Author: Nadirian Emma

ARMENIA EXPECTS 2006 FOREIGN INVESTMENT AT SAME LEVEL AS IN 2005

Interfax, Russia
April 6 2006

MOSCOW. April 6 (Interfax) -Armenia expects that foreign investment
in its economy in 2006 will remain at $504.5 million, the level of
the previous year, Deputy Trade and Economic Development Minister
Tigran Davtian said at a press conference on Thursday.

A total of $1.996 billion in foreign investment has been invested in
the Armenian economy in the fourteen years since its independence,
including $1.46 billion of direct foreign investment, he said.

The peak year was 2005, when total foreign investment exceeded $500
million for the first time, Davtian said.

Investment in the real sector of the economy rose 31% to $400.4
million, he said.

The telecommunication sector saw $132.1 million in investment and
$97.5 million was invested in the mining sector largely because of the
privatization of the Zangezur Copper-Molybdenum Plant. There was $53.3
million invested in metallurgy, mainly in the Armenal packaging plant.

The European Union accounts for half of all foreign investment in the
Armenian economy, Russia for about 20%, then from the United States
and other countries, Davtian said.

KOCHARIAN VISITS NATURAL GAS OPERATOR OFFICE

Armenpress
Apr 05 2006

YEREVAN, APRIL 5, ARMENPRESS: President Robert Kocharian visited today
the central office of the Russian-Armenian joint venture-Hayrusgazard-
that ships Russian natural gas to Armenia.

Kocharian’s press office said the president discussed a scope of
related issues with the company’s leadership. Kocharian said the goal
of his visit was to learn what the company t did last year and what
was going to do this year. A detailed summary was provided by Karen
Karapetian, the chief manager of the company, who said last year
Armenia received almost 1.7 billion cubic meters of Russian gas,
a 24 percent rise over the previous year. The number of individual
and industrial gas consumers is now more than 360,000.

Karapetian said the process of restoration of gas networks continues
and some 100,000 new households and enterprises will get connected
to the gas pipeline this year. He also spoke about the ongoing
construction of Iran-Armenia gas pipeline and expansion of an
underground gas storage facility.

Kocharian said the government is eager to see the company as a
profitable entity with an effective management. He also said the
time showed that the decision to choose Russian Gazprom as a partner
was right. He said new joint projects will promote the company’s
strengthening.

Russian version:

PRESS-RE LEASE
Armenian Cooperation Center of Georgia
1 Berdznis Chikhi, 0114, Tbilisi, Georgia
Mobile: 00 995 93 31 77 84
00 995 99 41 34 74
E-mail: [email protected]
Web:

Presentation of a new web portal of Armenians of Georgia –
took place in Tbilisi.

On 7 April, according to Armenian tradition, the day of spring, beauty
and motherhood is celebrated. On this occasion, the Armenian Cooperation
Center of Georgia has organized a celebration-concert at the Tbilisi
Armenian Drama theatre Petros Adamyan on Sunday, 2 April. Since this is
a holiday concert, the singers decided to perform for free, and the
tickets were on sale at minimal prices. This led to a full concert hall,
and many people had to watch the performance standing as tickets were
sold out. People had the occasion to see on the stage Lusine
Hovhannissyan, Henry Petrosyan, children’s ensemble “Djeyran” under the
direction of Svetlana Yeritsyan, and other young talents. Those
spectators, who are interested in the cultural life of the Armenian
community of Georgia are familiar with these artists for already quite
a long period of time. The 2 April concert was the first activity of its
type. Besides the performances of singers and dancers, some video clips
were also shown, which generated keen interest among the spectators.
According to tradition, the action was honoured with the presence of the
Head of the Armenian Apostolic Saint Church Diocese in Georgia, bishop
Vazgen Mirzakhanyan, who welcomed the initiative of the concert
organization and blessed the attendees. He also wished that such events
were celebrated more often and that this unique concert, which was the
first one for the Armenians of Georgia, would become exemplary for the
others.

