Author: Kanayan Tamar

Trend, Azerbaijan
May 4 2013

Think tank: U.S. must not make efforts to normalize Turkish-Armenian relations

Azerbaijan, Baku, May 4 / Trend I. Izzet /

The South Caucasus countries and the world power centers have their
own views on the region. But this does not mean that the South
Caucasus countries must blindly fulfill the will of big and powerful
countries. In any case, Azerbaijan and Georgia intend to form the ways
of development in accordance with its national interests, director of
the Center for Strategic Studies under the Azerbaijani President
Farhad Mammadov said today.

He spoke about “Security issues and conflicts in the South Caucasus”
at the “round table”, organized at Princeton University (LISD), the
center said on Saturday.

He added that the South Caucasus could not turn into a powerful region
in terms of political, economic or cultural integration.
The cooperation between Azerbaijan and Georgia is a positive example.
But Armenia isolated itself from the regional integration process as a
result of its aggressive policy.

The occupation of 20 percent of Azerbaijani territory, the ethnic
cleansing policy against Azerbaijanis in Nagorno-Karabakh and seven
adjacent regions compelled Azerbaijan and Turkey to close the border
with that country.

He added that Azerbaijan and Georgia are developing amid the conflicts
in their territories and even partial occupation.

“We have achieved the implementation of all geo-economic projects and
form own economic goals for the next ten years,” he said. “However, we
can not say this about Armenia, which failed to bring its economic
development to the level of 2008. Moreover, Armenia’s militarization
reached the highest level. Armenia’s military budget exceeds 5.5
percent of its GDP.”

He said that the South Caucasus will turn into an economically strong
region only if the conflicts are resolved and the mutually beneficial
relations between the regional countries are established. The
conflicts in the South Caucasus are a major threat to the regional
security. They create the conditions for the dependent position of the
region.

Armenia could be as good as Switzerland for cattle breeding, says
village governor (video)

21:08 – 04.05.13

The governor of Gandzak village (Gegharkunik region) thinks Armenia’s
climate is as favorable for breeding cattle as that in Switzerland.

Vanik Harutyunyan, who has been heading the community for already five
years, thinks the situation with cattle breeding could really be much
better in case there were a proper attention by the state.

`Mine is the only community that has had a veterinarian from the
outset. They would accuse me and say `you don’t have the right to keep
a veterinarian’, but I do have [the right], and I am not going to
listen to anyone. But that’s something to be dealt with by the
Ministry [of Agriculture],’ the governor told Tert.am, adding that he
spends money from the community budget to pay for the veterinarian’s
services.

The communist governor says the veterinarian’s role has been
diminished greatly since the Soviet period, with the Ministry of
Agriculture satisfying itself only with a vaccinator.

`But brucellosis, tuberculosis are massively spread. We have no
community not affected by brucellosis, not to speak of the anthrax
case detected in Vardenis in autumn,’ he said.

Harutyunyan noted that people often speak of the consequences, without
citing the cause (which is the absence of a veterinarian).

The governor said a veterinarian gets a salary of 20,000-25,000 Drams
($48-$60) for vaccinating the cattle against infections.

`But the animal falls ill, and delivers an offspring. There has to be
a doctor to both treat and vaccinate the animal, as well as assist in
the delivery,’ he said.

He stressed the importance of giving a primary attention to veterinary
medicine, noting that an imminent outbreak has to be nipped in the bud
not to give rise to further complications.

L’EXPORTATION DES CIGARETTES D’ARMENIE EN GRANDE FORME

L’exportation de la cigarette et des cigares d’Armenie est en très
forte hausse. Au 1er trimestre 2013 ces exportations furent multipliees
par cinq par rapporta a la meme periode de l’an dernier.

Entre janvier et mars l’Armenie a exporte 1,9 milliard de cigarettes
contre 378 millions l’an dernier. Ces exportations du 1er trimestre
representèrent plus de 21 millions de dollars. Les pays les plus
demandeurs furent le Turkmenistan, l’Irak, la Georgie, la Jordanie et
la Russie. Vahram Broutian le responsable de communication de la plus
grande firme armenienne de tabac ” Grand Tobaco ” a affirme que sur
les premiers mois de 2013 les exportations des cigarettes et cigares
ont double. L’an dernier l’Armenie avait exporte 3,860 milliards
de cigarettes. Cette annee ce nombre depassera certainement les 5
milliards. Les cigarettes armeniennes sont exportees vers 22 pays.

Krikor Amirzayan

samedi 4 mai 2013, Krikor Amirzayan ©armenews.com

NOUVEL EMPLACEMENT DE CHOIX POUR LA STATUE DE TOROS DEDIEE AU GENOCIDE ARMENIEN A AIX-EN-PROVENCE – PHOTOS

La sculpture de Toros dediee au genocide armenien et realisee il y a 30
ans et placee sur la place d’Armenie a Aix-en-Provence a ete installee
a la rotonde, en debut des allees provencales d’Aix-en-Porvence,
face au nouvel Office du Tourisme. Un emplacement qui dispose d’un
plus grand passage et qui favorisera a faire connaitre davantage le
genocide armenien aux Aixois et les centaines de milliers de touristes
qui y passent chaque annee. L’inauguration de ce nouvel emplacement de
la sculpture de Toros s’est deroulee mercredi 24 avril a l’occasion de
la commemoration du 98e anniversaire du genocide armenien, en presence
de l’artiste, de la Maire d’Aix-en-Provence Maryse Joissains-Masini,
de Madame Der Kevorkian, president de l’association des Armeniens
Hay’s Club du Pays-d’Aix et de nombreuses personnalites. L’~uvre de
Toros sera ainsi valorisee de la plus belle manière.

Krikor Amirzayan

samedi 4 mai 2013, Krikor Amirzayan ©armenews.com

US ENVOY MULLS TIES WITH AZERBAIJAN, KARABAKH CONFLICT, REGIONAL SECURITY

Zerkalo, Azerbaijan
April 27 2013

LENGTH: 804 words

The US ambassador to Azerbaijan, Richard Morningstar, has discussed
bilateral ties, the Karabakh conflict, regional challenges and the
Azerbaijani government’s criticism of the US National Democratic
Institute, in an interview with the Zerkalo newspaper on 27 April.

Morningstar said that despite little progress in the negotiation
process over the past 20 years, the USA is committed to seeking
peaceful ways of resolving the Azerbaijani-Armenian conflict over
Nagornyy-Karabakh.

“Azerbaijan is naturally disappointed by the fact that after 20
years, little progress has been observed in terms of the resolution
of the Karabakh conflict. I understand that the Nagornyy-Karabakh
problem is a painful issue for all Azerbaijanis. Nevertheless, we
intend to continue joint efforts within the OSCE Minsk Group to seek
ways to resolve the Azerbaijani-Armenian conflict over Karabakh. To
ensure that the process takes a positive turn, we, together with the
leaders of the countries, are trying to formulate creative ideas and
initiatives. I know that our co-chair in the Minsk Group of the OSCE,
together with mediators from France and Russia, are doing their best to
achieve positive changes in the settlement of the Azerbaijani-Armenian
conflict over Karabakh. Nevertheless, the end result of the process
of settlement of the Karabakh conflict does not largely depend on the
OSCE Minsk Group. The Minsk Group can only facilitate the settlement
of the conflict. It cannot compel. The problem will only be solved
after each side demonstrates a political will to this end,” he said.

Possibility of fresh hostilities between Azerbaijan, Armenia

Morningstar said he does not believe there will be a resumption in
hostilities between Azerbaijan and Armenia, saying that neither side
is interested in this.

“We do hope that hostilities will not be resumed. We do not believe
either Azerbaijan or Armenia are interested in resuming hostilities.

The OSCE Minsk Group needs to create such a situation when the sides
will not take incorrect decisions that can lead to armed conflict. It
is necessary that the OSCE Minsk Group should consistently urge the
sides to the conflict not to take erroneous steps,” he said.

He went on to say that the USA is doing its best to uphold security
in the Caucasus region.

“Washington will continue opposing any use of force in the region. We
cooperate with Azerbaijan in the area of security. This cooperation
involves providing security in the Caspian Basin. We are working to
elaborate a necessary strategy in order to protect vital infrastructure
in the Caspian Sea,” Morningstar said.

He added that the USA is working with regional countries to minimize
threats to regional security.

“We have close partner relations in the fight against terrorism. There
is strong cooperation between Washington and Baku regarding
Afghanistan. While the USA cannot provide collective security
guarantees, the way NATO can, we believe that as a result of the
implementation of appropriate measures, we have recently managed to
significantly reduce the risk of conflict in the region,” he said.

Trans-Caspian oil pipeline

Asked about the USA’s stance regarding the Trans-Caspian gas pipeline,
Morningstar said that that his country has great hopes for the success
of the project that is meant to transport natural gas to Europe.

“We support the implementation of this project. The negotiations
involving the EU, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan continue and we hope
that they will be successful. The final investment decision regarding
the Sah-Daniz [gas field] project should be taken this year. We have
great hopes that there will be progress in the formation of the South
Corridor through which natural gas will be transported to Europe,”
he said.

Criticism of National Democratic Institute

Morningstar rebuffed the Azeri authorities’ criticism of the US
National Democratic Institute (NDI), saying that the NDI’s activities
have always been transparent and that it has never sided with any
political parties.

“I can say unambiguously that the NDI has no interest whatsoever in
fuelling unrest in Azerbaijan. NDI and employees of this organization
have always supported and welcomed the development of democracy in
Azerbaijan. The NDI has never worked specifically with political
parties. It worked with non-governmental organizations, including
pro-government NGOs. The NDI’s activities in Azerbaijan have always
been transparent. Regarding the forthcoming presidential election in
Azerbaijan I can say that election year is always a difficult period,”
he said.

[Translated from Russian]

ON THE RUN AGAIN: SYRIA: AN ARMENIAN STORY

CounterPunch
May 3 2013

by REEM HADDAD

She had lost a lot of weight and her eyes had a haunted look about
them. She had lost her house and everything in it. In that she was like
many Syrians, who had suffered the same fate. Her house was in Jobar (
one of the hot spots of Damascus countryside) and in the beginning she
had seen the armed men a street away from her house brazenly walking
around brandishing guns. She had informed the checkpoint also around
the corner of her house, but they told her it wasn’t their business to
interfere! When a bullet just missed her brother , who was standing
in his bedroom, they decided to leave the house until the area was
a bit safer. At that point she never thought that she wouldn’t sleep
another night in her house.

Days later a soldier from the same checkpoint called her to tell her
that armed men had entered her house and robbed it ! They had stolen
everything worth stealing. The accumulation of years of toil and hard
work. The house it seemed was lost even though the Syrian army helped
her retain some of her belongings. A fortnight later she heard that
her house was being used as headquarters. Now nothing remains of what
was – no memories, no comfort and no place to call home.

What makes this story particularly poignant is that the ancestors of
this women in question had fled to Syria seeking sanctuary. They had
been pursued and massacred by the Turks and had walked for endless
days over mountainous terrain until they reached Syrian soil. Syria
opened its arms wide for them and they were accepted and indeed became
an integral part of the Syrian mosaic.

They are the Armenians of Syria and the women in question is Yerado
Krikorian, a Syrian of Armenian origin, who works for Syrian Arab
Television. The Armenians had long suffered under Ottoman rule and it
was because of the Armenian massacre, systematically denied by Turkey,
that the Armenians fled to neighboring Syria.

The many Armenians who live in Syria, live in close knit societies.

They are known to be hard working and professional and they all carry
the scars of what happened to them by the Turks deep inside. Another
Armenian – Syrian Armenian – Jack, who was a university professor
at Damascus University, was never taught his language by his father,
for fear that his language, Armenian, would awaken national pride in
him and possibly a thirst for revenge. The scars left by the Turks
ran too deep for Jack’s father to take such a gamble.

And now the Armenians find themselves in a similar situation having to
flee from the country that has long hosted and loved them. Targeted by
armed groups some have little choice but to escape to Armenia. They
do so with heavy heart and all our hopeful that they will return
to Syria and soon – to the extent that the Armenian government has
made an exception for those Armenian children fleeing from the armed
groups in Syria and has allowed them to study the Syrian curriculum
in Armenian schools. They carried their Syrian textbooks from Syria
to Armenia so desperate are they not to fall behind in their school
schedule when they return to Syria. There is no ” if ” here – for
they want to return.

Hopefully , they will return and return soon to enrich once again
the Syrian mosaic and who knows, perhaps Yerado too, one day will
return to her house in Jobar with its blackened walls and its shattered
windows! And Jack also, will feel safe enough as the shadow of menacing
Turkey diminishes, to teach his children Armenian.

Reem Haddad can be reached at [email protected]

RWB: AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT AND SUPREME COUNCIL PRESIDENT OF NAKHCHIVAN AUTONOMOUS REPUBLIC INCLUDED IN ‘PRESS PREDATORS’ LIST

18:02 03/05/2013 ” SOCIETY

On World Press Freedom Day, Reporters Without Borders is releasing an
updated list of 39 Predators of Freedom of Information – presidents,
politicians, religious leaders, militias and criminal organizations
that censor, imprison, kidnap, torture and kill journalists and other
news providers. The names of the Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev
and Vasif Talibov, Supreme Council President of Nakhchivan Autonomous
Republic of Azerbaijan also stand in that list.

