Author: Khondkarian Raffi

ANKARA’S ATTEMPTS TO PUT THE BLAME FOR FRUSTRATING RECONCILIATION PROCESS ON YEREVAN WON’T GAIN UNDERSTANDING

PanARMENIAN.Net
22.01.2010 15:17 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian slammed
Turkey’s statement that "the RA CC decision contains preconditions
and restrictive provisions which impair the letter and spirit of the
Protocols" as absurd.

"Willing to proceed towards ratification of the Protocols,
Armenia is hopeful that Turkey will show respect to the agreements
achieved earlier," he told a news conference on Friday. "Turkey puts
artificial obstacles to avoid ratification. However, attempts to put
the blame for frustrating reconciliation process on Yerevan won’t
gain understanding."

The Protocols aimed at normalization of bilateral ties and opening of
the border between Armenia and Turkey were signed in Zurich by Armenian
Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian and his Turkish counterpart Ahmet
Davutoglu on October 10, 2009, after a series of diplomatic talks
held through Swiss mediation.

On January 12, 2010, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of
Armenia found the protocols conformable to the country’s Organic Law.

Commenting on the decision of the Armenian Constitutional Court, the
Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that "the decision contains
preconditions and restrictive provisions which impair the letter and
spirit of the Protocols."

"The decision undermines the very reason for negotiating these
Protocols as well as their fundamental objective. This approach
cannot be accepted on our part. Turkey, in line with its accustomed
allegiance to its international commitments, maintains its adherence
to the primary provisions of these Protocols. We expect the same
allegiance from the Armenian Government," the Ministry said.

‘ISSUES OF KARABAKH AND GENOCIDE ARE NOT FOR DEALING’

Aysor
Jan 22 2010
Armenia

"If Armenia-Turkey documents have not preconditions, then why Turkey
raises the devil after Armenian Constitutional Court’s decision? They
understood, that after Court’s decision their preconditions on the
issues of border, Genocide, and Karabakh will not be implemented,
that is why they demand on re-deciding," told journalists Modern
Times Party’s leader Aram Karapetian.

Hamlet Harutyunian, a member of the Republican Party of Armenia and
Armenia’s Parliament, said in his part, that issues of the Genocide
and the Karabakh settlement are not negotiable in the context of
the Armenia-Turkey protocols. He said, Court’s decision is de jure
justified. He said believes Turkey will in future back of Azerbaijan’s
interests. "Armenia’s foreign ministry must continue negotiations
until it becomes clear that Turkey’s government seeks for beneficial
document, not reconciliation. But we have our own answer on this,"
he said.

"In the negotiations Armenia showed itself as a civilized state,
while Turkey with its pan-Turkist mind is still at the VII century’s
concept of living," said Hamlet Harutyunian.

"He said Armenia-Turkey documents’ future depends on the Military
Staff of Turkey, whose influence is stronger than government’s."

ADVANCEMENT OF FREEDOM OF SPEECH IN TURKEY WILL MAKE IT POSSIBLE TO DISCUSS ARMENIAN ISSUE: OLLI REHN

Tert.am
12:58 ~U 21.01.10

It will become more possible in Turkey, with the conditions of freedom
of speech, to discuss the Armenian and Kurdish issues and the Cyprus
conflict, said European Commissioner Olli Rehn, who is responsible
for EU enlargement, adding that freedom of speech in Turkey doesn’t
correspond with EU standards, reports Turkish news agency Anadolu
Ajansi.

Rehn, in particular, placing the main emphasis on Turkey’s Ergenekon
case, said that it is "the lock in democratization in Turkey."

The European Commissioner expressed his concern in the ban on the
pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party, and added that Turkey must
pursue the European Commission’s suggestions in the question of laws
pertaining to political parties, amending them so that they are in
accordance with the European Court of Human Rights.

ILHAM ALIYEV FALLS INTO THE TRAP PREPARED BY HIS PSEUDO-HISTORIANS

ArmInfo
2010-01-20 18:43:00

ArmInfo. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has fallen into the trap
prepared by his pseudo-historians, Director of Armenian Genocide
Museum-Institute Hayk Demoyan said at today’s press- conference.

To note, on 30 Dec 2009 the Azeri president made a decision to allocate
1 mln manats for creating in the town of Guba a "Memorial Complex of
Genocide" devoted to Azeris that allegedly dies "as a result of the
policy of ethnic cleansing and aggression conducted by brigandish
groupings of Armenian dashnaks in Azerbaijani territories".

Hayk Demoyan stressed that in fact, 200 Armenian residents, mainly
from the rich social class that were expelled from Guba and cruelly
killed with their children on the way from the town in 1918, are
buried in the given place. Demoyan stressed that the Armenian party
has all the necessary historical documents and facts on this issue.

According to him, the Armenian party is even ready to finance an
independent DNA testing which will confirm that the remains belong
to Armenians, and not Azeris. "This is a game with the bones and
memory of the dead people. And such actions of the Azerbaijani party,
particularly, Aliyev are immoral",- he said.

POSITIVE DYNAMICS IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH PROCESS SHOULD NOT BE LOST: SPANISH FM

Trend
Jan 19 2010
Azerbaijan

Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos expressed hope that a
positive dynamic in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, created
by frequent contacts between the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan
will not be lost.

"A positive dynamics was created by frequent contacts between the
Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan that should not be lost,"
Moratinos said addressing the OSCE Constant Council.

Moratinos heads the six-month-chairmanship in the EU.

The last November meeting of Azerbaijani and Armenian Presidents
Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sarkisian in Munich became the sixth one for
the last year.

The previous talks between the Azerbaijani and Armenian Presidents
were held in Chisinau, Moscow, Saint-Petersburg, and Prague.

The first meeting was held in St. Petersburg in June 2008, the second
meeting in Moscow on November 2, 2008 and the third was held in Zurich
on Jan. 28, 2009.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian
armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992,
including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts.

Speaking about security, Moratinos noted the situation in Georgia.

Though the EU has a mission in Georgia, it was "in favour of restoring
the OSCE’s presence on the ground.

Minister said that strengthening of security and stability in Europe
must promote solving the real problems.

"The efforts we are making to strengthen security and stability in
Europe are worth nothing if they do not contribute to the resolution
of real problems on the ground," Moratinos said.

BAKU 1990: ORGANIZERS AND COMMITTERS STILL UNPUNISHED

Panorama.am
17:46 19/01/2010

Yerevan hosted a conference on 20 years since January 13-19 Baku
pogroms today.

"Genocide is not an offence against one nation. It’s a crime committed
by a junta and is directed against all humanity. One of the causes why
Genocide is still a hazard for all humanity today is non sufficient
scientific research," NA deputy Larisa Alaverdyan said.

According to her, all scientific layers should once again define why
these offences have such harsh frequency of occurrence and moreover,
why the committers and organizers remain unpunished.

Note that the conference was under way in the Academy of National
Sciences. A number of state, political and social figures were among
the participants.

AZERBAIJAN SHOULD INCLINE ARMENIANS TO PEACE THROUGH ECONOMIC WAY, MP

news.az
Jan 19 2010
Azerbaijan

Mubariz Gurbanly Azerbaijani people are facing continued aggression
of Armenia today, said Mubariz Gurbanly, deputy executive secretary
of New Azerbaijan Party, MP.

According to the deputy, the Azerbaijani people must unite around the
policy conducted by country’s President Ilham Aliyev that is aimed
at the development of the country’s economic potential.

"Azerbaijan should incline Armenians to peace through economic way. If
it fails, we do not rule out the military option for liberation of
our occupied lands", Mubariz Gurbanly said.

RA WILL NEVER QUESTION ARMENIAN GENOCIDE AND IMPORTANCE OF ITS INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION

PanARMENIAN.Net
18.01.2010 14:09 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ RA will never question the Armenian genocide and the
importance of its international recognition, Armenian Foreign Minister
Edward Nalbandian noted. According to him, historic subcommittee,
the creation of which was stipulated by RA-Turkey rapprochement
Protocols, will be in charge of restoration of trust between the
people of Armenia and Turkey.

As Edward Nalibansian noted, he sees no alterations of Genocide
issue- related policy as conducted by current or previous Armenian
leadership. "President’s statement on having no intention to question
Armenian Genocide and importance of its international recognition
suggests there are no changes in foreign policy," the Foreign Minister
said, Radio Svoboda reported.

