JHANGIRYAN SENTENCED TO THREE YEARS OF PRISON
A1+
12:37 pm | March 22, 2009
Politics
On March 23 the Court of General Jurisdiction of Yerevan’s
Kentron-Nork-Marash districts resumed the trial of ex deputy Prosecutor
General Gagik Jhangiryan.
Gagik Jhangiryan was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment.
Details will be given later in the day.
ARMENIA MAY START ENERGY EXPORT TO TURKEY IN APR
ARKA
March 20, 2009
YEREVAN, March 20. /ARKA/. Armenia may start supplying electric energy
to Turkey this April, said RA Minister of Energy and Natural Resources
Armen Movsisyan.
An agreement on the supply of electric energy to Turkey was signed
on September 4, 2008, between the RA Ministry of Energy, High-Voltage
Network Company and the UNIT Company (Belgium), which specializes in
importing and distributing high-voltage electric energy in Turkey.
Under the agreement, the necessary work is being carried out for
the energy supply to be started as soon as possible, the Minister
told reporters.
Under the agreement the Turkish side pledged to renovate the
high-voltage substations and disassemble 3-4km long power lines within
4-5 months.
Movsisyan said that the preparatory work is expected to be completed
this April, and electric energy will be supplied to Turkey immediately
afterward.
Since the prices for gas, energy and water are to be raised in Armenia
from April 1, the energy price for Turkey may be pegged to the price
of gas supplied to Armenia.
Under an advance agreement, Armenia is to start from 1.5bln kwh to
bring this quantity up to 3.5bln kwh during the following years.
The expected energy export price is $57 per 1MW, but the final price
will be adjusted to the gas price changes after the terms of supply
have been specified.
On February 27, the=2 0RA Public Services Regulatory Commission
approved a new gas price for Armenian consumers – 96,000 for 1,000
cubic meters against 84,000 AMD.
The new price is to take effect from April 1, 2009.
The price for the electric energy supplied by the Electric Network
of Armenia CJSC will be raised by 5 AMD for 1kwh. So the day-time
price will reach 30 AMD for 1kwh, and the night-time price 20 AMD
for 1kwh.
MOSCOW REACTIVATES EFFORTS IN CONNECTION WITH AZERBAIJAN
Ajdar Kurtov
WPS Agency
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
March 18, 2009 Wednesday
Russia
HIGHLIGHT: RUSSIA IS READY FOR COMPROMISES IN TRANS-DNIESTER AND
NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT SETTLEMENT; Russia likes to pretend that
it remains the main locomotive force in conflict-settlement efforts
in the Commonwealth. Life shows a different story.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov began a two-day visit to
Azerbaijan. Departing Moscow, Lavrov said Russia was prepared to
second a "compromise agreement" on Nagorno-Karabakh between Yerevan
and Baku and even become its guarantor.
The Russian-Azerbaijani relations were coldly reserved for years
on end, interspersed every now and then by diplomatic assurances
of willingness for neighborly warmth. For quite obvious reasons,
Moscow and Baku offered different answers to the question of what had
caused this "wintry co-existence" in the first place. Their answers
notwithstanding, it is clear that conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh played
a major part in the status quo because of Azerbaijan’s certainty that
Russia had backed Armenia in the conflict.
Ducking the old problem is becoming increasingly more difficult for
Moscow, these days. The disintegration of the USSR sparked lots of
conflicts on its territory. Some of them were settled, but others
driven deep and left to smoulder. Political scientists call these
later latent conflicts. It is clear that the day must eventually come
when willingness to try and offer a solution is displayed by some
third party, one previously uninvolved in the endless and pointless
diplomatic meetings. This is exactly what happened in August 2008.
As a result, Moscow’s political rhetorics with regard to the
Crimea and Sevastopol, Trans-Dniester region, and Nagorno-Karabakh
changed and became different from what it had been before August
8. Moreover, the Kremlin even indicated willingness to alter its
previously unalterable positions in the matter of conflicts in the
Trans-Dniester region and Nagorno-Karabakh. Formally, it does not
look like a concession, not for the time being at least. Russian
politicians go out of their way to present the matter in the light
that will show them still being the major locomotive force in the
conflict-settlement efforts. Unfortunately for them, they are not
being particularly convincing.
At the very least, things in general seem to be progressing toward
the following: Tiraspol is being forced to accept the variant outlined
in the law on the status of autonomy Moldova adopted in 2005. As for
Nagorno-Karabakh, efforts are made to persuade it to accept a solution
that requires some specific steps from Stepanakert and Yerevan and
but some vague promises of return gestures from Baku.
The idea to deploy Russian peacekeepers between the Armenian
and Azerbaijani forces discussed nowadays is less unequivocal
than its authors like to pretend. It looks quite attractive
in theory. In real life, however, the Russians will have to be
quartered on the territories currently occupied by armed forces of
Nagorno-Karabakh, in the areas where the latter built fortifications
that preclude Azerbaijani military operations for the time being. Since
peacekeepers cannot operate on minefields, all these areas of defense
Nagorno-Karabakh developed will have to be dismantled. Will the
Armenians go for it? It is unlikely, particularly as the president of
Azerbaijan once again announced that independence of Nagorno-Karabakh
is out of the question both in the course of the talks now and in
the future.
MILITARIZATION RECOGNIZES NO CRISES
by Vladimir Mukhin
WPS Agency
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
March 20, 2009 Friday
Russia
INTENSIVE MILITARIZATION OF CIS COUNTRIES SHOWS THAT THE POST-SOVIET
ZONE REMAINS A ZONE LACKING STABILITY; Post-Soviet countries’ defense
costs increase faster than anybody else’s.
SIPRI published an analysis of the shape of international security
and arms spendings and their forecasts. Its specialists expect the
intensity of threats to international security to grow in 2009.
The appearance of conflict areas is even possible in the zone of
Russian interests i.e. on the territories of the so called nearby
foreign countries. At least, the analysis of open data on CIS
military budgets (traditionally including Georgia and Turkmenistan
that do not belong to the Commonwealth) in 2009 leaves precisely
this impression. Crisis or not, the post-Soviet countries’ military
budgets will be spared sequestering. Moreover, their aggregate value
in 2009 will top the 2008 figure by 9%. Russia is the only exception
because its military budget will be sequestered by 8%. Even so,
its arms spending will top last year’s by 3%.
It is going to be the smallest increase of Russian arms spendings
since 2000. In relative terms, however, they more than doubled in the
last eight years. This rise of defense costs in 2000-2008 is typical
of other post-Soviet countries as well.
Arms spendings of some post-Soviet states leave their economies
grossly underfunded. Georgia is the unquestionable leader. Its
military budget amounted to nearly $1 billion or 5% of the GDP in
2008. Georgia increased its military budget more than tenfold between
2004 and 2008. All analysts were convinced that Tbilisi was planning
a war, and a war it was. It was fought in August 2008. Not even the
defeat persuaded Tbilisi to curb its military appetites. Four point
four percent of the GDP in 2009 is a record in the Commonwealth
and throughout the whole continent. The impression is that Mikhail
Saakashvili’s regime is cherishing revanchist plans with regard to
South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
Like before, substantial sums will be spent on national defense in
Armenia (3.6% of the GDP) and Uzbekistan (3.4%). It figures. Armenia is
at odds with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh and Yerevan believes in
the old better-safe-than-sorry axiom. Uzbekistan has its own problems
– social tension fomented by overpopulation, unemployment, influence
exerted by radical extremist and religious movements.
Countries with relatively advanced raw-material economies – Kazakhstan
and Azerbaijan – reduced defense costs in relative terms. In absolute
figures, however, their military budgets are 10-15% larger than the
year before. Belarus, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan show a steady
growth of arms spendings too. Their military budgets this year will
top the previous year ones by at least one third. Kyrgyzstan and
Moldova have the smallest military budgets (less than 1% of the GDP),
due undeniably to their being the poorest CIS countries. The military
budget of Kyrgyzstan will be 7.7% down this year. On the other hand,
official Bishkek counts on military aid from Russia – and so do other
Central Asian republics.
Ukraine, too, plans to reduce its military budget this year.
The militarization of the Commonwealth, more intensive as it is than
anywhere else in the world, shows that the post-Soviet zone remains
an area that lacks stability. It is a region where conflicts are
possible, both international and domestic. These latter in their turn
may escalate into all-out wars, given the right (or rather wrong)
set of circumstances. The list of latent conflicts in the Caucasus
and Trans-Dniester region may be extended to include new ones in
problematic regions of Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan
as these latter are vulnerable to export of instability (Islamic
opposition and drug traffickers) from Afghanistan. Coupled with the
problems of the Crimea, Sevastopol, and Russian Black Sea Fleet,
political crisis in Ukraine may foment escalation of tension in
this country.
RA PRIME MINISTER TIGRAN SARGSYAN VISITED VANADZOR-KHIMPROM CHEMICAL PLANT
Hacked By Fdt – Mehmet KIRO DEDEDAGi
Wednes day, 18 March 2009
RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan visited Vanadzor-Khimprom chemical
plant.
The premier walked round the workshops, familiarized himself with
the current status of this formerly leading chemical company and
discussed the re-commissioning possibilities.
Then, a consultative meeting was held, attended by the RA ministers of
agriculture, energy and natural resources, Lori marz governor and the
director general of the plant. The meeting discussed re-commissioning
possibilities and strategic programs for the plant. It was decided to
resume the production of carbon amid, saltpeter and other fertilizers,
as well as to review the current status of the carbide production
line. The Prime Minister pointed out that the plant has the needed
capacity to ensure full supply of Armenian farmers’ demand in
fertilizers based on domestic raw materials which will boost the
production of agricultural commodities countrywide. Tigran Sargsyan
mentioned that the Government will possibly support the implementation
those programs designed by the management of the plant in terms of
enhanced sales and competitiveness, in particular. In conclusion,
the Prime Minister gave specific orders to ensure prompt and effective
solution of the existing problems.
PAKISTAN MEETING MAY HAMPER BABACAN’S ARMENIA VISIT PLANS
Today’s Zaman
March 18 2009
Turkey
An obstacle to a planned visit by Foreign Minister Ali Babacan to
Yerevan for a foreign ministerial meeting of Black Sea countries
is another landmark meeting on Pakistan — with which Turkey shares
special relations — that will be held in Japan on the same days.
In early March, Armenia rescheduled the foreign ministerial meeting
of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC),
apparently as a goodwill gesture to ensure that Babacan would be
among the participants.
Armenian authorities moved the date of the meeting from the previously
announced April 29 to April 16. The shift is significant because April
29 is only a few days after April 24, which Armenians claim marks
the beginning of a genocide campaign against Anatolian Armenians in
the early 20th century. April 24 is also the day when US presidents
traditionally release a statement to commemorate the Armenian killings.
However, a donors conference aimed at bringing stability to Pakistan
will be held in Tokyo on April 17. Babacan is eager to participate
in the conference on Pakistan, a frontline US ally in the campaign
against the Taliban and al-Qaeda extremists that has been wracked
by growing violence and economic instability, due to the importance
attached to the maintenance of stability in this country.
Currently, the scheduling of the two meetings in Yerevan and
Tokyo seems to hinder Babacan’s participation in both of the
meetings. Nonetheless, diplomatic sources didn’t exclude his
participation in either, saying the minister would make his final
decision "according to the situation" in the last week before the
meetings.
Although Ankara has a high opinion of BSEC and wants to revitalize
it as an influential regional consultation mechanism, Babacan’s
participation in the group’s next meeting in Yerevan apparently will
still depend on Armenia’s commitment to the ongoing rapprochement
process and on the progress of closed-door talks with Armenia.
GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY LECTURERS PASS THEIR EXPERIENCE TO ARMENIAN TOURISM MANAGERS
Noyan Tapan
M arch 17, 2009
YEREVAN, MARCH 17, NOYAN TAPAN. Tourism management courses will be
conducted by lecturers of George Washington University (US) in Yerevan
on March 17-24.
The lecturers have many years’ experience in tourism, hospitality and
entertainment and will give advice on brand formation as well. The
courses are being conducted by George Washington University in
cooperation with the USAID-financed Competitive Armenian Private
Sector (CAPS) project and the American University of Armenia (AUA),
and are aimed at providing modern information to tourism managers,
enabling them to be prepared to overcome the challenges of today’s
tourism sector.
The Head of the Tourism and Territorial Economic Development Department
of the RA Ministry of Economy Mekhak Apresian said on the first day
of the courses that Armenia has implemented a lot of programs on
development of the tourism sector in recent years. "One of the major
tasks of state policy is to encourage the development of Armenia’s
tourism by using human resources," he stated.
TIGRAN SARGSYAN: ARMENIAN BUSINESSMEN TRY TO USE NEW OPPORTUNITIES BEING CREATED IN JEWELRY SECTOR
Noyan Tapan
M arch 17, 2009
YEREVAN, MARCH 17, NOYAN TAPAN. In the opinion of Armenian Prime
Minister Tigran Sargsyan, under conditions of the global crisis,
serious difficulties have arisen in Armenia’s mining industry, and
quite the opposite, new opportunities are forming in the jewelry
sector, with Armenian businessmen trying to use them. The prime
minister told that to reporters during the March 17 visit to the
Masis gold processing plant.
In his words, the Masis gold processing plant is a successful
enterprise with modern equipment in line with international
standards. The prime minister underlined the importance of operation
of such enterprises using domestic raw materials, noting that it is
no accident that agreements have already been signed with Yerevan
jewelry plant for the purchase of all finished products of Masis plant.
During the visit the prime minister familiarized himself with the
production capacities, development prospects and working conditions
at this plant which had been launched by Assat company recently. The
Director General of Assat LLC Aram Osikian informed the prime
minister that their company was founded in 1999 and is currently
engaged in exploring several raw material fields and calculation of
their reserves, as well as construction of ore mills on their basis
with the use of copper, gold and other metals. Masis gold processing
plant is one of such projects: it has already been tested and has
good opportunities of development. The plant now has 20 employees and
plans to create 15-20 jobs within two months with the minimum salary
of 150 thousand drams.
ARMENIA OPPOSITION LEADER TO CONTEST CAPITAL VOTE
Kyiv Post
March 16 2009
Ukraine
YEREVAN, March 16 (Reuters) – Armenia’s opposition said on Monday
it would use May mayoral polls in the capital Yerevan to challenge
the national power of the president it says rigged his election to
office last year.
Opposition leader Levon Ter-Petrosyan is standing for mayor in what
his Armenian National Congress (ANC) says amounts to a second round
of the polls won by President Serzh Sarksyan.
More than 10,000 opposition supporters rallied in the capital of the
impoverished former Soviet republic on March 1 to mark the anniversary
of the election and commemorate 10 opposition activists who died in
subsequent protests.
"Yerevan has a significant weight in the political and economic life
of our country, and therefore the election of the mayor of the capital
should be seen as a key stage of the restoration of the constitutional
order," said the ANC in a statement on its website.
Armenia’s leaders, who maintain close links with Moscow while pursuing
ties with NATO, say they want to build a European-style democracy
and have won Western praise for allowing contested elections.
STRUGGLE
ANC’s central coordinator Levon Zurabyan presented Ter-Petrosyan’s
campaign for mayor of Yerevan as a first step to unseating
Sarksyan. "It will be .. a struggle against the monolithic system of
criminals and oligarchs," Zurabyan said.
Ter-Petrosyan became Armenia’s first president with the 1991 collapse
of the Soviet Union. He stepped down in 1998 over concession he had
backed in an attempt to end a dispute with neighbouring Azerbaijan
over the enclave of Nagorno Karabakh.
Ethnic Armenian separatists backed by Yerevan fought a war to take
control of the mountainous region that left 30,000 dead by the time
of a 1994 ceasefire.
On Feb. 25 the New York-based Human Rights Watch accused Armenia of
conducting "politically motivated" trials while ignoring evidence of
excessive use of force and ill-treatment of detainees.
Armenia has been hard hit by the global economic slowdown and its
disputes with Azerbaijan and larger neighbour Turkey. (Reporting by
Hasmik Lazarian; writing by Conor Sweeney; Editing by Ralph Boulton)
NA DEPUTY ARTSVIK MINASIAN TO HEAD ARFD ELECTORAL ROLL IN YEREVAN COUNCILLOR MEMBERS ELECTIONS
Noyan Tapan
M arch 16, 2009
YEREVAN, MARCH 16, NOYAN TAPAN. ARFD NA faction member Artsvik
Minasian will head the ARFD electoral roll in Yerevan councillor
members elections to be held on May 31. According to Noyan Tapan’s
unofficial information, this decision was made at ARFD Armenian Supreme
Body’s March 16 meeting: the electoral roll will be finally clarified
and publicized in the coming days.
According to Orinats Yerkir (Country of Law) parliamentary faction
head Heghine Bisharian, the party will finally confirm and publicize
its electoral roll on March 21.
The RPA and Bargavach Hayastan (Prosperous Armenia) parties will
also finally clarify their electoral rolls in the coming days. It
should be mentioned that those parties had in advance publicized the
decisions on their party lists’ being headed by current Yerevan Mayor
Gagik Beglarian and Health Minister Haroutiun Kushkian, respectively.
Nomination of parties and blocs for Yerevan councillor members’
elections will start on March 17. The deadline for introducing
necessary documents to the Central Electoral Commission for
registration is March 22, 18:00.