Author: Kafian Jirair

ARMENIA INTENDS TO CONTINUE ITS INITIATIVES AIMED AT NORMALIZING ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS

Noyan Tapan

Ju ly 30, 2008

YEREVAN, JULY 30, NOYAN TAPAN. RA President Serzh Sargsyan’s visit to
the Ukraine proceeded in a constructive and meaningful atmosphere:
a meeting between the two countries’ Presidents proceeded in a very
warm atmosphere and lasted more than 2.5 hours, during which bilateral
relations in different spheres were discussed. RA Foreign Minister
Edward Nalbandian said at the July 30 press conference.

He also attached importance to the participation of the RA President
and Catholicos of All Armenians in the ceremony dedicated to the 650th
anniversary of the Surb Khach Armenian Church Complex in the Crimea.

According to E. Nalbandian, it was a historic event, as for the first
time the head of Armenian state and its spiritual leader together
visited that complex.

The Foreign Minister said that he paid his first visit to Karabakh,
with the leadership of which all issues regarding the settlement
process are constantly discussed. The RA and NKR Foreign Ministers
also had meetings in Strasbourg and Saint Petersburg.

According to E. Nalbandian, he paid a great number of visits over the
past 3.5 months, met with Foreign Ministers of a number of countries,
including Russia, the United States, France, Germany, and with heads
of international organizations. Visits to neighboring Georgia and
Iran are envisaged in September and to a number of countries of
CIS and Eastern Europe by the end of the year. Armenia will assume
chairmanship in CSTO from September, and in that connection a meeting
of organization’s member-countries’ Foreign Ministers will be held on
September 4 in Moscow, which will be followed by a summit. The Minister
said that he is leaving for Moscow straight after the press conference,
where he will also meet with the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs.

Answering the questions, the Foreign Minister said that the Armenian
authorities will never undertake a step that can encourage the
policy of denying the Armenian Genocide. "We wish to have normal
relations with our neighbor and to open the border at last," he
stated. E. Nalbandian said that the Armenian side’s latest initiatives
have been accepted very positively by the international community,
and Armenia is going to continue its initiatives aimed at normalizing
its relations with Turkey without preconditions put forward by the
Turkish side.

"RUBEJ-2008" SECOND ROUND IN MOSCOW

Panorama.am
17:52 30/07/2008

Today the second round of "Rubej 2008" military exercises carried
out in the frames of Collective Treaty Security Organization will
take place in Moscow, reported the press service of the Organization
to Panorama.am. According to Valeri Semerikov, the vice secretary
in chief of the Organization in the second round the officials will
discuss the contribution of military techniques to the member countries
in case of aggression.

Remind that the first round of the exercises has been conducted in
Yerevan. Representatives from 7 countries, more than 4500 military
officers will take part in "Rubej 2008".

RUSSIA NATURAL GAS SUPPLIES TO ARMENIA UP BY 3% YOY

SteelGuru
July 30 2008
India

RIA Novosti reported that Russia’s natural gas supplies to Armenia
increased 2.8% YoY in the first six months of 2008 to 1.1 billion
cubic meters.

According to ArmRosgazprom, which supplies and distributes Russian
natural gas on the Armenian market, the South Caucasus republic
consumed 1.009 billion cubic meters of natural gas in the reporting
period or 6.2% more than in the same period last year, with 215
million cubic meter going to the power sector, 360 million cubic
meter to households and 186 million cubic meter to industry.

ArmRosgazprom was established in 1997 as a joint Russian-Armenian
natural gas pipeline venture. The company has charter capital of 278
billion Armenian drams. Its core shareholders are Gazprom (72.16%),
the Armenian Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources (22.78%) and
Russian oil and gas company Itera (5.06%).

AT A GLANCE: ALCATEL-LUCENT’S SERGE TCHURUK

The Associated Press
29 July 08

NAME: Serge Tchuruk.

AGE: 70. Born in Marseille, France, to parents of Armenian descent,
as Serge Tchurukdichian.

EDUCATION: Graduate of the elite Ecole Polytechnique in Paris.

TITLE: Chairman, Alcatel-Lucent.

CAREER: Started out in Mobil Corp. in France and the U.S., from 1964
to 1979, then moved to chemical company Rhone-Poulenc, becoming
managing director in 1983. In 1986, he became chairman and CEO of
Orkem, another European chemical company. In 1990, he became chairman
and CEO at oil company Total. He joined Alcatel in 1995 as chairman
and CEO, giving up the latter title to Lucent’s Patricia Russo when
Alcatel bought Lucent in 2006.

TITLE OF HONOURED ENSEMBLE

A1+
25 July, 2008

Under a July 24 decree of Serzh Sarkissian Armenian State Dance Troupe
"Barekamutiun" was awarded the title of Honоured Ensemble of the
Republic of Armenia for its high mastery in Armenian choreography,
reports the RoA President’s press service.

–Boundary_(ID_1Awygd1Ul5+eVLrfQAA7tA)–

KOREA’S AMBASSADOR HANDS HIS CREDENTIALS TO PRESIDENT SARGSYAN

armradio.am
23.07.2008 15:31

The newly appointed Ambassador of the People’s Democratic Republic
of Korea Kim En Jey (seat in Moscow) handed his credentials to RA
President Serzh Sargsyan.

President Sargsyan congratulated the Ambassador on assuming office and
expressed hope that progress will be registered in the Armenian-Korean
relations during his tenure in office.

The interlocutors underscored the willingness of the parties to
develop the mutually beneficial cooperation and make maximum use of
the existing potential.

Ambassador Kim En Jey said he will focus his efforts on the expansion
of collaboration in different directions. Serzh Sargsyan assured that
he will full support during his term of service in Armenia.

