Author: Chmshkian Vicken

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BILL HITS CLOSE TO GLENDALE HIGHEST U.S. POPULATION OF ARMENIANS
By John North

abc7.com, CA
Oct 11 2007

GLENDALE, Oct. 10, 2007 (KABC-TV) – The House of Representatives
Foreign Relations Committee has approved a resolution recognizing the
killing of Armenians by Turks in the early 20th century as genocide.

President Bush is against the measure. The local Armenian community
reacts.

President Bush was defeated in the first round of an unusual attempt
to stop a congressional resolution; one the administration says would
set back progress in the Middle East.

The House Foreign Relations Committee approved a resolution condemning
the World War I-era killing of Armenians by Turks as genocide.

"This resolution is not the right response to these historic mass
killings. Its passage would do great harm to our relations to a key
ally in NATO and in the global war on terror," said President Bush.

One-and-a-half million Armenians were killed. The Turks say it was
part of war. But Armenian-Americans and Armenians who watched the
hearing say it was a government attempt to slaughter Armenians.

The Glendale area is home to more Armenians than any other place in
the United States. They have been pushing for a resolution recognizing
the genocide for decades.

"They presume that it will be less headache, less work, less difficulty
for them to deal with a Turkey that is obstinately stamping their
foot at history and thumbing their nose at human rights," said Haig
Hovsepian, community relations director for the Armenian National
Committee.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Defense Robert
Gates also talked to reporters. They warned that Turkey would block
logistical and other support for the Iraq war.

El Segundo Democratic Representative Jane Harman is a co-sponsor of
the resolution in the House of Representatives. Over the weekend she
reportedly backed down and said she would vote against it.

California Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein is a strong supporter
of the resolution condemning what happened as genocide.

"To remember history is not to repeat it. That’s the point. And to
embroider this to be more than that is a mistake," said Feinstein.

Some historians call it the first genocide of the 20th century. But
now in the 21st century it has become intertwined with a nation’s
sensitivities, international politics, economics and the war in Iraq.

Copyright © 2007 KABC-TV. All rights reserved. This material may not
be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

–Boundary_(ID_hBm5QGHXXe59kZCTi1H TrQ)–

AMERICAN EMBASSY SILENT ON APPOINTMENT OF NEW AMBASSADOR

Panorama.am
19:33 10/10/2007

Concerning the appointment of a new ambassador to Armenia, the
American embassy in Armenia has no information from the White House
or State Department.

Taguhi Jahukyan, press secretary for the American embassy in Yerevan,
relayed this news to a Panorama.am journalist.

"News about the putting forth of a candidate must come from White
House sources. If such information does not exist, word about the
nomination of a candidate doesn’t correspond with reality," she said.

Meanwhile, information agencies have reported the existence of a new
candidate for ambassador to Armenia. But, nothing has been said about
who that might be. Richard Hoagland, whom President Bush suggested
for the position, was turned down twice in the Senate, thanks to the
efforts of representative Robert Menendez. The former ambassador,
John Evans, was recalled from his position for making statements
about the Armenian Genocide.

ROBERT KOCHARIAN: "IF I HAD A LOT OF MONEY…"
Ruzan Amirjanyan

A1+
[04:57 pm] 10 October, 2007

"To tell the truth, if I had a lot of money, I would make investments
in Armenia and nowhere else," RA President Robert Kocharian said while
addressing the Armenian-Belgian business forum in Brussels. The forum
hosted representatives of about 80 Belgian organizations, as well as
the delegation of Armenian businessmen.

Nerses Eritsyan, the Minister of Trade and Economic Development,
presented "the dynamic state" of the Armenian economy.

Tigran Davtyan, the Director of the Armenian Development Agency
(ADA), dwelt on Armenia’s recent achievements- the increase in
economy, state budget, gross Domestic Product (GDP), revenues,
foreign investments, etc.

Arsen Ghazaryan, the Chairman of the Manufacturers and Businessmen
Union, called on foreign businessmen to make investments in Armenia as
the country is a prefect bridge between Eastern and Western countries.

"I started from nothing while today my company is one of the best in
the world."

ARMENIA-PARADISE FOR BUSINESSMEN In answer to Belgian businessmen’s
question why Armenia is profitable for launching business, Robert
Kocharian said, "Can I suffice your curiosity by saying no one will
regret if he starts a business in Armenia?"

