Author: nina hovnanian

AZERI PRESSURE GROUP CALLS FOR DEPORTING ARMENIAN EX-MINISTER

APA
Nov 22 2012
Azerbaijan

[Translated from Azeri]

An Azerbaijani pressure group has called for immediate deportation
of Armenian ex-foreign minister Raffi Hovhannisyan, leader of the
Heritage party, over the remarks he made at a Baku forum concerning
the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict.

The Karabakh Liberation Organization has described the visit of the
Armenian politician to Baku to participate in an Asian international
conference as “unacceptable”, the APA news agency reported on 22
November.

“Immediately upon his arrival to Baku, Raffi Hovhannisyan has
not refrained from expressing his position and making shameless
assertions. He said he regarded Sumqayit as an Armenian city and
rejected the fact of the occupation of Nagornyy Karabakh. On our part
we will use any means for the immediate deportation of the shameless
representative of aggressor Armenia from the country,” the news agency
quoted the organization’s statement as saying.

Meanwhile, Ali Ahmadov, deputy chairman and executive secretary of
the ruling New Azerbaijan Party, has said that Hovhannisyan’s remarks
are out of touch with the standpoint of the international community.

“Regardless of what the former Armenian foreign minister says, the
UN, major European bodies, the international community, including the
OSCE, which is tackling settlement of the conflict, and its co-chairs
have repeatedly voiced the fact that Azerbaijani lands have been
occupied. In addition, they have explicitly said that they recognize
Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity. I believe all of this confirms
that the imprudent statement made by the former Armenian foreign
minister is completely groundless,” APA quoted Ahmadov as saying.

Turan news agency quoted Hovhannisyan’s remarks at a press conference
in Baku. Hovhannisyan said that using terms like “occupation” is
ill-advised. “To follow this logic, a large part of Armenian lands
is also under the occupation of Turkey and Azerbaijan,” he said. He
said that “Azerbaijan’s aggression against residents of Karabakh”
was the cause of the conflict.

“I realize the problems of 700,000 Azerbaijani refugees and the rights
of 400,000 Armenian refugees evicted from Baku and Sumqayit. They all
have the right to return to their lands, including Azerbaijanis to
independent Nagornyy Karabakh and Armenians to Turkey,” the agency
quoted him as saying.

BAKU: AS LONG AS THE NK CONFLICT REMAINS UNSOLVED, THE FUTURE OF THE ARMENIAN STATE AND PEOPLE WILL BE UNDER QUESTION

APA
Nov 27 2012
Azerbaijan

Baku. Anakhanim Hidayatova – APA. “The Nagorno Karabakh conflict can
not remain unresolved.

The territories of Azerbaijan must be liberated from the occupation,”
chief of international relations department of the Presidential
Administration Novruz Mammadov told journalists, APA reports.

Mammadov also declared the expectations of Baku from the OSCE Minsk
Group: “Our desire and demand from the co-chairs is that the conflict
must not be protracted. They have been conducting negotiations in this
direction for years, but no real result has been achieved yet. The
conflict can not remain unresolved. To my mind, if the conflict is
solved as soon as possible, Armenia can guarantee the future of its
people. If the situation remains so, the future of this nation will
be under question.”

VAN-YEREVAN FLIGHTS TO COMMENCE SOON

Hurriyet
Nov 28 2012
Turkey

Over two years of efforts by Van businessmen to start flights between
their hometown and Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, have yielded
results that may shift shuttle trade from Istanbul to the eastern
province as well as boost local tourism revenues.

Round-trip flights between the two cities will kick off in two weeks,
Ayhan Fidan, a businessman and member of the Van Industry and Trade
Chamber (VATSO), told the Daily News.

VATSO has completed legal procedures regarding aviation regulations
and a plane will be rented from the local Bora Jet firm. “The land
border between Turkey and Armenia is closed, despite the fact that
air entrances and exits are free. This is a clear contrast. We want
the border gates to open,” said Fidan.

The Turkish border has been closed since 1993, when a war broke out
between Armenia and Azerbaijan. However, there are regular flights
from Istanbul to Armenia twice a week in the winter and from the
southern province of Antalya and western tourist resort of Bodrum in
the summer. There are also regular bus services.

