Author: Kajoyan Gevork

Bako Sahakyan signed a law on the 2013 State Budget

12:54, 28 December, 2012

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. On 28 December President Bako
Sahakyan signed a law “On the 2013 State Budget of the Nagorno
Karabagh Republic”.

Central Information Department of the Artsakh Republic President
informed “Armenpress” that on the same day the Head of the State
signed also a law `On State Service in the NKR National Assembly
Office’, `On making an amendment to the NKR law “On Civil Service”,
“On making an amendment to the NKR law “On Declaration of Property and
Income of Executive Employees of the NKR Government Bodies”, “On
making changes and amendments to the NKR law “On state pensions”, “On
making a change to the NKR law “On Victims of Political Repressions”,
“On making a change and an amendment to the NKR law “On Compulsory
Enforcement of Judicial Orders,” “On making an amendment to the NKR
law “On Social Security of Army Servicemen and their Family Members,”
“On making an amendment to the NKR law “On Added Value”.

Davit Babayan considers last year successive as to Artsakh
international recognition

10:29, 28 December, 2012

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS: 2012 was a remarkable year for
Artsakh Republic. Armenpress had an interview with Nagorno karabakh
Republic President press spokesman Davit Babayan. High ranking
official considers negative Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict went into a
deadlock due to Azerbaijani pursued policy.

”Official Baku entitled with a hero title criminal Ramil Safarov thus
breaching all international and normal norms ” Davit Babayan stated.
In the words of the interlocutor this way Azerbaijan showed the world
its interface. Dwelling on NKR achievements in 2012 Babayan noted
2012 was successive year both pertain to Artsakh international
recognition as well as development of bilateral relations.

Artaskah issue was much touched upon in 2011-2012. A range of
essential meetings have been launched, agreements have been signed
which contributed to the development of various sectors, a number of
high ranking foreign delegations arrived in Artsakh by an official and
non-official visit. The press secretary also recalled the circulation
of Artsakh international recognition both by Uruguay, and several
other states throughout the year.

Haut-Karabagh
Baisse du nombre de soldats tués dans le Haut-Karabagh

Le nombre de soldats arméniens tués dans la région du Haut-Karabakh a
fortement chuté cette année malgré les violations de cessez-le-feu, a
déclaré un haut responsable militaire de Stepanakert mercredi 26
décembre 2012. Le lieutenant-général Movses Hakobian, le commandant de
l’armée du Karabagh, a déclaré que deux soldats ont été tués sur« la
ligne de contact » par des snipers azerbaïdjanais durant l’année 2012.
Ils était 11 en 2011.

« Les mesures que nous avons prises pour nous assurer que nos soldats
accomplissent leur service sur la ligne de front en toute sécurité ont
porté leurs fruits », a déclaré Hakobian lors d’une conférence.
Hakobian a ajouté que « de grands travaux pour renforcer les positions
de première ligne » ont également aidé l’armée arménienne du Karabagh
à réduire considérablement le nombre d’incursions de commandos
azerbaïdjanais.

Les fortifications militaires le long de la frontière de l’Arménie
avec l’Azerbaïdjan auraient également été renforcées cette année. La
partie ouest de la frontière arméno-azerbaïdjanais a vu une
recrudescence des combats meurtriers en juin, qui a laissé plus d’une
douzaine de soldats arméniens et azerbaïdjanais morts. La secrétaire
d’Etat américaine, Hillary Clinton, a exprimé de sérieuses
préoccupations sur ces incidents lors de sa visite dans le Caucase du
Sud en juin dernier.

vendredi 28 décembre 2012,
Laetitia ©armenews.com

Russlavbank accuses Armenia’s CB of protectionism and restriction of
competition on the market of international money transfers

ARMINFO
Thursday, December 27, 18:56

Russlavbank qualifies the Armenian Central Bank’s decision to stop
the activities of the CONTACT international money transfers and
payments system in the country as a protectionist measure aimed at
restricting competition on the local market of international money
transfers and believes that this will result in growing costs for
people wishing to transfer money to Armenia.

