NY
Feb 1 2009

Lot 233 email save
ABDULLAH FRERES [ATTRIB.] (Armenian) Vintage carbo

Abdullah Freres [Attrib.] (Armenian, Active 1870s – 1890s). "Bedouins
and Camels in the Arabian Desert". Vintage carbon (?) print. c1890s?
Printed c1890s?. 10 1/4 x 20 1/4 in. (260 x 514 mm). Sheet Size: 13
1/2 x 24 in. (343 x 610 mm).

To view images, terms & conditions
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PanARMENIAN.Net

Darchinyan to destroy Arce, experts say
30.01.2009 21:55 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ World Super Flyweight Champion Vic "Raging Bull"
Darchinyan will defend his unified junior bantamweight titles against
Jorge Arce at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., on Feb. 7 in the
season premiere of "Showtime Championship Boxing."

"If I were Arce’s team, I’d MapQuest the quickest routes from the
Honda Center to John Wayne Airport so he can get out of town fast,"
said Darchinyan from his Las Vegas-based training camp.

"As my promoter Gary Shaw said, they decided to serve "Chicken a la
Arce" two weeks early. What a shock. Mexicans are great fighters. Arce
is a disgrace to all of them. He is a clown. He should change his ring
name from ‘Travieso’ to ‘Travesty’ because that’s what he is. I
promise that I will demolish him just like I demolished Mijares. I
will let him be a coward for the first two rounds where he can run
around the ring. He can even wear his stupid cowboy hat. But after
that, I am going to be on him like a mongoose on a cobra. He does not
stand a chance. Interim Champion is the perfect description of his
so-called title reign," he said.

In every which way you look at this fight, it seems like Arce, 29, has
little chance at winning. Indeed, this fight seems like a fight
destined to be a terrible mismatch with Darchinyan ultimately
destroying Arce, specialists say. Head of Red Stars Boxing head and
Darchinyan’s former manager Eduard Humashian forecasts Vic’s victory
with a sixth-round knock-out.

Meanwhile, Arce pretends to be confident of his victory.

"He thinks he’s an intimidator. He always tells people what he will do
and they get intimidated. But, I’m not that type of guy. His words
won’t affect me. He can say and talk about what he is going to do to
me in the ring, but I’m not going to fold. I’m a bigger guy than
him. He won’t intimidate me," he said.