Author: Kanayan Tamar

ISRAELI AMBASSADOR IN TURKEY PELTED WITH EGGS
by Hillel Fendel

Arutz Sheva
Nov 4 2009
Israel

(IsraelNN.com) Turkish police prevented a mob of students from breaking
into a car carrying Israel’s Ambassador in Turkey, Gabi Levy.

The incident occurred on Wednesday afternoon in Trabzon, a city on
the Black Sea coast of northeastern Turkey.

Despite police efforts, the students succeeded in throwing eggs at
Levy, who was unhurt.

Tensions between Turkey and Israel have risen dramatically over
the past month, beginning when Turkey called off a joint military
exercise with Israel and then held one with Syria. In addition,
Turkey’s president has made some anti-Israel remarks, and even met
with and praised Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinajad.

Turkish television recently broadcast a fictional series depicting
IDF soldiers as cold-blooded murderers, prompting official protests
from Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Avigdor
Lieberman.

Anti-Israel protests have been held in Turkey of late, featuring the
burning of Israeli flags and the waving of Palestinian Authority flags.

Israeli Tolerance

Despite the above, the new Turkish Ambassador to Israel spoke this
past Sunday to an Israeli audience in Be’er Sheva, nearly without
incident. Marking the conquest of the Negev city from the Turks by
Great Britain in 1917, Ambassador Ahmet Oguz Celikkol was interrupted
only by two men carrying signs. The signs were addressed to Turkish
Prime Minister Erdogan, and read, "Remember the Holocaust you
[perpetrated upon] the Armenian people!"

Before his speech, Ambassador Celikkol said there is no anti-Semitism
in Turkey, and that "every relationship has its ups and downs; I am
sure we can rehabilitate the relations between us."

IRAN TO EASE TRADE INTERACTIONS WITH AZERBAIJAN

Moj News Agency
November 1, 2009 Sunday
Iran

Head of Azerbaijani Entrepreneurs Confederation met Iran’s Chamber of
Commerce vice-president, Hooshang Fakher.Iran’s Chamber of Commerce
vice-president told that joint trade councils play an effective role
in the bilateral commerce relations for both sides.

The recent visit by Iran’s Chamber president to Azerbaijan also paved
the way for a better and closer cooperation, Fakher pointed out.

The Azerbaijani side also emphasized that the two nations got lots
of cultural commons and told that his respective country is quite
ready to expand its trade relation with Iran.

Karabakh Customs which is passing its construction works may then play
an important role in easing the trade interactions by the two nations,
said Fakher.

NKR DELEGATION’S VISIT TO FRANCE

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
2009-10-30 16:51

An NKR delegation, headed by NKR NA Chairman Ashot Ghulian,
departed October 25 for France on a five-day visit. The delegation
comprises Chairman of the NKR NA Standing Committee on Social Issues
Arpat Avanesian, NKR Minister of Culture and Social Issues Narine
Aghabalian, Stepanakert Mayor Vazgen Mikhayelian, and Chief of the
NKR MFA Multilateral Relations Department Irina Beglarian.

On arriving in the French capital, the delegation members attended
the same evening a concert of Artsakh’s Voices ensemble organized
in Ranlag Theater on the initiative of the NKR Mission to France and
under the support of Assistance to Artsakh organization.

During the party, NKR NA Chairman Ashot Ghulian handed Gratitude
decorations to Deputy Chairman of the Armenian Foundation in France
Michel Pazumian and the family of the passed away member of the same
organization, Emanuel de’la Bary, awarded by a corresponding decree
of the NKR President.

In the October 26 morning, the NKR delegation members met with the
employees of the Office of the Coordination Council of Armenian
organizations of France to discuss the prospects of cooperation
between Artsakh and the Armenian organizations of France, the recent
developments in the Karabakh conflict settlement process, and some
other issues of national significance.

The same evening, the delegation members had a separate meeting with
the Chairman and some responsible employees of Assistance to Artsakh
organization.

On October 27, Ashot Ghulian and Arpat Avanesian met with Chairman
of the French-Armenian Friendship Caucus of the French Senate Serge
Lagosh to discuss some regional issues related, in particular, to
the process of the Karabakh conflict settlement, the role of France
in this issue, and the recent developments in the Caucasus region.

RA Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to France Vigen
Chitechian participated in the meeting.

Delegation members Narine Aghabalian and Vazgen Mikhayelian met,
in their turn, with mayors of some Armenian-populated towns near Paris.

The same day, at the RA Embassy to France and with the participation of
Ambassador Vigen Chitechian, the NKR delegation members had a meeting
with members of some Armenian organizations of France operating in
NKR. During the meeting, the delegation members introduced the problems
in the social, economic, urban development, and cultural spheres of
Artsakh. The attendants were also given separate packages of programs
to be implemented in the social and educational spheres, and were
asked to use utmost efforts for improving the Artsakh people’s welfare.

In the October 28 morning, the NKR delegation was received at the
National Assembly of France, where they met with Chairman of the
parliamentary French-Armenian Friendship Caucus Francua Roshbluan and
the Caucus members. After a thank you speech, Ashot Ghulian answered
the attendants’ questions related to the Karabakh conflict and the
NKR authorities’ position on its peaceful settlement.

The meeting was followed by an official lunch organized in the
ceremonial receptions’ hall of the French NA.

The same day, the NKR delegation departed for Marseilles.

EDWARD NALBANDIAN BELIEVES THAT ALL HUMAN VALUES WILL BE FINALLY ESTABLISHED IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS AND WILL UNITE PEOPLES

ArmInfo
2009-10-29 14:37:00

ArmInfo. "Armenia follows European values and we believe that all
human values will be finally established in our region and will unite
the peoples living there and Europe," Foreign Minister of Armenia
Edward Nabandian said during the conference in Yerevan devoted to
the Eastern Partnership Project.

The minister said the Armenian people have centuries-long ties with
Europe. Centuries ago the general history and geography of Armenia and
Europe were more limited and representatives of the Armenian people
made their contribution to the system known as the European Values.

The minister said Europe is now identified with peace, solidarity,
human rights protection and all human values. However, everyone knows
also the high price the European peoples had to pay for that. "Nowhere
else in the world wars and conflicts were as severe as in Europe. That
is why, probably, peace achieved by European peoples is especially
valuable. After so many confrontations and two world wars, Europe
found enough power and will to revive and unite after a century of
enmity between the peoples. And now Europe is a symbol of peace, unity
and solidarity for the international community," the minister said.

ARMENIAN MOGUL ACQUIRES BULGARIA’S WATER BOTTLER GORNA BANYA

Novinite
Oct 29 2009
Bulgaria

Armenian major businessman Gagik Tsarukyan have bought Bulgarian water
bottling company Gorna Banya in a EUR 25 M deal, which was sealed at
the end of last week, local reports say.

This is the first sale deal to be completed in the Bulgarian water
bottling sector this year.

About EUR 20 M of the sale price will be used for covering the
company’s debts, one of the former owners Evgeni Goranov told Dnevnik
daily.

The company owes EUR 12 M in long-term banking loans and another EUR
4 M in short-term funding.

It should pay a separate some EUR 3.5 M to a UK investment fund.

Gagik Tsarukian, arguably Armenia’s wealthiest man, owns more than
40 medium and large companies, making up a business empire, which
has seen an incredible expansion in recent years.

A former arm-wrestler, Tsarukian started out as a minority shareholder
in one of Armenia’s two largest breweries in the late 1990s.

Tsarukian has been a member of Armenian parliament since 2003, while
a year later he established the "Flourishing Armenia" party. Chairman
of Armenia’s National Olympic Committee.

The news of Gorna Banya’s sale comes a month after one of its nearest
rivals, Devin, majority owned by Austria’s Soravia Group, signed an
agreement for the sale of a 75% stake to global private equity fund
Advent International.

The deal price is said to be around EUR 21 M to 22 M. Its final value
will be fixed between the signing of the contract and its conclusion.

RUSSIA NOT CURRENTLY SUPPLYING S-300 SAM SYSTEMS TO IRAN

RIA Novosti
Oct 28, 2009

FRYAZINO (Moscow Region), October 28 (RIA Novosti) – Russia is not
supplying S-300 defensive surface-to-air missile systems to Iran,
a Russian deputy prime minister said on Wednesday.

"Presently, there are no such supplies," Sergei Ivanov told reporters.

He offered no clue as to whether supplies could begin later.

Last Thursday, the Federal Service for Military and Technical
Cooperation said Russia had no plans to cease military cooperation
with Iran.

The statement came amid media reports that Russia could cancel a
contract to deliver S-300 systems to Tehran.

An unnamed defense industry official said last Wednesday that Russia
would sustain significant losses if it decides to tear up the contract
for S-300 systems.

Russian military analyst Konstantin Makiyenko previously said a
decision not to go ahead with the contract would cost Russia about $1
billion in lost profits, plus $300-400 million in fines and penalties.

Reports of possible deliveries of S-300 missiles to Iran have aroused
concerns in the West and in Israel.

Iranian media, citing senior security officials, have reported that
Russia has started delivering elements of the advanced version of the
S-300 missile under a 2005 contract. However, Russian arms industry
officials have invariably denied such reports.

The latest version of the S-300 family is the S-300PMU2 Favorit,
which has a range of up to 195 kilometers (about 120 miles) and can
intercept aircraft and ballistic missiles at altitudes from 10 meters
to 27 kilometers.

It is considered one of the world’s most effective all-altitude
regional air defense systems, comparable in performance to the U.S.

MIM-104 Patriot system.

TWO SUBSIDIARIES OF METAL PRINCE CORPORATION INCLUDED IN MAJOR ARMENIAN TAXPAYERS’ LIST

PanARMENIAN.Net
28.10.2009 20:23 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ According to RA State Revenue Committee
January-September 2009 data, two subsidiaries of Metal Prince Ltd. were
included in major Armenian taxpayers’ list.

AMD 222,4 million worth taxes were paid by Akhtala ore-dressing plant;
AMD 160,7 million by Sagamar CJSC.

The Metal Prince Ltd. Corporation is registered in the British
Nevis Island. Through its joint-stock subsidiary companies, Akhtala
ore-dressing plant, Sagamar CJSC and Molibdenum World Ltd., it launched
its activities in the Armenian mining sector in 2000.

MEDVEDEV URGES RUSSIAN DEFENSE INDUSTRY TO CREATE SUPERIOR WEAPONS

RIA Novosti
Oct 26, 2009

REUTOV (Moscow Region), October 26 (RIA Novosti) – The Russian
president said on Monday that the country’s defense industry must
ensure the effective modernization of the military and provide it
with state-of-the-art weapons.

Dmitry Medvedev said "the restructuring of the Armed Forces should
be complete in two months," adding that the next task was more
challenging: "re-outfitting of the army and navy."

He stressed that the life of Russian soldiers depended "on the quality
of the weapon systems, on the quality of the defense industry,"
and that the quality of its products was crucial for Russia’s
competitiveness on world arms markets.

He said that "by 2012, very serious progress must be made" in
modernizing the Russian Armed Forces.

The president said there should be no difference in the quality of
military goods manufactured for export or for domestic consumption.

He warned that although significant government funds were provided
for defense, they must not be wasted.

"The most unpleasant thing is when money is spent on the
‘modernization’ of something that is obsolete or will become obsolete
in the next few years. This is self-defeating," Medvedev said,
stressing that priority should be given to superior, cutting-edge
systems.

YEREVAN CONTINUES STEPS TOWARDS STRENGTHENING TIES WITH EU

PanARMENIAN.Net
27.10.2009 13:09 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Luxemburg hosted the 10th session of EU-Armenia
Coordination Council. The meeting presided over by FM Edward
Nalbandyan was attended by Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Blidt,
Commissioner for External Relations and European Neighborhood Policy
Benita Ferrero-Waldner, State Secretary for European Affairs Diego
Lopez Garrido and EU Special Representative for South Caucasus Peter
Semneby, EU press service reports.

During the session, Armenian FM introduced Armenia’s recent steps
towards implementation of European Neighborhood Policy action plan,
stressing that its effective implementation was a priority for
Armenia-EU cooperation. Parties expressed satisfaction with the
results, noting at the same time that there were prospects for
broadening the scopes of the program.

They also exchanged views on Eastern Partnership initiative, attaching
significance to the full-fledged use of its potential, i.e.

elaboration of associate agreement, conclusion of comprehensive
agreement on free trade and simplification of visa regime. European
side introduced steps towards normalizations of Armenian-Turkish ties,
stressing the importance of speedy ratification of recently signed
Protocols and their implementation without preconditions. Upon the
request of European side, FM Nalbandyan introduced recent developments
in Karabakh settlement process, RA MFA press service reports.

Trend, Azerbaijan
Oct 22 2009

Society should resist opening of Turkey- Armenia border: Azerbaijani
opposition leader

Azerbaijan, Baku, Oct.22 / Trend News A.Huseynbala /

Azerbaijani opposition leader thinks that the society should protest
against opening of the Turkey-Armenia borders.

"Majority of Turkish people are against signing the protocols. The
Turkish government has taken this action under pressure of the U.S.A.
and the West. The society should resist to prevent this step," Head of
the National Independence Party of Azerbaijan (NIPA) Etibar Mammadov
told Trend News.

Turkish and Armenian foreign ministers Ahmet Davutoglu and Edward
Nalbandian signed the protocols Ankara-Yerevan in Zurich on October
10.

Diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey have been broken due
to Armenia’s claims of an alleged genocide, and its occupation of
Azerbaijani lands. The border between them has been broken since 1993.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan
lost all of Nagorno-Karabakh except for Shusha and Khojali in December
1991. In 1992-93, Armenian armed forces occupied Shusha, Khojali and 7
districts surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan and Armenia signed
a ceasefire in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group – Russia,
France, and the U.S. – are currently holding the peace negotiations.

The Turkish and Azerbaijani public should participate in protests to
put pressure on the Turkish government, Mammadov said. "But we can not
allow this issue to be abused," the leader of the NIPA said.

According to Mammadov, there is no need to raise the issue of the flag
in the statements on the Turkish government’s intention to open its
border with Armenia.

"The Azerbaijani flag was not allowed to be taken to the stadium under
the Turkish official’s decision in Bursa. The Turkish public opposed
it and criticized its government," he said.

Regarding the possibility of joint activities of the Azerbaijani
opposition parties to prevent the ratification of the protocols in the
Turkish parliament, Mammadov said that every organization should
express its position.

"You should not differentiate the power and the opposition in this
issue. This issue affects the national interests," Mammadov added.

NIPA, founded in 1992, is the first officially registered political
party in Azerbaijan. Etibar Mammadov was the founder and chairman of
the party until 2004. At present, Mammadov is the deputy chairman of
the International Democratic Society.