Author: Khoyetsian Rose

DEÄ°K COUNCIL TO REDUCE ‘OTHER’ DISTANCES BETWEEN CANADA, TURKEY

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
July 13 2009

When Turkish Airlines (THY) flight TK017 from Ä°stanbul Ataturk
International Airport touched down at Toronto’s Pearson International
on Saturday, one of the main barriers to business between Turkey and
Canada had been removed. But according to Dr. Yılmaz Arguden, chair
of the Foreign Economic Relations Board’s (DEÄ°K) Turkish-Canadian
Business Council, more needs to be done to reduce the distance on
other, trickier issues that are not purely geographical in nature.

"The geographical distance has been reduced," said Arguden, and
continued, "This will go a long way to remove many of the psychological
barriers to doing business with Canada and vice versa."

But while these direct flights may have helped to reduce the
geographical distance between the two countries by shaving a number
of hours and connections off the time passengers spend in transit,
it has done little to remove the other, thornier distances that
separate Canadians and Turks.

What Arguden terms as "mental distance" and "sentimental
distance" still exist. Both of these need to be bridged if any
meaningful increase in relations between the two countries is to
transpire. "Mental distance" has to do with perceptions that Canadians
have of Turks and vice versa, Arguden says. As more Turks are able
to visit Canada and Canadians come to Turkey, these mental barriers
will slowly break down.

"As an academic, I like to back things up with numbers," Arguden
said. Pointing to the fact that most Canadians know little about Turkey
or its culture, Arguden said: "More than 95 percent of people who come
to Turkey for the first time leave Turkey ‘pleasantly surprised.’ This
demonstrates that prior expectations do not match what people actually
see." In terms of pure trade, he believes this would go a long way
toward focusing Canada’s attention on markets other than just the US
— at present well over three-quarters of Canadian trade is done with
its southern neighbor. "Given this situation, it’s hard for Canadians
to think about Turkey."

Other mental distances that Arguden hopes will be broken down are
those related to misconceptions about the investment environment and
the state of infrastructure in Turkey. "I think Canadians worry about
business systems, infrastructure and so on in Turkey," he noted and
said that "I believe that infrastructure was one of the main things
that scared [potential investors away]."

Unfortunately, there are still other barriers to increasing ties
with Canada, and according to Arguden, if Canada wishes to see these
distances shrink, the ball is in Canada’s court: "’Sentimental
distance’ comes about largely when politicians try and legislate
history." He was of course speaking about the Canadian government’s
recognition of the deaths of Armenians in Anatolia during World War
I as genocide. "What does the Canadian prime minister know about an
event that happened a hundred years ago?" he asked. Indeed, according
to him, the effects of this recognition in turn impact the other
two distances he spoke of. When asked by Today’s Zaman why it took
so long for direct flights to occur between the two countries and
whether there was something more than the stated failure to agree
on a double taxation treaty between the two countries that held the
flights back, Arguden replied, "Frankly, it was related to the third
[sentimental distance]." He, like others Today’s Zaman has spoken with,
said that Canada and Turkey were ready to abolish double taxation and
limits on direct flights long ago. "But every year there was another
initiative from the Canadian side to legislate history, and that did
nothing to abrogate the sentimental distance."

His role at the helm of DEÄ°K’s Turkish-Canadian Business Council
was instrumental in finally removing the barriers. Since Arguden
stepped into the position about five years ago, trade between the
two countries has grown to about $1.1 billion. Although this is an
impressive achievement, Turkey still enjoys less trade with Canada
than any other G8 country.

But increasingly, businesses are investing in each other’s
countries. Cumulative Canadian foreign direct investment (FDI) in
Turkey reached $1.5 billion in 2008. This money was mainly invested
in the telecommunications, mining, media, energy, agricultural and
tourism sectors. Nortell, for example, the Canadian telecommunications
sector giant, has invested in a research and development center in
Turkey which employs hundreds of Turkish engineers. CanWest, the
Canadian media giant, has acquired shares in a number of Turkish
media outlets including Turkish radio stations Super FM, Metro FM,
Joy FM and Joy Turk FM.

And Turks are showing up in the most unlikely areas of Canada: In
Saskatchewan, on the harsh Canadian prairies, Turks from Mersin have
arrived and have become some of the largest red-lentil splitters in
the country, investing in massive multi-million dollar cleaning and
splitting plants.