The RA president enumerated all the advantages of the so-called
"Caucasian tiger" – "new job opportunities, favourable legislative
sphere, stability, budget and economic growth without natural
resources-oil, gas"

According to Robert Kocharian over the past ten years of his office,
none of the investors has suffered a loss in Armenia.

TO GO OR NOT TO GO?

Roger Van Baal, the Director of trading company Integra had no notion
of Armenia before to the forum.

"Our company has branches in many countries of the world including the
former Soviet Union. I phoned our CIS representative to inquire about
the Republic of Armenia. In answer to my question why the company
hasn’t got a branch in Armenia, he said. "There are no business
opportunities in Armenia." I couldn’t find any information on Armenian
chemical sphere either.

The figures on economic growth are really promising.

We shall conduct our survey. I voice hope that it won’t be a waste
of time and finances."

BUSH URGES CONGRESS TO REJECT ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION
By Brian Knowlton

International Herald Tribune
ope/10turkey.php
Oct 10 2007
France

WASHINGTON: President George W. Bush and two top cabinet members urged
lawmakers on Wednesday to reject a resolution describing the deaths
of hundreds of thousands of Armenians early in the last century as
genocide – a highly sensitive issue at a time of rising U.S.-Turkish
tensions over northern Iraq.

"We all deeply regret the tragic suffering of the Armenian people
that began in 1915," Bush said in a brief statement from the White
House. "But this resolution is not the right response to these historic
mass killings, and its passage would do great harm to relations with
a key ally in NATO, and to the war on terror."

He spoke hours before the House Foreign Affairs Committee was to vote
on the resolution. The House speaker, Representative Nancy Pelosi,
is said to be prepared to forward the matter to the full House,
where more than half the 435 members are co-sponsors.

Passage would be symbolic – but the symbolism, the administration
asserts, could seriously jeopardize the delicate relationship with
Turkey.

Turkey has been a vital way-station for fuel and materiel shipments to
U.S. forces in Iraq, and the administration has spared little effort
to lobby against the resolution. The State Department secured the
signatures of the eight living former secretaries of state on a letter
opposing the resolution. And both Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
and Defense Secretary Robert Gates have been speaking out against it
for months.

Today in Europe

Putin sees lack of evidence of Iranian nuclear weapons program

Turkish military pounds Kurdish rebel camps in northern Iraq with
artillery fire

Police evict ex-nuns from Polish convent, arrest monk and mother
superior

Earlier, the Turkish president, Abdullah Gul, wrote to Bush to thank
him for his efforts opposing the resolution and to draw "attention to
the problems it would create in bilateral relations if it is accepted,"
according to a statement from Gul’s office.

Adding to the tensions are the recent Turkish preparations for
a possible invasion of northern Iraq in an effort to stop lethal
incursions by armed Kurdish militants of the Kurdistan Workers Party,
or PKK.

The United States strongly opposes such Turkish action, fearing
troubles in what has been the most stable part of Iraq. But the Turkish
government is under heavy public pressure to act, and officials in
Ankara have warned that passage of the genocide resolution would make
it harder for the government to resist such pressure.

Turkey has acknowledged Armenian deaths over a period of several
years beginning in 1915, as the Ottoman Republic was falling apart,
but it vehemently rejects any effort to classify them as genocide. It
says that many Turks also were killed at the time.

Turkey has shown its willingness to react sharply to criticism on
the Armenian issue. When the French legislature called for criminal
charges against those who deny that a genocide occurred, the Turkish
military cut contacts with the French military and canceled some
defense contracts under negotiation.

When the resolution seemed likely to reach a vote last spring, Rice
and Gates joined in a strongly worded letter to Pelosi warning against
passage. They repeated their arguments Wednesday.

"The passage of this resolution at this time would be very problematic
for everything we are trying to do in the Middle East," Rice said.

The bulk of U.S. air cargo and about one-third of the fuel headed
for Iraq passes through Turkey, Gates said, including nearly all the
newly purchased mine-resistant vehicles.

"Access to air fields and to the roads and so on in Turkey would very
much be put at risk if this resolution passes and Turkey reacts as
strongly as we believe they will," Gates said.