In its press statement the Russian bank notes that this may worsen
Armenia’s investment appeal and may reduce transparency of business in
the country. The bank points out that in the early 2000s CONTACT was
among the first to lay the foundations of a civilized money transfer
market in the CIS, in general, and in Armenia, in particular. Being
the system’s operator in Armenia, Russlavbank has ver since complied
with all the requirements of the local Government and Central Bank and
has received no single complaint from either regulators or partners.

Russlavbank regrets the CB’s decision and refuses to accept its
motives, more specifically, the fact that the operator has violated a
number of points of its contracts with its partner Armenian banks and
has failed to ensure their access to its system.

Since 2008 the CB has stopped the activities of six international
money transfer systems: on Aug 22 2008 Western Union, on July 11 2011
Lider, on Sept 6 2012 Migom, on Oct 9 2012 Zolotaya Korona and on Dec
26 2012 BLIZKO and CONTACT.

According to financial experts, the CB’s key motive was that it could
not accept the operators’ requirement that their systems should not
cover the partner banks’ branches in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Analyst of AmRating Karina Melikyan told ArmInfo that this requirement
was not discussed by the parties when they were signing their
contracts and was set by the systems later following the Azeri
authorities’ groundless demarches and anti-Armenian ultimatums “either
we or they.”

Panorama.am reporter among others awarded by NA Speaker

17:01 27/12/2012 » SOCIETY

Armenian National Assembly Speaker Hovik Abrahamyan held today a New
Year and Christmas reception in the parliament for heads of mass media
and journalists accredited to parliament.

In his remarks, the NA Speaker noted that like in the past, in the
passing year also cooperation with journalists was a success.

`As I have repeatedly said, I am always for an atmosphere of
solidarity and tolerance and I will continue to make every effort to
ensure such atmosphere in the National Assembly, including for
journalists,’ Hovik Abrahamyan said.

By the order of the RA NA Speaker Hovik Abrahamyan, several
journalists accredited to parliament, Karine Mangasaryan, Lilit
Kasyan, Arman Galoyan, Avetis Babajanyan, Armen Mkhitaryan, Harutyun
Tolanyan and Artak Barseghyan as well as a Panorama.am reporter, Lia
Khojoyan, were awarded NA Speaker’s nominal watch for many years of
conscientious and unbiased coverage of parliament’s activities.

Source: Panorama.am

Armenian govt. marks out area for Hamazgayin Theater building

December 27, 2012 – 16:31 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Armenian government resolved to mark out 1200 square
meters for the construction of the building of Hamazgayin State
Theater, headed by famed Armenian actor Sos Sargsyan.

The area for the construction of the new premises in downtown Yerevan
was proposed by Yerevan Municipality, with Sos Sargsyan cultural
foundation to allocate the funds.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan declared Armenia’s top footballer

tert.am
20:27 – 30.12.12

A midfielder of the Armenian national football team and Donetsk’s
Shakhtar, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, has been declared Armenia’s best
footballer with 206 points.

President of the Football Federation of Armenia (FFA) Ruben
Hayrapetyan honored the football legend with 4 million Drams (approx.
$10,000) and golden sports boots at an award ceremony earlier on
Sunday.

Mkhitaryan demonstrated a very good play in his club in the past year,
becoming the first ever Armenian football player to score a goal in
the main round of the Champion’s League.

Yura Movsisyan, who recently moved from the Krasnodar FC to Moscow’s
Spartak, follows the top player for the second year in a row. Araz
Ozbilis is the last in the top three list. The sportsman plays for
Krasnodar’s Cuban.

The chief coach of the national team, Vardan Minasyan, was again
declared the year’s best coach. Shirak’s top sportsman, Vardan
Bichakhchyan, and Mika’s Zholt Hornyak, came next.

The voting to select the year’s best football players and coaches had
attracted members of the FFA Executive Committee, presidents of
Premier League football clubs, chief coaches, senior players, referees
and inspectors, and media representatives.

The ceremony was attended by footballers playing for the national
team, as well as FFA Executive Committee representatives and other
employees.

Expert: Turkey will try to ease pressure of world community with
forthcoming centennial of Armenian Genocide

¯CEE130-5248-11E2-B7EFF6327207157C
Sunday, December 30, 09:16

One should expect no breakthrough in the Armenian-Turkish
normalizations in 2013 because of Turkey’s unwillingness to normalize
relations with Armenia, first of all, Ruben Safrastyan, Turkologist,
Director of the Oriental Studies Institute, the National Academy of
Science of Armenia, told ArmInfo predicting possible processes in the
Armenian-Turkish relations in 2013.

He said that Ankara’s unwillingness to normalize relations with
Armenia is connected with the fact that Turkey has seriously and
hopelessly stuck in the Syrian conflict. At present, the South
Caucasus is not a priority for Ankara.

`I don’t think that Turkey will go on any significant concessions in
connection with the centennial of the Armenian Genocide. Instead, it
will imitate active work with some Diaspora structures to reduce
pressure of the world community,’ Safrastyan said.

As for the situation in Syria, Safrastyan said that the political
crisis is deepening hour after hour and everything that has been
created in the country for decades is now being ruined.

`The authorities so far keep control over the country and the army is
efficient so far. However, the West and its Middle Eastern satellites
such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey will keep exacerbating the
crisis. Already today, increasing information attacks on the Syrian
authorities and accusing them of using chemical weapons against the
citizens, the above external forces pave the way for armed
intervention,’ Safrastyan said. He is sure that without foreign
interference the Syrian rebels are not able to overthrow President
Bashar Assad.

ARMENIE-ECONOMIE
Hausse de 35 % de la production du combinat de cuivre et molybdène du Zankézour

Le secteur minier est en forte croissance en Arménie. Ainsi le
Combinat d’extraction de cuivre et de molybdène du Zankézour (sud de
l’Arménie) a enregistré au cours des 15 dernières années une
croissance continue. Maxime Hagopian le directeur du Combinat de
cuivre et de molybdène du Zankézour a affirmé qu’en 2012 la production
a enregistré une croissance de plus de 35 % par rapport à l’an
dernier. De plus les conditions sociales des ouvriers se sont
améliorés puisque des 3 200 salariés de l’usine d’extraction, 2 500
ont reçu un repas quotidien aux frais de l’entreprise. Maxime Hagopian
a rappelé que durant les années de crise, son entreprise n’a pas connu
la récession, embauchant même 189 salariés supplémentaires. « Durant
la période soviétique, le combinat produisait 9 millions de tonnes
d’extraction de minerai tandis qu’en 2013 cette capacité sera portée à
18,5 millions » dit M. Hagopian. Le salaire moyen des ouvriers de
l’usine fut en 2012 de 273 000 drams et le salaire minimum de 75 000.

Krikor Amirzayan

dimanche 30 décembre 2012,
Krikor Amirzayan ©armenews.com

Armenia’s Diaspora Minister Hranush Hakobyan recognized best minister
of the year

tert.am
15:51 – 29.12.12

Armenia’s Diaspora Minister Hranush Hakobyan has been recognized `Best
Minister of the Year’, according to the polls carried out by the NGOs
and individuals.

She has received the title due to her care about the Syrian-Armenians’
issues and her efficient work in that direction.

The international association of lawyers and psychologists organize
annually selection of social-public figures, civil servants,
journalists. They get diplomas and certificates.

A number of NGOs participated in the polls.
Expressing gratitude, Hakobyan said such diplomas give a new impetus
to the Diaspora, promoting Homeland-Diaspora partnership’s
reinforcement and implementation of new initiatives.