BASIC PRINCIPLES FOR SETTLEMENT OF THE NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT RELEASED

ArmInfo
2009-07-13 13:08:00

Presidents of OSCE MG co-chair-countries Barack Obama, Dmitry Medvedev
and Nicola Sarkozy released a joint statement on the Nagorno- Karabakh
Conflict at the L’Aquila Summit of the Eight, July 10, 2009.

‘We, the Presidents of the OSCE Minsk Group’s Co-Chair countries
France, the Russian Federation, and the United States of America affirm
our commitment to support the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan as they
finalize the Basic Principles for settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict.

We are instructing our mediators to present to the Presidents of
Armenia and Azerbaijan an updated version of the Madrid Document
of November 2007, the Co-Chairs last articulation of the Basic
Principles. We urge the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan to
resolve the few differences remaining between them and finalize
their agreement on these Basic Principles, which will outline a
comprehensive settlement’, the French, Russian and American presidents’
joint statement says.

According to the statement, the Basic Principles reflect a
reasonable compromise based on the Helsinki Final Act principles of
Non-Use of Force, Territorial Integrity, and the Equal Rights and
Self-Determination of Peoples.

The Basic Principles include, in particular: return of the territories
surrounding Nagorno- Karabakh to Azerbaijani control; an interim
status for Nagorno-Karabakh providing guarantees for security and
self-governance; a corridor linking Armenia to Nagorno- Karabakh;
future determination of the final legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh
through a legally binding expression of will; the right of all
internally displaced persons and refugees to return to their former
places of residence; and international security guarantees that would
include a peacekeeping operation.

The endorsement of these Basic Principles by Armenia and Azerbaijan
will allow the drafting of a comprehensive settlement to ensure a
future of peace, stability, and prosperity for Armenia and Azerbaijan
and the broader region.

AZERBAIJAN NOT SEES ANOTHER WAY OF KARABAKH SETTLEMENT, BUT GIVING AUTONOMY TO NAGORNO-KARABAKH IN ITS COMPOSITION: FM

Trend
July 2 2009
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan does not see any other ways to solve the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, but to give the autonomy to the
Nagorno-Karabakh in its composition, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar
Mammadyarov said in an interview with the AzerTaj state news agency.

Azerbaijan’s position in settlement of the conflict remains unchanged –
Azerbaijan will never agree to make the issue of territorial integrity
a topic of the debate, Mammadyarov said.

"We see no other way to resolve the conflict, but withdrawal of
Armenian forces from the occupied Azerbaijani territories and
repatriation of internally displaced persons," the minister said.

Azerbaijan is committed to peaceful resolution of the conflict and
ready to continue to work with partner countries and international and
regional organizations to mobilize efforts for a fair and consistent
resolution of the conflict, he said.

Nevertheless successful completion of the peace process depends on
Armenia’s commitment to this process, its constructiveness as well
as contribution of the international community, particularly the OSCE
Minsk Group countries, the Azerbaijani foreign minister said.

MUSLIM ART IN HAND OF AN ARMENIAN

Hurriyet
Friday, July 10, 2009 16:29

LONDON – Iranian born Afruz Amighi has won the new Jameel Prize for
her art titled "1001 Pages," with Sevan Býcakcý, a Turkish artist of
Armenian origin, named as one of nine finalists.

Hundreds of artists were competing for the Jameel Prize awarded
Tuesday. The prize, named after the late Saudi businessman Abdul
Latif Jameel, is a new international art award that was launched by
the Victoria & Albert Museum, or V&A, in London.

The award aims to raise awareness of the thriving interaction between
contemporary practices and the rich artistic heritage of Islam, and
to contribute to a broader debate about Islamic culture, in order to
provide an exchange between contemporary art and Islamic culture. The
prize, which will be awarded every two years, was presented at a
ceremony Tuesday at the museum.

The ceremony was attended by artists from various countries. Mark
Jones, director of the V&A, presented Afruz Amighi with her prize,
worth 25,000 pounds.

Býcakcý, who is known as the "Lord of the Rings" for his jewelry
designs, was listed as a candidate for the Jameel Prize by the British
Council in Istanbul in August. He was the only non-Muslim member
among the finalists. Býcakcý said he received a special invitation
from the museum and became one of nine finalists among 100 candidates.

