Author: Kanayan Tamar

DEMAIN IL SERA PEUT-ETRE TROP TARD !
Jean Eckian

armenews.com
mercredi 21 novembre 2012

Armenian Life Magazine n°1339

Une Entrevue de Harut Sassounian par Khatchig Mouradian – Armenian
Weekly

Armenian Weekly – Vous avez titre l’un de vos recents articles ” Alep
Brûle tandis que nous Accordons nos Violons : un Appel au Sursaut
de Tous les Armeniens. ” Parlez-nous des circonstances qui vous ont
pousse a faire cette declaration.

Harut Sassounian-J’etais profondement frustre et contrarie qu’en
face de la terrible epreuve subie par les Armeniens syriens, ne soit
organisee aucune implication et aucune aide de la part du Gouvernement
armenien et des Armeniens du monde. Et par la suite, quand j’ai appris
qu’en depit d’assurances personnelles recues d’officiels du plus
haut niveau lors de mon recent voyage en Armenie, le Fonds Armenien
avait seulement alloue 10% du telethon de cette annee aux Armeniens
de Syrie, j’ai decide de manifester mon mecontentement. S’il est vrai
que quelques efforts ont ete faits par l’Armenie et la Diaspora pour
venir en aide aux Armeniens de Syrie, je pense que ces efforts sont
trop faibles et trop tardifs. On doit faire beaucoup plus immediatement
et dans l’urgence !

A.W.- La communaute armenienne d’Alep semble etre au centre des
efforts de soutien en cours. Et cependant, il y a plusieurs milliers
d’Armeniens de Syrie qui ont trouve refuge en Armenie, au Liban, et
ailleurs, et ils ont un besoin urgent d’assistance. Ils ne sont pas –
pour dire une evidence- moins Armeniens de Syrie que ceux qu’ils ont
laisse derrière eux. Comment ce defi peut-il etre releve ?

H.S. – Si nous collectons des millions de dollars, je pense que nous
pourrons avoir suffisamment de fonds pour venir en aide a tous les
Armeniens de Syrie, ceux qui s’y trouvent et ceux qui se sont refugies
en Armenie et ailleurs.

A.W.- Les efforts faits en Diaspora et en Armenie se concentrent,
d’abord, sur l’aide humanitaire. Quelles initiatives politiques
peuvent etre prises ou ont deja ete prises ?

H.S. Les initiatives politiques sont tout aussi importantes que l’aide
humanitaire. Je pense que nos organisations politiques aux Etats-Unis,
en France, en Russie et ailleurs pourraient faire pression sur toutes
les parties qui prennent part a la guerre de Syrie, et en particulier
sur la Turquie, pour qu’elles s’abstiennent de faire des victimes
civiles, notamment armeniennes. Je pense que de tels efforts sont
entrepris par l’ANCA, le Gouvernement armenien et d’autres.

A.W. Une eglise armenienne a ete recemment profanee et incendiee par
des rebelles. L’incident n’a fait l’objet d’aucun reportage dans les
media des Etats-Unis, et aucune voix officielle des Etats-Unis n’a
ete entendue pour condamner ces actes. Quel rôle les USA devraient-ils
jouer a cet egard ?

H.S. Nous devons faire pression sur nos membres du Congrès et sur
l’administration Obama pour faire entendre avec plus de force leur
condamnation de tels comportements, de la part de combattants armes
et soutenus par les Etats-Unis et leurs allies. Ils devraient etre
meme plus durs dans leurs conversations privees avec ceux coupables
de tels crimes.

A.W.- Parlez nous de vos liens avec la communaute armenienne de Syrie.

