Author: Kalantarian Kevo

ARMENIAN OPPOSITION REP SPEAKS OF RAFFI HOVANNISIAN’S STEPS – (VIDEO)

21:39 ~U 11.03.13

Chairman of the Republic party Aram Sargsyan believes that the
situation will change in Armenia if Raffi Hovannisian’s supporters
come to Freedom Square on March 15 and prove they are the majority.

“In many respect we, residents of Armenia, cannot understand Raffi
Hovannisian’s approaches. And I think that Serzh Sargsyan cannot
understand either,” he told journalists on Monday.

Referring to Heritage party Chairman Raffi Hovannisian, Mr Sargsyan
said that Serzh Sargsyan should come to Freedom Square regardless of
whether he considers the people there a majority or minority. “We know
an example. Karen Demirchyan did not ignore the people and came to the
square when the Nagorno-Karabakh problem was raised. So let them come.

What are they ashamed of?”

If right political steps are made – with Raffi Hovannisian’s hunger
strike being the first, resigning from parliament being the second
and gathering as many people as possible at rallies the third – Serzh
Sargsyan will not only come to Freedom Square, but will also be ready
for, at least, new parliamentary elections. “The one listening to
opinions is the leader,” Mr Sargsyan said.

According to him, Raffi Hovannisian’s steps are a way out of the
deadlock in Armenia.

AMBASSADOR NAZARYAN ISSUED LETTER TO UN SECRETARY GENERAL UNDERLINING DISTORTION OF HISTORICAL FACTS BY AZERBAIJAN

18:43, 11 March, 2013

YEREVAN, MARCH 11, ARMENPRESS: Armenian Permanent Representative to the
UN, Ambassador Karen Nazaryan has addressed a letter to UN Secretary
General regarding recent Azerbaijani shameful propaganda in New York
on Khojali events. As Armenpress was informed from Armenian Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, it was mainly noted in the letter that Azerbaijan had
been recently manipulating Khojali events in order to strengthen its
anti-Armenian propaganda both inside the UN and outside its framework.

Referring to the posters of “Azerbaijani-American alliance” in New
York City reading “Khojaly genocide: Human tragedy in Azerbaijan;
help Azerbaijanis and Armenians to reach peace”, Ambassador notes that
besides the unacceptable interference in public life of the city,
where central office of UN and diplomatic representations of other
states are situated, distortion of facts and Azerbaijani propaganda
containing ethnic hatred are deeply concerning.

“This terrible initiative financed by Azerbaijan gives birth to
xenophobia and hatred and endangers the aspiration of nations to
reach lasting peace based on truth and justice. Azerbaijan constantly
distorts the Khojaly events of 1992, which, according to different
international organizations and the Azerbaijani leadership, including
then President Ayaz Mutalibov, were organized by the opposition
“Popular Front” movement,” is noted in the letter.

Ambassador Nazaryan has added that by taking such steps Azerbaijan
is trying to black out its crimes, escape from the responsibility of
militarizing the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. If Azerbaijan really wants
to help Armenians and Azerbaijanis to reach peace and settlement of
the issue, it should direct efforts to constructive participation
in the negotiations within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group,
noted Karen Nzaryan.

CZECH COACH HOPES FOR GOOD RESULTS IN ARMENIA, DENMARK MATCHES

March 11, 2013 – 17:09 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Coach of the Czech Republic national football team
Michal Bílek voiced hope for good performance in 2014 FIFA World Cup
qualifiers against Denmark and Armenia.

“These are qualifying matches and of course there be changes in the
squad,” rozhlas.cz quoted Bílek as saying.

Czech Republic comes 3rd in Group B with 5 points, Armenia is placed
3rd with 3 points while Denmark is 5th with 2 points. Italy leads
the group with 10 points.

ARMENIA, BRAZIL INTERESTED IN EXPANDING TIES

15:58 11.03.2013

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian received Vera Machado,
Deputy Foreign Minister of Brazil.

Greeting the guest, Minister Nalbandian said Armenia attaches
importance to the development of Armenian-Brazilian relations and
expressed confidence that with joint effort it will be possible to
use the potential of expansion of bilateral ties more efficiently.

According to the Minister, it’s necessary to reinforce the legal
framework, deepen the economic relations and cooperation within
international organizations.

Vera Machado noted that “Brazil is interested in expanding the
relations with friendly Armenia in all domains” and that’s what her
visit it aimed at.

The interlocutors exchanged views on a number of issues on bilateral
agenda and referred to regional and international questions.

BAKU SAYS GEORGIAN MINISTER’S STATEMENTS IN YEREVAN UNTIMELY

Mon 11 March 2013 11:05 GMT | 11:05 Local Time

Defence Minister of Georgia Irakly Alasaniya called the threats to
knock down civil airplanes unacceptable at a joint news conference with
Armenian Defence Minister Seyran Ohanyan at a joint news conference
in Yerevan.

The Defence Ministry of Azerbaijan has repeatedly stated that the
illegal flights to the occupied lands of Azerbaijan will be averted
and adequate measures will be taken in case they are implemented.

According to head of the Great Creation Party, MM Deputy Fazil
Gazanfaroglu, this statement of the Georgian side complies with the
current political course of Georgia.

“Tbilisi does not set the problems of South Ossetia and Abkhazia
and Nagorno Karabakh onto the same line on the international arena,
therefore, Azerbaijani side need not to stand for the territorial
integrity of Georgia”, he said, 1news.az reports.

Gazanfaroglu considers that Georgia’s position goes contrary to the
national interests of Azerbaijan, which is why Baku should introduce
changes into the previous consistent course in relation to this
country.

“Azerbaijan must not raise the issue of the territorial integrity of
Georgia during the international events”, he said.

The deputy reminded that this is not the first case demonstrated by
the new government of Georgia.

“Earlier there were the statements of Georgian Premier Bidzina
Ivanishvili in Yerevan which were assessed as contrary to the national
interests of Azerbaijan”, he said.

In these issues Georgia must not take the stance which may cause
resentment in Baku, Gazanfaroglu believes.

He said ‘Georgians are making this statement in Yerevan to win favor,
to demonstrate their warm relations with Armenia”.

“Here there is also a message to Russia: you see, we are making ties
closer with your ally and would also like to improve relations with
you too”, he said.

In turn, parliamentary, political scientist Rasim Musabayov believes
that the situation should not be dramatized.

“He was asked in Yerevan and answered. If you ask 99% of people,
can civil aircrafts be knocked down, they will say no. But if you
ask the same Alasaniya, is it possible to carry out these flights
without Azerbaijan’s consent, he will say no”, he said.

“If you ask me, is it acceptable to knock civil airplanes down, I
will also say no. But these airplanes cannot forced to land. These
are different things”, the deputy said.

“He was asked and gave the reply”, he said, “Do you want him to say
in Yerevan that Azerbaijan will do it right to knock your airplane
down”, Rasim Musabayov said.

Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Araz Azimov said that the
Azerbaijani side will not allow illegal flights in its airspace.

News.Az

“DREAM DO LAND” CLASSES UNITE REPRESENTATIVES OF 8 COUNTRIES

09:54, 11 March, 2013

YEREVAN, MARCH 11, ARMENPRESS. “Creative Enterprising” International
Training Program will be introduced in Armenia on the initiative
of the Federation of Youth Clubs of Armenia and Norwegian IRIS
organization on March 4-12. The Federation of Youth Clubs of
Armenia informed “Armenpress” that the program is based upon the
conviction that creativity and innovations are inseparable parts of
the enterprising sphere. During these days the youths affirm that
they are willing to adopt creative approach in the enterprising and
can acquire all necessary skills and knowledge to have success due
to informal education.

The program targets to help the participants to develop their outlook
thanks to professional instruments and group work keeping in mind that
any innovation is based upon dreams and that one should never give up
dreaming. The Chairman of the Federation of Youth Clubs of Armenia
Artyom Mkhitaryan is convinced that the program is successful as a
number of participants representing various cultures have opportunity
to introduce their programs and vision, acquire knowledge and develop
their skills as well.

The Federation of Youth Clubs of Armenia, Economic policy experts
center from Georgia, Youth Theatre “Light” company from Russia,
Biedriba Kukuzi from Latvia, LegaPro from Lithuania, Association
Gantalcala from Spain, Student Media World Association from Bulgaria
and Norwegian IRIS organization participate in the program.

FROM MOSCOW TO FREEDOM SQUARE
HAKOB BADALYAN

12:16 12/03/2013
Story from Lragir.am News:

The Sargsyan-Putin meeting to be held today in Moscow is very
important taking into account the dynamics of international political
processes. At the same time, the Moscow meeting is said to be crucial,
which most probably is not true.

It is naïve to think that Russia will try or expects to get all the
answers during the meeting with Sargsyan. After the presidential
elections in Armenia, congratulations coming from the West reminded an
act of political agreement rather than imprest. There can’t be so
clear imprest. Imprest is cautious, while the Western congratulations
were not cautious.

This means that the West is safe in terms of the Armenian-Russian
relations. In other words, Serzh Sargsyan has formed “secure Armenia”
for the West. Russia will try to get its portion of “security” in
Moscow. This means that the status quo of the past five years when
Armenia has been trying to deepen its relations with the West will be
reinforced but not at Russia’s expense.

This is good for everyone currently.

In the meantime, Armenian citizens are fighting for their right to
“security” on Freedom square. It is something usual for Armenia when
the government commits to foreign countries first. The Armenian
citizen is the last place for the Armenian government because it is
not certain whether Serzh Sargsyan will commit to the Armenian
citizens even having committed to the West and Russia.

In other words, will he go to Freedom Square?

The issue is not a meeting with Raffi Hovannisian. It is clear that
neither Raffi Hovannisian nor Serzh Sargsyan is to resolve Armenia’s
main issues. A new movement to be formed in Armenia will resolve them.

Fortunately or unfortunately, Raffi Hovannisian and Serzh Sargsyan
have key roles or even a historic mission now. Raffi Hovannisian is
evidently trying to commit to that role despite different opinions on
his tactics. Serzh Sargsyan is trying to avoid responsibility by
referring to foreign challenges. Meanwhile, the same challenges force
to assume responsibility before citizens and a historic mission.

Sargsyan has examples when figures who avoided commitments to their
country in a historical period appeared in the dump of history and
politics.

CARLSEN SAYS ARONIAN MOST DANGEROUS OPPONENT IN LONDON

March 12, 2013 – 11:04 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Norway’s Magnus Carlsen sees the Armenian world No 3,
Levon Aronian, as his most dangerous opponent at London-hosted Chess
Candidates Tournament, The Guardian reported.

“He has supreme confidence and belief in himself, is very well
prepared, can evaluate non-standard positions very well and never
backs down,” says Carlsen in a tribute to a fellow chess optimist.

Asked if Carlsen would be disappointed if he failed to make it
through to the world championship match, the chess player said,
“It would depend on the performance. If I score plus four and Aronian
scores plus six, I will probably have had a quite good tournament and
there’s not much I can do. If I feel I haven’t been able to show my
best, then I will be disappointed. But life goes on, and whether I
win or lose I will still be 22 with most of my career ahead of me.”

Aronian will face off against Carlsen in the first round, due March
15. The tournament will run from March 15 to April 1.

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
March 10 2013

Post-election Armenia and the Karabakh question

10 March 2013 /SÃ`REYYA YÄ°Ä?Ä°T*
Elections are denoted by adversarial campaigns with the result
signifying an end to divisions and the beginning of the process of
constructing national unity.
The past two presidential elections in Armenia have resulted in
acrimonious accusations of electoral fraud and a general sense of
injustice. Last month witnessed the re-election of President Serzh
Sarksyan, with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE) criticizing the participation of so many civil servants in the
campaign of the incumbent, leading to difficulties in separating the
activities of the state with those of the ruling party. Therefore, the
election had major deficiencies, which must be acted upon.

In this post-election period, Armenia faces significant domestic and
regional challenges. On the home front, despite recent economic
growth, which has led to lower unemployment and a decrease in poverty,
the country remains poor in regional terms, with transparency a
pressing issue coupled with judicial independence. For Armenia to
fulfill its economic potential these hurdles must be overcome in order
for citizens to be able to purchase the homes and cars that President
Sarksyan promised during his campaign.

Energy is another topic that invites heated discussions. The Metsamor
Nuclear Power Plant located approximately 30 kilometers away from the
capital, Yerevan, was to shut down in 2006. Not only is it still
operating, but it contributes almost 40 percent of Armenia’s
electricity. After safety checks it was announced last November that
the lifespan would be extended to 2026, with the government estimating
the cost of a new, 1,000-megawatt unit at $5 billion with a Russian
company favored for the construction. Armenian environmentalists
oppose such plans, fearing that the country — due to a lack of
farsighted alternative energy sources — is sitting on a time bomb.

Internationally, Armenian foreign policy has held steadfastly to
strengthening and deepening its special allied relationship with
Russia. This was reinforced in January by the head of the Collective
Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) visiting Yerevan and declaring
that Russia and Armenia are to establish joint defense enterprises.
The visit included a large delegation of Russian arms-industry
managers who sought to integrate Armenia’s military-industrial complex
with Russia.

Despite the historic link to Russia, Armenia attaches great importance
to strengthening its friendly partnership with the United States, due
to its diaspora in the country. Nearer to home, the policy of
integration with European nations, especially the EU, is high on the
agenda. Last month Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian highlighted the
progress achieved in implementing the Eastern Partnership (EaP) and
emphasized the hope of concluding negotiations over the Deep and
Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) before autumn.

