Author: Nahapetian Samvel

ARMENIAN-IRANIAN CULTURAL COOPERATION
By Gohar Julhakian

Yerkir.am
August 03, 2007

Cooperation between Armenia an the Islamic Republic of Iran is
multi-faceted. Cultural cooperation evolves equally to the economic
and political cooperation. It includes almost all spheres of Iranian
and Armenian cultures – theater festivals, concerts, exhibitions,
translation of Armenian and Iranian writers’ works, etc.

The National Library of Armenia could not have been left out of this
fruitful cooperation. Director of the National Library David Sargsian
and director of the Children’s Library after Khnko Aper Ruzan Tonoyan
recently visited Iran upon invitation of the Advisor on Cultural
Issues to the President of the Iranian Republic Ali Akbar Ashar.

A series of issues were discussed during the meeting with Ali Akbar
Ashar including exchange of information between the two countries,
technical cooperation between libraries, experience exchange, etc. A
memorandum of cooperation was signed between the National Library of
Armenia and the National Library and the National Archive of Iran. The
National Archive and the National Library in Iran are one structure.

"We should do everything to get to know each other better," David
Sargsian says. The Armenian delegation visited the newly constructed
building of the National Library. The library has seven reading halls
with a total surface of 15 thousand square meters. The Iranian National
Library has its own flag, anthem and cote of arms.

The Armenian National Library has cooperated with Iranian libraries
in the past. A cooperation agreement was signed with the regional
library in Shiraz city to exchange of scientific and information
technologies. The regional library in Shiraz has cooperation agreements
with over 20 countries and the Armenian National Library can exchange
information with all these libraries through the agreement signed
with Shiraz Library.

The cooperation between Armenian and Iranian libraries started in 2002.

During the recent visit of the director of the Armenian National
Library a series of meetings with Iranian cultural leaders and visit
to various cultural organizations were organized. Director of the
Armenian National Library David Sargsian stresses the importance of
the visit to the Cinema Museum in Tehran.

"There is an exhibition hall dedicated to the Iranian Armenia
cinematographers that have made a valuable contribution to the
Iranian cinema. I think the Armenian experts studying history of
cinematography must study the work of the Iranian Armenian actors,
directors and producers. This will enrich the history of the Armenian
cinema and culture," Sargsian says.

Cultural values are in the center of the government’s attention in
the Islamic Republic of Iran. The government does everything for the
development of culture. The government is paying equal attention to
the Iranian culture and the Armenian culture in Iran.

The guests visited the Children’s Aesthetical Center in
Tehran. Sargsian notes that the Center receives over 3 million copies
of children’s books, produces computer games, CDs, DVDs that contain
children’s poetry, songs, tales, etc.

The Armenian delegation was also impressed by the visit to the Iranian
Studies Foundation. "We were very interested in the approach to Iranian
studies. They are expecting from us materials about Iran. They do a
great job for promotion of Iranian studies," Sargsian says.

The Armenian delegation also visited the town of Ararat, which is an
Armenian community and the seat of the Armenian Church. An agreement
was reached with the director community to celebrate the community’s
60th anniversary in Armenia. The delegation met the staff of Alik
newspaper.

Sargsian informed that a visit of the representatives of the Iranian
National Archive and Library to Armenia will be organized at the end of
2007. It should be noted that 746 units of Iranian books, 21 magazines
and 15 newspapers are available in the Armenian National Library.

WHAT IS A COMMON CANDIDATE?

Lragir, Armenia
Aug 3 2007

The problem of Armenia before the presidential election and in general
is the imperfection of the political sphere and the opposition,
Davit Shahnazaryan, All Armenian Movement, stated on August 3 at
the National Press Club. He says the government is the present of
the country, the opposition is the future and, unfortunately, there
are no preconditions for this future. "We must look for the mistakes
among us, and the evaluations that were voiced after the parliamentary
election by the opposition forces which in fact accused the society,
I think, were at least wrong," says Davit Shahnazaryan. He thinks the
attempts to look for the cause of the failure outside the opposition
are doomed. The member of the All Armenian Movement believes that if
the opposition’s current state persists, the government perhaps will
not need electoral fraud in the presidential voting. The society hates
the government but it also neglects the opposition, the AAM member
thinks. "The sooner all this is acknowledged, the sooner the opposition
draws the right conclusions, the more probable it will be that our
political system and the opposition as a political institution will
become established in Armenia. Otherwise, it is difficult to imagine
possibility for progress towards overcoming internal political,
social, economic and foreign challenges," Davit Shahnazaryan says.

