Author: Kalantarian Kevo

LE PRESIDENT ERDOGAN, ROI DE LA POLEMIQUE

TURQUIE

Le president turc Recep Tayyip Erdogan a relance jeudi la polemique
nee de ses propos sur la decouverte de l’Amerique par des musulmans,
dernière en date d’une serie de controverses qui font le miel de ses
partisans autant qu’elles irritent ses detracteurs.

Volontiers provocateur, l’homme qui règne sans partage depuis plus de
onze ans sur la Turquie, s’est illustre par deux fois ce seul mois-ci,
d’abord en privant Christophe Colomb de sa première historique,
ensuite en assurant que l’egalite entre les hommes et les femmes etait
“contre nature”.

Dans ces deux cas, M. Erdogan n’a pas capitule face aux critiques et
aux railleries, mais bien au contraire a persiste et signe, mettant
en cause les medias internationaux accuses de “calomnie” a son egard.

“Simplement parce que j’ai fait etat d’un fait fonde sur des recherches
scientifiques, j’ai ete critique par les medias occidentaux et les
etrangers qui vivent parmi nous (les Turcs tournes vers l’Occident,
ndlr), qui souffrent d’un problème d’ego”, a-t-il lâche.

Les livres d’histoire enseignent que c’est le marin genois Christophe
Colomb qui a, en 1492, pose le premier le pied sur le continent
americain.

Quelques historiens ou theologiens musulmans, ultra-minoritaires,
ont recemment remis en cause sa decouverte, suggerant une presence
musulmane anterieure en Amerique, bien qu’aucun vestige d’inspiration
islamique n’y ait jamais ete decouvert.

Nombre de commentateurs voient dans ces saillies la volonte du
president Erdogan de jouer sur la fibre nationaliste de sa base
electorale.

“La majorite des electeurs turcs, etant donne leur niveau d’education,
aime bien quand un dirigeant tient tete a une puissance etrangère”,
analyse Adil Gur, directeur de l’institut de sondages A&G Arastirma,
“l’electeur eduque s’interroge sur la portee internationale de telles
declarations, mais l’electeur moyen n’y pense pas et s’en rejouit”.

Mais ces sorties embarrassent meme ses partisans : “Il devrait songer
a parler moins car, meme s’il a raison, la facon dont il le fait
suscite d’interminables polemiques”, a regrette recemment Mehmet
Barlas, chroniqueur du journal progouvernemental Sabah.

‘Declarations fracassantes’ –

Voici quelques unes de ses recentes declarations les plus controversees
:

“Les musulmans ont decouvert l’Amerique”

“Les contacts entre l’Amerique latine et l’islam remontent au XIIe
siècle. Les musulmans ont decouvert l’Amerique en 1178, pas Christophe
Colomb”, affirme sans sourciller le 15 octobre M. Erdogan lors d’un
sommet rassemblant a Istanbul des dignitaires musulmans des pays
d’Amerique latine.

L’egalite hommes-femmes “contre nature”

“Notre religion (l’islam) a defini une place pour les femmes : la
maternite”, lance lundi dernier le chef de l’Etat devant un parterre
de femmes reunies , “on ne peut pas mettre les femmes et les hommes
sur un pied d’egalite, c’est contre nature”. De l’opposition aux
mouvements feministes, la levee de boucliers est immediate.

Une generation “sous l’emprise de l’alcool”

Musulman pratiquant, M. Erdogan a renforce la legislation conte
la vente et la consommation d’alcool. “Nous ne voulons pas d’une
generation qui titube jour et nuit sous l’emprise de l’alcool”, met-il
en garde en 2013. Derrière ses motivations de sante publique, ses
detracteurs ne voient qu’une volonte d'”islamiser” la societe turque.

“Eradiquer Twitter”

“Nous allons eradiquer Twitter. Je me moque de ce que pourra dire la
communaute internationale”. A la veille des elections municipales du
30 mars dernier, M. Erdogan ordonne le blocage du reseau en Turquie,
coupable de diffuser des accusations de corruption contre son regime.