In the second part of the program the presentation of the first Internet
portal of the Armenians in Georgia – was held. The
creation of the site was the result of the hard and extensive work of
the Armenian Center of Cooperation of Georgia. The information about the
opening of the site was warmly welcomed by all participants. This event
has a great importance for Armenians of Georgia.

The Armenian website of Georgia is an information resource where people
can find materials on Georgia, Armenia, Artsakh, Armenian Genocide
issue, Armenian Apostolic Saint Church, Armenian Diaspora and many
others. Special attention is paid to the section called “Armenians of
Georgia”, which comprises information about the rich history of
Armenians in Georgia. In this section it is possible to find information
about Armenian churches and architectural monuments, which to this day
count amongst the architectural jewels in the Georgian capital and
regions, attracting tourists from all over the world. The high quality
design and easy navigation are likely to increase the number of its
visitors. The forum of the site will provide a virtual space for
discussions on current issues. Nevertheless, the site is primarily an
independent information source, although, it will contain
Armenian-related news storied coming from different news agencies.
Besides, on the site constant monitoring of the Georgian press will take
place and analytical articles will be published.

While presenting the website, the president of the Armenian Center of
Cooperation of Georgia, Mr. Karen Elchian mentioned that the site would
be enriched not only with news, but also with interesting materials
provided by individuals. In his speech he also called for the Armenian
community to unite and to become more active for the sake of the revival
of the Armenian community in the country. We should point out that
beforehand all spectators were given leaflets with a similar appeal.

According to Karen Elchian, the ACCG will organize such activities in
the future with the purpose of strengthening the Armenian spirit and
increasing patriotic feelings amongst the Armenian community in Georgia.

Armenia. Ge

OSKANYAN LEFT FOR MOSCOW

A1+
[05:53 pm] 05 April, 2006

The RA Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan left for Moscow on official
visit. He will meet the RF Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the
secretary of the RF Security Council Sergey Ivanov, as well as the
OSCE Minsk group Russian co-chair Yuri Merzlyakov.

Within the framework of the Moscow visit there will be discussions
about different issues of the Armenian-Russian relations including
mutual cooperation in different fields. A special place will be given
to the consultations about the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh
conflict.

Within the framework of the three-day visit Vardan Oskanyan will
visit the Moscow Carnegie center where he will render a lecture titled
“Southern Caucasus: Cooperation and Security”.

Oskanyan will also give an interview to the newspaper “Rossiyskaya
Gazeta” and the TV Company “Russia Today”.

The Foreign Minister will return to Armenia on April 7.

KOCHARIAN AND CADASTRE CHIEF DISCUSS LAND AUCTION, ILLEGAL CONSTRUCTION

Armenpress
Apr 04 2006

YEREVAN, APRIL 4, ARMENPRESS: Land auctions, illegal construction
and some other issues pertaining to real property market topped the
agenda of a meeting today of president Kocharian with Manuk Vardanian,
head of the state cadastre committee.

Kocharian was quoted by his press office as saying that the process
of land auctioning must become more transparent and open and more
accessible to all. In this regard Kocharian stressed the necessity
of revising the land zoning, which he said would help to set real
starting prices when a land plot is auctioned.

Kocharian and Vardanian also discussed options for resolving the
problem of illegal constructions that were not legalized before
the end of a deadline set by the government. They also spoke about
trends in the mortgage market and some other issues. Particularly,
it was stated that the number of deals in mortgage market increased
27 percent in the first two months of this year from a year ago.