"Sculptors and graphic designers reflecting the art of Islam in the
best way were among the finalists. They chose me in the field of
jewelry. This process started a few months ago. I chose the five
most special rings that I have never thought of selling for the
competition. The rings will be exhibited in Jameel Gallery for two
to three months and later on they will be on display for one year in
various museums in the Middle East, such as in northern Jerusalem,
Jordan and Egypt," Býcakcý said.

Býcakcý, who is one of the few well-known names in Turkey in jewelry
design, is known around the world. He won the American Jewelry Design
"Couture Design Award," which is regarded as the design Oscar, for
three successive years.

ISRAEL ORDERS U.S. STEALTH PLANES TO COUNTER IRAN, SYRIA THREAT

RIA Novosti
July 10, 2009

MOSCOW, July 10 (RIA Novosti) – Israel has ordered at least 25
U.S. F-35 stealth fighter aircraft to counter any potential threat
from the delivery of Russian advanced air defense systems to Iran
and Syria, an Israeli daily said on Friday.

Tel Aviv earlier said that the purchase of F-35 fighters would
effectively eliminate the threat from Russian-made S-300 air
defense systems because a series of computer simulations had clearly
demonstrated that new U.S. stealth fighters outperform the Russian
missiles.

The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), manufactured by Lockheed Martin,
"will be one of the most-advanced fighter jets in the world and will
enable Israel to phase out some of its older F-15 and F-16 models,"
the Jerusalem Post said.

The paper said an official Letter of Request (LOR) to the Pentagon was
sent this week, but talks on a final price for the plane, estimated
at over $100 million, and technical details of the deal would continue.

"Israeli demands have focused on three issues – the integration of
Israeli-made electronic warfare systems into the plane, the integration
of Israeli communication systems and the ability to independently
maintain the plane in the event of a technical or structural problem,"
it said.

The contract is expected to be signed in early 2010 followed by the
delivery of the first F-35 fighters to Israel in 2014.

According to the Jerusalem Post, the Israeli Air Force plans to
purchase an additional 50 aircraft in the future, some of them with
vertical take-off and landing capabilities.

Meanwhile, Israel has intensified its efforts to prevent deliveries
of Russian S-300 air defense systems to Iran under a 2007 contract.

Israel and the U.S. insist that the delivery of advanced air defense
systems to Iran would undermine the military balance in the region,
and Russia has until recently delayed the implementation of the deal.

Although Russian sources said in March that Iran had not yet received
any S-300 air defense systems a l from the Russian leadership, Moscow
has reiterated its commitment to fulfill the contract, which is worth
hundreds of millions of dollars.

The latest version of the S-300 family is the S-300PMU2 Favorit,
which has a range of up to 195 kilometers (about 120 miles) and can
intercept aircraft and ballistic missiles at altitudes from 10 meters
to 27 kilometers.

It is considered one of the world’s most effective all-altitude
regional air defense systems, comparable in performance to the
U.S. MIM-104 Patriot system.

VACHE GABRIELYAN: NO ECONOMIC GROWTH IS FORECASTED IN ARMENIA IN 2009

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
09.07.2009 14:28 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ CBA experts forecast no economic growth in Armenia
in 2009, Deputy CBA Governor Vache Gabrielyan told at the discussion
entitled "Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on Armenia: Empirical
Evidence". According to him, this does not mean separate segments will
not see the economic growth. As for world economy growth, Deputy CBA
Governor believes it will be registered in 2010-2011. Commenting on the
statement of King Banaian, AIPRG fellow, chairperson at St. Cloud State
University, USA, on Armenian’s dependence on transfers from Russia,
Vache Gabrielyan explained that there are a number of concomitant
reasons, knowledge of language and free visa regime included. "There’s
a history of long-term relationship between Armenia and Russia,
most of Armenia’s migrants reside in Russia, so the reduction of
transfer flow couldn’t but have a negative effect Armenia’s economy,"
he said. He agreed that Armenia has to diversify its economy to
reduce its dependence on foreign transfers in future. On June 7-8,
Yerevan hosted " Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on Armenia:
Short- and Long-run Perspectives" international scientific conference,
organized by Armenian International Policy Research Group (AIPRG).

TSVETANA PASKALEVA: I WILL LIVE IN ARMENIA UNTIL WORLD RECOGNIZES NKR INDEPENDENCE

NOYAN TAPAN
JULY 9, 2009
YEREVAN

"I will live in Armenia until the world recognizes the Nagorno Karabakh
Republic independence," Bulgarian journalist Tsvetana Paskaleva
stated at the July 9 press conference. She reminded that visiting
Artsakh for the purpose of covering the Nagorno Karabakh war, she
settled in Armenia and has been living there for already 18 years. T.
Paskaleva told that late Catholicos Vazgen I invited her for a talk
during the war and said that the journalist had arrived on a "special
mission" and will never leave the Armenian land. According to the
journalist, these words of Catholicos in fact were fulfilled.

T. Paskaleva said that if the Nagorno Karabakh problem should be
solved to the detriment of the Artsakh people, it is better to keep
the current NKR status quo. According to the journalist’s affirmation,
the Armenian side could have solved the problem as far back as in
1994, immediately after signing the truce, when Armenia was strong
and Azerbaijan weak.

At present, according to T. Paskaleva, rearrangement of forces has
happened and Azerbaijan has gained new friends and supporters. Though
the propaganda of Azeris is based on falsehood, according to her,
it has always been well-organized. While the Armenian side thinks
that the world should spontaneously admit the Armenian people’s being
right. T. Paskaleva emphasized that the Armenians should constantly
explain to the international community who is right and who is wrong.

CLASSICAL FANS IN FOR A REAL TREAT

Inverness Courier
08 July, 2009

FOR classical music lovers Inverness Town House will be the place to
be as Inverness Chamber Music announces the line-up for its forthcoming
autumn and winter evening series.

The new season, which will bring a selection of international talent
to Inverness, complements the society’s monthly series of lunchtime
concerts held all year round, also at the Town House. "If you haven’t
been to a concert in The Town House yet, then there is a treat in
store for you," Inverness Chamber Music’s James Munro commented.

"The main hall is a comfortable elegant space where you will get
a friendly welcome and be entertained by the very best professional
musicians from all round the world who delight in coming to perform in
Inverness. "Artists relish the acoustics of this 180-seater venue and
are especially full of praise for the excellent Bosendorfer grand piano
which was purchased in 2006 with grants from Inverness Common Good Fund
and 2007 Highland Year of Culture." Obviously, because of its size,
the Town House is ideal for small scale, or chamber, music rather than
full size orchestras. Once defined by the historian Charles Burney as
"such music as was not intended for the church, for the theatre or for
a public concert room", today it is much fairer to think of chamber
music as the music of friends, played in an intimate environment,
Munro suggested. Inverness Chamber Music grew out of such a group
of friends who came together to play, or as one of them admits, to
"murder", Schubert’s "Trout Quintet", but soon decided that they were
going to have to start promoting concerts and call on professionals
if they were ever to hear the piece played properly.

