ARMENIA EXPECTED TO BE 38TH IN NEW FIFA RANKING
After a victory over Bulgaria and a draw with Italy, Armenia is
expected to rank 38th in new FIFA ranking that will be issued on
Thursday.
Top ten includes Spain, Germany, Argentina, Belgium, Colombia, Uruguay,
Switzerland, The Netherlands, Italy and England.
FRANCE IS WAITING FOR READMISSION TO DEPORT ARMENIANS
Naira Hayrumyan
Comments – Wednesday, 16 October 2013, 22:17
The European Parliament has ratified the Visa Facilitation and
Readmission Agreement with Armenia. Apparently, readmission is
the key component to deport illegal immigrants. The deputy prime
minister of Armenia left for France and met with the French minister
of interior and discussed migration-related issues. France is one
of the favorite destinations of migration. The Armenians resort to
any means, including buying Azerbaijani passports, statements on
political persecution. These people who do not live in France legally
are not returned to their homes due to the lack of the agreement on
readmission. After the ratification deportation of these people will
come up. And these people are many. Apparently, Armen Gevorgyan has
talked to the French minister of interior about these people. Perhaps
they also discussed that after visa facilitation the flow of citizens
of Armenia to France will increase. Moreover, after the decision on
joining the Customs Union and cancellation of European prospects more
people tend to leave Armenia. They are looking to a chance to leave.
Rapprochement between Europe and Armenia has been discussed for a long
time. The EU funds activities in the sphere of migration. However,
the risks are still there. Although most people migrate to Russia,
increasingly more people are moving towards the West. Mostly creative
and freedom-loving people leave for the West. They leave forever.
Nobody is waiting for them in Europe, and these people are often
ready to go through humiliation to stay there. However, nobody is
calling them to leave. On the contrary, the government is negotiating
postponement of readmission. In the first quarter of this year
1335 people sought asylum in Europe. Accordant to Eurostat, most of
them were turned down. 125 people were granted asylum. In addition,
according to Eurostat, Armenian citizens mostly apply to France and
most rejections came from that country.
ITALY 2-2 ARMENIA. BALOTELLI NOT ENOUGH. AZZURRI STILL TO BE SEEDED?
La Gazzetta dello Sport, Italy
Oct 16 2013
Milano, 16 October 2013
Prandelli’s side make a sloppy start to the game in Naples but fight
back through Florenzi and SuperMario. Failure to win means their
place as top seeds for the World Cup draw is at risk
Italy finished Group B unbeaten, albeit with some difficulty, but
still do not know if they will be seeded in the December draw for next
summer’s tournament. It’s something they’ll have to sleep on because
it now depends on results in the South American qualifying group.
That’s the price the Azzurri have to pay for drawing at home to
Armenia – by no means a disastrous result in itself but Italy came
up against unexpected problems and looked a different team to the
one seen in previous outings. Not even Balotelli’s appearance as a
second-half substitute was enough to clinch the three points that
would have locked up their place in the top seeds pot.
LIMP START – With Prandelli’s only major selection doubt decided
on Monday evening – Balotelli on the bench initially and Osvaldo
up front – Italy lined up as expected in a 4-1-4-1 with Pirlo in
the deep-lying role, Montolivo and Aquilani in the engine room and
Florenzi and Insigne wide in support of the former Roma striker. What
wasn’t expected was the Azzurri’s approach to the game: they were
limp, distracted and imprecise more than demotivated, too stretched
out over the pitch and tended to make things up as they went along
rather than stick to any game plan. All too often it was a series of
individual initiatives that came to nothing, with mistakes galore and
worries at the back from the start. The first of which came after 4
minutes thanks to some sloppy play from Astori, Movsisyan fortunately
failing to seize the opportunity. But after letting them off the hook
once he wasn’t going to repeat the gesture when Aquilani handed him
another chance a minute later. The Fiorentina midfielder – the hero
when he snatched a late leveller on Friday – put Armenia in charge
of proceedings tonight with a fluffed clearance which rebounded into
the path of Movsisyan, who skipped past Astori and beat Marchetti to
herald the start of a tough night for Italy.
