Author: nina hovnanian

THREATS OF THE “RUSSIAN SPIRIT”

Along with the growth and success of the protest wave in Armenia,
serious political processes relating to Armenia-European Union
relations happened. The parties completed the negotiations on the
Association and establishment of a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade
Area. The end of negotiations is recorded parallel to the civil
protest wave and strengthening threats by the Russian experts’ circles.

Recently, almost all Russian expert-political scientists and Armenian
attaches of that community threatened with regards to the signing of
the Association Agreement with EU.

Parallel to the strengthening of the threats, Armenia is completing the
negotiations about which European officials Stefan Fule and Catherine
Ashton announced with satisfaction.

Several days earlier, the Lithuanian foreign minister stated that
if Armenia wanted, it could have completed the negotiations long
ago. The Lithuanian foreign minister said also about the possibility
of an early initialization of the agreement.

So the question occurs whether Armenia and European Union won’t wait
till November and will initialize the agreement earlier. At the same
time, it is interesting whether Russia will accelerate the processes
of counteraction. This will mean that Russia will shift from threats
to concrete actions, in other words, to the fulfillment of some part
of the threat.

Moscow has enough levers to shift from words to actions, moreover,
it has been acting since long. It has a variety of levers – economic,
political, military, social and moral.

At the same time, though, it is probable that the issue on the Russian
threat is exaggerated which has two main reasons.

Experts and political figures both from Russia and Armenia,
who are threatening on behalf of Russia, have personal issues in
this situation. The point is that the more successful Armenia’s
relations with the EU are, the more people are dissatisfied with the
Armenian-Russian relations.

The Kremlin has trusted the apologetics of the Armenian-Russian
relations to those people, who were supposed to be responsible of
the moods towards Russia in the Armenian social-political field and
their “reports” and advises have been under the policies worked out
in the Kremlin.

These people were found out to just seize resources from Russia
and provide the opposite outcome on which the state policy was
based and hence it collapsed. Consequently, the threats towards
Armenia don’t stand for Kremlin’s resistance and complaint but for
the self-preservation of the experts and political figures and their
last effort to justify in front of Kremlin.

The next circumstance that can possibly generate an “atmosphere” of
threats is the mood of a part of home political subjects that can be
used in the internal life of Armenia.

It is hard to say what the real mood in the Kremlin is. On the other
hand, the fact of failure of the contingent that has acted so far is
evident, on the other hand the newly-appointed ambassador of Russia
to Armenia launched his activities meeting the famous representatives
of this contingent. Apparently, it is hard for Kremlin to refuse
the old work style, which makes the necessity to find new partners,
unnecessary. The result is that the Armenian-Russian relation continues
being in a regime of deep regression and Russia undoubtedly realizes
its own responsibility in this matter, but can do nothing against the
“Russian spirit”.

But, even the “Russian spirit” fails, not only in Armenia but also
in the world.

Hakob Badalyan 14:10 26/07/2013 Story from Lragir.am News:

Invest in EU
July 27 2013

EU-Armenia Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area

Scope

The Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) between the EU and
Armenia is a further step in developing Armenia’s economic relations
with the EU.

In the framework of the Eastern Partnership, the EU started
negotiations on an Association Agreement with Armenia in July 2010 and
on the DCFTA in May 2012. The DCFTA, which will form part of the
Association Agreement, aims at strengthening the trade and investment
performance of both economies, while facilitating Armenia’s
progressive integration with the EU economy of 500 million consumers.

In accordance with the basic rules of a WTO-compatible free trade
area, the DCFTA envisages that the vast majority of customs duties on
goods will be removed as soon as the Agreement enters into force. As
regards services, the DCFTA provides for a broad set of commitments
that go beyond the EU and Armenia WTO General Agreement on Trade in
Services (GATS) schedules. This will serve to create trade
opportunities between EU and Armenia to the benefit of both economies.
Intended as an ambitious upgrade of current trade relations, the DCFTA
also covers rules that frame trade, such as intellectual property
rights, rules of origin as well as customs and trade facilitation. It
embraces provisions on sustainable development, making sure that
growth in trade does not come at the expense of the environment or
social and labour rights. A transparency chapter provides disciplines
regarding the availability of information and minimum standards for
consultations with stakeholders on DCFTA-related domestic legislation