Les accidents “dans la nature du travail de mineur”

En mai 2014, la Turquie connaît sa catastrophe minière la plus
meurtrière, qui fait 301 morts a Soma (ouest). “Ces choses-la sont
courantes (…) c’est dans la nature meme du travail de mineur”,
se defend M. Erdogan alors que la responsabilite de l’exploitant et
de son gouvernement est mise en cause.

Le sionisme “crime contre l’humanite”

Fidèle soutien des islamistes palestiniens du Hamas, le president
est devenu un des critiques les plus virulents d’Israël. “Comme c’est
le cas pour le sionisme, l’antisemitisme et le fascisme, il devient
maintenant inevitable de considerer l’islamophobie comme un crime
contre l’humanite”, declare-t-il en 2013.

AFP

mardi 2 decembre 2014, Stephane (c)armenews.com

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
Nov 30 2014

Turkish citizenship for Armenian diaspora good for normalization

November 29, 2014, Saturday/ 17:00:00/ OSMAN Ã`NALAN

The normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations starts with honest,
responsible dialogue and concrete steps taken by the Turkish
government toward Western Armenians — descendants of the former
Armenian citizens of the Ottoman Empire — such as an offer of
citizenship, says a diaspora Armenian, who believes Turkish civil
society should encourage the state to take responsibility and
facilitate any such initiatives.

Sevak Artsruni, secretary-general of the National Congress of Western
Armenians (NCWA), an international NGO with headquarters in Paris,
says that if the Turkish government offers citizenship to Armenians
who wish to return it will be a step forward, provided these citizens
are given full political, cultural and civil rights. Artsruni said
this step must be immediately followed by others: laws and decrees
concerning so-called abandoned property must be canceled; cadastre and
civil state archives must be opened; Armenian churches and cultural
institutions must be returned; the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) and the
Constitution must be revised, not only for the Armenians, but to make
Turkey a country where all citizens have equal rights and where the
rule of law and justice prevail.

In an interview with Sunday’s Zaman, Artsruni said that if you read
the books and newspapers, or study statements of Armenians in the
Ottoman parliament, you will discover a basic will to see their
Ottoman homeland transformed into a more democratic, more liberal,
more harmonious state.

Emphasizing that most Armenians may not welcome the offer of
citizenship, Artsruni believes it is still a step forward in
relations. Moreover, he is of the opinion that Turkey has to take the
step without expecting a joyful reaction from Armenians as it needs to
solve the Armenian issue most importantly for its own sake and for its
own development as a democratic, just and free state.

Underlining the importance of civil society organizations, Artsruni
said the more progress that is made, the greater the ability to
involve constructive goodwill in the common endeavor to achieve peace,
progress and harmony. `We should mobilize people of good sense on both
sides,’ Artsruni added.

Artsruni criticized the existence of Article 301 in the TCK, under
which writers like Elif Ã…?afak and the late Hrant Dink have been tried
for insulting Turkishness or the Turkish nation, and said that no
matter what label is given to the organized mass killing and
deportation of Armenians in 1915, the most important issue is to offer
appropriate legal and economic reparations for the loss of Armenian
lives and property and to create a favorable context for the
rehabilitation of all victims of Turkish ultra-nationalism.

According to Artsruni, the 100th anniversary of the events of 1915 is
a chance to change Armenian sentiments from hate, revenge and
frustration into dialogue and constructive, responsible approaches to
the Western Armenian problem. On the eve of the centenary, the Turkish
state should initiate an open and official discussion with NCWA with a
sincere and courageous effort, added Artsruni.

Turkish-Armenian commentators and groups representing diaspora
Armenians consider the granting of Turkish citizenship to the
descendants of the Armenians who left Turkey during the events of 1915
as a key means of initiating a process of reconciliation, all the more
so if accomplished ahead of the 2015 commemoration.

Some steps have been taken to revive the Armenian initiative, boosted
by remarks from then-Foreign Minister Ahmet DavutoÄ?lu that showed
tentative support for reconciliation between the two countries,
including the Armenian diaspora. During his visit to Yerevan in
December 2013, DavutoÄ?lu said Turkey never supported the deportation
of Armenians in 1915, which most Armenians define as `genocide,’ and
described the deportations as an inhumane act of which it is
impossible to approve. The Armenian diaspora and Armenians living in
Turkey found the remarks a belated but significant step that showed
Turkey’s willingness to come to a solution.

