Author: Kharatian Ani

Glendale News Press
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Nomination withdrawn
Hoagland, who did not cite genocide, won’t become the U.S. ambassador
to Armenia.

By Ryan Vaillancourt

GLENDALE – The White House announced Friday that its controversial
nomination of Richard Hoagland for U.S. ambassador to Armenia has been
withdrawn.

Hoagland, the former U.S. ambassador to Tajikistan, was tapped by
President Bush last year to replace former Ambassador John Marshall
Evans after Evans was allegedly forced into early retirement in
November 2006 for publicly referring to the Armenian genocide.

After a Senate confirmation hearing last year, Hoagland came under
fire from Armenian American political organizations for not
recognizing the Armenian genocide.

Hoagland’s dismissal is being hailed as a major political coup for the
Armenian American community, which has lobbied intensely for more than
a year against his appointment, officials said.

"The most important thing is the administration will learn the
political message that in dealing with Armenian issues, they have to
be more reasonable and accommodating and work with the community,"
said Harut Sassounian, who, as publisher of the California Courier, a
Glendale-based Armenian newspaper, reported Hoagland’s imminent
dismissal in a July 19 column. "If they don’t, they’ll pay a price for
it, and in this case, Hoagland paid the price."

Evans’ 2005 comments about the genocide won him admiration from the
Armenian American community, and the American Foreign Service Assn. –
comprising current and former U.S. foreign service officers – picked
Evans to receive its "constructive dissent" award.

But the State Department, which has not recognized the 1915 killings
of Armenians by Ottoman Turks as genocide, ordered Evans to issue a
retraction of his statements, and the American Foreign Service
Assn. revoked the constructive dissent award on a technicality, Evans
said during a March appearance on the Larry Zarian Forum in Glendale.

Despite the retraction, Evans was forced by the State Department into
early retirement after a career in foreign service, he said.

Hoagland had already been chosen as Evans’ successor in June, but his
status in Washington has been in limbo for more than a year, due in
large part to U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, who twice placed a hold on
Hoagland’s nomination.

A hold is a rarely used parliamentary procedure that allows a senator
to delay certain appointments.

That move afforded time for lobbyists to flood congressional offices
with letters and phone calls in opposition to Hoagland’s nomination,
Sassounian said.

"Richard Hoagland’s nomination became tainted the moment he disclosed
his position denying the historical veracity of the Armenian
genocide," Andrew Kzirian, executive director of the Armenian National
Committee of America Western Region, said in a statement. "The
Armenian American community of the western United States welcomes the
administration’s decision to withdraw the nomination and sincerely
expresses gratitude to Sen. Robert Menendez for his leadership in
this regard."

Rep. Adam Schiff, whose district includes Glendale and Burbank, also
saluted the White House move.

"The president was right to withdraw Mr. Hoagland’s nomination,"
Schiff said in a statement. "I hope that the president will soon
nominate a new ambassador who will be more forthcoming in discussing
the Armenian genocide."

White House officials said Hoagland submitted a letter of withdrawal
this week to the president, which the president "accepted."

"The president, obviously, claims he would have been a wonderful
ambassador and appreciates his willingness to serve his country,"
White House spokeswoman Emily Lawrimore said.

ARMENIA’S POPULATION SIZE IS 3.2MLN

arminfo
2007-08-01 22:56:00

According to the National Statistical Service of Armenia, the
population size of Armenia was 3223.7 thous as of July 01 2007.

According to the source, Yerevan is in the first place by its
populations size in Armenia, where it was 11053 thous.as of July 01,
Lori region is in the second place-282.1 thous, Shirak is in the
third place-280.8 thous, Armavir is in the fourth place among the
leading 5-280.6 thous, and Kotayk region closes this list- 276.8
thous. 275,6 thous people live in Ararat region, in Gegharkunik
-239.6 thous, in Syunik -152.8thous, in Aragatsotn -140.2thous, in
Tavush-134.1thous. The least amount of residents is registered in
Vayots Dzor region, where 55.8 thous people lived as of July 01 2007.

CSTO AND SCO TO SIGN PROTOCOL ON COOPERATION

PanARMENIAN.Net
31.07.2007 20:18 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO)
and Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) will sign a protocol on
cooperation within the coming several days. CSTO Sec. Gen. Nikolai
Bordyuzha made this statement to a direct TV bridge, during which
they were discussing cooperation issues between CSTO and SCO with the
Chinese side. "The protocol on cooperation is completely ready. It
is a matter of several days to sign it," N. Bordyuzha said.

He noted the document clearly indicates all forms of cooperation
between the two organizations. The CSTO Sec. Gen. noticed the SCO
and CSTO have never signed similar protocols before. "It is the first
document of this kind," N. Bordyuzha underlined.

N. Bordyuzha stressed the field of joint activities between CSTO and
SCO is very large. "All security issues that exist today we can and
must settle together," N. Bordyuzha said.

He noted in the framework of cooperation the CSTO plans to invite
Sec. Gen. of SCO to attend the session of CSTO member-states scheduled
for 5-6 October 2007 in Dushanbe.

N. Bordyuzha also said it would be a very interesting event to hold
joint trainings in SCO-CSTO format.

"Such a cooperation will allow us to carry out tasks not only of
pure military character, but also to work out issues of cooperation
between our organizations," N. Bordyuzha underscored, RBK reports.

Associated Press
Hovnanian Rises Amid Talk of Buffett Bid
By CHRIS NEWMARKER 07.13.07, 6:03 PM ET
TRENTON, N.J. –

Shares of homebuilder Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. shot up Friday amid press
reports that Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. might be eyeing the
company.
Shares of Red Bank, N.J.-based Hovnanian rose $1.98, or nearly 12 percent, to
$18.53 Friday. The stock was up slightly in after-hours trading, shortly
after 5 p.m.
Buffett’s assistant Debbie Bosanek declined to comment on the situation,
citing a company policy not to discuss company activities unless legally
required to do so. A Hovnanian spokesman didn’t immediately have a
comment on the stock’s rise in value.
Hovnanian, like other companies in the industry, has suffered a downturn in
the housing market, leading to a situation in which stock prices could be
undervalued. Hovnanian shares were trading around $70 per share in mid-2005.
But some who follow Buffett’s activities warned that the rumors of a
Hovnanian takeover may be just that: rumors.
"I’ve covered him for 20 years, and I’ve seen these rumors, thousands of
them, and very rarely are they true," said Andy Kilpatrick, a
Birmingham, Ala., stockbroker and author of "Of Permanent Value, the
Story of Warren Buffett."
With Omaha, Neb.-based Berkshire Hathaway controlling Home Services of
America, one of the largest real estate brokerage firms in the
country, Buffett might not be interested in getting into the business
of building homes, according to Justin Fuller, an analyst who follows
Berkshire Hathaway at Chicago-based Morningstar Inc.
"In the past, he’s said he’d rather take a piece of the transactions, because
he wouldn’t want direct exposure to transactions in the real estate market,"
Fuller said.
The housing industry has been suffering this year amid problems in the
subprime mortgage market. Markets that were once red-hot have seen
declining sales and falling prices.
Hovnanian lost $30.7 million, or 49 cents per share, for the three months
ended April 30, after paying preferred stock dividends. That compared with a
profit of $101 million, or $1.55 per share, in the same period a year ago.
The company builds homes in 17 states including California, Florida, New
Jersey and New York.
Copyright 2007 Associated Press.

Azerbaijan’s actions on transfer of Karabakh conflict to UN are quite
unpredictable: Karabakh political expert

arminfo
2007-07-28 23:50:00

Azerbaijan’s actions on transfer of the Karabakh conflict to the UN are
quite unpredictable, Karabakh political expert David Babayan told
ArmInfo.

He said that one should treat such actions calmly and coolly enough.
Actually, D. Babayan thinks, the attempts to transfer the negotiation
process to the UN corridors or, at least, the attempts of creating a
process parallel to the Minsk format, will possibly become one of the
main directions of the Azerbaijani foreign policy. He thinks that there
are several quite serious grounds for that, the basic of which is
unwillingness and unavailability of Azerbaijan for real settlement of
the Karabakh conflict. "Everyone understands that the Karabakh conflict
settlement is impossible without direct participation of NKR in
negotiations. It is also clear that the maximalist requirements of
Azerbaijan to give back the territories under NKR control and return
the refugees there are also hopeless. It is quite clear that NKR will
never agree to become part of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan cannot admit it
for both internal political and strategic aspects", the political
expert said.

