Author: Kanayan Tamar

“ARMAVIA OWES ZVARTNOTS CENTER AMD 94 MLN”

07:25 pm | Today | Social

Armenian Aero-Meteorological Center “Zvartnots” is encountering
serious financial problems. The Center owes AMD 14.5 to the airport
and is likely to be forced off if it fails to cover the debt in time.

“If we are not allowed to operate within the airport, all incoming
and outgoing flights will be cancelled, or else the planes flying
from the airport will crash,” says Pavel Manukyan, Acting Director
of the Center.

He blames the financial ‘crisis’ on Armavia Air Company, which owes
the Center AMD 94 mln for the work done in the last two years.

“Zvartnots” Center provides weather forecasts for the national
carrier. In return, the air company has agreed to pay the Center AMD
33 000 per each flight.

Mr Manukyan says the relevant agencies are aware of the problem.

The Center employs 72 people. Many of them work around the clock and
receive AMD 35 000 a month.

ARMENIAN BOOTH ATTRACTS ATTENTION AT INTERNATIONAL FOOD EXHIBITION IN UKRAINE

news.am
November 05, 2012 | 16:59

Armenian booth attracted special attention at the World Food Ukraine
2012 exhibition being held in Kiev.

Armenian producers presented juices, confectionary, canned goods,
dried fruit, brandy, wine, mineral and spring water as well as fish
products.

Head of the Ukrainian Armenians’ Union Vilen Shatvoryan told
Analitika.at.ua that holding such exhibitions contributes to
development of trade and economic cooperation.

“Business contacts should be intensified. Regular exhibitions and
business forums must be held to make economic cooperation between
Armenia and Ukraine more active,” he said.

The exhibition was held in Kiev from October 31 to November 2 bringing
together about 200 producers from 20 countries. Armenia’s
participation was organized by Armenian Development Agency (ADA) and
Fund for Rural Economic Development in Armenia (FREDA).

BULGARIAN SPIRITUAL LEADERS VISIT MOTHER SEE OF ETCHMIADZIN

news.am
November 05, 2012 | 16:52

A delegation comprising spiritual heads from Bulgaria arrived in
Armenia on Monday. On the same day, the delegation was received, at
the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, by the Catholicos of All Armenians,
Karekin II.

Father Abgar Hovakimian, Locum Tenens of the Armenian Apostolic Church
Diocese of Bulgaria, stressed that this visit will become the best
opportunity for Bulgaria’s religious leaders to get informed about
the spiritual and cultural values of the Armenians.

Karekin II welcomed the aforesaid Diocese’s initiative to invite the
Bulgarian delegation to Armenia, and stated that the visit will further
strengthen ties between the spiritual denominations. Also, he reflected
on the relations between the Armenian and Bulgarian people and the
Armenian Church’s ecumenical and interreligious ties. The Armenian
Catholicos extended his well wishes to Patriarch Maxim of the Bulgarian
Orthodox Church and to the spiritual leaders attending the talk.

To note, from Monday to Friday, the Bulgarian delegation will visit
Armenia’s several monasteries and churches, religious education
institutions, cultural centers. Also, Bulgaria’s spiritual leaders
will visit the Armenian Genocide Memorial and lay a wreath in memory
of the Genocide victims.

ARMENIAN ENVIRONMENTALISTS PREVENT PUBLIC HEARINGS IN KHOSROV FOREST

TERT.AM
05.11.12

Armenia’s Ministry of Nature Protection cannot hold public hearings
in the Khosrov forest because of environmentalists, Gor Hakobyan,
one of the activists, told Tert.am.

The unauthorized construction projects at the heart of the forest
are on the agenda, he said.

Mr Hakobyan is well aware of the environmentalists’ further steps.

The environmentalists are indignant at the fact that they were not
invited to the public hearings despite the fact that they were the
first to raise the illegal construction problem.

“After we have raised the problem once more, they are pretending to
be cooperating with us and have organized debate today. The problem
is that they have only invited environmental protection NGOs,”
Hakobyan said. However, the Ministry of Nature Protection reached
first agreement over the problem with environmental activists.

The Ministry of Nature Protection has to right to a selective approach,
and all those wishing to take part in the hearings have the right to.

As regards the building proper, the Ministry of Nature Protection
plans to either pull it down or use as a research center.

“We distrust government bodies in that the building will, in the
course of time, be turned into an entertainment center under the
guise of research center,” Hakobyan said.

Trend, Azerbaijan
Nov 3 2012

US State Department: Issue on Khankandi airport must be settled in
accordance with international law

Azerbaijan, Baku, November 3, /Ternd/

United States urges the parties to find a diplomatic solution to
issues relating to the operation of the airport, in keeping with the
relevant international agreements, customary international law, and
the current practice between Armenia and Azerbaijan with respect to
civilian air travel, US State department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland
said at a briefing in Washington DC.

She also mentioned that the OSCE-Minsk group issued a statement on this.

“There was one on April 14th, 2011. There was another one just this
past July 2012, which represented the views of the United States,
France, and Russia in calling for a diplomatic solution”, she added.

“We also, in those statements, reiterated that the operation of this
airport should not be used to support any claim of change in the
status of Nagorno-Karabakh”, said Victoria Nuland.

Earlier, Armenian media reported the commissioning of the airport in Khankendi.
The action towards the commissioning of Khojaly airport in
Nagorno-Karabakh is dangerous. It violates international law and harms
the peaceful settlement of the conflict.

Earlier, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry urged all international
companies operating in Khojaly airport to immediately stop their
illegal activities in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.

“Otherwise, the Azerbaijani side will take the appropriate steps,”
Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesman Elman Abdullayev said earlier.

Commissioning the airport in Khankendi is an open violation of the
Convention on International Civil Aviation.

Azerbaijan has banned the use of the airspace of Nagorno-Karabakh
occupied by Armenia, as no one can guarantee a safe air corridor in
the area, the head of the Azerbaijani Civil Aviation Administration,
Arif Mammadov said earlier.

The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and the European
Civil Aviation Conference (ICAC) also support the position of
Azerbaijan on this issue.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian
armed forces have occupied 20 per cent of Azerbaijan since 1992,
including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The
co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group – Russia, France and the U.S. – are
currently holding peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council’s four
resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the
surrounding regions.

TendersInfo
November 2, 2012 Friday

Belgium : 10% of Armenian Araratbank shares are taken over by Belgian company

10% of shares of Armenian Araratbank are acquired by Belgian Incofin
Investment Management investment company, contracted by signing an
agreementbetween the bank and one of the structures of investment
company Rural Impulse Fund II (RIF II).

The agreement was inked by Geert Peetermans, Belgian company s
responsible for investment, Araratbank chairman Barsegh Beglaryan and
chairman of the bank s board Ashot Osipyan.

120 million euro is the total overall investment portfolio of RIF II.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is the
owner of the part of shares, whereas Araratbank s control stock
belongs to the Armenian Flash oil trader.

Top Christian shrine may shut down over unpaid water bills

armradio.am
14:52 03.11.2012

JerusalemOne of the holiest sites in the Christian world, believed to
be the place of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection, is now
under threat of being closed over unpaid water bills, Russia Today
reports.

Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre, also known as the Church of
the Resurrection, was founded during the rule of Emperor Constantine
the Great in the 4th century and withstood invasions, fires and
earthquakes. But now, more than 1,600 years later, the Greek Orthodox
Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which maintains most of the complex, may
close the temple’s doors as the city’s water company Hagihon demands
payment of a US$2.3 million bill dating back 15 years, including
interest.

`If nothing changes we intend to announce within a few days, for the
first time in centuries, that the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is
closed,’ Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III was
quoted by RIA Novosti as saying.

For decades there has been a tacit agreement between the church and
city authorities that exempted it from water charges. But in the late
1990s private company Hagihon took over water supply in Jerusalem and
now insists that Israeli laws do not permit the company to make such
exemptions.

The church says it is willing to pay for future utilities but finds it
difficult to pay for the accumulated debt. It has asked Hagihon to
write off the debt as it was the result of a past misunderstanding.

The patriarch, Theophilos III, appealed to the leaders of Israel,
Russia, the United States, Greece, Cyprus and Jordan asking them to
intervene with the standoff and put a stop `to this flagrant act
against the church.’

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is said to be built upon the Hill of
Calvary and the site where Christ was buried and has been the top
pilgrimage destination for Christians since the 4th century. More than
1 million pilgrims arrive to the site annually.

Armenian Defense Minister meets with political studies school participants

news.am
November 03, 2012 | 15:57

YEREVAN. – Armenia’s Minister of Defense, Seyran Ohanyan, on Saturday
met with participants from the Yerevan School of Political Studies.

Ohanyan briefed them on the phases of formation of Armenia’s Armed
Forces, spoke about their civilian control mechanism, and responded to
the participants’ questions.

`Being the guarantee for the security of the people of Armenia, the
Armed Forces are under public control. We have a civilian control over
the Armed Forces. Virtually all defense ministers [of Armenia] have
been civilians. Civilian control is being conducted out in the army.
Armenia’s Armed Forces are born from the people; [and] this, too, is a
guarantee for our success,’ Seyran Ohanyan said.

In addition, Armenia’s Defense Minister pointed to the Armed Forces’
unity, standing up for their own land, and the good command unit.

Azerbaijani media `mix’ Armenians into argument between Kurds and Turks

NEWS.AM
November 03, 2012 | 14:34

The Azerbaijani media have `mixed’ the Armenians into a fight between
the Kurds and the Turks.

The unpleasant incident occurred in Odessa, Ukraine. A fight took
place, nearby the city’s market, among the citizens of Turkey who were
ethnic Kurds and Turks, the Ukrainian media inform.

`Eight men, who already had argued while in Turkey, decided to settle
scores in Ukraine. [And] Four others had come from Turkey for this
[purpose]. The argument between the old enemies turned into a fight
and, subsequently, into bloodshed because they were carrying knives.
Fortunately, the market’s security personnel were able to quickly
neutralize the four attackers, who [then] were taken to the police
station,’ Segodnya newspaper reports.

And even though the Odessa-Armenian community sharply denied the
Armenians’ involvement in this incident, the Azerbaijani media
portrayed the clash between the Kurds and the Turks as a fight between
the Armenians and the Azerbaijanis.

Prostitution is actual matter for Armenia – psychologist

news.am
November 03, 2012 | 14:23

YEREVAN. – Not solely Armenia’s domestic, but, also, foreign
prostitution is an actual topic, psychologist Karine Nalchajyan said
during a press conference on Saturday, and added that this vicious
phenomenon has always been a characteristic of humanity.

The specialist, however, is against legalizing prostitution. `Because
giving [it] the force of law will mean giving a pathway to the
disease,’ she noted.

In her words, very often a woman’s sexual tendencies, and not solely
making money, are at the basis of prostitution. `We have a certain
percentage which is linked with money. This is very unfortunate and
unjustified. It is the greatest tragedy if a woman takes care of a
family in this way. And many are deceived and they become victims of
[human] trafficking. We should work with them and bring them back from
that road. But it is meaningless to work with a committed prostitute,’
Karine Nalchajyan noted.

The press conference’s other speaker, Father Babken Hayrapetyan of the
Armenian Apostolic Church, stated: `But she [that is, a woman] should
not do it [that is prostitution] for what reason? [Because] The
greatest issue of God is put forth; the matter of salvation of the
soul. If you remove that issue, everything can be done: fornication,
drinking, murder, etc.’