Two of the original members of that group are still on the team 15
years later – chairman Alison Marr and secretary Paul Crowe – with
James Munro taking on the role of treasurer, Joan Gamblin and Howard
Spenceley responsible for the hospitality and marketing roles. Together
in their enthusiasm and musical passion, they bring the evening series
of nine concerts to Inverness each year, though in recent seasons
Inverness Chamber Music has been given marketing and box office support
through Eden Court. The first concert of the 2009/10 season, which
runs from September to May is a piano recital on 16th September by
the Perth raised musician Alasdair Beatson with a programme by Bach,
Beethoven, Ades, Ravel and Schumann. The Anglo-Swedish Kungsbacka
Piano Trio, perennial Inverness favourites, return on 14th October,
playing works by Dvorak, Haydn and Schubert. Schubert is back on the
menu on 12th November from what is widely regarded as one of the great
chamber music ensembles, the Fitzwilliam String Quartet. They will be
joined by Moray Welsh, formerly principal cello with the Philharmonia
Orchestra, for a performance of Schubert’s String Quintet. It is now
a tradition that the audience at the pre-Christmas concert enjoy some
seasonal mince pies and mulled wine, which they can enjoy alongside
the music of Thistle Brass, featuring horn player Tim Hunter from
Alness, who bring their rumbustious mix of classics and jazz to the
Town House on 11th December. The 2010 concert season begins on 18th
January with popular Scottish pianist Steven Osborne, who will be
joined by his wife, the clarinettist Jean Johnson. Another group
of Inverness favourites, the Carducci String Quartet visit on 16th
February to play one of the great string quartets, the "American"
by Dvorak, and on 16th March two more artists return by popular
demand for a fourth visit. Peter and Zoltan Katona, guitar playing
identical twins from Hungary, take a break from their globe-trotting
career performing in huge arenas to enjoy the atmosphere of one of
their favourite venues, Inverness Town House. Every November some
of the best classical musicians come to Elgin for the annual Moray
Piano Competition, when part of the prize is a concert in Inverness
Town House the following spring. In past years this has resulted
in the Town House hosting outstanding performances by the likes
of the Russian Anna Kavalerova, Anne Macgregor from Greenock and
the Anglo-Iranian pianist Yasmin Rowe. This year’s winner will be
invited to play in Inverness during April 2010. Another tradition for
Inverness Chamber Music is for the last concert of the season to be
light-hearted, end-of-term party. This season will conclude on 12th
May with a visit from The Diamond Divas, three glamorous sopranos from
London and their very flamboyant accompanist. The lunchtime concert
series runs parallel with, but independent from, the Inverness Chamber
Music evening series. Instead of a programme of established artists
with an occasional emerging talent, the lunchtime series sets out
to provide performance experience for young professional musicians
at the beginning of their careers, with the occasional established
name brought in as seasonal highlights. The series was started three
years ago by former Inverness area arts officer, Adrian Clark, and
is currently run by Inverness Arts Forum. It is more informal and
more flexible than the evening series, with the audience welcome to
bring their lunch with them, a broader range of music and extra events
organised at fairly short notice. The next concert will be tomorrow
by the young Armenian violinist Ani Batikian and the Japanese pianist
Ayako Kanazawa. In August a spin-off event from the Nairn International
Jazz Festival is planned to follow up on Larry Fuller’s performance
last year. On 2nd September there will be the world premiere of "The
Poet’s Return", a suite for harp and clarsach, played by Beauly harpist
Hannah Phillips. The work commemorates the visit to Inverness by
Robert Burns in September 1787 and has been commissioned by Inverness
Arts Forum from the distinguished Scots composer Edward McGuire, with
the help of a generous grant from the Highland 2007 Legacy. Other
lunchtime events include entertaining bass-baritone Donald Maxwell,
with accompanist Sheila Bruce, reminiscing about his career in the
world’s opera houses on 25th November; the Russian pianist Artem
Akopyan playing Tchaikovsky and Mussorgsky on 20th January 2010;
outstanding young cellist Philip Higham with pianist Simon Lane on
23rd February in a concert supported by the Tunnell Trust for Young
Musicians; and on 2nd March the violin duet of Rafal Zambrzycki-Payne,
winner of the 1996 BBC Young Musician of the Year, and Agnieszka
Marucha, leader of the Danish Chamber Players. In addition there
are at least three more concerts being organised showcasing the
best of Scots traditional music, in partnership with the Highland
Council TMC Project. Inverness Chamber Music season tickets are
already on sale from the treasurer, James Munro, on 01463 710363 or
[email protected]. Tickets for individual concerts will go on sale
nearer the time.

JAPAN LEADS THE WAY WITH QUAKE-RESISTANT TECHNOLOGY
HIROKO NAKATA

The Japan Times
Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Lessons from deadly ’95 earthquake could save lives worldwide

When a massive earthquake hit the western part of Japan more than a
decade ago, a highway collapsed, railroads and telephone lines were
partially cut, and many buildings were toppled.

Nagahide Kani, executive director of the Japan Society of Seismic
Isolation, speaks at his office in Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward in
June. YOSHIAKI MIURA PHOTO

The 1995 7.3-magnitude Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake wreaked havoc
on Hyogo Prefecture. In the biggest natural disaster in postwar Japan,
6,434 people lost their lives – some crushed to death under buildings,
others dying in the fires caused by the temblor.

The earthquake changed people’s minds in Japan, and Italy, which
has highly advanced quake-resistant technologies, should do more to
disseminate these technologies, said Nagahide Kani, executive director
of the Japan Society of Seismic Isolation, an industry group engaged
in developing quake-resistant technology.

"Before the quake, people wouldn’t accept seismic-isolation
technologies," he told The Japan Times in a recent interview. "But
the number of buildings introducing the technologies jumped in 1995,"
he said.

In Italy, the host country of this year’s Group of Eight summit, a
6.3-magnitude earthquake hit L’Aquila on April 6, killing more than
290 people and injuring over 1,000.

Many of the brick buildings that help to create the historic atmosphere
of L’Aquila crumbled as few of them employed quake-resistant systems,
experts said. As a result, more than 10,000 buildings were damaged
or destroyed.

"Italy’s seismic-isolation technologies are very advanced, but they
are not wide spread," Kani said.

In Japan, thanks to the huge earthquake in 1995, quake-resistant
technologies grabbed the spotlight and more Japanese buildings
introduced the seismic-isolation system, or base-isolation system,
as it protects a structure by installing components between a building
and its foundation, decoupling it from the shaking ground.

Figures prove how Japan moved to cope with possible massive
earthquakes.

In 1982, there was only one building that employed the system – a
two-story housing unit in the city of Yachiyo, Chiba Prefecture, west
of Tokyo. The number gradually rose to 80 buildings by 1994, but after
the 1995 earthquake, the figure soared to 2,200 buildings in 2009.

Quake-resistant systems for housing are also widely used in Japan. Some
5,000 Japanese houses have introduced vibration-isolation technologies,
Kani said.

The number in Japan stands out even among earthquake-prone
countries. In Italy, only 100 buildings have introduced
seismic-isolation technologies. Looking at other countries, there are
700 in China, 600 in Russia, 100 in the United States, 50 in Taiwan,
30 in Armenia and 10 in New Zealand. In future, China is likely to
see more buildings introduce the quake-resistant system as a massive
earthquake hit China’s Sichuan province in May 2008, Kani added.

When there is such a disaster, the destruction of hospitals is a
double blow. Collapsed hospitals endanger patients who cannot escape
the crumbling structures while the damaged medical facilities hamper
treatment of the injured.

In the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in 1995, the fifth floor
of the seven-story Kobe City Hospital Organization Medical Center
West Hospital was crushed, burying more than 40 patients and nurses,
although most of them were rescued, according to local media reports
at the time.

"It is terrible for hospitals to collapse because they are supposed
to be where victims can be helped," said Kani.

Thanks to quake-resistant technologies, Kurihara Central Hospital in
Miyagi Prefecture, on the other hand, avoided a collapse in a big
earthquake in Miyagi and Iwate prefectures in 2008, enabling the
hospital to serve as the hub for rescuers.

Now certain types of buildings in Japan are increasingly introducing
the seismic-isolation system, such as hospitals, art museums, high-rise
housing, embassies, and data centers that preserve customer information
for banks, life insurers and nonlife insurers.

Production plants are also starting to introduce the system, after
the major impact on Japanese industry of the two recent earthquakes
in 2004 and 2007.

"Considering the importance of sustaining corporate activities,
companies don’t want to do business with those who do not take risk
management steps," Kani said.

Though quake-resistant technologies are widely disseminated in Japan,
they are not originally from here. The first such technology, called
"rubber bearing," was invented in New Zealand in 1977, and introduced
to an office building there and a courthouse in the United States,
Kani said, adding that it had a huge impact on the industry.

This technology using rubber bearings is most popular in Japan and
it is used around the world, according to Kani. By installing rubber
bearings, composed of layered thin rubber and thin steel plates,
under a structure, the building can move flexibly in a horizontal
direction and has strong resistance to quakes. Moreover, the bearings
do not buckle even under a heavy building because of the number of
steel plates, Kani said. It has been introduced in various structures
such as office blocks, housing and the administrative buildings of
Japan’s central government.

Two other systems were invented later that are suitable for lighter
buildings and less expensive, Kani said.

About a decade after the "rubber bearing" technology was introduced,
another type of base-isolation system, called a "sliding isolation
system," or a "slider," was developed. The system, which is also
placed under a building, consists of a bearing pad on top of a curved
surface. In a quake, this bearing pad slides on the curved surface
to absorb tremors and support the building.

Later, another technology, called the "rotating ball bearing" system,
was introduced. The system uses ball bearings that slide on parallel
rails.

Now the focus is on how to apply such quake-resistant technologies
to existing buildings, including old structures, which requires a
high degree of skill, Kani said.

Rather than isolating buildings from the ground, there are new
technologies to absorb shocks on buildings by using particular
materials, and components for pillars and walls. In addition,
some buildings even employ a system to control shocks that uses
computers. The number of buildings with such new technologies will
increase in the near future, Kani said.

"The development of quake-related technologies will never end,"
he said.

Despite the development of the technologies, Japan needs to work hard
to cope with possible earthquakes.

The education ministry warned June 16 that more than 7,300 school
buildings are at high risk of collapse in the event of a powerful
earthquake. A survey by the ministry on the nation’s 124,976 public
schools also found that the quake resistance of 41,206 buildings is
insufficient. The ministry said 7,309 could crumble if hit by a quake
measuring an Upper 6 on the Japanese seismic scale of 7.

SISTEMA REPORTS RESULTS OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

TMC Net
[July 07, 2009]

Jul 06, 2009 (Close-Up Media via COMTEX) — Sistema, a diversified
public financial corporation in Russia and the CIS, announced the
decisions made at the Annual General Meeting of its shareholders
(the AGM) on June 27. The company noted in a June 29 release that
the Board of Directors was expanded from 10 to 13 members. The AGM
approved the election of three new members to the Board of Directors:
Leonid Melamed, President and CEO of Sistema, Rajiv Mehrotra, member of
the Board of Directors of Sistema Shyam Teleservices, Robert Kocharyan,
an independent director. The Board of Directors, therefore, comprises
4 independent non-executive directors and consists of 13 members.

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The shareholders approved the election of the members of the Board of
Directors as follows: – Alexander Goncharuk – Alexander Gorbatovsky –
Vladimir Evtushenkov – Ron Sommer – Dmitry Zubov – Vyacheslav Kopiev –
Robert Kocharyan – Leonid Melamed – Rajiv Mehrotra – Evgeny Novitsky –
Stephan Newhouse – Robert Skidelsky – Sergey Cheremin At the statutory
Board meeting following the AGM, the Board of Directors appointed
Vladimir Evtushenkov as Chairman. The AGM approved the company’s
Annual Report and annual financial statements for 2008. The AGM also
made a decision not to pay dividends for 2008.

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INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO West, September 1-3, 2009. Los
Angeles, CA. Find Solutions for Enterprises, SMBs & Service Providers
at the INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO West, September 1-3,
2009. Los Angeles, CA. Find Solutions for Enterprises, SMBs & Service
Providers at the INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO West, September
1-3, 2009. Los Angeles, CA. Find Solutions for Enterprises, SMBs &
Service Providers at the INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO West,
September 1-3, 2009. Los Angeles, CA. Find Solutions for Enterprises,
SMBs & Service Providers at the INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and
EXPO West, September 1-3, 2009. Los Angeles, CA.

Find Solutions for Enterprises, SMBs & Service Providers at the
INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO West, September 1-3, 2009. Los
Angeles, CA. Gorislavtsev and K. Audit was appointed as Sistema’s
Russian Accounting Standards auditor for 2009, and Deloitte & Touche
CIS was appointed as Sistema’s US GAAP auditor for 2009. The AGM also
elected the Audit Committee. Robert Kocharyan was born in 1954 in
Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast. From 1998 to 2008,
Kocharyan was the President of Armenia. Prior, from 1997 to 1998, he
served as Prime Minister of Armenia. From 1994 to 1997, Kocharyan was
President of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. From 1992 to 1994, he served
as Chairman of the State Defense Committee and Prime Minister of the
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. In 1991, he was elected a deputy of the
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic’s Supreme Soviet of the first convocation. In
1989 and in 1990, Kocharyan was a deputy of Armenia’s Supreme Soviet
and member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet. Rajiv Mehrotra
was born in 1954. Mehrota is a founder of Shyam Group of India, where
he serves as Chairman and Managing Director. Mehrota is also one of
the founders of Shyam Telelink (now Sistema Shyam Teleservices),
one of the first CDMA 2000 mobile network operators in India. He
actively cooperates with the Association of Basic Telecom Operators,
and is a member of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce &
Industry (FICCI) Telecom Committee. Mehrota is a member of the Board
of Directors of Sistema Shyam Teleservices. ((Comments on this story
may be sent to [email protected]))