The Protocols aimed at normalization of bilateral ties and opening of
the border between Armenia and Turkey were signed in Zurich by Armenian
Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian and his Turkish counterpart Ahmet
Davutoglu on October 10, 2009, after a series of diplomatic talks
held through Swiss mediation.

On January 12, 2010, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of
Armenia found the protocols conformable to the country’s Organic Law.

The Armenian Genocide (1915-23) was the deliberate and systematic
destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during
and just after World War I. It was characterized by massacres, and
deportations involving forced marches under conditions designed to
lead to the death of the deportees, with the total number of deaths
reaching 1.5 million.

The date of the onset of the genocide is conventionally held to be
April 24, 1915, the day that Ottoman authorities arrested some 250
Armenian intellectuals and community leaders in Constantinople.

Thereafter, the Ottoman military uprooted Armenians from their homes
and forced them to march for hundreds of miles, depriving them of
food and water, to the desert of what is now Syria. Massacres were
indiscriminate of age or gender, with rape and other sexual abuse
commonplace. The Armenian Genocide is the second most-studied case
of genocide after the Holocaust.

The Republic of Turkey, the successor state of the Ottoman Empire,
denies the word genocide is an accurate description of the events. In
recent years, it has faced repeated calls to accept the events as
genocide.

To date, twenty countries and 44 U.S. states have officially recognized
the events of the period as genocide, and most genocide scholars
and historians accept this view. The Armenian Genocide has been also
recognized by influential media including The New York Times, BBC,
The Washington Post and The Associated Press.

The majority of Armenian Diaspora communities were formed by the
Genocide survivors.

SCULPTOR VARAZDAT HAMBARDZUMYAN AWARDED "TALENT & CALLING" MEDAL IN MOSCOW

PanARMENIAN.Net
18.01.2010 16:27 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian sculptor, master in creating khachkars
(cross-stones) Varazdat Hambardzumyan was awarded a medal "Talent and
Calling" at the annual international exhibition "Dialogue of Cultures,
Peace through Art", held December 29, 2009 in Moscow.

The exhibition brought together more than 100 artists and sculptors
from around the world. Armenian sculptor presented 3 works there. "
My works represented Christian Armenia at the exhibition, " Varazdat
Hambardzumyan told a press conference on January 18.

People’s master Varazdat Hambardzumyan is the author of more than
400 cross-stones. His khachkars are exposed in Armenia, Greece,
Switzerland, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United States, Russia.

Several cross-stones dedicated to the memory of the fallen soldiers in
Artsakh War are placed in the yards of the Yerevan State Engineering
University, Armenian State Pedagogical University, Military School
after Monte Melkonian. A cross-stone dedicated to the liberation
of Shushi is placed on the road leading to Shushi. Most of the
cross-stones are in Yerevan, where the sculptor lives with his large
family (5 children).

"The Peacemaker" – International Youth Organization aimed at cultural
and physical development of young people.

Aysor, Armenia
Jan 16 2010

February to bring name of Eurovision contestant

Armenia’s selection details fore Eurovision Song Contest 2010 will be
announced soon, when 10 best songs will be performed on February
10-15. At the moment the Committee is still receiving applications
from candidates who hope to get a ticket for Eurovision 2010, and will
stop it by February 1.

The Eurovision Song Contest 2010 will be the 55th Eurovision Song
Contest. The contest will take place at the Telenor Arena, in the
municipality suburb, which is situated in the southern part of the
Greater Oslo, Norway. This follows Alexander Rybak’s win at the 2009
Contest with "Fairytale". It will be the third time Norway has hosted
the contest, having previously done so in 1986 and 1996.

The semi-finals will take place on 25 and 27 May 2010, with the final
on 29 May 2010. It has been announced that the voting system used in
the semi-finals will change from previous years to balance jury voting
with televoting, while the return of the orchestra is also being
proposed.

39 countries will take part in the contest. Armenia, Azerbaijan,
Albania, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Germany,
Denmark, Estonia, Turkey, Ireland, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Latvia,
Poland, Lithuania, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Malta , Macedonia, United
Kingdom, Moldova, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Portugal,
Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Georgia, Ukraine, Finland
and France have ticket for final.