Author: Emil Lazarian

ComNews: Results of Tender for ArmenTel Known

PanARMENIAN.Net
24.07.2006 13:22 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ System Russian Holding and an international
consortium formed by VTEL Holdings Indian company and Knightsbridge
Associates (said to be backed by a well known Armenian entrepreneur)
will become the new owners of ArmenTel’s 90% stocks, reported
ComNews Russian news agency with a reference to a source close to the
negotiations and tender proceedings. The Russian holding will own the
PSTN while the Indian-Armenian consortium will obtain the cellular
communication. These are the results of the tender announced by OTE
Greek company, the owner of ArmenTel 90% stocks.

"OTE promised to publish the outcomes of the tender late July or early
August. Anyway System will be the winner but to all appearance it will
have to share ArmenTel with VTEL Holdings/Knightsbridge Associates,"
the source said. System’s PR Officer Irina Potekhina neither refuted
not confirmed the information. In her words, the results will be
known in early August.

According to ComNews the tender was marginally provoked by Altimo
Russian company, which offered $360 million for ArmenTel’s
90% stockshare. However OTE considered the sum as a starting
point. "Atlimo’s mistake was that it listed the support of an
official of the Armenian government and thought it’s enough," the
source said. It should be noted that OTE is not empowered to sell its
stocks without the consent of the Armenian government, which owns 10
percent of the stocks.

To note, Deutsche Telekom, TeliaSonera and Tele2 Swedish companies and
CBOSS (Russia), who also wished to purchase ArmenTel’s stocks failed
in the first round. "The price is not a decisive issue for OTE. It
highlights political motives. These companies might have proposed a
greater sum that System has," the source supposed, ComNews says.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian Youth Federation-YOARF Eastern US
80 Bigelow Ave
Watertown, MA 02472
Tel. (617) 923-1933
Fax (617) 924-1933

Over 400 Attend Annual AYF-YOARF Junior Seminar

WATERTOWN, Mass.-Over Memorial Day Weekend, over 400 AYF junior
andsenior members, representing over 15 chapters of the Eastern
Region, gathered at Camp Lutherlyn in Prospect, Penn., for the annual
AYF-YOARF Junior Seminar. Attendees, as well as lecturers and guests,
gathered for a weekend of educationals, discussions, and AYF
camaraderie.

This year’s theme was `Identity. Spirit. Tradition: Experience AYF.’
The weekend’s educational content revolved around this central message
where members learned about the various realms that theorganization
encompasses. The educational aspect of the weekend commenced early
Saturday morning where members attended various lectures geared to
their specific age group.

Various topics such as Armenian Kingdoms; the AYF members’ college
experience; AYF evolution; and the AYF members’ role in the
Armeniancommunity, sparked discussion on all levels amongst juniors,
seniors, and lecturers. `This year’s content was exceptional. Given
that we are two years away from celebrating the 75th anniversary of
the AYF, it isimportant for our members to know about the AYF as it
relates to itself, the community, and other organizations with which
it works with,’ saidNora Keomurjian, 2006 Junior Seminar committee
chairperson.

In addition to taking part in eight lectures, attendees rekindled
friendship and met fellow ungers and ungerouhis from various
chapters. `One of my favorite parts about Junior Seminar when I
attended as a junior was meeting new people from so many different
places. I continue to do so today as a senior,’ said 2006 Junior
Seminar committee member Simone Dinkjian-Soultanian.

Evening activities also added excitement to the weekend, including the
traditional Saturday night talent show. DJ Chris Krikorian, Aram
Hovagimian, andSevag Khatchadourian provided entertainment throughout
the weekend. A special addition to this year’s program was a showcase
of young talented members from the New Jersey Arsen chapter. Brothers
Shant and Raffi Massoyan, and Raffi Kouyoumjian played Armenian
melodies on traditional Armenian instruments such as the zurna, oud,
and dhol.

In its 36th year, Junior Seminar continues to be the driving force
that brings together membership, not only providing them with social
outlets, but the tools and knowledge needed to continue their
membership in the AYF.

Armenia president cancelled his visit to CIS informal summit

ITAR-TASS News Agency
TASS
July 21, 2006 Friday 04:48 AM EST

Armenian President Robert Kocharyan has cancelled his visit to Moscow
because of his illness, the president’s press service reported.

Kocharyan was scheduled to attend an informal summit of the CIS
leaders planned for July 21-22.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Dance troupe arrives back in Sydney

ABC Transcripts (Australia)
SHOW: AM 8:12 AM AEST ABC

Members of a Sydney dance troupe have arrived back in Sydney to
emotional scenes, after being stranded in Lebanon after the crisis
broke out.