The debate has left the administration in a difficult position,
and officials have gone out of their way to emphasize that they are
not defending what happened. "The president recognizes annually the
horrendous suffering that ethnic Armenians endured during the final
years of the Ottoman Empire," Rice and Gates wrote in their March
7 letter.

Armenian-American groups have been rallying support for the
resolution. The Armenian National Committee of America e-mailed members
Wednesday to urge them to watch the Foreign Affairs Committee session
on-line and phone the offices of any "traditionally friendly member
of the committee" who is not in attendance.

On Wednesday, hundreds of Turks marched to U.S. missions in Turkey
to protest the bill, The Associated Press reported. And in Ankara,
leftist protesters chanted anti-American slogans in front of the
embassy, the state-run Anatolia news agency reported.

ARMENIAN RESOLUTION: DANIEL FRIED, ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR EUROPEAN AND EURASIAN AFFAIRS INTERVIEW WITH TRT TURKISH TV

US Department of State, DC

Was hington, DC
Oct 10 2007

TRT Television: Ambassador, thank you so much for accepting the
interview.

The House Foreign Relations Committee will mark up Resolution 106
tomorrow. I’m not going to ask you what may or may not happen at the
House. After all, we all have to respect the decisions of our elected
officials. But I’m going to ask you this. Can you please explain to us
the difference in the approach of the administration and the members
of the Congress who are supportive of this bill, the Armenian Genocide
Delegation, or is there any difference between the administration
and the members of the Congress who are supporting Resolution 106?

Assistant Secretary Fried: There is a huge difference. We oppose
the bill. We think it is a bad idea that will do nothing to
improve Turkish-Armenian relations, it will do nothing to advance
reconciliation between Turks and Armenians over the terrible events
of 1915, and it will not do anything to advance American interests.

We think the bill is a bad idea. We have said so. President Bush,
Secretary Rice, Under Secretary Burns, Ambassador Wilson and I have
all spoken to members of Congress about this and all former living
U.S. Secretaries of State have come out against this bill in writing
including Secretary Albright, Secretary Christopher. Former Defense
Secretaries have come out, including Bill Cohen and Bill Perry who
worked for President Clinton.

So there is bipartisan opposition to this bill among some very senior
people. So we oppose it and we will continue to.

TRT Television: And Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian say the
ones who oppose the bill have been bought into Turkish manipulation.

Have you?

Assistant Secretary Fried: No. We are perfectly capable of making
our own decisions.

I understand there are people on the other side of this question
and it is also true that there were terrible things that happened
in 1915 and after. Those are historical facts. And the United States
government doesn’t deny them and I don’t believe Turkey does either.

But the question is not whether terrible things happened. We know they
did. The question is does this bill help advance historical truth,
understanding, or better relations between Turkey and Armenia, and
it does not.

TRT Television: I know usually officials do not appreciate to be
asked hypothetical questions, but I’ll try.

Assistant Secretary Fried: Go ahead and try.

TRT Television: If Turkey were to hypothetically speaking accept the
allegations, would it have prevented the Armenian troops massacres in
Hajala 15 years ago, or would it make a difference in Darfur tomorrow?

Assistant Secretary Fried: The way you’ve put the question allows
me to say something which is it’s important for Turkey and Armenia
to talk about the terrible events that occurred. Every nation
has dark spots including the United States. What can we say about
slavery or the treatment of American Indians, or the treatment of
Japanese-Americans in World War II. These were bad things. Terrible
things. We committed them, and as an honest nation we’ve come to terms
with our history. That’s what honest nations have to do. But it wasn’t
legislation passed by a foreign parliament which got America to do the
right thing. That’s why we think that reconciliation should come from
within the society. We support this process of reconciliation. There
are Turks and Armenians who have worked on it, and that’s the way to
go. We don’t think the legislation will help.

TRT Television: I think this is the longest answer to any hypothetical
question so I’ll try one more.

If the House passes the bill, what do you think the Turkish
government’s response will be?

Assistant Secretary Fried: I have —

TRT Television: — U.S.-Turkey relations.

