Category: News

Le Télégramme
28 juillet 2004
Jazz à Vannes démarre en fanfare
Le festival de jazz semble vouloir mettre le paquet pour fêter ses 25
ans.
Le festival de jazz semble vouloir mettre le paquet pour fêter ses 25
ans.
La soirée de lundi a été superbe sur la place de l’Hôtel de ville,
avec notamment le groupe Captain Mercier qui a fait longuement danser
le public venu nombreux. La fête s’est finie tard dans la nuit, sur
le port avec les fanfares. La première soirée à l’Hôtel de Limur hier
était consacrée au blues, avec la prestation du grand Buddy Guy. Ce
soir, place au prodige arménien Tigran Hamasyan et un hommage à
Claude Nougaro qui promet d’être émouvant.
La 25 e édition de Jazz à Vannes est bien partie pour être
inoubliable.

ARKA News
July 28 2004
NKR President receives Co-Chairman of International Helsinki Civil
Assembly
RA MFA Press Secretary: attempt of military settlement of Karabakh
conflict to turn out a catastrophe and first of all to Azerbaijan
*********************************************************************
NKR PRESIDENT RECEIVES CO-CHAIRMAN OF INTERNATIONAL HELSINKI CIVIL
ASSEMBLY
YEREVAN, July 28. /ARKA/. NKR President Arkady Gukasian received
Co-Chairman of International Helsinki Civil Assembly Bernard Dreano.
During the meeting Dreano briefly informed the President on the
aspects of activity of the Assembly. He said that the Assembly is
conducting different activities in South Caucasus countries with
participation of youth, which contributes to establishment of
contacts at different levels. Dreano expressed readiness to assist
active participation of Karabakh NGOs in different international
activities.
Gukasian in his turn stressed the necessity of activation of Karabakh
non-government sector. L.D. –0 –
*********************************************************************
RA MFA PRESS SECRETARY: ATTEMPT OF MILITARY SETTLEMENT OF KARABAKH
CONFLICT TO TURN OUT A CATASTROPHE AND FIRST OF ALL TO AZERBAIJAN
YEREVAN, July 27. /ARKA/. Attempt of military settlement of Karabakh
conflict will turn out a catastrophe and first of all to Azerbaijan,
RA MFA Press Secretary Hamlet Gasparian stated today, commenting
statement of Azeri President Ilkham Aliev that if negotiations will
be unsuccessful, Azerbaijan will liberate its lands by all measures,
including military ones. `Similar statements have not once been
stated by acting president at public meetings, however, the fact that
he made this one during the meeting with his ambassadors give ground
for serious anxiety’, Gasparian said. According to him, it once again
testifies that Azerbaijan does not want peaceful settlement of the
conflict and counts of military one. L.D. –0 –

Georgian president, Armenian premier discuss regional projects
Arminfo
27 Jul 04
YEREVAN
When Armenian Prime Minister Andranik Markaryan and Georgian President
Mikheil Saakashvili met in Tbilisi, Markaryan in particular touched on
the restoration of the Tbilisi-Gyumri-Kars railway.
Markaryan said that restoring the railway would allow all neighbouring
countries to fully participate in the EU’s international economic
projects, such as TRACECA [Transportation Corridor
Europe-Caucasus-Asia] and INOGATE [Interstate Oil and Gas Transport to
Europe]. He also said he was ready for more active cooperation with
Georgia within regional projects.
Speaking about regional security, the sides especially noted Georgia’s
internal stability. At the request of Markaryan, Saakashvili briefed
him on the domestic political situation in Georgia, and in particular
topical issues related to South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
Noting the special attention that Georgia pays to the local Armenian
community, Markaryan hoped that the Georgian authorities would
continue the active involvement of the community in Georgia’s
political, economic and cultural life. In turn, Saakashvili assured
the Armenian delegation that he would do his best to assist the
Georgian government in the implementation of social and economic
programmes in Javakheti.
In the wake of the meeting Markaryan visited Armenia’s embassy in
Georgia to meet its personnel.

BRITAIN’S BARONESS COX, KARABAKH LEADER DISCUSS AID
Arminfo
27 Jul 04
YEREVAN
The president of the Nagornyy Karabakh Republic (NKR), Arkadiy
Gukasyan, today received a delegation led by the deputy speaker of the
British House of Lords, Baroness Caroline Cox.
According to Arminfo, the NKR presidential press service quoted Cox as
saying with satisfaction that since her last visit to Nagornyy
Karabakh, positive changes have taken place in establishing a true
democratic and civic society here, as well as in restoring the economy
destroyed in military operations. According to Cox, she respects very
much the Karabakh people and their achievements on the way of
independence. At the same time, Cox said that a charity organization
called HART had been established under her patronage. It has offices
in Britain and the USA and will be involved in humanitarian aid to the
population of various countries, including Nagornyy Karabakh.
In turn, Gukasyan thanked Cox for her constant attention to Nagornyy
Karabakh and active participation in the NKR people’s aspiration to
build a modern democratic state. At the same time, he expressed his
confidence that Cox’s understanding of the just position of the NKR
people and leadership on the basic principles of the conflict
settlement has made a noticeable contribution to the formation of a
relevant attitude by the international community to the essence of the
problem and ways of settling it.

MUSEUM OF HISTORY OF ARMENIA TO EXHIBIT ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS
YEREVAN, JULY 27. ARMINFO. An exhibition of archaeological finds of
the last decade will be held in the State Museum of Armenian History
in the next few days, says the director of the Archaeology and
Ethnography Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia
Aram Kalantaryan.
The exhibition will present materials dating back from the paleolite,
early Iron Age, Urartu, Ahemenid Persia ancient Armenia. Kalantaryan
says that there is much to be shown. Found Agarak, Aragatsotn region,
in the last years was a unique columbary – the grave of a Urartu
prince (preliminarily VIII BC) which was unfortunately robbed in the
following centuries. Also exposed will be fossilized traces of animals
and plants living in the area 100,000-1 mln years ago as well as
obsidian arms of ancient hunters.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS HOPE TO FIND TRACES OF PALEOLITE MAN’S ACTIVITIES IN RIVER
VOROTAN GORGE
YEREVAN, JULY 27. ARMINFO. July 28 An Armenian-French archaeological
group is to start examining the gorge of the river Vorotan, Sunik
region. They will study rocks where there may be the traces of the
activities of the paleolite man, says the director of the Archaeology
and Ethnography Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of
Armenia Aram Kalantaryan.
The project has been drafted by the Armenian side, the financing is
French. The laboratory research will be held in France where there is
all necessary equipment to determine their age. The findings will be
published in several languages.
Kalantaryan says that in the last decade the institute has cooperated
with many archaeological centers of the world – in France, Italy,
Germany, the US, Russia and Israel. Almost 1,000 books have been
published as a result of cooperation in archeology, anthropology,
paleography, sociology, ethnography and folklore.

LONG-TERM STABILIZATION OF AMD REAL EXCHANGE RATE RECORDED FIRST
YEREVAN, JULY 27. ARMINFO. Long-term stabilization of the AMD real
exchange rate has the for the first time been recorded in Armenia this
year, President of the RA Central Bank Tigran Sargsyan told a press
conference. He pointed out that the influence of this factor on
exports and import must be considered in this aspect. The CB President
restrained from making forecasts for the second half of 2004. Sargsyan
added that last year, though the AMD nominal exchange rate got
stabilized its devaluation was 10 per cent.
The CB is currently conducting inspections at commercial banks to
reveal violations of foreign currency position and performed but not
registered operations. The CB President pointed out that no violations
of foreign currency positions have bee recorded today. According to
him, in conditions of the slump of the USD exchange rate during the
last two weeks, losses were sustained by the banks with long currency
position, most Armenian bank being such. However, despite the serious
situation on the currency market, banks were uninterruptedly serving
their clients. Sargsyan pointed out that the daily volume of financial
operations performed by Armenia’s banks is 50mln. USD.
In general, the CB accounted for the situation that developed on the
country’s currency market by the fact that US dollar flows to Armenia
in the first half of 2004 exceeded last year’s index by
50%. Specifically, transfers from abroad through commercial banks
totaled 300mln. USD in the first half of 2004 as against 200mln. USD
last year. A sharp increase in the number of transfers by means of the
international payment systems Western Union and Money Gram was
recorded. Sargsyan stressed that the liberalization of Russian
legislation (one person can take out of the country up to 10,000 USD)
allowed a sharp increase in the currency flows to Armenia, which
covers the funds received from the “Lincy” Foundation (56-60mln. USD)
last year. According to Sargsyan, the rate of increase in the volume
of transfers will be maintained until the end of the year, which is
confirmed by the much better state of the current account than was
forecast.
The CB intends to publish its position on the advisability of
long-term structural reforms. Specifically, the RA Central Bank will
present its point of view of the necessity of introducing instruments
of neutralization of long-term influence, if the AMD stabilization
continues.

