Author: Frangulian Shushan

TWO RAILWAYS RUNNING INTO IRAN

The Messenger
March 30 2009
Georgia

Currently two possible new railways which will enter Iran, one from
Azerbaijan and one from Armenia, are being discussed. Armenian
Transport and Communications Minister Gurgen Sarkisian stated on
March 27 that the proposed Iran-Azerbaijan railway will not hinder
the construction of Iran-Armenia railways.

The railway connection between Iran and Azerbaijan might be
useable later this year, and would connect Russia with Iran through
Azerbaijan. As yet there is no financing for the Iran-Armenia railway
construction, but both Iran and Armenia are ready to implement the
project when the money is found.

PanARMENIAN.Net

Gul: EU should keep its promises
28.03.2009 14:35 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkish President Abdullah Gul said on Friday that
keeping its promises was one of the fundamental principles of the
European Union (EU).

"The EU is well aware of Turkey’s influence and strategic importance,"
Gul told a news conference in Brussels.

Gul underlined the importance of his visit for giving a new momentum
to relations, raising Turkey’s interest in the EU process again after
Sunday’s local elections, and speeding up the EU membership bid.

He said that the EU had opened entry talks with Turkey on ten chapters
so far, and expressed the country’s expectation to begin negotiations
on new chapters.

Gul said that Turkey’s road map is clear, and appreciated the European
Commission’s efforts to maintain the process with good will.

"Maintaining this process was good for everybody’s best interests," he
said, adding that Turkey is not in a hurry and aimed to complete
negotiations with success.

Gul said the EU should always look into issues strategically. Turkey
became an EU candidate country in December 1999 and the union launched
accession talks with Turkey on October 3, 2005, Anatolian Agency
reports.

MOVSISYAN LOOKING TO BUILD ON 2008
By Randy Davis

Goal.com
March 24 2009

Real Salt Lake striker Yura Movsisyan ended 2008 with a bang, and is
out to prove that it was no fluke in 2009.

There is a lot on the line for Real Salt Lake forward Yura Movsisyan
during the 2009 Major League Soccer season. The 21 year-old Armenian
player enters his fourth season in the league and hopes to build on
the breakout performance that he had at the end of 2008.

Movsisyan scored six of his seven goals in the final eight matches
of the season last year after becoming a starter late in the season
because of an injury to teammate Fabian Espindola. He also seemed
to have a flair for the dramatic, scoring the playoff-clinching game
winner against Colorado in the 90th minute during the final match of
the regular season, and then repeating the performance the following
week, scoring another 90th minute game winner against Chivas which
propelled RSL further into the playoffs.

This season Movsisyan enters the year not only as a starter, but as
the player the team will be looking to the most for goal production. As
Coach Kreis recently told Goal.com, "We’re gonna lean on him."

That’s quite a reversal from 2008, where Movsisyan appeared to be
the fourth option at times behind Espindola, Kenny Deuchar and Robbie
Findley. However, Movsisyan knows that he needs to show everyone that
last year wasn’t an aberration.

"I’m gonna build on it," Movsisyan said. "It wasn’t just a hot streak."

Of course "building on it" is important not only for his starter
status but also for his career trajectory. If Movsisyan can continue
what he started last season, he can develop a reputation around the
league for being a proven goal scorer. This league has seen precious
few "homegrown" proven goal scorers. Players like Jozy Altidore and
Eddie Johnson developed reputations as goal scorers at a young age
and have parlayed that into moves to Europe in an effort to take
their careers to the next level.

In addition, this year is believed to be the final year of
Movsisyan’s current contract with the league. While a "contract year"
in MLS doesn’t mean that there are millions at stake like in other
professional sports leagues, performing well this season could still
benefit the striker financially.

This season also may be crucial for Movsisyan who clearly has US
National Team aspirations. He is in the final stages of the green card
process after his family came to the US several years ago seeking
political asylum. Once this is completed, Movsisyan would love to
get the call from Bob Bradley and the US National Team,

"I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t want to play on the US National
team, because that’s one thing that I want to accomplish in my
career," said the striker. "That’s one of the things I am really,
really working hard for."

All of these factors have Movsisyan extremely motivated coming into
this season. His tenacity and speed have been an important part of his
success to this point. In the early going last season, he appeared
to try to do too much on his own. The RSL man says he’s looking to
improve on that and other aspects of his game.

"I need to work on every aspect of my game. I’m not a complete
player. Every day you try to work on something new."

His team is clearly hoping that Movsisyan stays motivated and can
score goals this season. The team barely made the playoffs last season
thanks to Movsisyan’s heroics, but things could have been much easier
for them. They played an aggressive style of soccer last season,
but still struggled to score goals.

According to midfielder Kyle Beckerman, "that was the thing that held
us back from being the top team in the league last year, possibly."

