Author: Kanayan Tamar

TURKEY SAYS OVERTHROW OF MORSI IS UNACCEPTABLE

July 04, 2013 | 17:42

Turkish authorities called Egyptian army’s actions which resulted in
overthrow of Mohamed Morsi unacceptable.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu demanded immediate release
of Morsi and his supporters.

“Whatever the reason is, it is unacceptable that a democratically
elected government was overthrown by illegitimate means, even more,
with a military coup,” Hurriyet Daily News quotes Davotuglu.

According to Turkish media, the further actions of Turkey related
to Egyptian developments will be discussed during the meeting with
Premier Erdogan.

Earlier Al Arabiya reported that leaders of Jordan, Saudi Arabia and
UAE welcomed the Egyptian army’s efforts, which means that legitimacy
of their actions was recognized by the Arab world.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

ECTHR RULINGS VS. ARMENIA RAISE NO CONCERNS – SENIOR LAWMAKER’S OPINION MEETS LAWYER’S CRITICISM

17:51 ~U 04.07.13

The head of the Armenian National Assembly’s Standing Committee on
State Legal Affairs says he doesn’t agree to the allegations that
the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) issues most of its rulings
against the Republic of Armenia.

Speaking to Tert.am, David Harutyunyan explained that the issue
should not be a major concern for the country in the light of the
general statistics.

“Consider the fact that rulings are normally adopted in relation to
all the 47 member states. So if you have a look at the statistics,
you will see that Armenia is not absolutely in a position to make the
issue a priority,” he said. “Forty-seven countries are represented in
the ECtHR, so it is necessary to make comparisons with other states
before answering a question.”

The Armenian parliamentarian refrained from using phrases like
“winning” or “losing” a case to refer to the ECtHR rulings. “Defeat,
as a matter of fact, offers advantages to the human rights situation
in Armenia,” he noted.

Speaking of the authorities’ possible influence upon the judiciary,
Harutyunyan said that such an influence is inevitable in any country
around the world. The problem, according to him, are the checks and
balance mechanisms and the right demarcation between the two concepts.

“Such attempts are made in almost all the countries, and the balance
in those countries is protected by the legislative authorities, the
bodies exercising constitutional justice or the judiciary,” he added.

In further comments to Tert.am, Lusine Sahakyan, a lawyer dealing with
the ECtHR cases vs. Armenia, expressed disagreement to Harutyunyan’s
remark that the Court’s rulings against Armenia give no grounds
for concern. “I cannot agree with him, because Armenia is often in
breach of such rights whose violation is likely, from the outset,
to be recognized by the Court,” she said.

Referring to a statistics unveiled earlier by Alvina Gyulumyan, a
collegue at the ECtHR, Sahakyan noted that Armenia loses most cases
unlike the European countries which have 90% of claims rejected.

“I can speak of the cases which I have represented personally. We
have notifications on most; others are pending notification. I am sure
the rulings in those cases will be against the Republic of Armenia,”
she said.

The lawyer added that the rulings against Armenia have so far found
violations of Articles 3 and 5 of the European Convention on Human
Rights ( torture or inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,
and liberty and security of a person). “Besides, there are many cases
concerning the March 1 [2008 post-election turmoil], which contain
violations of the right to free speech and freedom of assembly,”
she noted.

Armenian News – Tert.am

NKR PRESIDENT HANDED IN DIPLOMAS TO ARTSAKH STATE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

13:14, 3 July, 2013

YEREVAN, JULY 3, ARMENPRESS. On 3 July Artsakh Republic President Bako
Sahakyan in a solemn atmosphere handed in diplomas to a group of the
Artsakh State University students who graduated the Alma Mater with
distinction. The Central Information Department of the Artsakh Republic
President’s Office informed “Armenpress” that in his speech the Head
of the State noted that the ceremony of handing in diplomas to the
distinctive graduates of the Artsakh State University here at the
President’s Residence has become a good tradition, underlining that
the state sought to have a developed education system corresponding
to the modern standards, which was among the most important tasks we
faced.National Assembly speaker Ashot Ghoulyan, prime-minister Ara
Haroutyunyan and other officials took part at the ceremony.

CHALYAN WINS GOLD AT EUROPEAN JUNIOR WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIP

July 3, 2013 – 12:33 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Armenia’s Andranik Chalyan (74 kg) won gold at
European Junior Wrestling Championship.

At the Skopje-hosted sporting event, the Greco-Roman wrestler got
the better of Serbian, Bulgarian, Latvian and Moldovan contenders.

In the championship finals, the wrestler beat Russia’s Adlan Akieev
to gain the gold medal.

IAEA TO ALLOCATE $1 MILLION TO ARMENIAN NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF METROLOGY

July 03, 2013 | 05:21

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will allocate around
$1 million for modernization of National Institute of Metrology
laboratory.

Institute Director Vahan Sahakyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am that
new equipment will be used for testing and calibration of instruments
measuring radiation levels.

The modernization will take place in two stages. During the first
in August and October 2013, the institute will receive two batches
of equipment for testing the measuring instruments at the NPP,
as well as batchers for different purposes. At the second stage,
the institute plans to get the equipment for testing X-ray machines.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

POSSIBILITY OF RESUMPTION OF MILITARY OPERATIONS IN KARABAKH IS GROWING WITH EVERY PASSING DAY, THOMAS DE WAAL THINKS
by Nana Martirosyan

ARMINFO
Wednesday, July 3, 11:12

Azerbaijan wants no resumption of military operations in
Nagorno-Karabakh, because it may lose what it has gained over the last
20 years, Thomas de Waal, Senior Associate at the Carnegie Endowment,
said at a press conference in Yerevan on Tuesday.

The expert thinks that despite the bravado language used by Azerbaijan,
war is hardly probable in Karabakh now. However, the possibility of
resumption of military actions is growing with every passing day, he
said. Waal thinks that the Karabakh conflict is of political nature,
because it is not a priority for the Azeri society.

In the meantime, the expert said that the new Azeri generation is
more aggressive towards Armenians. He added that Russia and Turkey
are interested in the conflict settlement most of all, but their
interests diverge, so, they will exert no pressure on Baku or Yerevan.

Director of the Caucasus Institute Alexander Iskandaryan, in turn,
said that the OSCE Minsk Group cannot resolve the Karabakh conflict,
because it is not their goal. “They have three goals: to contribute
to continuation of the talks, to ensure internationalism of the peace
process and to maintain the status quo. Subsequently, it is senseless
to expect them to give any solutions”, he stressed. He added that
the Karabakh conflict is “too young” to be resolved.

To note, Thomas de Waal has come to Armenia to present the second
volume of his book “Black Garden. Armenia and Azerbaijan through
Peace and War” dedicated to the Karabakh conflict.

ARMENIA SHOULD HAVE NUCLEAR WEAPON AGAINST SMERCH

Azerbaijan has bought from Russia BM-30 Smerch (Tornado) heavy
multiple rocket launchers. This is a weapon of mass destruction and
is considered the best in the world. Smerch destroys targets within
an area of over 67 hectares in a second. This weapon is as terrible
as its name. Our ally sold this weapon to our enemy for the latter
not to bother to kill Armenians one by one using an axe. Azerbaijan
has calculated everything and decided that it is much cheaper to buy
Smerch than later repatriate Azeri killers with the help of Putin’s
friends all over the world. This is an ordinary feasibility study
on which business is based. And Azerbaijan and Russia, as is known,
are doing business, nothing else, and let Armenians repel negative
thoughts from them.

But the fathers of the Russian-Azeri business do not have a bad
opinion about Armenians. They don’t seem to believe that the Armenian
society may believe their tales. So, they are spreading legends about
balance and parity in the region to rule out negative thoughts in
the Armenian people.

Of course, there is no need to have negative thoughts. We must have
positive thoughts. The only positive thought in this case can be the
nuclear weapon. The Armenian people should think about nuclear weapon.

This idea may seem funny now that 35% of the Armenian population
is poor. When people have nothing to eat, it is ridiculous to think
about nuclear weapons, of course.

But the choice is obvious. Either we laugh or we wait until Smerch
gets Armenia or Artsakh from Azerbaijan. The third option is to launch
a program of development of nuclear weapon because otherwise 35% of
the Armenian poor population will be the victim of the Russian-Azeri
business.

This is not panic. Armenia should think about the prospects. It is not
out of panic that Israel is armed with a nuclear weapon. Azerbaijan
is getting armed at a fast pace. It does not have an advantage over
Armenia now but the pace is worrying, and resources are unequal.

Besides, one thing is growing evident. Political immorality and
betrayal of allies is becoming a tradition in South Caucasus. This
is the biggest danger facing Armenia. Consequently, Armenia seems to
have no alternative to nuclear weapon.

This is a long process, an economic and political process which is
complicated by the current level of corruption and stealing in the
Armenian ruling “elite” which is only able to read and understand
restaurant menus. But if this issue is not brought up today, tomorrow
it may be late. Nuclear weapon should become a public order of
Armenia. Only nuclear weapon will restore the balance of forces and
morality in the region.

In addition, those states which are interested in this conflict should
also be interested in helping Armenia with the nuclear weapon. Only
Armenia can save the South Caucasus from chaos and disappearance as
a geopolitical platform. In order to do this, Armenia needs a nuclear
weapon and political and technological support to create it.

10:53 03/07/2013 Story from Lragir.am News:

SHIRAK CRUISES AS LUSITANOS HELD

The World Game, SBS, Australia
July 3 2013

Ismael Fofana scored a hat-trick as Shirak beat Tre Penne 3-0 in the
first round of UEFA Champions League qualifying.

Fofana, 24, was the star of the show as his Armenian side romped to
victory against its opponent from San Marino in the first leg of the
first-round clash.

The midfielder – who counts England’s Charlton and Norway’s Fredrikstad
among his former clubs – netted the first goal of the 2013-2014 UEFA
Champions League season with his 36th-minute effort.

The Armenian Premier League table-topper then gained itself a
significant advantage for the second leg as Fofana struck twice more
after the break – finding the net in the 55th minute before wrapping
up his hat-trick nine minutes later to give Shirak a comfortable win
in Gyumri.

The day’s other match saw EB/Streymur of the Faroe Islands come from
behind to claim a 2-2 draw at Andorran outfit Lusitanos.

Lusitanos scored twice in the first 30 minutes, with defender Cristian
Martinez netting both goals.

His first came via a 24th-minute penalty, before he doubled his
account five minutes later.

However, a half-time substitution by EB/Streymur coach Runi Nolsoe
paid dividends, as Arnbjorn Hansen netted after 67 minutes.

And a Levi Hanssen penalty two minutes later ensured the spoils
were shared.

The second leg between the two sides will take place next week.

RUSSIAN MP: EVEN ASSISTANT OF SPEAKER OF STATE DUMA WAS NOT ALLOWED TO ENTER AZERBAIJAN BECAUSE OF HER ARMENIAN ORIGIN

19:15 03/07/2013 ” IN THE WORLD

“I am an educated man and I knew quite well what it all might end
with. I knew that all those who visit Karabakh will be announced
persona non grata by Baku. That’s why this situation was not surprising
for me,” said the deputy of the State Duma of the Russian party” Fair
Russia “, said member of the Russian State Duma, representative of
the “Spravedlivaya Rossia” Oleg Pakholkov, commenting on the reaction
of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry on his visit to Nagorno-Karabakh
Republic.

In an interview with the Azerbaijani news agency “Vesti.az” Pakholkov
stated that he had traveled to Nagorno-Karabakh, to understand the
situation.

“It was very important for me to know the views on both the sides. It
is the right of Azerbaijan to limit my right to communicate with
the other side or not. And my right is to learn about the situation
from both sides,” he said, noting that having been on both sides he
had came to the conclusion that it’s impossible to give a military
solution to the Karabakh conflict.

Russian MP expressed his confidence that neither Azerbaijan nor
the Armenian people need war. “The war will lead to tens, hundreds
of thousands of victims, as well as to the economic destruction of
Azerbaijan and Armenia”, Pakholkov said and noted that there cannot
be victories in any all-out war.

Answering the question what can be the solution to the Karabakh
conflict the member of “Fair Russia” party emphasized: “This situation
will be “frozen” as long as people do not learn to live together
harmoniously. I’ve been on both sides of the line and know what
happened. ”

“Today, Armenians and Azerbaijanis are so scared of joint life that
they will not simply be able to live in one state,” the Russian MP
said, noting that maybe the two nations will reconcile in 10-30 years.

In response to a remark of Azerbaijani journalist, who said that
allegedly about 30,000 Armenians live in Baku, Russian MP said:
“Therefore Baku refused to give entry to an Armenian, who was in the
official delegation of Naryshkin (Sergei Naryshkin is the Speaker
of the State Duma “Vesti.az “) reasoning that it cannot ensure her
security there?”

In the same time Pakholkov noted that those Armenians who live in
Azerbaijan are the wives of Azerbaijanis who had converted to Islam.

“And on what grounds was refused the member of Naryshkin delegation
in Baku? While, the attitude to Naryshkin in Baku is just perfect;
he is received as a close friend. But his assistant in Baku was not
allowed to enter the country just because she was Armenian,” he said.

Summarizing the deputy noted that for settling the conflict they must
make concessions to each other. “I am sure that none of Karabakh
Armenians today will be forced to live in Azerbaijan, because they
are afraid,” he said and noted that there is no way out of this
conflict today. The deputy of the RF State Duma noted that they need
to gradually begin cultural exchanges, stop promoting hatred towards
each other. “Karabakh conflict cannot be solved without this,” Oleg
Pakholkov stated.

RUBEN SAFRASTYAN: TURKISH PEOPLE NO LONGER FEAR THE AUTHORITIES

16:52 03/07/2013 ” REGION

The Turkey events are connected with the recent changes and
developments inside the country, Ruben Safrastyan, Turkish studies
expert, Director of the Oriental Studies Institute of the Armenian
National Academy of Sciences, told a roundtable discussion at the
Caucasus Institute.

According to him, the participants of Turkish protests were mainly
young people, aged from 16 to 35. They demand a new model of Turkey,
while the authorities in the person of the Prime Minister have
authoritarian policies – they try not only to expand the country,
but also to impose a new identity based on Islam.

Safrastyan noted that the events taking place in Turkey are evidence
of the fact that the Turkish people no longer fear the authorities,
and Erdogan has understood it.

According to the Turkish studies expert, the Turkey events may directly
affect Azerbaijan. “I do not rule out that mass protests will break out
in Azerbaijan on the threshold of the October presidential elections.”