Author: Taslakhchian Andranik

RUSSIAN MILITARY PRACTICES PEACE ENFORCEMENT IN CONFLICT ZONES

Daily Georgian Times
July 16 2008
Georgia

Russia’s North Caucasian Military District (SKVO) launched on July 15
large scale military exercises, Kavkaz-2008, involving 8,000 personnel
from the Army, the Interior Ministry and border guards of the Federal
Security Service, Russian news agencies reported.

"The main goal of the exercises is to assess a joint response
of military administrations against the background of a terrorist
threat in the south of Russia," Interfax and Itar-Tass news agencies
quoted an aide to the commander of the Russian land forces, Igor
Konashenkov, as saying. "In connection with an escalation in tension
in the Georgian-Abkhaz and Georgian-Ossetian conflict zones, issues
related to involvement in special peace enforcement operations in the
zones of armed conflict will also be worked out during the exercises."

He also said that around 700 pieces of military hardware were involved
in the exercises.

Meanwhile, about 2,000 soldiers, mainly from the United States and
Georgia, launched military exercises Immediate Response-2008 at the
Vaziani base outside Tbilisi on July 15.

Smaller units from Armenia, Azerbaijan and Ukraine are also taking
part in the exercises.

U.S. Brigadier General William B. Garrett told journalists in Vaziani
that the main purpose of the exercises was to increase the cooperation
between U.S. and Georgian forces.

The exercises, which were planned by the U.S. European Command,
were first announced in January, 2008.

KEY CONCERNS IN THE FIELD OF COMPETENCIES
Lilit Poghosyan

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
Published on July 15, 2008
Armenia

Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Tomas Hammarberger
visited Armenia on July 13 to familiarize himself with the
parliamentary investigations of March 1-2 developments.

Yesterday morning he had meetings in the National Assembly with the
members and representatives of the Temporary Committee.

In response to our questions Chairman of NA Temporary Committee,
Secretary of RPA faction Samvel Nikoyan gives the details of the
meetings.

"We have given the details of the Committee’s activity, beginning from
the mechanisms of the formation up to the principles. I have also
introduced the facts; in particular I told the commissioner that we
have appealed to Levon Ter-Petrosyan, proposing him to have personal
participation, or to send his representative to partake in the works of
the committee. In response he announce during his demonstration that
he is ready to send someone who has psychological problems. I also
informed the commissioner that despite this disrespectful attitude the
committee remained in the field of positive emotions. We again appealed
to Levon Ter-Petrosyan, to send an expert to maintain balance in the
committee, in the level of an expert. But unfortunately there was no
response. I also introduced the work we have implemented together with
"Heritage" party : what we did for them to participate in the works
of the committee, the principles and the directions adopted by the
committee, the framework of the issues, with which we appeal to the
state bodies and demand the copies of the corresponding documents,
the whole information that can help reveal the truth.

I also told him that we have separated the events that took place
before March 1 from the ones that took place on March 1-2, which is
aimed at ensuring comprehensive investigation and having a balanced
picture. By the way we appealed to Levon Ter-Petrosyan with this
issue as well. And of course we didn’t get any response.

We have also provided the publicity of the committee’s activity. We
invite journalists, representatives from OSCE, and the US Embassy to
participate in our sessions, anyone whose participation can promote
complete investigation of the case."

"Which is by the way a manifestation of good will, because according
to NA decision the Committee doesn’t have to do so."

"Yes. PACE resolution 1620 runs that the Committee must work by that
principle. We have adopted that principle much earlier, than PACE
would pass that resolution and it is very good that the same principles
are enshrined in PACE recommendations. We attach great importance to
the participation of the Human Rights Defender in the works of the
committee and to giving us all the documents, mat erials and tapes
that he possesses. He should give us all the materials and participate
in the formulation of the questions that we give to the state bodies."

"What was the response of the commissioner?"

"He introduced his standpoints regarding the competencies of the
committee. What competencies does the committee have, what rights,
what can we do.

In essence there are two key issues: will it work or not and how will
it work – comprehensively, balanced, impartial or not.

After introducing the forms and methods of our work I think it is
senseless to speak about partiality and their concerns remained in
the field of competencies.

In general the meeting was rather meaningful. Moreover because the
commissioner brought an expert with him and because he had lots of
things to say he offered to have another meeting tomorrow. Which
testifies to the fact that our meeting was productive.

His proposal to meet again and discuss the conditions of the overloaded
schedule, in my view shows the importance that he attaches to the
works of the committee.

‘INGO-ARMENIA’ INCREASES CAPITAL

ArmInfo
2008-07-15 16:04:00

The authorized capital of ‘INGO-Armenia’ insurance company in 2Q,
2008, grew from 596.6 mln drams to 750.9 mln drams, Company Director
Levon Altunyan told ArmInfo. He said that capitalization was carried
out at the cost of the profit in 2007. Moreover, he said, the process
of capitalization will be continued till late, 2009, including at the
cost of the profit in 2008 and 2009. L. Altunyan also said that direct
increase of the capital through direct investment of the Company’s
shareholders is not ruled out in case of increase of standards by
the Central Bank.

To note, the total capital of "INGO-Armenia" insurance company at
late 1Q, 2008, made up 900.7 mln drams, 66,2% of which fell on the
authorized capital. The company’s net profit over the indicated period
made up 80.3 mln drams.

HERITAGE PARTY CONDUCTS ITS FIFTH ASSEMBLY

ARMENPRESS
JULY 11

The fifth assembly of the Heritage party took place today in the
session hall of the government with the participation of 274 of 300
delegates of the party.

Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsian, Human Rights Defender Armen
Harutyunian, ARF Bureau member Hrant Margarian, leader of the Armenian
People’s Party Stepan Demirtchian, head of the "Republic" party Aram
Sargsian, former presidential candidate Levon Ter-Petrosian, another
former presidential candidate Arman Melikian and representatives of
other political forces participated in the event.

In his greeting speech prime minister noted that during comparably
short period of its existence "Heritage" managed to unite its members
and associates over the goals of its programs and ensure its presence
in the legislative body.

The peculiarity of the current political moment, according to Tigran
Sargsian is that "Heritage" is the only oppositional political force
in the Armenian parliament. "I think the present will agree with me –
this reality pre-supposes additional responsibility.

I did not come to say that there are issues over which our opinions
differ, I am here to build bridges – setting bridges on fire is easy,
but to build them is not. I came here to say that we need strong
opposition and it is not a political gesture. Strong, constructive
opposition means strong society, strong state. We do not afraid of
criticism and brave suggestions. We need them. I came here to repeat
that we have one general aim to see Republic of Armenia as democratic,
legally developed state. We have enough common edges for reaching
that aim and for joint work. In the current political situation I
offer to gather over the lines which join us and not let our goals
vanish in the noise of fight. I hope my call will be accepted in
a right way. The cooperation doors are always open for you. What
President Serzh Sargsian said on February 26 is still in force. It
is not time for making new gaps between us it is time for uniting,
it is time for work," the prime minister said.

The head of the Armenia’s People’s Party S. Demirtchian greeted the
conduction of the assembly and noted that though the political force
is young it has already been recognized and took its unique place in
the political field.

He noted that the positions of his party and the "Heritage" over
a set of important issues are coinciding. "We cooperated and will
continue to cooperate for the sake of democratization of the country
and dignified life of the citizens," he said.

Former presidential candidate, first president of Armenia Levon
Ter-Petrosian assessed the contribution of the "Heritage" in the
pre-electoral period and said that without that support the results of
his electoral fight "would have been more modest". He also assessed
the work of the Heritage faction in the parliament and activity of
R. Hovhanesian in the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly.

In his speech the head of the party Raffi Hovhanesian noted that
the way of the "Heritage" as a young political force, is rich with
ups and downs. Nevertheless, the party will continue to work towards
the triumph of rule of law in the country. The political force will
remain devoted to the people, without strive to platforms. Raffi
Hovhanesian said he is proud of the administration of the party,
members of the faction and of their work.

During the assembly the party elected new extended administration
which comprises of 11 members instead of former 7.

The election of the head of the administration will take place later
today. The assembly also adopted a resolution by which the Heritage
faction must present a package of comprehensive reforms at the NA’s
fall session.

THE BLOODSHED OF MARCH 1st PUT AN END TO POLITICAL CAREER OF
AUTHORITIES,- ZHIRAYR SEFILIAN SAYS

Y EREVAN, JULY 10TH, NOYAN TAPAN. "What takes place in the home
political field of Armenia is hard to characterize as a political
struggle: it is the people’s resistance to the governing regime",
announced Zhirayr Sefilian, the coordinator of the Defense of Liberated
Territories initiative, at the July 10 press conference. According to
him, the opposition movement gathers full speed day by day, and this
makes us believe that the opposition will succeed in the near future.
As to the position of the authorities, according to Z. Sefilian, it was
clear to him since long ago that they wouldn’t loath to shed blood to
retain their posts. Noting that his prevision came true on March 1st,
the former freedom-fighter announced that the bloodshed put an end to
the political career of the authorities. In his belief, now the
peaceful rallies of the opposition will be more productive than the
ones before March 1st.

Commenting on the estimations given by the former RA President Robert
Kocharian in the address of the People’s Movement and the first
President, Z. Sefilian said, "We shouldn’t comment on the words of a
mental patient, leaving this job to corresponding specialists. However,
the patient today has turned into a monster, moreover, a wounded
monster who will make ravages before dying."

Z. Sefilian announced that three days ago his initiative applied to the
Mayor of Yerevan, asking to endow the open-air rally envisaged in the
near future but was rejected. In his words, the authorities don’t allow
to hold rallies even in the territories next to the stadiums.

OLIGARCHES TRY TO DISTRACT MEDIA’S ATTENTION FROM VERSION OF THEIR "SKINHEADS" COMPLICITY IN MARCH 1 MURDERS, HMAYAK HOVHANNISIAN SAYS

NOYAN TAPAN

JU LY 9

Lately Armenian oligarches have gathered and "fell to thinking" how
to distract attention of media from the rumors, according to which,
the murders committed during the March 1 events have been done
by their skinheads. Stating this at the July 9 discussion, Hmayak
Hovhannisian, the Chairman of the Union of Political Scientists of
Armenia, said that the version that those committing the murders are
the bodyguards of oligarches standing close to the authorities is one
of the six versions in circulation after March 1. According to him,
first President Levon Ter-Petrosian had also touched upon that version
in his speech at the June 28 raly in Gyumri.

Vardan Grigorian, the Vice-Chairman of the Democratic Path party,
said that during the March 1 events, before the eyes of hundreds of
people, policemen armed with guns some "thick-headed skinheads," who
laid the arms on their shoulders and put a jacket above it. All that,
according to V. Grigorian, is also clearly seen in the video recording
of the March 1 events. According to him, that fact is disregarded by
both journalists and law enforcement bodies, while during the state
of emergency, as well as now television "washes people’s brain" with
false information. "Besides, during the February rallies we constantly
sowed respect for law enforcers among the people, therefore it is
impossible that demonstrants use violence to policemen or soldiers,"
the Vice-Chairman of the Democratic Path party, said.

FEELS GREAT AT 105

Waverley Leader
July 8, 2008 Tuesday
Australia

1 – WGV Edition

PUMPING both fists into the air, Rose Balian shouts "I feel great!".

Even though the 105-year-old Glen Waverley Private Nursing Home
resident speaks little English, her body language and energy speak
volumes.

Flanked by son John, 64, and 24-year-old granddaughter Rose acting
as translators the Turkish-born Armenian reminds fellow residents
that she speaks six languages: Turkish, Italian, French, Arabic,
Greek and Armenian.

"There are people in their 80s here that are bending over and say they
feel old but I feel great and much of it is to do with my family,"
Mrs Balian said. Born in Istanbul on June 7, 1903, Mrs Balian grew
up in the middle of World War I.

"All I remember was a lot of people going and not coming back,"
she said.

In 1923, and with husband Stephen, she fled Turkey, sailing to
Australia and then on to Dire Dawa, Ethiopia, where she spent the
next 55 years running a business, raising John and singing in the
church choir from time to time.

"WILLIAM SAROYAN AND ARMENIA" EXHIBITION TILL SEPTEMBER 15

Panorama.am
18:43 08/07/2008

"William Saroyan and Armenia" exhibition opened in the beginning of
July will last till September 15 in National Archive, said Amatuni
Virabyan the director of the Archive to Panorama.am.

Note that this year 100-anniversary of the famous American Armenian
writer is celebrated.

"We have foreign visitors and students from the State University to
come and see the exhibition. As our main visitors are only school
children and students, we have few to come," he said.

The mission of the exhibition is to show the public some documentary
materials from the life of the famous write. Hence, personal items,
prints materials, videos, photos and other documents are presented
in the exhibition.

Note that Saroyan’s main archive is collected in United States.

GENOCIDE DISPUTE UNSETTLES TURKISH STUDIES INSTITUTE
Susan Kinzie

Boston Globe
July 8 2008
MA

WASHINGTON – The issue that has roiled US-Turkish relations in recent
months – how to characterize the mass killing of Armenians in 1915
– has set off a dispute over politics and academic freedom at an
institute housed at Georgetown University.

Several board members of the Institute of Turkish Studies have resigned
this summer, protesting the ouster of a board chairman who wrote that
scholars should research, rather than avoid, what he characterized
as an Armenian genocide.

Within weeks of writing about the matter in late 2006, Binghamton
University professor Donald Quataert resigned from the board of
governors, saying the Turkish ambassador to the United States told
him he had angered some political leaders in Ankara and that they
had threatened to revoke the institute’s funding.

After a prominent association of Middle Eastern scholars learned
about it, they wrote a letter in May to the institute, the Turkish
prime minister, and other leaders asking that Quataert be reinstated
and money for the institute be put in an irrevocable trust to avoid
political influence.

The ambassador of the Republic of Turkey, H.E. Nabi Sensoy, denied that
he had any role in Quataert’s resignation. In a written statement,
he said that claims that he urged Quataert to leave are unfounded
and misleading.

The dispute shows the tensions between money and scholarship, as well
as the impact language can have on historical understanding.

Hundreds of thousands of Armenians were killed when the Ottoman Empire
collapsed after World War I. Armenians and Turks bitterly disagree
over whether it was a campaign of genocide or a civil war in which
many Turks were also killed.

In the fall, when Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of
California, championed a bill that would characterize the events
of 1915 to 1917 as genocide, the Bush administration fought it and
several former defense secretaries warned that Turkish leaders would
limit US access to a military base needed for the war in Iraq.

The Turkish studies institute, founded in 1983, is independent from
Georgetown University, but executive director David Cuthell teaches
a course there in exchange for space on campus.

Julie Green Bataille, a university spokeswoman, wrote in an e-mail,
"We will review this matter consistent with the importance of
academic freedom and the fact that the institute is independently
funded and governed."

The institute’s funding, a $3 million grant, is from Turkey.

A few years ago, Quataert said, members of the board checked on what
they thought was an irrevocable blind trust "and to our surprise
it turned out to be a gift that could be revoked by the Turkish
government."

Quataert, a professor of history, said the institute has funded
good scholarship without political influence. The selection of which
studies to support is done by a committee of academics on the associate
board, he said, and approved by the board, which includes business
and political leaders. Never once, he said, did he think a grant
application was judged on anything other than its academic merits.

He also noted that during his time there, no one applied for grants
that would have been controversial in Turkey. Asked if any of the
research characterized the events as genocide, Cuthell said, "My gut
is no. It’s that third rail."

FACE IN THE NEWS
Lord Darzi

Daily Mail
July 1, 2008 Tuesday
London

HE insists that he is first and foremost a doctor.

Indeed, within five months of taking up his Cabinet post, Lord Darzi
was on his knees in the House of Lords saving the life of a fellow
Labour peer.

Lord Brennan had a heart attack during a debate last November.

Lord Darzi (pictured) leapt over the benches and administered
mouth to mouth, a heart massage and electric shock treatment using
a defibrillator.

But saving lives is what 48-year-old Ara Darzi is used to – not
piloting bills through Parliament.

He was born in 1960 in Baghdad, after his Armenian parents fled to
Iraq during the First World War to escape the genocide by Turkey. He
was brought up in the Russian Orthodox faith of his LORD DARZI family,
although he went to a strict Jewish school.

Aged 17, Darzi moved with his family to Dublin to study medicine,
later becoming a surgeon and earning the nickname ‘Robodoc’.

A keen Pink Floyd fan, he became a UK citizien in 2003, a year after
being knighted.

Despite being appointed Health Minister by Gordon Brown in June 2007,
he still performs surgery on Friday and Saturdays and the transition
from doctor to minister has not always been smooth.

He has landed his boss in trouble several times, for instance by
admitting Labour’s pledge to end mixed-sex wards ‘cannot be met’.

And he embarrassed collegues by announcing pharmacists would be able
to hand out the Pill to under 16s without a prescription..