Author: Jidarian Alex

WHO NEEDS SUCH A REPORT

15315.html
13:26:43 – 28/09/2009

The works of the NA temporary commission to study March 1 ended in
an incomprehensible way. The commission had to convene a session to
discuss the report. It is not serious to learn a 140-page report and
to sign it. No discussion was organized which is a breach of rules,
said the member of the commission, the head of the Nor Zhamanakner
(New Times) party Aram Karapetyan who did not sign the report.

Karapetyan wrote his own report which will be heard during the PACE
summit. According to Karapetyan, only official documents are included
in the report. The commission formed a list of people who had to
be invited to the commission to answer questions. The head of the
commission Samvel Nikoyan was unable to secure the presence of Serge
Sargsyan, Robert Kocharyan, Levon Ter-Petrosyan, Grigori Sarkisyan,
Gorik Hakobyan, Aghvan Hovsepyan. These are those people who made
decisions and fulfilled them, says Aram Karapetyan.

The NZh head noted that according to several documents which were
formed on February 28-29, 2008 show that the actions of the government
on March 1 were previously planned. The report contains two pages
of names of weapons the police say to have found in the Freedom
Square. But they did not manage to found out the owners of those
weapons and their connection with the protestors was not proved. This
means that all this is only a badly organized show.

The government did not go on compromise, did not make any step to
lessen the tension to avoid the further development of events. Levon
Ter-Petrosyan was not let come to the statue of Miasnikyan by the
reason that the bodyguard cannot participate in a non-authorized
rally. So how did the bodyguard participate in the previous 10
rallies? wondered Karapetyan.

The protesters had no aim to seize the government, as the official
version says. If it is that way, the question occurs which is the
reason why no one was accused of it.

In the end, Karapetyan adds that a political decision was taken to pass
the report and the members of the commission were forced to sign it.

GOVERNMENT APPROVES 2010 DRAFT STATE BUDGET OF ARMENIA

NOYAN TAPAN
SEPTEMBER 28, 2009
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 28, NOYAN TAPAN. At the September 28 special
sitting of the Armenian government, the 2010 draft state budget of
the Republic of Armenia was discussed and approved.

Minister of Finance Tigran Davtian said that based on opinions of
Armenian and foreign experts, a 1.2-1.3% growth of GDP is forecast
for 2010, and in this case GDP will amount to 3 trillion 214 billion
drams. The index deflator – the inflation of goods made in Armenia
is forecast at 2%, the budget revenues are forecast to make 676.7bn
drams, including taxes and state duties of 533.5bn drams and social
payments of 105.2bn drams. The overall budget is forecast to make
701.7bn drams, with expenditures amounting to 884.7bn drams and the
deficit making 183bn drams. The deficit/GDP ratio will make 5.69%. The
budgets of communities will amount to 82.5bn drams.

According to the minister, the 2010 budget expenditures will be less
by 85bn drams than this year, although 2009 expenditures have been
also reduced.

Despite this fact, like in 2009, the social, scientific expenditures,
as well as expenses on national security and other urgent purposes
in 2010 will remain at the same level. This year most of the budget
expenditures were incurred at the expense of foreign resources, whereas
in 2010 it will be impossible to spend the same amounts: first of all,
it is necessary to limit the amount of resources attracted so that
the budget deficit will be within the manageable limits. Besides,
the sums (quite large) for servicing the debts received so far will
be added in the 2010 budget.

Among expenditures to be reduced next year are capital and public
administration expenses. No equipment and vehicles will be purchased
for the state machinery, while the expenses on business trips and
official state receptions will halve. A number of expenditures:
salaries of civil servants, community subsidies, and sums for debt
servicing will increase. By the 2010 draft budget, the budget decicit
is envisaged to make 183bn drams and has to be covered from foreign
and domestic sources.

T. Davtian said that in 2010 the government will try to attract
budgetary loans of 7.5bn drams from the World Bank and loans of 150
million USD from the IMF: negotiations are being conducted with the WB,
and an agreement has already been signed with the IMF. One domestic
source for covering the deficit is the placement of state bonds,
from which is expected to receive about 30bn drams, according to the
minister. "All sources of financing the deficit are known," he said.

