LEGISLATIVE COMMISSION OF FRENCH PARLIAMENT TURNED DOWN DRAFT ON PENALTY FOR GENOCIDE DENIAL
PanARMENIAN.Net
11.05.2006 13:44 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Wednesday May 10, the Legislative Commission of
the French Parliament turned down the draft aiming at penalizing the
negation of the Armenian Genocide. This decision followed a request
of French President Jacques Chirac. The French deputies remain free
to take part in programmed work on May 18.
“We are afraid that certain deputies sacrifice the memory of the
victims of the Armenian genocide, yielding to the political and
economic pressures exerted by Turkey,” said Alexis Govciyan, chairman
of the Coordination Council of the ArmenianOrganizations of France
(CCAF).
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

CANADIAN READERS APPROVE OF PM STATEMENT ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
PanARMENIAN.Net
11.05.2006 13:59 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The overwhelming majority of readers of the Gazette
Canadian newspaper approved of the statement of Prime Minister Stephen
Harper that he made on the Armenian Genocide. During an on-line survey
“Do you think Stephen Harper acted correctly by recognizing the
Armenian Genocide,” 97% of readers answered affirmatively, while 3%
said “no”.
In April Canadian PM recognized the Armenian Genocide in Ottoman Turkey
in 1915. The Turkish MFA called the statement “insulting and having
a negative impact on the relations between the two countries.” May
8 Ankara temporarily recalled its Ambassador in Ottawa Aydemir Erman
“for consultations,” RFE/RL reports.

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE: TURKEY CONSIDERS POSSIBLE ECONOMIC SANCTIONS AGAINST FRANCE
PanARMENIAN.Net
11.05.2006 14:24 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Consultations will be held in Ankara with all
Turkish Ambassadors accredited abroad, as it was the case with
envoys to Paris and Ottawa – Osman Koroturk and Aydemir Erman,
stated Turkish MFA Spokesperson Namik Tan. In his words, after the
French Senate recognized the Armenian Genocide in 2001, Turkey also
recalled Ambassador to France, who returned to Paris after a 6-month
stay in Ankara.
Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer is going to send a letter to
Jacquest Chirac. Simultaneously, economic sanctions against Paris are
considered. “Political circles of Ankara hope that French companies,
specifically Renault, will oppose to Government decision,” Tan stated,
reports the Marmara Istanbul-based newspaper.

5TH SHIFT OF ARMENIAN PEACEKEEPERS LEFT FOR KOSOVO TODAY
PanARMENIAN.Net
11.05.2006 14:30 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The 5th shift of Armenian peacekeepers left for
Kosovo today, Armenian MOD Head’s Spokesperson, colonel Seyran
Shahsuvaryan told PanARMENIAN.Net. To remind, the 4th shift of
peacekeepers, who numbered 34, left for Kosovo on October 19, 2005. The
4th shift is distinguished with the battalion comprising skilled
servicemen, who had already visited Kosovo once. To remind, Armenian
peacekeepers are located in the zone of US responsibility. Armenian
servicemen mainly protect check-points and special destination objects.

BULGARIAN PARLIAMENT TURNED DOWN BILL RECOGNIZING ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
PanARMENIAN.Net
11.05.2006 14:41 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The People’s Assembly of Bulgaria has turned down
the bill on recognition of the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire
in 1915.
Bulgarian coalition, having historical Turkish origins, voted against
the bill unanimously. The opposition supported the draft. After
the vote opposition MPs stated that Bulgaria will have to recognize
the Armenian Genocide soon or later, reports the Public TV Company
of Armenia.

MELANGE PROCESSING PLANT TO OPEN IN ARMENIA
PanARMENIAN.Net
11.05.2006 14:46 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ A plant for processing melange, a component of
propellant, will open in Armenia.
According to Armenian MOD Head’s Spokesperson, colonel Seyran
Shahsuvaryan, Secretary of the National Security Council, Defense
Minister Serge Sargsyan and OSCE Secretary General Marc Perrin de
Brichambaut will take part in the ceremony. A store of the propellant
component, which is a liquid oxidant called melange, remained in
Armenia after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Its reserve makes
872 tons. Melange is a highly toxic and aggressive substance, which
poses threat to population and environment.