DavutoÄ?lu’s speech was followed by a historical first for the Turkish
Republic; then-Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an extended his
condolences to the grandchildren of Armenians who lost their lives in
1915. His surprising statement came on April 23, 2014, ahead of the
Armenian commemoration on April 24 of the events they describe as
genocide under Ottoman rule. The demand for Turkish citizenship was
lauded again in January 2013 by some Armenian diaspora groups that
visited Ankara. The Turkish Foreign Ministry said in April 2014 that
they look at the demand positively and may complete the work before
April 2015.

Catholic News Service
Nov 30 2014

Pope urges Muslim leaders to condemn violence done in name of Islam

By Francis X. Rocca
Catholic News Service

ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM ISTANBUL (CNS) — Pope Francis called on
political and religious leaders across the Muslim world to condemn
violence done in the name of Islam.

The pope said he told Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Nov. 28
that “it would be beautiful if all Islamic leaders — whether they be
political leaders, religious leaders, academic leaders — would say
clearly that they condemn (terrorism), because that will help the
majority of Islamic people to say, ‘that’s true,'” and show
non-Muslims that Islam is a religion of peace.

Pope Francis answers questions from journalists on his flight to Rome
Nov. 30 after a three-day trip to Turkey. (CNS/Paul Haring)

“I sincerely believe that you cannot say that all Muslims are
terrorists just as you cannot say that all Christians are
fundamentalists; every religion has these little groups,” the pope
said.

The pope made his remarks Nov. 30 during a 45-minute news conference
on his flight to Rome after a three-day visit to Turkey.

In response to other questions, Pope Francis said:

— During a televised moment of silent prayer in Istanbul’s Blue
Mosque Nov. 29, alongside the city’s grand mufti, “I prayed for
Turkey, I prayed for the mufti, I prayed for myself because I need it,
and I prayed above all for the peace and an end to war.”

— The “substance” of controversial language on “welcoming
homosexuals” in the midterm report at the October 2014 extraordinary
Synod of Bishops on the family survived in the corresponding section
of the final document, even though the latter was widely considered
more conservative. He said the synod was not a parliament but an
“ecclesial space where the Holy Spirit can work” and was just part of
a process to be continued through the coming year of preparation for
an October 2015 worldwide synod on the same subject.

— Although difficulties remain in relations between the Catholic and
Russian Orthodox churches, the pope is ready to meet with the Orthodox
patriarch of Moscow as soon as the patriarch wishes to invite him.

— Both the Catholic and Orthodox churches include conservative
members resistant to ecumenism, who must nonetheless be treated with
respect: “A conservative has a right to speak, you don’t expel him.”

— The pope would like to visit one of the camps housing refugees from
the civil wars in Syria and Iraq but cannot do so now because of
security concerns.

— He speculated, without naming names, that at least one of the
governments that denounced the use of chemical weapons in Syria’s
civil war may have been the source of those very weapons.

— He praised Erdogan’s 2013 statement on the 1915 mass killings of
Armenians by Ottoman forces — a statement criticized as inadequate by
many Armenians, who consider the massacres a “genocide” — as an
“outstretched hand.” The pope voiced hope that other gestures over the
coming anniversary year would bring the two nations nearer, and he
specifically voiced hope that Turkey would open its border with
Armenia.

Robert Fisk
Sunday 30 November 2014

Do you know the difference between a Holocaust and a holocaust?
The Armenians do

Despite what some sub-editors might think, the genocide of 1.5m Armenian
Christians in 1915 was not a holocaust
1 / 1
Soldiers standing over skulls of victims from the Armenian village of
Sheyxalan in 1915, believed to be victims of the Armenian Holocaust
AFP

What’s in a name? Let’s start with the Persian Gulf. Or the Arabian Gulf.
Or just the Arab Gulf. I’m indebted to reader (and surgeon) Ross Farhadieh
for complaining to me last week about my use of “The Gulf”

–
bland, dull and historically anaemic – in a column on Iran and its possible
return to geopolitical power in the Middle East
.
Historically, legally – and in the UN – Ross told me, it should be called
the Persian Gulf. It was Gamal Abdul Nasser’s nationalism which renamed it
the “Arabian Gulf”.