RA Football Team to participate in Under 17 World Youth Championship
qualifier in Poland
25.09.2009 21:14 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On September 27-30, Yerevan will host a training for
Armenian Youth Football team in preparation of Under 17 World Youth
Championship qualifier in Poland.

20 football players will participate in a training, along with head
coach Suren Chakhalyan, AFF press service reported.

SkySports

Uefa look in to 40 matches

Majority of suspicious games involve Eastern European clubs

Last updated: 25th September 2009
Uefa have confirmed that 40 matches are now being investigated amid
suspicions of match-fixing.

The number of cases being looked into by Uefa has risen over the past
12 months from 25 to 40, with the majority of games involving clubs
from Eastern Europe.

The matches suspected of being fixed were played in the early
qualifying rounds of the Champions League and the Uefa Cup.

Peter Limacher, Uefa’s head of disciplinary services, told a
conference in London that there were now 40 games where suspicious
betting patterns had been identified, 15 of those in the last two
years.

Limacher said: "Right now it’s mainly Eastern Europe clubs being
investigated.

"They know they are not going to be involved later in the tournament
and they are going out, so decide, ‘Let’s make a profit’.

"In the cases we have seen it’s really the deliberate planned fix of
the games, the whole games. First the result at half-time, then after
90 minutes.

"It might take some time (to convict), but in cases where we can work
together with the police that might be possible."

In April, the Macedonian club FK Pobeda were banned from European
competition for eight years by Uefa after being found guilty of
match-fixing against Armenian side FC Pyunik in 2004 – they lost 3-1
at home in a Champions League first qualifying round.

FK Pobeda’s president Aleksandar Zabrcanec was banned for life from
any football-related activity, as was the player Nikolce Zdraveski.

Art of no cursing according to editor

am-abrahamyan
05:49 pm | September 24, 2009 | Politics

"There can be no freedom of press in Armenia until we don’t have a
free economy like in Western countries," emphasized editor of the
"Aravot" newspaper Aram Abrahamyan during a press conference as he
touched upon perspectives for development of Armenian presses.

According to Abrahamyan, in addition to economic issues, there are
also subjective issues for printed press. For instance, distributors
have more papers than the editors. According to Aram Abrahamyan, the
distribution of papers has not fully developed as a business because
there are still certain issues.

"Professionalism is also an issue. If I print the picture of the
president with the body of an animal on the first page of my paper and
write "scoundrel" next to it, I will not need to write an article, but
that paper will sell well. That is a bad example, but the number of
copies depends on that as well," said Abrahamyan.
According to Abrahamyan, "Aravot" is "targeted at readers who wish to
receive objective news and want to think after reading the news."

He also underscored that Armenians read less newspapers today,
especially the youth who spend more time on the Internet and social
network sites.

In general, the editor of "Aravot" considers an objective to keep the
balance in providing news. That is why Aram Abrahamyan is against
cursing in the press and in life.

"People curse because they lack arguments. When you don’t have
arguments, you start cursing, putting labels, playing with emotions. I
think that people must be well-disciplined in order to not curse the
journalist as well," said Abrahamyan.

As far as the protocols on the normalization of Turkish-Armenian
relations are concerned, Aram Abrahamyan personally thinks that if the
protocols are signed and ratified, the positive and negative sides
must be written down.

"As a citizen, there are more positive sides, if they are ratified and
implemented, which I highly doubt. I find it hard to believe that
Turkey will ratify and implement them without concessions for
Karabakh," says Aram Abrahamyan.

DIPLOMATIC SCHOOL

s15288.html
15:44:19 – 23/09/2009

The RA government decided to establish a Foreign Ministry diplomatic
school. The subject and the aims of the school activities were
determined, participation in international educational cooperation,
perfection of diplomats, preparation of diplomatic staff through
providing additional education for RA graduated citizens.

As the Armenian Prime Minister noted the creation of the school will
enable to organize regular programmed preparation of diplomats and
their perfection. For the beginning, the school will be situated on
the first floor of the Foreign Ministry administrative building.

