Author: Nargizian David

TURKEY’S DEMANDS TO FIX TERMS FOR EU MEMBERSHIP AROUSED PERPLEXITY

PanARMENIAN.Net
17.04.2007 16:15 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Recep Erdogan’s demand to fix concrete terms for
accepting Turkey in the European Union has aroused perplexity in
Brussels: on a number of issues the sides have not began negotiations
up till now. During the last weekend during his visit to Germany
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan demanded from EU
more concrete perspectives for his country’s membership to the
Union. Particularly he offered German Chancellor Angela Merkel to
work out a "road map" and fix a date for Turkey’s accession to the EU.

Angela Merkel did not react to this demand anyhow.

Instead the European Commission and European Parliament expressed
a rather simple reaction. "No candidates for EU membership will be
given exact dates for accession to the Union," a representative of
the European Commission stated. Still in December of 2006 heads of
EU member-states adopted a decision, according to which henceforth
the concrete date for membership will be discussed only during the
final stage of talks.

In the case with Turkey negotiations are only in the initial stage,
and still not on all subjects. The main obstacle remains the same,
the "Cyprus issue": the sides blame each other for blockading the
negotiation process.

Head of Liberal faction Graham Watson advised Ankara to "keep calm"
and stop pressing on German government, which holds EU presidency
till the end of June 2007.

According to Watson, currently it is necessary to first of all
concentrate on continuation of negotiations, Deutsche Welle reports.

MAYASSA MEETS LOUVRE MUSEUM HEAD

Gulf Times, Qatar
April 17 2007

HE Sheikha Mayassa bint Hamad al-Thani meeting Louvre Museum president
and director general Henri Loyrette in Paris PARIS: HE Sheikha
Mayassa bint Hamad al-Thani, chairperson of the board of trustees
of the Qatar Museums Authority, met here yesterday the president and
director general of the Louvre Museum, Henri Loyrette.

During the meeting, they reviewed means of promoting co-operation
in museums.

The meeting was attended by HE Abdullah bin Khalifa al-Attiyah, member
of the board of trustees; HE Sheikh Faisal bin Qassem al-Thani; HE
Sheikh Hassan bin Mohamed bin Ali al-Thani, deputy chairman of board
of trustees; Qatar Ambassador to France Mohamed Jaham al-Kuwari;
and Dr Sabiha al-Khamir, director of the Islamic Art Museum.

Later, HE Sheikha Mayassa toured the Armenian section currently being
staged at the Louvre Museum where she was briefed on the sculptures,
rocks, metal pieces, books and the antiquities showcasing the Armenian
history and civilisation.

Sheikha Mayassa also met at the French Foreign Ministry premises
with a group of thinkers specialised in Middle East history, artists
and painters.

Talks during the meeting dealt with the role of Arab thinkers in
portraying Arab civilisation and means of achieving rapprochement
and liaison between the East and the West.

The group of thinkers comprises Amin Maalouf, Tahir bin Jalloun,
Suleiman Zaqhidour and Ghassan Salama.

Later, Sheikha Mayassa met French Minister of Culture and
Communications Renaud Donne Deiu de Vabres.

Discussion during the meeting dealt with means of enhancing and
promoting relations between the two countries, particularly in the
cultural domains.

Sheikha Mayassa also paid a visit to the French National Museum
of Natural History. She met the president and director general of
museum, who briefed her on phases of the museum’s construction and
its contents.

She toured the sections of the museum.

ARAM I CATHOLICOS RECEIVES BOARD OF LEBANESE YOUTH UNIONS

Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
Apr 17 2007

ANTELIAS, APRIL 17, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. His Holiness
Aram I Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia received at the
Antelias Patriarchate on April 14 the Board of the Lebanese Youth
Unions, headed by Paul Ayanian. As Noyan Tapan was informed by the
Great House of Cilicia Catholicosate, the Board presented the works
done with cooperation of the Lebanese youth unions during the recent
years. His Holiness, in his turn, estimated the joint work and the
efforts made by the youth organizations to re-activize life in Lebanon.