He also said that "today, the most important and the only possible
basis of legitimacy of the present Azerbaijani authorities is the
promise to recover the "territorial integrity" of the country and
return the "native" lands". "If Baku admits that it is impossible, the
system of the power legitimacy in this country collapses. As for the
strategic aspects, NKR recognition or self-determination may raise a
chain response in Azerbaijan, especially among Lezghins and Talyshes,
whim the Azerbaijani authorities could not finally assimilate. This is
not for the sake of Baku. Therefore, Azerbaijan tries to maximum
prolong the settlement. In this context, transfer of the Karabakh
settlement to the UN seems the most expedient for it", D. Babayan said.
He added that "it is not so bad for NKR to try to transfer the conflict
settlement within the frames of the UN or create a parallel format".

TREND News Agency, Azerbaijan
July 28 2007

Peaceful Population of Nagorno-Karabakh Already Wish to Reside as
Part of Azerbaijan: Deputy Foreign Minister

Azerbaijan, Baku /corr. Trend A.Ismaylova / The Deputy Foreign
Minister of Azerbaijan, Araz Azimov, calls on the co-chairs of the
OSCE Minsk Group to come to a common conclusion on Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict settlement by the end of year.

He stressed that if the situation continues so in this regard it will
not be useful for any of the conflicting sides. `According to the
political agendas of their countries and taking into consideration
their personal and professional careers, the co-chairs should, by the
end of year, define what needs to do. We hope that this troika will
make serious and decisive efforts to clarify the situation,’ Azimov
said.

According to the Deputy Foreign Minister, Azerbaijan hopes that the
co-chairs will insist on the project of base principles which was
devised in the last three years.

As regards the to term-frame given to the Armenian side through the
will of the Armenian President, Robert Kocharyan, during his recent
meeting with the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, in
Saint-Petersburg, Azimov noted that the given time was sufficient.
`International organizations will liven up their activities from the
mid August. Armenian Government is likely to summarize the interest
of its society and to review its positions. I hope it will be
constructive,’ he said.

According to Azerbaijani diplomat, Kocharyan is protecting the
interests of Armenian community of Nagorno-Karabakh more than the
position of Armenia. `Sometimes it is outside the framework. We are
considering the issue with the Armenian side. I believe the peaceful
population residing in Nagorno-Karabakh already wish to reside as
part of Azerbaijan,’ Azimov said.

Armenian Fest: July 28-29

In Festival Guide

OnMilwaukee.com
July 21, 2007

By OMC Staff Writers

It began in the 1930s, when groups of Armenian families gathered for a
summer picnic featuring traditional Mediterranean dishes made from
treasured family recipes.

Today, the picnic has grown into a full-blown festival and is a popular
stop for people of Armenian heritage and people who want a break from
the brats and burgers monotony of other festivals.

Armenian food takes center stage at this festival, and the offerings
resemble Greek and other Easter Mediterranean cuisines, but with
different spices and seasonings. The menu ill include chicken and beef
kebob, cheese and spinach burek, lamajoun (a pizza-like meat dish served
on thin tortilla dough), humus (a dip made of chick peas),
tabouleh (a green salad without lettuce), choreg (breadsticks),
vegetarian and meat sarma (stuffed grape leaves) and a mouthwatering
array of baklava and other traditional pastries.

Armenian wine will be served, along with beer and soft drinks.

Where: St. John the Baptist Armenian Orthodox Church, 7825 W. Layton Ave.

Hours: Noon to 6 p.m.

Admission: Free

Highlights: In addition to food, Armenian Fest offers a cultural booth
selling books and artifacts relating to Armenia.

New this year: There will be live Armenian music from Chicago’s Hai
Vibes on Saturday and Racine’s MidEast Beat on Sunday.

s/articles/armenianfest07.html

US DEPLOYS INTELLIGENCE UNIT IN ARMENIA TO SPY ON IRAN

journalismus – nachrichten von heute
/
July 26 2007
Germany

The US Global Gold Corporation (GGC) will complete the gold exploration
in Arevis village of Sisyan region, Armenia by the end of 2007, APA
reports quoting Armenian press. The gold de-posit is situated on the
border with Nakhchivan province of Azerbaijan.

Henrich Lazarian, general geologist of GGC office in Armenia said the
Corporation that operates in close cooperation with Armenian defense
ministry has invested $2.2 million in "Marjan" deposit which is 3000
meters above the sea level.

Unnamed source in Armenian environmental protection ministry said it
is not informed of the Corporation’s activity as it is not allowed
for that.

Armenian defense ministry sources said the American company is
working for the Pentagon and fulfilling errands on Iran in the
territory. Chairman and CEO is Armenian Van Krikorian, president on
operational works Michael T.Mason and vice-president Hrayr Agnerian.

Local residents say the GGC supports the restoration of the
infrastructure of Arevis village which is com-pose dof 24 houses.

They say there are also some English-speaking military-like persons
besides geolo-gists, who are installing unknown big facility in
the territory.

Armenian-born American analyst Richard Kirakosyan has recently
announced that Washington and Mos-cow has reached an agreement on Serj
Sarkisyan’s presidency after Robert Kocharian. Armenia is re-ported
to have undertaken certain commitment on providing opportunity for
the Us to use its territory against Iran.

BAKU CAN GET SOUTH AZERBAIJAN AS COMPENSATION FOR NAGORNO KARABAKH?

PanARMENIAN.Net
25.07.2007 15:55 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ "It’s demonstrative that some of the U.S. observers
arrived to watch the presidential elections in Karabakh from Kosovo and
returned there afterwards. The observation mission included members
of the Group of International Law and Policy and the U.S. University
of Kosovo Foundation. It turns out that the same people are dealing
with the Kosovo and Karabakh issues. Does it mean that Washington
may apply the same approach to Kosovo and NKR?" Russian political
scientist Alexander Krylov writes in an article titled "Will the
United States exchange Karabakh for South Azerbaijan?" and published
on Novaya Politika website.

Given the striving of the current U.S. administration for reshaping
borders, such supposition doesn’t seem absurd. The difference is that
Serbia, in case it surrenders, will receive nothing but unsubstantiated
promises about EU membership. Azerbaijan, however, can receive a
territorial compensation in the form of South Azerbaijan. Thus,
a decision can be found at the expense of Iran, whose partition is
openly discussed by the western media and American expert community.

Evidently, resolution of the Karabakh problem by Kosovo model may seem
attractive for the U.S. administration. It will allow accomplishing
the main task in the Caucasus: to secure simultaneous accession of
the Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia to NATO, what will push Russia
out of the South Caucasus and will offer the opportunity to put into
operation the scenario of Iran’s split into ethnic elements. In this
context, the information about U.S. readiness to deliver a blow on
Iran furnished by "reliable sources" is very demonstrative.

"May such a variant be admissible for Armenia and may it receive
benefits that will force the republic to refuse from strategic
partnership with Russia? I think, yes. But in this case the Karabakh
settlement will be all-embracing, including recognition of the Armenian
Genocide by Turkey, without which normalization of the Armenian-Turkish
relations is hardly possible.

Will Turkey accept such a scenario? Yes, it can prefer a "mild variant"
of Genocide acknowledgement in order to avoid paying material and
territorial compensations. The Armenian nation, for its part, may
receive Karabakh as a compensation for the 1915 Genocide. For this
purpose, the U.S. will have to persuade Baku to refuse from Nagorno
Karabakh in exchange for South Azerbaijan. Although, experience of the
Middle East shows that U.S. daring experiments on world rearrangement
create problems rather than solve them," Alexander Krylov writes.

ARMENIAN PUBLIC RADIO SAYS ‘NO’ TO RFE/RL SHOWS

Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (press release)
July 25 2007
Malaysia

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and its oversight agency,
the US Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), have expressed dismay
at Armenian Public Radio’s rejection of a new contract to continue
carrying programmes of RFE/RL’s Armenian Service.

RFE/RL Armenian programmes have been aired on Armenian Public Radio –
Armenia’s top radio network – since 1998. Survey data shows that 15
percent of Armenian adults listen to RFE/RL programmes each week.

Three days of discussions in Yerevan, Armenia, last week between US
and Armenian broadcast officials ended without agreement on a new
contract to replace one that had lapsed in February.

"Our delegation was told there are no deadlines, and no threat was
made to take RFE/RL programmes off public radio. Yet the contract
remains unsigned, and our offers to make payment were refused,"
said BBG Chairman James K Glassman.

The Armenian parliament on 3 July did not adopt amendments to the
country’s media regulations that would have banned RFE/RL and other
foreign broadcasters from public airwaves.

One week later, Armenian Public Radio indicated that it planned to stop
RFE/RL broadcasts on 9 August, citing contractual and payment issues.

"We value our relationship with Armenian Public Radio, and certainly
want it to continue. We look forward to signing the contract,
and making all payments stipulated in the contract, as soon as our
partners in Armenia tell us they are ready," said Mr Glassman.