However, Beckerman feels confident in his teammate to help improve
on their goal scoring ability this season,

"Yura getting some success at the end of the year, now he’s gotta
believe that he can do it in this league. If we can get him started
early, then the sky’s the limit for him."

The "sky" could include Movsisyan developing a solid reputation as a
goal scorer, earning a new contract with the league, and maybe even
earning a look from the national team.

PROCREDIT BANK INCREASES INTEREST RATES FOR AMD DEPOSITS

PanARMENIAN.Net
26.03.2009 16:06 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Since March 16, 2009, ProCredit Bank has started a
new spring campaign for deposits in AMD. Now the interest rates for
all AMD deposits range up to 12% annually and the minimum deposit
period starts from one month. To create more comfortable banking
services for customers the minimum account opening amount begins from
30 000 AMD. This campaign launched by ProCredit Bank should encourage
a savings culture among larger number of private households and legal
entities in Armenia.

The variety of ProCredit Bank deposits enables households (or
individuals) to choose the most convenient way to save, accumulate
and manage their funds. Currently, 80% of the deposits are made up
with the amount of less than USD 1,000, which clearly indicates that
ProCredit Bank in Armenia is reaching out to its intended client
group in offer services to previously underserved groups of the
population. The large number of small deposits is a clear indication
of the fact that ProCredit Bank has a focus on "responsible banking"
that promotes the country’s social and economic development.

ARMENIAN PM VOWS TO REOPEN BJNI WATER COMPANY

892_3/26/2009_1Armenian
Thursday March 26, 2009

YEREVAN (RFE/RL)–Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan Thursday assured
hundreds of employees of an Armenian mineral water company, effectively
shut down by his government last fall, that they will return to work
before long.

The Bjni plant located in Charentsavan, an unemployment stricken town
40 kilometers north of Yerevan, was raided by security officials
and put up for sale in October after its opposition-linked owners’
refusal to pay 5.2 billion drams ($14 million) in fines controversially
imposed by tax authorities. Its more than 400 employees have been
out of work since then.

Many of them hoped that Bjni would be reopened soon when it was
auctioned off for 4.44 billion drams last month. But last week,
Armenia’s Administrative Court declared the auction null and void,
saying that the authorities cannot forcibly sell the company unless
it is declared bankrupt by another court.

"We know than there is concern in the region about the future of the
Bjni plant," Sargsyan said at a meeting of his cabinet held in the
nearby Aghveran resort. "In particular, there have been rumors that
the plant will be partitioned or split up. I want to dispel those
concerns and fears. There will be no such thing."

"The plant will operate in its integrity, and the ongoing judicial
processes do not mean that it will be sold off in parts," said the
prime minister. "We will see to it that this process is over as soon
as possible and that the plant works again."

"What is more, I think there are approaches that will contribute
to an increase, rather than a decrease, in jobs," Sargsyan added
without elaborating. Nor did he specify the authorities’ further
steps in their tax dispute with Khachatur Sukiasian, a millionaire
businessman and parliament deputy who has owned Bjni until now.

Bjni and several other companies making up Khachatur Sukiasian’s
SIL Concern group were inspected by tax officials and accused of
large-scale tax evasion shortly after the tycoon voiced support in
September 2007 for former President Levon Ter-Petrosian’s bid to
return to power. Sukiasian has dismissed the charges as baseless and
politically motivated.

He was among several Ter-Petrosian associates who went into hiding to
escape arrest following the February 2008 presidential election. Their
whereabouts remain unknown.

AMERICAN CONGRESSMAN CALL FOR INCREASING ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE TO ARMENIA TO $70 MILLION IN 2010

PanARMENIAN.Net
25.03.2009 21:36 GMT+04:00

With Congressional appropriators in the early stages of crafting
the Fiscal Year 2010 foreign aid bill, Congressional Armenian Caucus
Co-Chairs Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) earlier today urged
their House colleagues to join with them in backing the inclusion of a
series of provisions aimed at strengthening U.S. ties to Armenia and
Nagorno Karabagh, and bolstering the prospects for regional peace,
reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA.)

"We commend the leadership of Representatives Pallone and Kirk in
ensuring that the foreign aid bill reflects America’s support for
Armenia and Nagorno Karabagh and furthers our nation’s efforts to
ensure a fair and lasting peace in the Caucasus region," stated
ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. "We look forward to working
toward the adoption of the vital foreign aid priorities outlined in
the letter sent today by the Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs."