Whilst Armenian foreign policy desires normal relations with
neighbors, seeking to establish relations based on open borders and
partnership, it has been unsuccessful in this endeavor. Relations with
Azerbaijan and Turkey are nonexistent due to Armenia’s occupation of
Nagorno-Karabakh and its uncompromising interpretation of the tragic
events of 1915. Only this week, the OSCE Minsk Group expressed
concerns relating to civilian flights to Nagorno-Karabakh and the
recent violence on the line of contact, declaring they would travel in
the coming weeks to the region to discuss with Presidents Sarksyan and
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev the next steps aimed at reaching a
peaceful resolution of the conflict.

Within the region Armenia has already lost out on energy
infrastructure, with the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan and the
Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipelines avoiding Armenian territory. It
faces the same situation with transport infrastructure with the
Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway project forecast to be completed by the end
of 2013. Armenia has sought alternatives to rail development through
further cooperation with Iran, with which Armenia already cooperates
in the fields of energy and communication.

Previous bilateral discussions had concentrated on a pipeline to
deliver Iranian oil products to Armenia, and a major hydroelectric
station on the Aras River marking the Armenian-Iranian border. To this
has been added the plan to build a railway connecting the two
countries which is estimated to cost $2 billion. In 2009, Iran offered
a $400 million loan for the railway, which indicated Armenia would
have to pay for the lion’s share as it possesses very little rail
infrastructure in its southeastern region, which borders Iran. Given
current Armenian finances, the railway project will remain just that,
a proposed project.

Last November, Turkey proposed to the Minsk Group the Integrated
Transportation Corridors Project, which involves a two-prong approach.
First, it concentrated on linking Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan and
Russia through repairing unused railways and building new ones.
Second, Turkey’s railway links with Armenia could also be operational
alongside the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway line. Furthermore, running
parallel to the railway, a newly constructed road would also help
increase commercial and human traffic between the two countries.

The proposal considers the creation of mass housing projects along the
transport routes so that a new regional hub can emerge. Such a plan
could lead to a revival of economic activity and assist locals in
terms of jobs, trade, investment and tourism. The Turkish proposal
also looks forward to linking the Caucasus to both Europe and Asia via
the Marmaray Project, connecting a rail network between London and
Beijing, thus extending the ancient Silk Road westwards and northwards
all the way to the North Sea. In the final analysis, unless and until
Armenia offers a fair and just solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh issue,
it remains doomed to regional isolation and overdependence on Russia.

*Dr. Süreyya YiÄ?it is Eurasia advisor at the Center for Middle Eastern
Strategic Studies (ORSAM) and a lecturer at İstanbul Aydın University.

US Official News
March 8, 2013 Friday

Connecticut: Symposium: `After the Trauma of the Holocaust and Genocide”
Hartford

University of Hartford, The State of Connecticut has issued the
following press release:

On Tuesday, March 12, following a visit to campus by Rwandan President
Paul Kagame, the Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies will host a
symposium titled `After the Trauma of the Holocaust and Genocide:
Survival, Memorialization, and Reconstruction.’

The symposium will take place at 3:30 p.m. in Wilde Auditorium. The
program is free and open to the public, but you must reserve a seat by
contacting the Greenberg Center at 860.768.4964 or [email protected]

During the symposium, distinguished scholars from New England
universities will discuss genocide and Holocaust education. They are:

– Avinoam Patt, the Philip D. Feltman Professor of Modern Jewish
History and director of the Museum of Jewish Civilization at the
University of Hartford, who will moderate the discussion;

– Lisa J. Laplante, law professor and human rights scholar and
researcher and interim director of the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center
at the University of Connecticut, who will speak on `Post-Conflict
Recovery and Transitional Justice;’

– Steven Rosenthal, professor of history at the University of
Hartford, who will speak on `The Proliferation of Genocides in the
20th Century;’

– Mari Firkatian, professor of history at the University of Hartford’s
Hillyer College, who will speak about `Remembering the Armenian
Genocide;’

– Shyamala Raman, professor of economics and international studies at
the University of St. Joseph, who will speak on `Vision 20/20 in
Rwanda and the Millennium Development Goals;’ and

– Sara Brown, doctoral candidate in Holocaust and genocide studies at
Clark University, who will speak on `The Genocide in Rwanda:
Perpetrators, Victims, Rescuers and Recovery.’

For further information please visit: