Author: Tigranian Ani

ARMENIAN KICK BOXERS ACHIEVE 5 GOLD AND 3 SILVER MEDALS

armradio.am
08.04.2008 13:13

Armenian kick boxers achieved five gold and two silver medals in the
Cup of Europe held in Kharkov, Ukraine. Aram Harutyunyan (50 kg),
Viktor Khachatryan (56.5 kg), Melsik Baghdasaryan (54 kg), Mayis
Hakobyan (55 kg) and Andranik Baghdasaryan (64.5 kg) became European
Cup holders.

Shahen Gevorgyan (56.5 kg), Vladimir Gevorgyan (60 kg) and Andranik
Tadevosyan (64.5 kg) achieved silver medals, president of RA Kick
Boxing Federation Garnik Hayrapetyan told journalists. He noted also
that Armenian kick boxers are currently preparing for the European
Championship in Cyprus.

A MOMENT WITH TAMARA POGOSIAN
Davina Rodriguez

Papierdoll
emag/2006/11/05/a-moment-with-tamara-pogosian/
Apr il 3 2008
NY

Armenian-born Tamara Pogosian developed an interest in design while
growing up and moving from Russia to America. After finishing high
school in New York City, she moved on to the Parson School of Design.

She took a year to explore the industry and then continued her studies
at The Fashion Institute of Technology. We discovered her at New York
Fashion Week in September and took a liking to her. We just had to
meet her again and interview her.

Do you like more organization when it comes to designing or less
organization?

I’m actually pretty organized; usually a lot of artists aren’t in
that area. When it comes to creating a collection you can’t stick
to a schedule. I usually design at night, that’s when I feel most
creative. I don’t really stick to a schedule. The main concern is to
get everything done on time so I always start months in advance.

I am a big fan of your fall 2006 collection to me it’s very luxurious
in look and feel. Is that what you were going for?

Yes. I decided to go for a smaller collection. I have always gotten
more attention with my evening dresses rather than with other pieces;
and I just have a bigger passion for the glamour and luxury part of
design. It just comes through and it is part of our brand as well.

What was your thought process when you put together your Spring
2007 line?

I usually start thinking about my Spring line in May or June. I don’t
usually plan it out so much as in what I am going to be designing,
but as soon as I start thinking about it, I get ideas on a daily
basis. So then I just start designing.

So basically you’re free flowing. You’re not held to a schedule or
anything like that. You just do it as you feel?

Pretty much yeah, towards the end I pull back a little from the
collections to see if it’s something that actually makes sense
together. You always have to edit it at the end -whether it be adding
pieces, or taking pieces out.

Do you ever remember getting a negative review?

Not in print, but I have a close circle of friends and we’re always
very honest; and they’re all artist so if there’s something out of
place, or something they don’t like, they will usually let me know.

I’ve been very fortunate to have a lot of supportive people surround
me. They appreciate my work so it hasn’t really been negative.

Who is your fashion hero?

I don’t really have just one. I have a few that I admire for very
different reasons. I love Versace. I think he was amazing and extremely
talented. He had a very wild vision. Then there’s Tom Ford who is
also very extraordinary and is great at marketing. Valentino makes
beautiful pieces.

How does sexuality play a role in your collection?

It really comes from the feeling of being desired by someone else. I
think that when you have confidence in yourself and when you are
wearing clothes, it just comes across easier.

So you’re saying it’s not as if you clothes are overtly sexual?

No, I don’t think that my clothes are too sexual. I don’t push the
envelope too much in that direction, but sometimes that is how they
end up looking. In certain instances, you have to have a certain type
of body to wear some of my pieces. I mean, you don’t have to have this
perfect amazing body to wear some of my pieces. Every piece has a sense
of sexuality in it. You don’t have to be exposed to be sexual, there’s
the cut and feel of the piece that can bring that sexuality out.

What celebrity would look amazing in your pieces?

I like Natalie Portman very much. I think she’s very talented and
beautiful. She has a sense of elegance as well. I would love to dress
her one day.

What was the last movie you saw?

I usually watch movies on the weekends and haven’t had the time to
go to the theater, but Devil Wears Prada believe it or not was the
last movie I watched. I made an effort to go see that one.

What did you think of it?

I actually liked it very much. I thought it was very funny. It was
very entertaining. I mean it had some truth to it when it came to
describing the industry but it’s a movie so some things seemed as if
they were blown out of proportion.

What do you think of online fashion, blog, magazines etc?

I think it’s great, the internet has grown so much over the years that
it definitely benefits everyone. There is one thing that bothers me
and it has to do with shopping online, because I personally like to
try on the clothes before I purchase them. And there are some pieces
that you just have to try on regardless of how long you’ve known the
brand, and how long you’ve been purchasing from that brand it’s always
better to try things before you buy them.

What is Tamara Pogosian’s guilty pleasure?

Personally you mean? I just don’t have one I personally have a few. I
love strawberries I love ice cream, goat cheese, foods, relaxing it a
big one. You work hard for all these months designing, getting ready
for a show; sometimes it’s nice to take a break.

ZEYNO BARAN: AZERBAIJAN IS WORRIED THAT KOSOVO MAY BE USED AS A PRECEDENT

armradio.am
01.04.2008 13:35

Director of the Center for Eurasian Policy and Senior Fellow at the
Hudson Institute Zeyno Baran declared in an interview with Mediamax
that "Baku’s sharp criticism of the Minsk Group Co-Chairs, especially
the US, is a strategic step to reinforce the support of Azerbaijan’s
position in the world."

Zeyno Barak expressed the opinion that the adoption of the Resolution
on Nagorno Karabakh in the UN General Assembly "was a response to
the proclamation of Kosovo’s independence and the broad support it
received in the West."

"Baku is worried that Kosovo can be used as a precedent, and Georgia
shares this anxiety. Thus, this Resolution can be viewed as an
attempt to prevent such development of events. Moreover, taking into
consideration the fact that Russia is using the issue of the Kosovo
precedent in the context of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, I think that
Baku and Tbilisi wished to get convinced that Kosovo would be viewed
as a unique case, and see how Russia would vote," Zeyno Baran said.

"There is growing concern in Azerbaijan that the West is unfair towards
it because of it’s being a Muslim country. Azeris see how resolutely
the US defends the territorial integrity of Georgia and do not see a
similar attitude towards them. Certainly, taking into consideration the
fact that the United States is a Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, the
US Administration cannot have a different stance on the Karabakh issue.

Unfortunately, it’s hard for an ordinary Azerbaijani to understand or
accept this difference. Many Azeris feel that they are an important
ally of the US in the fields of energy security, fighting terrorism and
other issues, but they do not get much in response. At the same time,
the Azeri Government and most of the society understand the importance
of partnership with the US and will not allow that Resolution to
harm Baku’s relations with Washington," Director of the Center for
Eurasian Policy and Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute said.

MANVEL GRIGORIAN RELIEVED OF POST OF RA DEPUTY DEFENCE MINISTER

Noyan Tapan
April 2, 2008

YEREVAN, APRIL 2, NOYAN TAPAN. On April 2, RA President Robert
Kocharian signed a decree on relieving Manvel Grigorian of the post
of the RA Deputy Defence Minister. Noyan Tapan was informed about it
by the RA President’s Press Office.

SARGSYAN-ALIYEV MEETING IN BUCHAREST WOULD BE MERE FORMALITY

PanARMENIAN.Net
01.04.2008 15:40 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Any meeting between Serzh Sargsyan and Ilham
Aliyev will be a mere formality and will produce no effect presently,
Director of the Caucasus Media Institute Alexander Iskandaryan told
a PanARMENIAN.Net.

"Armenia’s President-elect should first of all ease political tensions
in the republic," he said.

"Azerbaijan will hold presidential election in autumn, so Aliyev
can’t make sharp moves. There will be no meeting in Bucharest. The
OSCE Minsk Group concluded that such a meeting would be fruitless."

RESPONDING TO MY DEAR FRIEND WHO THINKS I HAVE ONE SIDED VIEW REGARDING ARMENIA’S RECENT EVENT

AZG Armenian Daily
02/04/2008

After-Election Crisis

Dear compatriot, during my 7 years living and working in
Armenia/Karabakh and visiting and working as a volunteer twice
thereafter for many months. Closely observing Armenian and Karabakh
societies and political climate, my response and conclusion from
the recent Yerevan disorder will be the following: being familiar
with Mr. Ter-Petrosian’s character and background and also knowing
Mr. Sarkisian from Karabakh, I can assure you that Mr. Ter-Petrosian
is not better than Mr. Sarkisian! Nobody should have delusion or
expect that Mr. Ter-Petrosian team will do miracles for Armenia or
Karabakh. They are both from the same old

Soviet era cadre regarding the 4-500000 protesting people, I believe
we can divide them in 5 categories

1-intellectual patriots who are tired from corruption and oligarchs

2-indigents who are struggling and want justice.

3-nice common (but naive) hard working people who want change but
are mislead and aren’t aware or imagine what can happen to them when
they have no security and stability if unrest continuous. they were
unaware what mr.levon’s group will bring to them (which may can cost
armenians to lose at least karabakh)

4-Mr Levon’s supporters, like Mr. Arzumanian, with their vendetta
and previous oligarch’s who lost their positions

5–others- foreign interests, idealistic dreamers who prefer rose or
orange revolutions for Armenia and finally oportunists and looters

Even though i deeply sympathize with 1,2 and 3 groups but i do not
appreciate Mr. .Ter-Petrosian’s irresponsible and destructive way…

Now we ask our new president and new government to listen and
help people who are critical of their lifestyle, wages and poorly
enforced laws, some of which descended from old soviet regime.the new
president and new government needs to improve people’s socioeconomic
conditions,democracy and equality.

More important than anything else, we need political and religious
unity in both homelands and diaspora.

national interests need to supersede individual political parties
and religious interests.

Dear compatriot, please understand me i have no one side
view. Mr. Ter-Petrosyan’s actions are endangering our homeland security
and stability. i am not too concerned about Sarkisian or Ter-Petrosian
or Hovhannisian or Baghdasarian or the others. I solely care only about
my homeland, Armenia and Karabakh. I cannot and will not be neutral
when some people knowingly or unknowingly endangered our security,
stability and independence.

Dear friend, i am fearful, fearful to lose our "fragile" independence
and Karabakh

This people (regardless of their good intentions) must not help to
create instability, insecurity and bloodshed in our homeland, which
gave the Azeris an opportunity to take advantage from unrest and
attack Levonarch/Karabakh, as we just experienced on 4-th of March
only 3 days after yerevan’s disorder. Our enemies are watching us

Dear friend if you think this opinion is one-sided view, then I am.

Thank you for your time

Dr.I. Babajanian, USA

RUSSIAN DUMA SET TO APPROVE PUTIN NOMINATION FOR PRIME MINISTER

PanARMENIAN.Net
01.04.2008 12:45 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Russian State Duma will gather to approve the
nomination of Vladimir Putin for the post of Russia’s Prime Minister,
Duma chairman Borisd Gryzlov said.

"Inauguration of President-elect Dmitry Medvedev is due on May 7. The
candidacy for the post of Prime Minister is known and the majority
of the Duma members will support Vladimir Putin. The nomination will
apparently be announced on May 7 and approved on May 8," he said,
RBC reports.

WASHINGTON BELIEVES IT IS TIME FOR AZERBAIJAN AND ARMENIATO COORDINATE BASIC PRINCIPLES OF SETTLEMENT OF NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT

Trend News Agency
March 31 2008
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan, Baku, 30 March / corr. TrendNews K. Ramazanova/ Washington
believes that it is high time for Azerbaijan and Armenia to reach a
consensus on the Basic Principles, said to TrendNews Matthew Bryza,
the American co-chair of Minsk Group on settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict on 30 March.

In late 2007, the co-chair of the OSCE Minsk group introduced
Azerbaijan and Armenia Basic Principles on the settlement of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict for the first time.

The UN General Assembly supported the Resolution on the Situation in
the Occupied Lands of Azerbaijan on 14 March. The Resolution developed
by Azerbaijan demands immediate, full and unconditional withdrawal
of Armenian armed forces from the occupied lands of Azerbaijan.

All OSCE Minsk group member states voted against the Resolution.

Russia and France made every effort to hinder the Resolution, Agshin
Mehdiyev, the Azerbaijani ambassador to UN said to TrendNews earlier.

Azerbaijan has appealed OSCE to know the reasons of why OSCE Minsk
Group member states refused to vote for the Resolution, Araz Azimov,
the deputy foreign minister of Azerbaijan said.

The conflict between the two countries of the South Caucasus began
in 1988 due to Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since
1992, Armenian Armed Forces have occupied 20% of Azerbaijan including
the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven surrounding districts. In
1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement at which
time the active hostilities ended. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk
Group ( Russia, France, and the US) are currently holding peaceful
negotiations.

AGO GROUP PRESENTS 6-POINT PROPOSAL FOR GETTING ARMENIA OUT OF CURRENT SITUATION

Noyan Tapan
March 31, 2008

YEREVAN, MARCH 31, NOYAN TAPAN. The Ago Group currently on a visit to
Armenia has presented a proposal, which consists of 6 points and aims
to get Armenia out of the situation after the presidential election and
the March 1 events and to help the country to return to a democratic
way, Ambassador Per Sjogren, the head of the CE Committee of Ministers
monitiring Ago Group, stated at the March 31 press conference.

According to him, the Ago Group is in favor of a dialog involving all
the political forces of the country. He underlined the necessity of
starting dialog as soon as possible and without any preconditions. In
his words, constructive dialog is the most efficient way of resolving
the situation.

The head of the Ago Group announced that they join the calls of
various international organizations to release all those who have
been imprisoned for their political activity. The monitoring group
proposes that it should be regularly informed about the release and
trials of 102 arrested persons.

P. Sjogren said that yesterday the delegation went to "Kentron"
penitentiary and was informed that the arrested persons kept there
(some of them were arrested as long ago as early March) are isolated
from their relatives. The first point of the proposal made by Ago
Group is related to creation of the opportunity for the arrested
people’s families to be in touch with the detainees.

The Ago Group believes that the inquiry into the March 1 events should
be conducted by the Armenian state. The inquiry should be independent,
impartial and enjoy full confidence of the public. International
experts may be involved in this inquiry.

Per Sjogren expressed regret that the recent amendments in the RA Law
on Meetings, Rallies, Processions and Demonstrations were made by the
parliament without consulting the Council of Europe. According to him,
the Venice Commission has urgently made an examination of the law
and reached a number of critical conclusions. These conclusions were
sent to the government which will tranfer them to the parliament. "The
freedom of assembly is a right stipulated in the European Convention
and it must not be a subject of bargaining," the Ago Group head said.

The proposals of the AGo Group have been discussed with the authorities
and the opposition. The delegation met with the first Armenian
president Levon Ter-Petrosian, the justice minister, the prosecutor
general, and the delegation members are going to meet with the prime
minister Serge Sargsian.

In the words of Ambassador Sjogren, ambassadors of 9 CE states have
been included in the monitoring group. "This is the largest group to
visit Armenia since Ago Group’s creation in 2001, and it shows the
great interest that the CE and our governments take in the developments
taking place in Armenia," he said.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT AWARDED AN NKR ORDER

arminfo
2008-03-31 19:35:00

ArmInfo. On March 31, Nagorno-Karabakh President Bako Sahakyan signed
a decree on awarding Armenian President Robert Kocharyan with Grigor
Lusavorish Order for services before the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.

The chief information department of the NKR presidential administration
told ArmInfo that the order was awarded to Kocharyan on March 31,
during a meeting with the NKR leadership at the session hall of the
NKR government.