In a March 24th "Dear Colleague" letter, Members of Congress were
encouraged to co-sign a letter to Foreign Operations Subcommittee
Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY), a longstanding supporter of the
U.S.-Armenia relationship, and Ranking Republican Kay Granger
(R-TX). The letter cited six key foreign aid priorities, including:

— Enhancing restrictions on U.S. assistance to Azerbaijan,
as outlined in Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act, by further
limiting Presidential authority to waive the provision in light of
continued Azerbaijani government incitement of a military solution
of Nagorno Karabagh conflict.

— Increasing economic assistance to Armenia from the FY2009 level
of $48 million to $70 million.

— Increasing military assistance to Armenia from FY2009 level of
$3.3 million to $5 million.

— Increasing the amount and scope of U.S. assistance to Nagorno
Karabakh from the FY2009 level of $8 million in humanitarian aid to
$10 million in both humanitarian and developmental assistance.

— Including language "urging Azerbaijan to support confidence-building
measures that facilitate interaction among the parties, in order
to address regional security, resource management, infrastructure,
development and people to people programs."

— Removing restrictions on travel, contacts, and the free exchange
of ideas between U.S. officials and the democratically elected leaders
of Nagorno Karabakh.

Members of Congress will have until March 31st to join with
Reps. Pallone and Kirk to support these U.S. foreign aid priorities
as the foreign aid panel begins drafting the FY2010 foreign aid bill.

ARMENIA’S PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION TO ATTEND THE 32ND SITTING OF THE CIS IPA

"Radiolur"
25.03.2009 15:25

On March 25 Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia Hovik
Abrahamyan received the Secretary of the CIS Interparliamentary
Assembly, Mikhail Krotov.

Mr. Krotov conveyed to the Armenian Parliament Speaker the greetings
of the President of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly, Sergey
Mironov, and the President of the CSTO Interparliamentary Assembly,
Boris Gryzlov and an invitation to attend the 32nd plenary sitting
of the CIS IPA to be held in Saint Petersburg on 14-15 May.

During the meeting reference was made to the issues on the agenda of
the 32nd plenary sitting of the CIS IPA. The parties discussed issues
related to future cooperation and questions of bilateral interest.

Hovik Abrahamyan confirmed the participation of the Armenian
parliamentary delegation in the sitting

RURAL YOUTH PROGRAM LAUNCHED IN ARMENIA

PanARMENIAN.Net
25.03.2009 11:06 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ According to an agreement achieved by OSCE Yerevan
Office and RA Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs, a program for
strengthening democratic management system in regional youth centers
was launched in Armenia in 2009.

The goal is to attract rural youth to labor market and raise
competition.

The program also envisages small grants which will be awarded for
strategy development, innovative and creative approaches in project
implementation.

TURKISH COMMITTED ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION IN U.S. HOUSE

Armenian lawmaker expresses "complete support" for U.S. measure
against Turkish committed Armenian Genocide

2009-03-23 14:54:13 – In a letter sent soon after legistlation
recognizing the Armenian Genocide was introduced in the U.S. House of
Representatives, the Chairman of the Standing Committee on Foreign
Relations of the Armenian parliament expresses complete support for
the measure and writes: " I am confident that the recognition of the
Armenian Genocide by the United Stated not only would not hamper, but
on the contrary will contribute to the prospects of a thorough
dialogue between Turkey and Armenia."

March 19, 2009

The Honorable Howard Berman
Chairman
Committee on Foreign Affairs
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Chairman Berman:

I have the pleasure to write to you upon the introduction of
legislation recognizing the Armenian Genocide, and to share with you
and your colleagues our complete support for the adoption of this
measure affirming the commitment of the United States to the cause of
genocide-prevention. Armenia aspires for the universal recognition and
condemnation of the Armenian Genocide, and sees it both as a
restoration of an historical justice and as a way to improve the
overall situation in the region, while also preventing similar crimes
in the future.

The Armenian people in our homeland, in the United States and around
the world, remain grateful for the hard work that you and your
colleagues, including, of course Congressmen Adam Schiff and George
Radanovich, have devoted over the course of many years to secure U.S.
recognition and official commemoration of this crime. I am confident
that the proponents of this process are also rightly convinced that
the lack of official recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the
United States has thus far in fact served to make Turkey?s position in
the issue of resolving the Armenian-Turkish relations more
uncompromising. We value these efforts and are, this year,
particularly encouraged by the clear statements of President Barack
Obama and senior members of his Administration in this regard during
the elections.

Please know that I remain available to share with your Congressional
colleagues, either in writing or in person, the principled stand of
the Republic of Armenia in support of universal recognition of the
Armenian Genocide. I am confident that the recognition of the Armenian
Genocide by the United Stated not only would not hamper, but on the
contrary will contribute to the prospects of a thorough dialogue
between Turkey and Armenia. A clear and principled stance by the U.S.
can only assist in developing awareness that the recognition of the
Genocide is not at all a demonstration of anti-Turkish sentiments, but
a necessity emanating from the need to condemn this crime against
humanity. Furthermore, any durable improvement of Armenia-Turkey
relations must rest upon a foundation of shared respect for truth and
justice.