And Ross is right. And I think I know the background to this slippage in
nomenclature. When I worked in the Middle East for* The Times* – long
before Murdoch emasculated the paper – we found that whenever we referred
to the Persian Gulf, Arab states would refuse to let the paper go on sale
in Dubai or Cairo. But whenever we called it the Arabian Gulf, the paper
was not allowed into Iran.

So we went for “The Gulf”. Maybe this was a bit cowardly – I wasn’t
involved in the decision – but many other papers followed suit. The British
press was not going to be censored in the Middle East if a little
historical obfuscation could be built in to our copy. The Independent,
still unborn at the time, referred quite innocently to The Gulf once it
began publication – probably without the slightest idea of why it didn’t
carry the Persian or Arabian appellation.
READ MORE
War with Isis: Theresa May tinkers while Iraq and Syria burn

We’d always had a faintly similar problem with Northern Ireland. In the
worst days of the war there, we on The Times often used “Ulster” as
shorthand for the six-county province – only to find that Irish readers in
the Republic took great exception to the name. Ulster, they rightly pointed
out, historically contained nine counties, which included the three
counties of Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan, which the Protestant seigneurs of
the north declined to accept in Northern Ireland because (of course) these
three counties had too many Catholics. Irish republicans – or just plain
Irish citizens – preferred the “Six Counties” or, at a push, Northern
Ireland. They were right. But since The Times still sold in the Republic,
we went on using Ulster when we felt like it. Indeed, my first book on
Irish history included the word Ulster in the title. And it meant six, not
nine, counties.

I tended to take a harsher view of countries whose titles began with the
words “the People’s Democratic Republic of” – mainly because they
invariably belonged to their dictators rather than their people, and were
neither popular nor democratic. Yemen – or the PDRY – for example. So we
called it just Yemen – or Algeria, which also likes to call itself popular
and democratic.

Then we had to acknowledge Father Time. My dad, a veteran of what he called
“The Great War” of 1914-18, went on calling it that long after the second
and even more titanic bloodbath had been fought around the world. The Brits
officially decided to call the Great War the First World War – in, I think,
1948 – because they had to yield to history. My dad’s war had not proved to
be the war to end all wars after all, and we had to acknowledge that. I
still like the epic ring of The Great War – but by 1945, the Great bit
simply didn’t work any more.

Top 10 most powerful Muslims in the world

Other Great War events remain contentious, not least what I always refer to
as the Armenian Holocaust (with a capital “H”), the genocide of 1.5m
Armenian Christians at the hands of the Turkish Ottoman government in 1915.
It was the first industrialised genocide of the last century – the second
being the Jewish Holocaust – and the two mass acts of slaughter had clear
historical connections. The Turks suffocated thousands of Armenians in
caves – by blowing smoke from bonfires into the cavities where they had
imprisoned them in the Syrian desert – and thus created the first primitive
gas chambers.

Armenian men were sometimes taken to their execution in railway goods
wagons. And junior members of the German Kaiser’s army who were training
the Turkish army at the time witnessed the genocide; more importantly, some
of the names of these Germans turned up less than a quarter of a century
later as members of Hitler’s Wehrmacht in the Ukraine and Belarus, where
they were helping to organise the mass killing of Jews. There’s no doubt
where they learned how to do that.

[image: An image from 1915. Turkey deported two thirds of the Armenian
population; many were either killed or died of starvation during the
journey]
An image from 1915. Turkey deported two thirds of the Armenian population;
many were either killed or died of starvation during the journey Many years
ago, therefore, I used the phrase “Armenian Holocaust” in The Independent.
A sub-editor immediately changed the capital H to a lower-case h. My phone
did not stop ringing. Armenians were outraged. Why did they not deserve a
capital H, they demanded to know? Didn’t the Turks murder enough Armenians
to qualify them for a capital H? I wrote a long memorandum to my then
editor, Simon Kelner, explaining that it was racist to make a distinction
between two genocides; we could not base our definition on the numerical
difference between 1,500,000 and 6,000,000. Besides, Israelis (as opposed
to the state of Israel, which doesn’t even regard the Armenian catastrophe
as a genocide) refer to the Armenian massacres as the Armenian Shoah –
using the Hebrew word for Holocaust. Kelner later published my memo as an
article in The Independent – and it won the DC Watt journalism award.