Furthermore, the DCFTA offers Armenia a framework for modernising its
trade relations and for economic development. An extensive
harmonisation of laws, norms and regulations in various trade-related
sectors will create the conditions for aligning key sectors of the
Armenian economy to EU standards. Especially sanitary and
phytosanitary standards will be targeted, in a move to create an
Armenian food safety environment that is similar to EU standards.
Moreover, Armenia will adapt several laws of concern for industrial
goods, focusing on areas that are central for domestic safety and
consumer protection.

Economic impact

A Trade Sustainability Impact Assessment study, conducted by an
independent consultant, laid out the likely impact of the DCFTA and
the necessary flanking measures that could be required to accompany
the reforms in Armenia. The study predicts that both Armenia and the
EU can expect to gain from a closer bilateral trade relationship. In
the long run the national income gains for Armenia are estimated at
146 million. These gains imply a 2.3 per cent increase in Armenia’s
GDP. Key to reaping the positive effects is the reduction of
non-tariff measures.

The national income gains for the EU are estimated at 74 million.

Looking at the trade impact of the DCFTA, the effects on trade are
significant, with a 15.2 per cent increase in Armenian total exports
and an 8.2 per cent increase in Armenian total imports in the long
run. The DCFTA will thus lead to an improvement in Armenia’s trade
balance in relative terms.

Link to the study:

Reform-related assistance

The implementation of the DCFTA and related reforms will require
adequate financial support by the EU and sharing of know-how with
Armenia. The EU has already been assisting Armenia in this regard
before the launch of negotiations in the framework of a special
Comprehensive Institution Building programme (2011-2013) within the
European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument. It included
financial assistance as well as trainings and advisory activities
(e.g. twinning, TAIEX).

Bilateral assistance of EU Member States also takes place in
coordination with EU efforts. Further significant assistance, devoted
specifically to the implementation of the DCFTA, is planned in the new
European Neighbourhood Instrument (2014-20).

Alaska Dispatch
July 27 2013

Syrian, Egyptian Christians seek refuge in Caucasus, but not all plan to stay

Nicholas Clayton|GlobalPost.com|

July 27, 2013

TBILISI, Georgia – Ever since ouster of Egyptian strongman President
Hosni Mubarak two years ago, Adel has faced a difficult dilemma: Leave
behind a relatively cushy life in Egypt or stay and risk
discrimination and violence as religious and sectarian tensions rise.

Visa restrictions are narrowing his options, so the successful,
middle-class Coptic Christian and the father of two says he’s
considering uprooting his family to start anew in an unlikely place: A
small ex-Soviet country with a different language, culture and climate
from his own.

`In Egypt, it’s difficult to get visas to the U.S. or Europe,’
50-year-old Adel says. `We didn’t chose Georgia, Georgia is choosing
us.’

He’s not alone. Christian minorities from both Egypt and Syria are
starting to look to the South Caucasus countries of Georgia and
Armenia as a refuge from violence and uncertainly.

The choice isn’t as random as it may seem. Sandwiched between Turkey,
Iran and Russia’s predominately Muslim North Caucasus regions, both
Georgia and Armenia have ancient Christian traditions dating back to
the 4th century. Their churches are closely related to the Copts and
other Eastern Christian confessions.

Georgia has issued nearly 2,000 visas to Egyptians this year – almost
all to Coptic Christians – after giving out just 222 last year,
according to government figures cited by Eurasianet. The country of
4.5 million now estimates about 2,500 Egyptians live there.

Armenia has gone as far as announcing the creation of `New Aleppo’ – a
housing development outside the capital Yerevan that has reportedly
drawn interest from 600 Syrian Armenian families.

More than 7,000 Syrian Armenians have already expressed the desire to
relocate to Armenia, according to the Armenian government, which sees
the possible immigrants as a potential boost to a stagnant economy and
population fall.

Adel, who asked that his last name not be used for fear of reprisals
against his family, said that although Christians faced discrimination
under Mubarak’s long rule, the Muslim Brotherhood’s rise to power in
2012 has increased pressure on religious minorities and led many of
Egypt’s estimated 5 million to 15 million Copts to look for the exits.

Sipping tea in the offices of a legal consultancy in the Georgian
capital Tbilisi tailored to arriving Arabs – and set up by an Egyptian
Copt eight months ago – Adel is still weighing his options.

Although he supports the Egyptian military’s ouster of the Muslim
Brotherhood government earlier this month, he says he fears the
Islamist organization will be `just as dangerous out of power.’

Despite having a son in university and another finishing high school,
he says he’s already decided to leave Egypt. Both would face major
difficulties finishing their studies in Georgia, where the curriculum
differs greatly and would require proficiency in the Georgian
language.

Across Tbilisi, another Coptic immigrant smokes in lobby of the small
hostel he opened in April. Although he arrived just this January with
his wife and daughter, the 39-year-old, who asked to be named Ahmed,
said he already plans to return to his homeland as soon as he recoups
the $20,000 he invested in the venture.

Despite fears of a prolonged post-coup crisis, Ahmed says he’s
confident the threats to Christian communities in Egypt will abate and
has warned other Copts not to come to Georgia.

`Georgia is a nice country with nice people, but it’s not a suitable
place for business or a permanent stay,’ he said.

The country’s entrenched poverty and unemployment makes it a difficult
economy for immigrants and entrepreneurs, he explained.

Although the World Bank estimates Georgia’s 2012 GDP per capita as
slightly higher than Egypt’s at $3,508, 31 percent of Georgians said
in a June poll that they are `unemployed and looking for a job.’

The situation is similar in Armenia. Like the Copts in Egypt, Syrian
Armenians have long been supporters of the secular government of
President Bashar al-Assad. Many fear retribution from rebels should
the civil war drag on or if Assad falls.

Yerevan has gone as far as to offer passports to Syrians with Armenian
heritage at its consulates in Syria. But Richard Giragosian, director
of the Yerevan-based Regional Security Center, says that Armenia’s
sluggish economy and endemic corruption make it an unattractive
destination for its worldwide diaspora – even for those fleeing war.

`Despite the apparent urgency of the crisis for Armenians in Syria,
Armenia remains a remote and distant focus,’ Giragosian wrote in
Oxford Analytica in December. `Even some of those now coming to
Yerevan may be only treating it as a temporary refuge.’

Georgia’s secessionist province of Abkhazia has also sought to attract
immigrants fleeing strife in the Middle East. Abkhazia has been free
from Georgian control since forcing out government troops in a
1993-1994 conflict and has been recognized as independent by Russia
and a few of its allies.

Largely depopulated after forcing out more than 200,000 ethnic
Georgians following the war, it has now invited Syrian Circassians to
settle there. Circassians are ethnically linked to the Abkhaz: they
were expelled from the Caucasus in the late 19th century by the
Russian Empire and many ended up scattered throughout the Middle East.

Abkhazia claims it has welcomed and housed about 400 refugee families
from Syria.

Back in Tbilisi, Adel says he’ll return to Egypt to contemplate his
next move after four weeks checking out Georgia.

`It’s a small, mostly poor country and none of us knew anything about
it until the Muslim Brotherhood [came to power],’ he said.

`It’s difficult to see how we’ll be able to maintain our lifestyle
here. But it’s better than Egypt.’

Armenian students in Moscow offer free legal advice

20:57 – 27.07.13

Armenian students living in Moscow have decided to establish a legal
advice club and offer their help to Armenians arriving in Russia.

All those wishing may call +7 925 716 57 87.

`We, Armenian students living in Moscow, feel great pain when out
nationals get into trouble because they are unaware of Russian laws.

`Our legal advice club provides free legal advice to our Armenian
brothers and sisters,’ says a statement released by the club.

The tragic accident involving the Armenian driver Hrachya Harutyunyan
must be the reason for the Armenian students’ initiative.

Armenian News – Tert.am

July 27 marks 30th anniv. of Lisbon 5 attack on Turkish embassy

July 27, 2013 – 12:20 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – July 27, 2013 marks 30 years since 5 young men
occupied the Turkish Embassy in Lisbon to demand the international
recognition of the 1915-23 Turkish Genocide against the Armenians.

The men, who came to be known as the Lisbon 5, were forced to set off
explosives, destroying the embassy.

The members of the Armenian Revolutionary Army stormed the Turkish
embassy demanding the world remember the plight of their people and
the struggles faced by the descendants of the survivors from the 1915
genocide. The ambassador’s residence was under siege for an hour and a
half before the bomb was detonated. 7 were killed in the blast,
including the ambassador’s wife, a Portuguese bodyguard, and the young
people themselves.

A type-written message signed by the Armenian Revolutionary Army
delivered to The Associated Press office in Lisbon said: `We have
decided to blow up this building and remain under the collapse. This
is not suicide, nor an expression of insanity, but rather our
sacrifice to the altar of freedom.’ The group said the attack had been
carried out because `Turkey and its allies refused to acknowledge the
genocide of Armenians’.

>From the documents found in the hotel rooms, the police identified the
five as Setrak Ajamian, 19 years old; Ara Kuhrjulian, 20; Sarkis
Abrahamian, 21; Simon Yahniyan, 21, and Vache Daghlian, 19 (known in
Armenian sources as `The Lisbon five’). They were buried in Beirut at
the Armenian national cemetery in Bourj Hammoud.

ISRAEL ANGERED BY U.S. LEAKS OF SUBMARINE MISSILE ATTACK ON SYRIA

Israeli officials say leak should have been coordinated with Tel Aviv

Israeli naval submarine / APIsraeli naval submarine / AP

BY: Bill Gertz

July 24, 2013 5:00 am

Israeli government officials voiced anger at U.S. press leaks traced
to the Pentagon following the July 5 Israeli missile attack on the
Syrian port of Latakia that destroyed a shipment of Russian-made
anti-ship missiles, according to U.S. officials.

Senior Pentagon officials, including Deputy Secretary of Defense
Ashton Carter who is currently visiting Israel, discussed the leaks
during meetings with Israeli officials this week. The Israelis argued
in private meetings and other exchanges that the disclosures could
lead to Syrian counterattacks against Israel and should have been
coordinated first with the Israeli government.

Pentagon press secretary George Little declined to comment when asked
if Carter discussed the leaks in meetings with Israeli officials
on Monday.

The Israeli military attack was unusual because it involved
a submarine-launched cruise missile strike on the Syrian city of
Latakia, a major port.

The covert attack destroyed a stockpile of what was believed to be
50 new Russian-made anti-ship missiles called the Yakhont that U.S.

officials said could be used against ships that will provide arms in
the future to Syrian rebels.

According to U.S. officials, the Israeli government censored domestic
press reports about the attack over concerns that any public discussion
might prompt Syrian counterattacks against the Jewish state.

Israel also feared the Yakhont missiles would be transferred to
Hezbollah, the Lebanese-based Iranian terrorist organization that in
the past was supplied by Iran with advanced Chinese anti-ship missiles.

A Hezbollah-fired C-802 anti-ship missile was used to nearly sink an
Israeli corvette off the coast of Lebanon during the 2006 summer war.

The C-802s were sold to Iran in the 1990s and transferred to Hezbollah
to reaffirm the U.S. commitment to the unprecedented security
cooperation between the United States and Israel, and to discuss
a range of issues of mutual importance, including Syria and Iran,”
by Tehran.

Carter met with senior Israeli security officials “Little said in a
statement issued Monday.

Among those who met with Carter were Defense Minister Moshe “Boogie”
Ya’alon, National Security Advisor retired Maj. Gen. Yaakov Amidror,
and retired Maj. Gen. Udi Shani, director general of the Defense
Ministry.

“They reaffirmed that the U.S.-Israel defense relationship has never
been stronger and agreed to continue to consult closely on shared
security interests,” Little said.

The reports on the Latakia raid that angered the Israelis first
appeared on CNN July 12 and a day later in the New York Times.

The news organizations quoted “multiple U.S. officials,” and “American
officials” respectively.