He also does not understand the meaning of the "common candidate" of
the opposition. "If my friends, my colleagues, some 10 or 15 people,
are likely to name the common candidate, are there guarantees that
the society will accept this candidate? At a table, it is possible
to decide who the mediator will be, who the toast maker will be,
but it is not serious that 10 or 15 will name a common candidate,
without a political race. The common candidate must be the result of
a political race which must be based on programs and ideas," Davit
Shahnazaryan says. By saying political race he means the statement
of the stance of parties on internal and external political issues.

MOST 20 POINTS REGISTERED IN ENGLISH EXAMINATION IN WRITTEN FORM DURING 10 DAYS OF HEI ENTRANCE EXAMINATIONS

Noyan Tapan
Aug 1, 2007

YEREVAN, AUGUST 1, NOYAN TAPAN. Among 12 thousand and 639 entrants,
who took examinations during the ten days of Higher Educational
Institutional entrance examinations of Armenia, 2679 received between
18 to 20 points and 1255 and 2009 entrants got 8 and lower than 8
points, correspondingly.

According to the information provided to a Noyan Tapan correspondent
by the Republican Admission Board, 295 entrants received the top mark,
that is to say, 20 points, 170 out of whom from the English examination
in a written form. 1162 entrants received 19 points, another 1222
got 18 points among which 736 and 500 entrants, correspondingly,
received these points from the English written examination. There is
only one entrant, who got 20 points from the subject "Mathematics",
as for the oral examination of the Russian language, 67 entrants
received the highest marks.

Marks lower than eight point were received from the examinations of
Mathematics and Physics, 722 and 322 entrants correspondingly. There
has been no "unsatisfactory" mark from the subject "Creative
Competition" till now.

In general, there were no 20 points received from Biology, Physics,
General History, Chemistry, the History of Armenian people, as well
as from the oral examinations of the Italian, Spanish, and Armenian
languages, and from the written examination of the German language,
as well as from the subject "Creative Competition".

RUSSIAN HOME MINISTER, ARMENIAN POLICE DEPARTMENT CHIEF TO SIGN COOPERATION AGREEMENT SOON

ARKA News Agency, Armenia
July 26 2007

YEREVAN, July 26. /ARKA/. Rashid Nurgaliev, Russian home minister
and Hayk Harutyunyan, Armenian Police Department chief, are to sign
cooperation agreement soon.

RIA Novosti News Agency reports referring to press office of
Rostov-na-Donu Russian city’s interior affairs department that the
members of the united board of Russian Interior Ministry will gather
on Thursday and Friday to exchange experience and outline mechanisms
of joint crackdown on transnational crime.

The delegations will visit the monument to soldiers who perished while
carrying out their professional duty to pay floral tribute to them.

The delegations will also tour "Safe City" in interior affairs
department of Rostov-na-Donu and Armenian People Museum.

IRAQI CHRISTIANS PRAY FOR THE SURGE
By Mark D. Tooley

FrontPage magazine.com, CA
e.asp?ID=29291
July 25 2007

It must have been a huge disappointment. An Iraqi bishop addressing
an anti-Israel ecumenical jamboree in Amman, Jordan declined to demand
an immediate U.S. evacuation from Iraq.

"Is it going to bring about peace or play into the hands of
terrorists?" asked Archbishop Avak Asadourian, the Primate of the
Armenian Apostolic Church (See of Etchmiadzin), who was responding to
a question about U.S. church groups that are demanding an expeditious
time-table for U.S. troops to quit Iraq.

Asadourian spoke at the "Churches Together for Peace and Justice in the
Middle East," organized by the Geneva-based World Council of Churches
(WCC). Speaking to 130 church officials from the WCC’s affiliates
around the world, the Armenian Archbishop of Baghdad was representing
the Council of Christian Church Leaders in the Iraqi capital.

The focus of the WCC gathering was to organize church opposition to the
Israeli "occupation." But the U.S. "occupation" of Iraq is of equal
if not greater interest to left-wing prelates, many of whom prefer
political protests to Christian ministry. Asadourian was probably
attending the WCC event with hopes of gaining sympathy for Iraqi
Christians. Good luck! WCC officials have never expressed tremendous
interest in human rights in Iraq. Instead, they mainly see church
leaders there as little more than potential props for denouncing the
U.S., just as prelates in the West Bank are convenient mouthpieces
for condemning Israeli policies.

