Author: Kalantarian Kevo

BOOK ON ARMENIA’S ENTRY INTO CUSTOMS UNION LAUNCHED IN YEREVAN

19:01 11/02/2014 >> SOCIETY

A book by public and political figure, leader of National Unity Party
Artashes Geghamyan, entitled Armenia in Customs Union: Beginning of
Irreversible Changes in Transcaucasia, was launched today in Yerevan.

The launch event was attended by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan,
public, political and cultural figures, ambassadors.

The book includes Geghamyan’s articles, interviews and speeches of
the past one year.

This is the 12th book by Geghamyan, who has been engaged in writing
since 1996.

In his remarks, Geghamyan said in particular that Armenian President
Serzh Sargsyan made a historical decision on September 3, 2013, and
that Armenia can be a bridge between the countries of the Eurasian
Union and the Customs Union.

“It is the fourth time that the President attends my book launch,”
the author added.

Source: Panorama.am

ARMENIA: SECRET OF GAS AGREEMENTS

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
feb 11 2014

11 February 2014 – 2:08pm

Susanna Petrosyan, Yerevan. Exclusively to Vestnik Kavkaza

Interest to Armenian-Russian gas agreements is still high. Citizens are
concerned about gas prices which surpass the last year price by 30%.

Recently the spring session of the National Assembly (NA) has begun.

49 MPs from four opposition parties (Armenian National Congress (ANC),
Dashnaktsutyun, Heritage, and Prosperous Armenia) proposed establishing
of a non-permanent parliamentary commission. Two problems are included
into the agenda of the commission – $300-million debt accumulated by
the Armenian side to Gazprom from 2010, which was kept in secret by
the government from the NA and the population. And the second question
is why prices for gas which costs $189 per 1 thousand cubic meters at
the Georgian-Armenian border, including transit through the Georgian
territory, is provided for customers in Armenia for $393.

The opposition activists plan that the commission would be a body of
control over governmental actions in the sphere of signing criminal
contracts, according to them.

The opposition tried to persuade the parliamentary majority (the
Republican Party of Armenia and the Rule of Law) that the commission
will release them from responsibility. In the opposite case, the
majority will have to take responsibility for multiple increase of
prices from 2009, which was kept in secret from citizens, for 31
protocols which were signed by the government and the Russian side
and registered the chronicle of price increases, non-payment of debts
and fees.

However, the parliamentary majority didn’t present any serious
argument again. The head of RPA fraction, Galust Saakyan, stated:
“Many of speeches on the topic were acrimonious and slander.” A member
of the Rule of Law Mger Shakhgeldyan said that for him Armenian-Russian
strategic relations are of high priority.

On February 5th the NA rejected the proposal of the opposition on
establishing the commission – 58 “cons”, 44 “pros”, 3 abstainers.

According to the opposition, the authorities didn’t want to
establish the commission, as a shadow bargain is hidden behind
the gas agreements. “If the government has nothing to be afraid of
and it thinks that it was legal, why didn’t the majority vote for
the commission? The Republicans should realize that boycott of our
proposal proves that they have something to hide,” Naira Zograbyan,
Secretary of the fraction of Prosperous Armenia, is sure.

Representatives of the authorities didn’t give a clear answer to
the question how the debt appeared at the session of the NA. The
situation is worsened by the fact that the government didn’t inform
the World Bank and the IMF of the debt, i.e. broke direct terms of
agreements with them. According to Aram Manukyan, a MP from ANC,
on December 23rd, when the opposition refused from participation in
voting for ratification of gas agreements and left the NA building,
the majority quickly voted for execution of $300 million as a state
debt, and later the state debt was scrapped.

Rejection of the opposition proposal by the parliamentary majority
demonstrated “unity of will and spirit” in the matter of absolute
obedience to the leadership. However, the “firm will” can lead to
radicalization of the opposition and the society, especially when
people hate the Defined Contribution Pension System.

ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE’S DIRECTOR TO RETIRE AFTER LEADING GROUP FOR 27 YEARS

New York Times
Feb 10 2014

By MICHAEL PAULSONFEB. 10, 2014

Abraham H. Foxman, a Holocaust survivor whose 50-year tenure battling
anti-Semitism made him one of the visible and influential leaders
of the American Jewish community, announced on Monday that he will
retire next year as national director of the Anti-Defamation League.

Mr. Foxman, who has headed the organization since 1987, played a
central role in most of the major controversies involving Israel and
the Jewish community in recent years, and has stirred up a few of his
own. He was frequently lionized as a forceful defender of Jews and
Israel, but periodically criticized as too quick to call criticism of
Israel anti-Semitic and too hesitant to label the early 20th-century
killings of Armenians in Turkey as genocide.

In a telephone interview, Mr. Foxman, 73, said he was ready for
a change.

“Fifty years is long enough to be in one place, and I’m still vibrant
enough to do a couple of other things,” he said. “I hope I’ll be able
to continue to have a voice, and to speak on the issues I’ve dealt
all my life with.”

A frequent guest in the White House and confidant of Israeli leaders,
Mr. Foxman was a key proponent of strong Israeli-American relations.

Mr. Foxman said he was motivated to spend his life combating
anti-Semitism by his own childhood experience. Born in Eastern Europe
in 1940, he was saved from the Holocaust by a Polish Catholic nanny.

He immigrated to the United States in 1950, and joined the
Anti-Defamation League the day after he passed the bar exam.

“It provided me with a platform to deal with the two things that
formed my lifetime: the bigotry which almost destroyed me, and the
human love and compassion which saved me,” he said.

Mr. Foxman said he viewed as his organization’s biggest single
accomplishment one that took place before his arrival: the passage
of a so-called anti-mask law in Georgia, designed to prevent Ku Klux
Klan members from wearing hoods.

“Our Constitution guarantees you the right to be a bigot, but if you
want to be a bigot, you have to take responsibility for your bigotry,”
he said.

The Anti-Defamation League, which has about 320 employees and an
annual budget of about $50 million, has advocated for civil rights,
gay rights and other causes.

“The ADL was best known in the Jewish community for battling
anti-Semitism, but they have also taken on many other kinds of
discrimination, and I think Abe should get credit for having expanded
the horizons of people in the American Jewish community about the
importance of fighting any and all discrimination,” said Ruth W.

Messinger, the president of American Jewish World Service.

Mr. Foxman said that he is pleased anti-Semitic acts and attitudes
have drastically decreased in the United States over the last
half-century, but that he is concerned about rising anti-Semitism
elsewhere. “Globally, it’s the worst that it has been since World
War II,” he said.

“He’s been a somewhat controversial figure, and there were moments
when he has been perceived by some to be out of touch, and yet, when
serious issues of anti-Semitism arose, everybody would go back to
Abe Foxman,” said Jonathan D. Sarna, a professor of American Jewish
history at Brandeis University. “He would be on anybody’s short list
of the most significant American Jewish leaders of the postwar period.”

WHY DO TWO HAWAII LAWMAKERS CARE SO MUCH ABOUT AZERBAIJAN?

Honolulu Civil Beat
Feb 11 2014

Hawaii lawmakers are inserting themselves into a century-old conflict
between Armenia and Azerbaijan, neighboring nations nestled between
the Black and Caspian seas at the crossroads of Western Asia and
Eastern Europe.

Reps. Rida Cabanilla and Mark Takai, who traveled to Azerbaijan
together last year on an $8,000 trip that was paid for by the republic,
have co-sponsored legislation that’s been set for a hearing Wednesday.

House Resolution 13 recognizes the 22nd anniversary of the Khojaly
tragedy which, according to the resolution, involved the slaughter
of hundreds of innocent civilians in Azerbaijan in February 1992.

House Resolution 9 calls on the United States to strengthen its
efforts to facilitate a political settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan
conflict.

The first resolution describes the tragedy like this: On Feb. 25 and
26, 1992, “Armenian armed forces accompanied by Russian military troops
occupied the town of Khojaly in Azerbaijan and killed more than six
hundred innocent civilians, including many women, children and the
elderly; wounded more than one thousand civilians; and captured more
than one thousand two hundred civilians.”

Armenian-Americans and other critics are concerned the two lawmakers
are trying to rewrite history in favor of Azerbaijan.

“It is hard to see how a resolution that distorts history and
contemporary reality in so many ways serves Hawaii’s interests,”
Honolulu resident Dawn Webster wrote in her testimony on HR 9.

Webster said she grew interested in the resolutions after talking to
her Armenian daughter-in-law, Ani Martirosian Menon.

“That family connection has made me sensitive to the inappropriateness
of this rather strange resolution and the likelihood that it will be
used to strengthen a false representation of historical facts about
the relationship between Azerbaijan and Armenia,” Webster said.

“Given the islands’ own history of dispossession and occupation and the
ongoing struggle for sovereignty by Native Hawaiians, the resolution
is at the very least ill-advised and certainly at odds with Hawaii’s
culture of aloha.”

Cabanilla and Takai went to Azerbaijan in May to attend a convention
sponsored by oil companies and look for opportunities to promote
Hawaii.

Civil Beat reported on the trip after discovering details in gift
disclosure statements the representatives filed with the Ethics
Commission.

Takai said at the time that the trip was ethical because the
Legislature was not addressing relevant issues that would directly
benefit Azerbaijan. He did not return a message seeking comment on
the resolutions Monday.

Cabanilla said the invitation by Azerbaijan came as part of a lobbying
effort to improve the oil-rich nation’s alliance with the U.S. She
said she took the trip to try to bring business to Hawaii.

The resolutions came from Elin Suleymano, Azerbaijan’s ambassador to
the United States, she said.

Cabanilla, a retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserves, said
her military background has taught her the importance of Azerbaijan
as a strategic location for a U.S. ally in the Middle East.

She considers the resolutions to be a harmless form of gratitude
and recognition.

“Maybe (the resolution) is not 100 percent accurate — I don’t know
if it is or not — but the fact that they’re an ally and support
our troops (in the region), they don’t have to say anything more
after that,” Cabanilla said, explaining her decision to introduce
the legislation.

If Azerbaijan has lobbied to gain recognition for a version of history,
it is in some ways following in the footsteps of Armenia.

Ethnic Armenian communities in the United States, Australia, France,
the United Kingdom and many other countries have lobbied national
governments to gain recognition of the “Armenian genocide” by Turkey
in the early 20th century. Authorities in Turkey continue to deny
that killings and the seizure of Armenian land during the Ottoman
Empire constituted a genocide.

House Resolution 13 describes the Khojaly massacre in Azerbaijan as a
“sobering reminder of the terrible carnage that can be inflicted in
wartime and it exemplifies the enduring need for greater understanding,
communication, and tolerance among people worldwide.”

The resolutions are set to have their first hearing Wednesday morning
before the Veterans, Military and International Affairs Committee,
which Takai chairs.

Read Webster’s testimony on the resolutions here:

ARMENIAN PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION MUST FORM NEW AGENDA FOR DISCUSSIONS WITH EU LAWMAKERS

February 11, 2014 | 19:42

YEREVAN. – Armenian parliamentary delegation must form a new agenda
for discussions with EU lawmakers, ARF Dashnaktsutyun member Aghvan
Vardanyan said during a press conference in Yerevan.

He commented on the results of the meeting of EU-Armenia Parliamentary
Cooperation Committee that took place in Strasbourg on February 5-6.

“We want to form a new agenda that would not conflict with our new
relationship with the EU. Do not forget in the past we had a resolution
of the European Parliament which contained not pro-Armenian wordings
on Karabakh,” Vardanyan noted. Besides, EU and Armenia have not signed
the joint statement.

“Of course, we all understand that the reasons could be different. But
we must remember that it is for the first time when Armenia did not
sign a statement with EU in parliamentary format. And this happened
after Armenia expressed a desire to join the Customs Union,” Vardanyan
explained.

In regard, it is necessary to inform European partners about the
essence of Armenia’s cooperation with the Customs Union not to lose
friends among European parliamentarians.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

ARMENIAN MUSIC TO BE PERFORMED AT SOCHI OLYMPICS

14:43 11.02.2014

Armenian music, duduk, Olympic Games in Sochi

Sona Hakobyan
Public Radio of Armenia

Armenian music will play at Sochi Olympics. Famous Armenian duduk
player Gevorg Dabaghyan has been invited to participate in the 7th
International Winter Music Festival in Sochi. The event, which takes
place from February 6 to 20, has been organized by renowned Russian
musician Yuri Bashmet.

Gevorg Dabaghyan first played with Bashmet in Italy, where the two
performed a work by Vache Sharafyan. The second meeting took place at
the Moscow Conservatory. The acquaintance has grown into friendship
over the past seven years.

In Sochi the two musicians will play a 15-minute composition based
on the works by Vache Sharafyan and Komitas.

Speaking to Public Radio of Armenia, Gevorg Dabaghyan said he believes
participation in this large-scale event is a good opportunity to cheer
our athletes and present the Armenian music to guests from different
parts of the world.

“The secret of attractiveness of duduk lies in it simplicity and
frankness, it needs no additional decorations,” Dabaghyan said. “There
is also Armenian spiritual kindness and honesty in duduk,” he added.

The 22nd Winter Olympic Games take place in Sochi, Russia, from
February 7-23.

DEAD BODY FOUND NEARBY YEREVAN MAYOR’S HOME

February 11, 2014 | 12:37

YEREVAN. – The dead body of a man was discovered at the back of a
grocery store across the home of Mayor Taron Margaryan of Armenia’s
capital city Yerevan, the Police informedArmenian News-NEWS.am.

The body of Karen Verdyan, 33, was found in the area on early Tuesday
morning.

No traces of violence were found on the body.

We were able to found out that the young man was married, he had
a son, and he was living with his parents. He was unemployed and,
according to those who knew him, he liked to drink alcohol.

A criminal case is opened on the incident.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

UK PARLIAMENT TO HOLD DEBATES ON KARABAKH

February 11, 2014 | 13:40

The Karabakh issue will be discussed during the debate in the UK
House of Commons on Tuesday.

The debate on “UK policy towards Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan”
has been invited by Stephen Pound.

It should be noted that UK repeatedly reiterated its support for
the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group. During his visit to Yerevan,
UK Foreign Office Minister of State David Lidington said his country
supports the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs’ efforts toward settling the
Karabakh conflict.

The UK Minister for Europe also noted that his country fully shares
the provisions of the statements which the European Union, Council of
Europe, and OSCE Minsk Group issued with regard to Safarov’s release.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

THE “RESURRECTED” AKRAM AYLISLI TO TAKE AZERBAIJANI MASS MEDIA TO COURT

by David Stepanyan

Tuesday, February 11, 12:02

The known Azerbaijani writer, the author of the smash novel “Stone
dreams”, Akram Aylisli, is going to take Azerbaijani mass media
to court.

To note, yesterday Azerbaijani mass media informed about Aylisli’s
death. His novel “Stone dreams”, telling about the Baku massacre of
the Armenians and published in the Russian magazine “Druzhba narodov”
caused a lot of noise and hysteria in Azerbaijan. On February 7,
2013, the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed a presidential
decree that stripped Aylisli of the title of “People’s Writer” and
the presidential pension.

“I am going to punish all those who disseminated such disinformation
and take them to court. I did not die, I am alive”, – the 77 year
old writer said when replying Azerbaijani journalists’ calls.

GOVERNMENT IS THE FIRST OBSTACLE TO ARMENIA’S WAY TO EUROPE – HERITAGE PARTY

February 11, 2014 | 16:54

YEREVAN. – Member of the opposition Heritage party Stepan Safaryan said
in order to settle the crisis in relations with EU, the authorities
at least must declare whether Armenia will join Eurasian Union in
addition to Customs Union.

During the discussions on Armenia’s European path, Safaryan said he is
confident Armenia has one way to establish itself as a state: to be
democratic country with good governance, and this implies European
direction. Armenia, he said, cannot afford being a Russia-style
country.

“Heritage party is a political force insisting that Armenia must be a
full member of the European family. Nevertheless, I must admit that
Armenia has not set a goal to become an EU member, and in turn the
European Union is not waiting for Armenia with open arms, especially
with Russian military unit,” he emphasized.

Safaryan said the government is the first obstacle to Armenia’s way
to Europe, as the authorities appeared in a deadlock by declaring
intention to join Customs Union.

Photo by Arsen Sargsyan/NEWS.am

News from Armenia – NEWS.am