Author: Vasilian Manouk

AZERBAIJANI FOREIGN MINISTER: "WHETHER ARMENIANS WANT PEACE IN THE REGION OR NOT WILL BE CLEAR IN PRAGUE" – EXCLUSIVE

Trend
May 5 2009
Azerbaijan

Washington. Zaur Hasanov – APA. Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Elmar
Mammadyarov held first meeting within his visit to Washington with
State Department Special Representative for Eurasian Energy Affairs
Richard Morningstar.

Elmar Mammadyarov told APA US bureau they discussed the interesting
points of the South Corridor Summit in Prague on May 8 attended by
President Ilham Aliyev and US energy policy in the region.

Speaking about the ideas that Nagorny Karabakh conflict will be
resolved in the next few months, Elmar Mammadyarov said: "It is
difficult to say it now. First of all, it is important what position
will Armenia take in the negotiations. We have to know whether they
really want serious peace and progress in the negotiations or not. We
will know that in Prague. The issue will become completely clear
after the co-chairs’ visit to the region".

The minister said they analyzed situation again because of Turkey’s
involving in the last developments in the region and Araz Azimov met
with Turkey’s new foreign minister Davud Ahmetoglu.

Mammadyarov said he would discuss the Nagorny Karabakh conflict with
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

SERGEY LAVROV NOT TO PARTICIPATE IN RUSSIA-NATO MEETING

PanARMENIAN.Net
05.05.2009 20:30 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Russian FM Sergey Lavrov has pulled out of a
Russia-NATO council meeting planned for Brussels May 19. Lavrov’s
conduct is conditioned by recent decision to withdraw two Russian
diplomats accreditation to NATO Headquarters in Brussels. This was
the first NATO meeting after Russia’s invasion of Georgia last August.

NATO leadership decided to withdraw Russian diplomats’ accreditation
after a scandal caused by Estonian Defense Ministry official who was
sentenced to 12 years in prison for transferring 1000-page secret
documentation to NCR.

Regretting for Mr. Lavrov’s decision, NATO Secretary General Jaap
de Hoop Scheffer expressed hope that RNC Foreign Ministers will
appoint a date for new meeting. Alliance representative Carmen Romero
stressed the importance of discussing several key issues with Russian
colleagues, VOA News reports.

ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY OF AMERICA URGES U.S. AFFIRMATION OF GENOCIDE

PanARMENIAN.Net
05.05.2009 10:20 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) Western
Region Director Yeghig Keshishian, at the request of California
State Senator Joe Simitian (CA-11), spoke on the California State
Senate floor about the importance of U.S. affirmation of the Armenian
Genocide. Keshishian said that the Armenian Genocide is "a historical
fact that has been verified by historians, scholars, 43 U.S. states
and former U.S.

President Ronald Reagan," adding, "Instead of coming to terms with
this dark period in Turkey’s past, the present leadership under
President Gul and Prime Minister Erdogan, has chosen to employ highly
paid defense contractors and foreign lobbyists to silence discussion
of the genocide on American soil – not only in the halls of Congress
but also in academic circles."

California State Senators Elaine Alquist (CA-13), Lou Correa (CA-34),
Mark Leno (CA-3) and Carol Liu (CA-21), were also forthright in
their support of U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide, taking
time after Keshishian’s remarks to commend the Assembly. "It’s
tremendously gratifying to know that the state of California
understands and acknowledges the legitimate concerns of a half million
Armenian-Americans here in the state," said Simitian. "As a member
of the California State Senate I have been privileged to raise these
issues, including the Armenian Genocide, and I will continue to do
so in the coming years," concluded Simitian.

Additionally, California Assembly Joint Resolution (AJR) 14,
a resolution designating April 24, 2009, as "California Day of
Remembrance for the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923", introduced by
California Assemblyman Paul Krekorian (CA-43) was also considered. In
his public remarks, Krekorian expressed a sense of urgency to pass
this resolution, calling upon the President and the U.S. Congress to
follow suit. He also spoke out in favor of the truth and "to recommit
ourselves to building a society free of bigotry and inhumanity." The
bill passed with unanimous bipartisan support, 73-0.

Following passage of the AJR 14, the members of the Armenian-American
community in attendance joined Senator Simitian, Assemblyman Krekorian,
and other dignitaries from the Armenian community, to hear from
Speaker of the California Assembly, Karen Bass, who commended the
Armenian-American community for their persistent efforts to draw
attention to a subject of importance to all of humanity.

ERDOGAN TO MEET PRESIDENTS ALIEV AND PUTIN ON MAY 13 AND 16 RESPECTIVELY

PanARMENIAN.Net
04.05.2009 20:28 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On May 13, Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan will
visit Baku to discuss with President Aliev the current stage of
Armenian-Turkish relations and the Karabakh issue.

On May 16, Mr. Erdogan will leave for Moscow to meet with his Russian
colleague Vladimir Putin. Parties will mainly discuss issues concerning
NKR conflict settlement, CNN-Turk reports.

CREDIT BANK (LEBANON) BUYS CONTROLLING STAKE IN ANELIK BANK

ArmInfo
2009-05-01 00:39:00

ArmInfo. Credit Bank from Lebanon is going to buy a controlling stake
in Anelik Bank, reports a reliable source from the banking sector
of Lebanon.

The cost of the deal is 9bln AMD. Credit Bank has already transferred
half of the sum to Anelik Bank’s account at the Central Bank of
Armenia. The deal is supposed to be finalized by early June 2009.

To remind, at first Credit Bank was planning to open its own bank in
Armenia, Cedrus, with capital of 5.5bln AMD. Even though the bank
has received the CB’s preliminary consent to its plans, because of
the crisis, it has decided to buy a stake in the local bank. The key
advantage of Anelik Bank is that it has own money transfer system.

Credit Bank is going to buy a 51% stake in Anelik Bank. After the
deal is finalized the capital of Anelik will grow to 14.3bln AMD –
one of the five biggest capitals in Armenia’s banking sector. The
purchase of controlling stake in Anelik implies control over its
money transfer system.

Anelik Bank was established July 9 1990 and registered Oct 1 1991. In
Oct 1996 it was granted the CB’s license.

Apr 1 2009 the capital of the bank totalled 5.6bln AMD, assets –
38.2bln AMD, deposits by individuals – 8bln AMD, credits – 19.1bln AMD,
accrued profit – 884mln AMD. The bank has 10 branches (5 in Yerevan and
5 in the regions) and money transfer subsidiary in Moscow – Anelik.Ru.

TURKEY CRITICIZES OBAMA MESSAGE; SAYS REMARKS ON MASSACRE FAILED TO NOTE SLAIN TURKS
By Suzan Fraser, Associated Press

The Boston Globe
April 26, 2009 Sunday

ANKARA, Turkey – Turkey’s president said yesterday that President
Obama Enhanced Coverage LinkingPresident Obama -Search using:

Biographies Plus News

News, Most Recent 60 Days failed to honor Turks slain by Armenians
in a message remembering the dead in massacres nearly a century ago.

Obama

Enhanced Coverage LinkingObama -Search using: Biographies Plus News
News, Most Recent 60 Days on Friday refrained from branding the World
War I-era massacre of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians in Turkey a
"genocide," and instead referred to the killings that began in 1915 as
"one of the great atrocities of the 20th century."

The phrasing of Obama’s Enhanced Coverage LinkingObama’s -Search using:
Biographies Plus News News, Most Recent 60 Days statement attracted
heightened scrutiny, as using the "genocide" label could have angered
US ally Turkey and possibly disturbed reconciliation talks between
Turkey and Armenia.

President Abdullah Gul Enhanced Coverage LinkingAbdullah Gul -Search
using: Biographies Plus News News, Most Recent 60 Days of Turkey said,
however, that Obama Enhanced Coverage LinkingObama -Search using:
Biographies Plus News News, Most Recent 60 Days should also have
expressed sympathy for the "hundreds of thousands of Turks and Muslims"
killed around the same period, according to comments reported by the
state-run Anatolia news agency.

"Everyone’s pain must be shared," Gul reportedly said outside a
meeting in Sofia, Bulgaria. "It is not possible for politicians,
for statesmen to make decisions on historic events."

Turkey’s Foreign Ministry also contended that certain points in Obama’s
Enhanced Coverage LinkingObama’s -Search using: Biographies Plus News
News, Most Recent 60 Days statement were "unacceptable."

"It should not be forgotten that several hundreds of thousands
of Turks have lost their lives as well," the ministry said in a
statement. "Common history of the Turkish and Armenian nations has
to be assessed solely through impartial and scientific data, and
historians must base their evaluations only on such material."

Many scholars view the events in the final years of the Ottoman Empire
as the first genocide of the 20th century.

Turkey denies that the deaths constituted genocide, contending that
the toll has been inflated and that the casualties were victims
of civil war. It says Turks also suffered losses, at the hands of
Armenian gangs.

Turkey and Armenia agreed Wednesday on a road map for normalizing
relations, but it was not immediately clear how they would tackle
the bitter dispute over the Ottoman-era killings of ethnic Armenians.

Turkey and Armenia have had no diplomatic ties since closing their
border in 1993 because of a Turkish protest of Armenia’s occupation
of land claimed by Azerbaijan.

INTEGRATION INTO EUROPE AMONG ARMENIA’S FOREIGN POLITICAL PRIORITIES – PRESIDENT

Interfax
April 28 2009
Russia

Integration into European institutions remains among Armenia’s foreign
political priorities, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said at a
meeting with NATO Deputy Secretary General Claudio Bisogniero.

"The European vector remains among Armenia’s foreign political
priorities, and cooperation with NATO is among its crucial elements,"
Sargsyan said at a meeting with Bisogniero.

Sargsyan described cooperation between Armenia and NATO under the
Partnership for Peace program as a component of Armenia’s national
security, the presidential press service told Interfax on Tuesday.

Bisogniero welcomed Armenian-Turkish political dialogue and progress
that has been made in it. While NATO is not directly involved in
the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, it is still closely
following the development of the situation and welcomes any action
that could lead to a peaceful resolution of the problem, he said.

"The parties pointed out that the conflict should be settled in line
with all principles of international law, and none of these principles
can be dominating or be invoked at the expense of another," it said.

Bisogniero said the Alliance welcomed progress visible in various
areas of cooperation with Armenia. This is the first time a NATO high-
ranking official has visited Armenia since 2004, which is a sign
of importance that the Alliance attaches to relations with Armenia,
the presidential press service said.

4TH FIDE GRAND PRIX TOURNAMENT WINNERS CELEBRATED IN NALCHIK

PanARMENIAN.Net
30.04.2009 14:55 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The winners of the 4th FIDE Grand Prix
tournament were celebrated in the Music Theatre of the capital of
Kabardino-Balkaria.

The chief arbiter Vyacheslav Namruev announced the official results of
the tournaments. He pointed out that the 14 chess players of the 20
strongest grandmasters of the world gathered in Nalchik. The events
of this round of the FIDE Grand Prix were watched in many countries
of the world, says the information posted on Grand Prix website.

The winner of the 4th round of the FIDE Grand Prix is Levon Aronian
from Armenia.

The plastic card with the prize sum was presented to the winner by
the FIDE vice president Geoffrey Borg, the head of the KBR government
Andrew Yarin and the minister of sport and tourism of KBR Aslan
Afaunov.

Levon Aronian in his turn thanked the organizers of the contest and
said: "I have spent wonderful days here. When I was going to Nalchik
my parents told me that people are very friendly and hospitable
here. Nalchik is a perfect place for holding chess tournaments". The
winner was put on a national Caucasian White felt cloak.

All the participants were presented memorable awards: Gata Kamsky for
his "Will to victory", Rustam Kasimdzhanov was called "Chess Ciceron",
Shakhriyar Mamedyarov became an " All-round developed sportsman",
"The prize of the viewers sympathies" went to Vassily Ivanchuk.

ARMENIA TO HOST WORLD YOUTH BOXING CHAMPIONSHIP

PanARMENIAN.Net
28.04.2009 20:51 GMT+04:00

Boxing federations of 48 countries applied to participate in World
Youth Boxing Championship due in Yerevan on May 23-30.

According to Armenian Boxing Federation, about 283 boxers with
escorting groups will arrive in the Armenian capital.

For the moment, applications are received from Korea, Cyprus, Latvia,
Thailand, Sweden, Morocco, Austria, Nigeria, India and some other
countries.

13 boxers will represent Turkey at the championship in all weight
classes.

RPA AND ANC HAVE THE SAME POSITION REGARDING TURKEY, ARMENIAN POLITICAL EXPERT THINKS

ArmInfo
2009-04-29 11:45:00

Position of Republican Party of Armenia [RPA] and Armenian National
Congress [ANC] regarding Turkey fully coincide, Armenian political
expert Igor Muradyan told journalists.

‘ARF Dashnaktiutyun left the coalition as it predicted that the leader
of ANC Levon Ter-Petrosyan and President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan
will unite sooner or later’, – he said.

As for the Armenian genocide recognition, Muradyan said that over
the last 20 years Armenia did everything possible for the USA to
recognize Armenian genocide, but gained a funny result. This problem
is one of the elements of the foreign policy of the USA. He thinks
that at present certain signals from the USA are directed to Turkey,
according to which if Turkey continues the way of establishing its
independence, the USA will use other measures.

‘US policy regarding Turkey was drawn out long ago. As for Turkey,
it defines a new policy for itself, adapting it to its internal creed,
potential and aspirations. Thus, Turkey has already reached progress
in its domestic life but the USA cannot allow it. I think that since
90-s Washington has been adopted a decision about the necessity of
drawing out of the system of frightening Turkey. It is no secret that
the ways of suppressing Iran and Iraq were often applied towards Turkey
as well. Turkey should be isolated and kept close at the world arena’,
– Muradyan concluded.