Thank you for your friendship with the people and government of the
Republic of Armenia and for all your support and assistance over the
years.

Sincerely,
Armen Rustamyan
Chairman
Standing Committee on Foreign Relations
National Assembly of Armenia

Web: 19.03.2009letterEn.pdf?lang=arm
(in English)
/Foreign/LetterArm.pdf?lang=arm
(in Armenian)

Press Release
Fund for Armenian Relief (FAR)
Press Office
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Tel: (212) 889-5150; Fax: (212) 889-4849
email: [email protected]
web:
_________________________

FAR’s Young Professionals Trip to Armenia
Two weeks may not seem like a lengthy enough time to have a
life-altering experience. For alumni of FAR’s Young Professionals
Trip to Armenia, however, it certainly is. For 14 consecutive
summers, FAR has organized a pilgrimage to Armenia for Young
Professionals between the ages of 23 and 40 to give them the
opportunity to explore and discover their homeland.

This year, the trip will take place from June 8 – June 22, 2009 and
promises another summer of sightseeing, socialization and cultural
immersion. FAR’s YP trip will tour the entire country of Armenia, from
the North to the South, the East to the West. The many historic sites
participants will visit include the ancient Geghard monastery, the
Genocide Memorial, Noravank monastery, and Holy Etchmiadzin, where the
group will meet with His Holiness Catholicos Karekin II.

Aside from the historic sites, participants will also visit important
and significant cities and towns throughout Armenia including Yerevan,
Dzaghgadzor, Dilijan, Sevan, Goris, Jermuk, and Gyumri, where they
will visit FAR-operated projects.

Throughout all the excursions, meetings with government and religious
leaders, and sightseeing, participants will continuously learn about
Armenian life, culture, and history. From browsing the items for sale
in Vernisage, an open-air market in Yerevan, to lighting a candle at
Holy Etchmiadzin, each participant will connect with their homeland in
their own unique way.

For Natalie Gabrelian, who had not visited Armenia since she was a
child, the trip was indeed a memorable and unforgettable
experience. "It truly was hard to say goodbye to good friends, good
fun, and good food," said Gabrelian, an alumni of FAR’s YP trip in
2007. "But we had to accept the sad reality that the time had come to
go back to the lives and loved ones we had left back home. Yet somehow
we just couldn’t part with our homeland or the new life and family we
had created over the two weeks in Armenia."

While it was a new experience for some participants, it was a return
home for others. Marine Vorperian, another FAR YP alumna, immigrated
to the United States from Armenia when she was 12 years old. Her first
trip back was with FAR in 2005. "FAR YP brought our country’s deeply
rooted traditions and culture to the surface. The trip was more of a
soul fulfilling, mentally stimulating pilgrimage than your typical
summer vacation," said Vorperian.

Many have already signed up to participate in this summer’s FAR YP
trip. Amy Samelian, who is on the parish council of the only Armenian
Apostolic church in Minnesota, is taking this opportunity to discover
her homeland for the first time in her life, and has chosen to do it
with FAR’s YP trip. "When someone visits Armenia, whether it be for
the Peace Corps, or to help build homes, or to provide support to
relief agencies, they all say one is changed forever. I hear it is the
trip of a lifetime and I am very much looking forward to it," said
Samelian.

There will be a few new additions to the itinerary this year,
including a meeting with the new Minister of Diaspora, Hranoush
Hakobyan and a trip to the south of Armenia to visit the city of
Meghri. There will also be two different travel arrangements in which
participants can opt to travel with the group from New York to
Yerevan, or choose to fly alone and meet the group in Armenia. The
total cost of the trip is $1,550, which includes double occupancy
hotel accommodation, all taxes and fees, two meals a day in Yerevan
and three meals a day outside of Yerevan, all entrance fees and guided
sightseeing. The total cost with flights (all-inclusive package)
includes all of the above and all flight arrangements from and to New
York City for only $2,975.

For more information on the Young Professionals Trip to Armenia,
please contact Project Director Arto Vorperian at (212) 889-5150 or at
[email protected].

# # #

About FAR
Since its founding in response to the 1988 earthquake, FAR has served
hundreds of thousands of people through more than 220 relief and
development programs in Armenia and Karabagh. It has channeled more
than $265 million in humanitarian assistance by implementing a wide
range of projects including emergency relief, construction, education,
medical aid, and economic development.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For more information on FAR or to send donations, contact us at 630
Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016; telephone (212) 889-5150; fax (212)
889-4849; ; e-mail [email protected].
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fund for Armenian Relief | 630 Second Avenue | New York | NY | 10016