Author: Zakarian Garnik

ARMENIAN PREMIER STRESSES IRAN’S NUCLEAR RIGHTS

Fars News Agency, Iran
Sept 12 2006

TEHRAN (Fars News Agency)- Armenia’s Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan
stressed in a meeting with the visiting Iranian Parliament Speaker
Gholam Ali Haddad Adel that rules of the International Atomic Energy
Agency entitle all the world states, including Iran, to the peaceful
use of the nuclear energy.

A statement released by the Information and Media Department of the
Islamic Consultative Assembly said that also during the meeting,
Haddad Adel pointed to recent statements made by the US officials in
justifying their double-standards in the face of Iran’s nuclear issue,
and stressed, "That they admit to their double standards in treating
our case is a success for Iran."

He further mentioned that the pressures the Untied States has exerted
on Iran on the pretext of the nuclear case come in reaction to Iran’s
independent views and its insistence on safeguarding its independent
stances.

"The US is worried that access to peaceful nuclear energy can make
Iran mightier," the top legislative official stated.

He said that powers exert pressure on every country which intends to
adopt independent decisions in the contemporary world, adding, "Slavery
is said to have been eradicated in the world, but the world powers
have unfortunately maintained their slavery-loving spirit and mindset
and they desire to make all the world nations their own slaves."

Elsewhere, Haddad Adel described Iran-Armenia relations as excellent
and noting the 200-billion-dollar volume of two countries’ trade
exchanges, he said that the figure could grow several times more.

Also pointing to the two states’ extensive possibilities, he said
officials on both sides should think of measures and plans to
facilitate exchange of visits by tourists and private sector activists.

For his part, Armenia’s Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan underscored
that rules of the International Atomic Energy Agency entitle all
the world states, including Iran, to the peaceful use of the nuclear
energy.

Margaryan said his nation may never forget Iran’s aids to that country
during the early years of Armenia’s independence, and further voiced
his country’s strong support for Iran’s balanced stance on the
establishment of regional peace and stability.

Also reiterating the need for the development of all-out relations
between the two countries, the official expressed the hope that
Iran-Armenia ties would help to the restoration of regional peace
and stability.

Also referring to the strategic significance of energy in the
contemporary world and the expansionist policies of some powers
for gaining dominance over regional energy resources, the Armenian
Prime Minister mentioned that from the view point of his country,
Iran-Armenia gas pipeline project which is now under construction
underlies the two countries’ future cooperation.

He also said his country attaches much significance to Iran-Armenia
railway as well as Iran-Armenia link road which are now, as instructed
by the two countries’ Presidents, under construction, as Armenia
believes that the two projects play a crucially important role in
the development of the two states’ economic ties.

The Armenian Premier also praised the Islamic Republic for paying
special attention to the affairs of Iranian Armenians.

JOINT MISSIONS ON FIRE TO BE SENT TO OCCUPIED TERRITORY OF AZERBAIJAN
Author: S.Aliyev

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
Sept 8 2006

"We have co-ordinated a draft resolution. I think it will be an adopted
consensus, without vote. I was informed that the document was being
approved and all 191 member-states, including Armenia are adopting it,"
Trend reports quoting Foreign Minister Mammadyarov. He was commenting
on the adoption of a resolution on fires in the occupied territory
of Azerbaijan by the UN General Assembly.

"The issue was put forward as an ecological catastrophe. The Chairman
of the OSCE will organize missions to these areas," he stated.

Mr. Mamadyarov said that a special mission will be sent to the areas
to familiarize themselves with the situation. The Azerbaijani and
Armenian experts will then participate in the mission, together with
the international experts. Also included will be representatives of
the UN ecological program, OSCE representatives, and possibly, the
OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs. "After the situation has been estimated
and measures to be taken clarified, a mission will be sent out to
consider the rehabilitation and erosion," the Minister stated. These
issues have been included in the Resolution.

After the completion of the process the OSCE Chairman is to present
a final report to the UN General Assembly, the Foreign Minister
emphasized.

AZERBAIJAN AGAINST ARMENIA-TURKEY CULTURAL DIALOGUE

PanARMENIAN.Net
09.09.2006 14:50 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Initiated by the Armenian Turkish Union of
Entrepreneurs and the Kars Municipality, the Cultural Festival of
the Caucasus will be held in Kars September 13-15. The Festival is
held under the slogan of Dialogue Culture. Meanwhile, a forum of
national non-governmental organizations of Azerbaijan, unifying over
400 organizations, has addressed the municipality leaders of Kars,
Turkey and organizers of the Festival, urging them to refuse from
cooperation with Armenia, which "breaks peace and stability in the
Caucasus and has turned into a source of permanent threat for the
countries of the region." Thereupon, the Forum adopted a statement,
urging to cancel the Festival, reported Trend.

Armenian ombudsman condemns attack on journalist

Arminfo
7 Sep 06

Yerevan, 7 September: The 6 September attack on the editor of Iravunk
newspaper, Ovanes Galadzhyan, is another attempt on freedom of speech,
Armenian ombudsman Armen Arutyunyan has said in a statement.

