Author: Nargizian David

KARABAKH ARMENIANS ELECT NEW LEADER
By Karine Kalantarian in Stepanakert

Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
July 19 2007

Polls closed across Nagorno-Karabakh late Thursday in a presidential
election which is widely expected to formalize the handover of power
from the unrecognized republic’s outgoing President Arkady Ghukasian
to his preferred successor backed by some of his political opponents.

According to the local Central Election Commission (CEC), almost
two-thirds of Karabakh’s 90,000 eligible voters cast their ballots
as of 5 p.m. local time. The CEC is due to release the preliminary
vote results within 24 hours by Friday evening.

"Once again the people of Nagorno-Karabakh have confirmed their
support for democratic values," Bako Sahakian, the presumed election
frontrunner backed by Ghukasian and the main local political parties,
told reporters at a polling station in Stepanakert. "For us, elections
are a way of forming civil society."

However, Sahakian’s main challenger, Masis Mayilian, already alleged
vote irregularities after casting his ballot in another Stepanakert
precinct in the morning. His campaign headquarters lodged more than
a dozen written complaints detailing alleged irregularities to the
CEC by the time voting drew to close at 8 p.m.

Both Ghukasian and Sahakian were quick to reject the allegations as
"black PR," saying that the elections are free and fair. "I regret
that black PR, dirty political techniques have been brought to Karabakh
from Armenia," said Ghukasian. "I am convinced that the vast majority
of those complaints do not correspond to reality."

But as Sergey Nasibian, the CEC chairman, said later in the day,
some of the alleged irregularities, including an attempt at multiple
voting in one polling station, were found to have taken place.

Nasibian said the CEC will closely look into the other claims made
by the Mayilian camp.

The vote was monitored by about one hundred monitors from Armenia,
Russia, the United States and Europe, including a member of the
European Parliament. The Italian parliamentarian, Giulietto Chiesa,
told RFE/RL that he did not witness violations in any of the polling
stations he visited.

Ghukasian and the presidential candidates were unanimous in dismissing
international criticism of the election. "The elections are held not
for the international community but the people of Nagorno-Karabakh,"
he said.

BIODIVERSITY CONTEST OPEN TO ARMENIAN JOURNALISTS

International Journalist’s Network
July 18 2007

Country :Armenia
Topic :Environmental, Radio, Television, Fellowships and Awards,
Internet, Print Journalism

Broadcast, print and online journalists in Armenia can enter an
environmental journalism contest on the topic of "Biodiversity Hotspots
in Armenia." Application deadline: August 25.

The categories for the awards given by the Armenian branch of the
World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) include best TV reporting, best
radio spot and best article (newspaper and online).

For more information, contact Arthur Khoyetsyan, communications
officer of WWF-Armenia, at [email protected],
telephone +374 10 26 04 24 or +374 91 27 28 27, or visit
ot_news.html#.

?P=Article&ID=306509&LID=1

NIKOL PHASHINIAN: "RPA HAS CHANCES TO WIN NOT IN ELECTIONS BUT IN "’BOUNDLESSNESS’"

Noyan Tapan
Jul 17 2007

YEREVAN, JULY 17, NOYAN TAPAN. By the allegation of Nikol Phashinian,
a member of the "Alternative" non-governmental political organization,
no Armenian pro-governmental figure mentions during political debates
the fact that Armenia has become the outpost of Russia, that it has
been deprived of the opportunity to come up with any initiative in the
territory and can oppose nothing to the programs of its neighbours. As
he declared during the debate with republican Armen Ashotian on July
17, Armenia is also losing in diplomatic work, which is conducted
with regard to the Karabakh conflict, as it is considered to be an
"occupant" in the latest international documents and is charged with
"implementing ethnic cleansing", whereas, Azerbaijan is making its
positions more and more powerful.

Armen Ashotian declared in his turn that even if Armenia is an outpost,
then an outpost is envisaged both for defence and attack. In addition
to this, according to the representative of the RPA faction, Armenia
cannot live under isolated circumstances, since small countries are
condemned to take into consideration the policy of great powers.

In response to a journalist’s question of what chances the RPA
faction has in the 2008 presidential elections, A. Ashotian said:
"I ask the mass media to make a record of the following: there is no
alternative for the victory of Serge Sargsian." Nikol Phashinian as
well touched upon this question, saying that the RPA faction has no
chance to win in the elections, but it can, no doubt, gain a victory
in "boundlessness." The member of the "Alternative" non-governmental
political organization also blamed A. Ashotian for serving for the
current regime and called him a "slave."

DERRY CITY V FC PYUNIK (WED)

Story from BBC SPORT:
football/irish/6903595.stm
Published: 2007/07/17 18:59:23 GMT

Derry City manager John Robertson has called on his players to repeat
their European exploits of last season when they take on FC Pyunik
of Armenia.

Robertson is aiming for a first leg lead and a clean sheet from
Wednesday’s Champions League clash.

"Derry enjoyed huge success last year with wins over Gothenburg
and Gretna.

Our opponents will have taken note of that," said Robertson.

"If we can progress we play Shaktar Donesk which is a big incentive."

Robertson expects Derry to be close to full strength with Killian
Brennan, Pat McCourt and Ken Oman recovered from injuries.

Pyunik, champions of Armenia for the last six seasons, have eight
international players in their panel.

Striker Hamlet Mkhitaryan scored the goal when Armenia beat Poland
in a Euro 208 qualifier in June.

Egyptian, Ethiopian churches resume relations

MENA news agency
14 Jul 07

Cairo, 14 July: The Christian Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt and the
Ethiopian Orthodox Church have reconciled and resumed relations.

A joint declaration was signed Saturday [14 July] by Pope Shenouda
[Shinudah] III of Alexandria and head of Saint Mark Diocese and
Patriarch Paulos of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

The reconciliation was declared under the auspices of Lebanon’s
Armenian Orthodox Patriarch, Aram I, who mediated between the two
churches.

Relations between the two churches have been frozen since 1994. They
have been affected by some incidents, including their dispute over
Jerusalem’s Al-Sultan Monastery.

RUSSIA LAUNCHES MASSIVE PROGRAM TO DEVELOP BLACK SEA PORTS

By _Vladimir Socor_ ( +Socor)
Friday, July 13, 2007

On July 11 Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov and
Transport Minister Igor Levitin unveiled a comprehensive modernization
program for Russian Black Sea ports during an inspection visit
there. The program is ambitious in both scale and pace, with most of
its goals scheduled to be attained by 2010. It is a counterpart to the
program for accelerated expansion of Russia’ s Baltic ports, which the
Russian government also launched this year, with President Vladimir
Putin taking a personal interest in both programs.

The government drew up its Black Sea program before the decision of
the International Olympic Committee to hold the 2014 Winter Olympic
Games in Sochi, on Russia’s Black Sea coast. That decision, announced
on July 4, will necessitate massive investments to develop
infrastructure in the Sochi area, above and beyond the scope of the
overall program for Black Sea ports and mostly beyond this program’s
time frame. Ivanov and Levitin discussed boththe overall maritime
transport program and ideas about Sochi development during their
visit.

According to these officials, Russian Black Sea ports currently handle
more than one third of Russia’s sea-borne exports in terms of tonnage.
Total export cargos were reported at 160 million tons in 2006 and are
`conservatively’ expected to grow to 250 million tons annually by
2010. The port development program ambitiously envisages doubling the
existing export capacities, which are currently strained to the limit
and distributed very unevenly along the Russian coast.

At present, Novorossiysk alone handles more than one half of that
overall export tonnage. The over-congested port’s various terminals
loadeda reported 88 million tons of export cargos in 2006.

That figure includes an estimated 60 million tons of oil, one half of
this originating in Kazakhstan. Oil loading will increase if the
Caspian Pipeline Consortium’s line boosts the volume of oil pumped
from Kazakhstan to Novorossiysk. Expecting this to be the case, the
Russian government is ordering three tanker ships to carry that
additional volume of oil from Novorossiysk to Bulgaria’s Black Sea
port of Burgas, for feeding into the planned trans-Balkan pipeline to
Alexandropolis on the Greek Aegean coast.

The Russian government’s program envisages relieving some of the
congestion at Novorossiysk through specialization. It would transfer
some shipping flows from there to other Russian Black Sea ports while
dedicating Novorossiysk to oil, grain, and container cargos. In
addition, a modern grain export terminal is due for completion this
year.

Ivanov and Levitin explicitly called for competing with Romania’s port
of Constanta in terms of attracting international container shipping
to Novorossiysk. The Russian government envisages building the
appropriate terminals as a priority until 2010, in place of existing
old terminals.

The commercial port of Novorossiysk can no longer expand physically in
the narrow bay, a section of which is taken up by the naval port.
Russia=80=99s Black Sea Fleet is expanding its installations there to
a full-fledged base as an alternative to Ukraine’s Sevastopol, where
the Russian fleet=80=99s lease is due to expire in 2017.

Other port development plans include using Taman as the main coal
export terminal (instead of Tuapse) while expanding the use of Tuapse
as an export outlet for oil and, potentially, liquefied gas. The port
of Kavkaz (also in Krasnodar Krai) is slated to specialize for
handling commodity ferryboats.A catamaran line for passenger boats is
scheduled to run between the ports of
Anapa-Novorossiysk-Gelenjik-Tuapse-Sochi.

The program also envisages developing overland and air links to the
ports.A second railroad line to Novorossiysk and convergent highways
to that port are to be built until 2010. Also by that date, the old
airports of Anapa and Gelenjik are to become modern international
airports, alongside the existing Adler airport. The three are to be
merged into a single, state-controlled company. Ivanov and Levitin
underscored Krasnodar Krai’s potentialas a destination for
international and Russian tourism (`We don=80=99t have anything
comparable in Russia’).

In Sochi, the transport modernization program runs through 2015, but
will almost certainly have to be adjusted to meet the 2014 Olympic
deadline. The port will be reserved exclusively for passenger
traffic. All other cargo flows are to be transferred from Sochi to
other ports. This measure takes immediate effect, so as to enable the
port of Sochi to receive construction materials for the planned
Olympic installations and start construction of large-scale passenger
terminals. These are planned to accommodate passenger and cruise ships
with capacities of up to 3,000 passengers each, for a total of 600,000
passengers per year by 2010 and 715,000 by 2015. Access highways to
Sochi and a ring highway around the city are included in the program,
as well as expansion of the Adler airport, which is servicing Sochi.

The Russian government is creating an inter-departmental structure to
supervise this Black Sea program. While the government’s existing
Maritime Affairs Board only meets three or four times per year with a
very broad agenda, the new structure will be a standing one to
coordinate port development. Ivanov has nominated Levitin to head the
new inter-departmental structure in his capacity as transport
minister. With President Putin evidencing a personal interest in the
port development program, Ivanov a front-running presidential
contender, Levitin also mentioned as aspiring to a top post in 2008,
and the scheduled Olympic games as an added stimulus, this Russian
Black Sea program will command political attention and funding in
Moscow.

(Interfax, Itar-Tass, July 11, 12)

"PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS TO BE HELD WITH ONE STAGE AND BAKO SAHAKIAN TO BE ELECTED," AHARON ADIBEKIAN DECLARES

Noyan Tapan
Jul 10, 2007

YEREVAN, JULY 10, NOYAN TAPAN. Aharon Adibekian, the Head of the
"Sociometer" sociological center, stated at the July 9 press conference
that according to the survey, conducted by his sociological center
ten days before the forthcoming elections, the presidential elections
of the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh will be held with one stage and
Bako Sahakian, the former Chief of the National Security Service,
will be elected President.

According to this survey, 82,5% of the participants of the survey
intend to take part in the forthcoming elections and 60% of them
are going to vote for Bako Sahakian. Masis Mayilian, the Deputy of
the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh,
who contends on 10% at best, takes second place. Aharon Adibekian is
convinced that the considerable difference between the indices of
the two main candidates, evidently, speaks about the fact that the
presidential elections in the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh will be
held with one stage.

According to Aharon Adibekian, the overwhelming majority of those
asked believes that the elections will be held in a free and fair way
and only 5.6% of the participants of the survey have doubts concerning
this question.

The sociologist mentioned that all the presidential elections held
in the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh up to now passed with rather
high standards.

700 people, who enjoy suffrage, took part in the survey conducted in 18
settlements of the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh on July 6. The survey
was conducted due to the assistance provided by the representatives of
the youth wing of the Artsakh Union of Azatamartiks (soldiers fighting
for freedom) and it should also be mentioned that Bako Sahakian is
a member of the administration of this Artsakh Union. In response
to the questions of journalists, Aharon Adibekian made assertions
that the survey was not ordered by anyone and that it is the "modest
contribution" of the Head of the "Sociometer" sociological center to
the electoral preceedings of Nagorno Karabakh.

It should also be mentioned that five candidates, who were all put
forward on the civic initiative, except Hrant Melkumian, the leader of
the Communists’ Party of the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh, will take
part in the forthcoming presidential elections in Nagorno Karabakh.

U.S. ACTING CHARGE D’AFFAIRS RUDOLF PERINA ARRIVES IN YEREVAN

PanARMENIAN.Net
10.07.2007 15:50 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ U.S. Acting Charge d’Affairs to Armenia, Mr Rudolf
Perina has arrived in Yerevan, U.S.

Embassy PR Officer Thomas Mittnacht told a PanARMENIAN.Net reporter. Mr
Perina replaced Anthony Godfrey, who took the office U.S. Charge
d’Affairs after Ambassador’s recall.

Mr Perina was the U.S. Co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group in
2001-2004. In 1993-1996 he served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of
State for Europe and Canada. In 1998-2001 he was U.S. Ambassador
to Moldavia.

THE COURT HAD NO JURISDICTION TO DENY THE PATRIARCHATE ITS ECUMENICAL STATUS, SAYS BARTHOLOMEW

AsiaNews, Italy
;ar t=9775&size=A
July 9 2007

A group of Turkish extremists try to prevent non-Turkish members of
the sacred Synod from entering the Phanar. The patriarch talks about
the difficult situation Christians face in the country. He remembers
the murder of Father Santoro, journalist Hrant and three Protestant
men in Malatya. He remembers his predecessor, Athenagoras, and the
latter’s meeting with Pope Paul VI.

Istanbul (AsiaNews) – More police officers were deployed in front of
the Phanar, the seat of the Ecumenical Patriarchate when a Turkish
nationalist lawyer, Kemal Kerincsiz, took advantage of a Turkish
Appeals Court’s ruling denying the Patriarchate its ecumenical status,
to try to enforce the decision by denying entry to five members of the
Synod who are not Turkish but come from the world’s five continents.

Patriarch Bartholomew spoke about the ruling, which expresses
ignorance, and the difficult situation Christians face in the
country. He presided over a mass in the Church of Saint Domenca,
which went off without any disturbance. The members of the Sacred
Synod were present, all 12, six from Turkey’s archdioceses and six
from the five continent, who are appointed for a one-year rotating
mandate. A group of scientists was also present.

Taking advantage of the latter’s presence; Bartholomew said "that
we live in an age in which the lack of knowledge or even ignorance
is treated as knowledge. Nowadays this is a widespread phenomenon
because man overestimates his intellectual capabilities and very
often wants to promote or impose values that have negative effects on
society. Thus we have some journalists, intellectuals and professional
writers who claim to be specialists on issues concerning the ecumenical
Patriarchate and say that according to them the Patriarchate is not
ecumenical. With their views they poison public opinion and their
ignorance is coupled with prejudice and wickedness.

The recent decision by the Istanbul Appeals Court to rule on issues
that do not fall under its jurisdiction are one example of that. A few
extremists have gathered outside the Patriarchate for this reason,
and not the first time, in order to prevent members of the Sacred
Synod to meet. Because some of the latter belong to non-Turkish
archdioceses they have no right to participate since according to
the extremists the Patriarchate is not ecumenical."

"Let us home and pray that in our country as well as in other countries
this mindset changes so that human rights and citizens’ property rights
are respected," Bartholomew said. "We entrust ourselves only to Divine
Providence and not to the temporal power of men. It is this Divine
Providence that has preserved our Ecumenical Patriarchate for eleven
centuries before the fall of Constantinople and six centuries after."

After thanking Turkish authorities for the steps they have taken, the
patriarch said that "sadly in the last two years Christian minorities
have been subjected to various forms of aggression, including death,
against both the clergy and the laity like the murder of Catholic
priest Fr Andrea Santoro in Trabzon, Turkish-Armenian journalist
Hrant Dink and three Protestant men in Malatya. And the Armenian
Patriarchate continues to receive threats. I repeat once again:
Our country must become reconciled with its history. People must
understand that minorities are not a separate body outside the history
of this country and this land. We have no political claims, nor are
we a threat to the state. Instead we are a reference of civilisation
and stability."

The Ecumenical Patriarch finally remembered the 35th anniversary of the
death of Patriarch Athenagoras, who "opened new paths and horizons,
starting the dialogue with the Catholic Church. His 1963 meeting
with Pope Paul VI in Jerusalem undid the schism after centuries. We
continue on his path towards dialogue for the unity of all. We are
deacons of the Word of God and do not have personal ambitions. (NT)

ARMENIAN REGULATORS TO BLOCK RISE IN PHONE TARIFFS
By Shakeh Avoyan

Radio Liberty. Czech Rep.
July 9 2007

State regulators will almost certainly reject a steep rise in the
prices of fixed-line telephony sought by Armenia’s Russian-owned
national telecommunication company, officials said on Monday.

The ArmenTel operator formally asked the Public Services Regulation
Commission (PSRC) to allow it to raise the tariffs last May, saying
they have remained unchanged for the past several years and should
be revised upwards in order preserve its profitability.

In particular, the company wants to nearly double a fixed fee of
1,100 drams ($3) covering up to six hours of outgoing local phone
calls made by a single network subscriber every month. Those users
who exceed that limit are currently charged 5 drams (1.5 U.S. cents)
for every extra minute of phone conversations.

ArmenTel wants to reduce the six-hour limit and raise the per-minute
charge to 9 drams. In return, it would further cut its prices of
external phone calls.

A member of the PSRC, Shiraz Kirakosian, told RFE/RL that the
regulatory body has looked into the tariff request and will likely
turn it down on Friday. He said the commission will argue, among
other things, that ArmenTel has underestimated its profit margins
and can therefore successfully operate under the existing tariffs.

Kirakosian indicated at the same time that the PSRC is ready,
in principle, to accept a more modest price increase. "We need to
continue our discussions with ArmenTel," he said.

The PSRC has rejected similar price hikes in the past when ArmenTel was
owned by Greece’s OTE telecom giant. OTE sold its 90 percent stake in
ArmenTel to Russia’s second largest cellphone operator, VimpelCom, last
November in a $500 million deal approved by the Armenian government.

One of VimpelCom’s first steps was to abandon ArmenTel’s controversial
legal monopoly on Armenia’s Internet connection with the outside
world. The move is expected to make the service more affordable
and faster.