But we newspaper folk have poor institutional memories. Earlier this month,
I again referred to the Armenian Holocaust – and a sub-editor, unfamiliar
with the expression, innocently downgraded the poor old Armenians again. He
changed the capital H into h! My phone trilled once more. The same
unanswerable arguments. Didn’t the Turks kill enough of us, my Armenian
callers asked again? So of course we sheepishly upgraded the Armenians on
the website version of my report and returned to them their capital H…

And of course, I haven’t even begun to address today the use of that
generic, racist (in its use), pejorative and repulsive word “terrorist”. I
only use it in inverted commas for direct quotations. But what can we do
when the masters of the universe – America and that dreadful chap who’s
just won a Save the Children award – long ago embarked on an everlasting
“War on Terror”?

Give me the Persian Gulf any day.

Más de 5.000 personas participaron del Buenos Aires Celebra Armenia

29.11.14

El festival Buenos Aires Celebra Armenia convocó a más de 5.000
personas en la Plaza de Barrancas de Belgrano, que disfrutaron de la
cultura y las tradiciones de la comunidad armenia en Argentina.

Los stands de comida acompañaron los espectáculos de danzas armenias y
la presentación de la Banda Sinfónica de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. La
lluvia impidió el recital de Juan Carlos Baglietto y Lito Vitale,
previsto como cierre del festival.

The New York Times
Nov 29 2014

Pope Brings Message of Interreligious Peace to Istanbul

By SEBNEM ARSUNOV. 29, 2014

ISTANBUL — On the second leg of his trip to Turkey, Pope Francis was
welcomed on Saturday by curious bystanders and tourists from around
the world as he visited the historical district here to deliver his
message of further interreligious dialogue for peace.

Istanbul, which is home to several cultural landmarks for both
Christians and Muslims, offered the pope an ideal venue to put his
message into action. The pope, 77, first visited the Sultan Ahmet
Mosque of Muslims, then Hagia Sophia, now a museum but formerly the
leading temple for Eastern Orthodox Christians. Both monumental
structures overlook the same yard.

Pope Francis visited the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, modern
Turkey’s founder, in the capital city of Ankara on Friday.

In Turkey, Pope Francis Advocates Dialogue in Battling
‘Fanaticism’NOV. 28, 2014

Pope Francis, offering a “message of hope” to the European Parliament,
gave a strikingly frank critique of Europe’s malaise.

At European Parliament, Pope Bluntly Critiques a Continent’s Malaise
NOV. 25, 2014

In the Sultan Ahmet Mosque, also known as the Blue Mosque, the pope
did not wrap his hands under his chest to resemble the Islamic
tradition, as did his predecessor, Benedict XVI, in 2006, but he bowed
his head and clasped his hands alongside the city’s senior cleric for
a two-minute silent prayer, both facing the direction of Mecca. “May
Allah accept it,” said Rahmi Yaran, the grand mufti of Istanbul, as
the two finished their prayers.

Outside, a small but enthusiastic group of Christians waved Turkish
and Vatican flags, played guitars and cheered “Papa Francesco” as the
pope smiled and waved before entering the Hagia Sophia museum, which
dates to the sixth century.

The church was converted into a mosque after the 1453 Ottoman
conquest, and made a museum in 1935. Some ultranationalist groups have
protested to demand that it again serve as a mosque.

Live coverage of the visit showed Francis listening to the museum
director, Hayrullah Cengiz, who pointed at Islamic inscriptions and
adjoining images of the Virgin Mary holding Jesus.

Security measures included 7,000 police officers on duty in the
historical neighborhood, which is often crowded with tourists, and the
restriction of trams and pedestrian crossings.

Christians in Turkey number about 100,000 — including Armenians,
Orthodox Christians and Catholics — out of a population of 74 million.

“It is symbolically important that the spiritual leader of a different
faith visits Turkey to promote peace among civilizations,” said Tatyos
Bebek, an Armenian-Turk who lives in Istanbul.

During meetings Friday in Ankara with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
of Turkey and the head of the religious affairs directorate, the pope
repeated his call for interreligious dialogue, rather than military
action alone, to resolve conflicts in the Middle East, especially in
Iraq and Syria, where the Islamic State has been gaining ground.