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr.Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Officer
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:

PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

Armenian version:

THE CATHOLICOSATE’S "SHENORHALI" CHOIR PERFORMS IN THE AUB ASSEMBLY HALL

The Catholicosate of Cilicia’s "Shenorhali" Choir and its artistic
director and conductor, well-known Lebanese-Armenian musicologist Zakar
Keshishian, dazzled a mixed audience of Armenian and foreign music lovers in
its annual concert at the Assembly Hall of the American University of Beirut
(AUB) on April 15.

Held under the auspices of His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of Cilicia, the
concert breathe new life and liveliness into the cultural life of the
Lebanese Armenian community. Following the catastrophic consequences of the
destructive war in Lebanon last summer, the concert became a cultural breeze
with its high artistic performance.

The Armenian Catholicos presided over the event, surrounded by members of
the Cilician Brotherhood. Among the attendants were foreign diplomats,
ambassadors of several European countries, the president and faculty of AUB,
ministers and deputies, representatives from political, cultural, charity
organizations as well as a large crowd of art-lovers.

The concert, the result of several months’ hard work, presented to the
audience a series of song from a rich selection of Armenian music ranging
from ancient to modern times. Performing pieces by Yervant Yerganian, Roupen
Altounian, Nerses Shenorhali, Gomidas, Parsegh Ganatchian, Tatoul Altounian
and others, the choir demonstrated the undying value of Armenian art.
Sirvart Boyadjian accompanied the choir on the piano.

The foreign attendants were particularly impressed by the performance of
Arabic national songs, delivered confidently and accurately.

At the end of the concert, His Holiness addressed the foreign attendants,
guests and diplomats in English, speaking about the qualities of music that
can harmonize international life. "Music educated people, reducing violence
in the world and making it a habitable place. Music reassesses
spiritual-intellectual values in a world where materialism dominates. Music
teaches us to live together, when violence rules everywhere. Music is a
dialogue between God and man. Through music, we transcend the differences in
our race and color and we are transformed with its strength," he said.

The Catholicos then spoke in Armenian praising the Choir and its artistic
director, "who during the last few months worked hard to deliver this
artistic experience to us with such warmth, freshness and sincerity. Today
you not only proved your own worth to us, you also demonstrated the value of
Armenian music. Armenian music was reborn from your souls, your minds and
hearts. You succeeded in renewing our life through Armenian music, improving
our taste, clearing our ears from noise and brightening our collective life
with such high and harmonious performance," he said.

The attendants acknowledged that the choir, which had been continuously on
the rise during the past few years, had reached its peak in artistic
performance with very well prepared singers, solo-artists and the driving
force behind it all- artistic director and conductor Zakar Keshishian.

##
View the photos here:

*****
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the history and
the mission of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
the Catholicosate, The Cilician Catholicosate, the
administrative center of the church is located in Antelias, Lebanon.

RA PRESIDENT DISCUSSES ISSUES OF MONITORING OF ELECTORAL PROCESS WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF PACE AND OSCE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLIES

Noyan Tapan
Apr 12 2007

YEREVAN, APRIL 12, NOYAN TAPAN. On April 13, RA President Robert
Kocharian received members of PACE and OSCE Parliamentary Assemblies’
ad hoc commissions for monitoring of elections in Armenia. According to
the report provided to Noyan Tapan from RA President’s Press Office,
issues related to electoral process and principles of its monitoring
were discussed during the meeting.

MEETINGS OF OSCE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY OBSERVATION MISSION IN ARMENIA

National Assembly of RA, Armenia
April 11 2007

On April 11 the members of the delegation headed by Mrs. Tone
Tingsgaard, Vice-President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, Head
of the OSCE PA Observation Mission of parliamentary elections in
Armenia will arrive in Yerevan.

On April 12 the members of the delegation in the National Assembly
jointly with the PACE Ad-hoc Committee members for the observation of
the parliamentary elections in Armenia will have meetings with the
representatives of RPA, ARF, ULP, Justice, Country of Law, National
Unity factions and People’s Deputy and Entrepreneur deputy groups.

The meetings of the delegation are scheduled on the same day with
the representatives of Bargavach Hayastan (Prosperous Armenia)
and Zharangutiun (Heritage) parties and Aylntrank (Alternative)
political movement.

On April 13 the members of the delegation headed by Mrs. Tone
Tingsgaard, Vice-President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, Head
of the OSCE PA Observation Mission of the parliamentary elections in
Armenia will meet with the representatives of the main group of ODIHR,
NDI, IFES, USAID IREX, Counterpart Consortium organizations.Mr. Robert
Kocharyan, President of the Republic of Armenia, Mr. Tigran Torosyan,
President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia,
Mr. Garegin Azaryan, Chairman of the Central Electoral Commission
(CEC) will receive the delegation on the same day.

On April 14 the delegation will leave Yerevan.

*ARPA INSTITUTE*
18106 Miranda St.
Tarzana CA 91356
Phone/Fax: 818-881-0010

24 B, Baghramian, Mech. Inst. Bldg. of ASc, 3rd flr, Yerevan, Armenia.
Tel:(374 2)545538
(39), Fax:151167**

Presents : Lecture/Seminar

By *Dr. David Gaunt** *

"Massacres, Resistance, Protectors of the Armenians

and Assyrians in the 1915 Genocide"

*Friday, May 11, 2007 @ 7:30PM*

*Merdinian Auditorium*

13330 Riverside Dr., Sherman Oaks, CA 91423 **

Directions: On 101 FY Exit Woodman, go North 1 block, turn Right on
Riverside Dr.

*Abstract:** * The lecture will discuss what happened to the Armenian and
Assyrian populations living in the provinces of Diyarbakir, Bitlis, Van and
Iranian Azerbaijan during World War I. This will be based on extensive use
of primary sources in Turkish, Russian, Iranian as well as Western archives.
Also previously unused witness testimonies and oral history will be used.
This is a region where Armenians and Assyrians lived side by side in the
cities and had rural villages close to each other. Often the Armenians would
be seized first and the Assyrian sources explain what happened, then came
the turn for the Assyrians. In some places both groups put up a common
defense, for instance Antranik’s volunteer brigades had Assyrians fighting
side by side with the Armenians. Some Assyrian tribes joined the Russian
army that was on its way to relieve Van and fought with the Turks. The
greater part of the massacres, ethnic cleansings and other atrocities
occurred between May and September of 1915, and the extent of population
loss was close to 90% in the Diyarbakir province. The latter was also used
as killing fields for deportation caravans coming from the north. The
lecture will be based on the recent book *Massacres, Resistance, Protectors:
Muslim-Christian relations in Eastern Anatolia during World War I* (
Piscataway, N. J.: Gorgias Pres 2006).

*David Gaunt* is professor of history at Södertörn University College in
Stockholm, Sweden. This university is in the midst of one of the largest
Assyrian Diaspora communities in the world. He is a social historian and has
previously written primarily on the Scandinavian workers movement, and
family history. A few years ago he began with genocide studies and
edited *Resistance
and Collaboration in the Holocaust: Belarus, Estonia, Latvia,
Lithuania*(Bern 2004).

For more Information Please call Dr. Hagop Panossian at (818) 586-9660 **

POLL WARNS US OVER ARMENIAN RESOLUTION

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
April 9 2007

An overwhelming majority of Turks oppose two different resolutions
on Armenian claims of genocide currently pending in the US Senate
and House of Representatives, and a massive portion of Turkish
society believes relations with Armenia and the United States will
be negatively affected if Congress passes the resolutions, a survey
of opinion conducted by a US-based group has shown.

The poll, recently conducted by Terror Free Tomorrow, revealed that
Turks felt so powerfully about this issue that should a resolution
pass, 83 percent would oppose Turkey assisting the United States
in Iraq. Almost four-fifths of Turks favor strong action by the
Turkish government if a resolution is passed, including suspension
of diplomatic relations.

Two similar resolutions, both urging the US administration to
recognize an alleged genocide of Armenians, have been presented to
both the House of Representatives and the Senate and they are now
awaiting a vote. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is a strong supporter of
the resolution and, contrary to the past, when interventions from the
US administration stopped passage of similar resolutions, analysts
say chances are high that the resolutions will this time be passed.

Turkey has warned that passage of any such resolution would seriously
harm relations with Washington, calling the move "poisonous." Ankara
categorically denies Armenian allegations of genocide at the hands of
the late Ottoman Empire and says there were killings on both sides
when Anatolian Armenians took up arms against the Ottoman Empire in
collaboration with the invading Russian army in hope of claiming some
part of eastern Anatolia for an independent Armenian state.

Terror Free Tomorrow, whose advisory board is led by Republican Senator
John McCain and former 9/11 Commission chairs Thomas Kean and Lee
Hamilton, acknowledges that the alleged genocide took place. "The
genocide of innocent Armenian civilians in the waning days of the
Ottoman Empire must be universally acknowledged – even if condemning
the mass killings as genocide provokes ire of most Turks," wrote
Kenneth Ballen, president of Terror Free Tomorrow, in an editorial
for the study. "That fact must never be the issue."

He says, however, that passing a resolution on the issue would harden
public attitudes in Turkey, as Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink,
assassinated by a teenage gunman in January in Ýstanbul, had said.

Analysts say given the widespread sympathy among the US congressmen
toward the Armenian allegations, the only way to prevent the passage
of a "genocide" resolution is to convince the congressmen on the
devastating impacts it would deliver in US-Turkish relations.The Terror
Free Tomorrow survey, conducted in 15 provinces in Turkey between
January 27, 2007 and February 8, 2007 with a total of 1,021 interviews,
showed that some 78 percent of Turks oppose the resolution by the US
Congress on the alleged genocide. The most important reason why Turks
oppose such a resolution is they do not consider the US Congress
to be a neutral judge of this historical issue (42 percent). Some
36 percent say an Armenian genocide never happened and another 18
percent say the issue should be resolved by historians.

Asked why the US Congress would approve a resolution on the alleged
genocide, 42 percent of the respondents cited anti-Muslim feelings
in the US and some 31 percent said it was due to domestic politics
in the United States. Another 12 percent said the "Armenian genocide"
was a proven historical fact, according to the poll.

If the US Congress approves a "genocide" resolution, 83 percent said
they would oppose or strongly oppose Turkey assisting the United
States in Iraq; 73 percent said it would worsen their opinion of the
United States; 78 percent said they would boycott American products,
vote for candidates that oppose the United States or demonstrate.

Only 11 percent said they would take no action.

Asked what measures the Turkish government should take in case the
Congress passes the resolution, 24 percent said it should issue an
official protest to the US and 29.9 percent said it should suspend
diplomatic ties with Washington. Only 6.7 percent said the government
should take no action.

On relations with Armenia, 73 percent said they think the passage of
the resolution would worsen relations between Turkey and Armenia. 84
percent of those who now have a very favorable opinion of the US
would change their opinion for the worse.

The survey also found that although most Turks are opposed to a
Congress resolution on the issue, three-quarters of all Turks would
accept scholarly study on what happened in that period of history.

–Boundary_(ID_2B88grUOlWL5a8kGWVC24w)–

RUSSIA’S IVANOV TO VISIT ARMENIA

ITAR-TASS News Agency, Russia
April 9, 2007 Monday

Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov will visit Armenia.

He arrives in Yerevan for a two-day working visit on Wednesday.

"We plan discussing matters of investment cooperation, nuclear energy,
the implementation of gas and energy accords with President Robert
Kocharian and Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian. We shall make a special
accent on the transport infrastructure, in particular the Caucasus-Poti
ferry service," Ivanov said at the government’s meeting in the Kremlin
on Monday.

He said that a new ferry was recently bought that would be put in
service soon.

"At last we shall establish a regular and extensive transport
connection with Armenia," Ivanov said.

"We also plan discussing questions of military technical cooperation,"
he added.

The visit programme includes Ivanov’s visit to a school in which
children of Russian military servicemen study, an official of the
Russian embassy in Armenia told ITAR-TASS.

IVANOV TO DISCUSS IN YEREVAN ENERGY, ECONOMIC AND MILITARY COOPERATION CHARACTER ISSUES

PanARMENIAN.Net
09.04.2007 18:39 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ During his working visit to Armenia Russian First
Deputy Prime Minister Sergey Ivanov is going to discuss issues of
investment character, Sergey Ivanov stated at the meeting of Russian
President with cabinet members. "In connection with the fact that
there is an atomic nuclear power plant in Armenia, I will discuss with
Armenian authorities issues concerning realization of gas and energy
agreements, A special accent will be made on transport infrastructure
connected with Kavkaz-Poti train ferry.

I am also going to discuss with Armenian leader issues of
military-technical cooperation," the Russian First Deputy Prime
Minister, "First Channel" reports.