Author: Ekmekjian Janet

A1+

MUNICIPALITIES AWARDED WITH GOLDEN KEYS AND CLOSED LOCKS
[04:35 pm] 28 September, 2007

The OSCE Office in Yerevan and the Freedom of Information (FOI) Centre
handed out this year’s Freedom of Information awards, aimed at
encouraging measures that give the public improved access to state
information.

The winners received their awards in a ceremony in Yerevan that
coincided with the International Right to Know Day.

The prizes, golden keys and closed locks respectively symbolize
publicity and secrecy.

`Ensuring unimpeded public access to information and respecting the
individual’s right to know is one of the OSCE commitments and our
Office stands ready to assist Armenia in implementing it,’ said Marc
Bojanic, Acting Head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan at the ceremony.

Charentsavan and Yerevan municipalities were recognized as the most
transparent state institutions with good information delivery systems.

`This prize is a reward for last year’s establishment of a new
electronic document management system, also known as a `one-window’
approach, which makes it easier for citizens to receive information
from us,’ said Grigor Melkumyan, Head of Staff at Yerevan
Municipality.

The Asparez Press Club in Gyumri and journalist Angela Stepanyan of
ALT TV in Armavir also won awards for their extensive use of their
right of access to information.

The Armavir Municipality was deemed to have the poorest record of
providing information.

An independent jury composed of nine local NGO members, journalists
and experts selected the winners, based on the results of the
monitoring conducted by FOI centre throughout 2007 and on their own
experience.

`Since its inception in 2002, the Freedom of Information Annual Award
has encouraged state institutions to serve as positive examples in
being transparent and open for the public,’ added Shushan Doydoyan,
Head of the FOI Centre.

The OSCE Office also assists Armenia in improving public access to
information by organizing training courses for civil servants,
journalists, state press officers and the general public.

The Freedom of Information Annual Awards were initiated by the FOI
Centre with support from the OSCE Office in Yerevan.

Agency WPS
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
September 28, 2007 Friday

GROWING ARMY FOR PRESERVING OF MILITARY BALANCE IN THE REGION

by Irakly Aladishvili

GEORGIAN ARMY IS INCREASED FOR ACHIEVEMENT OF PARITY WITH THE ARMED
FORCES OF ARMENIA AND AZERBAIJAN; The Georgian political community is
alarmed by the bill submitted to the parliament and implying an
increase in strength of the national armed forces from 28,000 to
32,000 servicemen.

Georgian political community is alarmed by the bill submitted to the
parliament and implying an increase of strength in the national armed
forces from 28,000 to 32,000 servicemen.

The parliamentary majority believes that for the prevention of
internal and external threats, it is necessary to increase the army.
Moreover, Nika Rurua, chair of the parliamentary defense and security
committee, presumes that quantitative growth of the army may continue
further and by the end of the year the overall quantity of servicemen
of regular military units and trained reservists will reach 90,000.

Part of the parliamentary opposition criticizes the presidential and
the governmental initiative for increase of strength of the Georgian
army. Opposition says that army should be strengthened not as a
result of quantitative growth but by other ways. Some people even
think that the growth of the military budget for the needs of the
growing army is necessary for the authorities to win the upcoming
elections.

It is a fact that Georgia has the smallest armed forces in the
region. According to the quantity of personnel, they are 33.33%
smaller than the Armenian army and 56.54% smaller than the army of
Azerbaijan.

Now matter how good and friendly the relations are with a neighboring
country it is necessary to maintain a certain military balance.
Nobody knows who will be its leader tomorrow and which claims the
country may have against you, moreover so when common borders with
these countries are not definitively settled.

We present to the reader exclusive data on the current condition of
the armed forces of our neighbors Armenia and Azerbaijan that have
never been published before.

The armed forces of Armenia have 43,500 servicemen and the armed
forces of Azerbaijan have 65,000 servicemen (leaving apart personnel
of the Azerbaijan navy consisting of 2,500 servicemen). People in
Georgia protest to formation of the fifth infantry brigade but
Armenian army has five army corps formations leaving apart separate
regiments and battalions. The Azerbaijani army also has five corps
formations (leaving apart separate units). There are up to 7,700
people in the largest third army corps of Armenia based in Vanadzor
and the most numerous first Azerbaijani army corps has 13,000 people.
A Georgian infantry brigade has just 3,200 servicemen. Along with
this, in the Georgian army a brigade is the largest unit.

Even these dry figures show that any military parity is out of the
question now. The situation is the same if not worse in the aspect of
armament.

The Azerbaijani army is armed with 261 tanks (including 163 T-72),
which is almost 50% more than the tank fleet of Georgia. The
Azerbaijani army has a bigger superiority according to artillery. It
has 343 artillery systems and mortars of various classes with caliber
exceeding 100 millimeters including 12 300-mm multiple rocket
launcher systems Smerch with launch range of up to 70 kilometers.

Georgian military aviation cannot be compared to the Azerbaijani one.
Baku has not less than 76 combat airplanes (including 32 supersonic
interceptors MiG-25 and 14 fighters MiG-29) and 15 combat helicopters
Mi-24.

Armenian army with its 110 tanks (including 102 T-72) is inferior to
the Georgian army in this aspect but we should not forget that army
of unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic has 100-200% more armament
than Armenia.

The quantity of Mi-24 helicopters in Armenia and Georgia is the same
(8) but the fleet of combat airplanes of Armenia consisting of 16
airplanes (one interceptor MiG-25 and 15 assault airplanes Su-25)
exceeds capabilities of the military aviation of Georgia.

The population of Azerbaijan is 8.4 million people and it is probably
not surprising that its armed forces are bigger than the army of
Georgia having population of 4.5 million people but population of
Armenia is just 3.2 million people.

Besides the observance of military parity with the armies of the
neighboring countries the armed forces of Georgia also have and will
probably have in the future to counteract to internal and external
threats.

If we rule out the possibility of open aggression from the north, on
the part of the armed forces of Russia, we have two zones of frozen
domestic conflicts. In turn, this circumstance generates the not very
pleasant prospect of fighting on two fronts.

Sukhumi and Tskhinvali leaders already signed an agreement to spite
Tbilisi implying mutual assistance with the armed forces in case of
restarting of hostilities in one of these regions. Just imagine that
armed forces of Georgia are simultaneously involved into full-scale
combat operations against Tskhinvali and in the Galsky District. Will
four infantry brigades of the Georgian army be able to cope with
these hazards? Personnel needs rest and reinforcements.

The idea of forming the fifth infantry brigade is no recent
development. In the spring of 2005, Irakly Okruashvili, who was the
Defense Minister then, said that he would start the formation of the
fifth brigade in a conversation with the author of the present
article.

It is possible to understand the indignation of a part of the
population. They say that in comparison with the military budget, the
aid given to the socially underprivileged groups of the population is
not big. This situation is also caused by the fact that Georgian army
has had a miserable existence for years, its financing has been
scarce and now we have to catch up to become a force taken into
account in the South Caucasian region. This requires big
expenditures.

Source: Kviris Palitra (Tbilisi), September 17, 2007, p. EV

Translated by Pavel Pushkin

NEW APPOINTMENTS IN THE REGIONS

Azat Artsakh Tert, Nagorno Karabakh Republic
Sept 28 2007

Today the NKR Prime Minister Arayik Haroutyunian has signed
corresponding decisions of the Government about changes of the
leaders of boards of administartion of Martouni and Martakert
regions. According to his application, Rudik Azarian was discharged
from his post of the leader of the board of administration of
Martouni. Valery Khachatrian has been appointed in that post.

According also to his application, the leader of the board of
administration of Martakert Karlen Petrosian was discharged from the
occupied post. Sergey Ohanian has been appointed instead of him.(press
service of the NKR Government reported).

NEW HEAD OF NKR SHOUSHI REGION ADMINISTRATION APPOINTED

Defacto Agency, Armenia
Sept 28 2007

Today Nagorno-Karabagh Republic PM Araik Harutyunian signed an
enactment on releasing Vladimir Kasian, the head of Shoushi region’s
administration, from his duties.

According to the information DE FACTO received at NKR government’s
Press Office, Vardan Gabrielian had been appointed new head of NKR
Shoushi region.

Before his appointment Vardan Gabrielian headed NKR National Security
Service Shoushi Department. September 27 he was conferred the rank
of colonel by NKR President’s enactment.

CONSTRUCTION OF ROAD CONNECTING NINOTSMINDA TO TBILISI TO BE COMPLETED BY 2011

Prime News
The Messenger, Georgia
Sept 26 2007

The construction of the Tsalka-Ninotsminda-Tbilisi road, planned
by the Millennium Development Program, will be completed by 2011,
stated Ninotsminda district head Suren Morosian at a recent conference
which aimed to tackle the information vacuum in the Samtskhe-Javakheti
region.

Morosian also announced that German investors plan to open a national
park in the district.

According to his statement, a milk-processing factory has begun
operating in Ninotsminda, and the province’s gas supply problem will
soon be settled.

"GEL 35 000 has been allocated for a water distribution system, and
public schools No. 1 and No. 3 in Ninotsminda have been rehabilitated,"
stated Morosian.

