LEVON ARONIAN WINS PRIZE FOR BEST TATA STEEL GAME
PanARMENIAN.Net
January 18, 2012 – 11:47 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net – Levon Aronian’s Tata Steel Chess Tournament game
was named the best round 4 win, with Armenian grandmaster awarded a
Euro 500 prize.
In the 4th round of Wijk aan Zee-hosted tournament, Aronian beat Gata
Kamsky (U.S.) to gain 3 points.
Armenian grandmaster, who shares 1st-2nd places with Norway’s Magnus
Carlsen, will face off against Loek Van Wely (Netherlands) in round 5.
NKR ACTING FOREIGN MINISTER RECEIVED PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE OSCE CHAIRMAN-IN-OFFICE
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
2012-01-17 14:42
On January 16, NKR Acting Foreign Minister Vassily Atajanyan received
Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Ambassador
Andrzej Kasprzyk.
A number of issues related to the current situation on the contact-line
of the armed forces of Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan, as well as
the scheduled-for-January 17 monitoring in the Azerbaijani-Karabakh
conflict zone, were discussed.
The meeting participants emphasized the necessity of maintaining and
strengthening the ceasefire regime, as well as creating the mechanisms
for preventing incidents on the contact-line.
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS CONDEMN RULING IN DINK MURDER TRIAL
epress.am
01.18.2012
The conviction of several accomplices in the 2007 assassination of
Hrant Dink, then-editor of the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos, fails to
address the issue of who commissioned the slaying, thus perpetuating
impunity in the case, the Committee to Protect Journalists said
Tuesday.
The Turkish court’s ruling was also criticized by Amnesty
International, which stated on Monday that the Turkish authorities
have failed to address state officials’ alleged involvement in
Dink’s murder.
Recall, Ä°stanbul 14th High Criminal Court handed down life
imprisonment for Yasin Hayal, a major suspect in the case, of
instigating a murder while another suspect Erhan Tuncel was acquitted
of murder charges.
Commenting on Tuesday’s court ruling, Turkey’s Justice Minister
Sadullah Ergin has said the case has not yet been concluded.
“You know trials are made up of three phases, which are investigation,
prosecution and the appeals process. There is also an appeals process
for this trial. The case has not been concluded yet; it is still
in progress,” Ergin said in response to a question during a press
conference on Wednesday.
In reaction to today’s verdict, Dink’s family lawyer Fethiye Cetin
told the Turkish press that the family will continue to press for
justice. “It is not over — this trial is just beginning,” she said.
Friends and supporters are planning a gathering on Jan. 19, the fifth
anniversary of Dink’s slaying, to demand the end of impunity.
Cetin also vowed to pursue all available legal remedies against the
ruling, asserting that the verdict marked the end of only an initial
phase of the case, which consisted of the trial of hitmen in the
murder. The prosecutor in the case also plans to appeal the verdict.
“Justice for our colleague Hrant Dink will not be achieved until
the commissioners of his slaying five years ago are tried and
punished to the full extent of the law,” CPJ Europe and Central Asia
Program Coordinator Nina Ognianova said. “We stand in solidarity with
Dink’s family, colleagues, and friends in calling for a thorough and
transparent investigation into the suspected involvement of military
and security service officials in this brutal crime.”
Since the court proceedings began nearly five years ago, at least
19 individuals have been prosecuted for having various degrees of
involvement in Dink’s murder, CPJ research shows. Tuesday’s verdict —
two days before the fifth anniversary of the journalist’s assassination
— resulted in the convictions of only secondary accomplices and
failed to address the pivotal question of who masterminded the crime.
In July, a juvenile court sentenced Samast, a teenager at the time of
the killing, to about 23 years in prison for committing the crime,
news reports said. In June, a court in the Black Sea province of
Trabzon convicted six military officers of having had information
on the murder but failing to prevent the killing, according to news
reports. The officials were handed months-long prison terms, which
they have appealed, and they were not incarcerated. The masterminds
of the murder were never prosecuted.
PRESS RELEASE
ARS of Western USA, Inc.
