Author: Vardapetian Ophelia

HRANT’S FRIENDS GROUP HOPE JUST COURT DECISION

PanARMENIAN.Net
14.10.2008 14:40 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ A group of people who identify themselves as "Friends
of Hrant" released a press statement yesterday, as the seventh hearing
in the murder case of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink took
place at the Istanbul Criminal Court. "The one who pulled the trigger
is being tried, but who are the real owners of this gun? During the
Ergenekon operations, we read about a senior police officer saying,
‘This organization is the one who killed Hrant Dink, but we cannot
prove it.’ Should we keep hoping that the truth will be revealed some
day?" the group asked, Today’s Zaman reports.

Some suspects in the Dink case have been linked to the Ergenekon gang,
a shadowy network believed to have been attempting to carry out a
number of high-profile assassinations.

The statement also talked about the testimony of Capt. Husamettin
Polat, who said at a separate hearing that Col. Ali Oz persistently
refused to deal with information about the murder plot. He also
claimed that Oz wanted the informant, Coskun Igc, to be warned to
"not talk about this incident" after the murder.

Dink was shot dead outside the offices of the Agos newspaper in
Istanbul in January 2007. Police arrested the suspected gunman,
Ogun Samast, and his alleged associate, Hayal, within days. There
are a total of 20 suspects in the case, eight of whom are currently
under arrest.

SLOVAK GOVERNMENT TO DISCUSS LEGISLATION ON REJECTING GENOCIDE

Panorama.am
18:22 13/10/2008

On October 6-7 Armenian delegation of Justice Ministry headed by
Minister Gevorg Danielyan has visited Slovakia by the invitation of
the Justice Minister of Slovakia Stephan Harabin, reported the press
service of the Justice Ministry.

According to the source, the Justice Ministers have discussed the
implementation procedure of the legal cooperation memorandums signed
between the two countries. Mr. Harabin said that by his initiative
the Government will discuss the legislation on rejecting the 1915
Genocide and Holocaust. The Justice Minister of Slovakia ensured that
he will be consistent and that the disagreements could not results
on the failure of the initiative.

During the official visit to Slovakia, the Justice Minister of Armenia
and the delegation headed by him have visited some courts in Slovakia,
jails, notarial offices.

RA PRIME MINISTER AWARDED BARONESS CAROLINE COX

RIA OREANDA
Economic News
September 26, 2008 Friday
Russia

Yerevan. ">OREANDA-NEWS . September 26, 2008. In accordance with
a decree signed today by RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan, for
outstanding contribution to the strengthening and development of
Armenian-British relations and for friendly ties maintained with
the people of Armenia, chairwoman of the British-Armenian all-party
parliamentary group, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland House of Lords Vice-Speaker, Baroness Caroline Cox was awarded
RA Prime Minister’s commemorative medal. The medal was presented to the
Baroness during a meeting held at the Office of Government later today.

In the course of her planned visit to the NKR and Armenia, Baroness
Cox was accompanied by a numerous delegation of people interested
in Armenia and Artsakh the members of which, in Baroness’s words,
are supposed to become the best friends of Armenia.

Greeting the guests, Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan conveyed his
gratitude to Caroline Cox by noting that she is well-known in both
Armenia and Artsakh for her many missions carried out in these parts.

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland House of Lords
Vice-Speaker, Baroness Caroline Cox advised the head of the Armenian
government that she has arrived in our country to attend jubilee
celebrations for a rehabilitation center established in Artsakh over
a decade ago owing to her efforts which is now deemed to be among
the best ones in the South Caucasian region.

Baroness Cox thanked the Prime Minister for the decoration and his
kind remarks. She asked Tigran Sargsyan about the impact that may
have on the Karabakh peace process Abkhazia’s and South Ossetia’s
declaration of independence, the current status of the Armenian-Turkish
relationship and the approaches of the Armenian authorities following
the Turkish President’s recent visit to Armenia.

The Prime Minister gave the Baroness a detailed account of our
country’s official standpoint which has already been made public on
several occasions.

PRESS RELEASE
BIRTHRIGHT ARMENIA
Contact: Linda Yepoyan
October 10, 2008
Phone: 610-642-6633
[email protected]

BIRTHRIGHT ARMENIA VOLUNTEERS PARTNER WITH VIVACELL-MTS
Give-Back Project Provides Well Needed Makeover to School

Abovian, Armenia – Nothing unites people like a common cause – especially
when it serves the greater good of a community. On October 3, volunteers
from Birthright Armenia and Armenia’s leading mobile phone company,
VivaCell-MTS, teamed up to participate in a joint, community give-back
effort, painting classrooms that were in dire need of restoration at the Nor
Gyugh School in Abovian District. The project was a great success, owing to
the efforts of the volunteers, their sponsoring organization, and children
and staff of Nor Gyugh School, located just kilometers outside of Yerevan.

Sevan Kabakian, Country Director for Birthright Armenia, summed up the
objective of the community give back project by saying, "Today we were
witness to the winning spirit of cooperation, volunteerism, service, and of
partnership." He added, "This is a vibrant example of people from the
non-profit and business sectors coming together and serving a greater
cause."

Considering the preservation of national identity and culture as the mission
of every socially responsible company, VivaCell-MTS takes tangible steps to
integrate the youth of Armenia and of the Diaspora in joint projects,
helping foster effective communication. The company’s General Manager, Ralph
Yirikian, who was at Nor Gyugh School along side his staff, stated: "At
VivaCell-MTS, as a corporate citizen we are committed to our Corporate
Social Responsibility which is reflected in everything we do. Children are
the nation’s most valuable pillar; the better we equip and educate them, the
better our future will be. This sense of responsibility is not limited to
one organization; it’s a call to action for everyone and every Armenian
entity, be it in Armenia or in the Diaspora."

The group of 36 volunteers, in great spirits and covered head to toe in blue
and white paint, were divided up into groups to cover all seven classrooms
and were extremely focused on the task at hand. They paused only for lunch
and a friendly game of soccer with the school children, and otherwise spent
the rest of the day with brushes and rollers in hand. For the children of
Nor Gyugh, the painting meant a day off from classes, but many of them were
on site eager to help, and fascinated by the invigorated crew of painters
giving their school a brand new feel.

The day turned out to be an extremely rewarding experience for all parties
involved. "Selfless acts are usually the ones that end up bringing the most
joy," said Danielle Paroyan, a Birthright Armenia participant from Toronto.
"This is exactly what this experience has reinforced for me. In reality, we
did very little. We simply devoted a few hours out of our day to help paint
a school, but it was not long before we all realized that both what we gave
and what we received in return was so much more. The children watched us
paint with a sense of awe. It was clear by the smiles on their faces that
they appreciated the fact that we were there for them, for their school. I
think we provided them with a feeling of hope. On a personal level, their
smiles gave me a great sense of fulfillment."

This joint community give back effort illustrates the potential there is to
affect positive change when local and Diaspora Armenians come together.
There are countless other schools in Armenia like Nor Gyugh, in countless
other towns, where countless other children would benefit not only from the
repairs, but from their interactions with volunteers. All it takes is a
handful of people and an organized effort to prove that small acts of
kindness go a long way.

Birthright Armenia’s mission is to strengthen ties between the homeland and
diasporan youth by affording them an opportunity to be a part of Armenia’s
daily life and to contribute to Armenia’s development through work, study
and volunteer experiences, while developing a renewed sense of Armenian
identity. For more information, or to make an online donation, please visit
our web site at

DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER RECEIVED DELEGATION OF PARLIAMENT OF SWITZERLAND

Panorama.am
18:19 09/10/2008

The Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Gegham Gharibjanyan received
the delegation of the Parliament of Switzerland, the co-chairman
to Switzerland-Armenia parliamentary group headed by Dominique
de Buman and Ueli Leuenberger, reported the press service of the
Foreign Ministry.

According to the source, the parliamentarians of Switzerland expressed
their gratitude for the warmest welcome. They have highly evaluated
the bilateral relationship.

Gegham Gharibjanyan agreed with the parliamentarians and mentioned
that the communication between the two countries should be developed
especially in economy.