Assistant Secretary Fried: I can’t possibly answer that. We hope
that we defeat the bill. I know there will be people in Turkey who
will be angry but I think the Turks will recognize that they have
long term interests. I hope they will not do anything to limit their
own options for the future. But look, that’s a hypothetical. Today,
tomorrow, we’re concentrating on defeating the bill.

TRT Television: Are you going to take any security measures?

Assistant Secretary Fried: I don’t want to comment on that.

TRT Television: — the —

Assistant Secretary Fried: I don’t want to comment on any of this
except to say right now, working with Ambassador Wilson, we’re trying
to defeat this bill and explain why it’s not a good thing.

TRT Television: This comes at a time when the Kurdistan Workers Party,
PKK terrorists, increased their attacks in Turkey, just within the
last two weeks Turks have lost 27 of their citizens. There is a
general public perception about the U.S. policies in the region,
that it has a sinister plan on different ethnic groups…

Assistant Secretary Fried: Wrong.

TRT Television: which at the end targets Turkish sovereignty.

Assistant Secretary Fried: Wrong.

TRT Television: And when they look at — And they are deeply
disappointed of the U.S. inaction against the PKK. Also now this bill
coming at the Congress. Also in between the firm warnings of the U.S.

not to carry out a cross-border operation. When they all add up these
they say, the Turkish perception goes along in essence that this is
the evidence.

Assistant Secretary Fried: There is no —

TRT Television: What is your response, Ambassador?

Assistant Secretary Fried: We were outraged and disgusted by the PKK
attacks, and I first want to express that but also condolences to
the families. We have all had our losses to terrorists. Americans,
Turks, people of many other nations. So the first thing I have
to do is condemn terrorism in general and the PKK terrorists in
particular. We don’t help them, we fight them. Some Turks even remember
our cooperation. Mr. Ocalan is in a Turkish prison and it was a Turkish
operation that got him, but we’re glad he’s in custody right now.

We want to do more with Turkey but there is no truth whatsoever to
some of these fantastic allegations. We want to see a strong Turkey
with a strong economy, modernizing, joining the European Union, at
peace with itself and its neighbors, all of them. We see Turkey as
a strategic partner in the world. There’s no question about that.

There’s no question that we want to see an Iraq that is functional,
more at peace than it is today, and united. We have spoken strongly to
the Iraqi government and the Kurdish regional authorities and urged
that they do more to stop the PKK from attacking their neighbor and
we will continue to push them. We will continue to work with Turkey
until Turkey does not feel threatened by the PKK.

TRT Television: Since the toppling of Saddam Hussein PKK attacks
are hurting Turkey. The Turkish public opinion has reached a point
where words really do not solve our problems. We want action. And
today the Turkish Foreign Ministry has a lengthy meeting on how to
fight this terrorism. After a three and a half hour meeting the Prime
Minister’s office announced that they are going to start preparing
for a cross-border operation. What’s your take on it, Ambassador?

Assistant Secretary Fried: We want to work with Turkey to stop PKK
attacks on Turkey. There are a number of ways we can do this. Turkey
and Iraq recently concluded a Memorandum of Understanding on
counter-terrorist cooperation. I think that’s the ticket. That’s the
way to go. Work with Iraq and work together and work with us against
the PKK.

TRT Television: It does not include the hot pursuit issue which is
something that the Turkish side wanted, and the Turkish public opinion
is saying that still the U.S. is backing the Iraqi Kurds and this is
not a good fate of NATO allies.

Assistant Secretary Fried: We do not think that the Iraqi government
or the Kurdistan regional government has done all it could and we
think they should do more. We’ve said so. This isn’t a secret. We
hope Turkey and we can work with the President, Prime Minister of
Iraq and the Kurdish regional government, Mrs. Talibani, Barzani,
to make more progress. But they’re not behind these PKK attacks. They
are allies and friends and we want to build on that partnership.

Turkish frustration is understandable. It just is. It’s understandable
that people would react in anger to terrorist attacks.

We Americans do. We need to be smart in the way we go after the
terrorists.

TRT Television: Ambassador, in a few sentences, to make it clear
in the Turkish public perception, why should Turkey not carry any
cross-border operation? How is it going to hurt Turkish interests,
or is it going to hurt U.S. interests?

