Author: Kalantarian Kevo

Tasnim News Agency, Iran
nov 23 2013

Armenian President Calls for Further Bolstering of Ties with Iran

November 23, 2013 – 12:29
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – In line with Iran’s new government’s policy of
promoting relations with neighboring countries, the country’s energy
minister was in Armenia on Friday where he met with President Serzh
Sargsyan and other Armenian officials to discuss ways of enhancing
bilateral ties.
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`We consider these relations (Iran-Armenia) as unique and wish to
deepen them. I think that your visit to the Republic of Armenia is a
sign of the similar wish by the leadership of the Islamic Republic of
Iran,” said President Sargsyan during his meeting with Iran’s Energy
Minister Hamid Chitchian.

In the meeting, also attended by Armenian Energy Minister Armen
Movsisyan, the officials discussed implementation of energy programs
as part of mutually beneficial cooperation between the two neighbors.

Movsisyan, too, said that there is no political problem in the two
countries’ relations, and Yerevan makes every effort to further expand
economic and cultural ties with Iran.

Chitchian for his part reaffirmed his country’s desire and readiness
to deepen ties with Armenia, stressing that the development of
relations with neighbors, including Armenia, is one of the priorities
of the Iranian foreign policy.

The important thing to do now is entering the executive phase of two
macro-scale energy projects in the power field, he said.

Tehran and Yerevan have established growing energy ties in recent
years. Iran has exchanged over 1.5 billion cubic meters of gas with
Armenia’s electricity over the past six years.

Last year, Iran bartered some 480 million cubic meters of gas for
Armenian electricity, the largest amount of such exchange between Iran
and that neighboring country in six years.

The Armenian government is also building a second, bigger highway
leading to the Iranian border in the hope of boosting trade with Iran.

In early August, President Hassan Rouhani said in a meeting with his
Armenian counterpart, who had taken part in his inauguration cetemony,
that Tehran was after strengthening relations with Yerevan.

`Tehran’s effort will be focused on enhancement of relations (with
Armenia) and raising the level of cooperation in all fields,’ Rouhani
said on August 5.

He also pointed to cultural commonalities between the two neighboring
countries, and said, `Relations between Iran and Armenia have been
always friendly, close and on the basis of fulfillment of mutual
interests.’

Chitchian and his Armenian counterpart signed three energy-related
agreements during the latter’s visit to Iran earlier this month.

Chitchian said the new agreements were related to bartering
electricity for natural gas, construction of a new hydroelectric power
plant on the border river, Aras, and further electricity exchanges
between the two countries.

ANOTHER ACTIVIST ARRESTED IN YEREVAN CLASHES SENT TO PSYCHIATRIC CLINIC

11.22.2013 19:28 epress.am

The Court of General Jurisdiction of Kentron and Nork Marash
Administrative Districts of Yerevan yesterday ruled to transfer yet
another protestor arrested on Nov. 5 to Nubarashen psychiatric clinic.

In the case of Anushavan Grigoryan, the court did not determine a
specific length of stay.

Grigoryan is charged with using violence against a representative of
the authorities (RA Criminal Code Article 316 Section 2). He was one
of several people who participated in the ill-fated march led by Shant
Harutyunyan that resulted in clashes with riot police and the arrest
of dozens of anti-government protestors.

Grigoryan became the focus of public attention also in August 2013,
during protests at 5 Komitas Ave. He supported local residents who
were protesting the construction of a multi-storey building in their
yard. During one of the protests, three unknown men in civilian
clothes beat him.

Recall, the court two days ago ruled to transfer Shant Harutyunyan to
Nubarashen psychiatric clinic to undergo a two-month psychological
assessment.

ARMENIA AND URUGUAY TO EXPAND INTERPARLIAMENTARY TIES

14:55, 22 November, 2013

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 22, ARMENPRESS. At the invitation of the Vice
President, President of the Senate of Uruguay Danilo Astori on November
21 the official visit of the Chairman of the National Assembly of
the Republic of Armenia Hovik Abrahamyan to the Oriental Republic of
Uruguay began.

The Press Service of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia
informed “Armenpress” in the General Assembly the Chairman of the
National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Hovik Abrahamyan met with
the President of the Senate of Uruguay Danilo Astori. Welcoming the
NA President and the members of the delegation and highly assessing
the visit of the Head of the Armenian Parliament, Mr Astori expressed
confidence that it would give new impetus to the Armenian-Uruguayan
friendly relations, the enlargement of the inter-parliamentary
relations and would promote the more deepening of multilateral
cooperation. “Uruguay is always next to Armenia, and the friendly
Armenian people are in our hearts and souls,” the President of the
Senate of Uruguay said.