On Saturday, Islamic State militants launched two suicide attacks with
explosive-laden vehicles at the border crossing of Mursitpinar, the
Turkish town near Kobani, Syria, where Islamic State and Kurdish pesh
merga forces have battled since late September. Four pesh merga
fighters were killed and 18 injured, CNN Turk television reported.
Planes from the United States-led coalition struck the radicals’ bases
in the area after the attack, said the report, quoting witnesses.

A group of Iraqi Christians who were forced to flee Mosul after the
Islamic State raided the Iraqi city in June were excited to see the
pope in Istanbul.

“Muslim Christians are dying in Iraq,” said Tony Quta, who has applied
for refugee status with the United Nations Humanitarian Refugee
Council. “I am very happy to see him today, I came to see him, and I
thank President Erdogan for everything.”

Turkey shelters at least 1.6 million refugees from Syria and maintains
an open-border policy for Iraqi and Syrian civilians who have escaped
violence.

The pope’s visit is considered a message of solidarity with the
Ecumenical Patriarchate of the Orthodox Church, which represents
nearly 300 million Orthodox Christians worldwide. It has been based in
Constantinople, now Istanbul, since the sixth century, though the
institution is not recognized by the Turkish state.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, speaking to reporters on Saturday,
praised the cooperation between the churches and said that he and Pope
Francis would continue to pray “together for the unity of our churches
of the divided Christendom as well as the peace in the Middle East and
around the globe.”

Both leaders were expected to discuss concerns about the fading of
Christianity in its historical birthplaces and threats against their
communities in the Middle East, officials of the patriarchate said.

“In our journey of faith and fraternal living,” Pope Francis said in
his sermon at the Catholic Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Istanbul,
“the more we allow ourselves to be humbly guided by the Spirit of
Lord, the more we will overcome misunderstandings, divisions, and
disagreements and be a credible sign of unity and peace.”

NATO Secretary General made no mention of military exercises in
Karabakh – spokesperson

15:11 * 29.11.14

Upon Tert.am’s request, Simone De Manso, Press Officer at the NATO
General Headquarters in Brussels, commented upon Jens Stoltenberg’s
recent speech at the Parliamentary Assembly, denying the Azerbaijani
media’s earlier reports that Secretary General criticized the Armenian
for conducting military exercises in Nagorno-Karabakh.

The Azerbaijani media said that at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in
The Hague, the alliance’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg
criticized Armenia for conducting military exercises in the
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. The report was later denied by Tevan
Poghosyan, a member of the Armenian delegation. What can you say in
that connection?

The NATO Secretary General delivered a keynote speech at the NATO
Parliamentary Assembly in The Hague on 26 November. Thereafter he took
questions from the audience. At no time the Secretary General
mentioned military exercises in Nagorno-Karabakh. Answering a question
from the audience, the NATO Secretary General said: “Both Azerbaijan
and Armenia are valued partners of NATO. And we stated that again in
Wales. And all Allies remain committed in their support to the
territorial integrity and independence and sovereignty of Armenia and
Azerbaijan. And that’s the reason why we continue to support efforts
towards a peaceful settlement of the conflicts in the Caucasus, based
on these principles and the norms of international law, the UN Charter
and the Helsinki Final Act. But as I said, there’s no direct NATO role
in the conflict of Nagorno-Karabakh. But we support the efforts to try
to find a peaceful negotiated settlement. And we support the efforts
by the three chairmen of the Minsk process to try to make sure that we
are moving forward in a difficult and important conflict.”

Do you think NATO should express concerns over the increasing tension
along the Karabakh-Azerbaijan Line of Contact, highlighting
Azerbaijan’s direct responsibility for the escalations?

On the same occasion, the NATO Secretary General expressed his concern
with the recent incidents of violence, whilst underlining that there
is no military solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and no
alternative to a political solution. A full transcript of his speech
and of the answers to the audience can be found on the NATO website
under

Don’t you find that Azerbaijan is in breach of the principles outlined
in the Helsinki Final Act, including peaceful settlement and non-use
of force?

Clearly, there are many cease fire violations, and they cause military
and civilian fatalities. The recent incidents are an escalation of
violence and of serious concern. They underline the need for redoubled
efforts to find a political settlement.

What do you think should be NATO’s role in the conflict settlement process?

There’s no direct NATO role in the conflict of Nagorno-Karabakh. We
support the efforts to try to find a peaceful negotiated settlement
through the Minsk Group process.

Exhibition dedicated to Karen Demirchyan

17:41 | November 29,2014 | Politics

Today an exhibition named “Heritage” has been opened in Yerevan. It is
dedicated to state and political figure Karen Demirchyan.

Exceptional and unique buildings of 1960’s-1990’s Soviet Armenia,
historical and architectural monuments restored in 1970’s-1990’s and
incomplete projects of 1975’s-1990’s are presented at the exhibition.

“I can surely say that Karen Demirchyan actively took part in the
construction of all the big buildings in Armenia since 1960’s,
starting from Yerevan Lake to the latest buildings, with the exception
of “Rossiya” cinema, with which he has no connection,”- today noted
widower of Karen Demirchyan- Rima Demirchyan.

She thinks that the slogan of the exhibition may be “Recognize,
preserve, inform”.

What did Putin say to Rouhani in a historic phone call?

Nahed Hatar

What did President Putin discuss with his Iranian counterpart
President Hassan Rouhani during the phone call that was held between
them shortly after agreeing to extend Iran’s nuclear talks in Vienna?
Almost certainly, this was the most important event.

According to the Kremlin statement, though it did not provide
sufficient details about the phone conversation, the two presidents
discussed the “substantial progress” in the last round of talks in
Vienna and stressed the necessity of clinching a comprehensive nuclear
agreement.

“They also discussed current issues in key areas of bilateral
cooperation, including the implementation of the joint projects”.
However, “Al-Mayadeen” News TV quoted some “sources”, most probably
Iranians, as saying that Putin assured Rouhani that Russia will not
allow the nuclear negotiations to continue for a long time, and will
not also allow removal of the sanctions imposed against Iran to be
delayed any longer.

As stated by “Al-Mayadden”, Moscow showed readiness to strengthen
strategic bilateral alliance, including coordination with China to
break the sanctions imposed against the Islamic Republic. Moreover,
with reference to President Rouhani’s initiative to call his Russian
counterpart, does this initiative in this sensitive time reflect the
fact that the Iranian president has a tendency of establishing
strategic ties or is it merely a diplomatic step to thank Moscow for
its tireless efforts to save the Vienna negotiations? Perhaps the
answer to the two aforementioned questions depicts the features of the
next phase, regionally and internationally.

Russia is also at present facing Western sanctions which cost the
Russians, in a few months, more than one hundred billion dollars.
Definitely, they will not accept to go on with this economic and
financial attrition. Moscow will thus be in front of two options:
either accepting a “subordinate” role to the major Western powers
politically that leads accordingly to losing the strategic
achievements accomplished during President Putin’s era, or heading
hastily towards building a self-reliant global economic and financial
system and renouncing the Western one.

Of course, in the context of this option, Iran will most likely play a
key role in building a solid trio with Russia and China in the
framework of the BRICS group of fast-growing, major non-Western
economies, which include also India, Brazil and South Africa. A
question remains, why is Iran enjoying this advantage exclusively?
This comes because it does not only act as an economic value, but also
as a strategic, military and defense-based one; especially regarding
its Arab allies in Syria, Lebanon-Hezbollah, and Iraq. It is
noteworthy that Syria is Russia’s old ally, and the Russians consider
Hezbollah as a regional power and an ally and they are seeking to
restore their positions in Iraq.

Possibly, the tendency towards creating strategic alliance with Iran
is already settled in Russia, for it is, in essence, an expression of
a strategic need for preserving the Russian growing influence. Yet, is
this the case in Iran too? It is well known that the current Iranian
policy is the product of disagreement between two movements: the
Revolutionary movement led by Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei, and the
Liberal movement, led by Rouhani. The two movements most prominently
disagree on files related to the position on Syria and the Iranian
aids to the Syrians.

The Revolutionary movement seeks to provide Damascus with further
multi-format support, while the Liberal movement seeks the opposite.
Perhaps its aim behind this is not only saving the cost of Syria’s
support, so as to improve the domestic spending, but also courting the
West to reach an agreement on the nuclear issue, allowing by this the
lifting of sanctions on Iran and overcoming the economic and financial
difficulties.

