Author: Nalchajian Markos

RA DM CONFIRMS HIS POSITION ABOUT NECESSITY TO REGULATE ARMENIAN-TURKISH
RELATIONS WITHOUT PRECONDITIONS

Yerevan, January 19. ArmInfo. RA DM, Serzh Sargssyan, has confirmed
his position about the necessity to regulate the Armenian-Turkish
relations without preconditions, he said at today’s press-conference
in the Transcaucasian Office of IA REGNUM.

Asked what is influence of the absence of Armenia-Turkey relations and
what may be the influence of the border opening, S. Sargssyan said: "I
will not give arguments for or against. My viewpoint is known long
since and I confirm it. I do not think it will shortly change. In my
opinion, we have to set the relations with Turkey without
preconditions".

OSCE MINSK GROUP CO-CHAIRS TO VISIT AZERBAIJAN LATE JANUARY

Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
Jan 17 2007

OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs will visit Azerbaijan late January,
Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said in the meeting with new
appointed ambassador of Turkey Husein Avni, APA reports.

During his meeting with the ambassador, the minister touched on the
regulation of Nagorno Karabakh conflict and noted that he will meet
again with Armenian counterparts.

AzerTag, Azerbaijan
Jan 12 2007

GEORGIA REFUSES TO BUY ELECTRICITY FROM ARMENIA
[January 12, 2007, 11:53:39]

Azerbaijan’s major electricity company Azerenerji said Georgia
refused to purchase electricity from Armenia, saying it prefers
cooperating with Azerbaijan instead.

Under the last year’s agreement, Azerbaijan has recently started
electricity supplies to Georgia.

The amount of electricity Georgia daily receives from Azerbaijan is
about 1.8m kilowatt-hours.

Georgia said it will return the received amount of electricity in
summer, when its hydroelectric power stations will start operating at
full capacity.

PYUNIK’S DUTY GUIDES PETROSYAN
by Khachik Chakhoyan

UEFA, Switzerland
Jan 9 2007

FC Pyunik coach Samvel Petrosyan told uefa.com that he is committed
to using local players as his club seek a seventh successive Armenian
title in 2007.

Homegrown talent Having taken charge of Pyunik in March 2006, Armenia
Under-21 coach Petrosyan enjoyed a splendid year, winning the league
title by 16 points and helping a new generation of locally-born
players to find their feet in domestic competition, having resisted
the temptation to bring in foreign players. "We could not win every
competition, but we won our sixth title and that was our main target,"
the 52-year-old told uefa.com.

‘Main target’ "Pyunik beat all our closest rivals in head-to-head
matches and in the process we managed to give a run-out to many
youngsters who will be playing more important roles next season." With
Petrosyan’s young national squad winning three of their four UEFA
European U21 Championship qualifying games in 2006, just missing
out on a place in the play-offs, the coach feels that his policy of
supporting young players at Pyunik is being vindicated, and he has
no intention of changing tack.

Pyunik duty "Among other things, I think the club has a duty to
provide better players for the national teams," he said. "If we rely
on foreign players then how can we expect our youngsters to gain skill
and experience? Today’s young players are the spine of tomorrow’s
Armenian national team." The only concern for Petrosyan is that,
in the event that Pyunik’s more experienced players – the likes of
Sargis Hovsepyan, Rafael Nazaryan and Arsen Avetisyan – are lured
abroad, he would be left to defend the title with a very young side.

"We will have problems if that happens, but we have talented players,
who will become decent replacements in time," he said.

Foreign rivals League rivals FC Banants, FC MIKA and FC Ararat Yerevan
have threatened to bring in foreign talent to crush Pyunik’s youngsters
in 2007, but Petrosyan is unconcerned. "Last season, most clubs had
plenty of foreigners, but we won the league comfortably without them,"
he said. "If we don’t win the cup or the title we will not make a
tragedy out of it. Our main task is to prepare youngsters for the
future. We are building a new team, and if two or three top class
players emerge, that is a result in itself."

ARMENIAN AND UKRAINIAN PR-COMPANIES SIGNED AN AGREEMENT ON COOPERATION

Mediamax News Agency, Armenia
Jan 8 2007

Yerevan, January 08 /Mediamax/. Armenian "Mediabrand Impex" and
Ukrainian "Publicity Creating" PR-Companies signed an agreement
on cooperation.

Mediamax reports that "Mediabrand Impex" and "Publicity Creating",
in particular, have agreed upon the strategic cooperation in the
sphere of PR and marketing communications.

The sides have also decided to join their efforts in the sphere of
public relations, aiming at forming and developing the civilized PR
market in their own countries and on the territory of CIS as a whole.

"Mediabrand Impex" and "Publicity Creating" also agreed on realization
of projects, directed to the improvement of competition privileges
of their customers beyond the bounds of Armenia and Ukraine.

Sportinglife.com, UK
Dec 31 2006

Ajax look to tie down young trio

Ajax are in negotiations to extend the contracts of youthful trio
Ryan Babel, Jan Vertonghen and Edgar Manucharyan.

Dutch international winger Babel, 20, is currently tied to the club
until June 2008 but the Amsterdam giants have offered him a
three-year extension.

Versatile Belgian Vertonghen and Armenian striker Manucharyan have
both been on the fringe of the first team, but coach Henk ten Cate
sees them as important players for the future.

RUSSIA AGREES WITH SERBIA’S ARMS SALE TO ARMENIA, SERB PRESIDENT SAYS

International Herald Tribune, France
The Associated Press
Dec 29 2006

BELGRADE, Serbia: Serbia has secured Russia’s consent to proceed
with a planned arms deal with Armenia, defusing earlier objections
from Moscow that caused upheaval at a Serbian weapons manufacturer,
the president said Friday.

President Boris Tadic said "the issue has been successfully resolved"
in his meeting with Russia’s ambassador to Belgrade, Aleksander
Alexeyev, who has given "a positive response" to Serbia’s appeal that
the Zastava arms company is allowed to sell guns and rifles worth
US$2.55 million ([email protected] million) to Armenia.

Earlier this month Zastava criticised the Serbian government for
withholding permission for its previously arranged sale to Armenia,
allegedly because Russia – Serbia’s traditional ally – objected to the
Serbian supplier venturing into a market usually supplied by Moscow.

Zastava, based in the industrial city of Kragujevac, 90 kilometers
(55 miles) southeast of Belgrade, is majority state-owned but its
management enjoys some autonomy in negotiating arms deals. Actual
exports, however, can be completed only with a government clearance.

Zastava’s unionized workforce of 2,600 has been on strike, demanding
financial compensation from the government because of the blocked
sale to Armenia. Defense officials have flatly rejected the demand.

The dispute deepened this week when 80 Zastava workers seized control
of Kragujevac city hall, saying they would keep up their protest
until the authorities either approve the export or cover any loss
caused by the ban.

There was no immediate comment to Tadic’s announcement from Zastava
managers or protesting workers.

The issue has become an embarrassment for Prime Minister Vojislav
Kostunica ahead of Jan. 21 parliamentary elections. Tadic is his
political rival, heading the opposition Democratic Party that currently
leads in opinion polls.

2007 SHOULD BE YEAR OF VICTORIES, NEW YEAR’S MESSAGE OF "DEMOCRATIC
ARMENIA" UNION SAYS

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 29, NOYAN TAPAN. "The authorities have never been as
weak as today, because trust in them has been completely lost both in
the country and outside it. Their time is running out." This is said
in the New Year’s message of the "Democratic Armenia" Union. Wishing
the Armenain people Happy New Year and Merry Christmas, the union
wishes that all defeats, indifference and dispair of the previous
years would be left behind. "2007 should be a year of victories,
Armenia’s progress and a year of overcoming all obstacles to our
development. "Let’s prepare for a decisive struggle in the name of
free, fair, legal and democratic Armenia," the message reads.

PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA MR. TIGRAN TOROSYAN CONGRATULATES ON THE OCCASION OF THE NEW YEAR

National Assembly of RA, Armenia
Dec 28 2006

The President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia
Mr. Tigran Torosyan congratulated on the occasion of the New Year,
where he says:

"Dear compatriots,

2006 also became a page of the history, which was important not only
as an anniversary year, though the 15th anniversary of our state is a
special event for our people who had lost its statehood for centuries.

2006 was significant from the aspect of deepening democracy and
protection of human rights. Due to the constitutional amendments,
each citizen of our country as well as the parliamentary opposition
received an effective mechanism for the protection of their rights
in the Constitutional Court.

This year was also important from the aspect of the settlement of
the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. After enshrining in the resolution of
the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe the right of
self-determination of the nations found its place in the range of
the key principles of the settlement published by the co-chairmen,
as well as in the approaches of all European structures.

The economic growth of the previous several years has strengthened
the economy and created all preconditions that the growth of 2007
state incomes, first of all, will be directed to the support of
the education, science and culture, ensure fair and proportional
distribution of the incomes in the increase of the considerable growth
of our citizens’ welfare.

I congratulate all of you wishing peace, happiness and love to each
other and our Motherland."

MATTHEW BRYZA: THE WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY IS NOT CLOSED SO FAR

ArmRadio.am
26.12.2006 10:46

Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, US Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk
Group Matthew Bryza told in an exclusive interview with Mediamax
agency that the " window of opportunity" for settlement of the Karabakh
conflict is not closed.

Summing up the results of the talks in 2006 Matthew Bryza said,
"During 2006 Presidents Kocharyan and Aliyev had three meetings in
Ramboulliet, Bucharest and Minsk. Many hope that after two phases of
negotiations the Presidents will come to an agreement on the principles
of settlement. Unfortunately, the Presidents are not ready for such
an agreement.

You know pretty well what was the reaction of the Co-Chairs: July 3
we issued a joint statement, in which we disclosed the essence of the
basic principles. The publication of the essence of basic principles
was an important step, since we wanted to encourage the Presidents
of Armenia and Azerbaijan to involve their societies in the complex
but necessary public discussion related to the conflict settlement.

After the break in the negotiation process in summer, during the
past few months the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan
were actively engaged in the talks on basic principles. In Minsk
the Presidents "lit a green light" before their Foreign Ministers
to continue the negotiations in 2007. This is important, since it
means that "the window of opportunity," which we were talking about
in 2006, is not closed. The Co-Chairs will continue working with both
sides despite the fact that Armenia is starting to prepare for 2007
parliamentary elections.

The parties demonstrate a creative approach to agree upon a package of
basic principles, which will be mutually acceptable. I’m not entitled
to speak in detail in which phase the negotiations are today. We
disclosed the essence of the fundamental principles in July and these
remain on the table as a basis for discussions between the sides."