Author: Khondkarian Raffi

HIGH-LEVEL RUSSIAN-ARMENIAN TALKS HELD IN THE KREMLIN

RIA Oreanda
June 24 2008
Russia

President Dmitry Medvedev and President Serzh Sarkisian discussed a
wide range of issues of Russian-Armenian cooperation, in particular
prospects for expanding production and technological cooperation,
further cooperation among small and medium businesses and opportunities
for promoting mutual investments. The two sides also agreed on steps
to assist a number of major projects being carried out by Russian
companies in Armenia.

There was an exchange of views on important regional and international
issues. Dmitry Medvedev and Serzh Sarkisian reaffirmed their readiness
to coordinate foreign policy activities on a bilateral and multilateral
basis, including through interaction in the CIS and the Collective
Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) in view of Armenia’s forthcoming
presidency of the CSTO. There was also a discussion of the prospects
of resolving the Nagorny Karabakh conflict.

Following the meeting, Dmitry Medvedev and Serzh Sarkisian issued a
joint statement.

It said, in part, that the views of Russia and Armenia on current
international problems are either identical or very close.

The two sides plan to cooperate closely in creating foreign policy
on a bilateral basis and within the framework of international
organisations in order to strengthen peace, stability and security
on both a regional and global scale.

At the end of the Russian-Armenian talks, Dmitry Medvedev and Serzh
Sarkisian made statements to the press.

This is the third meeting between the Presidents of Russia and Armenia
in 2008. Serzh Sarkisian came to Moscow in March and to St Petersburg
for the informal CIS summit in June of this year.

At that time, the head of the Russian state invited the President of
Armenia to come to Russia on an official visit.

STATE PROGRAM ON PROVISION OF APARTMENTS TO REFUGEES TO BE IMPLEMENTED
IN YEREVAN THIS YEAR

Y EREVAN, JUNE 21, NOYAN TAPAN. The state program on provision of
apartments to persons deported from Azeraijan has been implemented in
Armenia for 4 years. By the program, refugees are given certificates
for apartment purchase. 3.1 bln drams (about 9.45 mln USD) has been
allocated from the state budget for the program’s implementation in the
past 3 years. The head of the Migration Agency of the RA Ministry of
Territorial Administration Gagik Yeganian announced at the June 20
press conference that 1,041 out of the 3,370 most vulnerable refugee
families – program beneficiaries have received certificates. 774 of
these families purchased apartments. The rest have not yet purchased
apartments for various reasons. One reason was that the value of the
certificate did not correspond to the prices of property sold in the
given area.

G. Yeganian said that this year the program will be implemented in
Yerevan, for which 815 mln drams was allocated from the state budget.
There are about 1,100 families in need of an apartment in Yerevan.

Since 1994, more than 5,200 cottages and detached houses have been
built in Armenia for refugees with funds of the UN High Commissioner
for Refugees (UNHCR), the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) and other
international donor organizations.

June 20 is World Refugee Day.

US SUPPORTS NORMALIZATION OF RELATIONS BETWEEN ARMENIA AND TURKEY: DANIEL FRIED

Trend News Agency
June 19 2008
Azerbaijan

The United States supports the normalization of relations between
Armenia and Turkey, Daniel Fried, the US Assistant Secretary of State
said in the Capitol Hill, ITAR-TASS reported. "The current situation
does not suit anyone," he said while addressing the committee for the
foreign affairs of the Chamber of Representatives of the Congress. "US
thinks that the border between Armenia and Turkey should be opened,"
he said.

According to Fried, "both parties will gain from the mutual direct
trade links to great extent by connecting their electricity network and
other moves". "The United States also supports trans-border dialogue
and cooperation between Armenia and Turkey in realization of research
initiatives, holding conferences and carrying out exchange programs,"
said the representative of the State Department.

"However, the settlement of disagreements between Armenia and Turkey
‘requires the solution of the painful issues," Fried said. "Turkey
will have to reconcile itself to the massacres and forced deportation
of up to 1.5mln Armenians during the period of the Ottoman Empire
[1915, ITAR-TASS]," he said. It will not be easy as in case of the
United States when it was not easy to reconcile itself to the gloomy
facts in its own history. Armenia, on its part, should be ready to
give up all territorial claims to Turkey and constrictively react to
the /reconciliatory/ efforts which by Turkey", he said.

There is no diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey who have
a common border of 330km. Ankara insists that Yerevan should stop
striving for the international recognition of the so-called Armenian
genocide of 1915 and stop supporting Nagorno-Karabakh in a conflict
with Azerbaijan.