Asadourian called the calls for a U.S. military withdrawal time-table a
"two-edged sword." He expressed hope that the U.S. military presence
would "eventually" end but showed even more interest in U.S.-led
security forces reducing the violence in Iraq. "The occupying powers
have to enforce the Geneva conventions and guarantee the security of
the country," the archbishop said. "If they were able to bring about
security, a lot of problems would be solved."

"Security is needed to make democracy viable," Asadourian said.

"Democracy is not only a concept, but also a way of life. Today in
Iraq, we need basic freedoms, like freedom from fear, freedom to
work, to travel in order to satisfy basic needs. One of the tragic
features of the current situation is the fact that they have stolen
the nights of Baghdad from us." The archbishop complained that the
U.S.-led invasion had been "bungled" but he declined to denounce it
sweepingly as an exercise in imperialism, as many WCC-related clerics
in the West have done.

When asked how churches outside Iraq could help Iraqi Christians,
Asadourian did not ask that they accelerate their antiwar protests.

Instead, he suggested that they "advocate effectively with their
governments, they should tell the occupying powers to fulfill their
promises of a better life for Iraq. Promises of a bright future
should now be substantiated. One key point in the story of the Good
Samaritan is that he not only extended help, but his help was complete
and effective."

Do not expect Asadourian’s audience of WCC Religious Left prelates
to take his pleas very seriously. For most of them, the only solution
for Iraq is a rapid route for the U.S. and British forces, come what
may. These clerics are interested in neither "security" nor democracy
for Iraqis. They primarily desire a strategic defeat for the U.S. and
its allies.

"I come from a wounded Iraq and a severely wounded Baghdad,"
Asadourian told the WCC meeting. "The situation in my country is
tragic. We were promised freedom, but what we need today is freedom
to have electricity, clean water, to satisfy the basic needs of life,
to live without fear of being abducted."

Who is preventing Asadourian’s flock and millions of other Iraqis from
having unhindered democracy, electricity, clean water, and protection
from kidnappers? Former Baathists, Islamic militias, and al-Qaeda
affiliated insurgents. But the WCC and the Religious Left prefers not
to criticize the actual agents of upheaval and destruction. Instead,
the religious leftists reserve all their fire for the occupying forces
that are attempting to create security and order out of chaos.

"Every day terrorist attacks are targeting people who could be the
cornerstone of a new Iraq: professionals, physicians, and engineers,"
Asadourian told a WCC interviewer. "And this is resulting in an
across-the-board brain drain, which is a shame since it takes decades
to train qualified people." Note that the archbishop persistently
referred to "terrorists" in Iraq, which the WCC and its allies never
do. How surprising that the WCC even published the interview with
Asadourian, and his harsh rhetoric against insurrectionists who simply
oppose the Western imperialists!

Asadourian referenced the recent murders of two Christian priests in
Iraq and noted that 27 members of his church have died, while another
23 have been kidnapped. The Christian population has dropped from
7-8 percent of Iraq to 3-4 percent. Some Christians are also moving
"north within the country," which is relatively safer, the archbishop
said. He recounted that his own church has declined from 600-700
worshipers to 100-150.

Some have left Baghdad, some fear going out, while others just lack
fuel for their cars.

"My message to my flock is: do not be afraid, but be careful.

Confront this dire situation with optimism, and pray and work for a
better future," Asadourian concluded. "My message to churches outside
Iraq, especially to those in the occupying countries, is: Help us to
make life better for the Iraqi people, to alleviate its suffering,
to keep their governments’ promises for a better future in all walks
of life, and ask for God’s help in this humanitarian endeavor."

For the WCC and the Religious Left, unable to set aside the archaic
prism of Liberation Theology, the war in Iraq is a simple morality play
involving Western colonizers versus oppressed Third World natives. But
actual Iraqis, especially vulnerable Christians, are fighting for
their lives and the life of their tender democracy.

BUNDESTAG DEPUTIES TO VISIT SOUTH CAUCASUS

armradio.am
25.07.2007 12:40

Deputies of the German Bundestag will visit the South
Caucasus. Referring to the German Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Day.az
reports that October 22-24 Deputies of the Friendship Group with
Caucasian countries will visit Baku.

