Author: Torgomian Varazdat

Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel. (202) 775-1918
Fax. (202) 775-5648
Email [email protected]
Internet

PRESS RELEASE
May 14, 2008
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918

ABRAHAMIAN JOINS CAPITAL GATEWAY PROGRAM

WASHINGTON, DC – During the height of April’s Armenian Genocide
commemorative events in the Nation’s capital, recent college
graduate David Vahe Abrahamian of Burbank, CA became the latest to
join the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Capital
Gateway Program, designed to open internship and career doors for
young Armenian Americans seeking to make their mark in American
politics, the media, or the think tank scene. Abrahamian’s
participation in the program was made possible through the Hovig
Apo Saghdejian Memorial Fellowship, a special fund established for
young Armenians seeking opportunities in politics and public
service.

After receiving a double Bachelor’s in History and Political
Science from UCLA in the Fall of 2007, Abrahamian chose to apply
for the Capital Gateway Program and explore career opportunities in
Congress. He was informed of the program through a classmate of his
at UCLA and felt it was a perfect way of gaining first-hand
experience following his graduation.

"I decided to come to DC as an extension of my political
interests," said Abrahamian. "My goal is to find a position
working on foreign policy matters within a Congressional office."

Within a week of his arrival, Abrahamian secured an internship with
Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA). In addition to learning directly about how
a House office functions, he has attended numerous Congressional
hearings and helped develop queries for the Congressman. He has
also worked with constituents on numerous legislative issues.

"The environment in Congressman Costa’s office has been wonderful,"
says Abrahamian. "They’ve given me the ability to delve into
foreign relations issues and learn how policy is formulated on a
daily basis."

Prior to arriving in DC, Abrahamian had concentrated on Armenian
studies courses at UCLA and even recorded the testimony of Genocide
survivors as part of Richard Hovannisian’s Armenian Oral History
Project. He has also served as a staff editor and writer for the
UCLA student-run paper The Armenian Chronicles.

He has since increased his involvement in Armenian affairs by
interning at the ANCA’s National Headquarters. With the various
Armenian Genocide commemorative activities taking place in
Washington in the month of April, Abrahamian had the opportunity to
serve as a volunteer at numerous community functions, including the
April 23 Armenian Genocide Observance on Capitol Hill hosted by the
Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues.

Abrahamian joins a long list of past and present Gateway Fellows
who have found positions in public policy in Washington, DC,
including fellow Spring 2008 participant Talar Shekherdimian.
After interning for Rep. Grace Napolitano’s (D-CA) office,
Shekherdimian recently secured a paralegal position with the law
firm Cohen & Cohen, PC.

The Hovig Apo Saghdejian Memorial Fellowship is named in honor
Hovig Saghdejian, a 23-year old youth leader from Fresno, CA, who
tragically passed away in 2004. His family established the fund to
serve as a tribute to the their son’s legacy of activism in the
Armenian American community.

For more information about the Capital Gateway Program, prospective
candidates can visit and click on the "Capital
Gateway" link or call (202) 775-1918 and ask for Serouj Aprahamian.
Applications are currently being accepted for the Fall 2008 season.

#####

Photo Caption: Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA)(center) with ANCA Capital
Gateway Fellow David Abrahamian and ANCA activist Paul Jamushian.

EMBASSY OF ARMENIA IN LEBANON HAS HELPED FOUR ARMENIAN CITIZENS TO LEAVE THAT COUNTRY

arminfo
2008-05-13 18:57:00

ArmInfo. The Embassy of Armenia in Lebanon has helped four Armenian
citizens to leave that country, reports the press service of the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia.

The citizens were taken by car to the Lebanese-Syrian border. Now,
they are able to go to Aleppo and farther to Yerevan.

TOUGH TALKS LOOM AFTER SERB POLLS

BBC
KarabakhOpen
12-05-2008 15:37:13

Results from Serbia’s elections point to a triumph for President
Boris Tadic’s pro-European Union bloc.

Mr Tadic claimed victory, with his bloc set to win nearly 40% of the
vote, but he may need the support of at least one nationalist party
for a majority.

The European Union has welcomed what it called a clear victory for
pro-European forces in the parliamentary elections.

The nationalist Radical Party, though, insists that it could still
head a coalition forming the next government.

Ultra-nationalist leader Tomislav Nikolic said he would have talks
with parties which were close ideologically.

Formation of the new government could take up to three months,
analysts warn.

Kosovo

In a victory speech, President Tadic said the Serbian people had in
effect given their approval to the country’s future membership of
the EU, with whom a long-delayed agreement was signed just before
the election.

"The citizens of Serbia have undoubtedly confirmed a clear European
path", he said, adding: "It is necessary to form a government as soon
as possible".

But he also vowed that a new government led by his Democratic Party
would not recognise Serbia’s breakaway province of Kosovo as an
independent state.

Mr Tadic faces the challenge of finding stable partners for his
already complex three-party coalition without making too many political
concessions, the BBC’s Ivana Miloradovic reports.

Even with the support of Hungarian, Muslim and Albanian minority
parties and the small Liberal Democrats – the only party ready to
recognise the independence of Kosovo – his coalition falls short of
the necessary majority.

The previous government fell over the issue of how to react when most
EU countries recognised the independence of Kosovo.

Coalition

Mr Nikolic’s Radical Party won 29% of the vote according to an
independent projection. The official count has yet to be completed.

The Radicals’ leader said he planned to meet both the Democratic
Party of Serbia of outgoing Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica and
the Socialists – the party of the late Serbian strongman Slobodan
Milosevic.

Theoretically, the three parties could form a coalition with a
wafer-thin majority in parliament.

Either the three parties would form a coalition, Mr Nikolic said,
or Serbia would "not have a government at all and have to go to
new elections".

Mr Kostunica said after the election that he was open to talks with
the Radicals.

"It’s too early to say anything specific, but I hope that we will
be one of the main players in the formation of the new government,"
he added.

Parties have a legal deadline of three months to reach agreement.

International isolation

Ironically, the key player that could make or break any future
coalition seems to be the Socialists.

The party responsible for the country’s international isolation under
Milosevic has reinvented itself as an advocate of social justice and
attracts many young, often poor or unemployed voters.

Mr Kostunica’s coalition would be a less desirable partner for the
pro-EU bloc and the political cost of attracting it back into a new
government could prove to be too high.

A statement from the EU’s Slovenian presidency welcomed a "clear
victory" for pro-European forces, and said it hoped they would quickly
form a government

Tadic supporters have been celebrating in Belgrade with fireworks.

Cars decked with party and EU symbols blew their horns as they circled
the city centre.

Serbs in Kosovo also voted, both in the general election and in
council elections, in defiance of the ethnic Albanian government and
international authorities.

Some 300 polling stations opened in areas with a sizeable Serb
population and the vote passed off peacefully.

However, even before the polls closed, the United Nations mission
issued a statement, condemning the council elections as illegal and
saying the results would not be recognised.

Panorama.am

14:48 10/05/2008

FUNERAL MARCH TO POLICE STATION

-On 12 May it is a year since Levon Gulyan was
murdered in Police Station. The criminal case has been
stopped and not a single police officer is responsible
for that,- the announcement is made by Gulyan’s
relatives. In this regard Gulyan’s relatives and
several NGO-s supporting them organize a funeral march
on 12 May from the Republic Square to the Police
Station building. The information is provided by the
organizers.

Note that On May 9 2007 at 20.40 Levon Gulyan the
owner of -Pandok- restaurant was called to police
station as at the same day a fight took place near the
restaurant and Gulyan killed Stepan Vardanyan using a
weapon.

On 12 may Levon Gulyan was at the police station. The
police officer left the room for presenting the
investigation results to the responsible bodies.
Gulyan asked a cup of water to another police officer
and when the latter was out of the room he tried to
escape and fell down from the windows. Gulyan was dead
before the ambulance has arrived.

Source: Panorama.am

ARMENPRESS

VLADIMIR PUTIN CONGRATULATES HEADS OF GOVERNMENTS OF CIS

MOSCOW, MAY 9, ARMENPRESS: The chairman of the
Russian government Vladimir Putin sent congratulatory
messages to the heads of governments of the CIS
countries, press service of the Russian Ministers’
Cabinet reported.
In the message directed to the Armenian Prime
Minister Tigran Sargsian, V. Putin says, `On these
days we again remember about the heroic efforts in the
battle field which helped to make fascism collapse and
remember those who were erecting the Great Victory.
We are obliged to keep the memory of general trials
which fall on our people in the fight against fascism,
take necessary lessons so that the valuable experience
of unity and reconciliation pass to our generations.’

AZG Armenian Daily #087, 08/05/2008

Armenia-Turkey

ARMENIAN FOREIGN MINISTER CONFIRMS READINESS TO
NORMALIZE RELATIONS WITH TURKEY

Edward Nalbandian, the Foreign Minister of Armenia,
today confirmed the readiness of the authorities of
Armenia to normalize the relations with Turkey without
any preconditions. This statement was made during a
press conference in Paris, which took place after the
meeting of Mr. Nalbandian with his French colleague
Bernard Couchener on May 5.

The Minister stressed that the present generations of
both the Armenian and the Turkish peoples have
inherited a heavy burden from their past. In order to
turn this black page of their history, political
leaders must cooperate. ‘For its part, Armenia is
ready for it. We propose establishing relations
without preconditions, which will be in favor of both
the region and the two countries’, the Minister said.

Translated by A.M.

Panorama.am

19:30 05/05/2008

H. KESHISHYAN: `KELE-KELE IS SUNG IN EUROPEAN
COUNTRIES’

On 24 May Armenian singer Sirusho will present Armenia
in `Eurovision 2008′ musical competition. Today the
Armenian delegation had a press conference, where the
members of the group made speeches.

More than 40 countries take part in `Eurovision 2008′
and only 25 of them will get right to take part in
final. The competition is held by two semi-finals on
May 20 and 22 and the final will take place on 24 May.

The author of the song presented by the Armenian
singer is Arthur Ter-Hovakimyan and Sirusho herself.
`Sirusho held concerts in many European countries and
we could feel the love and kindness towards Sirusho.
In Belgium, in the streets of Brussels we could hear
people singing Kele-Kele,’ said Hrach Keshishyan, the
chief producer of the Public TV.

According to him in previous months the Armenian
delegation and particularly Sirusho have worked much
and actively. `As a singer and as a person presenting
Armenia from the stage I am happy to say that I have
an army of fans and people who rely on me,’ said
Sirusho.

Note that Armenian singers Razmik Amyan and Tigran
Petrosyan will sing back-vocals. Russian famous dancer
Sergey Mandrik will prepare the staging and Arevik
Simonyan will be the designer of singer’s dress.

Source: Panorama.am

ARMENPRESS

PRIME MINISTER AND IRANIAN AMBASSADOR DISCUSS BOOSTING
COOPERATION

YEREVAN, MAY 6, ARMENPRESS: Prime minister Tigran
Sarkisian received today Iranian ambassador, Seyed Ali
Saghayan, for discussion of a wide scope of issues
relating to both countries’ efforts to expand their
partnership relationships.
The government press office said the two men
discussed also a set of other issues on launching new
projects along with those in process.
`The Islamic Republic of Iran gives its full
support to new president of Armenia and your
government. It also supports all directions which are
deemed as priorities by your government’s program,’
the ambassador was quoted by the government press
office as saying.
Both men agreed that the annual $200 million worth
trade and the economic partnership level in general
are not satisfactory failing to comply with high level
political relations between Iran and Armenia.
They both underlined the importance of mutual
investments and stepped up contacts between Iranian
and Armenian businessmen. They agreed also that the
existing cooperation between Armenian and Iranian
provinces can be expanded as well.
The ambassador spoke about two major international
events that will be hosted soon by Iran- an
international conference on transit transportation and
a conference on urban issues asking the Armenian prime
minister to send Armenian ministers to participate in
both.
The prime minister promised to send Armenian
transport and communication and urban ministers to
Tehran to take part in both events.
The two men then emphasized the opening of consular
services in Iranian Tebriz and Armenian Kapan. They
also referred to a joint session of the
Iranian-Armenian economic cooperation commission,
slated for summer. The ambassador stressed also
cooperation with countries in transition in the face
of global rise of food prices in terms of mitigating
its aftereffects. He said, particularly, that in this
context Iran and Armenia can expand their agricultural
cooperation.
`We are eager and we would do everything in our
power to deepen our relations with the neighboring
Iran and raise them to a higher level which stems from
both nations’ interests. On one hand that will beef up
our countries’ national security and on the other hand
it will promote economic progress,’ Tigran Sarkisian
said.

PACE PROPOSALS GET PREPARED

Panorama.am
16:27 01/05/2008

On 30 April, a meeting-discussion took place in the RA president’s
administration. President Serzh Sargsyan met with the labor group
the mission of which is to examine and take measures for conducting
article 1609 points proposed by the Parliamentary Assembly of
Council of Europe. According to the public relations department of
the president’s administration the first session was headed by Hovik
Abrahamyan, the head of the president’s administration.

PLANNING CONFERENCE OF THE COOPERATIVE LONGBOW/LANCER 08 MILITARY EXERCISES TO BE HELD IN YEREVAN

armradio.am
02.05.2008 12:36

May 14-16 the planning conference of NATO’s Cooperative Longbow/Lancer
08 military exercises will take place in Yerevan, Mediamax reported.

The Cooperative Longbow/Lancer 08 exercises will take place in Armenia
in September and will become the most large-scale military exercises
NATO has ever conducted in Armenia.

The Initial Planning Conference of the military exercises took place
in Yerevan at the end of January. 110 experts from 20 countries
participated in the conference.

Addressing the conference, Chief of Staff of Allied Land Component
Command Heidelberg, Brigadier General Claudio Verchellotti informed
that more than 1 000 servicemen will participate in the military
exercises. He noted also that that the military exercises to be held
in Armenia are one of the most important events NATO plans to hold
in 2008.