Author: Kanayan Tamar

Focus News

BBC: Clinton reaches UK on Europe tour

11 October 2009 | 03:18 | FOCUS News Agency

London. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has arrived in the UK on
the second leg of a five-day tour of Europe, BBC reports.The Afghan
war and concerns over Iran’s nuclear programme are expected to be high
on the agenda when she meets Prime Minister Gordon Brown on
Sunday. Mrs Clinton arrived from Zurich in Switzerland, where she
attended the signing of a historic pact between Turkey and
Armenia. The two countries normalised relations after a century of
hostility. US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian
Affairs Philip Gordon said that while in Britain, Mrs Clinton would
"talk with senior UK officials on a wide range of bilateral and
transatlantic issues, including Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan".
Britain has the second largest troop deployment in Afghanistan after
the US. President Barack Obama is currently reviewing the strategy for
Afghanistan and spoke with Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Thursday to
discuss the issues.

Armenian Azeri pullout would help accord -Erdogan
11 Oct 2009 11:33:13 GMT
Source: Reuters

ISTANBUL, Oct 11 (Reuters) – Turkey’s Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan
said on Sunday that Armenia’s withdrawal from Nagorno-Karabakh in
Azerbaijan would help gain his parliament’s approval for a peace accord
signed between Turkey and Armenia.

"We as a government paved the way for this co-operation, but whether or
not it will be applied is up to parliament to decide," he told a party
congress in Ankara.

Turkey would not look favourably on the accords, signed in Zurich on
Saturday, unless Armenia withdraws from Azerbaijani land, he said.

"If that issue is solved our people and our parliament will have a more
positive attitude towards this protocol and this process."

Turkey cut ties and shut its border with Armenia in 1993 in support of
Turkic-speaking Azerbaijan which was then fighting a losing battle
against Armenian separatists in Karabakh.

(Writing by Alexandra Hudson)

SWISS FOREIGN MINISTRY: PROTOCOLS TO BE SIGNED ON OCTOBER 10

PanARMENIAN.Net
09.10.2009 13:06 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Protocols on normalization of relations between
Turkey and Armenia will be signed on October 10 in Zurich, the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs of Switzerland announced.

"Protocols will be signed at Zurich University if no new changes appear
at the last moment in the program," Hurriyet writes. Protocols will be
signed by the Foreign Minister of Turkey and Armenia Ahmed Davutoglu
and Edward Nalbandian, " Turkish Hurriyet writes.

SERZH SARGSYAN TO MEET RUSSIAN ARMENIANS

rostov-on-don
08:15 pm | October 07, 2009

Politics

On October 7, Serzh Sargsyan left Beirut for Rostov-on-Don to meet
representative of Armenian community.

This will be Serzh Sargsyan’s last stop within the range of his
Pan-Armenian tour.

To note: a number of Russian Armenian organizations have appealed
Armenian leadership not to ratify the pre-signed Armenian-Turkish
Protocols.

TURKISH COURT RULES NOBEL LAUREATE PAMUK CAN BE SUED FOR COMMENTS

DPA
GMT 10-7-2009 19:17:40

Istanbul – Turkey’s Supreme Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday that Nobel
Laureate Orhan Pamuk can be sued for remarks made several years ago
about the alleged massacres of Armenians and Kurds in during World
War One, the semi-official Anatolian Agency reported.

‘Thirty-thousand Kurds and a million Armenians have been killed and
almost nobody dares to mention that, except for me,’ Pamuk was quoted
as saying in a Swiss magazine in 2005.

Nationalist activists filed suit against Pamuk, saying his remarks
had insulted them and demanding compensation.

Although lower courts in Istanbul have twice rejected the case,
the higher court ruled that the case should be heard again.

Pamuk, the widely-acclaimed author of ‘Snow’ and ‘My Name is Red,’
won the Nobel prize in literature in 2006, the first Turkish author
to do so.

After he made his comments in 2005, charges were brought against him
that he had ‘insulted Turkishness.’ The charges were later dropped
for technical reasons.

FACES OF OUR PLANET PROGRAM CAN HELP REPRESENT ARMENIAN ANIMATION ART

PanARMENIAN.Net
05.10.2009 16:50 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Faces of Our Planet program financed by Brazilian
embassy in Armenia is being held in the framework of ReAnimania
animation film festival

"We are grateful to the organizers for granting us the chance to be
first partners of the festival. We are also happy to find talented
Armenian animators," ambassador Marcela M. Nicodemos said.

An animated film about Brazilian pilot Santos Dumont is being shot.

The aim of the program is to give young animators a chance to gain
experience and promote their creative work.

NKR PRESIDENT SIGNED CONFERRAL DECREES

News.am
12:22 / 10/05/2009

NKR President Bako Sahakyan signed decrees on conferrals.

According to the decree, Lyova Bakhshinyan was awarded with "For
courage" medal for courage shown in combat activities defending the
homeland, NKR Presidential Press Service informed NEWS.am.

Under another decree, Gagik Asryan and Yuri Sargsyan were bestowed
the "For Service in Battle" medal for successful combat missions and
courage in defending the state.

"THE VISIT IS IMITATED"

10/5/dashnaktsutyun
12:59 pm | October 05, 2009

Politics

Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutiun continues its sit-in
and hunger strike in front of Armenian Government and Ministry
of Foreign Affairs in protest against the recently announced
Armenian-Turkish Protocols.

ARF picketers think Serzh Sargsyan’s pan-Armenian tour will bring no
changes in the disputed documents.

"I am well-disposed to Mr. Sargsyan’s visits. Moreover, I find them
urgent but I doubt whether they will bring any changes. Everything
depends on the Diaspora," hunger striker Arshak Sargsian said to A1+.

"Diaspora’s pressure will make Serzh Sargsyan correct his past
mistakes and draw conclusions though I doubt whether he will abstain
from Protocols’ signing," says striker Aramayis Mkhitarian.

ARF picketers outside Government Building think President Sargsyan’s
tour is senseless.

"The visit is imitated since they want to bind their opinion on the
Diaspora. But I think the Diaspora will say "no" to the documents. 70
% of Armenian population will not admit the Protocols either. We are
not against the frontier reopening we are against the negligence of 1,
5 million massacred Armenians," says Romik Manukian.

The parliaments of Armenia and Turkey are expected to sign the
Protocols on October 10.

CO-CHAIRS SAY THEY HAD INTERESTING AND CONSTRUCTIVE MEETINGS IN ARMENIA

Panorama.am
11:56 05/10/2009

The OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs left for Azerbaijan after having visited
Armenia, foreign media reports. It is reported that the co-chairs
are going to have meeting with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliev.

The French co-chair Bernard Fassier declared in Baku that they have
had "very interesting and constructive meetings in Yerevan."

It’s worth reminding that the mission of their regional visit is to
make correspondent agreements for the next meeting of Armenian and
Azerbaijani Presidents.

AME Info

Rakia and Rakeen Development to promote Ras Al Khaimah as a
world-class investment and tourist destination during Cityscape 2009

United Arab Emirates: Saturday, October 03 – 2009 at 13:38

PRESS RELEASE

Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (Rakia), Al Hamra Real Estate and
Rakeen will leverage the growing global interest in Ras Al Khaimah as
a leading business investment and tourism destination during their
participation at Cityscape Dubai 2009.

The three entities will collectively showcase a selection of
world-class residential and mixed-use developments, attractive
free-zone packages, onshore and offshore business solutions and a
rapidly growing global portfolio of real estate projects in what is
projected to be one of the most exciting showcase presentations during
the trade event.

Among the key developments that will headline the exhibition are Al
Marjan Island, the first man-made island in Ras Al Khaimah; the Bab Al
Bahr mixed-use development, Gateway City, Al Hamra Village mixed-use
development, Rakia Amenities Centre, and various business
opportunities within Rakia’s free zone. For Cityscape Dubai, Rakia, Al
Hamra Real Estate and Rakeen have jointly booked 400 square metres of
exhibition space at Stand No. 5B10 at the entrance to Hall 5 of Dubai
International Convention and Exhibition Centre, where the event runs
from October 5-8, 2009.

Dr. Khater Massaad, CEO of Rakia, said:

"We have developed a distinct and extensive exhibition area that will
help visitors better appreciate the transformation of Ras Al Khaimah
as a haven for sustainable development and an attractive lifestyle,
tourism and business destination. Our participation at Cityscape is
also part of our efforts to showcase the pristine natural beauty of
Ras Al Khaimah, where residents can enjoy the emirate’s white sandy
beaches, red desert dunes and majestic Hajjar mountains, while being
in proximity to the comforts of state-of-the-art residential and
commercial amenities."

"All our developments are located within a radius of
reating greater accessibility and flexibility to attend to various
business, leisure and private activities," added Dr. Massaad.

During Cityscape, Dr. Massaad will also speak on behalf of Rakia, Al
Hamra Real Estate and Rakeen at a Cityscape Connect Seminar titled
‘Ras Al Khaimah: Emerging Emirate On The Move’. Representatives of RAK
Tourism and RAK Properties will also join Dr. Massaad during the
open-to-all seminar, which will be held on October 07, 2009 from 12:30
to 13:30 hours.

The combined showcase will also provide various presentations of the
construction progress of real estate developments being undertaken by
Rakia and Rakeen, while the fully completed facilities within Al Hamra
Village will be prominently displayed to highlight the new project’s
reputation as one of the most complete developments in the UAE. A
value-added feature is a unique showcase of groundbreaking mixed-use
developments and authentic project models that are being undertaken by
Rakeen in Lebanon, Congo (DRC), Georgia, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and
other international destinations.

"We hope that Cityscape Dubai will help set off a new growth trend in
the region, marking the beginning of a revival of the real estate
sector. Our solid track record of being honest, transparent and
reliable developers, substantiated by a visionary strategy and strong
funding, has helped maintain our firm position within the industry
through the past difficult months. We are determined to deliver on our
promises and to keep proving that we deserve the trust of our esteemed
investors and business partners. Ras Al Khaimah is ready for new
challenges and will continue to script new success stories, especially
now that the America’s Cup is just around the corner," concluded
Dr. Massaad.

Ras Al Khaimah recently announced that it will host the prestigious
33rd America’s Cup, which will be held in Al Hamra Village in February
2010. A 22-hectare island within Al Hamra Village lagoon will serve as
the base for the sailing event. The island will accommodate the
edia, the sponsors and the viewing public.