COURT SUSPENDS PERMISSION TO ERECT MONUMENT TO ARMENIAN GENOCIDE VICTIMS IN LYON

Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
Apr 04 2006

LYON, APRIL 4, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The court of the French
city of Lyon suspended the permission of building in the city a
monument to the Armenaian Genocide victims. As the Istanbul “Marmara”
daily informs, quoting information of the Turkish “Milliet” newspaper,
the court reasoned its decision by the fact that the Mayor’s Office
of Lyon put under doubt the legality of erecting that monument. It’s
also informed that the role of inhabitants of the place of building
the monument, who sent applications to the responsible authorities,
is great in the decision of the court. At the same time, according to
the same source, Mayor of Lyon Gerard Collomb accused those speaking
against building of the monument of leading “guerilla war on the
legal field.” To recap, the decision of building the monument in
Lyon to the Armenian Genocide victims arose indignation of the local
Turk nationalists who held a demonstration of complaint on March
18. Only owing to interference of the police, this demonstration
wasn’t turned into a collision between the Armenian community of the
city and Turk extremists.

ARMENIAN NGOS GOING TO APPEAL TO EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS

PanARMENIAN.Net
03.04.2006 21:36 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian non-governmental organizations are going
to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights in order to oblige
Azerbaijan to pay compensations to the Armenian refugees for material
and moral damage, President of Azat Hayk philanthropic organization
Ruben Mnatsakanyan told journalists. For her part Ahazang NGO director
Julieta Yeremyants stated that the refugees and their descendants
intend to assert their rights. “We worked for Azerbaijan for whole
life. We founded plants, factories, scientific centers and are the
heirs of all this,” Yeremyants added, reported Novosti-Armenia.

BOOK REVIEW: THERE ARE WORSE THINGS I COULD DO

Kirkus Reviews
April 1, 2006

>From Broadway to sitcoms to HBO to off-Broadway in a few short decades.

Though she’s best known as a buxom horror-film action babe and as
Maude’s daughter on the long-running Norman Lear sitcom, Barbeau
delves into far more interesting subject matter here than the usual
warmed-over showbiz anecdotes. Half French-Canadian and half Armenian,
she grew up in California during the 1950s. She started acting in high
school, then moved to New York and entered the off-Broadway/waitress
grind. Barbeau seems lackadaisical about her career; more than once,
she dryly laments opportunities missed because she just wasn’t paying
attention.

So it’s even more surprising than usual that fairly early on she landed
a lucky break — originating the role of Tevye’s second daughter Hodel
in Fiddler on the Roof. That led to originating Rizzo in Grease, after
which she decamped for Hollywood to spend six years with Bea Arthur
on Maude. Barbeau chronicles romances along the way with ’70s icon
Burt Reynolds and the surprisingly decent-sounding John Carpenter,
who directed her in Escape from New York and The Fog.

Her career was hit-and-miss for a while but has perked up in recent
years, with roles on HBO’s Carnivale and in an upcoming off-Broadway
show about Judy Garland. Barbeau’s style can be off-putting, as she
jumps around in time and leavens her narrative with scraps from the
journals she’s kept since childhood. But the refreshing directness of
her approach keeps things moving even when the subject matter is less
than enthralling. She also has a nice way of introducing characters:
“I played a whore in a bordello who’s in love with a legless man.

Alex was the legless man.”

Far from a classic, but better than the standard actor bio.

Publication Date: 5/10/2006 0:00:00 Publisher: Carroll & Graf/Avalon
Stage: Adult ISBN: 0-7867-1637-1 Price: $25 Author: Barbeau, Adrienne

PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE

ARMENIAN RELIEF SOCIETY of EASTERN USA, INC
80 Bigelow Ave, Suite 200
Watertown, MA 02472
Contact: Vartouhie Chiloyan
Tel: 617-926-3801
Fax: 617-924-7238
E-mail: [email protected]
Web:

ARS Eastern USA Summer Studies Institute June 5-24, 2006

The 2006 ARS Summer Studies Institute at the University of Connecticut
will be held from Monday, June 5 to Saturday, June 24, 2006. Dr. Hayg
Oshagan Professor at Wayne State University to direct the program.

