ARMENIAN TO PLAY IN GERMANY FOR IRAN’S SOCCER SQUAD
Armenpress
May 19 2006
YEREVAN, MAY 19, ARMENPRESS: Iran football boss Branko Ivankovic has
picked up ethnic Armenian Andranik Teymourian as the only Christian
player of his 23-man squad for this summer’s World Cu in Germany.
The Armenian language newspaper ‘Alik,’ published in Tehran< said in a series of recent games of Iran's national squad Teymourian has displayed himself as an excellent player. Ivankovic described him as 'new and exceptional phenomenon in the Iranian football." Teymourian began his soccer carrier at 17 playing first for Ararat Armenian team of Tehran, then he moved to Abumoslem FC. The Iranians have been drawn in Group D to face Mexico, Portugal and Angola. Ivankovic's squad features also veteran striker Ali Daei, who will be playing in his second World Cup after appearing in France eight years ago, while there are also five Europe-based players selected, including Bayern Munich's former Asian Player of the Year Ali Karimi

ARF TO GET NEW POSITIONS IN THE GOVERNMENT
Armenpress
May 19 2006
YEREVAN, MAY 19, ARMENPRESS: A TV boss closely affiliated with
the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) has agreed to quit his
job which he said he loved very much in return for a seat in the
parliament, it emerged today.
Gegham Manukian, chief of Yerkir Media TV, will replace Levon
Mkrtchian, a former head of the ARF parliament faction, who was
appointed by president Kocharian new education minister after Sergo
Yeritsian from the embattled Orinats Yerkir of parliament speaker
Arthur Baghdasarian was forced to resign.
Gegham Manukian was on the ARF slate when it contested the 2003
parliamentary elections.
Deputy parliament chairman Vahan Hovhanesian from the ARF, who
heralded the news today, agreed that Mkrtchian’s appointment has
boosted ARF’s presence in the government but added that it has also
increased its share of responsibility. Hovhanesian said his party
expected to take up some other top government positions, vacated by
Orinats Yerkir’s members.

THE NEW YORK TIMES: TURKEY’S STANCE IS HARD TO FATHOM
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.05.2006 16:09 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkey’s self-destructive obsession with denying
the Armenian Genocide seems to have no limits. The Turks pulled out
of a NATO exercise this week because the Canadian prime minister used
the term “genocide” in reference to the mass killings of Armenians
in Turkey during and after World War I.
Before that, the Turkish ambassador to France was temporarily recalled
to protest a French bill that would make it illegal to deny that
the Armenian genocide occurred. And before that, a leading Turkish
novelist, Orhan Pamuk, was charged with “insulting Turkish identity”
for referring to the genocide (the charges were dropped after an
international outcry), The New York Times writes.
“The preponderance of serious scholarship outside Turkey accepts that
more than a million Armenians perished between 1914 and 1923 in a
regime-sponsored campaign. Turkey’s continued refusal to countenance
even a discussion of the issue stands as a major obstacle to restoring
relations with neighboring Armenia and to claiming Turkey’s rightful
place in Europe and the West. It is time for the Turks to realize
that the greater danger to them is denying history.
Turkey’s stance is hard to fathom. Each time the Turks lash out, new
questions arise about Turkey’s claim to a place in the European Union,
and the Armenian Diaspora becomes even more adamant in demanding a
public reckoning over what happened. Granted, genocide is a difficult
crime for any nation to acknowledge.
But it is absurd to treat any reference to the issue within Turkey as a
crime and to scream “lie!” every time someone mentions genocide. By the
same token, we do not see the point of the French law to ban genocide
denial. Historical truths must be established through dispassionate
research and debate, not legislation, even if some of those who
question the evidence do so for insidious motives.
But the Turkish government considers even discussion of the issue
to be a grave national insult, and reacts to it with hysteria. Five
journalists who criticized a court’s decision to shut down an Istanbul
conference on the massacre of Armenians were arrested for insulting
the courts. Charges against four were subsequently dropped, but a
fifth remains on trial,” the article says.

U.N. URGES UNITED STATES TO CLOSE SECRET JAILS
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.05.2006 16:28 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The United Nations called on the United States
to shut down the Guantanamo Bay camp and other secret jails run in
offshore states where suspects in terrorism are kept. According to
the U.N.
committee the prisoners are subjected to tortures what is the violation
of the U.N. Geneva Convection against torture. U.S. representative
stated at the committee sitting that cases of torture and inhuman
treatment in Guantanamo and other prisons are rare. Although the
statements by the U.N. committee members have no juridical force the
experts serving on it carry authority, reported Lenta.ru.

RA PRESIDENT’S ADVISOR BAGRAT YESAYAN DISMISSED
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.05.2006 16:37 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ By Armenian President Robert Kocharian’s decree,
President’s Advisor for struggle against corruption, coordination of
activities of national minorities and NGOs Bagrat Yesayan was removed
from the office.
By another presidential decree Eduard Khurshudyan was removed from
the post of Armenian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
to Kyrgyzstan. The office will be assumed by Levon Khachatryan,
the Armenian Ambassador to Kazakhstan (residence in Almaty).

INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND TO ALLOCATE ARMENIA EXTRA $4.9 MILLION
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.05.2006 17:00 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The International Monetary Fund completed the
second observation round of the poverty reduction program implemented
in Armenia. As PanARMENIAN.Net came to know from the IMF office in
Yerevan, Armenia will be allocated extra $4.9 million.
The 3-year term program amounts in some $33 million.
The sum of the credits rendered with the account of the latest decision
makes some $14.7 million.

UAR: KOMMERSANT DENGI DIDN’T SPREAD CD ON “TURKISH GENOCIDE PERPETRATED BY ARMENIANS”
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.05.2006 18:06 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The information that Kommersant Dengi weekly (number
19) affixed a booklet telling about the places of interests in Turkey
and a CD with a 70-minute film about the “Turkish genocide perpetrated
by Armenians” does not correspond to reality. As PanARMENIAN.Net
reporter came to know from the news department of Union of Armenians
of Russia, “it’s a canard spread by some news agencies.”
According to the source, the department employees bought the magazine
on May 19 and found nothing of the kind there. Head of the news
department David Babayan confirmed this.

IRAN-U.S. RELATIONS CAN HAVE IMPACT ON ARMENIA
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.05.2006 18:23 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Iran-U.S. relations can have an impact on Armenia
in all respects, well known political scientist Andranik Mihranyan
stated in Yerevan. In his words, the only stable path joining Armenia
with the outer world lies through Iran. “It’s true that the principal
communications come through Georgia, but we do know how unreliable
this neighbor is,” Mihranyan underscored.
The Russian political scientist supposes that if the U.S. deals a
blow the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline can be damaged. “A counterblow
will destabilize the whole Near East. At that, taking into
account the tension in the Russian-Georgian relations, the
Georgia-Azerbaijan-Turkey axis and absence of any relations with
Turkey, Armenia is threatened with isolation. Under such circumstances
a policy for preventing isolation should be developed,” he said,
reported Novosti-Armenia.

KARABAKH CONFLICT SETTLEMENT IN HANDS OF GREAT POWERS
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.05.2006 18:26 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ “I exclude the possibility of presence of NATO
contingent in the region and resumption of hostilities, political
scientist Andranik Mihranyan stated in Yerevan. In his words, under
the current circumstances, the “settlement is in the hands of great
powers but not of Armenia or Azerbaijan. “I think the promotion of
the settlement process can be conditioned by the U.S. concern in the
region. Azerbaijan will never agree on Karabakh’s independence while
Armenia will never agree on Karabakh’s joining Azerbaijan. In this
case a decision that will make Yerevan and Baku agree with a certain
formula is essential,” he remarked bringing the example of the “road
maps” advanced by each U.S. administration.
When touching upon the Kosovo precedent Mihranyan reminded that the
Russia Foreign Minister and President bound the possibility of Kosovo
independence with the Transdnestrian, Abkhazian and South Ossetian
problems.
“The task of the Armenian diplomacy is to expand this list. It would be
good if some states, for instance Upper Volta, San Marino or Andorra,
recognized the independence of Nagorno Karabakh immediately after
the recognition of Kosovo’s independence,” Mihranyan underscored.

OSCE CONCERNED OVER ARMENIAN CEMETERY DESTRUCTION IN NAKHICHEVAN
PanARMENIAN.Net
19.05.2006 18:48 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ “I am well informed that the destruction of the
Armenian cemetery in Nakhichevan aroused Armenia’s sharp reaction,”
OSCE Secretary General Marc Perrin de Brichambaut stated. In his words,
if the political tension in the region acquires a cultural aspect in
addition, it will become an aggravating factor. “The Catholics of All
Armenians expressed his deep concern over the issue. We are going
to proceed with our activities targeted at the Karabakh conflict
settlement to prevent such deeds. We are all very much concerned,”
the OSCE Secretary General underscored, reported Mediamax.