Author: Nahapetian Zhanna

WALZ: BUSH PREOCCUPIED WITH NATIONAL SECURITY
By Eric Black, Star Tribune

Minneapolis Star Tribune , MN
April 13 2007

The Minnesota Democrat told a university audience that U.S. foreign
policy has more than one priority.

Since 9/11, Bush administration foreign policy has been myopically
focused on national security, U.S. Rep. Tim Walz told a Minneapolis
audience Thursday.

National security is a priority, Walz said at the University of
Minnesota’s Humphrey Institute, but not the only one. And the
single-minded focus has undermined the United States’ standing in
the world and other important interests, he said.

Walz listed several examples:

~U The United States has neglected Latin America because Latin America
can’t do much to help America fight terrorism.

~U The United States hasn’t involved itself enough in the humanitarian
disaster in Darfur because that disaster doesn’t pose a security
threat to this country.

~U A bill that Walz is cosponsoring to recognize the World War I-era
Turkish genocide against Armenians is running into administration
resistance for fear that it will anger Turkey, an important Mideast
ally.

In a talk titled "Tomorrow’s Foreign Policy," Walz said the worst
thing about politics is the tendency to reduce everything to false
dichotomies, as if every question must be answered in black or white
terms. Walz, a Democrat, said that was typified by Republican efforts
to portray all alternatives to President Bush’s Iraq policy as "cut
and run."

After Walz made an appearance on MSNBC’s "Hardball," he said, an
experienced Democratic operative told him that his only mistake was
the use of the word "nuance." The operative told him the word "just
confuses the American people."

But, Walz said, speaking as part of a Humphrey Institute series
designed to give elected officials a chance to go deep on an issue,
"the problems we face require us to look beyond the simple dichotomies
and sound bites."

The roots of the oversimplification of foreign policy were in the
attacks of 9/11 and the U.S. attitude that "everything changed,"
according to Walz.

Not everything changed, Walz said. Ethnic hatreds broiling within
many nations hadn’t changed, nor had the division of the world into
richer and poorer.

When the United States decided that because it had been attacked,
the whole world had changed, other nations felt Washington was
disconnecting itself from them, Walz said.

The U.S. standing in the world is at an all-time low, Walz said, "and
that matters."It may make a good country song to say, ‘The heck with
you, we’re tough enough and we don’t care what you think," Walz said,
"but it doesn’t make a good foreign policy."

THREE BIG PRODUCERS FINED FOR RAISING EGG PRICES THROUGH ANTICOMPETITIVE AGREEMENT

Noyan Tapan
Apr 11 2007

YEREVAN, APRIL 11, NOYAN TAPAN. At the April 11 sitting, the RA State
Commission on Protection of Economic Competition made a decision about
fining the three biggest economic entities in the egg sale market –
the poultry factories of Lusakert, Arzni and Yerevan in the amount
of 1% of their 2006 revenues.

The fine was imposed for raising egg prices through an anticompetitive
agreement.

A study conducted by the commission has revealed that in April-December
2006, the price of egg produced by Lusakert Poultry Factory rose
from 31.1 to 51.1 drams (about 0.14 dollars), while the price of
food for hens remained unchanged in this period, making up 66%
of cost price. In the indicated period, the profitability of the
company increased from 11.4% to 57.7%. According to the commission,
the same policy of price changes was used by the poultry factories
of Arzni and Yerevan, particularly in December 2006 when production
of eggs exceeded their sale. The last circumstance was considered as
a case of sale restriction.

It is noteworthy that the representative of Lusakert Poultry Fcatory
(unlike representatives of the two other companies) was not present
at the commission’s sitting.

EMBASSY OF ARMENIA IS READY TO ACTIVELY ASSIST JACQUES CHIRAC’S INITIATIVE TO OPEN "HOUSE OF ARMENIA" IN PARIS

Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
Apr 12 2007

PARIS, APRIL 12, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The Embassy of
Armenia to France can in any way assist President Jacques Chirac’s
initiative to open "House of Armenia" in Paris. Eduard Nalbandian,
the RA Embassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the RA to
France said in the interview to the Noyan Tapan correspondent,
adding that they continue actively working in that direction and
establishing contacts. "It’s a pity, it failed during Jacques Chirac’s
officiating. But I hope that this program will be implemented during
the coming years," the Ambassador mentioned. In his words, it is not a
small program, and "if we initiate anything, we must do it well." The
Ambassador mentioned that the "House of Armenia" must become a house
of the Armenian culture where all French Armenians and not only
they can gather. "After the Year of Armenia, the Armenian history,
culture, traditions must be presented in France with the help of the
"House of Armenia:" of course, it is a great deed and demands great
preparatory work," E. Nalbandian said.

The Ambassador expressed satisfaction with the program of the Year
of Armenia in France. "Not only I am pleased, everybody is pleased
as 850 events in 160 cities of France are really a brilliant success
what was covered by the French press: more than 3000 articles were
published during 6 months. We all must be pleased as the most famous
museums and halls opened their doors in front of us: "Louvre,"
"Conciergerie," "Chatelet"… the greatest institutions in all the
cities," E. Nalbandian mentioned, attaching great importance to the
French Armenians’ role in works of implementation of those initiatives,
as, in his words, besides the Year of Armenia, they every year hold
in France hundreds of events.

The Ambassador stated that the ceremony of closing the Year of Armenia
will take place with a great concert to be organized in Yerevan in
September. The concert will be dedicated to two great composers:
Aram Khachaturian and Maurice Ravel.

In the Ambassador’s words, the greatest event organized within the
framework of the Year of Armenia in France was Charles Aznavour’s
concert held in Hanrapetutian (Republic) square of Yerevan on September
30. 100 thousand people were present at it. The concert video-recording
will be broadcast in France on May 6, by the Canal 2 TV channel.

US GOVERNMENT FUNDS H2 ECONOMY’S PROLIFERATION PREVENTION PROJECT

ArmRadio.am
12.04.2007 17:11

On April 12, 2007, H2 ECOnomy unveiled a renewable energy system that
it developed as part of the U.S. government’s Global Initiatives for
Proliferation Prevention (GIPP) project. The U.S. Department of Energy
has provided about 1.5 million USD for this project, of which 620
thousand USD has been allocated to H2 ECOnomy. SolarEn International,
a U.S. company specializing in renewable energy, provided a matching
in-kind and cash contribution.

The GIPP program helps re-direct scientists and engineers who formerly
engaged in industries related to the production of weapons of mass
destruction to sustainable, non-military employment. The aim of the
program is to create employment opportunities for these scientists
and engineers by establishing a partnership among the scientists,
U.S. industrial firms, and U.S. national laboratories. This provides
them with a way to put their skills to use in the civilian sector,
and also helps lead to advances in such sectors as homeland security,
medicine, and energy. The program thus achieves nonproliferation
goals while leading to innovations that benefit all countries.

As part of this program, H2 ECOnomy began participating in a GIPP
project on fuel cell components in 2004. Based on these components,
in 2006-2007 H2 ECOnomy prototyped and installed a new fuel cell
system coupled with solar panels that can provide an uninterrupted
power supply of up to 1000 W during power outages. This system has
the potential to help develop Armenia’s renewable energy sector.

COMMISSION FINES POULTRY FARMS FOR ABUSE OF DOMINATING POSITIONS

ARMENPRESS
Apr 12 2007

YEREVAN, APRIL 12, ARMENPRESS: Armenian state commission for protection
of economic competition ruled yesterday to penalize three major poultry
farms in Lusakert, Arzni and Yerevan for abuse of their dominating
position in the local market.

The amount of the fine is 1 percent of their last year turnover.

The commission ruling was based on findings of a monitoring of eggs
and chicken meat sales from April to late December last year, which
revealed that the cost of their products rose 65 percent while the
cost of fodder they used remained unchanged.

The Commission also found that these three farms produced more eggs
and meat within that period than they sold. It said they could keep
prices low by throwing more products to the market.

It also said all three companies sold their products at the same
price, an implication that they could have struck a shadow agreement
to raise prices simultaneously.

ARMENIA JOINS INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION ON PROTECTION AND PROMOTION OF RIGHTS AND DIGNITY OF DISABLED PERSONS

Noyan Tapan
Apr 10 2007

YEREVAN, APRIL 10, NOYAN TAPAN. Armenia has joined the International
Convention on Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity
of Disabled Persons, which aims to encourage the protection of the
rights of the disabled and to promote their integration into society
and participation in social life. The Armenian ambassador to the UN
Armen Martirosian signed the convention on behalf of Armenia. So far
81 states, including such post-Soviet countries as Armenia, Lithuania
and Moldova have signed this convention.

NT correspondent was informed at the PR Department of the RA Ministry
of Labor and Social Issues that before this convention, the rights of
about 650 million disabled persons in the world were not stipulated
in any international legal document. The convention has 50 articles,
aimed in particular at protection and promotion of the rights of
disabled persons, elimination of biased attitude towards them,
ensuring their rights to work, receive health care, education and
take part in social life.

ROBERT KOCHARIAN ATTACHES IMPORTANCE TO EXTENSION OF FRIENDLY
ARMENIAN-CHINESE RELATIONS

YEREVAN, APRIL 7, NOYAN TAPAN. The Armenian president Robert Kocharian
and the Chinese president Hu Jintao sent congratulatory messages to
each other on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of establishment of
diplomatic relations between the Republic of Armenia and the People’s
Republic of China. Noting in his message that China was one of the
first countries to recognize independence of Armenia, R. Kocharian
attached importance to extension od depening of friendly relations
with China. He expressed confidence that further development of
comprehensive cooperation between Armenia and China will promote
well-being and prosperity of the peoples of the two countries. The
message of the Chinese president Hu Jintao says that over the past 15
year the bilateral relations of Armenia and China have undergone
steady development, with mutual trust constantly strengthening. He
noted that establishment and development of relations based on
friendship and cooperation of two countries proceeds from vital
interests of the Armenian and Chinese peoples.

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
April 7 2007

Pipeline talks with France on track, says Turkey

There was no official suspension decision made by Turkey regarding
talks with Gaz de France on the French firm’s possible participation
in a major gas pipeline, diplomatic sources at the Foreign Ministry
said Friday.

The remarks came in response to a media report on Thursday saying the
state-owned Turkish Petroleum Pipeline Corporation (BOTAª) had
suspended talks with Gaz de France in reaction action to a French
bill on the mass killings of Armenians during Ottoman rule.

`There is no suspension decision yet. Besides, this is a commercial
issue, but it is not a political one and companies involved in the
process will make the final decision on the basis of financial
evaluations,’ the same diplomatic sources, speaking on condition of
anonymity, told Today’s Zaman.

The four other countries involved in the project, Bulgaria, Romania
and Hungary, have already approved their partnership with Gaz de
France in the project, which will transmit Caspian and Iranian gas to
Western Europe, bypassing Russia. The other partners reportedly
approved Gaz de France’s participation, but BOTAª opposed it because
of the French draft law on the killings of Anatolian Armenians.

The French National Assembly infuriated Turkey last October by
backing a bill making it a crime to deny that Armenians were victims
of `genocide’ at the hands of the Ottoman Empire, though it is
unlikely to become a law due to opposition from the Senate and
President Jacques Chirac.

Ankara said the legislation would strike a heavy blow to
Turkish-French ties and also accused France, one of the EU’s founding
countries known for championing liberties, of staining freedom of
expression with the bill.

Slamming the proposed legislation, the Turkish Parliament then
released a joint declaration, signed by all the parties with
parliamentary representation, and said that the bill was motivated by
calculations of domestic political gain. They said the bill would
also harm prospects for the normalization of relations between Turkey
and Armenia. Turkey also illustrated how seriously it takes the issue
when it said it would suspend military operations with France after
the vote.

07.04.2007

Emine Kart Ankara

THE PRESENTATION OF THE NEW HEAD OFFICE OF THE "HSBC BANK ARMENIA" TOOK PLACE

Mediamax Agency, Armenia
April 5 2007

Yerevan, April 5 /Mediamax/. In 2006, the "HSBC Bank Armenia"
demonstrated "record growth and financial performance".

Mediamax reports that the Chief Executive Director of the Bank Anthony
Turner said this during the presentation of the Head Office of the
"HSBC Bank Armenia", which occupies an area of 1500 square meters,
located in Yerevan, Terian str 66.

Last year the profit of the bank before the payment of taxes increased
for 27%, thus making 4bln AMD ($11.1mln), the assets of the bank
made 80,5bln AMD ($221.3mln). By the end of 2006, the volume of the
attracted deposits made 70.4bln AMD ($193.8mln).

The credit portfolio of the bank makes $100mln. Anthony Turner
stated that this year the "HSBC Bank Armenia" plans to make up for
the "lost segment" of crediting of small and medium enterprises,
to improve the quality of the products and to implement new services.

According to Anthony Turner, the stable economic growth in Armenia and
the improvement of the legislative field contributed to the fact that
"we started feeling more confident in the sphere of crediting and,
in particular, in the mortgage crediting".

This year, the "HSBC Bank Armenia" plans to open 3 new branches,
making their general number up to 6. It is planned to also double
the number of the cash machines – it is expected that by the end of
the year the "HSBC Bank Armenia" will have 44 cash machines.

DEPUTY URGES OPPOSITION TO CRITICIZE SERZH SARGSYAN

Panorama.am
17:49 06/04/2007

"The whole opposition has to send a "gift" to Prime Minister Serzh
Sargsyan, who has aspirations to become a president, and to focus
criticism against him," Viktor Dallakyan, deputy of parliament, told
a press conference today. Dallakyan believes Sargsyan will fail no
matter how high his aspirations are.

Dallakyan also believes the new defense minister will not have a
crucial influence on the parliamentary elections. The deputy said,
"He will be a formal figure that will perform the instructions of
the prime minister."