Regional Office
517 W. Glenoaks Blvd.
Glendale, CA 91202
Tel: 818-500-1343
Fax: 818-242-3732
E-Mail: [email protected]
Web:
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ARS-WUSA Winter Wonderland Draws Thousands
Glendale, CA – Nearly 6,000 children, parents, and visitors gathered
at the Armenian Relief Society of Western USA’s (ARS-WUSA) Winter
Wonderland on January 14-15, 2012, at St. Mary’s Armenian Apostolic
Church in Glendale, CA.
The main draw of the two-day event was the snow area, which featured a
slide and play space for children. Hundreds waited in line to
experience the wonder of snow in Glendale! Several carnival-style
attractions, including a Ferris Wheel and Super Slide, also offered
great fun for enthusiasts. The venue came alive with children running
from one ride to another in anticipation of their next thrill-seeking
experience.
“I can’t wait to play in there!” exclaimed Arek, 5, and the sentiment
was clearly the same for all the children, whose eyes appeared to
gleam with excitement.
People also gathered indoors where children’s game booths and vendors
lined the church hall. Onlookers delighted in the wide variety of
festival foods served by volunteers as song and dance performances
offered ongoing entertainment.
Reflecting on the event, Dr. Nyree Derderian, Regional Executive
Chairperson, remarked “Once again, the ARS turned its attention to the
younger generation and succeeded by introducing the ARS in a different
way to the public.”
Erebouni Dance Group, Holy Cross Armenian Church Dance Group
(Montebello), Krounk Dance Studio, and Kilikia Art Studio participated
in the dance portion of the program. Song performances were performed
by Gevorg Chakmanyan, Varuhi Shahinian, Roberta and Alla Arevyan,
Sarkis Tamazyan and Vahe Gharibyan of Hamazkayin’s Barouir Sevag
Chapter’s “Daron” choir, and the Ararat Charter School choir.
Volunteers worked tirelessly to ensure the success of this event,
which was the first of its kind for the ARS-WUSA. Proceeds from Winter
Wonderland will go to the ARS-WUSA’s ongoing local and international
programs benefiting individuals and communities most in need.
###
BUSINESSMAN TO SELL TUMANYAN’S TBILISI APARTMENT TO GEORGIAN COMPANY; ARMENIA SENDS DELEGATION
Marine Madatyan
hetq
19:16, January 18, 2012
Four rooms of a seven room apartment in Tbilisi where Armenia’s
“national poet” Hovhannes Tumanyan once resided is to be sold by the
family given the property by the Georgian government in the 1990s.
Archil Lezhav, the son of a wealthy Georgian businessman, says he
will sell the place to a Georgian company called Georgia Touran to
pay for his father’s surgical bills.
At a press conference today in Yerevan, Irma Safrazbekyan, a
granddaughter of Tumanyan, lamented the fact that Armenians never
purchased the home when it had the chance.
“My husband and I met with Lezhav senior in 2004. He was a pleasant
man and said that he knew of Hovhannes Tumanyan and felt it improper
to change anything in the apartment. He offered to sell the place
for $25,000. At the time, the Armenian government argued it didn’t
have the money,” Safrazbekyan told reporters.
Concerned about the looming sale, the Armenian government has sent
a delegation to Tbilisi for negotiations with Lezhav’s son.
The delegation will be headed by the Levon Ananyan, President of the
Writers Union of Armenia.
Ananyan noted that the market price for the 120 square meter apartment
is around $70,000.
Yesterday, employees of Georgia Touran visited Alyona Tumanyan,
the poet’s great granddaughter who owns the other three rooms and
proposed that she sell them to the company as well. She refused.
Alyona Tumanyan told Irma Safrazbekyan that she would only sell
the three rooms if Lezhava agreed to transfer his four rooms to the
Armenian community as a cultural center.
Writer and literature expert Hovik Charkhchyan told reporters that
he wasn’t hopeful of a positive outcome from the delegation’s visit.
“The bitter experience of the past leads one to believe that we will
lose the Tumanyan home for all times. It won’t matter who purchased
it or for what purpose,” he said.