According to the diplomat, the guests will have a number of meetings
in the Parliament. They will leave Baku for Georgia and Armenia.

CAPTIVE AZERBAIJANI SERVICEMAN IN ARMENIA DO NOT WANT TO CORRESPOND WITH PARENTS

arminfo
2007-07-25 12:52:00

The parents of the captive Azerbaijani serviceman Samir Mamedov in
Armenia met representatives of the International Committee of Red Cross
(ICRC), the Baku ICRC told the correspondent of the "Caucasian Knot".

During the meeting, the parents of the serviceman asked ICRC
representatives to assist in their son’s release, however, according
to ICRC, S. Mamedov do not want to return to the Motherland and
correspond with the parents. To note, the last letter of S. Mamedov
was written on March 9. The letter, written by the parents on May 19,
was returned. To recall, according to the information of the Armenian
Mass Media, S. Mamedov addressed RA authorities for giving him a
status of refugee. He was taken prisoner on December 24, 2006.

TURKISH PRIME MINISTER PROHIBITS TO USE EXPRESSION "THE SO-CALLED ARMENIAN GENOCIDE"

Noyan Tapan
Jul 24, 2007

ANKARA, JULY 24, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has prohibited to use the expression
"the so-called Armenian Genocide" in the country.

According to Ulusal Kanal, the Turkish government, on July 3, sent
a circular letter to all Turkish ministries, structures attached
to them, governors’ offices, municipalities, the Higher Education
Council, judicial bodies, and the General Headquarters of Armed
Forces, according to which, it is prohibited to use the expression
"the so-called Armenian Genocide" in the country. Instead of this
expression, it is required to use the expressions "the events of 1915"
or "the Armenian allegations connected with the events of 1915."

S. Sargsyan: Elections in Karabakh reaffirm irreversibility of NKR’s development

PanARMENIAN.Net
21.07.2007 15:07 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan sent a
congratulatory message to Bako Sahakyan on his election as the
President of NKR, the RA Government Press Office reports. The
RA Premier’s message, in particular, reads as follows, "Dear Mr.
Sahakyan, I congratulate you on your election as the President of
the Nagorno Karabakh Republic. I am sure you will continue to make
efforts aimed at strengthening and developing the statehood of the
Nagorno Karabakh Republic, prosperity of its nation with the help of
unreserved support of the people of Artsakh. The recent presidential
elections, which were held in compliance with democratic norms,
reaffirm irreversibility of NKR’s development. I wish you success
in your high responsible post for the welfare of people and State
of Artsakh".

IMPORTANT PROJECTS ON IRAN-ARMENIA AGENDA – FOREIGN MINISTER

IRNA website, Tehran
20 Jul 07

Yerevan, 20 July: Iran’s Foreign Minister Manuchehr Mottaki said
Friday [20 July] that important projects are on the agenda of Iran
and Armenia.

Addressing the inauguration ceremony of the 7th session of the
Iran-Armenia Joint Economic Cooperation Commission, Mottaki said,
"The two countries’ relations have improved significantly over
recent years."

Mottaki added that many documents have been signed in the economic,
energy, investment and transportation sectors and finalization of
other important documents is on agenda.

Referring to the free trade agreement between the two countries,
he expressed hope that signing it would cause a huge jump in mutual
economic transactions.

Iran’s foreign minister notified that Iran-Armenia gas pipeline, two
electricity transmission lines and wind power station, undertaken by
Iran in Armenia, are examples of good progress in implementation of
mutual agreements.

He added that agreement on Aras hydroelectric power station, study
of Iran-Armenia railway connection, establishment of a refinery in
Armenia by Iran, Russia and Armenia and of Iranian trade centre in
Armenia with participation of private sector are also on agenda.

Armenian energy minister and head of Armenian delegation in the
Joint Economic Cooperation Commission pointed to inauguration of
Iran-Armenia gas pipeline by Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinezhad
and termed it a historical event which opens a new page in history
of bilateral relations.

Meeting of the experts of the joint commission began in Yerevan on 17
July, and their officials are due to sign Memorandum of Understanding
(MOU) on Friday.

Mottaki and the accompanying delegation arrived in Yerevan Friday
morning to attend the Joint Commission session.

Volume of mutual transactions stands at 200 million dollars, about
160 million dollars of which coming from Iran’s exports to Armenia
and the remaining 40 million dollars from the Republic’s exports to
the Islamic state.