"JUDGE IS THE ODD MAN OUT"

A1+
22 July, 2008

Today in the Kentron and Nork-Marash General Jurisdiction Court
initiated the trial of Smbat Ayvazian, Member of the political board
of the "Hanrapetutiun" Party, who has been detained since February
24. The trial began with the "ceremony" of removing from the court-room
all those who refused to stand up when the Judge entered.

Thus, the Judge asked out member of the "Hanrapetutiun" Party
Suren Abrahamian and former Speaker of the National Assembly Babken
Ararktsian. "Judge is the only odd man out," said Ararktsian before
leaving the court-room.

Still at the beginning of the trial Smbat Ayvazian declared that
he is not guilty but he is ready to stay in prison as long as it
is necessary to free the country from despots. Ayvazian is accused
under Article 232 /carrying cold steel/ and Article 316 /offering
resistance to an authority representative/. The cold steel mentioned
in the documents is the folding club, which he bought in free sale.

Presently the Judge is in the consultation room discussing the
rejection of Ayvazian’s lawyer Lusine Sahakian.

BAKU ACCUSES OSCE MINSK GROUP OF DRAGGING FEET

Interfax News Agency
July 21 2008
Russia

The co-chairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group are to be blamed for the
delays in the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement talks, presidential external
relations department head Novruz Mamedov said.

It appears that the role of the co-chairmen is to make this process
last eternally. And this is wrong, Mamedov told Azerbaijan’s ATV
channel.

I think that mediators should think about what responsibility they
bear in dragging the talks, he said.

If the co-chairmen have no position and if they do not address the
resolution of this conflict from the position of international law,
they should openly say this, Mamedov said.

The new Armenian authorities have adopted a wrongheaded political
course, which could result in many problems for Yerevan, he said.

The settlement is Damocles sword over the heads of Armenian authorities
and Armenia. They should take a constructive stance and solve the
conflict by peaceful means in order to evade the sword striking
them. Resting on the position of various international organizations,
Armenia should agree to resolve the problem within the framework of
Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity, Mamedov said, adding that there
is no other option, because it will bring Armenia greater disasters.

Mamedov also said that Armenia does nothing to stabilize the situation
in the region, and that it is thanks to Azerbaijan that hostilities
between the parties have not resumed.

RUSSIA QUESTIONS NATO’S ABILITY TO ENSURE GLOBAL STABILITY

RIA Novosti
15:43 | 22/ 07/ 2008

NATO expansion will not lead to greater stability in the world,
the head of a post-Soviet security bloc said on Tuesday.

"We take a negative view of NATO enlargement. The problem is that new
military infrastructure is being built around Collective Security
Treaty Organization [CSTO] member states, primarily Russia and
Belarus," Nikolai Bordyuzha, general secretary of the CSTO, told a
news conference in the Armenian capital.

The CSTO is a post-Soviet security alliance which also comprises
Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan.

"This also applies to forward bases in Bulgaria and Romania, attempts
to deploy radar stations in the Baltic region, and infrastructure in
Central Asia," he said.

Bordyuzha said the expansion of NATO would not automatically bring
about greater stability in the world.

"I believe there are other ways of creating collective security
systems, both in Europe and globally; these options should be used,"
he said. He also added, without elaborating, that it was wrong "to
impose NATO membership on certain states."

He conceded, however, that any sovereign state had a right to join
any international organization, as long as that "strengthens global
stability."

He stressed that all post-Soviet states needed stability to be able
to continue their economic growth and implement social programs.

"It is this kind of stability that we are working for, including
through the CSTO," Bordyuzha said.

Russia has been strengthening military ties with its allies amid
growing tensions over NATO expansion and U.S. missile shield plans for
Central Europe. An agreement was recently signed by Washington and
Prague on deploying a U.S. radar in the Czech Republic, a move that
did little to assuage Russian concerns for its national security. The
missile deal has yet to be approved by the Czech parliament.

WORK BEGINS ON TURKISH PART OF ‘IRON SILK ROAD’

Turkish Daily News
July 21 2008

The presidents of Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan are set to participate
in the groundbreaking ceremony Thursday of a strategic railway line
linking the Turkish city of Kars to Central Asia, reported the Anatolia
news agency.

Turkey’s Abdullah Gul, Azerbaijan’s Ilham Aliyev and Georgia’s Mikhail
Saakashvili will push the button in the eastern Anatolian province
of Kars for the construction of the 76-kilometer-long Turkish part
of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, said Anatolia citing sources from
the Transportation Ministry.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the Georgian part was held in November
2007, again with the participation of the three countries’ leaders. The
project will directly link Turkey with Central Asian countries, which
are at the center of oil and natural gas reserves and when realized,
a train setting off from London will be able to reach China. Among 14
companies, Celikler-Ozgun Construction Group was awarded the contract
for the construction of the Turkish part of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars
railway. It offered a price of YTL 290 million. The entire project
is expected to be complete in 2010.

Parallel to the Marmaray Project to link the European and Asian
halves of Istanbul by an undersea rail tunnel across the Bosporus,
the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars project will pave the way for transfer of
freight from Europe to China, so that the freight transfer between
Europe and Central Asia will shift to the railways.

Annually 30 million tons of freight is expected to be carried in the
medium term through the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway knows as the Iron
Silk Road. Besides the strategic significance of the project, the
railway will be an important source of income for Turkey considering
the fact that the Turkish State Railways, or TCDD, annually carries
19.5 million tons of freight.

European Union candidate Turkey sees such infrastructure projects as
boosting its role as a bridge for trade and energy between the East
and the West.

Armenia opposes the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway project bypassing its
territory. Both Yerevan and the Armenian diaspora in the United States
were up in arms, arguing that there is already a rail route passing
through Armenia that could be used to build a trans-Caucasus railroad.