YEREVAN STANDS FOR PEACEFUL SOLUTION OF IRANIAN NUCLEAR PROBLEM – MINISTER
Interfax
Jan 16 2012
Russia
Armenia calls for peaceful settlement of the situation around the
Iranian nuclear program, Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian
told a Monday press conference.
“We favor peaceful settlement of the Iranian nuclear problem at
negotiations,” he said.
Yerevan expressed its position during an Armenian visit of the Iranian
president in December 2011, he said.
“We confirm it now,” the minister added.
RUSSIA-ARMENIA-AZERBAIJAN TOP-LEVEL MEETINGS ON KARABAKH PROVE EFFECTIVE -FM NALBANDYAN
ITAR-TASS
January 16, 2012 Monday 08:36 PM GMT+4
Russia
The format of trilateral meetings between the presidents of Russia,
Armenia and Azerbaijan on Nagorno-Karabakh has proved viable and
effective, Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan said.
“I think, actually I am confident that meetings in this format will
continue,” he said on Monday, January 16.
According to the minister, “the agreement on a new trilateral meeting
has been reached. Its place and time will be announced in due time
as the sides deem necessary,” he said.
“The year 2011 confirmed that as far as the Karabakh settlement is
concerned the position of Armenia is in harmony with that of the
international community,”: Nalbandyan said.
The Russian president hosted a meeting of the Armenia and Azerbaijani
leaders in Sochi on March 5, 2011, where they agreed to try to solve
all questions peacefully and investigate incidents on the ceasefire
line with the participation of representatives of the parties involved.
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan earlier reiterated Armenia’s
commitment to a speedy resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
on the basis of international law and join statements of the Minsk
Group co-chairmen.
“We firmly believe that a new war cannot resolve the conflict,”
Sargsyan said.
In his opinion, “confrontation will only lead to destabilisation,
provoke tensions and arms race, and further aggravate interstate
contradictions, foment ethnic and religious strife, and threatens
the security of other countries.”
“Over the last several years the leaders of the OSCE Minsk Group have
been taking active steps in order to assist the parties in finding
peaceful solutions to the conflict,” the president said.
“We are thankful to the co-chairing countries, the leaders of Russia,
France and the United States for their mediating efforts,” he said.
Sargsyan said earlier that his country would do everything it can to
resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh issue peacefully.
“We will do everything we can to solve the Karabakh problem
peacefully,” the president said.
“The [settlement] process is underway, and we are acting constructively
in this process,” Sargsyan said.
He said that allegations about international pressure on Armenia were
“an exaggeration”.
“The co-chairing countries [in the OSCE Minsk Group] are seeking
to harmonise the positions of all conflicting parties – Armenia,
Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan,” the president said. “This process
has proved difficult, but that’s how it should be – we have never
expected an easy solution.”
“We will do our best to find a fair solution,” Sargsyan said. “The
stronger we are, the more combat capable our army is, the better our
positions at the talks will be,” he said.
However Azerbaijani President Ilkham Aliyev said that the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict could be resolved only if the territorial
integrity of his country was ensured.
“The conflict can be resolved only with in the framework of the
territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. There is no other solution,
and I have no doubts that Azerbaijan will restore its territorial
integrity,” the head of state said.
He stressed that Azerbaijan was seeking to solve the issue
“peacefully”.
“We hope for a peaceful resolution yet. To this end, the Armenian side
should unconditionally comply with the resolutions of international
organisations, including the U.N. Security Council, free the occupied
territories, and Azerbaijani citizens should return to their homes.
After that peace and stability will come to the region,” Aliyev said.
He said the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was the “biggest source of
threat” in the region.
Azerbaijan and its people “will never allow a second Armenian state
to be created on their historical land”, he said.
“Nagorno-Karabakh will never get independence. The people who live
in Nagorno-Karabakh now, and the Azeris will certainly return there
should live in autonomy. This is a well known international approach,”
the president said.
He made it clear that Azerbaijan would “never step aside from its
position of principle”.
“The Karabakh conflict is a real threat to the region,” the president
said.
The head of state called for a speedy and fair settlement in Karabakh
on the basis of international law. “We understand that major states
want the region to live in peace and stability, without war. We want
that too. But this does not mean that the conflict should remain
frozen,” he said.
Aliyev said he was hoping “positive tendencies” in the negotiations.
The president said earlier that the Karabakh talks were in “a crucial
stage”.
“Negotiations over the past five to six years have led to the drafting
of proposals on the settlement, which were officially presented to
the parties to the conflict by international mediators – co-chairmen
of the OSCE Minsk Group. These proposals are balanced and can lead
to a peaceful settlement of the problem within the framework of
Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity,” Aliyev said.
Speaking of the final status of Nagorno-Karabakh, he said it was
“a matter of the future”.
“We have said many times that we will never agree to any status for
Nagorno-Karabakh outside Azerbaijan, and international law supports
our positions,” the president said.
Aliyev urged Armenia to continue peace talks on Nagorno-Karabakh.
ANDREI RYABOV: “ARMED CONFLICT MAY LEAD TO IRREPARABLE CONSEQUENCES FOR RUSSIA’S SOUTH CAUCASUS POLICIES”
David Stepanyan.
Vestnik Kavkaza
Jan 17 2012
Russia
Andrei Ryabov, expert from Moscow Karnega Research Center, told VK
about the main threats that might undermine Russian influence on the
South Caucasus, as well as about Moscow’s choice of opportunities to
maintain peace in the region and about the role of the US in creation
of the ‘regulated chaos’ atmosphere. He also touched upon the issue
of OSCE Minsk Group efforts to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
– OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs keep trying to find a peaceful solution
to the Nagorno-Karabakh problem. What prognoses could you make on
the prospects of these efforts?
– In general, Russian and foreign experts agree that the threat
of a new violent breakout in the Nagorno-Karabakh is a distinct
possibility. It seems, however, that a solid and rational position of
the mediator powers, especially Russia, may prove efficient in keeping
the conflict is a ‘frozen’ stage for a rather long period of time
despite the desire of both sides to tip the military balance. However,
everyone, including the conflict parties, understands that a new armed
conflict in this region (in the Wider West Asia as the Americans call
it) would lead to grave consequences for all its countries, and not
only for South Caucasian states. First of all, I mean the threat to
Russian interests in Armenia and Azerbaijan. A new Nagorno-Karabakh
war would have devastating effect on Russia’s authority on the
South Caucasus, and Russia has considerable strategic interests in
Armenia and energetic ties to Azerbaijan. These problems are becoming
more and more topical for Russia as we can’t seem to agree with our
Western partners on oil and gas transportation trough South Caucasian
territory. For example, Turkey refused to participate in our ‘Southern
Stream’ project.
– How could you characterize the trilateral meetings of Russian
president Dmitry Medvedev with his Azerbaijani and Armenian
counterparts?
– The very fact that there were 6 of them during Medvedev’s presidency
indicates that the settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is one of
the most important priorities for Russia. The general expert opinion
on the matter is that now there are no favorable preconditions
for resolving the conflict and they are unlikely to appear any
time soon, so the only thing that mediators can do is to guard the
status-quo and prevent a new war from breaking out. After the August
War with Georgia there were a lot of concerns that Russia intends
make a ‘general revision’ of the region’s state borders/ However,
Russia obviously had no plans like that or even means to carry them
out. Russia decided to observe status-quo. Today, Russian-Georgian
relations seem to be more stable and don’t offer any reasons to
fear any new developments. So now Russia is much more concerned with
the Nagorno-Karabakh problem, as both sides race to increase their
military potentials. And Moscow understands that an armed conflict
might lead to irreparable consequences for all Russian politics on
the South Caucasus. In case of war Russia will lose all its value as
a strategic partner for both sides, that is why Medvedev was trying
so hard to at leas maintain status-quo and why the future president
is likely to carry on with this political course.
– Do other OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs agree with Russia’s position
in the matter? What are their interests in the region?
– No one is interested in a new armed conflict; there are far too
many geopolitical risks to it. US and France are also interested in
maintaining status-quo. Of course, it can’t remain like that forever,
but currently there’s no better alternative. And it seems that Europe
and US have finally come to realize and recognize Russia’s exclusive
position in the matter. The fact that all other co-chairs virtually
recognized their inability to do anything about the conflict during
the Astana OSCE proves the point.
