Author: Nahapetian Boris

IRAN, ARMENIA TO CUT TRADE TARIFFS

Mehr News Agency
Sept 4 2007
Iran

TEHRAN, Sept. 4 (MNA) – The head of Iran-Armenia Joint Chamber of
Commerce announced here on Tuesday that the sides’ trade tariffs will
decrease to help grow bilateral economic cooperation.

Levon Aharonian told MNA that the tariffs of some products will slump
to zero.

Despite the sides’ high economic potentials, the trade volume, valued
at about $200 million, is not desirable and has to reach one billion
dollars per annum.

He referred to construction of Aras 170MW hydroelectric power plant,
establishment of railway linking the two states, and transmission of
power to Armenia and Georgia, predicting a rising trade volume for
the countries.

The sides made the decisions in the seventh session of the Iran-Armenia
Joint Economic Cooperation Commission in Yerevan.

The commission was chaired by Iranian Foreign Minister Manuchehr
Mottaki and Armenian Energy Minister Armen Movsisyan.

The commission discussed cooperation in the areas of trade, energy,
health, transportation, science, and culture.

NUMBER OF TOURISTS TO ARMENIA INCREASES BY 36.3% IN FIRST HALF OF 2007 ON SAME PERIOD OF LAST YEAR

Noyan Tapan
Sep 4, 2007

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 4, NOYAN TAPAN. 38,077 internal tourists were
accommodated in tourist lodgings of Armenia in January-June 2007,
which is more by 24.3% than in the same period of last year.

181,239 tourists came to Armenia in the first half of 2007 against
132,937 in the same period of 2006. Tourists from CIS countries made
up 25.2% of them (26.8% in the same period of 2006), including tourists
from Russia who made up 18.2% (19.9% in January-June 2006).

According to the RA National Statistical Service, 23,122 tourists
stayed in 40 hotels of Armenia in January-June 2007 against 21,825
in the same months of 2006.

Tourists from EU countries made up 37.3% of the total number of
tourists to Armenia in the first half of 2007, including tourists from
France – 12.9%, Germany – 7%, the UK – 6.9%, from other EU countries
– 10.5%.

RA PARLIAMENT SPEAKER: NKR FORMED AS AN INDEPENDENT STATE

DeFacto Agency
Sept 3 2007
Armenia

September 2, speaking at the opening ceremony of the Nagorno-Karabagh
Republic Parliament’s new building, RA National Assembly Chair Tigran
Torosian stated NKR had been formed as an independent state.

The Speaker underscored, "there is not the slightest doubt that the
NKR will be recognized by the international community", DE FACTO own
correspondent in Stepanakert reports. According to Tigran Torosian,
during several years the international community has recognized the
NKR people’s right to self-determination.

In Tigran Torosian’s words, the declaration of the Nagorno-Karabagh
Republic is "great miracle", which will be appreciated at its true
value in the course of time. "Now we have two states with great
potential. It is something we could not even dream about before",
Tigran Torosian said admitting the fact that in some spheres
Nagorno-Karabagh had more achievements than Armenia.

RA PRIME MINISTER GETS ACQUAINTED WITH DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS OF MKHITAR SEBASTATSI EDUCATIONAL COMPLEX

Noyan Tapan
Sep 3, 2007

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 3, NOYAN TAPAN. The RA Prime Minister, Serge
Sargsian, on September 1, visited Yerevan’s Mkhitar Sebastatsi
educational complex and got acquainted with its development programs
and problems. The Prime Minister also visited the mother school of the
educational complex, got acquainted with the possibilities created
for the junior school (1-6 forms), the activity of the teachers’
professional development center.

S. Sargsian also visited the basic school of the educational complex,
which includes the preparative classes (3-5-year-old children and
junior school).

The Prime Minister got familiarized with the school’s laboratory
and room conditions, unsolved problems, discussed the ways of their
possible solution.

ARKADY GHUKASYAN: DECLARATION OF NKR WAS THE ONLY CORRECT STEP HAVING NO ALTERNATIVE

armradio.am
03.09.2007 14:23

"In 1991 the declaration of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic was the
only correct approach having no alternative," NKR President Arkady
Ghukasyan said on September 2 on the occasion of the 16th anniversary
of declaration of NKR.

The President said: "We have a brilliant past: we won on the battle
field, we overcame the post-war syndrome and built a state."

"We are a full-fledged state, irrespective of the fact whether the
international community recognizes us or not. Today it is impossible
not to take into consideration the fact of existence of the Nagorno
Karabakh Republic," Arkady Ghukasyan declared.

Speaking at the opening ceremony for the new building of the NKR
Parliament, RA National Assembly Speaker Tigran Torosyan declared
that NKR has matured as an independent republic. He underlined that
"there is no doubt that Nagorno Karabakh will be recognized by the
international community."

Tigran Torosyan called the declaration of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic
a "great miracle," which will be paid the due in the course of time.

"Today we have two states with a huge potential, about which we could
not even dream in the past," Tigran Torosyan said.

ECONOMIST EDUARD AGHAJANOV: ARMENIAN ECONOMY IS DEVELOPING ABNORMALLY

Noyan Tapan
Aug 30 2007

YEREVAN, AUGUST 30, NOYAN TAPAN. Armenia’s foreign trade deficit made
838 million dollars in the first half of 2007 against 511 million
dollars in the same period of 2006. The ratio of foreign trade deficit
to GDP made 31.7%, which shows that the country’s economy is developing
abnormally. Economist Eduard Aghajanov, former head of the National
Statistical Service of the RA, stated this at the August 30 discussion.

According to him, in the US, the fact that the ratio of foreign
trade deficit to GDP has reached 6-7% is considered as alarming,
whereas the Armenian authorities do not make the issue of reducing
such a high ratio a subject of discussion.

The speaker noted that many heads of the appropriate departments are
unaware of economic developments in Armenia: during interviews, they
present data that is considerably different from official statistics.

In his words, the process of reducing the capacities of processing
industry is taking place in Armenia because it has become profitable
to import many traditional industrial goods instead of producing
them locally.

THE 5TH ARMMONO INTERNATIONAL THEATRE SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL OF MONO PERFORMANCES TO TAKE PLACE IN YEREVAN 12-18 SEPTEMBER

arminfo
2007-08-29 17:27:00

The 5th ArmMono International Theatre Shakespeare Festival of Mono
Performances will take place in Yerevan 12-18 September, the Director
of the festival, Artistic Director of the Yerevan State Theatre of
the Young Spectator Hakob Ghazanchyan said in his talk with ArmInfo
correspondent on Wednesday.

According to him, the opening of the Festival, which is going to take
place at the Yeravan State Theatre of the Young Spectator, will be
marked by the performance of Tbilisi’s Rustaveli National Theatre "A
Tractate On The Handkerchief". He also said that this year well known
actors from Australia, Russia, Georgia, Poland, Germany, Ukraine,
Slovenia and Iran would take part in the work of the Festival. "8
actors will represent Armenia, namely, Ishkhan Gharibyan, Karine
Janjukhanyan, Mariam Ghazanchyan, Hrant Khachikyan, David Hovsepyan,
Alla Sahakyan, Julia Stepanyan and Hayk Zorikyan", he said, adding that
the Festival program 2007 will be most interesting as compared with
that of 2006, also owing to the participation of such authoritative
foreign personalities as the Secretary General of the International
Theatre Institute Jennifer Walpole, the President of the International
Forum One Man Show Valeri Khazanov and others.

He also noted that, within the frames of the Festival this year
the Armenian actors would perform not only Shakespeare’s, but also
others’ works.

The Armenian Ministry of Culture will allot 2mln AMD for the
organization of ArmMono Festival 2007. Yerevan’s Mayor Yervand
Zakharyan, for his part, will also render financial support.