Assistant Secretary Fried: The question is not what makes you feel
good today but what works. Turkey has conducted cross-border attacks
in the past and the question is, does it work? What’s the best way to
deal with the PKK? Not for tomorrow’s headlines in the newspapers,
but to deal with it in a real way. It seems to me that there are a
combination of things that can be done. We want to work with Turkey.

It involves all of our assets working together and we intend to do
our best.

TRT Television: What’s your understanding of the Turkish government’s
performance?

Assistant Secretary Fried: In general or PKK?

TRT Television: On dealing with the PKK issue.

Assistant Secretary Fried: It’s a very frustrating one. The last thing
I will do is be critical. I’m not at all. Turkey faces a dangerous,
difficult enemy and this is not easy. We want to work with Turkey. It’s
in a tough place. And Turkish frustration is understandable. We have
to be smart and we have to do more.

TRT Television: If I may close this interview with a question not
related to you, within your capacity as an officer, but just as
an American.

Assistant Secretary Fried: Sure.

TRT Television: Would you please be kind enough to convey the
approaches or the strong desire among the American public to have
the Armenian genocide allegation be accepted? When we as Turkish
citizens, not as a journalist but as an ordinary Turkish individual,
I do observe that there is no question about whether the genocide
has taken place or not. It is generally accepted in the United States.

Where in Turkey it is generally accepted that, let’s look at this
history all together. We think that massacre has taken place but it’s
not only the Armenians, but also many Muslims, Anatolia Muslims have
also been killed. And when you look at it, it is something that we
do not see here in the U.S.. That it’s not being discussed at all.

Why do you think that this side of Turkey has not find any voice among
the American people? Who is missing the dialogue or communication
link between the two nations?

Assistant Secretary Fried: Oh, that’s a hard question because it is
a fact that terrible things happened. Up to a million and a half
Armenians were killed or forced into exile. Those are facts. The
United States and the United States government do not deny anything.

It’s also true that the breakup of the Ottoman Empire in its kind of
last phase was a terrible one and terrible things happened. There were
atrocities, there were massacres, there was killing, there was a war,
and the Turkish government is right when it suggests that historians
need to look at this.

I think that the way ahead is for Turkey, like all honest governments
dealing with the dark spots of its history needs to do what we did, we
Americans did dealing with the dark spots of our history. Face up to it
and recognize that admitting bad things in your past doesn’t make you
a bad nation. It makes you an honest one. That’s an American lesson.

TRT Television: The Library of Congress has records of Armenian
massacres between 1914 and 1920 of 2.5 million Armenian Muslim
population. When we are talking about war time evidently we are really
talking about many precious lives being lost. Not only from one side,
but from both sides. Why is it not an issue for the U.S.

State Department to also talk about the losses in Anatolia or in
Azerbaijan of the Muslims?

Assistant Secretary Fried: Well, we speak about history carefully
because we’re government bureaucrats, and after all, Turkey has
made the point that governments shouldn’t try to get into history
as a matter of policy. So when you ask me to get into history as a
government bureaucrat I have to be careful.

But look, your point and the point of the Turkish government is that
historians should deal with this, but deal with it honestly. There
shouldn’t be any taboo about dealing with these issues. No one
should be hauled up on charges for having talked about history. Not
anywhere. Not in France — they have a law, as you know; not in Turkey,
Article 301; not anywhere. People have to discuss this in a way that
is open and honest and serious, and that’s painful.

Look, in my lifetime it was still painful to talk about putting
Japanese-Americans in internment camps. It was embarrassing. It was
terrible what we did. We fought World War II for freedom and yet
we did this to our own people because they were Japanese? It’s a
terrible thing. But you have to face up to your history. Everyone
does. All sides.

So an honest historical discussion is what’s needed, but honest also
means painful.

TRT Television: Thank you, Ambassador.

Assistant Secretary Fried: My pleasure.

TRT Television: It’s been a great pleasure for us, thank you.

Assistant Secretary Fried: Likewise.

PRESS RELEASE
Armenian National Committee – Glendale Chapter
104 North Belmont Street, Suite 208
Glendale, CA 91206
Tel: 818-500-1918
Fax: 818-246-7353
Email: [email protected]

Forum for Parents

Glendale, CA – In an effort to further reach out to the
Armenian-American community, the Armenian National Committee –
Glendale Chapter joinedforces with the Glendale Unified School
District in hosting a Path to College Community Forum for parents and
students Wednesday evening.