He highly assessed the role of the Armenian community in the
strengthening of the Armenian-Uruguayan relations. Touching upon the
problem of the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide,
Danilo Astori said: “I am sure that we cannot build future, if we do
not remember the past.”

Thanking the President of the Senate of Uruguay for the invitation
and warm reception Hovik Abrahamyan expressed conviction that since
the independence of Armenia the NA President’s first official visit
to Uruguay would be of big importance for strengthening the bilateral
relations and developing the cooperation in different spheres. He
deemed important the further deepening of inter-parliamentary relations
and the reinforcement of the cooperation of the Friendship Groups.

Hovik Abrahamyan considered necessary the establishment of the active
cooperation in trade-economic, tourist, pharmaceutical and other
spheres. “It is an undeniable fact that warm friendly relations are
formed between our two countries, however, we should not be limited
what we have, we should bring together all our efforts for finding new
spheres of cooperation,” the NA President said. “Uruguay was the first
state that in 1965 recognized the Armenian Genocide perpetrated by
the Ottoman Empire. We all realize that ignoring such crimes promotes
their repetition, as the indifference can become a reason for bitter
consequences,” Hovik Abrahamyan noted. Referring to the NK problem
the NA President has stressed that Armenia sees the settlement of the
issue only within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group, as a result
of peaceful negotiations, which will greatly promote the strengthening
of stability and security in the South Caucasus, depriving the region
from the disastrous consequences of military actions. Responding to
the NA President’s word, the Vice President of the Oriental Republic
of Uruguay has noted that, taking as a basis the UN principles,
Uruguay is for the peaceful settlement of the Karabakh problem,
based on the peoples’ freedom and the nations’ self-determination,
as well as the principles territorial integrity.

“We should respect the freedom, culture, traditions of the people
living on that land,” Danilo Astori added.

In the course of the meeting the sides also discussed other issues
of bilateral interest. Hovik Abrahamyan invited Danilo Astori to
Armenia on an official visit: the invitation was gladly accepted. The
NA President left a note in the Book of Honourable Guests.

The delegation led by the NA President took a tour in the building
of the General Assembly of Uruguay.

On the same day Hovik Abrahamyan and the members of the delegation
led by him visited the Armenia Square in the centre of Montevideo and
laid a wreath and flowers at the monument perpetuating the memory of
the victims of the Genocide. Hovik Abrahamyan had a warm and sincere
talk with the representatives of the Armenian community.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT LACKS SKILLED TEAM – FORMER MP

15:34 ~U 22.11.13

A former member of Armenia’s National Assembly said Friday that the
existing difficulties in the country cannot be entirely blamed on
the president.

“I do not demand that Serzh Sargsyan step down because I find that
there are others apart from him who have to think about bringing the
country out of this

situation; they are to blame for that,” Zohrab Zohrabyan told a
news conference.

“The country is really in a deplorable condition, but is only the
president to blame for that? Yes, 90 percent of the authorities are
to responsible for this situation”.

Asked whether the former parliament member consider himself an
opposition figure, Zohrabyan replied, “I have never considered myself
an opposition figure, and I do not now. I have always considered
myself the servant of the people. I am in politics and keep track
of everything; I am aware of the positive and negative aspects of
all parties.”

Speaking of Armenia’s Customs Union integration process, the former
lawmaker said he all in all supports the initiative, without having
serious concerns. “That may stir up concerns in a person who doesn’t
know what it is. I think it is necessary to conduct a referendum
over that. But it is important to keep in mind that we are greatly
dependent on Russia today,” Zohrabyan said.

According to him, it is highly important for Russia to fully guard
the Armenian borders today. All the rest, he said, depends fully on
the Armenian people.

Grigor Melkonyan: A 3rd Generation Gyumri Tinsmith Struggles to Keep
the Family Business Going

Kristine Aghalaryan
13:32, November 23, 2013

As I approached, no sounds emanated from the workshop of Gyumri tinsmith Grigor.

The craftsman wasn’t in the mood to either talk or work. He appeared
irritated, saying that he felt a bit out of sorts and that his
relatives were getting on his nerves.

He didn’t go into details.

When I asked about his trade, Grigor only hemmed and hawed. `Who’s
left to work for? They’re all going.

Grigor Melkonian learnt the craft from his father, who learnt it from
his father. Now 60, Grigor has been a tinsmith for 40 years.