“These predators of freedom of information are responsible for the
worst abuses against the news media and journalists,” Reporters
Without Borders secretary-general Christophe Deloire said.

He also noted that the predators are becoming more and more effective.

In 2012, the level of violence against news providers was unprecedented
and a record number of journalists were killed.

To show how some predators really think, Reporters Without Borders
have presented their innermost thoughts in the first person. “We
had to use a little imagination, of course, but the facts alluded to
conform to reality,” the article reads.

Thus Aliyev’s thoughts are presented in the article, “Death threats,
kidnappings – my thugs stop at nothing. But that doesn’t prevent
us from sometimes acting with tact. With the help of sex tapes and
rumours, smear campaigns are often enough to bring our opponents
to heel. Directly or indirectly, I control all the TV stations. We
have banned the BBC, Radio Free Europe and Voice of America from
FM broadcasting in Azerbaijan since 2009 because they were trying
to make trouble. My men have hounded the opposition press so much
that there’s little left – just enough for us to be able to tell
the outside world that Azerbaijan is a democracy… The street
protests in the spring of 2011, prompted by the Arab Spring, gave
me a scare. I had the leading opposition bloggers arrested but the
rumblings continue. It’s a pity because now we are getting ready for
a new election, a presidential one in October, so do you imagine I’m
going to let people do as they wish? That wouldn’t be worthy of an
Aliyev. Last January, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of
Europe tried to pass a resolution “on the human rights situation in
Azerbaijan.” We got our way. It was rejected. Obviously. What were
they thinking? Business is too important. There was too much at stake
for me to let the troublemakers talk. Fortunately, Dad taught me how
to make dissidents shut up.”

Thoughts of Vasif Talibov, Supreme Council President of Nakhchivan
Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan are also presented in the article:
“President Ilham Aliyev and I have always been fantastic accomplices.

My friend, the president, gives me carte blanche to rule as I wish in
the isolated region of Nakhchivan and I use my fiefdom as a laboratory
for the repressive methods that he then applies in the rest of the
country. I have acquitted my duties so well that he awarded me the
“medal of glory” in 2010. Separated from the rest of Azerbaijan by
a strip of Armenian territory, the autonomous republic of Nakhchivan
is often described by commentators as “Azerbaijan’s North Korea.” I
think they exaggerate. If I concentrate all power in my hands, it’s
because our parliamentarians have really wanted to reelect me every
five years since 1995. To please my friends, I appoint ministers,
promulgate laws, control the justice system and run the all-powerful
security agencies. But politics bore me. To reimburse myself for
all my sacrifices, I am obliged to monopolize the region’s most
profitable business activities… After all, I’ve acquired some very
good experience for my dictator’s CV in the course of more than 15
years in office. The local media no longer tell me anything I don’t
want to hear. One of Nakhchivan’s two TV stations is state-owned and
my brother owns the other. I just need to find a way to stop people
watching Turkish satellite TV stations. In other words, no independent
media in my region. The opposition newspapers printed in Baku do not
reach Nakhchivan.”

A handful of fanatics nonetheless persist in talking about corruption,
human violations and use of torture. What cheek! They are asking for
a good hiding and that’s what we give them.”

The head of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev is in the “press predator”
group since 2006, and it is the second year that Vasif Talybov is in
the list.

Source: Panorama.am

BAKO SAHAKYAN PARTICIPATED IN SOLEMN CEREMONY OF OPENING ART CENTER IN SHOUSHI

17:12, 3 May, 2013

YEREVAN, MAY 3, ARMENPRESS. On May 3, Artsakh Republic President Bako
Sahakyan participated in the solemn ceremony of opening art center
in the town of Shoushi in the jubilee exhibition of famous sculptor
Nikolai Nikoghosian held in the center. The Central Information
Department of the Artsakh Republic President’s Office informed
“Armenpress” the President thanked philanthropists Sergey, Karo and
Kamo Sargsyans for financing this program and stressed the importance
of having the arts center in Shoushi, noting that it would contribute
to the cultural development in the city and to strengthening its
relations with different cities and countries in this sphere.

On the same day the President took part in the opening of a newly
built stadium in Shoushi. The Head of the State thanked the president
of the Armenia’s football federation for realizing the project,
noting the significance of this facility in healthy upbringing of
the younger generation.

Primate of the Artsakh Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church
Archbishop Pargev Martirosyan, National Assembly speaker Ashot
Ghoulyan, other officials, guests from Armenia and abroad took part
at the events.

Return of American Politics

What the American Republicans implied for so long and implicitly will
come true – the Bush clan return to politics (though it has hardly
ever left it). George Bush Jr. announced unambiguously that his little
brother Jeb Bush will run in the presidential election.

The mother of the family is trying to demonstrate that she is against
this idea, thereby underlining that the post of president is not the
goal of their family but one way or another there is no need to doubg
that the past election was a badly rehearsed comedy by the
Republicans, and the Republican Party was waiting for the arrival of
Jeb Bush to big politics.

A lot of people in the United States, those who consider themselves
carriers of the American nation, rely on the Bush family for
withdrawing the United States from its current shameful state of total
capitulation before foreign and internal challenges. Will the former
or present neo-conservatives or will the new generation of Reaganists
come to Jeb Bush’s administration? It is hard to tell. However, the
meaning of `return’ is understood and obvious. There is nothing new,
and nothing original will be invented.

In foreign policy social and tax policies will be more reserved and
conservative. The same goes for the immigration policy despite Jeb
Bush’s close relations with Latin America. At last, the United States
will set to address the issues of foreign security. Some regional
groups, first of all southerners, conventionally called the
Confederates, may become stronger.

One can claim confidently that the Bush clan will not allow nurturing
a politician of the Conservative Republican environment alternative to
possible presidential candidates of their family. And it is very good.
The United States and the world are tired of the experiments of the
left liberals in Washington and Clinton and Obama types.

At the same time, the Republican administration will not take into
consideration that the American society strongly waggled towards the
left Liberal side with excessive freedom and open perversions, and
will hardly demonstratively wrap up already approved reforms in
medical programs. It is obvious that the Republicans are likely to
consolidate not `all’ Americans but only `its’ supporters and carriers
of the American ideas.

More intensive developments will take place in foreign policy.
Non-proliferation of mass destruction weapons seems like the United
States will not pedal this topic but will use these problems to
intensify their influence in the world and the regions. The United
States will use the Iranian issue as an arena for boosting pressure on
Arab states, possibly Turkey and South Asia.

The United States will reanimate its presence in Central Asia and will
impart the South Caucasus with new functions. A new round of the
policy of containment of China will be launched, a more persistent
policy will be conducted in the Far East. The United States will start
looking for a new scheme of dislocation of its military political
presence in the Near East, rejecting dependence of the elements of
global security on the current configuration of dislocation of
military bases with reduced spending.

Full Islamization of civic resistance in the Islamic world will take
place, responsibility will be shifted onto the leading Islamic
countries. Review of the current configuration of borders in the
region, fragmentation of certain states will intensify.

The Americans will review strategic cooperation with Africa and Latin
America. As always, special focus will be on the revival and
prevention of split in NATO. The Republicans would like to prove that
the new strategies and priorities of NATO will be related with their
policies and approaches (including relations with new partners).

Relations with Russia will mostly be reduced to dialogue on certain
regions, such as the Black Sea, the South Caucasus and Central Asia.
The United States will try to limit relations with Russia to this
space.

Of course, Democrats will not give up so easily and will fight like
during the pre-election campaign and later but they have already
demonstrated that if there was something reasonable in their policy,
it was from the Republicans.

No doubt the United States will launch a new epoch of their politics,
and it would be a grave mistake to include functionaries from Bush’s
old team in the Republican administration.

The United States is already missing the Grand Old Party and now a lot
can be predicted even intuitively. Soon the day will come when someone
will repeat the words of Prescott Sheldon Bush to get out of their
way.

Igor Muradyan
15:51 29/04/2013
Story from Lragir.am News:

Prime Minister says 9.9% GDP growth reported in Artsakh

May 4, 2013 – 18:15 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Prime Minister of Nagorno Karabakh Republic Ara
Harutyunyan met with a group of students of NKR State University and
Stepanakert branch of Armenian State Agrarian University.

Prime Minister Harutyunyan briefed the students on the areas
envisaging 9-11 % and 10-15% growth of GDP and investments
respectively in the 5 years to come. The program also envisages
increase in export volume, job creation and agricultural development.

According to the Prime Minister 9.9% GDP growth was recorded in NKR in
2012, with Armenia and Azerbaijan posting 7.2% and 2,2% growth
respectively.
He further briefed the students on the education reform and mortgage
lending programs.