“The land distance between Van and Yerevan is 230 kilometers. It is
possible to cover this distance by car if the border was open. Now you
have to fly this [short] distance. It will take 25 minutes for a plane
to take off in Van and to land in Yerevan. The total trip will take one
hour at the most. Isn’t that a contradiction in itself?” said Fidan.

A total of 30 tourism firms based in Van have created package tours
that will support air travel between the two cities, he said. “We aim
for 79 percent occupancy rates in the flights,” Fidan said, adding
that tickets prices would be 120 Turkish Liras. The shuttle trade in
Istanbul may shift to Van as a result of the flights, thanks to its
lower transportation costs, Fidan said.

Van is a significant destination for Armenians both from Armenia and
the Diaspora, due to the once-a-year church service at the Armenian
Cathedral of the Holy Cross on Lake Van’s Akdamar Island.

Flights are very important for economic relations to improve as
well as for entrepreneurs in Van, Bitlis and Kars, the Union of
Industrialists and Entrepreneurs of Armenia President Arsen Ghazaryan
said, according to the news portal Panarmenian.net. The flights will
receive substantial interest in Armenia and contribute to regional
tourism, Ghazaryan said.

November/28/2012

RISKS FOR THE ARMENIAN AUTHORITIES

Vestnik Kavkaza
Nov 27 2012
Russia

Susanna Petrosyan, Yerevan. Exclusively to Vestnik Kavkaza

Less than three months remain till the presidential elections in
Armenia. Today the political forces analyze their advantages and
possible risks. The main competitors are the authorities represented
by President Serge Sargsyan and the party Prosperous Armenia headed by
tycoon Gagik Tsarukyan. Internal political prospects can be predicted
after the analysis of the system’s stability in three directions –
economic, internal political, and foreign political risks.

Economic risks

The discussed state budget project for 2013 is heavily criticized by
the opposition. According to the most conservative estimate of the IMF,
35% of Armenian economy is in shadow; Armenian experts are sure that
this figure achieves 50%. The other important consequence is paying
the foreign debt which is more than $400 million – it is a huge sum
which is twofold greater than the sum allocated to paying the debt in
2012. Many experts believe that the government will take new credits
for serving the current debt. These suggestions were confirmed by the
deputy financing minister Vardan Aramyan. Negotiations on getting a
new credit are going on, but either the EU or Russia hasn’t given a
positive answer.

One more economic risk is a negative business environment: despite the
government’s statement on development of minor and medium business,
in fact this business is oppressed in favor of major monopolists.

The current economic risks may enforce after the growth of prices
on Russian gas, which is planned since April 1, 2013, according to
certain sources. Gas prices growing, allocation of huge sums for debt
service, and monopolization of economy which causes migration will
create tension in the socio-economic sphere. To resist the risks the
government should have necessary reserves which are few. The state has
to collect taxes properly and reduce the so-called “shadow segment”
for providing these reserves. It means damaging interests of tycoons
who are closely connected with the authorities.

Therefore, the socio-economic situation will remain tense, but we
cannot say that it is hopeless and can cause a social burst. Most
probably, the system’s stability will maintain in the socio-economic
sphere.

Foreign political risks

The dominating directions of the Armenian foreign policy are settlement
of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Armenian-Turkish relations, and
relations between Armenia and the key players in the region – the USA,
Russia, and the EU.

Tension remains on the firing line in the Karabakh conflict, but
it became permanent. A possibility of reviving wide-scale military
activities is thought to be tiny by many Armenian experts. The results
of the elections will hardly cause escalation of the conflict.

Regarding the second direction of the foreign policy, as the
Armenian-Turkish border is closed in Turkey’s sole discretion,
there will be no surprises. Moreover, a Russian military base which
provides Armenian security is situated new the border in west Armenia
and plays an important role in providing stability in the region.

As for foreign players, Brussels and Washington support the
administration of Serge Sargsyan. They are very interested in victory
of the current authorities. Firstly, Sargsyan promised and signed
the Armenian-Turkish protocols in October 2009. Secondly, he has
many times stated on his readiness to sign the Madrid Principles of
the Karabakh settlement. The solution of both problems is connected
with the West’s striving for diminishing Russia’s influence in the
South Caucasus. Signing of the Madrid Principles opens a way to
the settlement of the conflict and weakens Russia’s influence. Key
importance (for the US especially) is gained by the protocols on
normalization of the Armenian-Turkish relations, including settlement
of diplomatic relations and opening communications. Fulfillment of
the protocols will weaken Russian influence on Armenia. Considering
this fact, Washington and Brussels try to hold Sargsyan in power. All
international institutes which are controlled by Western countries
will support him in the coming elections.