Eighteen dancers and supporters of the the Armenian dance troupe
touched down at Sydney airport overnight, on a flight from Jordan.

The rest of the group will arrive on separate flights over the next
two days.

Fifteen-year-old dancer Annette Mazmanian was clearly relieved to be
back on home soil, and with her parents.

"I just feel much relieved that I’m home," she said.

"As much as you’re far away from your parents and you have your
friends around, you just want to come back home as soon as you can .

"With the bombs going on, it’s the first time I’ve ever felt that way.

"Words can’t explain I just wanted to hug them and never let go."

This morning, 65 Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel are leaving
for the Middle East.

They will be helping the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFAT) evacuate
Australians caught up in violence.

Brigadier Mick Kehoe says 19 ADF members are already in the area
working with DFAT.

"In all likelihood some will remain in Cyprus," he said.

"Some will be on the ground in Lebanon and operate in direction
and under direction… of the DFAT personnel who’ll be managing the
evacuation of Australian nationals."

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Sevillano Cops SCCF Crown in California

Philippine Daily Inquirer; Jul 23, 2006

FILIPINO INTERNATIONAL MASTER ENRI-co Ikong Sevillano topped the 2006
SCCF State Championships recently inLos Angeles, California, USA.

The California based Sevillano, who hails from Cebu City and is a
protege of local chess patron NM Bombi Aznar, beat Japanese-American
Christian Tanaka in
26 moves of a Caro-Kann Defense in his last match to win the title
in the
seven-man single round-robin format.

Sevillano scored 5.5 points on account of four wins (one point came
from a bye) and three draws, the same output of Armenian-American
IM Andranik Matikozyan. After the tie break was applied, Sevillano
tallied 16.25 to edge Matikozyan (15.5) for the title.

Sevillano also beat Francis Chen in round 1 after 40 moves of a
Caro-Kann defense and IM Jack Peters in round 3 after 59 moves of a
French Defense.

He drew with IM Cyrus Lakdawala, IM Matizosyan and Eugene Yanayt. NM
Marlon Bernardino

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Armenian Speaker Sees Nothing Strange About Premier Joining Ruling Part

Aravot, Yerevan
20 Jul 06

Excerpt from Margarit Yesayan’s report by Armenian newspaper Aravot
on 20 July headlined " We do everything in time"

An interview with the speaker of the Armenian parliament, Tigran
Torosyan.

[Correspondent] Mr Torosyan, the leader of the Democratic Party of
Armenia, Aram Sarkisyan, has said in an interview with our newspaper
that the Republican Party of Armenia [RPA] usually announces its
position at the last moment and this is the first time that the RPA
has jumped the gun to make political statements. Do you agree with
this? If you have really jumped the gun, what is the reason for this?

[Tigran Torosyan] Of course, I do not agree. The RPA takes steps when
the time is ripe. We never jump the gun, we do everything in time.

[Correspondent] It is rumoured that many businessmen, politicians
and celebrities are being forced to join the RPA. Does the RPA need
to gather people in such a way?

[Torosyan] Of course, it does not. And we do not do such things.

[Passage omitted: Torosyan explains why many people join different
parties.]

[Correspondent] Based on your logic, is it possible that some day
[Armenian President] Robert Kocharyan will decide to join a party,
as his slogan "My people is my party" is already out of date?

[Torosyan] I cannot predict if the president will join a party or not,
but I will not be surprised if it happens one day.

[Correspondent] You should agree that an extraordinary session with
the participation of officials in such hot summer gives the impression
that you are in a hurry? Why have you become so active in hot summer?

[Torosyan] Summer is really a hot time, but it is not the most
important factor in political life. We have 10 months till the
election. I would not say that political life is dead today. On the
contrary, one should work seriously at present to be well prepared
for future elections on the one hand and to do everything possible
for the future election to meet all international standards on the
other. This is really very important and will greatly affect the
internal and external relations of the state and, first of all,
the settlement of the Karabakh issue.

[Correspondent] The defence minister’s membership of the RPA generates
a question: who will be the person number one in the RPA – Prime
Minister Andranik Markaryan or Defence Minister Serzh Sarkisyan?

[Torosyan] I think there is nothing strange that the defence minister
has joined the RPA. Of course, Mr Sarkisyan is an influential
person and the RPA is an influential political party if not the most
influential one. His joining the RPA is natural.

