Author: Torgomian Varazdat

CONFERENCE ON KARABAKH ISSUE HELD IN FRANCE

De Facto
Nov 24, 2008

STEPANAKERT, 24.11.08. DE FACTO. On November 21 a conference entitled
"The Role of the International Law in the Karabakh Conflict Settlement
Process" took place in the mayor’s office of Alforville, one of the
suburbs of Paris, densely-populated with Armenians. The conference was
held by the NKR Permanent Representative in France Hovhannes Gevorgian.

Mayor of Alforville, member of the French Assembly Rene Rouquet,
members of the local self-governing bodies, French deputies,
journalists, and members of the Armenian political and public
organizations, as well as citizens of Alforville participated in
the conference.

During the event, organized with the support of the mayor’s office
of Alforville, a documentary film on Nagorno Karabakh was shown. At
the end of the event Hovhannes Gevorgian presented book entitled
"Artsakh", published by the NKR Permanent Representation in France. DE
FACTO received the information at the NKR MFA Press Office.

Classical CD releases
Stephen Pritchard and Guy Dammann

Sunday November 23 2008
The Observer,UK

Schubert – Lieder Elizabeth Watts (soprano), Roger Vignoles (piano)
(RCA Red Seal 88697 329322) £13.99

Rising star Elizabeth Watts makes her recording debut with this
collection of 20 Schubert songs and immediately makes plain why she is
one of today’s most talked-about young sopranos. Her beautiful,
honey-toned voice, perfect intonation and innate understanding of this
repertoire make this a stand-out CD. She charms with the moonlight of
‘An den Mond’, glows with the sunset of ‘Im Abendrot’ and breaks our
hearts with the sadness of ‘Lambertine’. Roger Vignoles has been
playing these songs for years, yet sounds as fresh as his young
companion, who must surely have a glittering career ahead. SP

Various – Tangos and Fantasies Cadence Ensemble (Signum SIGCD140) £11.99

The land-locked former Soviet nation of Armenia is thousands of miles
from the birthplace of the tango, but the Cadence Ensemble from Yerevan
steams with appropriate Latin passion when it performs the work of
Argentinian composer Astor Piazzolla. Under the leadership of pianist
Armen Babakhanian, they play Piazzolla’s wildly infectious music with
style and hauteur and introduce us to more tangos by lesser-known
masters (including an Armenian) before winding up with a delightful
arrangement of themes from Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess. Refreshingly
different. SP
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A
Beethoven – The Five Piano Concertos Mikhail Pletnev (piano), Russian
National Orchestra/ Gansch (DG 477 7575 – 5CDs) £27.99

Listening to Mikhail Pletnev in a bad mood can be infuriating,
especially when he rips to shreds beloved pre-impressions of well-known
works. Lucky then that he is so attuned to the burning lust for life of
Beethoven’s middle period that bad moods are impossible. Recorded live
at the 2006 Beethovenfest, the Russian National Orchestra shows the
same dark fire as in the recent symphony recordings and Pletnev
dazzles, delights and – most important – convinces totally. GD

IN GALUST SAHAKIAN’S OPINION, IF THERE WERE SNIPERS ON MARCH 1, THEY ACTED ON OPPOSITION’S PART

Noyan Tapan

Nov 21, 2008

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 21, NOYAN TAPAN. "I think the people, who
created the March 1 situation, who wanted to seize the power by
the non-constitutional way, had snipers, if there were such." Galust
Sahakian, the head of the RA NA RPA faction, stated at the November 21
press conference commenting upon the recording spread by the opposition
on November 20, according to which faction Secretary Samvel Nikoyan
confirms that the Police used a sniper on March 1.

According to G. Sahakian, it was not beneficial for the authorities
to use snipers during the March 1 events: the authorities called for
consolidation, and some people tried to settle some issues inside the
country. He affirmed that the March 1 events were ruled by foreign
forces, which wanted to see Armenia as a semi-state.

Touching upon temporary stopping of opposition rallies, G. Sahakian
said that this decision of the opposition is positive for supporting
the authorities in the issue of negotiations over the Nagorno Karabakh
settlement. According to him, opposition’s silence also means that
the latters agree to the approach adopted by the authorities over
the problem settlement. "The authorities were able to present to
the international community that irrespective of anything everybody
holds the same opinion over the Nagorno Karabakh problem in Armenia,"
G. Sahakian said.

APPROACHES OF ARMENIA AND KARABAKH TO ISSUE OF KARABAKH CONFLICT SETTLEMENT WERE AND REMAIN DIFFERENT, VAHRAM ATANESIAN SAYS

Noyan Tapan

Nov 21, 2008

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 21, NOYAN TAPAN. The political discussions on the
Karabakh problem, which have been launched in Armenia, have no relation
to the discussions held in Karabakh since May, the chairman of the
Nagorno Karabakh Republic’s National Assembly Standing Committee
of Foreign Relations Vahram Atanesian said at the November 21 press
conference. Assessing positively the discussions with various political
forces that the Armenian president initiated, he at the same time noted
that the NKR president started holding such discussions earlier and
they have regular character. It was stated that there is only one issue
– the issue of international recognition of the NKR – on the agenda
of the discussions held in Karabakh. The discussions are continuing
and the political forces will come to a common conclusion by late 2008.

V. Atanesian expressed an apprehension that the discussions organized
in Armenia may create an impression for the outside world that the
country’s society lacks a united approach to solution of the Karabakh
problem.

Whereas, they in the NKR have a clear idea about the way of solving
the problem, as well as what kind of agreement should be signed and
how it should be implemented. The Karabak side’s formula of solving
the problem is the international recognition of the NKR within the
borders acceptable to the republic’s population and under conditions
of supremacy of national security.

According to V. Atanesian, the approaches of Armenia and Karabakh to
the conflict’s settlement were and remain different. For example, the
territorial issue cannot be an agenda issue for Nagorno Karabakh today,
and it is one of the differences. In response to the question about
whether it is possible that at some moment of negotiations Armenia
will start being guided by its own interests, he replied that no
decision can be imposed on Karabakh.

V. Atanesian said that the Mayendorf Declaration signed by the
presidents of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia is not a document
that predetermines the Karabakh conflict’s settlement. He expressed
confidence that if ever such a document is signed, it will without
fail bear the signature of the Karabakh side.

V. Atanesian does not consider Karabakh’s participation in negotiations
in 1994-1997 as effective because the then foreign minister of the NKR
had to sit at the negotiation table together with the representative of
the Azerbaijani community. Today when the NKR is a successful state,
it is unacceptable to participate in negotiations in this format. At
the same time he reminded that in those years the presidents of
Armenia and Azerbaijan regularly met, and the real negotiations on
the problem were conducted between them.

In the opinion of V. Atanesian, no immediate solution to the Karabakh
problem should be expected. He considered the latest visit of the OSCE
Minsk Group co-chairs as one of the visits envisaged by the schedule.

TOOMAS HENDRIK ILVES: ESTONIA WILL SUPPORT ARMENIA THROUGH IMPLEMENTATION OF JOINT PROJECTS

PanARMENIAN.Net
21.11.2008 17:59 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian met
in Tallinn with Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves to discuss
bilateral relations and the situation in the South Caucasus.

"Being a member of the European Union, Estonia strands for secure and
stable Caucasus and peaceful resolution of regional conflicts," the
Estonian President said, adding that his country will support Armenia
through implementation of joint projects, novosti.err.ee reports.

TURKISH FM SAYS NEW CLIMATE IN CAUCASUS TO SOLVE DISPUTES

Hurriyet
Nov 20 2008
Turkey

There is new climate in the Caucasus to solve the ongoing disputes,
Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said Thursday.

"There is a new environment in the region to solve ongoing
disputes. This is a significant opportunity we should well-assess,"
he told a joint news conference with Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu
after their meeting in Ankara.

Babacan said Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian would visit
Istanbul on Nov. 24 and that they would meet over dinner on the
same night.

"Our goal in the Turkey-Armenia dialogue process is full
normalization. However, we need to take mutual steps to reach that
point," Babacan said.

"On the other hand, the talks in the region have two separate
lines. One of them is between Turkey and Armenia, and the other between
Azerbaijan and Armenia. Tripartite meetings will take place from time
to time to secure coordination between these two separate lines,"
he added.

There is no diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey over
Armenia’s aggression toward Azerbaijan. But a warmer period began
between Turkey and Armenia after Gul paid a landmark visit to Armenia
early September.

Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders met in Moscow earlier this month
and signed a declaration calling for a "peaceful resolution" to
their dispute over the province of Nagorno-Karabakh on the basis of
"binding international guarantees", taking a step further towards
resolution of the conflict.

The conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia began in 1988 on Armenian
territorial claims over Azerbaijan.

Since 1992, Armenian Armed Forces have occupied 20 percent of
Azerbaijan including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven
surrounding districts, displacing 10 percent of the Azeri population
in the series of bloody clashes both between and within the two
neighboring countries.

In 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement at which
time the active hostilities ended. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk
Group are currently holding peaceful negotiations. Nearly 30,000 were
killed in the 1990s war over the enclave and soldiers on both sides
continue to exchange sporadic fire, claiming lives.

KARABAKH PROBLEM MAY BE RESOLVED WITH SELF-DETERMINATION – SARGSYAN

Interfax
Nov 17 2008
Russia

Representatives of the unrecognized Karabakh republic must take part
in the settlement process, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan told
Armenian public television.

The full-scale involvement of Karabakh authorities in the negotiations
is the best way to resolve the problem, he said. "It has to be. There
is simply no other way," he added.

"The Karabakh problem will be resolved if the people of Karabakh use
their right to self-determination, i.e. if Azerbaijan recognizes
the Karabakh right to self-determination, if Karabakh and Armenia
have a land border, and if the Karabakh population receives security
guarantees," Sargsyan said.

"I have never used the phrase ‘unilateral concession’ or the word
‘concession’ in relation to Karabakh over the past 17-18 years. There
may be a compromise, but never a concession. We are resolving a
problem, which is very important for our people, and, unlike others,
we are not trying to gain benefits at various events," he said.

As for the tripartite declaration signed in Moscow, Sargsyan said that
was the only document in which Azerbaijan recognized a political way
out of the Karabakh situation.

TURKISH PRIME MINISTER ERDOGAN COMMENTS ON "CLOSE COOPERATION" WITH US

Anatolia News Agency
Nov 13 2008
Turkey

NEW YORK (A.A) -Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said
on Thursday that Turkey expected the new US administration to take
into consideration Turkey’s sensitiveness on matters which have
vital importance.

Erdogan delivered a speech entitled "Turkey’s role in giving a shape
to future" at Columbia University.

Referring to the presidential election in the United States, Erdogan
said, "I sincerely congratulate Barack Obama and his team who won
the elections. Turkey and the United States, being two allies that
have very strong relations, support each other for more than half
a century. Close cooperation between the two parties contribute
to the restoration of peace, security and prosperity in a region
extending from the Caucasus to Central Asia and from the Middle East
to the Balkans. Preservation of our strategic partnership is not only
important for the national interests of our countries but for global
peace and stability as well."

"Turkey and the United States experienced a period regarding terrorist
attacks stemming from north of Iraq in 2007 and Armenian allegations
regarding 1915 incidents. However, this period could be overcome
through common political will and endeavours. I am grateful for
the support given to Turkey in this respect. Further improvement
of relations progressing in the basis of strategic partners is very
important for Turkey," Erdogan said.

"In addition to relations on politics and security, tangible steps
should be taken in diversifying economic, commercial, social and
cultural relations," Erdogan said.

"Turkey is resolved to maintain multilateral and close cooperation with
the new US administration led by Mr Obama. Naturally, we particularly
expect the new US administration to take into consideration Turkey’s
sensitives on matters which have vital importance. This is also
important not only for the bilateral relations but also for peace and
security. It is important that Mr Obama said US support to efforts
to deal with terrorism would continue. We believe that cooperation
and spirit of solidarity between Turkey and the United States would
continue to be a landmark of strategic relations," Turkey.

ARMENIAN FILMS IN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVALS

Panorama.am
20:18 18/11/2008

Albert Lazarian’s "Sunrise of sad street", Harutyun Khachatryan’s
"Frontier" films will be presented in Venice film festival and
Hovhannes Galstyan’s "Entangled parallels" film will be presented
in Cannes film festival, said Gevorg Gevorgyan, the director of
"National film center of Armenia" in a press conference.

Note that "Entangled parallels" is the joint production of Switzerland,
Norway and France. "We take part in many festivals, organize day of
Armenian films and cooperate with many countries," he said.

U.S. RECOGNITION OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE MORE LIKELY UNDER NEW ADMINISTRATION

PanARMENIAN.Net
14.11.2008 17:14 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the United
States is more likely under the new administration, an Armenian
expert said.

"Obama and Biden used to sponsor pro-Armenian measures in Congress. So,
President-elect Obama’s pledge to recognize the Armenian Genocide
is normal, although it’s hard to say anything for sure," director
of Caucasus Institute, Prof. Ruben Safrastyan told a PanARMENIAN.Net
reporter

A Turkish Foreign Ministry official said on condition of anonymity
that the U.S. may recognize the Armenian Genocide early next year.

"Both Obama and Biden promised their Armenian voters to press for
recognition. There could be attempts early next year," the official
said, adding, "But we have already launched preventive measures. In
our early contacts with Obama and Biden’s advisers, we were clear
about the sensitivity of the issue."