INSIGNE SHAKES THEM UP – Italy were unable to sort themselves out for
at least another quarter of an hour, with lapses in concentration and
misplaced passes still the order of the day. Osvaldo totally skewed
his shot in the 12th minute after showing good control to get himself
into position. Thankfully Insigne was on hand to shake things up for
Prandelli. Playing in his home stadium, the Napoli forward become
an increasingly inspired presence throughout the first period, when
he was by far Italy’s best performer. He fired off a warning shot by
hitting the post in the 22nd minute (Osvaldo’s follow-up effort was
tame) then hurt the visitors by doing at least half of the work for
Italy’s equaliser in the 24th minute, standing it up beautifully for
Florenzi to prove his goalscorer’s instinct and nod Italy level. 1-1.
balotelli comes on – We were seeing another game by that point, with
the Azzurri more and more in the ascendancy and Armenia limited to
playing on the break. Ozbiliz had a 34th-minute effort smothered by
Marchetti but Prandelli’s side went closer still a minute later and
again it was that man Insigne: wowing the Neapolitan fans with a smart
dragback on the turn to create himself space to shoot a fraction
wide of Berezovski’s upright from an angle. Italy’s best chances
continued to fall to the Napoli striker in the second half too,
when Prandelli threw Balotelli into the fray for Osvaldo less than
ten minutes after the restart. And it was Balotelli the team player,
not Balotelli going it alone. Italy’s tactical shape and the flow
of the match didn’t change when Candreva replaced Florenzi either:
Italy kept taking the game to their opponents and Armenia attempted
the occasional foray forward. Insigne went close again in the 58th
minute (a near-post strike saved by Berezovski) and in the 61st,
when some decent work by Balotelli put him in one on one with the
Armenian keeper, who was spared by Insigne’s hurried, central shot.
BEHIND AGAIN, LEVEL AGAIN – But there was a surprise in store for
Italy and it came in the 70th minute following a double mistake by
Marchetti. The Lazio keeper first gifted the visitors a free corner
with some poor handling then got caught in no man’s land when the cross
came in, allowing Mkhitaryan to head Armenia back in front. The Azzurri
trailed for just six minutes though, the time it took for Balotelli
to leave his mark on the game with the help of Pirlo, who dinked in a
brilliant first-time pass to put Mario clean through on goal, the AC
Milan striker applying a cool finish. Balotelli almost added a third
shortly afterwards, with a free kick that Berezovski somehow managed
to turn behind for a corner. And with five minutes remaining he had
the ball in the back of the net again, but only after a blatant push
on a defender. The best chance to win it came in added time, when he
went on a solo charge up the pitch before arrowing a low drive just
a whisker past the far post. That was Italy’s last hope of securing
their spot as seeds at the World Cup. Now they’ll have to wait and see.
from our correspondent Andrea Elefante
BELARUS, ARMENIA OUTLINE SCI-TECH COOPERATION PRIORITIES
Belarusian Telegraph Agency, Belarus
Oct 16 2013
15.10.2013 11:53
MINSK, 15 October (BelTA) – Belarus and Armenia have outlined
priorities in bilateral sci-tech cooperation at the first meeting
of the joint Belarusian-Armenian commission for sci-tech cooperation
which is underway in Yerevan on 14-15 October, BelTA learnt from the
press service of the Foreign Ministry of Belarus.
Head of the Belarusian delegation and Chairman of the commission
on Belarus’ behalf is First Deputy Chairman of the State Committee
for Science and Technology Leonid Demidov. The Armenian part of the
commission is led by Chairman of the State Committee for Science
under the Ministry of Education and Science Samvel Harutyunyan.
The parties outlined priority areas in the Belarusian-Armenian
sci-tech cooperation, coordinated the order of holding competitions
among scientific programs within the agreement on cooperation between
the state committees of the two countries.
An agreement was signed by the National Academy of Sciences of
Belarus, the State Committee for Science and Technology of Belarus
and the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia, the State Committee
for Science under the Ministry of Education and Science of Armenia
to open an international research center to study freshwater body
ecosystems at Lake Sevan.
The next meeting will be held in Belarus in Q1 2014.
ARMENIA: LETTER ON KARABAKH’S JOINING RUSSIA SPARKS MIXED REACTION, CRITICISM
Yerkir (in Armenian), Armenia
Oct 15 2013
[Translated from Armenian]
Writer Zori Balayan, a prominent member of a movement aiming
at achieving the unification of Azerbaijan’s breakaway Nagornyy
Karabakh to Soviet Armenia, has recently made public an “open letter”
to Russian President Vladimir Putin, where he described Karabakh as
an integral part of once imperial Russia based on the 1813 Gulistan
Treaty, essentially offering Nagornyy Karabakh’s joining Russia.
This move has sparked wide and mixed reaction. While some public
figures backed the logic behind the letter, others, including Nagornyy
Karabakh officials and some social media users, strongly condemned
the move.
Support
The head of the Karabakh Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church,
Archbishop Pargev Martirosyan, gave an interview to the Galatv.am
website on 15 October, noting that Balayan had “disclosed some
historical details and it was necessary to do so to inform the
Russian president”.
Meanwhile, the clergyman disagreed to some of Balayan’s critics,
who called him a “traitor” and said that Balayan was warning Russia
against “returning Karabakh to Azerbaijani yoke”, as that would
“destroy Russian influence in the region”. [1]
MP from the ruling Republican Party of Armenia, Ashot Aghababyan, was
also among those, who welcomed the letter with some reservations. The
Hayeli.am website directly asked Aghababyan if he would welcome
Karabakh’s incorporation into Russia. “I would abstain from ruling out
such an option, because Balayan may have information at hand that I
do not have,” Aghababyan answered, adding: “If the Karabakh question
is not resolved by means of its joining Armenia and its international
recognition, its incorporation into Russia may be a way out of the
deadlock”. [2]
Criticism
Commenting the letter to the Zhoghovurd newspaper, Nagornyy Karabakh
prime minister Ara Harutyunyan criticized it, the Yerkir.am website
reported at 0510 on 15 October.
“No one had the right to speak on behalf of the people. He could
only express his personal views. Karabakh has already articulated its
opinion, it has declared independent in 1991 and any other viewpoint is
merely a personal one. We have clarified our position on independence
in a referendum [in 1991],” the website, referring to the newspaper,
quoted Harutyunyan as saying. [3]
Some opposition figures, like former presidential candidate Paruyr
Hayrikyan, accused Balayan of paving way to Russian “imperialism”
in Armenia and Nagornyy Karabakh.
The News.am website quoted Hayrikyan as saying at a news conference
that “with his statements he developed [President] Serzh Sargsyan’s
readiness to support the restoration of the Russian Empire”. [4]
The head of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia faction in
parliament, Galust Sahakyan, was milder in his criticism, saying that
the position was not acceptable to his party, Yerkir.am wrote at 0813
on 15 October. “It is a personal opinion and such an opinion is off our
agenda and I do not think we could have such an issue on it,” he was
quoted as commenting on the prospects of Karabakh’s joining Russia. [5]
Armenian actors were rather outspoken in their criticism of the letter.
Ruben Babayan, the director of Yerevan’s puppet theatre, said that the
letter was addressed to Armenians rather than Putin. “Our mentality
has remained in the era 200 years ago, neglecting people’s opinion;
did you ask the Karabakh people if they want to join Russia?” Babayan
asked. [6]
In his video blog popular comedian Sergey Danielyan posted on YouTube,
he ridiculed Balayan’s letter, calling it a “love letter without
response” and adding that “Putin would never include Karabakh in
Russia”. [7]
Social media
Social media also differed in their opinions. Most of them seemed
critical, but some supported Balayan.
Facebook user Harut Uloyan recalled his earlier opinion that Armenia
was too dependent on Russia’s position in the peace talks with
Azerbaijan and wrote that Balayan’s letter was similar to his theory.
“I am not at all surprised at Zori [Balayan]’s treacherous letter. It
is an attempt to keep the public aware of reality via a third person,”
he wrote. [8]
Artur Igityan, another Facebook user, supported the opinion of
Karabakh’s joining Russia. “The best option for populating Kalbacar and
Lacin would be to incorporate Karabakh in Russia. Armenian citizens
would like to move to Lacin and other liberated territories which
are not yet successfully populated,” he wrote. [9]
Facebook user Hayk Vardanyan supported Balayan and noted that it was
a means to show that Armenians were “pro-Russian” and Azerbaijanis
“anti-Russian”. “As to whether the empire will be restored or Karabakh
will be incorporated in it, it is clear that it is not up to Zori
Balayan to decide it and by doing this, he just wanted to show that
we are ready even for that in order to make the issue more appealing
[to Russia],” he wrote on his account. [10]
[1] Galatv.am website, Gyumri, in Armenian 1123 gmt 15 Oct 13
[2] Hayeli.am website, Yerevan, in Armenian 15 Oct 13
[3] Yerkir.am website, Yerevan, in Armenian 0510 gmt 15 Oct 13
[4] News.am website, Yerevan, in Armenian, 0744 gmt 15 Oct 13
[5] Yerkir.am website, Yerevan, in Armenian 0813 gmt 15 Oct 13
[6] Yerkir.am website, Yerevan, in Armenian 0837 gmt 15 Oct 13
[7]YouTube in Armenian, 15 Oct 13
[8]
f=notif¬if- t=close-friend-activity 15 Oct 13
[9] 15 Oct 13
[10] 15 Oct 13
OPPOSITION ACTIVIST’S TIRES SLASHED: WORRIED NEXT TIME IT’LL BE HIM
10.16.2013 19:14 epress.am
The Arabkir Police Division is conducting an investigation into
an incident in which the tires of a Ford Transit belonging to
the Pre-Parliament civil initiative as well as those of a vehicle
belonging to one of the members of this initiative, Karo Yeghnukyan,
were slashed by an unidentified man, representative of the press
service of the police Armen Malkhasyan informed Epress.am today.
The incident occurred during the “Boycott Yerevan City Supermarkets”
demonstration yesterday.
Pre-Parliament coordinator and filmmaker Tigran Khzmalyan said that
after noticing the slashed tires yesterday evening they immediately
informed the Arabkir Police Division, though police officers arrived
at the scene after 20 minutes.
“When we called, the police told us maybe our guys did it. We were
quite surprised [at this response]. Later, our friends submitted
a written report to the police; they came too; took measurements;
and what happened later is unknown,” Khzmalyan told the Epress.am
correspondent.
Speaking to Epress.am, Karo Yeghnukyan (pictured) said police officers
have already looked at the CCTV video footage from the neighboring
shops.
According to him, the police already know what the culprit looks like,
“a young man wearing a cap”; though his identity has not yet been
established. In Yeghnukyan’s opinion, what happened is the result
of inaction by law enforcement bodies and a very serious warning
addressed to him.
“This is the continuation of the hatred provoked by [Republican Party
of Armenia MP and owner of the Yerevan City supermarket chain Samvel]
Aleksanyan. On Sept. 2, when my photo was stuck on the wall of the
Covered Market, the next day, Pre-Parliament issued a statement on
the matter, then I wrote letters to Aleksanyan, [National Assembly
President] Hovik Abrahamyan, Police Chief Vladimir Gasparyan, and the
General Prosecutor, to no avail. I submitted several requests to the
police to ensure my safety, but they are inclined to do nothing. I ask,
what are you waiting for, for something to happen to me, then to say,
‘Sorry, we were late’?” he said.
Yeghnukyan believes that the incident is a serious threat to him.
“That the four tires were punctured twice is aimed at my body. This
is a warning that ‘Mr. Yeghnukyan, this time it’s your tires; next
time it’ll be your body’,” he surmised.
LE MONDE: ARMENIA PICKED CU AS GUARANTEE AGAINST AZERI AGGRESSION
October 16, 2013 – 18:58 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net – Experts are concerned that the Nagorno Karabakh
conflict might be rekindled in the worst way with the OSCE Minsk Group
mediatory efforts so far unsuccessful, journalist Piotr Smolar said
in an article published at Le Monde French daily.
“Regional observers post unprecedented escalation of tensions, giving
rise to armed conflict-related concerns. And not only shootouts are
meant here: Azerbaijan accuses Armenia of accommodating Syrian refugees
in Karabakh to perpetuate its presence in the republic. Arms race on
both sides also gives rise to increased concerns, with Baku having a
clear advantage due to significant oil-procured financial resources,”
the article says.
“In 2003, Azerbaijan allocated $163 million to military expenses. In
2013, the budget grew to $3,7 billion, with extensive range of
weaponry purchased. In 2012, Israel agreed to supply 60 drones to
Baku,” the article said.
“Later, Azeri President Aliyev offered to buy $ 3 billion worth of
weaponry, including combatant ships and submarines, from South Korea.
Seoul however decided against the deal, unwilling to be involved
in escalation of tensions. At the same time, Armenia increased its
military budget by 25% to reach $250 million,” the article said.
“The recent International Crisis Group report warned of a “potentially
explosive” situation in the region. Baku has increased threats of a
new war, with air strikes mentioned as a preliminary stage of any
attack. Azeri task will lie in reclaiming a so-called buffer zone
created around Karabakh during a blitz operation,” the article said.
“Yerevan chose the Russia-led Customs Union over the EU associated
membership and free trade zone. Yet, the decision was not prompted
by Russia’s pressure or economic gains, but rather the small
country’s safety concerns. Russian military presence in Armenia,
weaponry supplies, the idea of close ties with Moscow – these are
the guarantees of protection from Azeri aggression,” the article said.
ARMENIAN TOP SECURITY OFFICIAL HOSTS IRANIAN ENVOY
18:02 ~U 16.10.13
Secretary of the National Security Council (NSC) Arthur Baghdasaryan
received on Wednesday the Iranian ambassador to Armenia, Mohammad
Raiesi, reports the NSC press office.
A broad framework of issues addressing the bilateral relations agenda
were discussed at the meeting.
The sides highlighted the importance of deepening cooperation in
the political, economic and security sectors. They further discussed
plans for bilateral strategic projects.
Armenian News – Tert.am
ANDREAS GROSS: AZERBAIJAN WITH REGRESSING DEMOCRACY IS PATIENT PLACED IN REANIMATION WARD AT COUNCIL OF EUROPE
16:20 16/10/2013 ” ANALYSIS
Andreas Gross MP, former Rapporteur of PACE on Azerbaijan, was a PACE
monitor at the presidential election on October 9 at Gedabak area. He
shared his observations with radio “Liberty.”
Gross told that he witnessed several violations in remote,
small villages of Azerbaijan: ballot box stuffing, voting process
intervention, exploitation of administrative resources, etc. “I watched
the vote count toll 10 o’clock, but I was not allowed to participate
in the process, especially to check whom the votes in the ballots
are given for. I could not figure out where the three extra ballots
came from. However, the violations registered by me did not change
the situation: the incumbent president received 93% of the vote,”
the MEP says.
As the former rapporteur on Azerbaijan notes, all the observations
will be discussed at PACE Bureau during its meeting in Vienna and
Paris in November. He hoped that during the discussion of the report
on Azerbaijan in 2014 the situation occurred during the election will
also be taken into account.
“In 2000, I was an observer in Sumgait. Early in the morning, an hour
before the opening of the polling station, 100 ballots in favor of
the “Yeni Azerbaijan” party were found in a safe. I, as head of the
OSCE and PACE delegation, assured President Heydar Aliyev that it was
unacceptable. After that, he decided to hold by-elections in 7 polls.
It was a requirement for Azerbaijan’s membership to the Council of
Europe. In 2003, I was watching the elections in Ganja. Until midnight,
together with my Finnish colleague, we were watching the vote count,
after which the head of the commission confessed: “Mr.
Gross was here all the time; we could not have falsified anything.”
There Ilham Aliyev received 50% of the vote,” Andreas Gross told.
According to the MEP, in Ganja, in 2003, he could see the presence of
active and industrious opposition against the background of limited
freedoms, while today the Azerbaijani society lacks that energy. The
opposition is tired of the repressions and migrates. Those gathering
signatures for opposition candidates are arrested and their family
members are intimidated.
“I and many others have emphasized before that there is no tangible
progress on the issue of pluralism, freedom, open discussions, real
public debates. This is not the first time that the OSCE and PACE
reports differ. Only this time, the OSCE acted more openly, honestly
and in good conscience. After all, their observations are based
on numerous and long-term observations through the whole country,”
said Gross.
Member of PACE observers’ delegation also disagreed with the opinion
of R. Walter, the head of delegation, who said that the elections
in Azerbaijan were free, transparent and fair. “He only spoke about
the elections day. If you analyze his statement, you will see that
it fundamentally contradicts to all the elements of the OSCE Mission
statement,” Gross said, and explained that the OSCE had more extensive
and serious base, and that base is not being ready by the time when
the deputies publish their view points based only on the Election Day.
“We have been thinking about this problem long ago and we will continue
the discussion. If we continue working apart from each other, it
would only serve the anti-democratic, oligarchic interests. It would
not contribute to the progress of the democratic processes.
Today, Azerbaijan experience a setback in democracy issues,” Andreas
Gross notes.
PACE representative noted that many people foresaw such a result
for the elections in advance, and the presidency of Azerbaijan at
the Council of Europe is not related to the democratic achievements,
but only to the Latin alphabet, by which Azerbaijan follows Austria,
which will take the presidency from Armenia. “Of course, when the
leader of football championship loses all the matches, it causes
confusion and gives rise to questions just like Azerbaijan fails in the
Council of Europe in the human rights and democracy championship. I
understand that the Council of Europe is not the Champions League,
and is not a democracy and human rights school. It is a hospital with
different patients in it and Azerbaijan which needs urgent treatment,
is placed in reanimation department,” noted Andreas Gross.
According to him, in countries where oil and gas have a long history,
while democracy does not, the possible development is limited. “In
Azerbaijan, the democracy process is particularly difficult, because
with a few exceptions, the European governments are trying to ensure
energy security without thinking of democratic issues. They repeat the
mistakes of Egypt, Tunisia and Syria. The shortcomings of dictators in
these countries were forgiven, for the sake of short-term benefits. As
a result, the reputation and values of the West today are endangered.
However, I am confident that the changes will be by the initiative of
the Azerbaijani society. As the failure, contradictions and severity
of the regime are so obvious today that it will not last long,”
says the ex-reporter on Azerbaijan.
Source: Panorama.am
SOME 645,285 SUBSCRIBERS CONNECTED TO ARMENIA’S NATURAL GAS NETWORK
YEREVAN, October 15 /ARKA/. ArmRosGazprom (ARG), Armenia’s
Russian-controlled national gas distribution company, said today it
had 645,285 individual and corporate subscribers as of October 1, 2013.
The Russian-Armenian company said the number of subscribers increased
by 6,743 in the first nine months of this year. Of them 837 were
connected to the network in September.
Armenia is among three leading world countries in terms of natural
gas accessibility to households and industrial enterprises.
ARG is the only company dealing with import and distribution of
Russian natural gas coming to Armenia from Russia via Georgia. It
was established in 1997. Russian Gazprom holds 80 percent in it,
the rest is owned by Armenian government. -0-
17:30 15.10.2013