[Passage omitted: the same happened in 1998 when Vazgen Sarkisyan
joined the RPA and there was no problem]

[Correspondent] How will relations between the Prosperous Armenia
Party and the RPA develop? There are reports that Prosperous Armenia
will be sidelined from the game.

[Torosyan] I see that not only Prosperous Armenia, but also other
parties are out of the game because they have been talking about the
RPA and Prosperous Armenia for a long time, which is an affront to
other parties. First, Prosperous Armenia should be established as a
party and then have far reaching programmes. I can say for sure that
the number of seats won by the party in the forthcoming parliamentary
election will mean nothing for the future of the party. In this
regard, I think that attention to Prosperous Armenia is exaggerated.
Some people recently predicted something that is not clear. Our state
is young – only 15 years old, but it is time for us to do more serious
analyses. Why should the prime minister tender his resignation? There
should be a very serious reason for his resignation.

[Passage omitted: Torosyan talks about some other predictions which
he describes as groundless.]

[Correspondent] Will Serzh Sarkisyan become chairman of the RPA
council?

The post of chairman of the party’s council will be reinstated at the
extraordinary session of the RPA, which will be held on 22 July. It
was cancelled in the previous session. The vice-president of the RPA,
Razmik Zograbyan, told journalists that this post might be offered to
Serzh Sarkisyan. At the same time, he brushed aside the rumours that
Serzh Sarkisyan will be elected RPA chairman in the future. He also
added that Sarkisyan will also "think about becoming a presidential
candidate" after the forthcoming parliamentary election.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Final Countdown To Independence

Gulf News, United Arab Emirates
July 23 2006

By Borut Grgic, Special to Gulf News

The Kosovo final status debate will get a new feel after top leaders
from Kosovo and Serbia sit together with Marti Ahtisaari, the Finish
former president turned international negotiator in Vienna today.
They will be meeting in an effort to find a solution to the last status
question in the Balkans: Kosovo. The good thing is that this is the
first time the top leaders have agreed to talk. The bad thing is,
there is not much to talk about.

Belgrade and Pristina disagree on the fundamental principles in
as far as a stable solution is concerned. For Pristina, the only
acceptable outcome is independence. For Belgrade, it’s everything
but independence. This is no different from what the situation was
6 years ago when Nato members decided in favour of using force to
push back Slobodan Milosevic’s army but stopped short of recognising
Kosovo as an independent state.

Mistake; the time gained did little to convince the two sides to work
together, let alone live together. However, status ambiguity did
do one thing: it provided cheap political capital for the radicals
and the nationalists in Serbia to stay relevant. Kosovo is obviously
an emotional issue for the Serbs. It is a question of statehood for
the Albanians.

How high then to set the expectation bar for this today? Not very; much
will again depend on the international community. It is a good thing
that Marti Ahtisaari was able to get together top politicians from
both sides. These people have to talk and build interpersonal dynamics.

Irrespective of status, Serbia and Kosovo will remain linked by
a boarder and interoperable economic interests. Serbia will look
to Kosovo for importing cheap electricity whereas Kosovo will look
to Serbia for other trade opportunities. In this light, a dialogue
between the two sides needs to start now and should continue.

Status question

But the solution to the status question will have to be imposed by
the internationals for the simple reason that no political leader in
Kosovo or Serbia would survive bringing back less than the whole pie.
Unfortunately, the political space on both sides is too immature to
see the long run in this.

The internationals however, cannot afford to be short sighted. The
precedent Kosovo will set can have broad implications, including for
South Ossetia, Nagorno-Karabakh, Chechnya and not least Kurdistan.

The priority now is figuring out the legal context, which will set
Kosovo apart and present it as a unique case. Second, the post-status
role of the international community must be clearly defined.

There is no reason to go for an intrusive and overarching international
administrative unit. The Office of the High Representative in Bosnia
has a mixed record, while the Macedonian case – international mission
light – seems to be working much better. To a large extent, Kosovo
has the administrative capacity to run their affairs. The problem is
not in units but in efficiency.

Kosovo has economic potential. There is the electricity sector to
develop. Kosovo has some of the highest concentration of surface
lignite in the region. With investments made in additional production
capacity and in infrastructure upgrades, Kosovo could become a major
regional exporter of energy, not only electricity. By transforming
coal-to-liquid, Kosovo could begin producing gas and oil for export.

Second, Kosovo has enormous human resource potential. It has the
fastest growing and the youngest population in Europe.

Status is by no means the only issue left. Kosovo faces a difficult
transition ahead. Modernisation of the political system will be key.
Capital investment will not come to Kosovo if the post-status phase
is smeared by political turmoil.