H.S. Je suis ne a Alep, en Syrie. Avant que ces troubles apparus
recemment ne se developpent, j’avais eu une occasion de me rendre a
Alep et a Damas. Nous avons une admirable communaute armenienne dans ce
pays. Les Armeniens de Syrie ont preserve avec tenacite leur langue,
leur religion et leurs traditions. Beaucoup d’Armeniens de Syrie sont
des hommes d’eglise devoues, des enseignants ou directeurs d’ecoles
armeniennes, editeurs de journaux, et des dirigeants de la communaute
au sein de la Diaspora. Nous devrions faire tout ce qui est possible
pour soutenir et aider nos frères et nos s~urs de Syrie.

Demain, il sera peut-etre trop tard !

Sassounian est l’editeur du California Courier, un hebdomadaire base
a Glendale, en Californie. Il est le president du Fonds Armenien
Uni, une coalition des cinq organisations armeniennes majeures des
Etats-Unis. Il a ete pendant dix ans delegue non gouvernemental des
droits de l’homme aux Nations-Unies, tenant un rôle majeur dans la
reconnaissance du Genocide armenien par l’ONU en 1985. Il a un master
degree en affaires internationales de l’Universite de Columbia et un
MBA de Pepperdine University. Sassounian a ete decore par le President
et le Premier Ministre de la Republique d’Armenie, et par les chefs
des eglises Apostolique et Catholique. Il est egalement laureat de
la Ellis Island Medal of

mercredi 21 novembre 2012, Jean Eckian ©armenews.com

TURQUIE : DEUXIEME AUDIENCE DU PROCES D’UNE ETUDIANTE FRANCO-TURQUE
Stephane

armenews.com
mardi 20 novembre 2012

La deuxième audience du procès de l’etudiante franco-turque Sevim
Sevimli, accusee d’avoir entretenu des liens avec un groupuscule
d’extreme gauche interdit, s’est ouverte lundi devant la cour d’assises
de Bursa (nord-ouest de la Turquie).

La jeune femme s’est presentee a l’audience, a constate un journaliste
de l’AFP.

Plusieurs observateurs venus de France etaient egalement presents.

“C’est une etudiante de mon etablissement et donc je viens la
defendre”, a declare a des journalistes devant le tribunal le president
de l’universite Lyon 2 Jean-Luc Mayaud.

Interroge sur les accusations portees contre Sevil, M. Mayaud a repondu
: “Elle est etudiante. On peut avoir 20 ans et rever d’etre autrement.”

Arrivee de Lyon a Eskisehir (nord-ouest de la Turquie) en debut
d’annee dans le cadre du programme d’echanges universitaires europeen
Erasmus, la jeune femme a ete arretee le 10 mai et placee en detention
provisoire pendant trois mois, avant d’etre remise en liberte sous
contrôle judiciaire.

A l’issue de la première audience de son procès le 26 septembre,
la cour de Bursa l’avait autorisee a circuler librement en Turquie
mais refuse de la laisser rentrer en France.

L’etudiante est accusee d’appartenir a une organisation d’extreme
gauche interdite proche de la cause kurde, le Parti/Front
revolutionnaire de liberation du peuple (DHKP-C). A l’origine de
nombreuses actions violentes en Turquie depuis la fin des annees
1970, le DHKP-C a revendique le 11 septembre un attentat suicide
qui a coûte la vie a un policier a Istanbul. Il figure sur la liste
des organisations classees terroristes par les Etats-Unis et l’Union
europeenne.

Sevim Sevimli, qui fetera ses 21 ans le 22 novembre, risque jusqu’a
trente-deux annees de prison.

DJORKAEFF AU SECOURS DE L’ARMENIE

Le Parisien
Vendredi 16 Novembre 2012
France

VAL-DE-MARNE; EN IMAGE CACHAN, HIER APRÈS-MIDI

” Allô, Nadia? C’est Youri Djorkaeff qui vous appelle. On m’a dit que
vous faisiez beaucoup pour la cause des Armeniens, depuis de longues
annees… ” Parrains de la 13e edition du Phonethon, l’ex-footballeur
champion du monde 1998 (notre photo) ainsi que Daniel Bilalian,
directeur des sports de France Televisions, ont prete main-forte aux
benevoles du centre d’appels de France Telecom-Orange a Cachan hier
après-midi en incitant des particuliers a donner au profit de l’Armenie
et du Karabagh, territoire majoritairement peuple d’Armeniens ayant
proclame son independance.

