A NUMBER OF NON-PARLIAMENTARY PARTIES OF ARMENIA ARE FOR REDUCTION OF THE 5% BARRIER TO THE ARMENIAN NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
ARMINFO News Agency, Armenia
October 5, 2006 Thursday
Leaders of a number of non-parliamentary parties of Armenia are for
reduction of the 5% barrier to the Armenian National Assembly.
Speaking at the Discussion Club “Pastark” Thursday, Leader of the
Liberal United Communist Party Vazgen Safaryan said his party is for
reduction of the barrier to 3% and for a 100% proportional system of
elections. In his turn, Leader of Democracy and Labor party Spartak
Melikyan also came out for the proportional system, as “deputies
elected through a majority system do not represent broad sections of
the population.” All the political forces running for the parliament
must be represented in election commissions and the barrier must
be reduced to 3%, he said. Both the politicians believe that Venice
Commission experts who participated in the parliamentary discussions
on amendments to the Election Code “fulfill the order of the incumbent
authorities to secure their re-election.”
In his turn, Leader of Marxist Party David Hakopyan known by his
eccentric statements said the acting Election Code of Armenia “was
invented in 1999 by the junta of the Union of volunteers “Yerkrapah”
Albert Bazeyan, Smbat Ayvazyan and Victor Dallakyan. It serves the
interest of the ‘bourgeois absolute’ and does not meet the public
interests. The so-called “parliamentary opposition” does not care of
this.” That is why elections have turned into business. D. Hakobyan
proposed reducing the barrier to 1% and introducing compulsory
examinations for candidates on world history, Armenian history, law
and oratorical skill. The deposit must be differentiated i.e. 10% of
a deputy’s income. He also proposes fining voters for non-attendance
and limiting their political rights for 5 years. In addition, he
demands a 90/40 ratio of proportional and majority seats.
V. Safaryan and S. Melikyan said their parties may join other
ideologically close ones before the elections. While. D. Hakobyan
said his party will run for the parliament independently.

RA DM VISITED 14TH INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION OF DEFENSE COMPLEXES “DEFENDORY INTERNATIONAL”
ARMINFO News Agency, Armenia
October 5, 2006 Thursday
The Secretary of the National Security Council under RA President,
RA Defense Minister, Serzh Sarkissyan, has participated, October
3, in the ceremony of opening the 14th International Exhibition of
defense complexes “Defendory International” and got acquainted with
the latest defense armament samples.
As the Defense Ministry’s press-secretary, Seiran Shahsuvaryan, told
ArmInfo, the DM also visited the pavilion of a joint Armenian-Greek
enterprise “LT-PIRKAL”, which is a daughter enterprise of the
Greek EBO-PIRKAL. Here the Minister has met with the managers of
the enterprise’s Greek part and discussed the issues related to the
present and future activities of the enterprise. The same day, the
delegation, headed by S. Sarkissyan, visited the Military Academy
of Lad Forces of Greece, where he met with the Academy’s management
and a group of Armenia’s AF servicemen, studying in the Academy. The
delegation has also visited the Military Museum of the National Defense
Ministry of Greece. After the meeting with the Museum’s management and
acquaintance with the exhibits, the sides have preliminarily agreed
to hold an exhibition in the museum in 2007, devoted to the history
of Armenia’s Armed Forces.
A meeting of S. Sarkissyan with his Greek colleague, Evangelos
Meimarakis, was held October 4. During the meeting, the present level
and prospects of Armenian-Greek military relations was discussed,
an agreement on extension of Armenian- Greek cooperation in the area
of military education and peace-making activities was reached.. S.
Sarkissyan met with the representatives of the country’s Armenian
community the same day in the Embassy of Armenia in Greece. The issues,
concerning increase of education level of students , studying in Greek
Military Establishments, as well as improvement of life conditions
were discussed during the meeting, after which S. Sarkissyan held
a press-conference with the community’s representatives, where he
summed up the visit.

ARMENIAN LAW INFORCEMENT AGENCIES DISCLOSED MURDER OF “AVIASERVICE” CJSC SERVICE CHIEF ARTHUR KHALATYAN
ARMINFO News Agency, Armenia
October 5, 2006 Thursday
The Armenian law-enforcement agencies have disclosed the murder of
“Aviaservice” CJSC service chief Arthur Khalatyan.
The Armenian Police press-service says that as a result of
operative-investigation actions it was found out that an inhabitant
of Byureghavan Robert Sargsyan entered into collusion with his cousin
Henrik Hovnikyan and his friend Tatoul Mirzoyan with the intention
to take possession of the deceased’s flat, cruelly beat and smothered
him. Tatoul Mirzoyan is arrested, Robert Sargsyan and Henrik Hovnikyan
are wanted by the police. Khalatyan’s body was found on September 30
around 11:30 PM. The public prosecutor’s office of Kotayk region has
instituted a criminal case under part 1 of Clause 104 (murder) of the
Armenian Criminal Code. According to the law enforcement agencies,
Sargsyan got acquainted with Khalatyan on September 20, 2006, through
the “PB Realty” Agency to buy his flat for 145 thousand dollars. On
September 30 around 11 AM Sargsyan and Khalatyan met in Yerevan to
clarify some questions about the price and agreed to come to the
agency two hours later. But afterwards it was impossible to get in
touch with Khalatyan, and Sargsyan refused the meeting. The same day
around 4 PM Sargsyan left his car VAZ 2121 at his relative’s in Zar
village and disappeared in an unknown direction.

BASESCU IN ARMENIA: ROMANIANS PAY FOR TRANSITION FROM COMMUNISM TO CAPITALISM
Rompres news agency, Bucharest,
5 Oct 2006
Yerevan, 5 October: The transition from communism to capitalism is a
decision assumed by politicians and taken to effect only if they have
the populations’ support, who pays the costs of this transformation,
said on Thursday 5 October in Yerevan the Romanian President Traian
Basescu in front of the students and professors with the State
University.
The Romanian head of state made a presentation of the transformations
occurred in Romania since the revolution in December 1989. He said that
Romanians had the power and patience to bear the transition period,
for they wanted to join Europe that they had left against their will
50 years before.
“We are aware that the EU accession is a new beginning for Romania.
Our country, as NATO and EU member, regained its dignity by coming
back home and starts the difficult process of the effective EU
integration,” said Basescu. The Romanian president stressed that it
would take many years until Romania will be fully integrated into
the European structures.
Traian Basescu said that Romania grew economically and politically
since 2000, the first year when the Romania economy gave signs of
recovery and reported a 1.5 per cent growth of GDP, which proved that
the transition period was over.
The Romanian president received on Thursday the title Doctor Honouris
Causa of the state university in Yerevan, being his second such award
received since he became president. He also received the Diploma of
Honour and Merit of the same university.

ROMANIAN PRESIDENT RETURNS FROM ARMENIA
Rompres news agency, Bucharest,
5 Oct 2006
Bucharest, 5 October: President Traian Basescu arrived back home on
Thursday [5 October] from a two-day official visit to Yerevan paid
at the invitation of Armenian counterpart Robert Kocharyan.
Basescu told reporters at Bucharest’s Henri Coanda International
Airport that the visit had been part of several such visits paid
to the Black Sea states, being aimed at strengthening the bilateral
relations with the Black Sea countries with a view to establishing
a security space conducive to the area’s development.
The talks held in Yerevan had focused on the need to implement the
project on setting up the Black Sea Euro-region, the president said;
the visit was an opportunity to adjust the bilateral Romanian-Armenian
agreements to Romania’s new status of a European Union member,
he added.
During talks with the Armenian president, Basescu said Romanian
backs unreservedly Armenia’s moves to get closer to the European and
Euro-Atlantic structures.
The two leaders also tackled the trade between Romania and Armenia
and discussed a range of projects that might be achieved by the
two countries such as Armenia using the Romanian Black Sea port
of Constanta, the opening of a direct airline between Yerevan and
Bucharest and the establishment of joint chambers of commerce.
Basescu also had talks with the Armenian premier and met the students
and professors of the Yerevan State University, to whom he spoke
about Romania’s transition from communism to capitalism, about the
costs paid by the Romanians on this road and the implications of
Romania’s EU membership, which – he said – is an as long road as the
one of transition.
The Romanian leader was awarded the Doctor Honouris Causa honorary
title by the Yerevan State University and the university’s honorary
diploma and gold medal.
Basescu laid a wreath at the Memorial to the Victims of the Genocide
in Armenia and planted a tree to the memory of nearly 1.5 million
Armenians killed in 1915.

ARMENIAN GEOLOGISTS IMPLEMENT LARGE-SCALE EXPLORATION WORKS AT METAL DEPOSITS
ARMINFO News Agency, Armenia
October 5, 2006 Thursday
Director of “RAKE” contractor company, hydro-geologist Rouben Arakelyan
told an ArmInfo correspondent that the first results of geological
exploration of metal deposits in the Getik River basin, Gegharkunik
region of Armenia, will be presented at the end of the current year.
To note, the geologists carry out the order of Global Gold Corporation,
which exploits several gold deposits in Armenia. The members of the
geological expedition are making the map of the area, determining
the content of precious and non-ferrous metals in the Getik deposit
that occupies an area of 2,5 thousand ha. All the samples taken from
the deposit are passed to the GGC company which, in its turn, passes
them to Armenian and foreign laboratories.
According to Arakelyan, one can imagine the approximate reserves
of ore containing gold, silver, copper and other volcanic rocks and
sediments only after the results of the laboratory examinations.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

EU/SOUTH CAUCASUS : EU TO DEVELOP CLOSER RELATIONS WITH SOUTH CAUCASUS
European Report
October 5, 2006
The EU is to formally endorse European Neighbourhood Policy Action
Plans with three South Caucasian countries, Armenia, Azerbaijan and
Georgia, in November. The final agreement on the ENP Action Plan texts
was reached by the Ministerial Troika of the EU (External Commissioner
Benita Ferrero-Waldner, Finland’s Foreign Affairs Minister Erkki
Tuomioja and Minister of State Gunter Gloser of Germany) during its
visit to the South Caucasus on 2-3 October. The formal adoption of
agreements (each plan is tailor-made to the individual needs of each
country) will take place at the next EU Cooperation Council with
Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, to be held on 14 November in Brussels.
The Commission tabled its proposals for the action plans for the three
South Caucasus countries in March 2005 but formal endorsement of the
plans has been postponed several times. Before doing so, the EU and all
three countries had to tackle particular issues which came up during
negotiations. One of them was the Azerbaijani-Cypriot argument over
northern Cyprus. Azerbaijan was refusing to commit itself unequivocally
to respect the policy of isolation followed by the EU with regard to
Northern Cyprus. In response Cyprus was preventing the action plan
from coming into effect unless Azerbaijan clearly renounced links
to Northern Cyprus. Armenia was trying to secure more financial EU
support for the decommissioning of the Medzamor nuclear plant and
alternative energy supplies. Georgia’s diplomatic energy was in turn
focused on securing greater EU involvement in conflict resolution –
something the “action plans” do not encompass beyond a reference to
the EU’s readiness to assist with post-conflict rehabilitation.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

LISTED WORLD LEADERS IN AD1006
The Guardian (London)
October 5, 2006 Thursday
Ani (Armenia) King Gagik I
Byzantine Empire Basil II Bulgaroktonus
Caliphate Al-Qadir
China Zhenzong, Emperor of Song
Denmark & Norway Sweyn Forkbeard
England Ethelred II
France Robert II the Pious
Ghaznavid Empire Mahmud of Ghaznavid
Holy Roman Empire Henry II
Hungary Stephen I
Ireland High King Brian Boru
Japan Emperor Ichijo
Khmer Empire Jayaviravarman & Suryavarman I
Korea King Mokjong of Goryeo
Poland Boleslaw I the Brave
Tamil Nadu King Rajaraja Chola
Spain Hisham II, Caliph of Cordoba
Sweden Olof the Tax-King
Wales (Gwynedd) Llywelyn ap Seisyll

GHUKASYAN, BRITISH NGO MEMBERS DISCUSS MINE CLEARANCE
Mediamax News Agency, Armenia
Oct 5 2006
Yerevan, 5 October: The president of the Nagornyy Karabakh republic
[NKR], Arkadiy Gukasyan, met representatives of Britain’s Halo
Trust mine clearance non-governmental organization in Stepanakert
[Xankandi] today.
The head of the Nagornyy Karabakh branch the British NGO Halo Trust,
Valon Kumnova, and the representative of the British organization
in the Balkans and in the Caucasus, Matthew Conway, told the NKR
president that about 100 sq.km. of territory have been cleared of
land mines and more than 43,000 projectiles have been defused with
the help of the organization, Mediamax reports.
Gukasyan pointed out that thanks to its high quality work to clear
land mines, Halo Trust has been respected and trusted by the people
of Nagornyy Karabakh for a long time. The NKR president expressed his
gratitude to the representatives of the organization and confirmed
that Stepanakert is ready to make every effort to help implement
their programmes in Nagornyy Karabakh.

ARMENIAN, GREEK DMS DISCUSS MILITARY COOPERATION
Mediamax News Agency, Armenia
Oct 5 2006
Yerevan, 5 October: Armenian Defence Minister Serzh Sarkisyan met Greek
National Defence Minister Evangelos Meimarakis in Athens on 4 October.
The ministers discussed prospects of developing military cooperation
and reached a number of agreements on expanding contacts in military
education and peacekeeping, the press secretary of the Armenian
Defence Ministry, Seyran Shakhsuvaryan, told Mediamax.
Armenian Defence Minister Serzh Sarkisyan attended an opening ceremony
of the Defendory International 2006 arms exhibition on 3 October. The
Armenian defence minister also visited the Military Academy of Land
Forces of Greece, where he met the leadership of the academy and the
Armenian cadets.
The Armenian delegation also visited the military museum of the Greek
Defence Ministry. At the meeting with the curator of the museum an
agreement was reached to organize an exhibition about the history of
the Armenian armed forces in 2007.