Waiting for political conditions in Serbia to improve before declaring
Kosovo independent – an outcome everyone more or less aggress on and
expects – is futile. Serbia will not be saved in Kosovo; Serbia can
help itself if it develops a comprehensive strategy for reforms.

Likewise, Kosovo will not be saved by status, but also by reforms
and a clear EU perspective. As for Serbia, the only issue standing
between Serbia and its Stabilisation and Association Agreement is
Ratko Mladic. Arrest the general.

Borut Grgic is the director of the Institute for Strategic Studies
in Ljubljana.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

EU rep for southern Caucasus to hold talks in Yerevan

ITAR-TASS News Agency, Russia
July 23, 2006 Sunday 07:04 PM EST

By Tigran Liloyan

Peter Semneby, the EU representative for southern Caucasus, will
discuss issues of European integration and political and economic
reforms in Armenia at the meetings here on Monday and Tuesday.

Semneby will be received by the republic’s leaders, the press office
of the Armenian Foreign Ministry told Itar-Tass. He will also visit the
office of the country’s ombudsman and the Central Electoral Commission.

On Monday, the EU representative will hold a joint news conference
with Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanyan.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Alleged Smuggler Says Confession Was Coerced

The New York Sun
July 20, 2006 Thursday

By BENJAMIN WEINTRAUB, Special to the Sun

A lawyer for one of the 20 defendants indicted in an international
arms smuggling ring argued in federal court yesterday that his client
deserves a separate, pre-trial hearing to strike a confession the
lawyer says was forced by Armenian authorities who tortured his client.

George Goltzer said that after the Armenian police tortured Armen
Barseghyan, they told him to confess to the American officials or
face further abuse. Armenian police then sat in the same room with
FBI officials as they questioned Mr. Barseghyan, Mr. Goltzer said.

"The Armenian agents repeatedly beat him with, among other things,
rubber pipes" and "administered electric shock," Mr. Goltzer wrote
in the motion. As Mr. Barseghyan "was questioned by Americans, an
Armenian agent was in the room staring at him."

Mr. Goltzer said that by allowing the Armenian officials who tortured
Mr. Barseghyan to be in the same room as the American officials, the
Americans did not sufficiently separate themselves from the Armenian
police. As a result, Mr. Goltzer said, the Armenians’ torture of Mr.
Barseghyan can be linked to the Americans, thus allowing the confession
to be thrown out in an American court.

In earlier cases, the Supreme Court has ruled that a confession can
only be deemed coerced and stricken if an American official was the
abusive party; independent coercion by another country’s official is
not enough.

Mr. Barseghyan was extradited from Armenia in April 2005, a month
after the FBI simultaneously arrested the other defendants in New York,
Los Angeles, and Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

The defendants are alleged to have imported surface-to-air missiles,
grenade launchers, anti-tank missiles, mortar launchers, and machine
guns from Russia, Georgia, and Ukraine. The FBI used wiretaps and a
confidential informer who posed as an arms buyer with links to Al Qaeda
to compile hundreds of hours of conversation among the defendants,
who were indicted in March 2005.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

AGBU Press Office
55 East 59th Street
New York, NY 10022-1112
Phone: 212.319.6383,x109
Fax: 212.319.6507
Email: [email protected]
Website:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Monday, July 24, 2006

ONE-OF-A-KIND CONCERT HOSTED BY AGBU AYA DAMASCUS PACKS THE HOUSE

Presented for the first time ever in Syria, the Armenian Youth
Association (AYA) of AGBU Damascus sponsored the performance of "The
Epic of Gilgamesh" at the St. Sarkis Armenian Church in Damascus on
July 14 and 15, 2006.

With the support of global mobile telecommunications provider Areeba,
over 600 Armenian and Syrian guests enjoyed the unique performance
composed by Kinan Azmeh on clarinet accompanied by computer-illustrated
art created live by Kevork Mourad.

The earliest known work of literature to man, "The Epic of
Gilgamesh" dates back to the ancient state of Babylonia in 3000
B.C. and is still celebrated as one of the world’s greatest pieces of
literature. Currently residing in New York, Syria-born artists Azmeh
and Mourad teamed up to retell the epic poem through the mesmerizing
merger of music and visual art to create a tantalizing experience
that made the ancient story come alive for contemporary audiences.

Upholding the mission of AGBU, AYA Damascus is committed to
preserving and promoting the Armenian identity and heritage. For more
information on AYA Damascus, please email [email protected] or visit

For more information on AGBU and its worldwide programs, please
visit

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress