Author: Karapetian Hovik

Targeted News Service
February 25, 2009 Wednesday 3:06 AM EST

BUSM Receives $260,000 Grant From Lincy Foundation

BOSTON

Boston University issued the following press release:

Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) has received an initial
grant of $260,000 from the Lincy Foundation to support a curriculum
development project at the Yerevan State Medical University (YSMU) in
Armenia. The project will develop a framework to make medical
education in Armenia comparable to that in the US and Western
Europe. BUSM and the YSMU will use the BUSM curriculum as a model and
modify it as appropriate for Armenian students. The funds will support
the first and second years of the three-year project.

"We are enormously grateful to the Lincy Foundation for their support
of this important educational project. Working jointly with Yerevan
State Medical University we hope to create the infrastructure for a
dynamic, state-of-the-art learning environment for Armenian medical
students," explained Aram Chobanian, MD, President Emeritus, Boston
University and Dean Emeritus of the School of Medicine.

While the Yerevan State Medical University has a distinguished history
as the foremost medical school in Armenia and was considered one of
the leading medical institutions in the Soviet Union, it has not kept
up with the rapid advances in medial science that have occurred over
the past 25 years in North America and Western Europe. Medical
education in Armenia continues to reflect the old Soviet system:
teaching is to a great extent didactic; class sizes are large; and
hands-on clinical training is minimal. Students have tended to be
observers rather than active members of the clinical team.

The project will provide an in-depth analysis of the current Yerevan
State Medical University curriculum, visits of senior faculty and
medical students between the sister institutions, online access and
adaptation of BUSM course materials for YSMU students, development of
new courses, enrollment of senior medical students from Armenia in
clinical clerkships at BUSM.

Gohar Kyalyan, PhD, MD, Rector of YSMU and co-investigator of the
grant, has developed the project with Chobanian. "We are excited about
the opportunity to work with Boston University to transform medical
education at YSMU and in Armenia as a whole. The grant from the Lincy
Foundation is particularly appreciated at this time of economic crisis
for the world as a whole as well as for Armenia," said Kyalyan.

Contact: Gina M. Digravio, 617/638-8491, [email protected]

AZERBAIJAN SENT TWO ADDITIONAL PEACEMAKER PLATOONS TO AFGHANISTAN

PanARMENIAN.Net
27.02.2009 20:19 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Azerbaijan sent two additional peacemaker platoons
to Afghanistan, total number 45 persons.

Two Azerbaijani peacemaker platoons(47 persons), included in the
Turkish battalion, are already located in Afghanistan.

In October 2008, the Parliament of Azerbaijan made a decision on
reinforcement increase, ANS-PRESS reported.

Earlier the Azerbaijani peacemakers were settled in Kosovo. Yet, after
the region has declared its independence from Serbia (which was dubbed
as illegal by Baku) the Azerbaijani military were recalled from Kosovo.

SUMGAIT GENOCIDE THAT SHOOK ARMENIAN PEOPLE

Panorama.am
18:09 27/02/2009

Sumgait shook the Armenian people. It stunned with its brutality and
with its cynicism. History will undoubtedly pass its verdict on the
Sumgait genocide.

Massacres of Armenians in Sumgait (a city located near Baku) took place
in broad daylight, witnessed by numerous gapers and passers by. The
peak of the atrocities committed by Azeri perpetrators occurred on 27 –
29 February 1988. The events were preceded by a wave of anti-Armenian
statements and rallies that swept over Azerbaijan in February 1988.

Almost the entire area of a city with population of 250 thousand
became a site of unhindered mass pogroms. The perpetrators who broke
in Armenian households followed lists containing names of those who
lived there. They were armed with iron rods (pieces of armature),
stones, axes, knives, bottles and canisters full of benzene. As
for the quantity of the perpetrators, according to witnesses, some
apartments were raided by groups of 50 – 80 persons. Similar crowds
(up to 100 people) stormed the streets.

There were dozens of casualties (according to final but still
incomplete data, the number of murdered Armenians amounted at least 53
persons), mostly burnt alive after assaults and torture. Hundreds of
innocent people wounded and disabled. Many women, including adolescent
girls, raped. Over 200 apartments raided dozens of cars burnt, numerous
shops and workshops looted. Thousands of refugees. This is the story of
Sumgait that marked the first entry in a long list of crimes against
humanity and ethnic cleansings of the end of the 20th century.