En quatre jours, environ 60000 familles et entreprises francaises
seront contactees en ce sens dans le cadre de cette operation
humanitaire organisee par le Fonds armenien de France. Dès 16 heures
hier, la barre des 500000 (EURO) etait atteinte et l’objectif, d’ici a
dimanche, sera de depasser le 1,3 M(EURO) recolte en 2011. L’argent
recueilli sert a financer des projets, comme la construction de
centres ruraux d’action sociale, mais aussi a venir en aide a la
communaute armenienne de Syrie. Ainsi plusieurs familles ont deja pu
etre rapatriees d’Alep cette annee. ” Cette solidarite fait partie
de la culture armenienne. Elle a toujours ete visible et concrète “,
a notamment souligne Youri Djorkaeff devant les benevoles.

ENVOY ACTS AS BRIDGE BETWEEN JAPAN, ARMENIA
By MAMI MARUKO

The Japan Times
Nov 20 2012

It didn’t come as much of a surprise to Grant Pogosyan when the offer
came to him from the Armenian government to become his home country’s
ambassador to Japan.

For over 20 years, Pogosyan, 59, has lived and worked in Japan –
albeit in a completely different field – teaching mathematics and
computer science at International Christian University in Tokyo.

It was only two years ago that Armenia opened its embassy in Japan,
although initially it did not have an ambassador. Pogosyan, one of
the 30 Armenians currently living in Japan, had initially served as
an adviser to the Armenian Foreign Ministry on Japanese affairs. He
was later tapped as an embassy adviser and then, in May, its first
ambassador.

“I think I was chosen because I had a long experience here and
knew a lot about Japan. I felt it was a great honor, and felt huge
responsibility to act as a bridge between Armenia and Japan,” he said,
adding that he hopes to introduce the Japanese people to his country,
which is “generally not well known in Japan.”

“I think a lot of people have a very vague image of Armenia – and
think of it as a faraway country,” he said. “Unless people get to
know more about the country, it’s difficult to expect wide-ranging
collaboration between the two.”

Armenia was a part of the Soviet bloc until its independence in 1991.

Until then, Pogosyan said, “Armenia, like the rest of the Soviet
republics, had little connection to Japan.”

“Armenians, like many people in the world, held a cliche image of
Japan as a country of karate, sumo, bonsai and electronics,” he said.

“A lot of Armenians had a general interest in Japan because of its
technological prowess. However, there were few chances for most to
go to Japan and get to know more about the country and its culture.”

Pogosyan is one of only a handful of Armenians who have had the chance
to come and work in Japan. “I was very lucky to have been able to do
my own research, and to learn the Japanese language and culture in
depth,” he said.

Pogosyan said that in the last two decades the two countries have
boosted cultural exchanges. “Especially exchanges or collaborations
in music, art, and cooking in recent years,” he said. But business
relations remain a “slow process,” he admitted, noting that apart
from some official aid-linked projects done in Armenia by the Japan
International Cooperation Agency, Japanese business relations with
the country are still in their infant stages despite their potential.

Pogosyan was born in Gyumri, the second-largest city in Armenia,
and grew up in the capital, Yerevan. He first came to Japan in 1987,
to ICU as a visiting scholar supported by a grant for exchanges of
young scientists between the two countries.

“I had developed a strong interest in Japanese culture and language
during my student years in Moscow,” he said, adding that although
his focus was in mathematics, he was a member of an international
students’ club when he was in graduate school, and interacted with
students from all over the world, including Japanese.

“I was happy when I first made my Japanese friend,” he said, adding
that this friend taught him some basic Japanese phrases and kanji.

Pogosyan graduated from Moscow State University with a Master of
Science in mathematics, and then acquired a Ph.D. in computer science
from the USSR Academy of Sciences in Moscow in 1982. He later taught
computer science at a university in Armenia before coming to Japan.

In 1991, “dame moto de” (knowing there may be little chance of
success), he applied for a tenure at ICU, passed and came to live in
Tokyo with his Armenian wife and two children.

A self-taught fluent Japanese speaker, Pogosyan served as a mathematics
and computer science professor for 21 years at ICU. He played a leading
role in ICU’s graduate school reforms, helping merge four different
divisions to form the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. He served
as dean of the graduate school from 2008 until March of this year.

“I thought that ICU’s graduate school should lower the walls between
the divisions and give the students a chance to explore subjects that
span across the traditional disciplines,” he said. “It was important
to achieve a good balance – liberating the breadth while keeping the
depth of studies and research.”

Pogosyan is the founding director of ICU’s Global Leadership Studies
program that started in 2010, a three-week intensive residential
course taught in English, targeting middle management from major
Japanese firms, with the aim of developing leadership skills.

“I was concerned about the challenges emerging in Japan during the
postbubble (economy) period,” he said. “Besides the domestic issues,
today we see a decline of Japanese performance on the international
stage. I thought that it may be worth trying to boost Japanese business
through leadership education.”

Pogosyan has also participated in activities outside of academia.

He has cooperated with the city of Mitaka in western Tokyo – his
home for most of his time in Japan – where he served for over 10
years as cochairman of Mitaka’s Municipal Roundtable Committee on
Internalization. He has held discussions with Japanese and non-Japanese
members about problems surrounding the integration of foreign nationals
into the local community and solutions to those issues.

The group covered topics including cultural assimilation of
non-Japanese residents and how they could live comfortably in the
community, educational issues for children who just moved here from
abroad, as well as disaster prevention and medical issues for foreign
residents.

After living in Japan for two decades, Pogosyan now believes his
mission as ambassador is to “represent my own roots, my own country,
and strengthen the ties between the two.”

He said that although there are stark differences between Armenians
and Japanese – such as in the way Armenians value individualism while
Japanese put more emphasis on teamwork – the two nations share many
similarities.

“We both have mono-ethnic identities, and are mountainous nations,
with relatively small amount of resources and cutting-edge technology.

We are both nations that value our cultural and historical roots,”
he said.

The ambassador said Armenians have strength and perseverance –
qualities that they have developed from having survived and overcome
numerous difficulties throughout their history.

“We are a nation that has cherished and preserved a unique culture
and identity,” Pogosyan said. The number of Armenians who live
outside Armenia is more than double the country’s population. Most
are scattered across Europe, America and the Middle East, but “they
are preserving their culture and language while being good citizens
of the countries they chose to call home,” he said.

IRANIAN AMBASSADOR TO RUSSIA: “I’M NOT AWARE OF THE CONFLICT BETWEEN AZERBAIJAN AND ARMENIA”

APA
Nov 19 2012
Azerbaijan

Moscow. Farid Akberov – APA. “If Azerbaijan is concerned over the
project on the establishment of the hydroelectric power station with
Armenia over Araz River, it has right to express its concern to Iran
through the diplomatic channels,” said Iranian ambassador to Russia
Mahmoud Reza Sajjadi at the press briefing in Moscow.

The Iranian diplomat said that he was not informed about the project
and underlined that Armenia was a close neighbor of Iran just as
Azerbaijan: “Iran has normal relations with its neighbors.”

The Iranian ambassador responded to the question about the difference
of the Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan with the Israeli
aggression against Palestinians: “I’m not aware of the conflict
between Azerbaijan and Armenia. The Iranian ambassador to Azerbaijan,
not me should be asked about it. He is responsible for Iran-Azerbaijan
relations. As regards the Israeli aggression against Palestine, I can
say that Tehran strongly criticizes the continuation of the war by
Zionist regime. The people of Iran demonstrate solidarity with the
Palestinian people against the savage attacks of the Zionist regime.”

ARMENIA BOOSTING RELATIONS WITH BOTH NATO AND RUSSIA

EurasiaNet.org
Nov 19 2012
NY

November 19, 2012 – 12:22am, by Joshua Kucera

Armenia has lately been boosting cooperation with both NATO and
Russia, prompting questions about how far it can play both sides of
the geopolitical conflict.

This fall, Armenia has hosted top NATO officials and the U.S.
secretary of the navy, and in September Armenian units trained by
the U.S. and NATO countries for deployment in international missions,
like that in Afghanistan, conducted an exercise, reported RFE/RL:

[S]ome 600 soldiers of the volunteer unit simulated their participation
in a multinational peacekeeping operation in an exercise watched
by U.S. military instructors. The exercise also involved what the
Armenian Defense Ministry described as a successful “self-appraisal
with NATO standards” by the brigade’s Staff Company.

But this fall, Armenia also hosted exercises of the Russia-run
Collective Security Treaty Organization and has signed an agreement
with Russia on joint arms production, a provision of which requires
Armenia to “rely exclusively on Russian-made and supplied weapons,”
writes analyst Richard Giragosian in a piece at Oxford Analytica:

For the first time, Armenia is being excluded from procuring Western
arms, limiting its options and potential partners and, at least in
theory, hindering its pursuit of interoperability with NATO standards.

This has raised questions about Armenia’s ability to manage this
balancing act, with Armenian and Western officials — who are now
regularly asked about it — saying there is no contradiction in its
ties with the West and Russia. Armenian Public Radio reports on U.S.

ambassador to Armenia John Heffern:

Ambassador Heffern said there is no competition between the United
States and Russia in the region. “We work very closely with each
other, especially on the Minsk Group process,” he added.According
to John Hefffern, there is no competition between the collective
Security Treaty organization (CSTO) and NATO. “Armenia has a special
relationship with Russia and the CSTO and has an important partnership
with NATO, the Ambassador said, adding that he sees no conflict
between the two at all.

Armenia’s ambassador to NATO says the same:

Armenia’s CSTO membership is a part of country’s military-political
strategy but it is not damaging the relationship with NATO.

“We believe such cooperation is advantageous to Armenia. The ongoing
reforms are carried out in separate directions with NATO’s assistance,”
he said, pointing out defense and security reforms.

Nahapetyan is hopeful that concrete moves will be taken in the future
to state progress in Armenia-NATO relations.

“There is no contradiction between cooperation with two blocs. We
will continue developing steps defined by the President of Armenia
as the main foreign policy directions,” Nahapetyan added.

And the leaders of both Armenia and NATO also agree that there is
“no contradiction”:

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen spoke of “potential
for further development of our partnership” when he visited Yerevan
in September. He insisted that there is “no contradiction” between
Armenia’s military alliance with Russia and closer ties with NATO.

President Serzh Sarkisian similarly said after talks with Rasmussen
that Yerevan will continue combining its membership of the Russian-led
Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) with growing cooperation
with the U.S.-led alliance.

It’s true that there is no contradiction, in the same way that the
U.S. can both be a member of NATO and hold joint military exercises
with Russia. It’s just understood that Armenia’s ties with Russia are
so strong that a few U.S./NATO cooperation programs here and there
aren’t going to make any difference. As Armenia’s NATO ambassador
put it, Armenia is no Georgia:

The essence of cooperation with NATO and Georgia and Armenia are
fundamentally different, in that neither in the short term nor the
long term is the question of NATO accession on our agenda.

If Armenia started to suggest that it wanted to join NATO, or leave
the CSTO or kick out the Russian base in Gyumri, then Moscow would
start to worry. But until that unlikely point, Russians won’t be
jealous of any new suitors to Armenia.

OSCE MG CO-CHAIRS TO BRING NEW PEACE INITIATIVES TO NAGORNO-KARABAKH

Vestnik Kavkaza
Nov 19 2012
Russia

Co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group will arrive in Baku on November 26
to meet Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and President
Ilham Aliyev, 1news.azreports.

They will present new ideas to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

OSCE foreign ministers will meet in Dublin on December 6-7.

The co-chairs will then meet the Armenian foreign minister and
president and then the Nagorno-Karabakh.

WE CANNOT FORGIVE THE ONES WHO COMMITTED THE GENOCIDE AS THEY ARE BLIND AND DEAF. VARUJAN VOSKANIAN

17:58, 19 November, 2012

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 19, ARMENPRESS: The Chairman of Armenian union in
Romania, first vice-president of Romanian Writers’ Union, writer,
senator Varujan Voskanian has had a meeting with the students of
Yerevan State University (YSU) on November 19. As reports Armenpress
the reason of the meeting was his book titled “The book of whispers”.

According to the Dean of the Faculty of Philology Artsrun Avagyan
there are not many writers who can be proud that there books are read
by different nations.

The Chairman of Writers’ Union of Armenia Levon Ananyan has noted that
writing in foreign languages this generation of writers is remarkably
sounding in different languages. As an example Ananyan pointed “Black
Dog of Fate”, “Sand castle girls” adding that in the top of the list
was “The book of whispers”. Levon Ananyan believes that this book is
the best way for the international reader to get acquainted with the
truth of the Armenian Genocide.

Varujan Voskanian noted that it was a victory for him to speak
Armenia. According to him culture is the most important tool of
fight because the book is more powerful than thousands of political
speeches, talks and diplomatic efforts. On the author’s words his
book is about the Armenian identity. It is concluding the destiny of
Armenian nation. Voskanian believes that for forgiving there must be
a dialogue. We cannot forgive yet because the one in front of us is
blind and deaf.

OSCE MG NEW PROPOSALS AZERI JOURNALISTS’ FANCY?

November 20, 2012 – 21:34 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Spokesman for the Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign
Affairs Elman Abdullayev has believed “the new proposals on Nagorno
Karabakh conflict resolution to have allegedly been put forth by OSCE
Minsk Group to be nothing but media contrivance,” SalamNews reported.

The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (ambassadors Robert Bradtke of
the United States, Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, and Jacques
Faure of France) will visit Armenia on November 23.

Meetings with Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan and Foreign Minister
Edward Nalbandian are on the agenda.

It’s not ruled out that the co-chairs will visit Nagorno Karabakh
Republic in case of favorable weather conditions.

The co-chairs’ visit to Baku has been scheduled for November 26,
with meetings with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Foreign
Minister Elmar Mammadyarov planned.

Minsk Group co-chairs are expected to come up with new proposals on
peaceful resolution of Karabakh problem.

The visit will be held ahead of the 19th OSCE Ministerial Council
meeting on December 6-7 in Dublin.

GEORGIAN MINISTER OF INTERIOR AFFAIRS WILL VISIT ARMENIA

On November 19 Armenian Ambassador to Georgia Hovhannes Manoukyan
met with Georgian newly-appointed Minister of Interior Affairs Irakli
Garibashvili. Press and information department of Armenian MFA informs
about this.

Ambassador Manoukyan congratulated the Minister of nomination and told
him about Armenian Chief Policeman Vladimir Gasparyan’s invitation
to visit Armenia. Georgian Minister of Interior Affairs accepted the
invitation to visit Armenia.

During the conversation the minister rated Armenian-Georgian relations
and underlined that Georgian newly-elected Government aimed to deepen
the relations more. The Minister informed about the changes which
are expected to be held in the ministry led by him.

Some other issues of bilateral interest were on agenda as well.

20.11.12, 18:13