According to Armenia’s main rights campaigner, attacks on journalists
and creating obstacles to their work might inflict serious damage on
our country’s standing and threaten the full exercise of freedom and
access to information in Armenia. Arutyunyan called on the Armenian
law-enforcement agencies to be consistent and expressed confidence
that any act of violence against representatives of the media will
not go unpunished and the culprits will be punished with the full
severity of the law.

ANOTHER DRAFT ABOUT THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

A1+
[08:15 pm] 08 September, 2006

Two days ago the legislative body of State Cordoba of Argentina
unanimously adopted draft N9315 which announces April 24 as the
Memory day of the Genocide realized by the Ottoman Empire against
the Armenian nation.

The draft created by representative of the faction "Union for the
sake of Cordoba" Alejandra Vigo mentions that "the cruelties carried
out against the Armenian nation by the government of the Ottoman
Empire and Turkey before, after and during the WWI are called the
Armenian Genocide".

The law will come into force after being ratified by the Cordoba
governor within 10 days.

Armenpress

YBC PLANS TO SELL 80 PERCENT OF BRANDY IN RUSSIA

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 8, ARMENPRESS: The French-owned
Yerevan Brandy Company (YBC) plans to sell almost 80
percent of its output to Russia this year.
Zara Nazarian, head of the YBC press office, told a
news conference today that last year the company had
sold 3.4 million liters of brandy, of which 2.5
million in Russia. She said YBC faces no problems in
Russia as its output complies with all sanitary
requirements.
The company’s production manager Phillip Tibau said
that they are planning to buy 30,000 tons of grapes
this year, up from 25,000 tons in 2005. In order to
buy more grapes it has invested 1 million euro this
year in Armavir and Aygevan wine-cellars.
It pays between 120-130 drams per one kg of grape
plus 15 drams bonus per each kg. This year the Yerevan
Brandy Company has signed 2,400 contracts with
wine-makers.

HOVHANNES GALAJYAN WAS BEATEN

A1+
[03:24 pm] 06 September, 2006

Today another act of violence was carried out against a
journalist. Hovhannes Galajyan, the editor-in-chief of the newspaper
"Iravounq" was beaten on Komitas street in the morning. "As I was
going out of the house in the morning, two skinheads approached me
from the back, threw me down and started to kick me. As soon as people
appeared nearby, they ran away", Hovhannes Galajyan told "A1+".

The incident lasted about five minutes. The victims remembers the
faces of the skinheads who did not utter a single word. "They just
carried out their task silently", Galajyan adds. Both of them were
about 40-year-old guys, tall and strong. Immediately after the incident
Hovhannes Galajyan went to the police and to hospital.

As for the suspicion, Hovhannes Galajyan thinks the case might be
connected with his latest analytic article "What makes the super
minister nervous" (the article was about Serge Sargsyan).

"I’m not absolutely sure but it might also be connected with other
economic materials published in the newspaper", the editor-in-chief
says.

ARMENIAN LEADER AWARDS OUTGOING US ENVOY FOR EFFORTS TO EXPAND TIES

Mediamax news agency, Yerevan
6 Sep 06

Armenian President Robert Kocharyan has awarded the outgoing US
ambassador to Armenia, John Evans, the Mkhitar Gosh Medal, Mediamax
news agency reported on 6 September.

The ambassador was awarded for his "significant contribution to
the deepening and development of friendly Armenian-US relations",
the agency quoted a presidential decree as saying.

Presenting the medal to the ambassador at a farewell meeting in
Yerevan, Kocharyan said that "serious progress" had been made in
Armenian-US relations during Evans’ two-year tenure.

In turn, Ambassador Evans said that Armenia’s admittance to the
Millennium Challenge programme was the most significant achievement
in relations between the two countries, the agency said.

SYRIAN MUFTI COMMEMORATED ARMENIAN GENOCIDE VICTIMS

PanARMENIAN.Net
04.09.2006 19:07 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Sheikh Ahmed Badr-Eddine Hassun, who is on visit
to Holy Echmiadzin at the moment, has attended the Memorial to the
Armenian Genocide victims in Yerevan He wrote a note in the Honor
Book and commemorated the Genocide victims.

"If all the peoples followed their religion there would be no
pogroms. The Armenian people should overcome the pain, revive and
build Armenia with peace," said the Syrian spiritual leader.

SERIES OF CONCERTS TO BE HELD AT "CASCADE" ARCHITECTURAL COMPLEX

ArmRadio.am
04.09.2006 14:54

September 12-26 series of concerts will be held at the "Cascade"
architectural complex. The event is organized by the Gafeschian
Museum Fund.

Press Service of the Museum told ArmInfo that the first concert
scheduled September 12 will be dedicated to Mozart’s 250th anniversary.

September 26 the Armenian Navy Band is expected to perform at a
concert organized by the British Oxfam Company and dedicated to the
development of the century’ s objectives.