RUSSIAN, ARMENIAN DEFENCE MINISTERS DISCUSS COOPERATION

Interfax-AVN military news agency
June 17 2008
Russia

Yerevan, 17 June: Armenian and Russian Defence Ministers Seyran
Ohanyan and Anatoliy Serdyukov discussed issues of regional security
and stability and reforms in the defence spheres of the two countries
at their meeting in Moscow today.

The Armenian defence minister’s press secretary Seyran Shakhsuvaryan
told Interfax that the sides discussed issues of bilateral military
and technical cooperation and cooperation in military education.

After the ministers’ meeting, the two delegations discussed issues
of bilateral military cooperation in an extended format.

NA PASSED PACE ANNOUNCEMENT

Panorama.am
17:29 17/06/2008

Today the National Assembly of Armenia with 80 pros, 4 cons and 2
abstentions has passed the declaration of completion of PACE Resolution
1609 terms authorized by Hranush Hakobyan, Karen Karapetyan and David
Harutyunyan from Republican Party, Hrayr Karapetyan from ARF, Heghine
Bisharyan from Country of Laws and Avet Adonc Prosperous Armenia.

In its 20 points the declaration sums up the work done for the past
two months and asks for additional time for the completion of the
rest of the requirements.

The declaration was voted con by the members of the "Heritage" Party.

AD HOC COMMISSION TO ENHANCE TRANSPARENCY OF INVESTIGATION INTO MARCH 1-2 EVENTS

ARKA
June 16
YEREVAN

An interim commission to investigate the March 1-2 events in Yerevan
will enhance the transparency of the investigation, stated Artashes
Shahbazyan, the Secretary of the ARF parliamentary faction.

The RA Parliament has decided to set up an ad hoc commission to
investigate into the March 1-2 events in Yerevan.

"Investigation was conducted before as well, legal proceedings were on.

But the parliamentary commission will enhance control over and
transparency of the investigation," Shahbazyan.

According to him, the commission will be a serious test for the
political forces that will be included in the commission, first of
all for the coalition.

Shahbazyan pointed out that the commission’s activities impose
great responsibility on the authorities, Parliament and individual
parties. If the commission falls short of the people’s expectations,
it will cause more damage than if it has not been formed.

"We need political will, primarily on the authorities’ part, to
heal this wound and help people get answers to their questions,"
Shahbazyan said.

The 11-member commission will include two representatives of each
parliamentary faction one independent parliamentarian. Armenia’s
first president Levon Ter-Petrosyan, as well as representatives of
other parliamentary forces, will be involved in the commission’s
activities.

VENICE COMMISSION AND OSCE/ODUHR TO DRAFT JOINT OPINION ON AMENDMENTS TO RA LAW ON MEETINGS

armradio.am
13.06.2008 12:16

During its plenary session scheduled for June 13-14 the Venice
Commission of the Council of Europe will adopt a draft joint opinion
by the Commission and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions
and Human Rights (OSCE/ODUHR) on the amendments of 17 March 2008 to
the Law Conducting Meetings, Rallies, Marches and Demonstrations. The
joint decision will be accessible on June 16 at

On June 11 RA National Assembly passed the new draft law on amendments
to RA Law on Conducting Meetings, Rallies, Marches and Demonstrations,
and the two above-mentioned structures have released their positive
conclusion.

PACE MONITORING COMMITTEE CO-RAPPORTEURS IN ARMENIA

National Assembly of RA
June 13 2008
Armenia

On June 16 Mr John Prescott and Mr Georges Colombier, co-rapporteurs
of the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the
Council of Europe, will arrive in Yerevan.

On June 16 the co-rapporteurs’ meeting with the Special representative
of CE General Secretary Mrs. Bojana Urumova is scheduled.

The Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Mr
Tigran Torosyan, head of the NA delegation in PACE Mr Davit Harutyunyan
and head of the NA Heritage Faction Mr Raffi Hovannisian will receive
the co-rapporteurs in the National Assembly.

On the same day meetings are scheduled with Mr Serzh Sargsyan,
President of the Republic of Armenia, Mr Edvard Nalbandyan, Foreign
Minister of the Republic of Armenia, Mr Aghvan Hovsepyan, Prosecutor
General of the Republic of Armenia, Mr Armen Harutyunyan, Defender
of Human Rights of the Republic of Armenia, members of the working
group coordinating the fulfillment of the PACE Resolution 1609,
Mr Levon Ter-Petrosyan and the lawyers of the detained opposition
political figures.

On June 17 Mr Georges Colombier, PACE Monitoring Committee
co-rapporteur, will meet the representatives of the extra-parliamentary
opposition forces, public organizations, the wives, mothers, sisters
of the persons arrested in connection with March 1-2 events.

In the National Assembly meetings are scheduled with the
representatives of the political coalition and members of the working
group of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia on the
Reforms of the Electoral Code.