EXTRAORDINARY DEVELOPMENTS

lrahos15287.html
15:29:17 – 23/09/2009

Levon Ter-Petrosyan’s press speaker Arman Musinyan today told
reporter that serious processes and developments are expected in the
context of the normalization of the Armenian and Turkish relations
as well as the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. Arman Musinyan stated the
Armenian National Congress will have active participation in these
processes. Extraordinary elections are also possible, says Musinyan.

TURKEY TO PUSH AHEAD WITH ARMENIA TIES-ERDOGAN
Daniel Bases

Forbes
Sept 23 2009

PRINCETON, Sept. 23 (Reuters) – Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan
said on Wednesday he expects to present Parliament with documents to
establish diplomatic ties with Armenia by early October, just before
a critical meeting between the nations’ two leaders.

Erdogan, in a broad-ranging foreign policy speech before faculty and
students at Princeton University said the negotiations "have really
taken us to an important position."

Turkey and Armenia have no diplomatic ties and share a history of
animosity stemming from the mass killing of Armenians by Ottoman
Turks during World War One.

Turkey denies the 1915 killings amounted to genocide, but has agreed
to set up a commission of international experts on the issue under
the protocol it signed with Armenia.

"If we don’t see prejudice or some domestic political considerations
at play, I believe the preparation for an agreement, which has been
initialed between Turkey and Armenia could be taken to Parliament to
be ratified. We hope to take those steps by the 10th or 11th of next
month," Erdogan said through a translator.

Rate This Story Your Rating Overall Rating Reader Comments Comment
On This StoryAnkara has said it hopes to open its border with Armenia
by the end of the year under a protocol to establish diplomatic ties.

Anticipation over an Ankara-Yerevan thaw has been growing ahead
of a planned visit by Armenian President Serzh Sarksyan to Turkey
on Oct. 14 when he is due to attend the return leg of a World Cup
qualifying soccer match between the two countries.

Sarksyan has said he would not travel to the game, the first leg of
which Turkish President Abdullah Gul watched last year in Yerevan,
unless the border has reopened or there are clear signs it is about
to open.

Erdogan said he thought there should be no hesitation on the part of
Sarksyan to make the trip.

"If the Turkish President can easily go to Armenia to watch a game
then it should be just as easy and simple for the Armenian President"
to come to Turkey, Erdogan said.

"I think asking for certain conditions to be met to decide to come is
not the right way forward in international politics anymore," he said.

Turkey is a key player in the region, and bills itself as a bridge
between the Christian west and the Muslim Middle East. While it is
a secular society, Turkey’s 70 million people are predominantly Muslim.

Erdogan reiterated its foreign policy is based upon having zero
problems with its neighbors. Progress on these neighborhood issues
would also enhance its ongoing process of joining the European Union.

ROMAN BEREZOVSKY CALLED TO ARMENIAN TEAM TO PLAY AGAINST SPAIN AND TURKEY

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
23.09.2009 16:48 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Golkeeper of FC Khimki " Roman Berezovsky has been
called to the national team of Armenia, which will hold a qualifying
match of World Cup 2010 on October 10 and 14 against the national
teams of Spain and Turkey.

On September 5 and 9 the Armenian national team will play in World
Championship – 2010 qualifying matches against teams of Bosnia and
Belgium in Yerevan.

Berezovsky did not participate in last two games of Armenian team in
the World Cup 2010 qualifying stage against Bosnia and Belgium. In
both cases the reason was injury. In these games Berezovsky was
replaced by Ulis goalkeeper Gevorg Kasparov.

ARMENIA-EU COOPERATION COMMITTEE SESSION

Information-Analytic Agency NEWS.am
Sept 22 2009
Armenia

On September 22, 2009 the 10th session of the Armenia-EU Parliamentary
Cooperation Committee was held in Yerevan.

The parties discussed the process of Armenia-EU project implementation
within the framework of new European Neighborhood Policy, as well
as the issues of cooperation stepping up with Armenia, including the
initiative to establish a free trade area.

Armenia-Turkey collaboration, Karabakh conflict settlement and regional
cooperation were also on the session agenda.