The craftsman is helped by his sons when the need arises. Even though
they are college graduates, they haven’t found jobs in their fields.

`My oldest son has such a touch. He’s a better craftsman than me,’
Grigor boasts, who says that the secret of being a quality tinsmith is
getting the sizes and forms into proper balance.

Gyumri was once full of master craftsman like Grigor. Sadly, their
numbers have substantially thinned over the years.

`There’s no advancement. We’re slowly falling behind. They’re bringing
all imported goods to heat their homes. People say those Italian gas
burners are cleaner and such. But the price of gas will one day become
so exorbitant that they’ll be forced to come and buy these wood
stoves. The heat from wood is different,’ Grigor says.

He also points to how the big businessmen are pushing out craftsmen
like him with imports of stove pipes and other tin items. But he
argues that the stuff is poor quality and that people only buy them
because they mistakenly believe that imports are better than
domestically produced items.

`Those imports don’t last long. So the people regret buying them and
come back to me for handmade items,’ Grigor adds.

The craftsman has built a burner for his home that works with gas and
wood. When gas supplies are cut, the family uses wood. They also use
the stove to bake bread and pastries.

Moving around the small workshop, we’d constantly bump into a large suitcase.

After slowly opening up, Grigor confessed that he was angry with his
nephew; his sister’s son, who had left for Russia for seasonal work.
But the authorities had deported him. The suitcase in the workshop was
his.

Many are leaving Gyumri, and the exodus has Grigor worried. He says
that the neighboring houses on his street are all empty and that
craftsmen once lived there. One was a furniture maker, one was a
jeweler.

Grigor says that furniture imported from Iran forced his neighbor to
close up shop and leave for Russia.

`When a jeweler leaves, who will stay on?’ Grigor asks, and then
answers his own question. `Even at the worst of times, a jeweler would
make 10-15,000 AMD a day. But the guy just packed up and left.’

Grigor believes that no one appreciates his trade nowadays. His son
also travels to Russia for seasonal work. The craftsman tries to
convince his son to stay and take over the business, but to no avail.

`He says, I’ll go and make a few bucks a day. I’ll send it back so the
kids can live. But the kids don’t see their father for ten months out
of the year. Is that right, for a child to grow up without a father?
They’ll grow up to be good for nothings.’

Grigor then offered us some chocolate and bid us farewell. We looked
at the wrapping. The chocolate was made in Russia.

The tinsmith’s deported nephew had brought it back with him.

Parliament Condemns Disclaimer of Armenian and Greek Genocide

By Sotiria Nikolouli

November 23, 2013

The Turkish embassy in Australia used the space of the federal
parliament in Canberra, in order to adopt a firm position that there
was no genocide of Armenians, Greeks and Assyrians during the First
World War. The Turkish embassy stated its gratitude to the institution
of Australian Turkish Advocacy-Alliance, which invited the American
Professor Justin McCarthy. This professor argued that there was never
Armenian Genocide.

Moreover, the Turkish embassy mentioned that the professor toured
Australia and gave speeches in Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra,
restoring the `truth’ about the historical events of 2015. His speech
in Canberra in the hall of the federal parliament caused many
reactions.

Many members of Parliament and organizations of Armenians, Jews and
Greeks noted that it is unacceptable to allow a genocide disclaimer to
express his unhistorical views in the Australian parliament.
Therefore, Australian parliament condemned the extremist positions of
Professor Justin McCarthy, as well as the Australian politicians who
allowed him to take the step.

McCarthy admitted that over a million Armenians were killed in 1915
but he said `it was not done under a systematic genocide plan.’

The former Federal Labour MP Steve Georganas expressed his regret for
the Turkish propaganda made by the Australian parliament,’ adding that
this was unacceptable.

The parliament of New South Wales, in May last year, recognized the
genocide of Greeks, Armenians and Assyrians by the Ottoman Empire. The
state of South Australia also recognized the Pontian Genocide.

– See more at:

D. Tonoyan: Russian military base in Armenia equipped with 18 helicopters

Saturday, Novembe 23, 2013

The Russian military base in Armenia is deployed in various areas –
military towns whose list is subject to change in case of need, First
Deputy Defense Minister of Armenia David Tonoyan said in an interview
with RFE/RL Armenian service, when commenting on the Armenian
government’s decision to allocate additional areas to the Russian
military base.

In his words, the latest decision to allocate additional lands to the
Russian side stems from Armenia’s security interests. He said that for
the same reason the Russian base is being equipped with 18
helicopters.

`The air force component of the 102nd base is being reinforced with a
helicopter squadron as the military base’s tasks of ensuring the
security of Armenia have changed,’ the deputy minister said.

He explained that the lands allocated for modernization of the Russian
air base located in Erebuni Airport and for its re-equipment with
modern weapons are not used currently by Armenian troops and have been
provided for temporary use.

`The temporary use means a period, for which the deployment of the
Russian military base in Armenia has been extended,’ the deputy
minister clarified.

Let us remind you that in April 2011 Armenia’s National Assembly
ratified a decision to prolong the deployment of the Russian military
base in Armenia for 49 years.

Asked on what conditions the areas are allocated and if the Russia
side pays for them, David Tonoyan replied: `Russia does not pay
financially, but our agreements on ensuring our security are above
financial aspects’.

Asked why the Russian military base is being modernized and if that
modernization means that tension has increased, D. Tonoyan said: `I
would call it a preventive step to ensure regional security, but the
Russian base is also being brought into line with modern standards’.

As regards the further development of Armenia-NATO relations given
that, according to statements of the Armenian authorities, Armenia
will join the Customs Union in a few months, the deputy minister said:
`From the viewpoint of cooperation in the spheres where we cooperate,
it is assistance with our reforms, our military training, and
formation of our skills in peacekeeping cooperation. In this sense we
don’t see any restrictions for our cooperation with NATO or EU
countries’. NATO’s cooperation with Armenia is being carried out
within the framework of the Individual Partnership Action Plan (IPAP),
he added.

The recent gunfire opened by Azerbaijan at border areas of Tavush
province in Armenia was also discussed during the talk with the deputy
minister. Asked why the Azerbaijan side displayed such activity as
there had been no similar incidents in recent years, D. Tonoyan said:
`In recent years Azerbaijan didn’t hold presidential elections, nor
was a new defense minister appointed. Our analysis shows that it was
more conditioned by the transition period when the new defense
minister was appointed’.

`Since the moment when the Minsk Group Co-chairs said that military
actions can be seen as actions aimed at damaging peace efforts, the
number of ceasefire violations has declined sharply,’ David Tonoyan
added.

TODAY, 14:45
Aysor.am

Azerbaijan violates ceasefire 200 times last week

November 23, 2013 | 14:13

STEPANAKERT. – The Azerbaijani side violated the ceasefire, at the
line of contact between the Karabakh-Azerbaijani opposing forces,
around 200 times last week.

On November 17-23, more than 1,000 shots were fired, and by way of
different-caliber weapons, informs the NKR MOD press service.

The NKR Defense Army vanguard units adequately responded to the
adversary and established control along the line of contact.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

Heritage Party Bill Would Punish Those MPs Who Vote In Place of Absent
Colleagues

Grisha Balasanyan

11:58, November 23, 2013

Three Heritage Party MPs have introduced a bill in the Armenian
Parliament that would discipline any MP who votes in the place of
another.

Zaruhie Postanjyan, Rubik Hakobyan and Tevan Poghosyan have proposed
changes to the National Assembly’s Procedural Code that they hope will
minimize such voting practices and maximize transparency of what
exactly takes place in the halls of the legislature.

If passed, MPs who vote in the stead of absent colleagues would be
regarded as having violated procedural norms, and could be subject to
a variety of disciplinary actions including being issued a warning,
being removed from chambers for up to six days, and being deprived
from addressing a parliament session.

RUSSIE-ARMENIE
L’armée russe stationnée en Arménie va disposer d’une base
d’hélicoptères à l’aéroport « Erébouni » d’Erévan

De nouveaux espaces de l’aéroport « Erébouni » d’Erévan vont être mis
à la disposition de la 102ème base militaire russe stationnée en
Arménie. Lors de la séance de travail du gouvernement arménien le 21
novembre, le vice-ministre de la Défense, Ara Nazarian a présenté le
projet de cette mise à disposition d’espaces. Une partie de ces
surfaces sera utilisée par une escadrille d’hélicoptères militaires
russes avec ses btiments militaires et administratifs ainsi que les
ateliers et réserves abritant les combustibles. Ce développement de la
présence militaire russe en Arménie découle des accords de coopération
militaire arméno-russe. La Russie s’engageant à développer ses forces
en Arménie dans le cadre de la 102ème base militaire russe. La Russie
prévoyant d’envoyer ce mois-ci en Arménie 18 hélicoptères militaires.

Krikor Amirzayan

samedi 23 novembre 2013,
Krikor Amirzayan ©armenews.com