Author: Kanayan Tamar

Armenia truly determined to conduct parliamentary elections in
accordance with international standards

armradio.am
07.03.2012 12:58

President Serzh Sargsyan met with the President of the European
Council Herman Van Rompuy. At the conclusion of the meeting, the
President of Armenia and President of the European Council made a
joint statement for press.

President Serzh Sargsyan stated, in part:

‘We have discussed today with Mr. Rompuy issues related to Armenia-EU
cooperation and spoke about our future actions. We stressed the
importance of quite good developments currently present in the
relations between Armenia and European Union and reiterated our
determination to constantly deepen our cooperation in various spheres,
aimed at the reformation in the areas of economy, good governance,
democracy, human rights, rule of law and all aspects of social life.

We have also touched upon the process of the wide-range reforms which
are conducted in accordance with the European standards and reiterated
that these reforms constitute part of our general agenda with the EU.

We also underscored that progress registered in our negotiations on
the Association Agreement testifies to the common approaches and
understanding of the parties on the fundamental issues. We have noted
with satisfaction that in the nearest future we will launch
negotiations with EU on the creation of the Deep and Comprehensive
Free Trade Zone. We have also highlighted the importance of the
negotiations on visa facilitation with the EU countries which kicked
off quite recently in Yerevan.

We have also spoken about recommendations pertinent to the South
Caucasus states which were adopted by the EU Council on February 27. I
stated my satisfaction that in the section related to Armenia, the EU
position concurs with our approaches. It clearly reflects progress
achieved in our relations on all critical issues of our agenda.

Particularly gratifying are recommendations related to the NK
conflict. They once again reiterate the fact that positions of Armenia
and the international community, including EU, coincide. We have
stated on many occasions that people of NK are part of the European
family and carriers of the same values. Armenia has stressed more than
once the necessity of direct contacts with the authorities of Nagorno
Karabakh.

With Mr. Rompuy we spoke also about cooperation in the area of human
rights which in recent years has become rather active.

Meetings in the framework of the Armenia-EU dialogue on human rights
have already taken place three times, which, in mutual assessment,
have been conducted in an open and constructive atmosphere.

Such mechanism is providing a reciprocal opportunity to discuss issues
of mutual interest and concern, as well as to discuss prospects of
concrete cooperation in the area of protection of human rights.

We have also spoken about the upcoming parliamentary elections in
Armenia. I have noted that the leadership of Armenia is truly
determined to organize and conduct parliamentary elections in May,
2012 in accordance with the international standards. We are unwavering
in our resolve to give a new impetus to the comprehensive reforms
conducted in Armenia. With this regard, organization of free and fair
elections is of pivotal importance. I thank you for an engaging
conversation and we are looking forward to seeing you in Yerevan.
Thank you for keeping your promise.’

Georgia Denies Uranium Enrichment Rumors

2012-03-07 13:17:32 | Georgia | World News

The government of Georgia `categorically denies’ rumors that it was
preparing to enrich uranium and considered building a nuclear power
plant.

A CNN iReport blogger wrote that uranium enrichment facilities were
being prepared at Georgia’s Delta military center.

`This entry in the CNN iReport blog is, of course, a hoax,’ Georgia’s
First Deputy Energy and Natural Resources Minister Mariam Valishvili
said, adding that the report could be a deliberate provocation and was
not an official CNN report.

She also denied reports that the Georgian administration planned to
build a nuclear power plant in the country.

Georgian Energy Minister Alexander Khetaguri earlier said his country
might need a nuclear power plant in 30 years.

`Georgia has neither need nor capability to carry out such plans to
date. But it’s hard to predict what will happen in 30-50 years,’
Valishvili said.

News from Armenia and Diaspora – Noyan Tapan

Territories To Russia

Story from Lragir.am News:

Published: 14:39:00 – 07/03/2012

During today’s session of the government, some Armenian territories
have been allocated to Russia based on the agreement on mutual
provision of real estate in Armenia and Russia for the establishment
of diplomatic representations of both countries.

The Armenian diplomatic representation will be provided one territory,
while Russia will have several territories in Armenia.

In particular, an area of 3 hectares near Aghveran resort in Arzni
with its buildings will be given to the Russian side, as well as a 158
square meters area in Gyumri has been allotted to the Russian side for
the establishment of the Consulate General. Another 1 hectare area
near the Yerevan-Ashtarak road has also been allotted to the Russian
side.

According to the vice-foreign minister Shavarsh Kocharyan, the price
of the area allotted by Russia is USD 10 million, while all the
territories allotted to Russia in Armenia don’t even amount USD 10
thousand. At the same time, he noted that the Russia legislation
forbids allocating the territory in Moscow to Armenia on property
right. Armenians will use it for 100 years.

Businessmen Lament: `They want us to practice European values while
continuing Asian graft’
Levon Hayrapetyan

HETQ
13:49, March 3, 2012

After meeting with a dozen or so medium and large entrepreneurs, one
thing was evidently apparent – their fear. None wanted their names to
be used for this article.

They were fearful for the continued operation of their businesses and
their long-term prospects of remaining in Armenia.

Many were thinking of moving their businesses out of Armenia.

`The government wants us to play by European rules while continuing
the Asian practice paying bribes and graft,’ lamented one businessman.

Another one said that the vast majority of informed businessmen in
Armenia wanted to operate according to the law, to pay their taxes,
and devote their energies into growing their businesses.

`Nobody wants to line the pockets of government officials who do
nothing to assist us,’ he said.

They all pointed to the practice of setting arbitrary `control prices’
by customs officials in Armenia as the crux of the matter. `If these
prices are kept in place, if they do not allow us to breathe, then the
only option remaining is to close up shop,’ said one entrepreneur.
`This issue must be discussed in the press so that those in government
will also review the matter.’

The mechanism of customs formulations at Ararat Regional Customs

Authorized representatives of both legal entities and individuals must
declare goods to the customs house after receiving documents for the
imported goods from the customs warehouse.

Each organization is parceled between brokerage offices, whose
directors happen to be the heads of various customs agency units
operating in the `shadows’. Thus, it is absurd to say that companies
can get their goods cleared through customs simply by submitting a
standard customs declaration. Only one or two companies are allowed
such `self declarations’, and even then, permission comes from the
very top of the State Customs Committee. We are now looking into these
brokerage offices and will shortly publish the actual names of their
owners.

Infractions in the Valuation Division

After the initial declaration, the customs declaration and other
relevant paperwork is presented to the appraisal division where the
chief and his deputy apply the so-called `control prices’ to the
imported goods. And this takes place regardless of whether the
shipment was processed by Article 87 (1st method) or Article 91 (4th
method) of the Customs Code.

What really irritates businessmen in Armenia is that these `control
prices’ do not seem to have any connection at all to international
market prices.

There is an unwritten law at work in the valuation division related to
the halving of the VAT to be paid to the government. In essence, of
the difference of the VAT between the value of goods imported by legal
or physical entities and the value mandated by customs officials is
divvied up according to a 40-60% or 50-50% formula. For example:

Version1 (Customs Code Article 87, Point 1): If the goods invoice
shows a price of 1,000 dram for 1 kilo, then the control price set by
customs is 1,500 dram. Customs officials then tell you to pay 200 dram
rather than the planned 300 dram in VAT. At the end of the month, the
importer pays 8 dram in bribes to a top level customs official for the
100 dram saved in VAT payments. This is possible because each official
at customs has control of their own little fiefdom to operate as they
please.

Version 2 (Customs Code Article 91, Point 4): Here the amount of bribe
to customs decreases, which is why the customs officials agree to this
method only grudgingly. For example, if as in Version 1 above, the
invoice value of 1 kilo of an imported good is 1,000 dram and the
control price 1,500 dram, the goods are processed at 1,200 dram. Thus,
the VAT to be paid to the government becomes 240 dram and a bribe to
be paid at the end of each month is 4.8 dram (40-60% relationship) for
each 60 dram saved on per kilo.

An unsuspecting businessman accepts the `helping hand’ of customs the
first time (for helping to pay less taxes), without realizing that he
is being moved by the customs official to `shadow’ commercial
activity. The bribes cannot be written off and the company’s financial
books cannot account for the loss. The businessman, in order to
make-up the amount of the paid bribes (which amount to a considerable
sum at the end of the month), must either sell a quantity of goods at
a price violation or at a low price.

After completing the shipment paperwork, the businessman falls into
the clutches of employees of the Armenian State Revenue Committee
(SRC), Pre-release Control Department, to overcome the final obstacle
of the shipment’s examination and release.

In addition to the fact that customs examiners can arbitrarily force
the emptying of the shipment in the customs terminal, saying that it
has to be examined and adding more expenses for the businessman, here
too the release tariffs are employed as bribes in the following way:

20 ft. container AMD 10-15,000

40 ft. container AMD 15-20,000

Cargo trucks AMD 35-40,000

Train car AMD 25-35,000

In the case of exports, examining officials demand $100 – $200 without
even examining the cargo, before they stamp the cargo and allow it to
pass.

Even after paying the bribe, the businessmen wait from 30 to 60
minutes for the OK from the Chief of the Pre-Control Department to
receive the cargo. After this, employees at the customs warehouse
Contraband Division must be paid AMD 5,000-10,000 to sign the cargo
pass permit.

These tariffs are used for both import and export of legal cargo, when
the shipment checks out in every detail to the accompanying cargo
paperwork.

(To be continued)

Armenian experts on Russia’s further policy

tert.am
16:14 – 06.03.12

Russia is unlikely change its policy toward the other members of the
Commonwealth of Independnent States (CIS), particularly Armenia,
because no serious cabinet reshuffle is expected, Alexander
Iskandaryan, Director of the Caucasus Institute, said during a
Yerevan-Moscow-Kiev-Astana space bridge on `Russia and CIS: new
scenario of relations.’

`Russia is important for Armenia, and the relations need to remain
traditional,’ Iskandaryan said. Armenia is interested in Russia’s
predictable domestic policy and traditional foreign policy, as Russia
is Armenia’s major strategic partner.

With repect to Russia’s ties with its neighbors and the CIS
member-states as its foreign-policy priorities Iskandaryan said that
neither `Medvedev’s’ nor `Putin’s’ foreign policy has ever existed.
`Decisions have always been, to put it mildly, concerted ones,’ the
Armenian expert said.

As regards Russia’s policy in the South Caucasus, Alexander Markarov,
Dirdctor of the Armenia branch, CIS Institute, does not expect any
essential changes.

`A different leader, but the same content,’ Markarov said. The
`leader’s style’ is the only difference between Vladimir Putin and
Dmitri Medvedev, he added.

Russia will focus its policy in the South Caucasus on retaining its
positions, with further development of bilateral political, economic
and humanitarian cooperation, Markarov said.

Not only bilateral relations, but also multilateral cooperation,
particularly, cooperation within the CIS and Collective Security
Treaty Organization (CSTO) will play a decisive role in Russia’s
policy in the post-Soviet area, the expert said.

Dutch MP meets with local Armenian community

news.am
March 07, 2012 | 11:51

The Armenian community of The Hague on Monday met with the
Netherlands’ Christian Union (SU) party MP Esmé Wiegman, who visited
Armenia and Karabakh along the lines of the party’s `Come and Help’
program.

Armenia’s Ambassador to the Netherlands, Dzyunik Aghajanyan, thanked
Wiegman for visiting Armenia and carrying out a beneficial activity,
and she expressed a hope that such visits would contribute to
expanding Armenian-Dutch ties.

Afterward, and with the help of photographs, the Dutch MP shared her
impressions of her visit to Armenia and Karabakh.

And in response to the question as to whether she was subjected to
Azerbaijani pressures and included in Azerbaijan’s `black list’ for
visiting Karabakh, Esmé Wiegman said she is adamant in that regard and
not accountable to anyone. She informed that her websites received
numerous hate mails from Turks and Azerbaijanis. `I do not understand
why they have so much hatred,’ she said and added: `I am the mother of
many children. I am raising my three boys. I definitely will encourage
them to visit Armenia.’

Yerkir: `Charity debate’ between Prosperous Armenia leader, his godson

11:09 – 07.03.12

The `charity debate’ between Chairman of the Prosperous Armenia Party
(PAP) Gagik Tsarukyan and the ex-chief of his bodyguard Artur
Harutyunyan (Butcher) seems to be taking a new turn.

Last morning the buses hired by the Gagik Tsarukyan charity did not
bring people from Abovyan to Yerevan free. On the other hands, more
buses were serving the Abovyan-Yerevan bus terminal route.

The local citizens say Mr Tsarukyan `had mercy on’ his godson Artur
Harutyunyan by letting his company King the Lux serve the route.

Tert.am

ERDOGAN ABOUT KHOJALU’S DEMONSTRATION: “NO ONE CAN CAST A SHADOW ON THE RALLY…”

20:19 . 06/03

The Turkish authorities continue to justify the anti-Armenian
nationalist demonstration held in Istanbul, which was devoted to
Khojalu events, as well as the contents of posters instilling hatred.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has again recalled the
events during the assembly of Justice and Development Party headed
by him.

No one can cast a shadow on the rally because, allegedly, nationalist
posters were noticed there. Even if there were such posters, it is
possible they may also be present in any mass action. No one can make
use of that to harm the image of our country. If those announcing
about it are the vanguards of human rights struggle, then why do they
keep silence on the events of Khojalu. If anyone considers Armenians
are their brothers then Khojalu residents are our brothers,” Erdogan
has said.

Facts have already been made public stating that the Azerbaijani
government has allocated 2mln USD for spending the anti-Armenian
demonstration in Taksim Square in Istanbul, which also gave rise to
the EU’s concern.

BAKU REJECTS CONFIDENCE-BUILDING MEASURES, SARKISIAN TELLS NATO

asbarez
Tuesday, March 6th, 2012

President Sarkisian with NATO’s Anders Fogh Rasmussen in Brusseles
Tuesday

BRUSSELES (Combined Sources)-Following a meeting with NATO
Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, President Serzh Sarkisian
said Tuesday that Azerbaijan rejected any confidence building measures
on the road to resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

“Azerbaijan turns down any confidence-building measure, be it targeted
at promoting regional cooperation or relieving the tension at the
line of contact. Unfortunately, Azerbaijan refuses to withdraw the
snipers from the line of contact and stands against investigation of
incidents,” said Sarkisian at a press conference at NATO Headquarters
in Brussels after meeting with Rasmussen.

“Furthermore, Azerbaijan’s war-mongering never stops. The Azerbaijani
leadership continues inciting hatred towards Armenians. Azerbaijan’s
President declared just a few days ago that world-spread Armenians
were number one enemy of Azerbaijanis. This fact should be properly
evaluated by the international community,” added Sarkisian who is
Brussels for meetings with NATO and European officials.

“We agreed with the Secretary General that the conflict should be
solved exceptionally through peaceful means and negotiations within
the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group. We are confident that the final
resolution of the Karabakh conflict is possible only on the basis of
respect for the right of peoples to self-determination and security
guarantees,” explained Sarkisian.

“Armenia is actively cooperating with NATO in all spheres. We are
successfully implementing reforms in the fields of defense, security
and emergency situations,” said Sarkisian. “We are glad that the NATO
and its Secretary General appreciate Armenia’s efforts towards ensuring
international peace and security. We realize that only with combined
efforts it is possible to withstand the challenges and threats. For
that purpose we tripled the number of Armenian troops in Afghanistan.”

“NATO and Armenia share many political priorities and security
interests,” the Secretary General said in his remarks at the press
conference. “And we have built up our cooperation and dialogue over
many years. Our relationship contributes to regional security and
Euro-Atlantic security. And we want to take it forward in that way.”

The meeting took place ahead of a North Atlantic Council summit
scheduled to take place in Chicago later this month.

ARDSHININVESTBANK ET LA BANQUE ASIATIQUE DE DEVELOPPEMENT ONT SIGNE UN ACCORD POUR UN PRET DE 15 MILLIONS DE $
Stephane

armenews.com
mercredi 7 mars 2012

Ardshininvestbank a attire de nouveaux fonds pour le financement des
petites et moyennes entreprises en Armenie. La Banque Asiatique de
Developpement lui a accorde un pret de 15 millions de $.

Il doit etre note que les deux parties ont signe plus tôt signe un
accord commercial en mars 2011.

Mher Grigoryan, President du Conseil de Gestion d’Ardshininvestbank a
dit que ” l’intensification de la cooperation avec la Banque Asiatique
de Developpement est un evenement important pour Ardshininvestbank.

L’amelioration des relations avec les petites et moyennes entreprises
est une priorite strategique pour la banque. En fait une branche
complète de la banque est impliquee dans l’entretien et le financement
de petits et moyens clients “.

Un accent special sera mis dans la promotion des femmes et la creation
de conditions egales pour les entrepreneurs femmes.