Various political parties, human rights organizations, social and
political celebrities, even parliaments of some countries severely
criticized this disgraceful incident and spoke up for protection
of Armenians.

ARMENIAN FINANCE MINISTER: ARMENIA TO SIGN AGREEMENT FOR A US$500 MILLION STABILIZATION LOAN FROM RUSSIA WITHIN COMING WEEKS

ArmInfo
2009-02-26 17:14:00

ArmInfo. Armenia will sign an agreement with Russian to raise a US$500
million stabilization loan within the coming weeks, Armenian Minister
of Finance Tigran Davtyan told media Thursday.

He said the draft agreement is undergoing relevant procedure
in Russia. The loan will help developing economy of Armenia, the
minister said. The sectors the funds will be invested in are currently
specified, he said. Earlier the Finance Minister reported that the
loan will be provided for 15 years with 4 -year grace period. The
annual interest has not been reported.

OPPOSITION CAN DO A BLITZ-REVENGE IN YEREVAN LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS, DAVID HAKOBIAN PREDICTS

Noyan Tapan

F eb 26, 2009

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 26, NOYAN TAPAN. "Everything will be decided
in Yerevan Mayor’s elections scheduled for May 31: the opposition
can do a blitz-revenge and change everything," David Hakobian, the
Chairman of the Marxist Party of Armenia, stated at the February 26
press conference.

According to him, the opposition, in particular, the Armenian
National Congress, should pay much attention and treat seriously
those elections.

"The opposition cannot miss the mark for the third time, let the
authorities know it well," D. Hakobian added. He also warned the
authorities that the elections can be turned into state elections,
as the home political situation remains strained.

As to the tasks of the Marxist Party of Armenia, as D. Hakobian
stressed it, the political force headed by him will continue
cooperating with ANC more efficiently if ANC accepts his three
preconditions. The first precondition is that ANC leader Levon
Ter-Petrosian should periodically hold a consultation with him,
D. Hakobian, the second precondition is that two Marxist Party
representatives should be on the preelection roll of Yerevan councillor
members, and the third, ANC should provide a financial assistance to
the Marxist Party of Armenia. The speaker also stated that if the names
of the first three heading the list are marked in the ballot-paper,
he should be among them.

Speaking about the one year of President Serzh Sargsyan’s holding his
office, D. Hakobian said that participating in CSTO rapid reaction
force establishment was his only positive step. And the omission,
according to D. Hakobian, is economic and is the lack of clear-cut
programs in Nagorno Karabakh negotiations issues. "To cede the seven
territories and to leave only a donkey path, as Serzh Sargsyan says,
is a political idiocy," D. Hakobian said.

HIGHER RATES OF EXCISE TAX TO BE LEVIED ON BEER AND SOME OTHER ALCOHOLIC DRINKS IMPORTED INTO ARMENIA

Noyan Tapan

F eb 26, 2009

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 26, NOYAN TAPAN. The National Assembly on February
26 passed in second reading and completely the bill on amendments to
the Law on Excise Tax.

By the bill, the high rates of excise tax, which were established
for imported beer and a number of alcoholic drinks in late 2008 and
will take effect from March 1, have been reduced to some extent. As
a result, by the amendments to take effect from the day following
the official publication, the difference between the excise tax
rates of the indicated goods made in Armenia and those imported will
decline. The same tax rates are currently used in both cases.

"Heritage" faction voted against the bill, while "ARF" faction did
not participate in the vote.

FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS ARMENIAN COUNTERPART

Jordanian News Agency
February 24, 2009 Tuesday 10:20 PM EST

Amman, Feb. 24 (Petra) — Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh on Tuesday
discussed with Armenian counterpart Edward Nalbandian the latest
regional developments as well as bilateral ties and ways to bolster
them.

The Armenian minister handed Judeh a letter to His Majesty King
Abdullah II from Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan.

During the meeting, Judeh underlined the importance of uniting
international efforts to settle the Palestinian-Israeli conflict,
noting that King Abdullah believes the Palestinian issue is the core
of conflict in the Middle East.

"Solving the Palestinian issue according to the international
legitimacy resolution constitutes the only way to solving all regional
issues," he affirmed.