GERARD L.GAFESCHYAN MUSEUM OF MODERN ART WILL BE CONSTRUCTED IN
ARMENIA IN 2007
YEREVAN, JULY 27. ARMINFO. Some $25 mln will be used for construction
of Gerard L.Gafeschyan Museum of Modern Art included in the Cascade
architectural complex. The construction is supposed to be started in
the autumn of the current year.
Talking to ARMINFO, PR-Coordinator of the Fund of Gasfeschyan Museum
Sirvard Karapetyan said that the construction of the upper area of the
Cascade, which is just partially repaired also depends on selection of
a definite type of architectural project of the museum. She said that
many design-orgnaizations have responded to the tender announced by
the fund, presenting their project of construction. The final results
of the tender will be announced in autumn, before beginning of the
construction works. It should be noted that one of the tender
participants, a Viennese COOP HIMMELBLAU, proposed that the museum be
constructed on the upper space of the complex. Two other companies
from the USA and Holland will complete with this company at the final
stage of the tender. The construction is supposed to be completed by
2006-2007.
A collection of the treasures of a prominent billionaire, Armenian by
origin, Gerard L.Gafeschyan (Glass Art), the glass works by such
artists as Stanislav Libenskiy and Yaroslava Brikhtova will be
exhibited at the Museum. The billionaire will present part of his
collections of the works of a famous Brazilian sculptor Fernando
Botero, whose work “Cat” made from black bronze decorates the lower
area of the Cascade.
It should be noted that Gafeschyan allocated $30 mln for constriction
of the Museum and exploitation of the whole complex Cascade, part of
these funds will be used to replace 20 escalators with new ones.

CSTO’s INTERFERENCE IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH, GEORGIAN-OSSETIAN CONFLICTS
INADVISABLE: NIKOLAY BORDYUZHA
YEREVAN, JULY 27. ARMINFO. Interfering in such delicate matters as
relations between conflicting parties is inadvisable for the CSTO,
Secretary General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization
(CSTO) Nikolay Bordyuzha stated in his interview to “Rosbalt”,
responding to a question about the CSTO’s participation in the
settlement of the Georgian-Ossetian and Nagorno-Karabakh conflicts.
According to him, the CSTO is not directly involved. “The CSTO
member-state are. Russia is involved in settling both conflicts,”
Bordyuzha said. According to him, professionals who know the problem
and have dealt with for many years must work there. “The only thing we
do is thoroughly following the trends to properly respond if it comes
to hostilities,” he said. According to him, the organization’s task is
being ready to propose to the Collective Security Council political
measures to neutralize negative consequences.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ONE OF MOST ANCIENT GRAINS FOUND IN SOUTH CAUCASUS AND MIDDLE ASIA
FOUND IN ARMENIA
YEREVAN, JULY 27. ARMINFO. While exploring the rocks in the canyon of
the river Kasakh a group of Armenian and French archaeologists has
found a monument of mesolite (epipaleolite) quite unique for the South
Caucasus and Middle East region, says Boris Gasparyan, the head of the
group, the employee of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of
the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia.
Found in the Kmlo caves near the village of Apna, Aragatson region,
were not only fragments of obsidian tools but also a wild wheat grain
dating back from a period 10,000-8,000 years ago. If the experts
confirm the age of the grain it will become one of the oldest grains
ever found in the region’s mesolite monuments (11,000-10,000 years
ago).
The discovered cultural layers are well preserved which is a good
opportunity to collect enough scientific materials about the
period. Despite threat of caving-in the archaeologists are going to
continue the excavations. The group consists of three research
teams. Besides the Kmlo caves they are exploring the traces of the man
living in the areas of so called paleo lakes (middle paleolite). There
they have found sites of primitive men who are assumed to do hunting,
fishing and collecting.
Another group is examining the rock paintings found in the cave
Gegamavan I, 1 km of the Kmlo caves. The unique paintings are in ochre
– a substance said to be used only in late eneolite and early bronze
(IV-III). Meanwhile the Gegamavan I paintings date back from
neolite. The neolite man proves to already master the linear drawing
technique. The paintings depict animals mostly deer. So the findings
have shown that the rock painting traditions widely presented in the
mountains of Gegama, Sunik and Aragats are older than they were
thought to be.
The objective of the expedition is to study the ancient history of the
use of obsidian as a tool of the primitive man. Obsidian tools are
widely spread over the territory of historical Armenia and perfectly
characterize social-economic relations of the Stone Age.
The expedition is financed by Gfoeller Foundation (US).
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress