Author: nina hovnanian

PRESIDENT SERZH SARGSYAN SIGNED DECREES ON BESTOWING HIGH STATE AWARDS ON THE MEMBERS OF THE ARMENIAN CHESS TEAM FOR THE BRILLIANT VICTORY AT THE WORLD CHESSOLYMPIAD

10.09.2012

Today, President Serzh Sargsyan signed decrees on bestowing high
state awards on the members of the Armenian Men’s Chess Team for
the brilliant victory at the World Chess Olympiad in Istanbul, for
holding high the Motherland’s honor at the international arena and
for presenting Armenia at its best to the world.

The coach of Armenia’s Men’s Chess Team, International Grand Master
Arshak Petrossian and International Grand Master Levon Aronian were
awarded the Saint Mesrop Mashtots Orders. The International Grand
Master Vladimir Hakopian, International Grand Master Sergei Movsissian,
International Grand Master Tigran Petrossian, International Grand
Master Gabriel Sarkissian were awarded the Order of Honor.

By another decree of the President, for the considerable contribution
to the brilliant victory of Armenia’s Men’s Chess Team at the World
Chess Olympiad in Istanbul as well as for the promotion of chess
playing in Armenia, the director of the T. Petrossian Chess Home
Hrachik Tavadian was awarded the First Degree Medal for the “Services
Provided to Motherland.”

For the considerable contribution to the brilliant victory of
Armenia’s Men’s Chess Team at the World Chess Olympiad in Istanbul,
Armen Aghuzumtsian was awarded the Second Degree Medal for the
“Services Provided to Motherland.”

ARTSAKH PRESIDENT: CRIMINAL’S TRANSFER TO AZERBAIJAN HARD BLOW TO NEGOTIATION PROCESS

Panorama.am
11/09/2012

Artsakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan met Personal Representative
of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk on
September 11.

The meeting addressed issues related to the current stage of the
Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict settlement negotiations and its prospects
as well as the situation along the contact line between the NKR and
Azerbaijan armed forces.

President Sahakyan specifically touched upon the recent transfer to
Azerbaijan of the criminal who perfidiously decapitated the sleeping
Armenian officer and his immediate release by that state. According to
the President, such heinous crime is a hard blow to the negotiation
process and the mediation mission of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair
countries, presidential press service reported.

INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY REACTED UNANIMOUSLY TO HUNGARIAN-AZERBAIJANI DEAL – FM NALBANDIAN

news.am
September 11, 2012 | 16:11

YEREVAN. – The international community’s approach toward the
Hungarian-Azerbaijani arrangement was unanimous and united, Armenia’s
FM Edward Nalbandian said Tuesday during his joint news conference
with Luxembourg’s Deputy PM and FM Jean Asselborn.

In response to the query as to how Armenia evaluates such attitude
by European organizations, Nalbandian stated:

“There is no international organization that did not express its
negative attitude toward this deal. The European Union not only made
that statement, but, also, other statements were made by the European
Union-member countries.

I have received dozens of telephone calls in the recent days from the
FMs of a variety of countries, who have expressed their unequivocal
attitude toward this Azerbaijani-Hungarian deal. There is no country
today that could express its support to what transpired. There is no
country that expresses its support to Azerbaijan,” Armenia’s FM noted.

Armenian News-NEWS.am reported earlier that Ramil Safarov, a lieutenant
in the Azerbaijani military, was extradited on August 31 from Hungary,
where he was serving a life sentence-and with no expression of
either regret or remorse-for the premeditated axe murder of Armenian
lieutenant Gurgen Margaryan, in his sleep, during a NATO Partnership
for Peace program in Budapest back in 2004.

As expected, Ramil Safarov’s return to Baku was welcomed, as was
his act of murder, by the officials of president Ilham Aliyev’s
government and much of Azerbaijani society, and the Azerbaijani
president immediately granted him a pardon.

And Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan announced on August 31 that
Armenia is suspending its diplomatic ties with Hungary.

Ramil Safarov’s pardoning is condemned by virtually all international
organizations.

MURDER OF A SLEEPING MAN LOW ACT IN MUSLIM WORLD TOO – EXPERT

news.am
September 11, 2012 | 16:53

YEREVAN. – It is not a secret that Azerbaijan is engaged in terrorist
actions and lots of Azerbaijani citizens support Islamic radical
organizations, expert of Arab studies Sargis Sargsyan said at a press
conference on Tuesday.

According to the expert, there is a serious ideological vacuum in the
Azerbaijani society, which needs to be filled in. Spreading ideology
of those Islamic radical organizations and even turning a murderer
into a hero is an attempt to fill the vacuum.

Asked about the response of the Islamic world in connection to
Safarov’s pardon, Asatryan said that only Pakistani Ambassador claimed
that Safarov is a hero of the entire Islamic world, while the rest
of the Islamic countries made no statements.

Even Turkey was very careful in its remarks. In addition, murder of
a sleeping man is a low act in the Muslim world.

NAGORNYY KARABAKH SHOULD TAKE PART IN NEGOTIATIONS, POLISH EXPERT THINKS

arminfo
Tuesday, September 11, 18:29

Nagornyy Karabakh should take part in negotiations, Director of
European Centre for Geo-Political Investigation, Mateush Piskorsky,
said in an interview with Public Television of the NKR.

As Arminfo correspondent reported from Stepanakert, Piskorsky said that
those European and western structures which say about the necessity of
the Karabakh conflict settlement, do not take into consideration the
fact that it is already for several years that the people of Karabakh
have been electing the legislative as well as executive power in the
person of the president. “Not taking this into account and being
affected by the Azerbaijani party, actually these structures rule
out any dialogue. Finally, who must come forward on behalf of the
people of Karabakh if not the democratically elected president and
parliament and other elected authorities? The fact that till 1996
Nagornyy Karabakh directly participated in the negotiating process
should be taken into account in the format of the talks on peaceful
settlement. For this reason, without participation of Karabakh, it
is impossible to imagine and think about peaceful settlement of the
conflict. It is necessary to change the format of the talks as soon
as possible and involve the Karabakh party in it”, – the expert said.

ARTSAKH PRESIDENT DISCUSSES AZERI-KARABAKH NEGOTIATIONS AND AZERI MURDERER RELEASE WITH OSCE

news.am
September 11, 2012 | 19:47

On September 11 Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Republic President Bako
Sahakyan met personal representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office,
Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, Artsakh Administration press-service
informs Armenian News-NEWS.am.

Issues related to the current stage of negotiations on the
Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict settlement and its prospects as well
as situation along the contact line between the NKR and Azerbaijan
armed forces were discussed during the meeting.

President Sahakyan specifically touched upon the recent transfer of
the criminal perfidiously decapitated the sleeping Armenian officer to
Azerbaijan and its immediate release by that state. According to the
President, such heinous crime is a hard blow to the negotiation process
and the mediation mission of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries.

THAT RUBEN HAYRAPETYAN BEHAVED LIKE A WORM: HRANUSH KHARATYAN

2012-09-11 14:51:37

In a meeting with reporters ethnographer Hranush Kharatyan touching
upon Ruben Hayrapetyan’s interview said: “His adversity is a clear
lying. He should have acted correctly not to blackmail the family. He
behaved like a worm, as hinted activists’ families. In his interview
being a man of this or that man is important.”

It’s ridiculous for Hranush Kharatyan spokesman’s announcement on Gagik
Tsarukyan’s phone call and considers that Tsarukyan could find the
reporter and learn the truth. “Ruben Hayrapetyan is frightened. He
tries to find public defense. He tries to politicize this social
movement, as he is also someone’s man.

In the interview he says we have financing sources, but I didn’t
meet anyone, didn’t talk to anyone, I’m not being financed,” Hranush
Kharatyan said.

Next speaker of the press conference technologist Karen Kocharyan,
touching upon the same interview, said: “Why don’t the charges enter
the court, if there is a charge, it should either be proved or blamed.

I have always been there and I haven’t been financed.”

And to the question of Lurer.com why the Police is silent on the
threats being announced, the political technologist answered surprised:
Do you wonder? Where did our Police respond to respond here?

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT HAD A PHONE CALL WITH EPP PRESIDENT

ARMENPRESS
11 September, 2012
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS: On September 11 the President of
the Republic of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan had a phone call with the
President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Wilfried Martens,
with the initiative of the latter. As Armenpress was reported by the
press office of the Armenian President, Serzh Sargsyan and the EPP
President discussed the situation connected with the axe-murder of the
Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan by Azerbaijani perpetrator Ramil
Safarov in the capital of Hungary, Budapest, and Safarov’s secret
extradition from Hungary to Azerbaijan and the situation afterwards,
as well as spoke on the regional developments and challenges.

The interlocutors discussed also issues on organization of the
upcoming EPP political assembly session in the capital of Romania,
Bucharest and EPP regional summit in Yerevan in the end of 2012.

STEPANAKERT AIRPORT TO BE LAUNCHED TILL LATE SEPTEMBER

tert.am
11.09.12

The reconstructed airport of Nagorno-Karabakh’s capital, Stepanakert,
will be put into operation until the end of September, according to
the chief of the country’s Civil Aviation Department, Dmitry Adbashyan.

Earlier plans to launch the airport were delayed due to the summer
period and the beginning of September.

Speaking to Tert.am, Adbasyan said the delays were linked to the
implementation of expert proposals. A normative act elaborated by
independent experts who conducted inspections at the airport in May
said the construction complies with the ICAO (International Convention
on Civil Aviation) standards.

“The act predominantly focused on technical imperfections, i.e. what
has to be done to eliminate the remaining shortcomings,” Adeshyan
noted.

According to him the shortcomings are now 99% overcome, with the
Department working on legal details.

“A second group of narrow specialists is working now, after which we
will issue permission for putting the airport into operation,” he said.

Asked whether [Azerbaijani axe-killer] Ramil Safarov’s extradition,
pardoning and glorification as a hero, as well as the international
alarm over the processes could serve as political motives for
delaying further the airport’s operation, he answered, “There are no
circumstances we could turn attention to or take into consideration.”

The OSCE Minsk Group had earlier confirmed that the airport’s opening
would not affect Nagorno-Karabakh’s status. It called upon the
conflicting parties to ensure that the flights over their territories
are carried out in accordance with the norms and principles of
international law.

Despite the warning, however, Azerbaijan has several times threatened,
on the level of different officials, to shoot down the aircrafts
flying over Karabakh.

In May 2011, the head of the Azerbaijani State Civil Aviation
Department, Arif Mamedov said the official Baku has a right to destroy
the air-planes landing at the airport.

Armenia’s response came soon afterward, with President Serzh
Sargsyan characterizing the Azerbaijani officials’ statements as
morbid fantasies.

“The people of Nagorno-Karabakh have a right to benefit from air
transport services,” the president said, promising to be the first
passanger to fly to Stepanakert.

THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY WAS SHOCKED BY HUNGARIAN-AZERBAIJANI DEAL: EDWARD NALBANDYAN

ARMENPRESS
11 September, 2012
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS: Armenian Foreign Affair Minister
Edward Nalbandyan dwelled on his Hungarion counterpart Janos
Martonyi letter posed to him in the course of the launched press
conference. “Hungarian-Azerbaijani deal drew the international society
into shock and reportedly they came forth with relevant recalls. The
responses by Azerbaijani side are no less shocking.

Unfortunately the same cannot be said about Hungary” Nalbandyan
stated, Armenpress reports. Foreign Minister head innumerated the
contradictions of Azerbaijani and Hungarian statements. Hungary states
the procedure of the deal was transparent, yet the Azerbaijani high
ranking official insists the deal was confidential. Hungary Government
urges they were unaware about Safarov release, yet Azerbaijan claims
the opposite. Hungary sent a note to the Embassies accredited in
Budapest in one hand expressing its concern in the other hand stating
they are determined to continue the development of strategic relations
with Azerbaijan.

Hungary states the decision of criminal transfer was consistent with
Strasbourg Convention, whether PACE President announced the deal abuses
the Convention. “Hungary side is trying to justify itself stating
they do not bear responsibility. Armenia suspended its diplomatic
relations with Hungary because of Hungarian side decision to make a
deal”. According to Nalbandyan the responses and attitude pertain to
the event by the international community were unanimous: there was
not a structure that did not express its negative attitude to the
deal. Nalbandyan noted he had received dozensa of telephone calls by
various countries, EU member states Foreign Ministries inclusive.

Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov axed to death Armenian innocent
officer Gurgen Margaryan when the latter was sleeping , February 19,
2004 in Budapest . The two officers were taking a training program
in Budapest under the auspices of NATO’s Partnership for Peace Program.

Hungarian court sentenced Ramil Safarov to life imprisonment, without
a right to be pardoned during the first 30 years in jail. Yet the
criminal was extradited by Hungary Government on August 31, 2012. On
the same day the assassinate was granted pardon by Azerbaijani
President. Armenia has suspended its diplomatic relations with
Hungary. International community is coming forth with condemnation
statements on international legal norms contradicting step.