Author: Mamian George

88 EARTHQUAKE COMMEMORATED AS AUTHORITIES DOWNPLAY FAILURE TO REBUILD GYUMRI

Asbarez
Dec 7th, 2009

GYUMRI (RFE/RL)-Officials on Monday downplayed the government’s failure
to rebuild regions devastated by the 1988 earthquake, insisting that
reconstruction is going according to plan as Armenia marked the 21st
anniversary of the calamity that killed 25,000 people and left hundreds
of thousands of others homeless.

As always, the main commemoration ceremony took place in the northern
city of Gyumri which is still bearing traces of the tragedy. President
Serzh Sarkisian and other top officials laid flowers at a memorial
to quake victims erected in the city’s central square. Archbishop
Mikael Ajapahanian of Gyumri and the surrounding Shirak region then
held a prayer service in memory of the dead.

As he made his way to the memorial, Sarkisian was mobbed by hundreds
of local residents anxious to hand him letters describing their
socioeconomic grievances and pleading for assistance from the state.

The president did not stop to talk to them, leaving it to his
bodyguards to collect the letters.

"I’m a mother of many children," one woman told RFE/RL. "I came here
to ask the president to help us buy firewood for the winter." Another
woman, a single mother, similarly hoped that the government will
"help me a little."

After the ceremony Sarkisian visited to the nearby town of Akhurian to
inspect the ongoing construction of a sugar plant. He also inaugurated
a newly constructed gas distribution system in a local village.

Despite numerous government pledges and hundreds of millions of
dollars in aid, Shirak and other parts of northern Armenian hit by
the earthquake have still not been completely rebuilt. According to
government data, more than 7,000 families, who lost their homes on
December 7, 1998, still live in shacks and other temporary shelters.

The government has pledged to provide some 5,300 of them with new
and adequate housing by 2013. It plans to spend $70 million of a $500
million anti-crisis loan disbursed by Russia in June for that purpose.

Deputy Prime Minister Armen Gevorgian, who oversees the reconstruction
effort, downplayed the delay, saying that the first batch of new
apartments will be ready by the end of this month. "I don’t think that
one should cast doubt on the implementation of the project because
construction is in progress," he told journalists. "The construction
of 1,050 apartments will be finished this year as planned."

"Next year, we will complete the construction of another 1,980
apartments in Gyumri. I urge everyone not to doubt that the project
is being implemented and will be completed," said Gevorgian.

THE ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT RATIFIED CONTRACTS WITH NATO CONNECTED WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF THE DIVISION OF THE ARMENIAN ARMED FORCES IN THE PEACEKEEPING ACTIVITY IN AFGHANISTAN

ARMENPRESS
Dec 8, 2009

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 8, ARMENPRESS: The Armenian parliament ratified
today the legal and financial contracts with NATO connected with the
participation of the division of the Armenian Armed Forces in the
peacekeeping activity in Afghanistan.

According to a contract, the 40-member Armenian division will from
February 2010 implement peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan within
a German platoon in the town of Kundush and will keep the aviation
runaway territory. With another contract the financial issues of the
troops are being regulated. Taking into consideration the great volume
of expenses the Armenian side will soon sign an agreement with the
German side according to which the German side will take on itself
the majority of expenses, except salaries.

The parliament also adopted today in the first reading the bill on
making changes in the law on "Armenian Holidays and Memory Days"
with which the number of non-working days for marking New Year and
Christmas have increased

RA NA DELAYS CONSIDERATION OF BILL ON PROCLAMATION APRIL 24 AS DAY OF DEPRIVATION OF HOMELAND

PanARMENIAN.Net
07.12.2009 13:57 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian National Assembly has postponed
consideration of the bill on proclamation April 24 as Day of
Deprivation of Homeland for 90 days.

The bill envisages marking April 24 not only as Armenian Genocide
Commemoration Day but also as Day of Deprivation of Homeland.

Submitted by Heritage party, it was supported by ARF Dashnaktsutyun.

TURKISH PRIME MINISTER VISITS U.S. IN VERY IMPORTANT TIME: UK EXPERT

Today
Dec 4 2009
Azerbaijan

Day.Az interview with Dennis Sammut, Executive Director of UK-based
non-governmental organization LINKS.

Day.Az: Do you expect the visit of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan to the United States to influence Turkish-Armenian relations
and settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict?

Dennis Sammut: This is an important time for the Turkish Prime
Minister to be visiting the US. There are many issues on the agenda
for both sides, including Iraq, Afghanistan, the Iran Nuclear File
and others. However clearly the Caucasus will also be one of the
issues discussed. Turkey has been very active in the region in the
last two years. This reflects a new confidence in Turkish diplomacy.

What do you think of future of the Armenian-Turkish protocols which
have not been ratified yet?

The Turkish-Armenian protocols were signed less than eight weeks ago.

The process of ratification in both countries will take some time.

Timing is now very important since on the one hand the momentum must
not be lost, on the other hand the governments need to wait for the
right conditions to present the agreements for ratification to their
parliaments. Progress in the negotiations on the Karabakh conflict
will certainly make the conditions better.

Do you think Turkish diplomatic "invasion" in settlement of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has been success?

I will not call it an invasion, but rather an awakening. Turkey is a
regional power in the Caucasus and until recently it was reluctant
to engage seriously with the problems of the region. It has now
started doing so. It is too early to say how successful this new
engagement will be, but the normalisation of relations with Armenia,
and the launch of the Caucasus Stability and Co-operation Platform are
positive steps that have been broadly welcomed by the international
community. Turkey is not engaged directly in the negotiations on
the Karabakh conflict settlement but because of its proximity, size,
historical connections – and indeed because of its special relationship
with Azerbaijan – it has a useful contribution to make to creating
the best conditions for peace in the region.

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov admitted that there are
positive dynamics in the current negotiations on the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict and both sides together with the Minsk Group Co-chairs have
agreed to intensify negotiations. Do you believe in progress any
time soon?

I do not think that stalemate is an option any more. The sides are
reportedly very close to agreeing at least the basic principles on
which to conduct a proper peace process. These next steps must now be
taken. The Presidents and Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan
have worked very hard over the last year on these issues. This should
be appreciated by all. It is now decision time.

Do you share the view that the West (the U.S., EU) don’t play an
active role settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with Russia
remaining major mediator. If it is true, what should be done to make
the West to show more interest in settlement of the conflict?

The international community has been quite united in its efforts to
promote a peaceful resolution to the Karabakh conflict. The three
Minsk Group co-Chair – the US, Russia and France – are all equal.

Russia feels closer to the conflict because of history and other
reasons but on this issue it has not acted unilaterally. A solution
will require the support of all the key players in the international
community. The sleeping giant has been the European Union which has
largely limited itself to supporting the Minsk Group Co-Chair work. In
a report that LINKS published on 1 December on the Karabakh conflict
settlement process we say that support for the Minsk process should
not be an excuse for inertia.

The EU may not have been directly involved in the Karabakh negotiations
so far, but the moment there is a breakthrough the EU must engage
very actively. It has the skills and the resources to support the
peace process, it has an interest to do so because Karabakh is
within its immediate neighbourhood, and it also has good relations
with both Armenia and Azerbaijan. The EU is excellent in projecting
soft power. In future this can be an important contribution to the
settlement of the conflict. For example the European Union must be
ready to engage on a big scale with any peace monitoring operation.

We don’t need troops with Tanks and missiles in Karabakh but a
monitoring force of diplomats in jeans and soldiers who can talk
diplomatically as well as they can shoot guns.