UNION OF YOUNG CONSERVATIVES MEETS WITH REFUSAL TO BE ALLOCATED HALL FOR HOLDING CONFERENCE

Noyan Tapan

Oc t 8, 2008

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 9, NOYAN TAPAN. The Union of Young Conservatives
(UYC) is going to hold a conference on October 16 in celebration of
the 17th anniversary of establishment of the institution of president
in Armenia.

However, the union’s applications with the request to be allocated
a hall have been rejected by Yerevan State University, the Union
of Writers, the Literature Institute, the National Academy of
Sciences, the Narekatsi Art Union and the Matenadaran. Nevertheleass,
according to the co-chairman of the union Hayk Mirzoyan, UYC is full
of determination to hold a conference and hopes that "there will be
an organization in Yerevan that will realize the significance of this
historical event and agree to provide a hall."

LE PRESIDENT SARKISSIAN S’ADRESSE AU PARLEMENT ET A LA NATION

Nouvelles d’Arméni
lundi 6 octobre 2008
France

ARMENIE

Le président arménien Serge Sarkissian a déclaré jeud’il inaugurait
une nouvelle tradition celle pour les présidents arméniens de
s’adresser a l’Assemblée nationale et a la nation conformément a
la réforme de la constitution

Dans un discours de 40 minutes devant tous les responsables de l’état,
dont notamment le Premier ministre et l’ensemble des ministres, le
président de la Cour Constitutionnelle, le secrétaire du Conseil
National de Sécurité, le président de la Banque Centrale, le
médiateur de la République, le Président Sarkissian a parlé des
problèmes auxquels font face l’Etat et la société arménienne
aujourd’hui et a appelé a des réformes pour faire face aux défis
du monde moderne.

Une guerre dans notre voisinage, des frontières fermées,
des problèmes de communication vers l’extérieur, des relations
régionales devenues compliquées, un clash entre les intérêts des
superpuissances – c’est le cercle de la réalité d’aujourd’hui pour
l’Arménie" a-t-il dit. "Dans cette nouvelle situation, des changements
positifs deviennent une norme de vie".

Le chef de l’Etat arménien a déclaré qu’en préservant la
stabilité, l’approche réaliste et équilibrée de la politique
de l’Arménie doit aussi exclur "n’importe quelle possibilité de
stagnation dans n’importe quelle sphèr".

En parlant des derniers événements dans la région, Serge
Sarkissian a déclaré que les événements autour de l’Ossétie
du Sud et la guerre qui s’en avait suivi avaient eu "un effet
calmant". "Aujourd’hui, c’est plus qu’évident que nous n’avons
pas uniquement besoin de faire une évaluation claire, pragmatique,
non-émotionnelle et adéquate de la situation, mais aussi de faire
des pas conséquents poursuivant des buts lointains qui sont exigés
pour la stabilité du pays, la consolidation de nos forces et les
possibilités de nouvelles approches et solutions".

La guerre n’est pas fini tant qu’il y existe une course aux armements,
elle n’est pas fini parce que nous n’avons pas tous ensemble encore
félicité les présidents de l’Azerbaïdjan et du Nagorno-Karabakh
pour leur décision et pour le règlement paisible du conflit".

Serge Sarkissian a précisé que trois initiatives en faveur de
l’Arménie étaient au centre de l’attention du gouvernement pour
les prochaines années. Parmi elles le lancement de la construction
d’un nouveau réacteur nucléaire attendue pour les mois a venir ;
le début de la construction d’un chemin de fer relaine l’Iran et
l’Arménie projeté pour les prochaines années et la création
dans les prochains mois d’une banque et d’un fonds d’investissement
uniquement arméniens qui financeront les projets a petite échelle.

Serge Sarkissian a aussi mis l’accent sur le rôle de l’Assemblée
nationale. Il a dit :" le Parlement ne peut pas être vu comme un
corps fait seulement pour adopter des lois. Le Parlement est une
institution principale pour le dialogue politique, une institution
qui forme la culture de parlementarisme".

Dans cette optique il s’est adressé aux parlementaires et aux
membres du gouvernement pour" faire du débat sur le budget une vraie
discussion sur le développement de toutes les sphères de notre vie".

Serge Sarkissain a aussi appelé a des mesures drastique" pour changer
la qualité de relations publiques et se débarrasser de la maladie
de la corruption".

"N’importe quelle initiative sans ces mesures est condamnée a l’éche"
a-t-il souligné.

Le président a aussi publié un avertissement sévère pour ceux qui
veulent "désunir le peupl" et qui décident d’employer des méthodes
brutales dans la rue pour résoudre les questions.

"Je le dis clairement : Personne ne peut considérer qu’il est
intouchable dans la République d’Arménie, personne dans la
République de l’Arménie ne peut s’attribuer les fonctions de
l’état. Je suggère a tous de s’abstenir de ces habitudes enracinées
dans le vice parce que les conséquences seront en effet visible".

–Boundary_(ID_XoIF5zZFFACkFoWNTzT /7g)–

MarketWatch

Lydian Intersects 125m at 1.6g/t Gold (Including 31m at 4.4g/t Gold)
in Best Intersection yet From Amulsar Gold Discovery in Armenia

Step-out drilling commences on targets located some 1.5km to the
northwest and southeast of the current drilling grid

Last update: 11:46 a.m. EDT Oct. 1, 2008

TORONTO, ONTARIO, Oct 01, 2008 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX) — Lydian
International Ltd. (CA:LYD: news, chart, profile) , a diversified
U.K. mineral exploration and development company, today announced
results from further drilling at its Amulsar gold discovery in
Armenia. Results from a further 18 combined diamond and reverse
circulation drill holes have been returned (Table 1). Best results
include:

– RCA-028, 125m at 1.6/gt gold (including 31m at 4.4g/t gold),
– RCA-030, 122m at 1.0g/t gold (including 38m at 2.6g/t gold),
– DDA-015, 83m at 1.0g/t gold.
TABLE 1, Interim Results from Drilling at Amulsar
—————————————— ——————————-
Total Inter-
Drill Dip Azimuth Depth From To section Gold (g/t)
Hole (m) (m) (m) (m)
———————————————- —————————
DDA-013 -60 120 153.6 No Significant Intersections
Greater Than 1g/t Gold
——————————————— —————————-
DDA-014 -60 120 48.3 Bogged and abandoned
—————————————- ———————————
DDA-015 -60 120 150.0 27 110 83 1.00
——————————————— —————————-
DDA-016 -60 120 149.5 No Significant Intersections
Greater Than 1g/t Gold
——————————————— —————————-
45 58 13 1.04
————————————–
RCA-023 -60 120 160.0 65 68 3 1.17
————————————–
80 107 27 1.00
——————————————— —————————-
0 2 2 1.27
————————————–
RCA-024 -60 120 196.0 128 130 2 1.01
————————————–
161 169 8 1.04
——————————————— —————————-
RCA-025 -60 120 22.0 Bogged and abandoned
—————————————- ———————————
RCA-026 -60 120 196.0 149 152 3 1.16
——————————————— —————————-
0 13 13 1.21
RCA-027 -60 120 166.0 ————————————–
30 75 45 1.00
——————————————— —————————-
-60 300 150.0 25 150 125 1.57
RCA-028 ————————————–
(Including) 26 57 31 4.44
——————————————— —————————-
RCA-029 -60 300 154.0 No Significant Intersections
Greater Than 1g/t Gold
——————————————— —————————-
-60 300 154.0 0 122 122 1.01
RCA-030 ————————————–
(Including) 74 112 38 2.58
——————————————— —————————-
RCA-031 -60 300 108.0 No Significant Intersections
Greater Than 1g/t Gold
——————————————— —————————-
48 51 3 1.72
RCA-032 -60 120 150 ————————————–
82 85 3 2.00
——————————————— —————————-
92 112 20 1.05
RCA-033 -60 120 150.0 ————————————–
133 148 15 1.07
——————————————— —————————-
RCA-034 -60 120 160.0 120 122 2 1.18
——————————————— —————————-
51 54 3 3.48
————————————–
RCA-035 -60 120 131.0 76 79 3 1.04
————————————–
80 82 2 1.02
——————————————— —————————-
52 57 5 1.13
RCA-036 -60 300 190 ————————————–
174 189 15 1.19
——————————————— —————————-
Cut-off 0.2g/t gold, maximum down-hole internal dilution 11m
All intersections are oxide gold, not true widths

Drill hole locations with projections of gold-grade to surface
relative to rock-chip geochemistry are provided in Figure 1 below and
an interpretative cross-section illustrating the probable controls on
gold mineralisation is provide in Figure 2 below.
To view the drill hole locations, please see the link below:

To view the interpretative cross section, please see the link below:

"These results confirm the depth extent of mineralisation at Amulsar
and provide further evidence of higher-grade pods which are favourable
from a mine-planning perspective," said Tim Coughlin, Lydian’s
President and CEO. "Step-out drilling on targets to the north and
south of the current drill-grid has commenced, enabling us to assess
the full size potential of the Amulsar system before the winter sets
in."
Amulsar is a high-sulphidation type epithermal gold project located in
central Armenia. Lydian identified the gold bearing potential of the
project in mid-2006, started initial drilling in 2007, and currently
is conducting a 20,000m drill program to test the bulk tonnage
potential and confirm a gold resource. The Amulsar license is 95%
owned by Lydian’s wholly owned Armenian subsidiary (Geoteam CJSC). The
project is currently being explored as part of a 50/50 joint venture
with Newmont Overseas Exploration Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary
of Newmont Mining Corporation (NEM:Newmont Mining Corporation
News, chart, profile, more
Last: 38.61-0.20-0.52%

4:02pm 10/01/2008

Delayed quote dataAdd to portfolio
Analyst
Create alertInsider
Discuss
Financials
Sponsored by:
38.61, -0.20, -0.5%) .
About Lydian International
Lydian is a diversified U.K. mineral exploration and development
company, with expertise employing "first mover" strategies in emerging
exploration environments. Currently the Company is focused on Eastern
Europe developing advanced precious and base metal assets in Armenia
and in Kosovo. The two main projects are gold at Amulsar in Armenia,
and zinc, lead, silver and gold at Drazhnje in Kosovo. Lydian also has
a pipeline of promising gold and base metal exploration projects in
the Balkans region, and operates a 50/50 gold and copper exploration
joint venture with Newmont Overseas Exploration Limited, a subsidiary
of Newmont Mining Corporation in the Caucasus region.
Lydian’s management team has a track record of success in grassroots
discovery, in acquiring and developing undervalued assets, and in
building companies. Lydian has a strong social agenda and a unique
understanding of the complex social and political issues that
characterise emerging environments. The two largest shareholders are
Newmont Mineral Holdings B.V. (owned by Newmont Mining Corporation),
and International Finance Corporation (part of the World Bank
Group). More information can be found on Lydian’s web site at

Dr Tim Coughlin, MAusIMM; is the Qualified Person overseeing Lydian’s
exploration programmes. Dr. Coughlin has supervised the preparation of
the technical information contained in this press release.
Lydian employees are instructed to follow standard operating and
quality assurance procedures intended to ensure that all sampling
techniques and sample results meet international reporting
standards. All assay work for the released results was carried out by
ALS Chemex analytical laboratory in Rosia Montana, Romania, in Perth
Australia, or in Vancouver, BC. Please see Lydian’s web site for more
information.
Forward-looking Information
Securities regulators encourage companies to disclose forward-looking
information to help investors understand a company’s future
prospects. This press release contains statements about our future
financial condition, results of operations and business. These are
"forward-looking" because we have used what we know and expect today
to make a statement about the future. Forward-looking statements
usually include words such as may, expect, anticipate, believe or
other similar words. We believe the expectations reflected in these
forward-looking statements are reasonable. However, actual events and
results could be substantially different because of the risks and
uncertainties associated with our business or events that happen after
the date of this press release. You should not place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements. As a general policy, we do not update
forward-looking statements except as required by securities laws and
regulations.
Contacts:
Lydian International Ltd.
Tim Coughlin
President and CEO
+44 7717 204300
Email: [email protected]

Lydian International Ltd.
Linda Montgomery
VP Investor Relations
(416) 214-4654
Email: [email protected]
Website :

SOURCE: Lydian International Ltd.
mailto:[email protected]
mai lto:[email protected]

Copyright 2008 Market Wire, All rights reserved.

NKR PM: BEFORE 2015 NAGORNO-KARABAKH TO BECOME AN ENERGETICALLY INDEPENDENT COUNTRY

DeFacto Agency
2008-10-02 16:39:00
Armenia

STEPANAKERT, 02.10.08. DE FACTO. "The first year’s results testify
that there are quite organizational and material resources for the
successful implementation of the programs targeted at NKR’s rapid
social-economic development", Nagorno-Karabakh Republic PM Ara
Harutyunian said today in Stepanakert, at a press conference devoted
to the results of the first year of acting cabinet of ministers’ work.

According to the DE FACTO own correspondent in Stepanakert, the
premier noted that agriculture was the principal direction of activity.

The Premier assured that before 2015 NKR would become an energetically
independent country and would even be able to export electro energy.

Ara Harutyunian also noted that, due to a number of programs, social
tension has been scaled down. He said that in 2009 pensions would
increase 18%, teachers’ salary by 30 % and would reach 160, 000 drams
in the near future.

The government’s head noted that the world financial crisis was
already telling on the Republic banking sphere – financial streams
from outside had been reduced, credit rates were expected to raise,
banking resources would decline. At that Ara Harutyunian underscored
that in case of need the government would prevent from deep and
undesirable processes.

LIFE IS NOT ONLY OPPOSITION-RULING POWER STRUGGLE
Naira Khachatryan

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
02 Oct 2008
Armenia

Leader of the United Labor Party Gurgen Arsenyan was the guest of
"Urbat" club yesterday.

Most of the questions were linked with the activity of the NA temporary
committee investigating March 1-2 developments. It turned out that G.

Arsenyan has certain questions the answers to which he hasn’t yet
received.

"My questions were linked with the events following the morning
developments. The police informed us about the instructions they got
after the morning developments. These instructions gave ground to
certain questions.

According to the version received from the police beginning from
10.00 a.m. the chief police officers have realized mobilization
of forces. So, a question arises here, "Why did they take that
decision?" in case when they received information regarding people’s
accumulation only at 11.00 a.m.

This is my personal standpoint, which hasn’t yet been discussed in
the session of the committee.

He said clear inter-party conflicts form the bases of the change
of the NA Speaker: "RPA is still a ruling party and they shoulder
responsibility.

Any party that shoulders certain responsibility has the right to
decide whom to appoint in this or that position. It is their internal
problem and the hullabaloo and the responses don’t coincide with the
forma t of what happened."

As regards the internal political situation, G. Arsenyan believes all
the issues can be solved by a dialogue: "A situation has been created,
where the citizens of Armenia who are divided into pro-oppositional
and pro-governmental don’t listen to one another. The issue of a
dialogue has ripened. We must find the key. Even if it has negative
results. In this question I would like to address the ruling power
because their resources are bigger.

On the other hand some try to introduce the situation created in
the country as black and white. It is very boring because life is
going on and it has different colors. Millions of people live in our
country and we shouldn’t ignore them, saying "either this side or
that side"…"if we come to power everything will be ok"…etc."

The attitude of the speaker towards the visit of the Turkish president
to Armenia is positive: "Any event that gives possibility to mitigate
the tension between Armenian-Turkish relations and to raise the
degree of cooperation is welcomed. I also welcome the initiative of
the country’s President to bring the process of the settlement of
Karabakh conflict to a productive stage. I welcome him on behalf of
the United Labor Party and on my behalf, personally.

The recent Russian-Georgian developments demonstrated the necessity
of establishing communication, economic and20political relations
with Turkey, because our economy could be paralyzed, had the Georgian
conflict lasted 10 more days. Based on Armenia’s vital interests we
must firstly settle our relations with Turkey."