The 2006 Summer Studies Institute will again feature a three-credit
“Survey of Armenian History” course offered through the University
of Connecticut’s School of Continuing Education. Non-credit courses
in Armenian Language, Literature, Music, and Cinema, along with
supplementary lectures, workshops, and live performances will round
out the program.

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until 15 students
are enrolled.

The ARS Eastern USA provides free room and board, meals, books, and
costs associated with the non-credit Summer Studies courses and weekend
field trips to New York City and Boston. All students pay UConn tuition
fees associated with the three-credit “Survey of Armenian History”
course. Many ARS Eastern USA chapters offer Summer Studies scholarships
and the ARS Eastern USA offers two scholarships based on merit.

Additional Summer Studies information and a complete Summer Studies
application package can be downloaded from the ARS Eastern USA website.

TIME RUNNING OUT FOR PEACE, US MEDIATOR SAYS

AzerNews Weekly, Azerbaijan
March 30 2006

The American mediator of the OSCE Minsk Group (MG) brokering settlement
to the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh has
warned that time is currently of essence to achieve peace this year.

“Time is not on anyone’s side. 2006 is suitable for a peace accord.

We have to complete the important work we started this year to
achieve progress,” the US co-chair of the MG, Steven Mann, told Radio
Liberty. He reminded that the co-chairs met in Istanbul on March 20
for another meeting to discuss plans for further Garabagh talks. He
said that during the discussions, the other two diplomats – from
Russia and France – were informed about the outcome of the recent
meetings he held in Baku and Yerevan.

Russian co-chair Yuri Merzlyakov did not attend the Istanbul meeting,
Radio Liberty quoted diplomatic sources as saying. He was reportedly
substituted by another diplomat at the discussions, whose name is not
disclosed. The Russian Foreign Ministry explained this by Merzlyakov’s
illness. Mann dismissed some statements saying the Minsk Group’s
format for mediating peace talks has been fruitless. The OSCE is the
most appropriate format for the conflict resolution and reaching
the desired results this year depends on the sides themselves,
he said. “Regardless of the format, you will always face the fact
that both parties have to find a common ground to solve the dispute,”
said Mann. The head of the President’s Office international relations
department, Novruz Mammadov, said holding consultations by the MG
co-chairs could be seen as a positive development in general.

“However, this is insufficient for us. We want the negotiating
process to produce specific results,” he said. Mammadov dismissed the
statements saying the talks are deadlocked as no information on their
gist has been made public. “The negotiating process has never been
divulged in a comprehensive manner and there is no need for this. If
any agreement or a step forward is achieved, only in this case any
information could be made available.”

‘Two options’ Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian said there are
currently two alternatives to continue peace talks. “One of them is the
next visit of the [mediating] OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs to the region,
while the other one – holding the next meeting of the two foreign
ministers.” Oskanian said it is unclear what steps will be taken for
the peaceful settlement of the dispute after the Istanbul meeting of
the OSCE mediators. “Armenia has made all the needed compromises to
resolve the conflict in peace and is now waiting for the Azerbaijani
side to follow suit.” The Armenian official added that the hopes
for finding a solution in 2006 that were cited earlier have somewhat
dwindled. The discussions held by Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Robert
Kocharian in the French town of Rambouillet in February turned out
fruitless, which was followed by Azerbaijan’s threats to use force to
free its land from under occupation. Armenian Prime Minister Andranik
Markarian maintained that recognition of the self-proclaimed Upper
Garabagh republic by Armenia in the future is possible, but this will
depend on the outcome of the negotiations. “This can be one of the
decisions to be made,” he said while commenting on the reports. The
Armenian official added that it would be inappropriate to elaborate
on the future steps at this point, as the talks are under way.

Markarian said resumption of military actions in Garabagh would
not favor either Azerbaijan or Armenia, “or the ‘self-proclaimed’
entity”. “Armenia is interested in continuing the negotiating process,”
he said.