US: NORMALIZATION OF ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS SHOULD BE COMPLETED WITHIN A REASONABLE TIMEFRAME

Egemen Bag
04.12.2009 18:24 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ U.S. President Barack Obama has pledged to continue
to press for an unconditional normalization of Armenian-Turkish
relations which he believes should be completed within a "reasonable
timeframe." Obama hailed the U.S.-backed dialogue between the two
nations as "historic," in a letter to Hirair Hovnanian, Chairman of
the Armenian Assembly of America.

"We will continue to vigorously support the normalization effort in
the months ahead," he said.

The letter dated November 20 came in response to a September
9 joint appeal to Obama from Hovnanian and the leaders of the
Armenian General Benevolent Union and two U.S dioceses of the
Armenian Apostolic Church. The signatories voiced support for the
fence-mending Turkish-Armenian agreements and said Washington
should get Ankara to stop linking their implementation with a
resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict favored by Azerbaijan,
ArmeniaDiaspora.com reports.

"AUSTRIAN AIRLINES" ADDRESSES LETTER TO ARMENIAN AMBASSADOR

Panorama.am
18:58 04/12/2009

Member of the "Austrian Airlines" Executive Board Peter Malanik
addressed a letter to the Armenian Ambassador to Austria Ashot
Hovakimyan.

Panorama.am releases the full text:

"Referring to your letter dated 12 November, 2009 and the visit
of Counselor Charkhchian we deeply apologize for the unfortunate
advertisement in the business magazine SUCCEED.

The road sign of the advertisement was chosen by our agency who is
in fact not familiar with the Armenian/Russian language respectively
geography.

We have immediately advised our agency not to publish such
advertisement in any future Austrian Airlines publications. A new
edition of the business magazine SUCCEED will be published and
displayed as of 1st December, 2009.

We would like to emphasize once more that Armenia is of great strategic
importance to Austrian Airlines, moreover, we are now in the process
of evaluating synergies with Lufthansa, like representing each others
company in the countries abroad and Austrian Airlines will have the
lead in Armenia and represent the entire Lufthansa group in future
in Armenia.

With pleasure we seize your suggestion to promote Armenia and we will
publish an article (2-3 pages) in our onboard magazine Skylines April
2010 edition. A journalist will thereto travel to Armenia and we will
come back to your offer of assistance in order to get information on
the most beautiful sites of Armenia.

Please accept, your Excellency, the renewed assurances of my highest
consideration."

AZERBAIJANI MFA TRIES TO FIND JUSTIFICATION

Panorama.am
17:26 03/12/2009

"Discussions over the situation in Azerbaijan’s occupied territories
at the UN General Assembly meeting have been postponed for technical
reasons," Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Elkhan Polukhov
said, according to Day.az.

"Discussions over the draft resolution "On situation in the occupied
territories of Azerbaijan" at the UN General Assembly meeting was
postponed at the request of the Azerbaijani side," he said. The
media reported earlier that discussions "On situation in the occupied
territories of Azerbaijan" was scheduled for Dec. 3.

The draft was once submitted for voting. Then most of UN members
abstained from voting, three countries – Russia, USA, and France –
voted against the document. The approach made Baku angry and he
addressed condemnations to the OSCE MG Co-Chairs.

Panorama.am recalls that the event rose turmoil in Azerbaijan.

Particularly, Azadlig reporter said Aliyev was to blame for the failure
of the document in the UN, noting this once again proves president’s
inconsistency and non-seriousness of statements he made.

According to analysts, just because of the turmoil in Azerbaijani
society, MFA addressed a statement saying the discussions were
postponed for "technical" reasons.

KASPAROV TO UPPER WEST SIDE
By Chloe Malle

The New York Observer
how-chess-imitates-life-kasparov-captures-penthous e
Dec 2 2009

In 1985, at age 22, Garry Kasparov was the youngest world chess
champion in history. Now, almost a quarter of a century later, Mr.

Kasparov has retired from chess, taking up politics in its stead as a
fierce critic of Vladimir Putin and a public enemy of the Kremlin. (He
once declared of the current Russian government, "The system is not
corrupt–corruption is the system.") The chess prodigy and political
dissident, who, according to an interview with Macleans Canada,
"has no life" due to his choice to enter politics, recently bought
a $3.4 million penthouse apartment on West 76th Street.