Judeh hailed the cooperation relations between Jordan and Armenia,
underlining the Kingdom’s keenness to boost them in the various
domains.

The two officials discussed mechanisms to develop these ties in the
different fields, especially in the economic and investment spheres.

The visiting Armenian official noted to his country’s foreign policy,
underlining keenness to boost ties with the Arab world and Jordan
in particular.

Minister Edward Nalbandian is in Jordan, within a regional tour that
takes him to Egypt, Lebanon and Syria.

GEORGIAN SPEAKER ON AIMS OF HIS VISIT TO ARMENIA

Rustavi-2 TV
Feb 24 2009
Georgia

[Presenter] The Georgian parliament speaker [Davit Bakradze] has left
for Armenia for an official visit. The Georgian delegation plans to
meet the Armenian president [Serzh Sargsyan], prime minister [Tigran
Sargsyan] and parliament speaker [Hovik Abrahamyan]. At the meetings,
Davit Bakradze will discuss the existing situation in Georgia and
future relations between the two countries.

[Bakradze, interviewed] One of the main topics will be the
intensification of cooperation between the parliaments of Georgia
and Armenia. But naturally, we will also speak about all issues that
are pertinent to Georgian-Armenian relations and regional security
and development overall. This includes economic cooperation, joint
projects, regional security, conflicts and all issues that are
important to us, to Armenia and to our neighbouring countries.

[Levan Vepkhvadze, deputy speaker, minority MP] Armenia is a member
of the Collective Security Treaty Organization [CSTO] and the CIS,
together with Russia. It is important for us to work precisely with
these countries so that they do not come under pressure from Russia
to recognize the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. I think
this is very important.

SCR DIRECTOR GENERAL: THERE NO DEAD-END ROADS, THERE ARE NON-TRANSIT ROADS

PanARMENIAN.Net
25.02.2009 21:38 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ South Caucasus Railways director general Shevket
Shaydullin said that establishment of logistic center and matching
with the other modes of transport are the major directions of the
SCR integration.

Asked whether dead-end Armenian roads will allow SCR integration,
Shaydullin said, "There are no dead-end roads, there are non-transit
roads."

"Establishment of a logistic center will help match SCR with the
other modes of transport," he said.

"The railroad should secure transportation of people and goods,"
he added.

South Caucasus Railways (SCR) has officially started business
operations under a concession agreement to manage Armenian Railways
on June 1, 2008.

The SCR, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Russian Railways, received
property owned by Armenian Railways consisting of 2,000 freight cars,
58 passenger coaches, 85 locomotives and 30 electric trains. All
4,300 employees employed by Armenian Railways have retained their jobs.

The concession agreement was concluded for 30 years, with a right of
extension for another 20 years after the first 20 years of operation.

Under the agreement, Russian Railways will invest USD400 million in
infrastructure at Armenian Railways and another USD170 million to
upgrade its rolling stock.

ARONIAN SUSTAINS FIRST DEFEAT AT LINARES 2009

PanARMENIAN.Net
26.02.2009 13:31 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian grandmaster Levon Aronian has sustained
his first defeat at Linares 2009 in a game with Russia’s Alexander
Grischuk, who tops the tournament chart with 4.5 points.

With 3.5 points, Aronian shares the second and third positions with
Norway’s Magnus Carlsen, who inflicted a defeat on world champion
Viswanathan Anand.

The other games of the 6th tour ended in a draw.

In the resulting 7th tour, Aronian will play against Ukraine’s
Vassily Ivanchuk.

6th tour results: Alexander Grischuk (Russia)- Levon Aronian (Armenia)
1:0 Magnus Carlsen (Netherlands) – Viswanathan Anand (India) 1:0
Vassily Ivanchuk (Ukraine)- Leinier Dominguez (Cuba) 0,5-0,5 Wang Yue
(China) – Teimour Radjabov (Azerbaijan) 0,5-0,5

Standings after 6th tour: Grischuk – 4.5 points; Aronian, Carlsen -3.5
points each; Ivanchuk Anand – 3 points each; Dominguez – 2.5 points;
Radjabov, Wang Yue – 2 points each.

6th tour participants: Anand – Grischuk, Aronian – Ivanchuk, Radjabov –
Carlsen , Dominguez – Wang Yue.