Author: Frangulian Shushan

"MISTER KARPIS" PERFORMANCE TO BE PRESENTED IN PASADENA

Noyan Tapan
March 31, 2008

PASADENA, MARCH 31, ARMENIANS TODAY – NOYAN TAPAN. Vahe Berberian’s
theater work "Mister Karpis" will be staged in the theater hall of
Pasadena Armenian General Benevolent Union from March 29 to April 20.

According to Asparez, the play consisting of one act presents a clash
of three generations, the generation of Mister Karpis, his son,
Zhirayr, and grandson, Khazhak. All of them try to stick to their
positions firmly.

Beside exciting scenes, playing of actors is balanced by Berberian’s
wit and jokes, which make the work more complete. The producer is
Hrayr Sargsian.

BAKU GOING TO TAKE ACTION TO "LIBERATE TERRITORIES"?

PanARMENIAN.Net
31.03.2008 12:04 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ "We did not seize a territory of any country. We
ourselves suffered from aggression," said Eldar Sabiroglu, spokesman
for the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry.

"Liberation of our lands from occupation is our civil and national
duty and our right. No one can deprive us of this right. Certainly,
it would be better to resolve the problem peacefully but the process
seems to reach a deadlock and Azerbaijan will take action," he said.

Touching on the Azerbaijan-initiated UN resolution, Sabiroglu
sad the document calls for a peaceful resolution of the conflict,
"However, the OSCE Minsk Group, which has been dealing with the
conflict settlement for 15 years already, questioned the UN General
Assembly’s resolution. Azerbaijan has come across an inadequate
attitude," he said, Day.az reports.

LAVROV: NATO EXPANSION EAST INAPPROPRIATE

PanARMENIAN.Net
27.03.2008 17:29 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Russia eyes NATO’s expansion plans as inappropriate,
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

"We can resist challenges by uniting efforts but not by exercising
mechanical enlargement of blocs which base on inertial psychological
sets," he said, RBC reports.

HAMLET TADEVOSYAN POSTHUMOUSLY AWARDED WITH AN ORDER OF THE COMBAT CROSS

armradio.am
26.03.2008 16:47

According to RA President Robert Kocharyan’s decree of March 26,
the Commander of the motorized infantry battalion #1030 of the
Police Troops of the Republic of Armenia, Mayor Hamlet Tadevosyan was
posthumously awarded with an Order of the Combat Cross of the Second
Degree for courage and self-sacrifice demonstrated when defending
public order.

NOKIAN TYRES SHOWS INTEREST IN YEREVAN PLANT

Interfax News Agency
March 25 2008
Russia

Finish car tyre manufacturer Nokian Tyres is interested in the Armenian
tyre plant Dogagorts-1 (formerly known as Yerevan Tyre Plant).

The company is interested in buying shares in the plant and is ready
to raise money for its upgrade, Minna Tihinen, the export manager at
Nokian, told the press.

Tihinen said she had not yet been able to discuss these plans with
the tyre plant or with the Armenian Trade and Economic Development
Ministry.

Economic Development Minister Nerses Yeritsyan refused to make any
comments about the Nokian Tyres plans because the owner of Dogagorts-1
– U.S. company TS-Investment Corp., is involved in a court dispute
with the ministry.

TS-Investment bought 75% of Yerevan Tyre Plant in 2002 for $1.287
million, undertaking to invest $12 to $13 million over three years
after the privatization. In mid-2007, the company filed a lawsuit
in London against the government of Armenia through the Trade
and Economic Development Ministry in order to be released from its
investment commitments. The company accuses the ministry of impeding
the investment program’s implementation.

MATENADARAN DEPUTY DIRECTOR ARSHAK BANUCHIAN ARRESTED

Noyan Tapan
March 25, 2008

YEREVAN, MARCH 25, NOYAN TAPAN. A search was conducted in the house of
Matenadaran Deputy Director Arshak Banuchian in the evening of March
24 and he was being interrogated at the Special Investigation Service
from 21:15 up to late night. Armen Khachatrian, a representative of
the office of first RA President Levon Ter-Petrosian, reported this
to Radio Liberty. According to him, information on A. Banuchian’s
arrest was received at about 3:00.

It should be mentioned that Arshak Banuchian is one of the
intellectuals, who joined the movement led by L. Ter-Petrosian.

FIRST REPUBICAN CELLO MUSIC FESTIVAL TO BE HELD IN ARMENIA

Noyan Tapan
March 25, 2008

YEREVAN, MARCH 25, NOYAN TAPAN. On the initiative of the RA ministry
of culture, the first republican cello music festival dedicated to
People’s Artist of Armenia, Professor Heronti Talalian will be held in
Armenia in the period of March 26 to May 4. The festival director,
cellist of the string quartet after Komitas, docent of Yerevan
Conservatory Aram Talalian said at the March 24 press conference
that the purpose of the festival is assist with improvement of young
cellists’ mastery. In his words, the cello art has no long history
in Armenia: it originated in the 1920s and managed to achieve a high
level in a short time. However, many musicians of the middle generation
have left Armenia in recent years due to hard material conditions,
as a result of which the alternation of generations has not been a
smooth one.

According to A. Talalian, the festival is of rather educational
and instructive importance. It is not in all music schools that
cello classes have been kept. For this reason during the festival
concerts will be given in those cities and marzes (provinces) where
the teaching of cello classes has been retained: in Gyumri, Vanadzor,
Kapan, Stepanakert, Abovian, and Charentsavan.

Aram Talalian announced that among festival participants ara famous
cellists from the UK, Switzerland, Georgia, Iran, Russia and France,
including Alexander Chaushian, Aydin Ahmadinejad, Mikael Hakhnazarian,
Yovan Markovich and others.

SERZH SARGSYAN HOPES FOR CONTINUATION OF POLICY OF STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH RUSSIA

arminfo
2008-03-24 20:38:00

ArmInfo. Today newly elected president, prime minister of Armenia
Serzh Sargsyan met with President of Russia Vladimir Putin.

Sargsyan thanked Putin for his invitation to visit Moscow. He
congratulated Putin on the successful presidential election in Russia
and expresed hope that Armenian-Russian relations will continue to
develop in the form of strategic partnership especially as they are
underpined by a firm basis created by presidents Putin and Kocharyan
and guaranteed by centuries-old cooperation beetween Russia and
Armenia.

The interlocutors discussed the post-election situation in
Armenia. Sargsyan presented the situation, noting that the Armenian
authorities are decisive and will do their best to stabilize
it. This is necessary for consolidating the society’s solidarity and
tolerance. The meeting also covered issues of military and economic
cooperation. They touched upon the Karabakh peace process as well. At
the same time, Putin pointed out that the peace process should continue
within the OSCE MG frames. The Russian president expressed confidence
that under the guidance of the newly-elected president of Armenia,
all the domestic problems of the republic will be settled soon.

DAVID HAROUTIUNIAN: IF WE HAVE DEVIATIONS FROM EUROPEAN VALUES, WE SHOULD BE READY TO LISTEN TO OUR COLLEAGUES’ OPINION

Noyan Tapan
March 21, 2008

YEREVAN, MARCH 21, NOYAN TAPAN. Discussions about the RA presidential
elections of February 19 and the activity of the democratic
institutions in Armenia are envisaged at the PACE plenary session
to be convened on April 14-18 in Strasbourg. The latter will be
included in the agenda as an urgent issue and will be discussed on
April 17. As David Haroutiunian, the head of the Armenian delegation
in PACE, the Chairman of the NA Standing Committee on State and Legal
Issues, said in his interview to Noyan Tapan and Radio Liberty, in
difference to the report on the elections, the discussion of the issue
connected with post-electoral processes also envisages adoption of the
respective resolution. "PACE is unequivocally a political structure,
and certainly, politics plays an important part in the activity of
each delegation. Nevertheless we suppose that the evaluations will
be as balanced as possible," he predicted.

D. Haroutiunian, who has taken part in the sitting of the Assembly’s
Monitoring Commission lately in Paris, said that "strict speeches"
were voiced during the discussions connected with Armenia’s home
political situation. Such speeches were also voiced by Azeris, which
is a "natural and familiar style." "They always use such chances in
consideration of the fact that it is also a way to distract attention
from the problems faced by their country," the head of the Armenian
delegation said. He also expressed an opinion that the discussion of
the above mentioned issue at the Commission’s sitting "nevertheless,
was rather balanced." "After all we should not consider Council of
Europe as an instrument of intimidation, a court. It is a club we
have joined of our own free will saying that we share the European
values. And if we have deviations, we should be ready to listen to
our colleagues’ opinion," D. Haroutiunian said.

He also mentioned that besides him, Avet Adonts, the Chairman of the
NA Standing Committee of European Integration Issues, a member of the
Bargavach Hayastan (Prosperous Armenia) party, and Raffi Hovannisian,
the head of the Zharangutiun (Heritage) faction, have also taken part
in the Commission’s sitting. In response to the issue of possible
disagreements among the delegation members, D. Haroutiunian said:
"We can have different evaluations in connection with different
situations, but we have no serious divergence in the respect of
democratic development."

SUPREME COMMANDER IN CHIEF TO DECIDE FATE OF DEPUTY DEFENSE MINISTER

PanARMENIAN.Net
22.03.2008 16:02 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The fate of Deputy Defense Minister, lieutenant
general Manvel Grigoryan will be decided by the Supreme Commander in
Chief, RA Defense Minister Mikael Harutyunyan.

"Lieutenant general Grigoryan has been on leave.

According to the Constitution, the President will take a decision,
since as the Supreme Commander in Chief, he is empowered to appoint
or dismiss, or confer military ranks," he said.

Earlier, Serzh Sargsyan expressed regret that "Manvel Grigoryan
attempted to engage in politics and disobey the Supreme Commander
in Chief."

During the February 21 rally, former President Levon Ter-Petrosyan
announced that two Deputies to the RA Defense Minister, including
Lieutenant general Manvel Grigoryan, head of the Yerkrapah union,
joined the opposition movement.