– So you don’t believe that the USA is planning to use the issue
of Iran to pressure Russia into giving up its lead position in the
Karabakh process?
– No, I don’t. I’m not a partisan of the ‘regulated chaos’ theory. I
also don’t believe that US is trying to talk Azerbaijan into offering
its territory as a site of US missile launch against Iran in return
for a permission to break the Karabakh staus-quo. The situation in
the Middle East is far too complicated, and recently got even more
complex after the events of the ‘Arab spring’. Syria is a crucial
link in this region, and how the situation turns out there is yet
unknown. In these conditions it is really hard to make the chaos
‘regulated’ and adapting such a policy would be a mistake for any
state no matter the resources it possesses. Plus there’s the global
economic crisis, so I don’t believe that current US administration
would risk taking such a step.
As for the general pattern of the so-called ‘Arab revolutions’, in the
case of Syria one can see a considerable influence of conservative
Arab states, such as Qatar and Saudi Arabia. They offer the US to
replace Israel as their main ‘western partner’ and demonstrate that
their moderate Islam open to certain modernization is much better than
the alternative. As for Libya, one can see that the events played
out just like the West planned. But this game is dangerous not only
for Libyans, but for the West as well as there is no foretelling how
the situation will end.
RUSSIAN ANALYST EXPECTS NO BREAKTHROUGH OF FORTHCOMING MEETING IN SOCHI
Tert.am
18.01.12
In An Interview With 1news.Az, Aleksandr Sotnichenko, Associate
Professor, Chair of Theory and History of International Relations,
Saint Petersburg State University, and Leading Analyst at the Saint
Petersburg Center for Modern Near Eastern Studies, noted that no
breakthrough in the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process should be expected
in the near future.
“The political leaders will continue their meetings, but ‘reduced
tension’ will be the only result,” Sotnichenko said.
The Sochi meeting late this month is going to be Russian President
Dmitri Medvedev’s “farewell meeting,” with no breakthrough to be
expected from it.
With respect to the impact the Iran-related developments may have on
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the expert said: “The West is not yet
expected to launch a military operation against Iran. On the other
hand, we cannot say they are going to leave Iran alone. Should the
US and its allies decide in favor of a full-scale operation, it will
prove a new problem for Baku, and resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict will be delayed.”
As regards Turkish-French relations, Sotnichenko said: “I think the
critical period has passed. Washington is unlikely to let the conflict
go too far. Paris, in turn, has lately been attentive to the opinions
voiced overseas. However, the conflict itself has demonstrated the
wide gap between Europe and Turkey, finally resolving the problem of
Turkey’s integration into the European Union in favor of skeptical
Europeans. I think it will incite the Turkish leadership to seek
for new ways of integration, including integration with the Eurasian
union.”
THERE IS 80-PERCENT DISTRUST TOWARD JUDICIAL POWER – ARMENIAN JUSTICE MINISTER
NEWS.am
January 18, 2012 | 10:50
YEREVAN. – Armenia’s Minister of Justice, Hrayr Tovmasyan, received
Tuesday Lord John Prescott, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council
of Europe (PACE) Co-Rapporteur on Armenia, and informed him about
Armenia’s judicial reforms.
At the beginning of the meeting, Prescott conveyed his observations
from his visit to Armenia and said: “The situation was severe four
years ago, but now the atmosphere and the expectations have changed,
which is truly a positive phenomenon,” Justice Ministry informed
Armenian News-NEWS.am.
Upon the request of the guest, Minister Tovmasyan gave details on
Armenia’s ongoing judicial reforms and the future action plans.
Hrayr Tovmasyan also informed that, in line with survey results,
there is still eighty-percent distrust toward Armenia’s judicial
power. But he added that a judicial reform concept is designed to
resolve the existing problems, and that it will be introduced for the
President’s approval, but, prior to that, it will be openly discussed
in Armenia’s parliament on Friday.
And reflecting on the upcoming parliamentary elections, Armenia’s
Justice Minister stressed that the President’s main task is to secure
elections that are transparent and in keeping with European standards.