On the same day Mr Artur Baghdasaryan, Secretary of the Security
Council will receive the co-rapporteur.

A joint meeting with Mr Dmitri Narumov, co-coordinator of the
OSCE/ODIHR Monitoring Group in the Tracks of the Persons Detained
After Presidential Election, is scheduled.

ARMENAK GASPARIAN RECOGNIZED WINNER IN TBILISI FENCING INTERNATIONAL TOURNAMENT

405
NOYAN TAPAN
June 11, 2008

TBILISI, JUNE 11, NOYAN TAPAN. An International Fencing Tournament
took place on June 5-9 in the capital of Georgia, Tbilisi with the
participation of national teams of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia,
and Turkey. Armenak Gasparian (Gyumri) among the representatives of
Armenia became the winner.

Aram Grigorian and Mikayel Ghazarian (both from Yerevan) took the
third place.

DEPORT THIS ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT, TOO

Ruben Navarrette Jr., San Diego Union-Tribune
San Francisco Chronicle, CA
June 11 2008

Let me say a few words in defense of deporting illegal immigrants. I
wouldn’t have thought such a defense would be necessary, because
being in the United States without proper documents is a crime and
the penalty is deportation.

But try telling that to the folks in Central California who are
experiencing warm and fuzzy feelings for 17-year-old Arthur Mkoyan. The
high school valedictorian in my hometown of Fresno, Calif., should
be thinking about the same things that other graduating seniors think
about this time of year – planning to go to college, going to parties
and all the rest.

Arthur has certainly earned it. He studied hard to earn a perfect
grade-point average. And, for his hard work, he was admitted to UC
Davis, where he planned to study chemistry.

And yet, Arthur will probably never make it to freshman
orientation. That’s because, on June 20, the extension of his
deportation order will expire and federal immigration authorities
will likely apprehend the young man and his mother and send them to
Armenia. His father is being held in a detention facility in Arizona
until he can be deported. There is also Arthur’s 12-year-old brother,
a U.S.-born citizen who the family plans to take with them.

According to the Fresno Bee, Arthur’s father came to the United States
from the former Soviet Union in December 1991, and sought political
asylum. Arthur and his mother joined him a few years later. No one
came with the proper documents. And so, when their asylum application
was rejected, and their appeals were denied, they were targeted
for deportation.

That is as it should be. The law is the law.

Still, it’s a heartbreaking story. Here you have an all-American kid
who hasn’t seen Armenia since he was a toddler, and who is now headed
to a country where the people, language and customs are foreign to
him. Besides, this is precisely the kind of young person we should
want to keep in this country.

Say, maybe we can work out a trade. Armenia lets us keep Arthur, and
we send a dozen of our lazier, less-productive U.S.-born teenagers
who think themselves entitled to the good life but don’t want to do
the work to make it happen.

Many people are going to bat for Mkoyan – from Armenian advocacy
groups to Republican Rep. George Radanovich, who represents part of
the Central Valley and has many Armenian constituents. The family has
also approached Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein in the hopes that
she’ll introduce a rare measure to grant legal status to a specific
individual. There’s also plenty of support for the young man on the
Internet and on talk radio.

Not that it is likely to do any good. Arthur, and his parents, will
probably be deported. And they should be.

I said the same thing six years ago when a similar story surfaced. In
August 2002, the Denver Post ran a front-page story about Jesus
Apodaca, a recent high school graduate with a 3.93 grade-point average
who wanted to go to the University of Colorado but couldn’t afford
the tuition – because he was an illegal immigrant. In Colorado,
the undocumented have to pay out-of-state tuition rates, which are
higher than those for residents. A member of Congress involved himself
in that case as well, albeit in a different capacity. Anti-illegal
immigration crusader Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., called what was then
the Immigration and Naturalization Service and asked them what they
were planning to do about Apodaca. The young man and his family were
apprehended and, last we heard, were slated for deportation. That
won applause from many immigration hard-liners.

But here’s the part that bothers me: I wonder why more of them –
including Tancredo – aren’t making a fuss over Arthur Mkoyan. The
fact is, Apodaca didn’t get nearly the amount of public sympathy that
Mkoyan has received up to now.

Why the double standard? I believe it’s because, while Mkoyan may not
have a leg to stand on legally, he at least has the benefit of not
being Mexican. Much of the immigration debate is fueled by a fear
of a changing culture, competing languages, an altered landscape,
and what loopy Minuteman Project founder Jim Gilchrist calls the
"colonization" of the United States by Mexican immigrants.

Arthur Mkoyan isn’t considered a party to any of that. For some
people, that makes all the difference. And, in some respects, that’s
the saddest thing about this story.

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