A-320: SOCHI AIRPORT DISPATCHER DISAPPEARED
PanARMENIAN.Net
11.05.2006 14:52 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Decoding and study of conversation between the crew
of A-320, which fell into the Black Sea on the night of May 3, with the
dispatcher are complete. However expertise returns are not subject to
publication before the investigation completes. It is known that the
plane fell when gaining altitude. The pilot failed the first attempt to
land the plane at Adler airport due to bad meteorological conditions.
However, when he was making the second approach operation, the
dispatcher told him the weather conditions worsened again and gave
a command to turn right and gain height. The plane fell, when making
that maneuver, reports Lenta.ru
NEWSru.com notes there is little hope to find flight recorders due
to the complicated relief of the location. Besides, according to
press reports, dispatcher, who led the Armavia flight from the Sochi
airport and sent the plane that was going to land to make a second
approach operation, disappeared. Nothing is known about him yet.

AZERBAIJAN DENIES ARMENIAN PROPOSAL TO HOLD FOOTBALL FIXTURES IN YEREVAN AND BAKU
Armenpress
May 11 2006
BAKU, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS: Fuad Asadov, the secretary general of
the Football Federation of Azerbaijan, questioned the ability and
willingness of Armenian authorities to ensure security of Azeri
football-players if they play their qualification match for Europe’s
championship in Yerevan.
Asadov’s remarks were quoted by Trend news agency just a day before
football chiefs of Armenia and Azerbaijan are to meet with UEFA
officials on May 12 to decide the fate of the games after the two
rival nations were drawn into the same Group A of the qualifying
competition for the 2008 European football championship. Earlier this
year Ruben Hayrapetian, the chief of Armenian Football Federation,
said Armenia was ready to host the game with Azerbaijan and guarantee
the security of its players. He also said that Armenians were ready
to travel to Azerbaijan and play there.
Hayrapetian’s assurances were backed by Armenian foreign minister
Vartan Oskanian who told a Russian daily that Yerevan was willing
and able to guarantee the security of the Azerbaijani national squad.
However, Asadov was quoted by Trend as describing the Armenian offer
as ‘not serious.” He said the UEFA will help the sides to choose a
third country to face each other. The two fixtures are scheduled for
September 2007.

ARMENIAN PROSECUTORS DEPART FOR SOCHI TO IDENTIFY THE CAUSE OF PLANE CRASH
Armenpress
May 11 2006
YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS: A group of Armenian prosecutors have left
today for Russian resort city Sochi to join Russian counterparts in
the ongoing criminal investigation into the May 3 crash of an Armenian
passenger jet that killed all 113 people aboard. The Armenian team
is led by chief investigator Hakob Gharakhanian.
The office of Armenian chief prosecutor said in line with an agreement
with Russian counterparts Armenian prosecutors will interrogate
some people in Sochi and will also conduct other investigation
actions. Armenian investigators may stay in Sochi for at least two
weeks. Armenian and Russian prosecutors opened separate criminal cases
immediately after the Airbus A320 of the Armavia airline plunged into
the Black Sea.
Meantime a Russian transportation official was quoted by RIA news
agency as saying that recovery teams have about three weeks to locate
and retrieve the flight data recorders of the Armenian airliner.
“We have a time limit, about 30 days from the moment of the crash,”
said Alexander Davydenko, who is coordinating the operation to locate
the black boxes.
He added that batteries of the black boxes, which are thought to be
at the depth of 400-450 meters (1,300- 1,470 feet), would run down
in 30 days.
Earlier wreckage had been reported at 680 meters (2,230ft).
Vladimir Yerygin, who oversees technological support for the operation
, said earlier that specialists from Toulouse-based Airbus were
planning to use advanced hydroacoustic equipment to find the precise
location of the black boxes and later recover them using a deep-sea
vehicle.
He said the main group of French experts, which left the port of Sochi
Wednesday morning, would set up a data-processing center on board one
ship, and another ship with the Kalmar deep-sea craft would continue
scanning the seabed for parts of the A-320.

EDIFICE IN PLACE OF CINEMA HOUSE WILL NOT BE HIGHER THAN BUILDINGS IN REPUBLICAN SQUARE
Armenpress
May 11 2006
YEREVAN, MAY 11, ARMENPRESS: Chief architect of Yerevan, Samvel
Danielian, told a news conference today that ‘a multi-functional’
edifice that is going to be built in place of Cinema House near what
Yerevan residents call Vernisage will not be higher than buildings
in nearby Republican Square.
He said the first 4 or 5 floors of the building will be given to the
Cinema House and the rest will house offices. According to Danielian,
the design of the future building will be approved by the municipality
only after deciding how many floors it will have and where its parking
lot will be built.
Danielian said also another ‘multi-functional’ edifice will be erected
in place of Sevan hotel in downtown Yerevan, but he added the building
will have as many floors as the hotel had.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress