Author: Torosian Aram

ARMENIA LEARNED TO SURVIVE DESPITE RUSSIAN-GEORGIAN RELATIONS BEING BAD

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
24.08.2009 19:53 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Georgia’s secession from CIS does not particularly
affect Armenia in political sense, Caucasus Institute Director,
political scientist Alexander Iskandaryan told today a news conference
in Yerevan. "If Armenia were sensitive to such changes, it would have
experienced its consequences last year following the five-day war. But
Armenia has already learned to survive despite Russian-Georgian
relations being bad," the expert noted.

On August 14, 2008, Georgian Parliament adopted a resolution on
denouncing CIS Treaty (drawn up on December 8, 1991 and ratified by
Commonwealth members on January 22, 1993), the CIS Resolution and
the Economic Alliance Treaty (September 24, 1993).

On August 18, 2008, Georgian Foreign Ministry notified CIS committee
on the resolution. Under Article 9 of the Resolution, organizations
withdraws from membership within 12 months following written
notification. Thus, on August 18, 2009, Georgia officially seceded
from CIS.

FOREIGN MINISTRY OF ARMENIA ADVISES AZERBAIJANI OFFICIAL TO ATTENTIVELY READ THE DOCUMENTS CONCERNING KARABAKH SETTLEMENT

ArmInfo
2009-08-24 18:20:00

ArmInfo. Foreign Ministry of Armenia advises the Azerbaijani official
to attentively read the documents concerning the Karabakh settlement,
and follow the mediators’ statements.

‘We advise you to attentively read the documents and get acquainted
with the statements of OSCE MG cochairmen’, Head of the Mass Media
Relations Department of the Armenian Foreign Ministry press service
Tigran Balayan said when commenting on the statement of Chairman
of the Political Analyses and Information Provision Department
of the Azerbaijani president’s Office Elnur Aslanov at ArmInfo’s
request. According to the Azerbaijani media, Aslanov said the
following: "No third party in the Karabakh conflict exists: there
is Armenia which occupied the Azerbaijani lands, and Azerbaijan,
the lands of which have been occupied. Just these two parties can
resolve the Karabakh conflict at the negotiating table".

To recall, OSCE MG cochairmen have multiply claimed about the necessity
of Karabakh’s participation in the negotiation process. According to
the recently published Madrid proposals, it is envisaged to resolve
the issue in future through referendum.

Trend, Azerbaijan
Aug 29 2009

Georgia’s Armenians take Georgian surnames

Azerbaijan, Baku, August 19 / Trend News J. Babayeva /

Georgia’s Armenians are assuming Georgian surnames, representatives of
Azerbaijanis’ National Movement, Geyrat, said. They said that this
process is one part of Armenians’ unrealizable dream of a ‘Great
Armenia’.

"This process took place during 1956-1986. At present, in Georgia it
is impossible to distinguish Armenians from Georgians. Any citizen can
change his surname according to an Georgian law adopted in 2004," a
member of Azerbaijanis’ National Movement Geyrat’s board, Zumrud
Gurbanli, told media in Baku on August 19.

He said that Georgia must carefully consider this issue.

Armenian websites and media spread provoking materials on the Borchali
region, Chairman of the Geyrat movement, Alibala Askerov, said.

"In these materials they even unite the Borchali (Kvemo-Kartli) and
Samtskhe-Javakheti regions. Armenian websites even represent me as an
agent for Azerbaijan and Turkey. They wrote that I intended to create
a schism in Georgia. We do not fear Armenian provocations. Borchali is
a historic Turkic land," he said.

According to unofficial information, about 500,000 Azerbaijanis live
in Georgia, in particular in the Kvemo-Kartli region (Borchali).

According to statistics, about 70 percent of the Georgian population
is made up of Georgians. Also living in Georgia are Armenians
(380,000), Azerbaijanis (350,000), Russian (207,000), Ossetians
(150,000), Abkhazians (100,000), Greeks (80,000), Curds, Assyrians,
Udins, Avars and Kistins.

The Chairman of the Georgian Azerbaijanis’ Congress said that
Armenians are provided with jobs in leading state positions in
Samtskhe-Javakheti. "Armenians take these positions without knowing
the state language. But there is not one Azerbaijani citizen in the 48
state agencies of Borchali as Azerbaijanis do not know state
language," the chairman of the congress, Ali Babayev, said.

PRICES ON ELECTRICITY NOT TO GO UP

PanARMENIAN.Net
20.08.2009 20:18 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ In a government session held today, RA Prime
Minister Tigran Sargsyan touched upon financial stability issues in
energy system.

In particular, premier advanced a new protocol decision for ensuring
financial stability in energy system. To prevent increased prices on
energy, Mr. Sargsyan proposed an initiative for bridging financial
gaps at the expense of state enterprises such as Vorotan Hydro Power
Plant, Yerevan Thermo Electric Plant and Armenian Nuclear Power Plant.

Premier Sargsyan called for accepting the concept and working in that
direction to ensure financial stability in Armenia.

GOVERNMENT APPROVES ARMENIA-DIASPORA PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT CONCEPTION

Noyan Tapan
Aug 20, 2009

YEREVAN, AUGUST 20, NOYAN TAPAN. The Armenia-Diaspora partnership
development conception was approved at the RA government’s August
20 session. Noyan Tapan was informed about it by the RA government
Information and Public Relations Department.

The conception determines the principles, goals, primary directions,
tasks and expected results of development of the Armenia-Diaspora
partnership. It is a totality of legal, economic, diplomatic,
educational, cultural, information, organization relations in the
sphere of partnership aimed at solving problems of preservation of
Armenian identity, ensuring Diaspora’s coordinated participation in
issues of vital importance for the Republic of Armenia.

ARMENIA GOT US $400MLN LOAN

News.am
11:58 / 08/19/2009

International Monetary Fund (IMF) allocated US $400m loan out of US
$823m estimated to Armenia.

IMF Resident Representative in Armenia Nienke Oomes stated that US
$160m will be transferred to Armenian Government immediately and the
rest – to Central Bank of Armenia. She informed that till the end of
the year Armenia will receive another US $60m.

In 2009 IMF adopted a decision to allocate a 28-month US $540m loan to
Armenia. Under the loan terms US $237m should be granted immediately
and the remainder – in 9 subsequent tranches. Later IMF Executive
Board lifted the loan up to US $823m (instead of scheduled US $540 m).

EXPERT: GEORGIA TO VANISH FROM WORLD MAP

News.am
17:39 / 08/18/2009

"Georgia is recently concerned about the problems with Azerbaijan
that might lead to Azerbaijani-Georgian conflict," Haykazun Alvrtsyan
stated at August 18 press conference on Armenian-Georgian issues.

He considers Georgian Kvemo Kartli (in the essence North Lori region
of Armenia) is nearly fully inhabited by Azeris.

"The number of Borchalu Turks increased to the extent that soon
they will number as much as Tbilisi, Tsalka, Javakhk population and
shortly also Ardahan (region in Turkey). Turkey pressures Georgia
that jeopardizes Javakhk too," Alvrtsyan said.

According to the expert, Georgia carried out open-door policy for
Turks, ousting Armenians from those regions for decades. "Azeris
not only lays claims to this territory, but also speaks out
loudly. Georgians will be unable to offer rebuff to Turks," the
expert supposes.

Georgia is going to face the regular dismemberment and the hazard to
vanish form the world map.

"If Georgia loses Kvemo Kartli and Javakhk that links Turkey and
Azerbaijan, Armenia will be entirely locked. Georgia will deprive of
two vital military and economic regions, becoming a minor country. It
will have no chances of resuming influence as dominating country in
the region," Alvrtsyan concluded.

ERDOGAN MET WITH ARMENIAN PATRIARCHATE DIGNITARY

News.am
11:44 / 08/17/2009

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with representatives of
Turkish minorities, as well as Orthodox Church Patriarch Bartholomew
and Armenian Apostolic Church Dignitary in Turkey, Archbishop Aram
Ateshyan.

According to Turkish mass media, Patriarchs raised the issues on
national schools and funds. Erdogan promised to undertake reforms to
improve the state of minorities in Turkey.

soL English

Claims of a secret agreement between Turkey and Russia

Saturday, 15 August 2009

According to Armenian sources, Turkey and Russia made a secret
agreement to let Russia use Turkish air space for transferring
equipments into their military base in Armenia.
According to the Pan-Armenian news website; Richard Giragosyan,
Armenia Strategic and National Research Center Chairman, made an
interesting claim in a meeting about the relations between Turkey and
Armenia.
Giragosyan claimed that opening the border between Turkey and Armenia
is profitable mostly for Russia and with a secret agreement, Turkey
let Russia to use its air space for transferring equipments to the
Russian military base in Armenia.
Giragosyan defended that normalization of the relations between Turkey
and Armenia is much more about the normalization of the relation
between Russia and Turkey. `After Russia-Georgia war, Russia was
expecting certain things from Turkey’ said Giragosyan. Last year,
Russia criticized Turkey a lot because of Turkey’s silent support to
Georgia during the war between Georgia and Russia

News.am

U.S. tries to promptly dispatch Karabakh issue: MP
16:31 / 08/15/2009

Lernik Alexanyan, Armenian Republican Party member reckons although
OSCE MG U.S. Co-chair is changed, American policy will remain
unchanged, as in our region U.S. policy is beyond state officers.
`Replacement of one diplomat will not lead to policy change, unless
the country changes its course and sends a corresponding
representative,’ Alexanyan said assuming that a new U.S. Co-chair will
be more sharp tempered, implementing better the U.S. policy in the
region.
The MP also stressed that U.S. pursuing its interests would try to be
promptly dispatch Karabakh issue and other problems of the region.
`Escalation of relations in the region is not advantageous for the
U.S., as the West has certain financial and economic interests, trying
to stabilize the situation,’ he concluded.