Israel has carried out several foreign military attacks in recent
years, most notably the airstrike that destroyed a Syrian-North Korean
nuclear facility at Al Kibar, Syria.

Israel’s military has also conducted attacks in Syria in recent months
that were aimed at destroying caches of shoulder-fired surface-to-air
missiles and Iranian short-range ballistic missiles believed destined
for Hezbollah fighters.

A U.S. official said signs of Israeli anger over the Latakia raid
disclosures appeared in several Israel press outlets. One Israeli
official was described as “furious” over the leak because the Pentagon
did not coordinate its release of information first with Israel.

Other Israeli officials were quoted as saying that in the aftermath
of the Yakhont missile strikes that ties between Israel and Syria
had reached a new peak and that there are worries that tying Israel
to the attack will prompt Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad to retaliate
soon or against a future Israeli attack.

Israel has said that it would take action to prevent chemical weapons
from falling into the hands of terrorists in Syria. But it has not
commented on its lesser actions against Syrian arms sent to the
Damascus regime by Russia or Iran, Assad’s main backers.

Israeli press commentary on the Latakia raid disclosures suggested
the U.S. news reported risked the lives of Israeli and may have been
part of Obama administration debate over U.S. military intervention
in Syria’s civil war.

Another commentator, Dan Margalit, stated in the daily newspaper
Yisrael Hayom that the leak was part of a U.S. ploy to force Israel
into the Syrian conflict as a way to pressure Assad into stepping down
and leaving the country, as a way to avoid U.S. military intervention.

Another journalist, Ron Ben-Yishay, wrote on the news website Ynetnews
that the Pentagon leaked the information to show that airstrikes in
Syria are possible.

Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, this week
outlined U.S. military options for Syria in a letter to Senate Armed
Services Committee Chairman Sen. Carl Levin (D., Mich.).

The Obama administration recently agreed to supply Syrian rebels
with small arms but is considering larger military intervention,
including the imposition of an air exclusive zone over Syria.

An Israeli government spokesman referred questions about the leaks
to a comment made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that
was published July 21 in the German news outlet Welt am Sonntag.

Asked if it bothered him that sensitive information was leaked on the
Latakia raid and other past operations by Israel’s American friends,
Netanyahu said: “I am not responsible for what people say we do or
don’t do. I am responsible for our policy which is to prevent the
transfer of dangerous weapons to Hezbollah and I am also responsible
for what we say and if I have anything to say, I’ll say it.”

This entry was posted in Congress, Middle East, National Security,
Politics and tagged Ashton Carter, Israel, Martin Dempsey, Pentagon,
Syria. Bookmark the permalink.

FOREIGN MINISTER’S OFFICIAL VISIT TO CHINA KICKED OFF

On July 25, minister of foreign affairs of Armenia arrived in Beijing
on an official visit.

On the same day he met with his Chinese counterpart Van Yii. The
Chinese official said Armenia is a friendly partner of his country in
the Caucasus and in the CIS. For his part, Edward Nalbandyan said that
Armenia attaches great importance to the development and strengthening
of relations with China.

The collocutors dwelt on bilateral cooperation in political,
inter-parliamentary, trade, cultural and educational spheres. In
terms of decentralized cooperation, the officials underlined the
establishment and strengthening of relations between Beijing, Lori
region and Shanxi Province. They stressed the establishment of the
Chinese school in Yerevan. The collocutors discussed issues relating
to cooperation in international organizations.

The ministers agreed to carry out an inventory of all documents signed
in the past few decades and work out new ones. 12 new agreements are
in the drafting stage currently. Edward Nalbandyan presented to his
Chinese counterpart the Karabakh issue settlement process.

Edward Nalbandyan invited the Chinese minister to Armenia.

Vahe Gabrielyan, president of the foreign ministry’s diplomatic school,
signed an agreement with the Chinese university of foreign affairs
on the cooperation between both educational establishments.

Edward Nalbandyan met also with the member of the Chinese state board
and discussed bilateral relations and issues relating to political,
economic and cultural ties. They also dwelt on the encouragement
of Chinese investments in Armenia. Press service of the foreign
ministry reports.

12:58 26/07/2013 Story from Lragir.am News:

ARTHUR AGHABEKIAN LEAVES ARMENIAN STRUCTURE OF ARF-D

Friday,
July 26

Former deputy of ARF-Dashnaktsutyun faction of the Armenian parliament,
currently Deputy Prime Minister of Nagorno Karabakh Arthur Aghabekian
has left Armenia’s affiliated organization of ARF-D, according to
‘Zhoghovurd’.

During a talk with the newspaper’s correspondent, Aghabekian explained
that he did not withdraw from the party, but has become a member of
ARF-D’s Karabakh affiliated organization after being appointed deputy
prime minister of the NKR.

TODAY, 12:42

Aysor.am

HOW TO WIN THE MOVEMENTS

July 25 2013

Any movement, whether it is national liberation, political,
environmental, human rights protection or, as it is now, pursuing
“local” objectives, are powerful insofar that people treat each
other better. It is not a romantic reverie, it is a proven fact. The
recently, the most popular ‘case’ was the nationwide movement formed in
2008, when the overwhelming majority of Armenians, regardless of their
political and personal preferences, sincerely wished the government
not to be reproduced, and really systemic changes in the country take
place. More the search for traitors, “ambushes”, secret government
agents, ‘collaborationists’ deepened, more the movement weakened and
blew down. The problem is that you do not need to rouse your supporters
or potential allies putting them into too narrow scopes, restricting
it by dogmas and formulations and slogans reminding ‘mantras’. We have
to accept that people may fight for the same goal in different ways,
in compliance with their mentality and temperament. People need to
understand that each does the same job with its chosen method, and they
do not need to berate each other as to “why you do not do what I do,”
or “where were you when I …” and so on. This last, “transportation”
movement is beneficial because it does not limit people with some
‘program provisions’ that are elaborated in the party ‘politbureaus’,
and sets a very specific purpose, the municipality should review its
decision and maintain the former transport price. Those who share
the idea, do their job in different ways, how much they want and how
righteous they consider. People feel certain affection for each other,
and when, for example, the owner of the ‘Jeep’ takes a passenger from
the bus stop free, the passenger is not thinking that “why does he
have a “Brabus”, and I don’t.” Or the “non star” does not say “the
star” why are you famous, and I’m not.

Because being human and helping each other is more important than
driving a ‘Brabus’ or being famous. And those who think paying
150 drams is right and natural, or, however, is not going to fight
against that price… you should not become enemies with those people,
ridicule, bring shame on them, “inspire respect.” Every manifestation
of blackmail and aggression has an adverse effect. Any movement will
succeed when its supporters will people included and not included in
the public sector, standing on different levels of different political,
religious beliefs, social hierarchy. These people need to genuinely
love and believe in each other, and respect and tolerate those who
are not involved in that movement. Everything seems to be clear. The
implementation is difficult.

Aram Abrahamyan

Read more at:

MELODIES ARMENIENNES ET JAZZ EN TURQUIE

TURQUIE

L’une des artistes les plus importantes de la Syrie, la chanteuse
Lena Chamamyan, s’est produite avec le pianiste Tulug Tirpan et l’un
des meilleurs violoncellistes de Turquie, Ozer Arkun, ainsi que le
renommee joueur de kanun Goksel Baktagir. Le concert a eu lieu au
Palais Yildiz a Istanbul.

Lena Chamamyan, qui combine le jazz et la musique classique armenienne,
est nee a Damas, où au cours de ses etudes primaires et secondaires,
elle a participe a de nombreux concerts dans les ecoles des l’âge de
5 ans. Elle a commence a etudier la musique a l’âge de 9 ans et est
diplôme du departement de gestion d’economie a l’Universite de Damas
en 2002. Elle a etudie a l’institut superieur de musique de Damas et
est diplôme en tant que chanteuse classique en 2007.

Elle a egalement rejoint les ateliers du jazz.

Elle a egalement travaille avec de nombreux chanteurs et musiciens de
differentes nationalites dans de nombreux festivals de jazz en Syrie.

ISTANBUL – Hurriyet Daily News

vendredi 26 juillet 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com