Doubtless, it has tactical relations with Moscow and it is benefiting
from them to improve the conditions for reconciliation talks with the
West. Yet, Russia is facing a complex problem with these two
movements. The Revolutionary movement is a strategic ally with no
uncertainty or hesitation in the face of the West, but it disagrees
with Moscow on issues related to several files, including, for
example, the position on political Islam, on the regime of the
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, and on the authority in
Ramallah. This comes particularly since Moscow believes that the
Palestinian authority is its ally and thus it supports its political
line.

The dispute over these files would never remain a theoretical or
collapsible one, but it would be transformed into a political dispute.
However, the Rouhani liberal movement seems to be in harmony with
Russia in its way of mastering the world and the era, but it is
untrustworthy in terms of looking forward to reaching understanding
with the West on the one hand and in terms of supporting Syria, which
constitutes the jewel of the Russian crown, on the other hand. At the
moment, it is a golden international opportunity for Iran to
reposition itself as part of a Russian-Chinese Alliance that would fix
the Iranian internal contradiction.

This re-positioning allows Iran, at the same time, to maintain its
independence and to preserve its policies regarding the West, as well
as to solve its economic and financial problems. Hence, are we going
to witness an internal understanding within the Iranian policy that
would adopt this approach, or we are going to witness a struggle that
paralyzes the possibility of taking advantage of the opportunity
instead?

I believe that the two parties, Russia and Iran, could gain profound
insight into the strategic relationship that existed between the
Soviets and Abdul Nasser’s Egypt. It was a strategic relationship,
despite the ideological differences, and was even at times a political
one between the two sides. The West does not intend to establish
peaceful relations and to cooperate with Russia and Iran, but rather
intends to weaken both of them internally. In actual fact, those who
do not want to realize this are deluded, and those who do not
prioritize the bilateral alliance are waiving the principal interests
of the country and its future.

Source: Newspapers
29-11-2014 – 13:18 Last updated 29-11-2014 – 13:18
`&s1=1

San Gabriel Valley Tribune (California)
November 26, 2014 Wednesday

Montebello installs Jack Hadjinian as its first Armenian mayor

by Mike Sprague

MONTEBELLO >> Councilman Jack Hadjinian was elected mayor Tuesday,
becoming the first Armenian American to be selected to that position.

Nearly 800 were present at the meeting held in Bagramian Hall at the
Holy Cross Armenian Apostolic Cathedral.

Today is a historic day, said Araksya Karapetyan, a Fox 11 news
anchor. I m so proud as an Armenian to be standing before you. This is
not just a big day. It s an important day for all Armenians living in
America.

Hadjinian, who was elected to the Montebello City Council in 2011,
succeeded Bill Molinari as mayor. Councilman Art Barajas was elected
mayor pro tem.

Councilwoman Vivian Romero called the evening special.

It was truly a historic moment, Romero said. Here we are in 2014 and
we ve never had a Armenian mayor, Romero said. It also is the 100th
anniversary of the Armenian genocide. That makes it even more special.

Many public officials from Southern California attended the meeting,
including Sheriff-elect Jim McDonnell who swore in Hadjinian as mayor,
and Los Angeles City Councilman Paul Krekorian.

It s a great moment for you and your family and a great moment for
Armenian-Americans everywhere, Krekorian said.

Also present was Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian, who is prelate of
the Armenian Apostolic Church of America. He delivered the invocation
at the meeting.

Hadjinian said he was humbled and grateful to be named mayor.

As a native resident of Montebello whose roots go back three
generations, my love and commitment to the growth and prosperity of
Montebello has grown even deeper, he said.

My inspiration comes from my family, he said. It was in this city that
my grandfather and uncles all purchased their first homes to
experience the American dream.

As mayor, Hadjinian said he wants the council to get along.

We don t always agree on the issues, but we can agree that we are
passionate about the good will of the city, he said. Next year will
require some tough decisions to be made. We must work together for
benefit of the city.

The council in the next year is expected to decide on a proposed
housing development in the Montebello hills, as well as how to provide
relief for blockages caused by trains on four streets in south
Montebello.