The governor also explained the main problem of the region was the
language barrier, noting that the teaching of the Georgian language
in Armenian schools in Ninotsminda has increased dramatically.

"One of the greatest problems of the region is the ignorance of the
state language," declared Morosian.

The conference was attended by journalists from Georgia, Armenia and
Azerbaijan and was organized by both the OSCE mission in Georgia as
well as the Institute for War and Peace Reporting NGO.

PARTICIPANTS OF DARFUR GENOCIDE CONDEMNATION PROCESSION VISIT TSITSERNAKABERD COMPLEX
Editor: Eghian Robert

Noyan Tapan News Agency, Armenia
Sept 26 2007

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 26, NOYAN TAPAN. A propaganda campaign was organized
to the Tsitsernakaberd Complex to the Armenian Genocide Victims on
September 25 on the initiative of Dream for Darfur international
organization. The main purpose of the campaign is to condemn the
Darfur crisis situation and draw the attention of the international
community to this problem. The international procession started
on August 8 from the border of Darfur and Chad and will finish in
Hong Kong in December. The procession is making its way through the
countries whose history contains cruel pages of genocide.

The participants of the international procession stated that China as
the country to host the 2008 Olymic Games may play a significant role
in settlement of the Darfur crisis. Taking this fact into account,
the procession participants light the symbolic Olympic torch from
the eternal fire to memory of the genocide victims in each of these
countries.

The ceremony dedicated to memory of the Genocide victims was attended
by Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II, the Archbishop of Canterbury
Rowan Williams, the Secretary General of the World Council of Churches
Samuel Kobia, survivors of the Darfur and Rwanda genocides and their
descendants.

TURKEY FACING NECESSITY OF MAKING A STEP TO IMPROVEMENT OF RELATIONS WITH ARMENIA
By H. Chaqrian

AZG Armenian Daily
26/09/2007

In another publication, entitled "Turkey’s attitude towards Armenia
remains unalterable", "Azg" expressed opinion that in any cases Turkey
has faced the necessity of making a step towards the improvement
of its relationship with Armenia. First of all, this refers to the
opening of the Armenian-Turkish border.

It is remarkable that this takes place in a period when Turkey stands
on the threshold of radical structure changes, when the project
of the new Constitution, dictated by the Islamic party of Erdogan,
is yielding its positions and when the nationalistic opposition is
escalating the political station in the country.

In other words, the inner confrontation of political powers in Turkey,
which is represented as struggle between secularism and Islamism by
the nationalistic powers, by no means hampers the wide discussion of
the issue of opening the Armenian-Turkish border. The last discussion
of that topic was organized by AIRPG on September 18, Istanbul and
was entitled "The Economic and Social Consequences of Opening the
Armenian-Turkish Border".

The initiative of AIRPG, basing in Washington, was supported by USAID
and the "Eurasia" foundation. A similar event was organized also on
September 20 in Ankara, in which an important role belonged to the
Democracy Fund of Turkey.

Member of the European Department of the Middle-Eastern Technical
University Burcu Gyultekin supported the opinions of AIRPG
representative Mher Bagramian and worker of the Orientology Institute
of Armenia Vahram Ter-Matevosian about necessity of opening the
border and the necessity of involvement of NGOs in the resolution
of that question. Gyultekin said that keeping the border, besides
having negative effect on the political life and the economy of both
the states, also harms the societies, impeding their contact and
interference. He pointed out that the blockade of the Armenian-Turkish
border also impedes the development of the relations between Armenia
and Azerbaijan; therefore Turkey must work out a policy of cooperation
with Armenia, similar to the policy of partnership with Greece.

Gyultekin’s opinion was argued by the head of the International Center
of Strategic Research, Sedat Laciner. To his opinion, Turkey will have
no profit from opening the border with Armenia. He noticed that Turkey
will have difficulties with Azerbaijan, in case the border is opened
before the final resolution of the Karabakh conflict. He reminded
that Azerbaijan is much more important for Turkey than Armenia.

The information about the aforementioned discussions in Ankara
and Istanbul was taken from the bulletin of the Armenian Research
Institute of the Eurasian Strategic Research center. In the September
21 bulletin head of the Institute Omer Engin Lutem referred to the
topic with an analyzing article.

Lutem’s article supports the positions of Laciner, explaining that
the export of Turkish goods to Armenia is only 0,15% of the whole
foreign trade of Turkey.

Even when the border opens, writes Lutem, Turkey will hardly have
any profit; even Kars shall have nothing, as goods produced there
are not demanded in Armenia.

He added that Armenia shall not profit from the opening either,
as it has noting to export.

Lutem noted that Armenia is interested in opening the border with
Turkey rather politically than economically, for it shall bring forth
difficulties between Azerbaijan and Turkey. ""If Turkey realizes
that opening the border shall improve the relations with USA, EU or
other states, then the question of full or partial opening must be
considered," he wrote.

September 26, 2007

Bostonist: Authorial Intent

Ben Kiernan, Friday, September 28, 3:00 pm, Harvard Book Store

Given the recent firestorm about the Anti-Defamation League’s presence
in Watertown and the ADL’s refusal to push for legislation declaring
the Armenian Genocide a genocide, Kiernan’s Blood and Soil: A World
History of Genocide and Extermination from Sparta to Darfur should be
a must-read. And, yes, Kiernan studies the Armenian Genocide–as well
as many others–to try to find ways to recognize potential genocides
and stop them as soon as possible.

Source: php

Ref: 780300100983

FIRST SUKHOI-SUPERJET TO BE DISPLAYED AT KOMSOMOLSK-ON-AMUR

ITAR-TASS News Agency, Russia
September 24, 2007 Monday

The long-awaited first demonstration of the new Russian regional
"Sukhoi Superjet-100" liner will be held at Komsomolsk-on-Amur this
Wednesday. Work on its construction began in 2001. It is to replace
the outdated family of Tu-134 and Tu-154 planes on the short and
medium-range Russian airlines not longer than 5,000 kilometres. The
plane will appear on the world market, too.

President Vladimir Putin told a meeting, which he held early this year,
that as many as 700 such aircraft would be built in Russia within the
next few years. Officials of the Sukhoi Company predict a still bigger
figure. "According to more optimistic forecasts, it will be up to 1,200
planes. The average forecast is 800-900 machines," Director General
of the Sukhoi Aviation Holding Mikhail Pogosyan stated last May.

The first Sukhoi Superjet will be rolled out of the shops of the
KNAAPO Aircraft Building plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, where such
planes are to be eventually assembled. The first liner will come off
the conveyor line in time for its scheduled flight trials.

"There are 73 rigid orders for Sukhoi Superjet-100 planes today:
for 61 aircraft from Russian air companies and twelve – from foreign
air carriers," Itar-Tass was told on Monday at the Press Service of
the Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company. Itar-Tass has gleaned information
that 30 such machines were ordered by Aeroflot Company, ten – by
the Financial Leasing Company, fifteen – by the Air Union Aviation
Alliance, and six – by the Dalavia Air Company. The Italian Air Italy
Company is expecting to get ten such planes and the Armenian ArmAvia
Company – two. "Even conservative forecasts show that we shall get
firm contracts for 100 planes already this year, not counting the
various memorandums on intentions," Acting First Vice-Premier Sergei
Ivanov, who is in charge of the project on behalf of the government,
stated last May.

Nine planes will be assembled in 2008, thirty – in 2009, and sixty –
in 2010. After that, the annual output will total 70 machines. Acting
Minister of Transport Igor Levitin estimates the cost of each aircraft
at 25 million U.S. dollars. This is 15 percent cheaper than planes
of the Embraer Company, which is Sukhoi’s chief rival on the market
of regional aircraft.

Sergei Ivanov, who visited Komsomolsk-on-Amur six months ago, predicted
that 500 Sukhoi planes would be sold on the world market of aircraft
in 2025. "The Sukhoi Superjet-100 is of priority, actually of state
importance, because we shall substantially reduce our transport
inequality by producing such planes," he said. Ivanov noted that
this primarily referred to the Russian Far East, "meaning that the
program can be regarded as a parallel one to those that are now being
adopted at state level for the social and economic development of
the Far East."

Approximately 115 million euros will be invested in the technical
re-equipment of Russian enterprises, figuring on the Superjet-100
program. Funds to modernise the production facilities of three
aircraft-building plants, located in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, Novosibirsk
and Voronezh, are coming from several sources. They include budget
financing, KNAAPO’s and Sukhoi’s own means, and contributions of
leasing companies.

"In accordance with the technical re-equipment program, KNAAPO is
getting, along with other equipment, many automatic assembly tools,
cutting down to the minimum the share of manual labour in the assembly
process. This is bound to substantially improve the quality and
exactitude of the production processes and to reduces the time required
to do the job," officials of the Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company noted.

They also noted that the characteristics of the new Russian plane
are unique for global civil aviation. Their service life equals to
70,000 hours, while the mean global figure is 30,000 hours. This was
achieved chiefly by means of novel construction methods and by using
new-type wear resistant materials in individual assemblies.

Sukhoi officials are sure that the plane’s interior will be on a par
with its flight qualities. "We are not saving money on the inside
finish because the liner is not sufficiently known yet and, therefore,
everything must be topnotch. For instance, we are purchasing seats for
the plane in the Untied States, where they are cheaper and more in
line with the international standards," Pogosyan told reporters. As
a matter of fact, Sergei Ivanov has issued an instruction to "launch
the production of such seats in Russia."

The Superjet-100 project is being implemented in cooperation with
some Italian companies, which are supplying spare parts and avionics,
and also in cooperation with the Boeing Company". Sukhoi and Boeing
signed a protocol last June on the latter’s broader participation in
the program to design and build planes of the Superjet family. The
document envisages cooperation in the provision of post-sales technical
services, assistance to the Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company in its
work to build its own infrastructure, access to the infrastructure
and modern technologies needed to service the sold Boeing planes,
including the training of pilots and technical personnel, as well as
access to the spare parts distribution sources.

President Putin backed the cooperation of foreign and Russian companies
in the work to implement the Superjet project. "I was reported on
the proposals of our foreign partners to boost cooperation in the
development of this plane. They are good proposals and I think a
decision is needed to go ahead in this direction," he stated.

The first statistical copy of the plane is now being tested at the
Central Aerohydrodynamics Institute (TsAGI), which is near Moscow,
in the town of Zhukovsky. Plans are already afoot to test the service
life of the second statistical prototype. The trials will be held
early next year, Director of the Komsomolsk-on-Amur subsidiary of the
Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company Sergei Shkryabun stated. All in all,
the program envisages the building of six test planes: four for fight
tests and two – for statistical trials.

The Aeroflot Company is planning to certify the Superjet-100 and to
begin the delivery of these aircraft to the first client at the end
of next year. An important role in the certification of the plane
according to European flight standards is assigned to the Italian
Alenia Aeronautica Company, Pogosyan said. "We are also planning to
certify our Superjet according to the American flight standards,"
he added.

A conveyer-type assembly method will be used when the quantity
production of these planes is started. Six workplaces have been
equipped in the final assembly shop: a sector for the automatic laser
assembly of the fuselage, a sector for the connection of the wings
with the fuselage, a sector for the integration of the engine with the
fuselage, a sector for the assembly of the plane’s systems – hydraulic,
oxygen, anti-fire, water supply, etc. Six planes will be simultaneously
handled within this shop, moving across the indicated sectors.

It is planned to spend twenty-eight days on the assembly of each plane.

The Sukhoi Superjet family consists of two types of plane, one with 75
and another with 95 passenger seats in configuration with the basic
one – SSJ100/75B and SSJ100/ 95B and of increased flying range –
SSJ-100/75LR, SSJ100/95LR.

The Sukhoi Civil Aircraft is a "daughter" firm of the Sukhoi Company.

It was founded in 2001 to implement the latter’s civilian projects.

The company is now working, among other things, on the regional
Superjet-100 project.

The company expects to sell as many as 1,800 planes of the Superjet-100
family within the next twenty years, including the 120-seat machine,
which is now on the drawing boards. The Holding expects to account for
fifteen per cent of the world market of civilian regional aircraft,
which the Boeing Company predicts to be at the level of 6,000 machines
until 2022.

FROM ROTTERDAM TO PRAGUE, THEN BACK TO YEREVAN

A1+
[01:01 pm] 25 September, 2007

Tomorrow the Armenian national judo team is to leave for Rotterdam,
where the Judo World Cup tournament will be launched on 27
September. The coach of the Armenian team Karen Simonyan will head
the team. The following sportsmen are involved in the team: Arthur
Srapyan (60kg), Ashot Vardikyan (60kg), Hambardzum Tonoyan (66kg),
Mesrop Barbaryan (66kg), Ghazaros Grigoryan (73kg).

After Rotterdam review, the Armenian national youth judo team is to
leave for Prague.

The Armenian Judo Federation informed "A1+" that the youth team
will participate in European Youth Championship on 5-7 October in
Prague. Alexan Avetisyan, head of the Armenia Judo Federation will
participate in the Championship as a judge. The Armenian team will
be headed by Tigran Babayan and Karapet Krchayan with the following
staff: Anush Hakobyan (52 kg), Hovhannes Dermishyan (60 kg), Artyom
Baghdasaryan (66 kg), Robert Vardanyan (73 kg), Hakob Arakelyan
(90 kg).

"Gran Pri" tournament will be launched in Yerevan on 10 November, where
the world best athletes will take part. Armen Nazaryan and Hovhannes
Davtyan will probably represent Armenia during the tournament since
they are the best athletes in Armenian and have got the right to
participate in 2008 Olympic Games.