The UK Guardian reported in 2007 that Mr. Kasparov spends thousands of
dollars on bodyguards each month to protect him and his family. But,
I wouldn’t worry about him having to sell the family silver as it seems
that the chess grandmaster has money to spend. As well as his recent
$3.4 million purchase on the Upper West Side, Mr. Kasparov keeps
residences in Paris, Moscow, Leningrad and that political hotbed:
New Jersey. The deed for the penthouse condo was filed under the
names of both Mr. Kasparov and his third wife, Daria, with whom he
has a young daughter.

Mr. Kasparov, who was arrested during a protest in Moscow in 2007,
told Playboy in an interview, "If something goes wrong with me or my
family, I don’t think there’s a chance for them [the Kremlin] to say
they aren’t guilty. For many Russians, I’m a symbol of national pride.

I was the Soviet champion even for the left wing, even for the
nationalists. I’m not Garry Kasparov, half-Armenian, half-Jewish born,
but the Soviet champion, the man who was on top of the world of chess,
the pride of the nation."

Mr. Kasparov may soon assume a new role as the international pride
of the Upper West Side.

RUBEN SAFRASTYAN: THE SOLUTION TO THE KARABAKH ISSUE HAS NOT MATURED
Nvard Davtyan

"Radiolur"
02.12.2009 18:48

"The approach of the main political vectors is that the normalization
of the Armenian-Turkish relations and the settlement of the Karabakh
conflict are two separate issues," Director of the Oriental Studies
Institute, Turkologist Ruben Safrastyan told a press conference today,
commenting on the statement made during the OSCE Ministerial in Athens.

"It’s good that Turley’s aspiration to tie the two issues did not
find serious adherents," Ruben Safrastyan said.

"The solution to the Karabakh conflict has not matured. Today the
parties have completely different positions on the main issue – the
status on Nagorno Karabakh. Therefore, any attempt to pressure the
parties to come to an agreement can bring to the aggravation of the
situation," he stated.

As for the Armenian-Turkish relations, Ruben Safrastyan considers
that Turkey will turn to the normalization of relations with Armenia
only after finding some solution to the Kurdish issue, and it’s a
matter of the near future. If the Turkish side violates the pace and
dynamics of the developments, it will endanger the whole process,"
Safrastyan concluded.

KARABAKH SETTLEMENT PROCESS BENEFICIAL FOR NEITHER ARMENIA NOR AZERBAIJAN

Tert.am
16:46 ~U 02.12.09

The process of settling the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is beneficial
for neither Armenia nor the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh (NKH), said
former NKH foreign minister Arman Melikyan at a press conference today.

The situation today, in his words, shows that "we are obliged to agree
with the assertion that Armenia is an aggressor state." Melikyan
explained his comment by saying that Azerbaijan is able to put
Armenia’s and Nagorno-Karabakh’s demands to one side; particularly
those demands that relate to protecting the interests of Azerbaijani
refugees, without taking into account Armenian refugees.

Another participant in today’s press conference, governing Republican
Party of Armenia (RPA) representative Gagik Melikyan didn’t agree
with his opponent, stating that Armenia is considered an aggressor
not by the entire world, but only by Azerbaijan. "Armenia, all in
all, has only done its duty with respect to Nagorno-Karabakh; in the
sense that in a binding war it had to protect Karabakh’s interests,
and that’s what it did."

The RPA representative also noted that the issue of both Armenian
and Azerbaijani refugees has always been a part of the negotiations.

In response, Arman Melikyan noted that the issue of Armenian refugees
has begun to be raised only recently. He also blamed RA Minister of
Foreign Affairs that, when speaking about ethnic cleansing, he refers
not to "ethnic cleansing of Armenians in Azerbaijan, but rather,
to ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh."