Author: Maghakian Mike

APA, Azerbaijan
March 12 2009

Elmar Mammadyarov: `Sergei Lavrov reiterated that Russia hadn’t
supplied Armenia with arms a year before’

[ 12 Mar 2009 14:21 ]

Baku. Victoria Dementyeva`APA. The issue of Russian arms shipment to
Armenia was in the focus of attention at the meeting of Azerbaijani
and Russian foreign ministers, APA reports.

In the joint press conference, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar
Mammadyarov said his Russian colleague told him that Russia had not
delivered arms to Armenia a year before, but Azerbaijan would continue
to investigate this issue. Sergei Lavrov said that Russia had
military-technical cooperation with many countries and didn’t violate
the norms of international law. `We don’t carry out arms shipment
which could violate the stability in any region. We established our
military-technical cooperation with Azerbaijan and Armenia on the
basis of these principles. There is no any secret in this
field’. Sergei Lavrov said the document about the Russia’s arms
shipment to Armenia in 2008 was false. `This paper doesn’t meet the
terms of documents about such operations. There are grammatical
mistakes in the document, which find out that where this document was
prepared’.

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Minister turns candidate of the `Prosperous Armenia’ party
[08:31 pm] 10 March, 2009

Health Minister Harutyun Kushkyan will head the `Prosperous Armenia’
party’s list of candidates running in the elections for city council
of Yerevan to be held on May 31.

`For us it was a standard to have a notable candidate and Mr. Kushkyan
is the one,’ said speaker for leader of the PA party Khachik Galstyan.

Does member of the `Prosperous Armenia’ party, Health Minister
Harutyun Kushkyan really meet the requirements to be head of city
council? In response to that Mr. Galstyan said:

`The skills of the doctor will help the mayor diagnose and lead the
city in the right direction.’

The PA press speaker sees nothing wrong with political parties of the
ruling coalition participating in the elections with separate
candidates.

`During the discussions of the coalition the parties decided to
participate with separate lists and we approved that decision.’

The `Prosperous Armenia’ party is not concerned about the fact that
the Republican candidate has started to make frequent public
appearances before the official launch of the campaign. The party is
also not concerned about the appointment of the new mayor on the
threshold of the elections. In fact, Khachik Galstyan assured `A1+’
that Harutyun Kushkyan will win in the elections for mayor of Yerevan.

Legal reforms in the Caucausus countries and the prohibition of
political parties in Turkey on the agenda of the Venice Commission

Strasbourg, 11.03.2009 – The Council of Europe’s Venice Commission is
going to discuss the following issues at its forthcoming plenary session
taking place on 13 and 14 March 2009 in Venice:

* amendments to the Criminal Code of Armenia in relation to the March
2008 events;
* the constitutional referendum in Azerbaijan, which inter alia would
enable the President to be reelected more than once;

* the Georgian law on occupied territories (Abkhazia and South Ossetia);

* the constitutional and legal provisions relevant for the prohibition
of political parties in Turkey.

Other opinions to be adopted by the Commission concern:
* the adminissibility of a constitutional referendum in Albania;
* constitutional amendments in Georgia,
* the Draft law on freedom to receive information in Armenia;
* the Law on the Constitutional Court of the Palestinian National
Authority;

Furthemore, the Commission will adopt reports on:
* an internationally recognised status of election observers;
* European standards as regards the independence of the judicial system

The EU Special Representative for the Southern Caucasus, Peter Semneby,
Director of Multilateral Relations and Human Rights of the European
Commission, Veronique Arnault, and the Director of the OSCE Office of
Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, Janez Lenarcic, will address
the Commission.

For more information, see draft annotated agenda
< -OJ(2009)001ann-e.asp> .

The 78th plenary session will start at 9.30 am on Friday 13 March and
finish at 12.30 pm on Saturday 14 March (Scuola Grande di San Giovanni
Evangelista, Venice).

* * *

The Venice Commission is an advisory body of the Council of Europe
specialised in constitutional matters. Comprised of independent eminent
lawyers, it counts 55 member states.

Contacts:
. In Venice: mob. +39 340 157 7931 or +39 347 249 0608 (only during
plenary sessions)
. In Strasbourg: Tatiana Mychelova, tel. +33 (0)3 88 41 38 6816

Press Release
Directorate of Communication
Ref: 202a09
Tel. +33 3 88 41 25 60
Fax +33 3 88 41 39 11
Internet:
e-mail: [email protected]

To receive our press releases by e-mail, contact:
[email protected]

A political organisation set up in 1949, the Council of Europe works to
promote democracy and human rights continent-wide.

It also develops common responses to social, cultural and legal
challenges in its 47 member states.

ARMENPRESS

NO DISMISSALS ARE INTENDED IN `NAIRIT’

YEREVAN, MARCH 9, ARMENPRESS: At present `Nairit’ factory is in the
round of restarting the activity.
Press secretary of the factory Anush Harutyunian told Armenpress
that the process started in February and usually lasts for 2
months. Depending on the rounds of restarting, which are conducted
according to the schedule, the workers of the factory are gradually
called to work.
According to A. Harutyunian no dismissals are intended for the
present moment.
`Our dismissals cannot be a result of the crisis, they can only be
as a result of internal calculations’, – she said. At present `Nairit’
has nearly 3 000 workers.
Referring to the process of involvement of investments intended for
modernization of the factory A. Harutyunian said that the discussions
in that direction are still in process.
A. Harutyunian considered it early this year to speak about the
volumes of production of the factory, noting that it will be decided
based on the demand existing in the market after the factory starts
functioning.

Armenia receives $55.6 million in January as private non-commercial
transfers

YEREVAN, March 9. /ARKA/. Central Bank of Armenia said in its monthly
report sent to ARKA News Agency that $55.6 million came to Armenia in
January 2009 as private non-commercial transfers.

According to statistical reports, this amount is 25% ($18.5 million)
smaller than that received in January 2008 (38.8% decline).

Net inflow amounted to $44.5 million in January 2009 against 55.9
million in the same month of the previous year (20.5%).

As a year earlier, the largest inflow came from Russia and the United
States ` 84.2% of total inflow against 86.2% a year earlier. -0-

Samvel Farmanyan: Georgian President’s comments on Armenia’s economy
politically incorrect

armradio.am
10.03.2009 13:42

President’s Spokesman Samvel Farmanyan commented on the recent
statement of the Georgian President on the `collapse’ of Armenian
economy.

`Georgian President’s remarks on Armenia’s economy are completely
ungrounded. On the other hand, I don’t think that making such
evaluations is the best way to draw attention of Georgian people away
from various problems existing in the country.

Many times the President of the Republic of Armenia has been asked
questions about the internal political and socio-economic situation in
the neighbor countries, but as you might have noticed, the President of
Armenia has never commented on such issues. Although it could seem
attractive in certain situations, he leaves those issues to the
consideration of analysts and politicians. This is what political
correctness supposes,’ Samvel Farmanyan stressed.

Minsk Group Co-chairs condemn incident of exchange of fire on February
26 on contact-line

012755

YEREVAN, MARCH 6, NOYAN TAPAN. OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs Bernard
Fassier, Yuri Merzliakov, and Matthew Bryza condemned the "incident of
exchange of fire that happened on February 26 on the contact-line near
Horadiz during the monitoring conducted by Andrzej Kasprzyk, the
Personal Representative of OSCE Chairman-in-Office."

According to Radio Liberty, in the statement published by Kyle Scott,
Charge d’Affaires of the United States delegation at the OSCE Permanent
Council, the Co-chairs called the sides for steadily keeping the
ceasefire and deeply regretted to say that more than 30 people perished
and more than 50 were injured in consequence of the ceasefire
violations in 2008. "We strictly condemn the ceasefire violation during
the monitoring, especially in consideration that the local commanders
gave written security guarantees before the February 26 monitoring. We
demand explanations from the sides about how such a loud ceasefire
violation could happen," the statement read.

The mediators regret to say that "not all sides have accepted the
proposal introduced by Minsk Group at the OSCE Ministers’ Council in
2008 December in Helsinki on drawing back the rifleman from the
contact-line."

A regular monitoring carried out by the OSCE mission failed on February
26 because of shots. According to NKR Defence Ministry report, at the
very start of monitoring fires were shot from the Azeri side in the
direction of the OSCE mission, NKR Foreign Ministry and Defence
Ministry representatives carrying out monitoring from the Karabakh
defence army positions. After that the Personal Representative of OSCE
Chairman-in-Office ordered to stop the monitoring.

The Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan, in its turn, insists that the shots
were fired from the Armenian side.

DEVALUATION OF ARMENIAN DRAM RESULT OF ACTIVITY OF BANKRUPT-PREMIER: OPPOSITION PARTY

Trend, Azerbaijan
March 4 2009

Devaluation of Armenian dram is the result of the activity of the
bankrupt- premier Tigran Sargsyan, Chairman of Ramkavar-Azatakan Party
of Armenia Haroutiun Arakelyan said at a press conference Wednesday. He
said the drams should not have been so sharply devaluated against
foreign exchange, reported ArmInfo.

‘Central Bank should have been waging floating rate policy long
ago. Devaluation of dram should have been gradual and not so sharp. As
a result, we faced 30-40 percent rise of prices’, Arakelyan said.

He said the government failed to bring big companies having surplus
profits to the tax field. ‘Government actions were aimed against the
small and medium-sized entrepreneurships. The government proved ot
brave enough to tax big companies’, Arakelyan said.

NEWLY APPOINTED AMBASSADOR OF AFGHANISTAN HANDS HIS CREDENTIALS TO RA PRESIDENT

Noyan Tapan

M arch 5, 2009

YEREVAN, MARCH 5, NOYAN TAPAN. Newly appointed Ambassador of
Afghanistan to RA Zalmai Aziz (residence Moscow) handed his credentials
to RA President Serzh Sargsyan on March 5. Noyan Tapan was informed
about it by the RA President’s Press Office.

S. Sargsyan expressed confidence that new Ambassador’s appointment
will record certain activity in the bilateral relations. He said that
Armenia attaches much importance to establishment of stability and
security in Afghanistan and highly assesses the efforts exerted in
this direction.

Mentioning that Armenia and Afghanistan had certain relations in the
Soviet years, the sides attached importance to their restoration and
development and emphasized that it is in the two countries’ interests.

"WE SHALL WITNESS MASS IMPOVERISHMENT"

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[08:19 pm] 04 March, 2009

"The dram devaluation will do irreparable harm to most Armenians. Over
90 percent of our people will suffer damages," says Heritage MP
Larissa Alaverdyan.

The sharp increase of the exchange rate will harm the most vulnerable
layer of the society, as well as small and medium-sized businesses.

Larissa Alaverdyan regrets that the government didn’t carry out a
policy of floating currency in due time. "Some minor groups enjoyed
super profits over the last few months. Thus, the aim was to serve
the interests of a group."

Obviously, the exchange rate policy is concentrated in the hands of a
political force which is coalesced with business. Today we have what
we have. I think the aftermaths will be much more serious. We shall
witness mass impoverishment