The program began at 6:30pm with a welcome speech by ANC-Glendale
Chapter Executive Director, Elen Asatryan, followed by comments from
GUSD Superintendent Dr. Michael Escalante, CA State Assemblymember
Paul Krekorian, and GUSD Board of Education President Greg Krikorian.

"ANC-Glendale Chapter organized the Path to College forum series to
help Armenian-American parents better understand the Glendale School
System The information provided will ultimately allow them to be
effective in guiding their student to success," stated Executive
Director of ANC Glendale, Elen Asatryan. "Our mission is to serve the
community, we hope to see more parents join us during the second
forum, which will take place on October 17th," added Asatryan.

GUSD Board Member, Nayiri Nahabedian informed parents about ELAC
(English Learner Advisory Committee), Healthy Start and CASPS
(Committee for Armenian Students in Public Schools), while PTA Council
Historian, Elizabeth Manasserian discussed the benefits of joining the
PTA (Parent Teacher Association).

The main presentation prepared and presented by GUSD Counselors,
Karine Turdjian and Arsine Hovannesian included information about high
school graduation and college/university admission requirements,
calculation of GPA, transcripts, ELD and AP classes, as well as ways
parents can effectively communicate with their students’ school. At
the end of the program, parents were given the opportunity to ask
questions to school officials present.

"It was a privilege to be one of the presenters at the educational
forum. I would like to thank the ANC for organizing this one-of-a-kind
event and giving us the opportunity to provide much needed information
to our Armenian parents pertaining to high school graduation and
college admission," stated Karine Turdjian, Counselor at Daily High
School. "Our mission will be complete if this presentation served its
purpose of increasing parents’ involvement in their students’ academic
lives which would lead to great academic success and creating safe and
caring learning environment," added Mrs. Turdjian.

The second of the two forums will take place on Wednesday, October
17thfrom 6:30pm-8:30pm at Toll Middle School’s Auditorium, located at
700 Glenwood Road, Glendale, CA. During the forum, information will be
provided about university admission requirements, university
application process and deadlines, financial aid, SAT & ACT university
admission exams as well as how to write personal statements.

Questions regarding the upcoming event can be directed to ANC –
Glendale Chapter at 818.243.3444 or [email protected]. RSVP’s for
the event are encouraged.

"We thank the organizing committee for putting together this event,
Glendale Unified School District for cosponsoring, and the parents who
attended," stated ANC Board Member, Zareh Sinanyan. "Our hope is that
this event will set a precedent for future cooperation between all
those concerned with the future of our youth," added Mr. Sinanyan.

The Armenian National Committee – Glendale Chapter advocates for the
social, economic, cultural, and political rights of the city’s
Armenian American community and promotes increased civic awareness and
participation at the grassroots and public policy levels. It is the
voice of this vibrant community, which seeks to advance and enrich
Glendale.

####

Path to Collebe Forum
Hosted by ANC-Glendale Chapter
October 17, 2007
6:30-8:30pm
Toll Middle School Auditorium
700 Glenwood Rd.
Glendale, CA 91202
(818) 243-3444

AMD 10.5BLN ALLOCATED FOR BEAUTIFICATION OF YEREVAN IN JAN-SEP 2007

ARKA News Agency
Oct 8 2007
Armenia

YEREVAN, October 8. /ARKA/. In January-September 2007, the work in
the sphere of construction, beautification and communal services
of Yerevan totaled AMD 10.5bln instead of AMD 10.6bln, said Mayor
of Yerevan Yervand Zakharyan when presenting the report of the
Municipality’s activity during the first nine months of 2007.

He said that by these means construction of three multi-apartment
buildings is implemented as a compensation for houses of accident
risk of the fourth degree.

"By the end of October, new buildings will be exploited," he said.

Zakharyan said that eight more houses of accident risk of the third
degree will be strengthened.

He said that in January-September the network of external lightning
of 74 streets of 152km was reconstructed and the irrigation system
of the capital was expanded.

Within the program the capital repair of the Singing fountains of the
Republic Square was implemented. During the accounting period, within
the supplementary program the capital repair of seven underground
and ground pedestrian passages will be implemented. ($1 – AMD 332.53).

ARTSAKH INFO DAILY CAME OUT

Karabakh open
Oct 2 2007

The Tsir Katin Company (Milky Way) today issued the first edition of
the Artsakh Info weekly, an information and advertisement newspaper
in 1000 copies.

The editor of the newspaper Narine Aghabalyan told Karabakh-Open.com
it is a commercial project although the staff of the newspaper
will also present their vision of state building, internal and
external policies of the government. "In fact, there is a gap
in advertising and information in our county. There is need for
centralized information. Therefore, we decided to set up a newspaper
which would offer not only commercial but also other information,"
Narine Aghabalyan said.

The Tsir Katin company was set up in 2005. It has already produced
some multimedia projects, including the DVD about Maragha. It is now
preparing the show "The World of Business" for the Public Channel. A
thick color album is being prepared on the 20th anniversary of
independence of NKR.

NEW GOVERNMENT WAS APPOINTED

Karabakh Open, Armenia
Oct 1 2007

Last week NKR President Bako Sahakyan signed a degree on the structure
of the NKR government which comprises the ministries of health,
justice, foreign affairs, agriculture, education and science, culture
and youth, defense, social security, economy, urban planning, finance,
and the government administration.

The decree also defined the following government agencies: the
National Security Service, the Committee of the Real Estate Cadastre,
the Archive Agency, the State Tax Agency, the Agency for Migration,
Refugees and Resettlement, the Agency of Environment and Natural
Resources, the NKR Police, the State Water Committee, the State Sports
Committee and the Rescue Service.

NKR President Bako Sahakyan appointed the members of government. Armo
Tsatryan was appointed vice premier and minister of agriculture, Armen
Khachatryan is minister health, Arthur Mosiyan is minister of justice,
Georgy Petrosyan is minister of foreign affairs, Suren Grigoryan is
the minister of the government administration, Vladik Khachatryan
is minister of education and science, Norek Gasparyan is minister
of culture and youth, Movses Hakobyan is minister of defense,, Benik
Bakhshiyan is minister of economic development, Alexander Mamunts is
minister of urban planning and Spartak Tevosyan is minister of finance.

Rudik Martirosyan was appointed assistant to NKR president.

There were replacements in the regions as well. Sergey Ohanyan replaced
Carlen Petrosyan in the post of governor of Martakert.

Vardan Gabrielyan replaced the governor of Shushi Vladimir Kasyan.

Rudik Azaryan, the governor of Martuni, was replaced by Valery
Khachatryan.

NKR PRESIDENT: NOBODY WILL UNDERSTAND US AND NOTHING WILL JUSTIFY, IF WE LOSE DIPLOMATIC BATTLE

PanARMENIAN.Net
01.10.2007 18:38 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ September 29-30, a delegation of the RA Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, RA Ambassadors and Consuls, led by Foreign Minister
Vartan Oskanian paid a visit to the Nagorno Karabakh Republic.

A meeting with NKR President Bako Sahakian took place in the republic’s
governmental conference hall. It was attended by NKR National Assembly
Chairman Ashot Ghoulian, Prime Minister Arayik Harutyunian, Leader
of the Artsakh Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church Pargev
Martirossian, NKR Security Council Secretary Karen Babourian,
Foreign Minister Georgy Petrossian, NKR MFA diplomatic corps and
other officials.

"There was not such a heroic and responsible period in the
centuries-old history of our nation. Nobody will understand us and
nothing will justify, if we lose the diplomatic battle. The conflict
should be resolved via peaceful negotiations, on the basis of such
mutual concessions which will secure the right of Karabakhi people
to self-determination and allow overcoming the consequences of the
armed confrontation step by step.

This is the will of Karabakhi people and the stance of authorities",
NKR President Bako Sahakian stated during the meeting.

The meeting participants discussed current stage of the Nagorno
Karabakh conflict settlement process, various aspects of mutual
cooperation and a number of other issues.

Bako Sahakian emphasized the role of diplomatic corps of Armenia in the
solution of these issues. He noted that the Nagorno Karabakh Republic,
which has not been recognized by the international community yet,
hopes for the active assistance of the diplomatic representatives of
Armenia abroad, the NKR MFA press office reported.