At the same time, the position of Russia, one of the key players in
the region, toward the Armenian authorities is still dim. Moreover,
it seems Russia doesn’t want to be involved into the process at all
or at least distances itself from it.

Ahead of the parliamentary elections in 2007 and the presidential
elections in 2008, Russia expressed political support of Sargsyan.

Today we cannot see this. Long time has passed since any important
Russian figures visited Yerevan. In late summer it was discussed
that President of Russia Vladimir Putin would visit Armenia. However,
it didn’t happen.

Internal political risks

The Republican Party of Armenia is a quite strong organization which
controls force structures, the government, the parliament, and has huge
financial capacities. At the same time, today Armenia experiences
a tendency to forming an alternative pole to RPA – it includes
Prosperous Armenia and the Armenian National Congress. Probably the
Dashnaktsutyn Party will join these forces. This alternative pole can
present a unified candidate, and most probably he would be a tough
competitor for Serge Sargsyan in the elections. Nobody believes in
social polls in Armenia; their results often disturb orientation in
the internal political situation. However, the social attitude to the
current authorities is expressed in activeness of social initiatives,
numerous protest demonstrations near the government building, the
Presidential Palace, which are connected with the authorities’ policy
and unfair court verdicts.

According to observers, Sargsyan has the biggest anti-ranking among
politicians. In the situation when the alternative pole is being
formed and the social support is so low, account on “dead souls”
(about 500 thousand votes of citizens who are not in the country at
the moment), which is normal for RPA, can lead to serious accidents.

If the authorities ascribe a half a million votes to them, it can
explode the society.

Speaking about internal political risks for the system, the open use
of damaging information should be noted; it is the first time in the
Armenian political life. Until now damaging information has never been
used openly in election campaigns. There were only threats to use it,
but the authorities broke the tradition. I mean damaging information
against the former foreign minister, the member of Prosperous Armenia
Vardan Oskanyan. The power opened Pandora’s Box by the incident; and
probably soon serious damaging information against the authorities
will appear.

It should be realized that there are more participants in the
presidential elections than in the parliamentary elections, as
voters understand clearly whom they elect and what for. Moreover,
200-250 thousand voters are labor migrants who come to Armenia for
winter. The majority of these people will hardly support the power
which forced these people leave the country in a search for job.

Nevertheless, the system is relevantly stable in all three directions.

However, it is difficult to say whether the stability will maintain
in the certain extreme situation.

KIM KARDASHIAN, ROSE PARADE FLOAT? GLENDALE CITY COUNCILMAN ARA NAJARIAN SUGGESTS REALITY STAR

Huffington Post
Nov 29 2012

The City of Pasadena has already chosen their royal court for the
2013 Rose Parade, but another Southern California city could raise
the stakes by inviting queen bee Kim Kardashian to sit on their Rose
Parade float.

Glendale City Councilman Ara Najarian proposed inviting Kardashian
to sit atop the city’s Rose Parade float during a council meeting
Tuesday, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Kardashian, arguably the queen of reality TV, keeps the City of
Glendale close to her heart, as it’s home to the largest number of
Armenians outside of Armenia.

Proud and outspoken about her Armenian heritage, Kardashian’s PSA
and tweets about the controversial Armenian genocide have endeared
her to Najarian, who invited her to be his honorary chief of staff
when she expressed interest in running for mayor of Glendale in 2017.

But besides love of the homeland, Najarian seems to have a more
practical reason for inviting Kardashian to participate in the
Rose Parade.

“One or two words from Kim Kardashian are worth hundreds of thousands
of advertising dollars,” he said during the city council meeting.

Fellow councilman Dave Weaver challenged Najarian’s idea, reports
the Times, saying that a local high school student would foster
“more community involvement.”

If Kardashian does accept the honor, she might have to pull an
all-nighter. She’s reportedly scheduled to appear at the 1 OAK
Nightclub at the Mirage Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas for New Year’s
Eve, and the kick-off time for the New Year’s Day parade is 8 a.m.

sharp.

INMATES WHO RAN ID THEFT RING FROM PRISON GET 25 YEARS

Los Angeles Times
Nov 28 2012

Two men associated with the Armenian Power gang were each sentenced
to 25 years in federal prison Wednesday on charges of perpetrating
a sophisticated identity theft ring from lockup, according to the
United States attorney’s office.

Angus Brown, 36, whose nickname is “Homicide,” and Arman
Sharopetrosian, 33, known as “Horse,” were two of the 20 defendants
named in an indictment last year related to an identify theft scheme
that looted at least $8 million, authorities said.

Under the scheme, which involved the Armenian Power gang working in
concert with other street gangs, bank insiders were bribed to steal
personal information from mostly elderly victims whose signatures were
forged, with big checks deposited into phony accounts, authorities
said.

Brown and Sharopetrosian had been convicted of running the identity
theft ring from Avenal State Prison in the Central Valley.

Brown had already been serving time at the prison for identity theft,
authorities said, while Sharopetrosian had been serving time for
shooting at an occupied vehicle and carrying a concealed weapon.

Prosecutors said the fraud ring picked elderly victims because they
were less likely to keep watch of their accounts by the Internet.

All 20 defendants were convicted and most are expected to be sentenced
in the coming months, authorities said.

Christopher Goffard

BURBANK FELONS GET 25 YEARS FOR ARMENIAN AND BLACK STREET-GANG-AIDED IDENTITY THEFT

Los Angeles Daily News, CA
Nov 28 2012

City News Service

SANTA ANA — Two men behind a massive identity-theft conspiracy that
was hatched and operated from a prison and victimized more than 500
people were sentenced today to 25 years in federal prison.

The conspiracy caused at least $8 million in losses, according to
federal prosecutors.

U.S. District Judge David O. Carter handed down the sentences today
for Angus Brown, 36, and Arman Sharopetrosian, 33, of Burbank.

The two were convicted earlier this year of spearheading the identity
theft ring, which included Armenian and black street gang members,
while the defendants were serving time in Avenal State Prison.

Sharopetrosian’s wife, Kristine Ogandzhanyan, was also convicted in
March of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, two counts of attempted bank
fraud and court counts of aggravated identity theft.

The husband and wife were tried in a combination jury and bench trial
before Carter that also led to convictions for co-defendants Keren
Markosian and Artush Margaryan, whose case was the only one decided by
jury.

In March, Carter said he was “astounded by the sophistication” of the
conspiracy, which came to light to federal authorities during an
investigation of organized crime among Armenian Americans.

As a result of that investigation, authorities were able to obtain a
wiretap on cellphones smuggled into Avenal State Prison for
Sharopetrosian, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph McNally.

The identity theft scheme victimized residents in Orange, Los Angeles
and San Bernardino counties, as well as Arizona, Texas and Nevada,
McNally said.

The indictment named 20 defendants, 15 of whom pleaded guilty, including Brown.

Sharopetrosian and Brown met as cellmates in the prison during the
summer of 2009. The two had a background in identity theft so they
teamed up, according to McNally, who said the two started with a
check-ordering scheme.

Bank employees paid low salaries were bribed to turn over personal
information of customers so the crooks could bypass the first line of
security by answering questions such as a mother’s maiden name,
McNally said.

Others were hired to intercept the checks, usually mailed overnight,
from mailboxes before customers could retrieve them, McNally said.

Ogandzhanyan forged signatures, copies of which were obtained from
public records such as marriage licenses, McNally said.

Sharopetrosian got the phones smuggled into the prison while Brown
called banks to order the checks, McNally said. Sharopetrosian even
got his elderly mother involved in the scheme by forging checks,
according to the prosecutor.

The checks would be deposited in accounts established in the names of
other Armenians who moved back to Armenia from the U.S., so if
something went wrong it would be difficult to trace the money to the
culprits, McNally said.

The conspiracy even involved forwarding phone calls from unsuspecting
victims so the thieves could intercept any calls from the bank about
large checks, he said.

Sharopetrosian also faces a racketeering indictment by a Los Angeles
federal grand jury and is awaiting trial, Mrozek said.

Many of the other co-defendants in the identity theft conspiracy await
sentencing, Mrozek said.

NEXT MEETING BETWEEN AZERI AND ARMENIAN FOREIGN MINISTERS MAY BE HELD EARLY NEXT YEAR

Interfax
Nov 28 2012
Russia

The OSCE Minsk Group’s co-chairmen met Azerbaijani and Armenian
officials in Baku and Yerevan to discuss new ideas aimed at
accelerating the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement, co-chairman Igor Popov
of Russia said on Monday.

“While in Yerevan, we discussed these ideas with President Sargsian.

Naturally, the Armenian side had its own suggestions and remarks that
have not been fully formulated yet. We held similar discussions with
President Aliyev and Foreign Minister Mammadyarov, and they too came
up with their suggestions,” Popov told Interfax after talks in Baku.

“We hope that these suggestions will be taken into account during
the next meeting between the two countries’ foreign ministers we are
planning to arrange,” he said.

No date for the meeting has been fixed yet.

Popov doubts that it may take place on the sidelines of the annual
ministerial session of the Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe (OSCE) in Dublin in December because both ministers have
a tight schedule.

“More likely, it will be held early next year,” the diplomat said.

Co-chairman Robert Bradtke of the United States hailed the constructive
atmosphere of the talks. The presidents will meet when the right
time comes, he told Interfax, and until then, the co-chairmen will
continue working with the foreign ministers.

During their trip to the conflict zone, the co-chairmen also visited
the Zangelan and Jabrail districts of Azerbaijan to see how the
situation there has changed since their last visit in October 2010,
the OSCE said in a statement circulated on Monday.

The co-chairmen thanked the OSCE president’s special representative
Andrzej Kasprzyk and his team for monitoring the ceasefire in
Nagorno-Karabakh.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT COMMITTED TO PEACEFUL SETTLEMENT OF DISPUTE OVER NAGORNO-KARABAKH

Interfax
Nov 28 2012
Russia

Armenia rules out the use of force in its dispute with Azerbaijan over
Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenian President Serzh Sargsian said on Monday.

“Armenia is following a policy of promoting peace and stability in the
region. We rule out the use of force in the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute
and are committed to settling it through negotiations mediated by
the OSCE Minsk Group,” Sargsian said at a joint conference in Beirut
after talks with Lebanese President Michel Sulayman.

Sargsian drew attention to ongoing military preparations in Azerbaijan,
a source in the Armenian president’s press service has told Interfax.

“Azerbaijan ignores trust-building proposals by the OSCE Minsk Group’s
co-chairmen and continues an unprecedented military buildup, preparing
its people for a new war,” he said.

“Changes that meet the will of the peoples should be carried out
peacefully, without the use of force, casualties or terror,” the
Armenian president said.

AZERBAIJAN ATTEMPTS TO CORRUPT AUSTRALIA?

news.am
November 29, 2012 | 00:25

Azerbaijan, famous only for its caviar and petroleum, is buying
Australian government bonds, by joining a growing list of sovereign
investors acquiring debt in Australia, Wall Street Journal informs.

The State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan said it started buying Australian
bonds in July when market data show the Australian dollar gained
value for 3.4 percent over the month.

“The main purpose of these investments made within the company’s
investment policy is diversification of its currency basket,” the fund
said in written responses to questions from the Wall Street Journal.

The purchase of Australian dollar-denominated debt and assets by
sovereign investors such as Azerbaijan is blamed by analysts and the
central bank for helping to inflate the value of the currency

However, this activation by the Azerbaijani company regarding Australia
looks suspicious in the light of the political processes, including
quite warm relations between Yerevan and Canberra, as well as the
activity of the Armenian community.

Moreover, this October, the Legislative Council of the Australian
state of New South Wales adopted a resolution on the recognition
of Artsakh [Nagorno-Karabakh] and the right of the Karabakh people
to self-determination.

By adopting the resolution, the Legislative Council “called on the
Australian Government to formally recognize the independence of
Nagorno-Karabakh and Australia to deepen relations with the country
and its citizens.”

Thus, it is likely that the steps by Azerbaijan are connected with
the desire to ‘neutralize’ the pro-Armenian trends in Australia.