To note, the 1st ArmMono International Theatre Shakespeare Festival of
Mono Performances took place in September 2003 in Yerevan. It became
traditional and is held annually already for the fifth time. Since
2005 the Festival was named as Shakespeare Festival.

EXTRA ELECTIONS WERE HELD IN TALIN
By Gohar Gevorgian

AZG Armenian Daily
28/08/2007

According to the preliminary data of the district election committee,
a candidate from the Republican party of Armenia Khachik Manukyan won
at yesterday’s extra election to the Armenian Parliament in the 15th
district. As spokeswoman of RA CEC Tatevik Ohanyan told ArmInfo, 36394
people out of 60138 came to the polling stations. Thus, attendance
at extra election made up 60,5%. Total of 16121 people voted for K.

Manukyan. He is followed by non-party candidate, supported by
‘Prosperous Armenia’ party, Mayor of Talin town Mnatsakan Mnatsakanyan,
who gathered 10067 votes, a representative of ARF Dashnaktsutiun
Gourgen Shahinyan – 7248 votes. Leader of the oppositional ‘Heritage’
party Raffi Hovanissian took the fourth place, having gathered 1120
votes. He is followed by independent candidates Emin Karapetyan
(518 votes) and Vahagn Petrosyan (96 votes).

European Jewish Press, Belgium
Aug 25 2007

US Jewish group retracts stance on Armenian genocide

AFP and EJP Updated: 25/Aug/2007 18:39

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey’s Prime Minister:"With this statement,
they have retracted their previous erroneous step."

ANKARA (AFP-EJP)—A prominent US Jewish advocacy group has retracted
its decision to call the mass killings of Armenians under the Ottoman
Empire a genocide, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said
Friday.

"The ADL (Anti-Defamation League) has sent us a statement sharing our
sensitivity on this issue," Erdogan was quoted by the Anatolia news
agency as saying.

"With this statement, they have retracted their previous erroneous
step."

The ADL unleashed anger in Turkey this week when it said in a written
statement that it had changed its position on the Armenian massacres
after consultations with experts.

But in a separate statement on Thursday the group was more
circumspect on the World War I events.

"Although independent scholars may have reached a consensus about the
genocide, in an effort to help accomplish the reconciliation (between
Turkey and Armenia) there is room for further dispassionate scholarly
examination of the details of those dark and terrible days," the
second statement read.

The ADL move sparked concerns here that Ankara may be losing the
support of the powerful Jewish lobby in the United States against
efforts there to have the killings recognised as genocide and pass a
resolution to that effect from the Congress.

Israel, Turkey’s main regional ally, was quick to respond to prevent
a fallout in bilateral ties.

Israeli President Shimon Peres phoned Erdogan on Thursday to assure
him of Israel’s desire to maintain close bilateral ties.

On Wednesday, the Israeli embassy in Ankara said the Jewish state
acknowledges the "horrible events" and the "terrible suffering" the
Armenians endured, but urged Jews not to take sides.

The Jewish community in Turkey expressed regret over the position
adopted by a US Jewish group., endorsing Turkey’s position that this
question should be debated at academic level with full access to the
archives of all concerned parties and that parliaments are not the
appropriate platforms for finding the truth about historical events.

The Turkish press said Turkey had asked Israel to convince the Jewish
lobby in the United States to support Turkey in its efforts to block
congressional moves to recognise the killings as genocide.

Turkey categorically rejects claims that 1.5 million of their kinsmen
died in systematic deportations and killings during 1915-1918 as the
Ottoman Empire was breaking up.

ITAR-TASS News Agency, Russia
August 23, 2007 Thursday

One killed, three injured in household gas blast in Yerevan

YEREVAN August 23

One person was killed and three other people were injured as a result
of a household gas blast in Armenian capital Yerevan.

Gas leakage was the reason of the blast. Balconies of the second and
third floors collapsed in the explosion. An investigation was
launched.